Writers' Narrative magazine September 2023

EDITORIALTEAM

WendyH.Jones-EditorinChief-isalsoourExecutiveandFeaturesEditor.Sheisthemulti-awardwinning,best-sellingauthorofadultcrimethrillers andcozymysteries,children’spicturebooksand non-fictionbooksforwriters.Inaddition,sheisa writingcoach,partnerin Auscot Publishing and Retreats andhoststheWritingandMarketingShow podcast.

EditorinChief

SheenaMacleodisourdeputyeditor.Sheis authorof thehistoricalfictionnovels,ReignoftheMarionettesand TearsofStrathnaver,andco-authorofthenon-fictionbook So,youSayICan’tVote!FrancesConnelly.

DeputyEditor

EileenRollandisourgraphicdesigner.Eileenwrites mainlycontemporarywomen’sfiction.Herworksincludethe ChrysalisTrilogyseriesand Isleof Somewhere.

GraphicDesigner

PaulineTaitmanagesoursubmissions.Paulineisaprolificnovelistandchildren’sauthor.Shewritesboth suspensefulromanceandchildren’spicturebooks for3to7years.

Submission Manager

AllisonSymesisourcopyeditor.Sheisanawardwinning,publishedflashfictionandshortstorywriter. Shealsowritesaweeklycolumnontopicsofinterest forwritersforonlinemagazine, Chandler's Ford To-

CopyEditor

MaressaMortimeroverseesourmarketingandoursocial mediaengagement.MaressaisauthoroftheElabi Chronicles, Burrowed and Sapphire Beach.

Marketingand Promotions Manager

46 ShouldYouBeUsingTikTokAsAPromotional Tool? byWendyH.Jones

50 WritingMarketableChildren’sBooks by PaulineTait

54 ProgrammesfordevelopingMarketingImages by WendyHJones

20 IndianSummer byLisMcDermott

MonthlyWritingPrompt

24 Promptsprovided byWendyH.Jones andTami.C. Brown

28 Ayr

byLindaBrown 29

by

Welcometothesecondissueofournew magazineforwriters.Iamdelightedby theresponsetothefirstmagazine,whichhas createdarealbuzz.

Inanincreasinglycrowdedmarket,manyauthorstodaywonderhowtheycangettheir booksseenbyreaderswhowilllovethem.Also, dareImentionthefactChristmasiscomingup fast–sorryIknowitisonlySeptember–butitis nevertooearlytoprepareyourseasonalmarketingcampaign.So,thismonth’sissueisgiven overtomarketingandpromotion.

IamdelightedtobeinterviewingKeriBarnumof NewShelvesBooks.Kerihashelpednumerous authorsreachthebestsellerlistsandseetheir booksalessoaring.Herarticleonreachingthe bestsellerlistsiswellworthreading.

Witharticlesonauthorbranding,longtailed marketing,pitchingtowritingmagazines,and somuchmore,theretrulyissomethingforeveryone.

Lookingforinspiration?Ourpromptcornerhas youcovered.

Ihopeyouenjoythisissueandithelpsyouto upyourmarketinggame.

Wendy H. Jones Editor in Chief

Wendy H. Jones Author, Publisher, Writing Coach

DearEditorandallcontributorstothisamazing newdigitalmagazine.

Youdidagreatjobinthisfirstissue.Therewasso muchfortheauthortosavour:bookreviews,authorinterview,poetry,writingprompts, bookshops,writingflashfiction,writingforchildrenandsomuchmore.Iwassodelighted,Iread itallinonego.

Letterof theMonth

Dear Editor,

Ihavejustfinishedreadingthefirsteditionof WritersNarrativeandwantedtosayhowmuchI enjoyedit.

IreallyliketheWritersBookoftheMonthand writingcraftfocusbutthethingImostlikeabout itisprobablyunintentional.

ThefeaturethatImostappreciatewithWriters NarrativeisthatbeingadigitalmagazineIcan zoominoneachpageandbydoingsoincrease thesizeofthetext.Thisisimportanttomeas someonewhoisvisualimpaired.Papermagazinestendtouse10ptorlesstomaximizethe amountoftexttheycangetperpage.Reading themcanbedifficult.Beingabletoreadamagazinewithouthavingtogetthemagnifyingglass outisarealbonus.

