Minimizing the Need for Customer Service Is the Best Support Option By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD As an author, I upload my books to over a half-dozen online stores and distributors, using their respective portals to enter each book’s information and files. The interface for each one differs, with some being easy to use and […]
Avoid using “it was,” “that was,” and “this was”—among other things I hired a developmental editor to give me big-picture feedback on my novel. Though her comments overall encouraged me, I have several things to work on and fix. One was that I used the innocuous phrase “it was” too often. How often? It popped […]
In Guy Kawasaki’s new book, APE: Author, Publisher, Entrepreneur-How to Publish a Book, he advances the term “artisanal publishing” as a new way of looking at self-publishing. The vanity publishing of yesteryear can be smartly rejuvenated with a fresh perspective of artistry, hence the concept of artisanal book publishing. As the distinction between traditional publishing […]
Discover the Key Characteristics to Close More Sales By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD In the August issue of TAS Trader, we talked about identifying where your clients are located and adjusting your market strategy accordingly. But marketing is only half of a successful sales and marketing initiative. The other half is closing sales. Though much […]
How authors can resume writing without losing time or momentum When I started writing, it always took me several writing sessions to finish anything. I fell into a bad habit. When I would resume writing (even after taking a short break) I would re-read everything I had written so far, editing along the way. Then […]
In The Middle of Struggles, Turmoil, and Difficulties, Pause to Celebrate the Positive By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD The United States and a few other countries will celebrate Thanksgiving in November. Canada and some other nations do so in October. Regardless of when you celebrate Thanksgiving—or even if it’s not a holiday where you live—take […]
Some authors write too much and need to delete; others don’t write enough and must add Do you write long or short? Some writers produce long first drafts and then shorten them—sometimes a great deal—as they edit. Others write shorter first drafts and then add to them—sometimes a lot—as they work on revisions. Which camp […]
I’ve listened to the Writing Excuses podcast for years. In the first nine seasons they would sometimes give writing prompts. In season ten they started giving homework at the end of each episode. I’ve gone back to year ten and am going through the homework. Though the assignments are most annoying, they’re even more beneficial. […]
Phone Interactions Can Save or Ruin Your Business By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD A lot of customer service occurs over the telephone. This growing trend leaves me concerned about some things and excited about others. A Shortsighted Attitude On the negative side, consider a large telecommunications company that provides cell phone, internet, and long distance. […]
In the book From No Plot? No Problem!, Chris Baty (founder of NaNoWriMo), talks about constructing our Manga Carta 1 and Manga Carta 2. What does he mean by that? Manga Carta 1 is a list of what we like in the novels we read. Manga Carta 2 is a list of what we dislike […]