Failing to stay current on writing trends hurts writers and lessens their work It seems everything I learned in school about writing was wrong. Okay, that’s an overstatement. But many of the lessons I mastered in school no longer apply or are just plain wrong. However, I don’t think my teachers were in error over […]
Though using a pattern to inform our books’ structure has merit, it may lead us to a troublesome end There are multiple guides we can follow to properly structure the books we write. Perhaps the most common is the three-act structure, but there are many others as well. There’s enough to make me dizzy, so […]
As Long as There are Readers, Writers Will Have Work to Do “Reading is here to stay,” wrote Robert M. Sacks in the November/December 2012 issue of Publishing Executive magazine. His astute observation caught my attention, captivating my thoughts, both then and even more so today. Discussions and speculation about the rapid evolution in the […]
Young people are more apt to read books than older folks To listen to mainstream media about the state of book publishing leaves most people with an incorrect understanding of the industry. The press gives the impression that fewer people are reading and those who do are mostly older. The industry is dying, so why […]
I’m bullish about publishing books. Yes, the industry is changing rapidly, but change means opportunity. Though I don’t feel qualified to predict what book publishing will look like in the future, or even next year, I do know one place to look. The December 2014 issue of Book Business tapped industry experts to contemplate the […]
Yesterday I listened to a nationwide radio program, where the host interviewed an author with a soon-to-be-released e-book. This wasn’t a print book and an e-book; it was just an e-book. Usually, the media only considers traditionally published, printed works, while dismissing e-books as irrelevant. Though I’m sure it’s happened before, this is the first […]