Sheelagh M. Aston

Every month, a £10 book token will be awarded to the selected letter of the month. Congratulations to this month’s winner.

Pleaseemailletterstotheeditorto writersnarrtive@gmail.com

MyspecialfavouritewasWendyJones’articles onconferencesandbookevents.It’snotsomethingI’vethoughtaboutbefore.Thisarticlereally wokemeupabouttheopportunitieswhichexist ingoingtosomeoftheseevents.Whilenotmitigatingtheneedtobeatthewritingdesk,Wendy putcompellingargumentsastowhyweshould attend.Shegavedetailedinformationonwhatto expect.Asshesays,itisanidealwayto‘mixand meetotherreadersandotherwriters.’

ThanksWendy,youopenedmyeyes.

Rosalie Weller

DearEditorandeveryone,

ManycongratulationsonthelaunchofWriters' Narrativemagazine.IsubscribedassoonasI heardaboutit–I'msureitwilldowell!

IthoughtWNreadersmightbeinterestedinarecentwritingexperienceofmine.Isubmitted2 shortstoriestoanewfictionbasedproject.Itwas freetoenteranditheldanopengenre.Thewinnerswereawardedasmallcashprizebutother, selectedstorieswerepublishedontheirwebsite. Ithoughtitwasworthtidyingupacoupleofexistingstoriesbeforesubmittingthem.

Story1focusedonafamilyandstory2wasa twistinthetaleparanormaleffort.Ididn'texpect togetanywhere,yettomysurprise,Iwasinformedthatmy2storieshadbeenplacedonthe selectedlist!Itwasgreattoseethempublished online.ButIhadn'trealisedtherewasacommentssectiononthewebsite,wherepeople couldexpresstheiropinion.

Afewweekslater,Iwasdelightedtodiscoverthat areaderhadleftacomplimentarycomment aboutstory2.Itmademyday! So,ifit'safreeto entercompetitionorproject,allitwilltakeisyour timeandeffort.Whynotgiveitagotoday?

Sharon Boothroyd

FeaturedInterview KeriBarnum

InterviewedbyWendyH.Jones

Keri Barnum is the Executive Director of New Shelves Books, one of the largest book sales and marketing content providers in the US. A sought-after publishing expert, Keri works with both traditional and indie press authors on creative marketing campaigns to achieve their goals.

ThankyouforjoiningushereatWriters’Narrativetotalkabouthowauthorscanmarkettheir books.Iknowthisissomethingallauthors wanttoknowmoreabout,sothisissuretobe apopularinterview.Iamverymuchlooking forwardtolearningmoreandlearningfrom yourexpertise.

YourunacompanycalledNewShelvesBooks. Pleasetellusabitaboutyourcompany?

NewShelvesisoneofthetopagenciesspecializinginpublishingconsulting,booksales,distributionandmarketingintheU.S.A.Wearepassionateabouthelpingthosewithgoodbooks both traditionallyandindiepublished gainasolid footinginthemarketplace.

Overfourmillionbookswerepublishedlastyear alone.Ifanauthordoesn’tmarketandpromote theirbook,it’sboundtobelostinaseaofavailabletitles.Therefore,marketingisanecessary “evil”ifanauthorwantstheirbooktostandout, getnoticedandmakesales–andwhodoesn’t wantthat?

Talkingofmarketingandpromotion,canyou clarifythedifferencebetweenthem?

Manywriterswillsay-andIhearthem–Ionly wanttowrite,notworryaboutallthatmarketingstuff.Yetmarketandpromotewemust. Whyismarketingsocrucialforanauthor?

Lisa Turley is from West Virginia. She is on numerous ARC street teams and reads in multiple genres. She is passionate about helping authors get the wordoutabouttheirbooks.

Marketingisabroadtermthatcoverseverything fromresearchingwhataconsumerwantsina product,inthiscaseabook,tointroducingthem totheproductandaskingforasale.Promotion, ontheotherhand,isafocusedcampaigntoyour targetaudiencetocreateawarenessanddemand foryourbook.

