IWSG: Finding An Audience

 

Apologies for missing the June post for the Insecure Writer's Support Group. We were on a family trip, and by the time I remembered, it was too late to post. There's always another month, right? Anyway, welcome to the second half of 2026. Links to the IWSG website and Facebook group are here.

Our hosts for this month are Rebecca M. Douglass, Ronel Janse van Vuuren, Cathrina Constantine, and Jacqui Murray.

Here's our question for July: Is there anything you'd like to see changed, added, and/or rearranged about the book publishing industry?

I haven't indie published anything for a few years, and it's been even longer since I've had a short story published in an anthology, so I'm not current in the industry at the moment. For me, the hardest part has always been finding the right audience for my work. I'm not a fast writer or one who writes to market, which makes promotion difficult. There are lots of books chasing fewer and fewer readers. I'm not sure if this is something that can be changed; certainly, I'd love to see reading more encouraged. Perhaps there are better ways of describing books to entice readers. Some readers actively look for specific tropes that they like, but I think it's also helpful to include the unique details that make make a particular book resonate for a particular reader. 

How would you change the publishing industry? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments. 

 

IWSG: The Perils of Publishing

 

New months just keep on happening, don't they? Welcome to August and another Insecure Writer's Support Group post. You can learn more about the IWSG on their website and Facebook page.

 

Our hosts this month are Ronel Janse van Vuuren, Natalie Aguirre, Sarah Foster, and Olga Godim.

 

Our question for August is an interesting one: What is the most unethical practice in the publishing industry? 

 

I've never published anything with one of the major publishing houses; it's been either zines or small presses/anthologies. It's also been a couple of years since I've had a short story published in an anthology. Nevertheless, from what I remember from the days when I was more involved with indie publishing and publishing blogs, the contracts always struck me as one of the worst parts of dealing with publishing. The rights grab that covers technologies that don't even exist yet seems over-the-top to me. My understanding is also that advances haven't, well, advanced much, if any, in the last couple of decades, so you're handing over more potential income streams for less compensation. That's why I prefer to indie-publish my longer works.

 

How do you feel about the publishing industry? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Publishing Paperbacks with Draft2Digital

A couple of years ago, I put together a collection of my fantasy short stories. Part of the reason for this was to make these stories available in paper (some of them had appeared in paper anthologies, but others hadn't.) I tried formatting the paperback version myself through KDP, but I had trouble with the cover. (To be honest, I made the front cover for this collection myself with a purchased stock photo, but I don't have enough skill to make a complete paperback cover.) So I put that project on hold until recently, when Draft2Digital (D2D) opened up their print process for all authors.

If you have a manuscript and a cover, you can convert them into a paper book through a series of guided steps. You start by uploading the manuscript and entering basic details about the book (title, contributors, blurb, and others.) You also need to assign an ISBN at this stage. I used one of my own, but D2D provides free ones if you need them. 

The second step is editing the interior of your book. This includes selecting the paper color and size. D2D offers a variety of genre-themed templates and will allow you to edit page numbers, headers, and other elements. Unfortunately, the Table of Contents I had prepared didn't show up properly through the D2D editor. D2D can add a Table of Contents, but it appears as the first page of the book, which isn't traditional. I ultimately solved the problem by uploading a PDF file instead of a Word document. (I use a template I purchased from BookDesignTemplates for both eBooks and paperbacks; I wonder if that affects formatting D2D can do.)

One you're done with the interior, it's time to work on the cover. Since I didn't have a full cover, D2D paired my eBook cover with a black back cover and spine. I was able to change the color (though it took several tries to match the front). I also had to change the text entered on the spine, but I was also able to upload my publishing logo. The text on the back was the hardest part. D2D automatically uploaded my blurb, author photo, and bio, but the text size for the blurb was too small to be legible. It took some experimentation to make it bigger. I had to shorten my biography to make it fit.

