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Tag: books
Free Editable Author Media Kit!
You may remember the article I re-blogged from fellow blogger Colleen of Silver Threading when she spoke about the importance of an Author Media Kit. And so yall know I’m always looking for free resources right? I was looking for something completely off this subject and discovered this website filled with tons of information for authors and you won’t believe what I found. That’s right, a free editable author media kit. Of course, not everything that says free truly is free so I checked it out and guess what, it’s FREE!
Just visit this website, and follow these directions:
Free Book Stuff > Free Editable Author Media Kit
Put your email address in and they will send you a free editable word template. Download the zip file and save it to your PC / Mac. (When you open it click “Enable Editing” to replace the information and pictures with your own) I would suggest creating a hard-copy Author Media Kit portfolio. Go to Wal-Mart or the dollar store and purchase a nice thick binder. Edit your free kit and print it out. If you could, get a professional author photo taken sometime in the future and add it to your portfolio.
Do we have time for a story? We do. Briefly, this discovery reminded me of women and nice clothes. I know, but hear me out. I always find it exciting that when I ask other women where they got their shoes or how they decorated their home, their answer tends to include bargain stores. Beautiful homes and lovely attire pieced together between Wal-Mart and the Goodwill. Bedroom sets and living room sets that look like they cost a fortune that somebody got from a garage sale. The moral of the story is that professionalism does not have to cost a lot of money. There are tons of free or extremely inexpensive resources available to help us to increase our professional image in just about every area.
So anyway, class dismissed. I’m going to get started on my free author media kit.
Stella Book #3: The Road to Freedom ARC!
As this year prepares to come to an end, so does the Stella Trilogy. The first major update is that I am now accepting readers for an ARC, Advanced Review Copy, of Stella Book #3 as of next month. If you are interested in receiving a free electronic (unedited) version of this book in exchange for an honest review, please complete this form so you can get your copy next month. All reviewers are encouraged to publish the reviews on their blogs but you will receive a link to the books Amazon and Goodread pages a day or two before it releases in which to post your review then as well.
Here’s how it works in 3 easy steps:
1. Click this link to go to my invitation page on VolunteerSpot: http://vols.pt/4vWcc9
2. Enter your email address: (You will NOT need to register an account on VolunteerSpot)
3. Sign up! Choose your spots – VolunteerSpot will send you an automated confirmation and reminders. Easy!
Note: I am using VolunteerSpot to organize this Sign-up. VolunteerSpot does not share your email address with anyone. If you prefer not to use your email address please contact me and I can sign you up manually. I have also added a page to help keep you reminded that I am accepting readers for ARC’s. I will take it down when I have reached my limit for now.
Writing 101 – Assignment #8: Write a Letter – Dear Indie Authors
Yecheilyah Ysrayl
The PBS Blog
Shreveport, LA 71104
Wednesday, November 11, 2015
Indie Author Name
Future Best Selling Author
My Pen Name LLC
Word press Blog
My City, IL 60639
Dear Indie Author Name,
It is a pleasure to see you stepping into this exciting field. It has been far too long since we’ve talked to each other. I was pleased to hear that things are going well for you and that you are happy in your new career.There is something, however, I would like to share with you. I hope it will be beneficial to your new role as an Independent Author.
We live in an age where hackers rob banks from computer screens. Identities are swiped with the clicking of a mouse and the input of numbers on a keyboard. Now days, whole books are stolen, articles are copy and pasted from blogs like yours and websites are turned into books. A legal name is not required to self-publish and apparently, neither is talent. What does this mean for you, dear Indie? There is no sure way of firing the self-employed computer geek from his position in his mother’s basement where he lives off coffee and stolen material. No sure way of tracking down thieves who have no face. There is however, something that we can do: Name Brand Yourself.
It starts with trust really. As an Indie Author you’d have to have tons of trust in your work. Humility is a must but part of being humble is staying firm and my dear Indies, you must stay firm. Start by producing your own website. By website I do not mean your blog. Purchasing a domain name for a blog does not make it a Website. Seek to create your own author website or hire someone else to do it and link your website with your blog.
Next, you’d want to promote your website. This means you will direct people to your website to purchase your books and they can access your amazon pages from there. Remember that trust thing we were talking about? You’ll need it here. Right now you’re pretty much a nobody but being a nobody is part of the deal. Everyone started out as nobody’s. Yes, even Oprah.