KeriBarnum

Marketingandpromotionoftenoverlapand, togetherwithpaidadvertising–aformofpromotion–areanauthor’sbestchanceatsales.

Nowwehaveestablishedthat,shouldwebe focussingonmarketing,promotion,orboth, andwhy?

Eachindividuallyisvaluable,butbothmarketingandpromotionareneededtobuildasolid foundationforbooksales.It’saone-twopunch.

Promotion,asImentionedpreviously,ismeant tocreateawarenessanddemand.Promotional effortsmightincludepodcastinterviews,newspaperfeatures,socialmediamarketingand paidadvertising.Butwithoutfirstconductinga marketingcampaigntoknowwhoyourreaders are,whattheywantandwheretofindthem,all ofyoureffortscouldbeaimedatthewrongaudienceresultinginwastedtimeandenergy.

Ifsomeoneisjuststartingout,whatisthe onethingtheyshoulddorightnowtokickstarttheirmarketingandpromotion,and whythatonething?

Takethetimetoidentifyyourtargetaudience; thisoneexercisewillguideyourpublishingand bookmarketingjourney.

Knowingyourtargetaudienceallowsyoutoexploreyourreader’sexpectationaswellasresearchtheauthorsandbooksthatarecurrently meetingthoseexpectations.Thisinformation thenbecomesthefoundationthatyourmarketingstrategyisbuiltuponandwillhelpyoudetermineeverythingfromyourbookpackaging toyourdistributionandpromotionplan.

Whatwouldbeyourtoppieceofadvicetoauthorswhoarealreadymarketingtheirbooks butwanttouptheirgameandthusthenumberofbookstheysell?

Findthreesuccessfulcomparablesinyourgenre,lookatwhattheyaredoingwellandusethat

toinspireyourmarketing.Whataretheydoing thatisattractingnewreaders?Whatsocialmedia platformsaretheiraudiencemostactiveon? Learnfromthemandemulatetheirwinning strategies.

Let’stalklibraries.Ioftenhearauthorsasking,howcanIgetmybooksintolibraries?It’s agoodquestionandonewhichisworthananswer.Howdoesanauthorgettheirbooksinto libraries?IfyouwanttofocusthisontheUSA, whereyouare,thatwillbefine.Therearealot ofcountriesintheworld.

Librariesaresuchawonderfulopportunityfor authorstoreachnewreaders.And,whilelibrariesareoftenthoughtofasanoutletwithlimited salespotential,theAmericanLibraryAssociation estimatesthereareover116,000librariesinthe U.S.alone.Canyouimageifyouwereabletoget evenatenthofthoselibrariestopurchaseand shelveyourbook?Somuchpotentialforbrand awarenessandsales!

Asforhowtogetlibrariestostockyourbook,I willhighlightthebasicshere,butIalsoofferanin -depthlibrarytrainingfreeonYouTube.

Beforepitchingyourbookstolibraries,youneed tounderstandthelibrary’sneedsandgoals–and howyourbookfitsintothatequation.

Librariesaremeanttoservethecommunity. Theytendtospendtheirbudgetsonbooksthat willbemostindemandbytheirlocaldemographicaswellas“popularreads”suchasmysterynovels,romancetitlesandcookbooks.Honestlyevaluateifyourbookisagoodfitforeach libraryyoupitch,andforlibrariesingeneral.

Mostlibrarieshaveastrictapprovalprocessfor orderingbookswithrequirementsthatonlyallowthemtoorderfromapprovedwholesalers. Baker&TaylorandIngramWholesaletoptheapprovedlistforprinttitleswhileOverdriveisused foreBookandaudiobookpurchases.Besure

yourbookisavailablefromatleastoneofthese outletsbeforereachingouttolibraries. Onceyouensurethatyourbookfitsthecriteria forlibrarysales,Irecommendyoupitchtheacquisitionlibrariandirectlyeitherinpersonorvia email.Bepreparedwithinformationonwhyyour bookisagoodfitforthatparticularlibrary,your ISBN,wholesaleavailabilityandpricing.Youwill likelyonlyhaveoneshottoconvincethelibrarian toreviewyourbookforstockingconsideration, sobeprepared.

andwhereyouraudiencefindthebooksthey read.Whatstepsdoyouneedtotaketogetyour bookinfrontofyourtargetaudience?Keepyour availableresourcesinmindalongwithwhat you’verecentlylearnedaboutmarketingand promotion.Usethisinformationtocreateatodolistthatcanbebrokenintoactionablesteps tomoveyoutowardachievingyourgoals.