Once I finally finished formatting everything, I decided to order a physical proof to confirm the book looked the way I wanted it to. Ordering a physical proof is $30, but I figured it was worth it since this was the first time I'd used D2D for this. Perhaps when I'm more comfortable with it, I'll stick with free online proofs. I just received the proof (pictured above) on Monday, so I approved the book. Now I have to see how long it takes to be available online. I think the paperbacks will be available on Amazon as well as D2D's other sites, but it may take a few weeks before distribution is complete. I can order author copies in the meantime.

Publishing paper books is a tricky process, but it's worth it to have another, physical format for my works. Hopefully I'll publish The Season Between and Restaurants and Revenge later this year. I'll have full covers designed for them, which will make the publishing process simpler. In the meantime, please let me know if you have any questions about the process, and I'll answer them the best I can.
 

"Glass, Wool, Paper" Is Live!

I don't normally blog on Mondays anymore, but I have a special announcement: my flash fiction short story, "Glass, Wool, Paper" went live at Flash Fiction Magazine on Friday. With themes of objectification of women and their resilience, it seems to be striking a chord with readers. The site is free to read, so please check out the story for yourself if you're interested. If you like the story, please comment on the Flash Fiction Magazine site itself, and feel free to share the link. (I think the most popular stories may be selected for an anthology, so that's why it would be most helpful to comment on the story over there.) I hope you enjoy it!

Publication Announcement: "Glass, Wool, Paper"

My fantasy short story, "Glass, Wool, Paper," will be published online by Flash Fiction Magazine on Friday, January 28th, 2022. Once the link is available, I'll post it here. It's a flash fiction story, well under 1000 words, and has a feminist theme. In the spirit of the genre, I'll keep this post short as well.

2020 in Review: Writing

Welcome to my penultimate post of 2020, where I discuss how my writing plans, like everything else this year, didn't go the way I thought they would. Nevertheless, I did manage to accomplish some useful things.

At the beginning of 2020, my main goal was to finish my urban fantasy series about a dryad living on the UW-Madison campus. I not only need to finish the final book of the trilogy, but I need to revise the first two books. I still continue to struggle with this series. One of my main issues is that the focus of the series has shifted from my heroine to her love interest. I need to do a better job of balancing their stories so I can complete both of them. The other issue is that I keep abandoning this series to focus on shiny new projects. Even when I set goals for myself to write a certain number of words on this series, it doesn't happen. I guess I need to ask myself some hard questions about this series to see if I still want to finish it when I have so many other stories competing for my attention.

Even though I didn't accomplish much on the dryads trilogy, I still finished or started several other projects. They include the first draft of the first book of a cozy mystery series, about half of the second cozy mystery book in that series, a fantasy short story (a pandemic version of the Seven Swans fairy tale) that I'm currently trying to sell, the first draft of a novelette in the Seasons Avatars universe, and another fantasy short story targeted for an anthology that closes next week. The final story isn't quite done as I write this blog post on Sunday, so hopefully I'll have the first draft done before this post goes live.

I didn't indie-publish anything this year, but my short story "A Shawl for Janice" was published in a solarpunk anthology in January. One of my publishing goals for this year was to sell (not just give away) 100 books. It's a modest goal, certainly not more than coffee-level money, but at least I managed to meet it. I sold about 112 books across almost all platforms (I haven't checked Google Play lately.) One publishing thing I did this year was stop relying on distributors like Draft2Digital and publish directly to Kobo, Google, Barnes and Noble, and Apple. This is supposed to give me better control of marketing and promotions, but I still have a lot to learn about working with these platforms.

Given how easily my plans go awry, is it worth setting goals for 2021? I still think so, though I probably need to focus more on my goals and try not to let new projects distract me. Before I can set goals for specific projects, I need to decide how much time I want to give to cozy mysteries and how much time I want to give to my science fiction/fantasy. I think the cozy mysteries offer more market potential, but I still want to write in the Season Avatars universe and revisit other worlds I've created. How to juggle all that along with my job, family, and other personal projects continues to be a challenge.

Happy Holidays to everyone! Next week, I'll discuss reading in 2020. For now, feel free to share how your writing went this year.