Once you’ve established an author website (www.yournamehere.com) you may now add product. Never ever sell PDF copies of your book. My advice would be to sell print books only. Yes, through your website. Use POD (Print On Demand) as your printing company and not just where people can buy your books. If your name branding yourself you should be directing people to your website anyway, not the print on demand site. Am I telling you to forget POD? No. You need them. Unless you have your own printing company somewhere, you will always need Amazon and Smashwords or wherever else Indies are publishing. But, there’s a smarter way to use them. Instead of waiting on royalty checks alone, use PODs as printing companies. That is what they do right? Print your books? Buy in bulk and sell directly through your website.
This is the most secure option I can give you. Make sure to invest in a good platform for your website, preferably one that prohibits people from being able to copy and paste. To go further, set up a legal structure (a sole proprietorship or LLC) if you really want to do it big. This is added protection.
What about Amazon? What about them? You need eBooks so put your Amazon eBook links on your author website. Only have the option to purchase a Kindle or otherwise non-easily downloadable version of your book. (Did I say not to have a PDF version for sale?) DO NOT sell PDF versions of your books on your website. The rest is marketing and promotion. Direct everyone to your author website. Create business cards and bookmarks using your logo and author website. Want to securely Self-Publish a book? Treat it like a business. It will take time (lots of time) but the hope is that people will not be able to get yourwebsite.com out of their heads. Soon they’ll say: “Did you read the latest novel by yourname? Visit http://www.yournamehere.com. That’s right; eventually your name will be the brand they remember.
Does this guarantee illegal copies of your book won’t be available elsewhere? Probably not. That guarantee went out the door when technology surfaced centuries; I’m sorry, worlds ago. Of course, no method is guaranteed, but at least you can keep a better eye on product if you a). produce professional work that is hard to copy and b). you’re selling it from your own site as opposed to someone elses. You never know, you may even save enough money to hire a lawyer. Now that’s what I call taking Self-Publishing to another level.
I will call you next week. In the meantime, I hope to visit your website soon. I’ll access your amazon page from there.
Sincerely,
Yecheilyah Ysrayl
Author, Poet, Blogger
http://literarykornerpublishing.com
Confessions of an Old School Reader
I try, really I do, but I can’t seem to get into a good novel by staring at a computer screen. I’ve done it, but it just doesn’t compare to the real thing. There is something much more intimate and provoking about holding a book in my hands; feeling its cover, running my fingers across the pages, crisp and sharp; the smell of a fresh book that has never been opened, and the potency of the ink when it jumps off the pages; that new smell from brand new books, like cradling a new born in the crook of your arms. So precious and delicate that you almost don’t want to open it. Don’t want to destroy the perfect foundations by bending it’s shiny flaps or causing a crease. In your lap is the weight of your favorite coffee cup, the modest light of the lamp, and a world waiting for you to enter it. To touch and feel the tangibility of book bindings is to go on a creative high of possibilities. All the way down to when you close a book after coming home from the journey and daydream about the revelations and alternate endings. You can end an eBook but you can’t close it. That big red x in the corner won’t do it justice either. I can’t breathe in deep and close my eyes while holding an eBook in my hands. I can’t stare at the front cover as if there’s more to come or fold the pages over. Highlighting isn’t as fun either. Perhaps the best thing about hard-copies is that these books are much more prone to immortality; they will go back for years and years to come. I smile sometimes at the books of my youth that are still found hanging around, too naïve to be read again with the same zeal but too precious to do away with. The satisfied glory of having been read, watch your favorite collection stand and shine beautifully against the backdrop of the book shelf, a time machine right there in your bedroom.
Before The Week Ends
Diversify your bookshelf
I just want to share one final thought before I snuggle in for this week and that is to remember to diversify your book shelf. This can be a project we can all do over the weekend. Look through your books, do they repeat themselves? Are there three rows of Toni Morrison on a five row book case? Do you have 300 books and 250 of them are Chit-Lit? Are there 50 Sci-Fi novels all right next to each other? If you fit this criterion, I want you to take every last one of those books off of the shelf and re-evaluate your reading life. Then go to the thrift store, independent bookstore, flea market, library, Wal-Mart or Barnes and Nobles and buy a book that has nothing to do with your interest. That’s right; pick something you can never see yourself reading. Got it? Great. Now you’re ready.
We all have those books we absolutely love, authors we cannot get enough of or just books we can never throw away. However, if there’s one thing I’ve learned about reading it is the importance of having books covering a full range of subjects. I have cookbooks, medical books, dictionaries, bibles, concordances, and textbooks from back in the day, encyclopedias, journals, literature, urban fiction, poetry, general fiction novels, how-to books and the list goes on and on and I just think you should kinda be like me in this respect.