Aretherethreespecificareasyouwouldadviseanyonereadingthistofocusonwhencreatingtheirmarketingplan?

Theotherquestionwhichisoftenaskedishow doIgetontothebestsellerlists?Isthispossibleforthosewhoarenotbignameauthors andifso,howdoesonegoaboutit?

ThereareseveralbestsellerliststoaimforrangingfromtherelativelyeaseofacategorybestselleronAmazontoheavyhitterslike USA Today and New York Times.Andyes,debutandindieauthors makethebestsellerlistseverydaynotonlyon AmazonbutalsoonKobo,Barnes&Noble,and eventhe New York Times.Mybestadviceistorememberthatbestsellersdon’t“justhappen.” Theytakeplanning,optimization,marketingand ahealthydoseofluck.

Absolutely.IliketostartwiththethreeAs:Availability,AwarenessandAdvertising.

Availability:Beforepitchingyourbooktobuyers, it’simportantthatitisaccessibleforthemtoacquire–becauseeventhebestsalespitchwillnot workifthebookisn’tavailabletopurchaseinthe placesandformatsrequiredbythebuyer.For youridealreaderthatmightbeKindleUnlimited. Forbookstoresthatmeansmakingsureyour bookisavailableatIngramatafulltrade(40%) discount.Librarieslookforprintbooksatthe wholesalersImentionedpreviouslyanddigital assets(eBooksandaudiobooks)availableon OverDrive.Don’tjusthopeforsales–planfor them.

Whatwouldbetheidealmarketingplanforan author?

Ifindthatnotwoauthorsorbooksarethesame andlikewiseyourmarketingneedsarenotlikely tobemetbycookiecutteradvice.Whatisideal foramysteryauthorwouldn’tworkforaromanceauthorandsoon.Withthatinmind,Irecommendthateachauthorconsidertheirown specificgoalswheretheirbookisconcerned.Ask yourselfwhatmattersmosttoyou.Isitmaking yourbookavailabletothosewhomayneedit? Makingprofitssoyoucanquityourdayjoband writefulltime?

Considerwhereyourbookismostlikelytoshine

Awareness:Whatareyougoingtodotomake yourtargetaudienceawareofyourbook?This mightlooklikebuildinganaudienceonthesocialmediaplatformsyourreadersaremostlikely tospendtheirtime,beingfeaturedonpodcasts orradioprogramsorsettingupbookstoresignings.Readerscan’twantyourbookiftheydon’t knowitexists.Tellthemaboutit.

Advertising:Iliketothinkofawarenessastelling someoneaboutyourbookandadvertisingas askingthemtobuyit.Paidplacementsakaadvertisingcanensureyourbookisfeaturedonthe siteswhereyourreadersfindandbuytheir books.Opportunitiesincludeadvertisingintrade

publicationssuchas Publishers Weekly,directly onsalesplatformslikeAmazonandBarnes&Noble,payingabookstoreforspaceintheirnewsletter,socialmediaadsandmore.You’vecreatedawarenessforyourbook,nowclosethesale.

HowcanNewShelvesBookshelpauthors withtheirmarketingandpromotion?

Wesupportauthorsandpublishersthroughconsulting,educationalprogramsandmarketing services.And,whilewedohavequickaccess programslikeourlibrarymarketingpromotional emailsandretailsalestrainingcourse,wealso offera15-minutediscoverycalltodiscussyour bookandneedsspecificallysowecancreatea custommarketingprogramtohelpyoureach yourgoalsandsellmorebooks.

Iknowyoudoalotofpublicspeakingandrun workshopsforauthors.Tellusaboutthe typesofworkshopsandtalksyoudoandhow theyhelpauthors.

