I’ve read many self-published books and looked at even more. Too many of them scream “Self-published!” This distresses me. I love self-publishing and the many options it offers, but I loathe seeing it done poorly. This begins a series of posts on the Errors of Self-Publishing. The primary error of self-publishing is poor content This […]
A common part of many book proposals is a “competitive works” section. I recently researched competitive titles for one of my book proposals. What I saw enlightened me. Traditionally Published Books To research competitive titles, I first looked at books from traditional publishers. They gave me pause. I had to think a bit to determine […]
As I read more and more self-published books, I’m dismayed over a reoccurring theme: many lack robust editing. That’s not to imply these works had no editing at all, most did. It’s just that they lacked full editing. The first reminder to every writer is we can’t truly edit our own work. True, we must […]
Last week I experienced the importance of accuracy. With anticipation I opened an article submission. The topic was relevant and novel. My excitement, however, waned as I read his opening sentence. The author stated the earth’s population was 6.2 million. I thought there are over seven billion people on our planet, so I sought confirmation. […]
Self-published Book Problems Self-published books carry a stigma of poor quality: weak writing, shoddy editing, second-rate production, and a product that often screams “amateur.” Unfortunately, this perception stems from the growing evidence provided by many self-published works. Though not all self-published books are substandard, too many are. Here are thee examples self-published book problems from […]
As the price barrier to book publishing lowers, too many books show up with too little quality I once read a self-published book by a “NY Times Best-Selling Author.” I’ll let him remain anonymous. It was a short story anthology of “the best” short stories in a certain genre. I expected much and received little. […]
When book readers consider our book, few will bother to look to see who published it. They won’t care if a major publisher, let alone any traditional publisher, produced it. When it comes to publishers, there is little brand loyalty, let alone much brand recognition. The imprint is of no consequence. How the printed book […]
A couple of years ago, I wrote about “Six Types of Books in My Library.” In summary, this is how I view my books on my bookshelves: Running out of space and wanting to downsize, I gave away all my books in the last three categories. Some of those books will be read, many will […]
Selecting the Right Beta Reader is Key to Receiving Helpful Feedback We’ve talked about the importance of having a beta reader to give feedback on our books. I hope you’re as sold on the idea as I am. The next step is finding beta readers—not just anyone but the right ones. If we pick a […]
The more people who provide feedback on our books the better. Of course, to be of benefit, this needs to happen before publication, when there is time to make changes. Although review by various types of editors (each pass focusing on different elements) is essential, basic feedback is first needed to work out the kinks, […]