When you expand your readership to cover a range of subjects it broadens your perspective and opens you up to a whole world of experience right there at your fingertips. It also helps you to learn. Have you ever wondered how people can go to prison and come out scholars? It started by reading and reading and reading on a wide range of subjects. Sure I love history, specifically African American History. I also love poetry and black literature and literature in general but if these are the only kinds of books I have around my outlook is one sided. I will be limited in my way of thought and miss so much knowledge in regard to those other great topics out there and the information these authors have to offer.
Writing Sex Scenes – Erotica / Romance / Urban Fiction
Were all adults here. That said this post is not for children. I’m an adult and if you’re under age I would suggest you stop reading.
There, now that the children have left the room let’s get into it.
First, I have to say I’m not as anti-romance as you’d think. I actually enjoy romance….to an extent. I’m just not the exclusive romance type. You know, the books with the man on the front sporting a six-pack, low cut jeans that makes it obvious he’s not wearing underwear, a cow-boy hat and “come and get it” eyes. That’s just not sexy to me; perhaps because I don’t really see it as being manly enough. I mean sure, I see your oiled down abs but I’m just not impressed. I’m more interested in Romance that incorporates more into the story; romantic adventure or urban fiction if you will where the story is not exclusively about Mary Jane and the six-pack, which brings me back to my purpose of this post: Sex Scenes: Romance, Erotica, and Urban Fiction.
Dear Indie Erotica, Romance, Urban Fiction Writers,
Don’t overdo the sex. Just because you can mention every body part known to man doesn’t mean that you should. Even when it comes to love scenes, readers should feel sexy, aroused even, but not grossed out. Some books I can’t even get through because there’s no emotion behind the action. The character keeps it real and all but that’s not, in my opinion, enough to be enticing. There are some authors who can paint their sex scenes very well and for that I must say that my opinions are from a readers perspective since I don’t actually write erotica. That said, I am not placing judgment, I’m just saying that if your going to write about couples making love put some tact to it. You can mention body parts without being outright vulgar. Now days I just feel like I’m watching a really bad porno movie. Thing is, you can be nasty if you want (were all adults here) but there’s even a way to do that. The idea is to draw us in. Make us feel like we’re in the moment. Make it just as sensual and as intimate as you would if you were actually having sex. Tracy Brown actually writes very good Urban Fiction novels with some steamy scenes. She’s not an Indie Author but she’s a good example of how it should be done. Her books also have other themes incorporated so that its not straight sex (that gets boring after-while, there must be an actual story line people). White Lines for instance is a book about a woman and drug addiction and is a pretty good read. I have a few of her books in fact.
Now, about stories surrounding abuse…
Stories about physical abuse are going to be difficult despite how you look at it. There is no way to write physical abuse stories that are reflective of the truth and make people any less uncomfortable. I still believe, however, that there should be some skill involved. When people are physically abused its not just physical its emotional. This should be incorporated in. As you walk us through the incident, there must be a simultaneous emotional / mental explosion along with what’s happening physically. There is a way to show me the physical and the emotional pain experienced by the character without bluntly stating that he forced his you know what into her you know where. This shows me a glimpse of the abuse and shocks me, but it would be better if the feeling was shown instead of told. The classic: “show me, don’t tell me”:
“He tore down her innocence as if breaking glass, and replaced her inner walls with the maturity of his manhood. She was no longer a child, oblivious to the desire that felt like saliva between her legs. Just like that youth had escaped her. Had taken advantage of her perfection and replaced it with the wisdom to know why mama’s voice moaned in the nighttime. What she would give to go back and listen to mama hum the words to songs only grown-ups knew. Instead, she became a prisoner to the freedom of understanding as it dripped from between her legs. “
I’m not that kind of writer so what you’ve read probably sucked but the point is that books that include sex period requires some kind of skill. Erotica and Urban Fiction are not genres that give us the right to just blurt stuff out. It’s like I tell my husband all the time when it comes to comedy: “A whole bunch of curse words and vulgar language does not necessarily make it funny”. Too often comedians feel like they have to use such language just to make people laugh and it causes them not to be funny at all in my opinion. You don’t have to be nasty to be funny. The same thing applies to writing, it can be real and genuine without overdoing the sex scenes.
The PBS Blog 