Yes,Ipresentpublishingandbookmarketing workshopsseveraltimesamonthatconferences andonlinetrainingstocoverarangeoftopics fromchoosingyourpathtopublishingtohowto markettolibrariesandbookstores.Additionally, IofferaprogramcalledFreeAdviceFridays whichinvitesauthorstojoinmeeachweekat 10amESTonZoomtogettheirpublishingand bookmarketingquestionsansweredlive.Thisis afreeserviceforauthorsthatallowsmetogive backtothecommunitythatIhavesoenjoyed beingapartof.AnyoneinterestedinFreeAdvice Fridayscanlearnmoreatfreeadvicefridays.com.

Ifreaderswanttocontactyoutouseyourservices,howwouldtheyfindyou.

Iwouldbedelightedtoconnectviaemailat keri@newshelves.comorthroughmywebsite, www.newshelves.com.I’malsoonFacebook, TwitterandYouTubeas@NewShelvesBooks.

Thankyou,Keri.Ithasbeenapleasurechatting andIwillcertainlybetakingyouradviceon boardandimplementingit.Iamsuremanyof ourreaderswillbedoingthesame.

HowtoMakeALivingWithYourWriting

Excerpt from How to Make a Living With Your Writing Third Edition by Joanna Penn.

JoannaPennwritesnon-fictionforauthorsand isanaward-nominated,NewYorkTimesand USATodaybestsellingthrillerauthorasJ.F. Penn.She’salsoanaward-winningpodcaster, creativeentrepreneur,andinternationalprofessionalspeaker.www.TheCreativePenn.com

Youcannotpublishabookandjustexpect ittosell.That’snottherealityoflifein the2020s,regardlessofwhetheryougo thetraditionalorindieroute.

Therearesomanymillionsofbooksandamultitudeofotheroptionsforconsumersincluding TV,film,gaming,musicandpodcasts.Youneed todrawattentiontoyourworksomehow.

Marketingistheactofpromotingyourbooks, products,orservicesandalthoughmanyauthors resistit,marketingisanintegralpartofthewritinglifeandthereforecriticalifyouwanttomake alivingthisway.

Therearelotsofdifferentwaystomarketyour booksandbuildyourauthorplatform,whichI coverextensivelyin How to Market a Book,sothis isjustanintroduction.

JoannaPenn

Marketingisamindset

Mostauthorsdon’tevenwanttothinkaboutmarketingbutitwillbeeasier,andperhapsevenfun, ifyouchangeyourmindset.

Marketingissharingwhatyoulovewithpeople whowillappreciatehearingaboutit.Itdoesn’t havetobescammyorsucky,orforciblyramming yourbookdownpeople’sthroatsinreallifeoron socialmedia.

Thinkaboutyouraudienceandconsiderhowyou mightservethemthroughentertainment,education,orinspiration,thenworkoutthebestwayto reachtheminwaysthatalsoleaveyoucreatively satisfied.Youhaveagreatbook,sohowcanyou makesureyourtargetmarkethaveachanceto readit?

Marketingisaskill

Youcanlearnmarketinginthesamewaythatyou canlearnwritingorbusinessskills.Youjusthave towanttodoit.Keepanopenmindaboutwhat youmightenjoyorwhatmightworkforyour book/sandtrydifferentthings.

Istartedpodcastingin2009becauseIfeltisolated andIwantedtotalktootherauthorsaroundthe worldaswellaslearnandsharetipsaboutthe writer’sjourney.Ireallydidn’tknowwhatIwas doingandforthefirstinterview,IheldanMP3recordernexttothephonewhichIputonspeaker. Yes,thiswasanactuallandline,backinthedays beforeSkypeandZoomwentmainstreamand waybeforepodcastingbecamebigenoughtoattractusefulservices.

ButatleastIstarted,andoveradecadelater,I havetwopodcastswhichformthebasisofmy bookmarketing,andwhichprovideotherincome streamswhichIcoverinPart2.

IlovepodcastingandIconsidermyshowstobe partofmycreativebodyofwork,aswellasbringinginmoneyandsellingbooks.Icertainlydidn’t knowwhatthefuturewouldholdwhenIrecorded

thatfirstepisodebackin2009,butIenjoyedthe process,soIkeptdoingit!