General Update 7/22/20

1. Remember how I was talking a couple weeks ago about the difficulties of uploading my stories to the Apple Store? I figured out how to convert them to the right format. Although I don't have Apple devices, I do have an Apple ID. I was able to use that to log onto iCloud and access the Pages app. That allowed me to convert my files to EPUBs the Apple Store could accept. I was able to upload my books to the Apple Store.

2. Another part of getting my publishing ducks in a row was updating my universal book links. I took care of that last Friday, which was a vacation day for me. Some of it was automatic, but I had to copy/paste links too. At least I don't have to update the links in my books just yet.

3. My cozy mystery novel is close to 48,000 words. I hope to finish the first draft by the end of the month, though I expect it to be less than 60,000 words. Some sites say cozy mysteries should be around this range, while others say between 70,000-80,000.)

4. I also started an unrelated short story. I don't want to go into detail, but it's a new twist on an old fairy tale. Hopefully I haven't jinxed this project for myself by discussing it.

5. Hopefully once the cozy mystery and the short story are done, I can return to the last book of my urban fantasy trilogy. I left my hero under perilous circumstances.

6. Other projects I've been working on include sewing masks, baking, and making ice cream. Maybe I can host an afternoon tea when there's a vaccine.

7. While we haven't gone out much this summer, we were able to return to the Field Museum on Sunday. It was strange seeing the main hall (pictured above) so empty on a Sunday afternoon.

So, what's new with you? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments.

On Going Direct

Although I've tried using Kindle Unlimited a couple of times for my books, I prefer to go wide with them to serve as many readers as possible. In the past, I've used distributors such as Smashwords and Draft2Digital (I highly recommend the latter over the former). Distributors make it easy to reach multiple sites with one process. However, publishing directly to sites such as Barnes and Noble, Kobo, Google Play, and Apple also has advantages. You can have greater control over pricing, gain access to special site-only promotions, and receive higher royalties. So last month, I stopped using Draft2Digitial for the distributors listed above and started going direct.

So far, it's been a tedious process republishing my work at different vendors. Kobo and Barnes and Noble were the easiest, since they accepted the files I'd used elsewhere. Google and Apple are more complicated. I have to submit my manuscripts to Google as PDFs and to Apple as epubs. While Word does a straightforward job of creating PDFs from Word documents, I have to use a conversion program like Calibre to create EPUB files. This worked for some of my books, but others got rejected for embedded font errors, and I haven't figured out why. So Apple currently has only one book out of my five-book fantasy series and Lyon's Legacy but not the sequel, Twinned Universes. I'll have to do some more research to figure out what the problem is.


Once I get everything republished properly, then I have to convince Amazon to set the first books of my series back to permafree. Then I can promote them to encourage readers to get the rest of the series.

If you plan to publish your books on multiple sites, I recommend gathering all the information and files you need before you start. It's not just manuscripts and covers; it's blurbs, ISBNs, and other information such as original publication dates. I wound up collecting some of this information in a single document I can use as reference later.

If you're an indie author, do you publish just on Amazon or other sites too? What's your favorite store for ebooks? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments.

IWSG: Industry Changes

We're halfway through this crazy year, and I'm sure things are nowhere near settled yet. At least we have the Insecure Writer's Support Group to share our concerns. If you're not already familiar with the IWSG, you can learn more about them on their website, Facebook page, or Twitter feed.

Our hosts this month are Jenni Enzor, Beth Camp, Liesbet, Tyrean Martinson, and Sandra Cox.

Our question this month is There have been many industry changes in the last decade, so what are some changes you would like to see happen in the next decade?

As a hybrid author, I'm not closely involved with the publishing industry. I have a few short stories in anthologies, but I self-publish my novels and related stories to keep control of my rights. Publishing contacts demand authors sign away all their rights for a fraction of their worth. I'd like to see contracts become more fair. I'd also like to see more opportunities for indie authors to prepare paper copies of their work (I found CreateSpace was much easier to work with than some of the other sites) and to get those works into libraries and bookstores. I hope to see more acceptance of indie authors at the conventions I attend.

What would you like to change about the publishing industry? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments.

