by Alice Sudlow |
You work hard to write your best story—and if you’re honest, you’re pretty sure it’s amazing. You share it with other writers to get their feedback, and they agree. You work up your courage and hit the “Submit” button, sending it off to a mysterious panel of writing contest judges.
And then . . . you wait. What will the judges think? Will they agree your story deserves to win it all? Did you write the kind of story that will catch the judges’ eye? What kind of story is that, anyway?
I’m going to take you behind the scenes and reveal exactly what judges are looking for when they choose the winners of writing contests.
by Sarah Gribble |
For some of us, engaging on social media is tricky. Writers tend to be introverts by nature, so putting ourselves out there can be intimidating or seem like a useless waste of time. (It’s neither, and you need to be on social media in this industry. It’s just how it works now.)
Then there’s the other side of the coin, those writers that are on social constantly, using it as a procrastination technique to keep from writing. (Don’t do that.)
As a little social media starter pack, I’m going to give you a few hints and a list of hashtags that will help you connect with other writers, agents, publishers, and, most importantly, your readers.
by J. D. Edwin |
Being a creator means getting your content out there to a target audience, and one of the best ways is through social media channels if you want to reach your readers directly. Here’s some practical advice on social media for writers.
Luckily, it’s actually much easier than you might think. Let’s take a look at the best ways for an author to use four of the biggest social media platforms: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest.
by Joe Bunting |
When I first started blogging, I set up a free account with Blogger. It was great. I didn’t have to understand any crazy computer code. I just had to worry about writing. Then, I read somewhere that I should install Google Analytics to see how many people were reading my blog. It took me an hour, but I figured out how to insert the hieroglyphic-looking code into my theme and opened up my analytics page.
I found out there were about seven people reading my blog. That’s it? I thought. That started me on a quest to figure out how to get more people to read my blog.
by Joe Bunting |
The stereotypical writer used to be a silent, brooding genius who kept to himself and rarely ventured into the outside world, except to do “research” on how the subjects of his stories lived. People imagined an entire profession of Emily Dickinsons, pale and contemplative.
However, for nearly every famous writer—from Ernest Hemingway to Virginia Woolf, J.R.R. Tolkien to Mary Shelley—this stereotype couldn’t be further from the truth.
And the truth is that nearly every great writer had a Cartel.
by Joslyn Chase and Evelyn Puerto |
Hooray, you finished writing your book! But now, it’s time to figure out how to sell it. And perhaps the biggest thing you need to nail is your book cover. To help you do that, here are our top book cover design tips to grab your reader (and get your reader grabbing your book!).