Takecareofthebasicsfirst

Thebasicsofbookmarketingaresimple,butnot easy!

Writeagreatbookandunderstandwhereitfits intheecosystemsoyourbookcoverresonates withthataudience.Ensureyourbookdescriptiondrawspeopleinanduseappropriatecategoriesandkeywordssoyourbookcanbefound inthestores.

Setupaprofessionalauthorwebsiteandemail listsoyoucanbuildyourrelationshipwithreaders.Overtime,youcanusethislistforlaunches, buildinganAdvanceReaderteam,andforadvertising.

Onceyouhavethesebasicssorted,thenyoucan considerthemyriadotherwaystomarketyour books,butwithoutthese,youwillfindmarketing difficultoverthelongterm.

Useyourbookstomarketyourbooks

Ifyouhavemultiplebooksandyoucontrolyour intellectualproperty,youcanusedifferentmethodstosellmore.Manyfictionwritersusefree daysinKindleUnlimited,afreefirstinseriesif publishingwide,oratleastperiodicsalespromotions,todrivemorereaderstotherestofthe books.

MyARKANEthriller, Stone of Fire,hasbeenfree formanyyearsonallstoresandcontinuesto bringpeopleintotheseriesof11books(and counting).Ialsohave Successful Self-Publishing asafreefirstinseriesfornon-fiction.

Ifyouwriteinaseries,regardlessofgenre,your booksarelinkedtogetheronthestores,which helpspeopletofindthem,andyoucanlistall yourbooksinthebackmattersopeopleare awareofthem.

Youcanalsobumpupyourbacklistbydoingnew covers,updatingyoursalesdescriptionsandrelaunchingwithpricepromotionsandothermarketing.

Marketinawaythatsuitsyourpersonalityand lifestyle

Themosteffectivemarketinginvolveslong-term actionsthat,overtime,buildupareadershipthat continuestobringyouincomeandhelpsyouto makealivingwithyourwriting.Butifyouwantto doanythingforthelongtermandenjoyit,itneeds tobesustainableforyourlife.

Likedietorexercise,youcandoanythingforthe shortterm,butifyouhateit,youwillsoonfalloff thewagonandmightendupinaworsesituation thanbefore.Sowhileyoumighttryallkindsof differentmarketingtactics,settleonthosethat youenjoyandcandoforthelongtermandignore therest.

IusethesamemethodsformyfictionasJ.F.Penn andnon-fictionasJoannaPenn.Thesehavedevelopedovermorethanadecade,sodon’tworry, youdon’tneedtohaveeverythinginplacewhen you’restartingout.I’vetriedprettymucheverythingovertheyears,butI’vesettledonthese methodsastheyworkwellforme.Yourpreferenceswillprobablydiffer.

Iusecontentmarketingthroughmytwopodcasts, TheCreativePennandBooksandTravel,which alsohavetranscriptsandimagesontheshow notesforeffectivesearchengineoptimization (SEO).Theshowshaveacalltoactiontojoinmy emaillists.IofferafreethrilleratJFPenn.com/free andmyAuthorBlueprintatTheCreativePenn.com/ blueprint

Ihavefreeebooksonallthestores, Stone of Fire, ARKANEthrillerbook1,andalso Successful SelfPublishing,andIpromotethembothwithpaidadvertisingandemailmarketing.I’mnolongera heavyuserofsocialmedia,preferringtorelyon emailmarketing,podcasting,andpaidads,which

I’vefounddeliveramuchbetterreturnoninvestmentandaremoresustainableformylifestyle. Therearemanymarketingoptions,soyouneed tofindwhatworksforyou,butbesuretorevisit yourchoicesandtrynewthingsovertime.

Learnhowtomarketyourownbooksbefore outsourcing

Mostauthorsdon’twanttodotheirownmarketing,butifyououtsourcetoosoon,youwillend upoutofpocket.Forexample,I’veseenauthors withjustonebookpayaPRcompanythousands ofdollarsasaretainer,onlytofindtheygetone interviewinasmallmagazinethatresultsinfew sales.