IWSG: Publishing Paths

Once again, the Insecure Writer's Support Group is encouraging writers to share their writing journeys with others. You can learn more about the IWSG on their website , Facebook page, or Twitter. This month, our co-hosts are Toi Thomas, T Powell Coltrin, M.J. Fifield, and Tara Tyler.

Our question this month is What publishing path are you considering/did you take, and why?

When I decided to be a writer back in the 90s, traditional publishing with an agent and a publisher was the only real option. Today, I consider myself a hybrid author. Although I'll still publish most of my work independently, I'll participate in anthologies if I find them interesting.I enjoy having control over my projects, and while I obviously want to find a steady stream of readers for my work, I can also write "projects of the heart" to keep my passion for writing alive. I'd rather retain full rights for my novels, but short story markets take fewer rights and introduce my work to new readers. No matter if you pursue traditional publishers/agents (remember: there's no guarantee they'll choose you) or take on the publishing role yourself, writing is a business, and there's no easy path to success. It takes time to develop your craft and find an audience.

What's your writing path? I would love to give you some choices here like the old "Choose Your Own Adventure" books, but I'm afraid there's only one place for comments for this post.

2018 Goals

I talked a little about my goals for 2017 in the December post for the Insecure Writer's Support Group. Since then, I've been thinking about my goals for next year, and believe me, I have a lot of them. This is what I'd like to accomplish in 2018:

Writing

Finish Dryads to Discover (new urban fantasy, first in series)--In Progress

Start Dragons to Deceive (sequel to Dryads to Discover)

Finish “The Unnumbered World” (short story from the Catalyst Chronicles series, set between Twinned Universes and Catalyst in the Crucible, started but not finished)

Revise “The Fighting Roses of Sharon” (standalone fantasy short story, draft complete)

Write and submit to 3-4 anthologies/magazines?--In Progress

Work on Welcome to Costume City (middle grade story, started but not finished)

Plan overall arc for Selathen Avatars series (followup to fantasy Season Avatars series)--In Progress

Publishing

Prepare and publish 1 or 2 box sets for the Season Avatars series

Publish Dryads to Discover

Publish “The Fighting Roses of Sharon” as standalone

Consider collecting fantasy short stories into single eBook/print collection

Marketing

Prepare at least one pull quote graphic for each novella/novel

Send out at least four newsletters

Run a promotion every 1-2 months

Sell 150 units (books, short stories, collections) = 12.5 books/month

Participate in local literary festivals when possible

WisCon?

Other

Finish Jedi costume!

General Leia costume?

Make Santa Jawa costume

Finish 2 Death Star pillows--In Progress (One almost done)

Crochet blanket for Alex

Crochet at least ten SW characters

Troop 20-25 times

Read 150 books

Take 3-4 vacation days to be alone and work on projects

Household

Garage sale!

Get compost bin?

Landscape back yard

This may be overly ambitious, especially since this doesn't account for work, household chores, or  family (though trooping does count for family time). I may have trouble achieving half of this. Still, I'd rather aim too high than too low. At least preparing and posting a list of goals helps me establish priorities and forces me to commit to them. It's possible some of my writing projects may shift in priority as my interests or circumstances change. We'll see how much I've accomplished at the end of 2018.

Are you setting goals for the new year? If so, what are they? Feel free to share in the comments.

Pre-Publishing Questions

Maria Zannini of Book Cover Diva has already made a rough mockup of the cover for Young Seasons. It might be ready as soon as this weekend. Of course, a book cover is just one of the many decisions an indie writer has to make when she puts on her publishing hat. Here are some of the decisions I make before I publish a story:

Purpose--The purpose of this collection is to provide some backstory for the heroines of my Season Avatars series--and to promote the rest of the books. Since the prequel for this series is set hundreds of years before the rest of the books, I want to give readers another way to discover the main characters and this series. Hopefully, readers will want to learn more about Gwen, Jenna, Ysabel, and Kay after reading Young Seasons.