Bettertospendthatbudgetonaprofessional bookcover,emaillistset-upandsomebasicpaid adswhichwilldrivesalesoratleastfreedownloadswhichresultinreviews,whileyouwritethe nextbook.

Therearelotsofbooksandcoursesonmarketingbyauthorswithexperience.Learnthebasics firstandonceyouhaveenoughbooks,and you’remakingenoughrevenuetojustifyoutsourcing,thenlookforthebestreturnoninvestmentforyourmarketingspend.

Questions:

• Whatisyourcurrentattitudetobookmarketing?Howcouldyouimproveyourmindset?

• Ifyouhaveabookormoreoutalready,do you havethebasicsinplace?

• Howcouldyouuseyourbookstomarketyour books?

• Whatkindsofmarketingareyouinterestedin learningmoreabout?Whatmightworkforyour personalityandlifestyleoverthelongterm?

• Howcouldyouimproveyourmarketingskills?

• Whenisagoodtimetooutsourceyourmarketing?Isittherighttimeforyou?

HowtoMakeALivingWithYourWriting byJoannaPenn

ReviewedbyWendyH.Jones

Introduction

Firstprinciples

Part1:HowtoMakeMoneywithBooks

1.1Yourpublishingoptionsandhowtheindustry haschanged

1.2Yourbookisavaluableintellectualproperty asset

1.3Traditionalpublishing

1.4Self-publishingorbecominganindieauthor

1.5Writemorebooks

1.6Writebooksthatpeoplewanttobuy

1.7Publishinmultipleformats

1.8Publishglobally

1.9Selldirecttoyouraudience

1.10Marketyourbooks

Part2:HowtoMakeMoneywithyourWritingin OtherWays

2.1Yourauthorecosystem

2.2Affiliateincome

2.3Crowdfunding,patronageandsubscription

2.4Professionalspeaking,teaching,performing, andliveevents

2.5Onlinecourses,webinars,events,andmembershipsites

2.6Advertisingandsponsorship

2.7Physicalproductsandmerchandise

2.8Freelancewritingandghostwriting

2.9Consultingorcoaching

2.10Authorservices

2.11Otherwaystomakemoneywithyourwriting

Thetransitiontomakingalivingwithyourwriting.

AsJoannaPennhasverykindlygivenusachapter fromthisbookforthemagazine,Ithoughtthis wouldbeperfectforthis month’sreview.

Doyouwanttomakealivingwithyourwriting? Doyouwanttoturnyourwordsintomultiplestreams ofincome?

I’mJoannaPennandIleftmycorporatejobadecade agotobecomeafull-timeauthorentrepreneur.Inthis completelyupdatedthirdedition,I’llexplainhowI makealivingwithmywritingandsharetipsfromotherwritersonhowyoucandoittoowithpractical,actionableadvicethatyoucanimplementforyourself.

Ifyoulovetocreateandyou’rereadytolearnfresh skillsinafast-changingenvironment,thisaudiobook willgiveyoulotsofideasonhowtomakemoneywith yourwords.Eachsectionprovidesideasyoucanuse toresearcheachopportunityinmoredetailandquestionstoguideyourthoughtprocess.Sometimesit’s justaboutknowingwhat’soutthereinordertofind what’srightforyou.

JoannaPennisaconsummateprofessionalandoneofthemostgenerouspeopleinthewritingcommunitywhenitcomestosupportingotherauthors.Sheisalsohighlyknowledgeable,soyouknowwhenyou buyoneofherbooksthatyouarebuyingqualityandinformationthatwillhelpyoumoveyourwritingcareerforward.Thisbookdemonstratesthatinspadefuls;andthensome.

Pennisanadvocateforensuringauthorsmaximisetheirincomebyturningtheirbooksintomultiple streamsofincome.Inthisbookshetakesonethroughtheprocessofdoingjustthat.Everystepiscovered indetail,witheverypossibleincomeavenueexplored.Thebeautyofthebookis,evenifoneisnotready toutiliseeveryincomestreamnow,itissomethingwhichcanhelptodevelopones’writingbusinessover time.Followingthesestepsisnoguaranteeone’sbusinesswillrocketintothestratosphere,butitwillcertainlyhelptobuildthefoundationonwhichtobuildasuccessfulwritingbusiness.