EBook, Paper, or Both?--This decision affects my costs, cover design, and formatting. I use the same template for both eBooks and paper books, but there are some tweaks I make for the different editions. I'll make novels available in both formats, but since Young Seasons is only about 70 pages, I'll make this an eBook edition only. At some point, I'll combine these stories with some of my other short stories to create a longer collection. That will be available in both formats.

Editing Process--I'm so particular about my work that I revise and line-edit my drafts before I even think about letting someone else look at it. After all, the fewer issues there are with the story, the less they'll find, right? What that really means is that other people will find problems I can't see. I've used beta readers and freelance editors in the past. I'm still debating which path to choose for the Young Seasons collection. Ultimately, this decision will have the most impact on release date. It'll also affect quality and the number of copies I need to sell to break even.

Pre-Order or Not?--With books, I normally set them up for pre-order because I need to allow time for perfecting the paper copy (which also affects the eBook version). I'm not preparing a paper edition, though I will probably proof the stories on paper before release. I probably won't put this collection up for pre-order, so once I'm satisfied, I can publish it.

KDP Select or Wide Distribution?--All of my other works are currently available on multiple sites, such as Kobo, B&N, and Apple, in addition to the almighty Amazon. I'm considering making this collection exclusive to Amazon for the first three months to see if it'll help me with promotion and reviews. Honestly, though, I didn't see much improvement with sales or reads the few times I've tried Select. For long-term growth, it's best to be wide.

Price--Due to the short length of this collection, I don't plan to price it above $0.99. I might try making this free, either for short periods or as a permafree. This decision will affect my distribution decision.

Back Matter--If I want readers to discover the rest of the Season Avatars series, it would make sense to include a sample chapter from Scattered Seasons at the end of this collection. However, not all readers want bonus material, since they judge the length of the story by the length of the file. If I do this, I'll mention it in the book description.

Promotion--Pricing and distribution decisions will affect my ability to promote my work with paid ads.

As you can see, there's a lot of thought that goes into publishing, and I haven't even mentioned blurbs, keywords, or genres. Some writers would rather have someone else make these decisions so they can focus on writing. I view these decisions as experiments. Each decision is a different variable I can change to figure out what works best for the particular work. All writers have to decide how much hands-on control they want and what they're willing to have others do for them. What works for one author might not for someone else. Don't be afraid to try new things and keep asking questions. Questions force you to find the answers that will make you grow.

Publishing 2017

One of my favorite Billy Joel songs is "Miami 2017 (Seen the Lights Go Down on Broadway)." Written in 1976 and released on the Turnstiles album, this song reflects some of the issues going on in New York City at the time. Billy Joel considers this a science fiction song. I've been lucky enough to hear him perform this song in concert. (If you're not familiar with this song, you can watch a video of it here.)

Now that we're in 2017, I thought it would be fun to share with you my parody lyrics to this song. These are inspired by actual news stories about independent publishing, though some of them are a few years old by now. I've linked to what stories I could find and even changed a line when I couldn't find enough evidence to support it. Ultimately, though, this was a lyric rewrite I did for the challenge and my own personal enjoyment.

I’ve seen the lights go out at Borders,

I saw the big publishers laid low,

But books went on without Manhattan.

We all joined KDP

And left there long ago.

They held a debate out in New York

To say the Zon wasn’t our friend.

They said our books were swill,

Our rankings they did kill,

But this revolt will never end.

I've seen the lights go out at Borders
I saw the ruins at my feet
You know we almost didn't notice it
Cause Kindle Countdowns make indie books so cheap.
They took an ad out in the paper
To spark an author civil war.
The flames were everywhere
But readers didn’t care.
They had more choice than before.

I've seen the lights go out at Borders.
I've watched the smaller houses fall
Thanks to Data Guy and Hugh Howey
The newbies went on strike
They never subbed at all.

They sent a blog post out from Kris Rusch
To switch the midlist over for free.
They said the hybrids could stay,
They blew the suits away,
And sank the pundits out at sea

You know those lights were bright at Borders
That was so many years ago
Now B&N lost so much shelf space
That indie publishing’s the safest way to go.
There are not many who remember;
They say a handful still survive
To tell the world about
The way the lights went out
And keep storytelling alive.