Asthismonth’smagazineismarketingbasedthenJoannaPenn’s bookisadefinitemusthavefor authors.

ReviewedbyWendyH.Jones

Blurb

Doyouwanttosellmorebooksandreachmorereaders?Doyouwanttodiscoverhowtobuildanauthor careerforthelong-termaswellasspikeyourbook salesrightnow? Ifyoudon’tknowmuchaboutmarketing,don’tworry.Weallstartwithnothing.

I’mJoannaPennandbackin2008,Ihadnobooksales, noaudience,nowebsite,nosocialmedia,nopodcast, noemaillist.Nonothing.NowI’maNewYorkTimes andUSATodaybestsellingauthorofthrillersandnonfiction.Mybookshavesoldover600,000copiesin162 countries,andI’manaward-winningcreativeentrepreneurandinternationalspeaker,makingamulti-sixfigureincomewithmywriting.

Learninghowtomarketmybooksandmypersonal brandchangedmylife.Yes,youneedtowriteanawesomebook,butyoualsoneedtoknowhowtogetitin frontoftherightreaders. HowtoMarketaBookisforauthorswhowanttosell morebooks,butit'salsoforthosewriterswhowantto thinklikeanentrepreneurandbuildalong-termincome.It'sfortraditionallypublishedauthorswhowant totakecontroloftheirfuture,andforself-published authorswhowanttojump-startacareer.

Thereareshort-termtacticsforthosewhowanttoboostimmediatesales,butthefocusofthebookis moreaboutinstillingvaluesandmarketingprinciplesthatwillhelpyourlong-termcareerasawriter.It's alsoaboutgoingbeyondjustthebook,becausethesemethodscantakeyoufrombeinganauthorinto makingmoneyfromotherproducts,professionalspeaking,andcreatingopportunitiesthatyoucan'teven imagineyet.

InthiscompletelyupdatedThirdEdition,you’lldiscover:

Part 1:MarketingPrinciples

Bookmarketingmyths,howdiscoverabilityworks,andthepolaritiesofmarketingthatwill determinewhatyouchoosetoimplement.

Part 2:YourBookFundamentals

Prerequisitesforsuccess,howtooptimiseyourbookforonlinesales,categoriesandkeywords,exclusivity,pricinganduseoffree,box-setsandbundling,andwritingseries.

Part 3:NoPlatformNeeded.Short-termMarketing

Howtogetcustomerreviewsandfindbookbloggers,paidadvertisingwithemailblasts,paid advertisingwithFacebook,AmazonAdsandadstacking,algorithmhacking,bigdata,and productionspeed.

Part 4:YourAuthorPlatform.Long-termMarketing

Buildinganauthorbrand,authorwebsite,list-buildingandemailmarketing,contentmarketing,blogging,audioandpodcasting,videoandbooktrailers,socialnetworking,professional speaking,marketingaudiobooks,PRandpublicity,TV,radioandtraditionalmedia.

Part5:LaunchingYourBook

Whylaunchingisdifferentforindieauthors,softlaunch,launchspikes,postlaunch,howto relaunchbacklistbooks.Includesanexamplebookmarketingstrategyandlaunchplan checklist.

Review

Thisisadifficultbooktoreview,notbecauseitisnotoneofthebestmarketingbooksoutthere,but becausewhatcanIsayotherthanwhathasbeencoveredintheblurb.

Ifmarketingscaresyoutodeath,thisbookwilltakeyouthroughthestepsinaneasytounderstand way.Ifyouarealreadymarketing,Icanguaranteeyouwillfindsomethingnewyoucanaddintoyour marketingplan.Italsoactsasanaidememoireandareminderastowhatweshouldbedoing.Let’s faceit,weallfallintobadhabitswhenitcomestomarketing.

Whilstthisbookisfrom2017mostoftheadvicestillstands.Thisisabookwhereyoucanworkthrough itfromstarttofinishorutilisethepartswhicharemostusefulatanygivenmoment.Eitherwayit shouldhelptogetyourbooksalesmoving.

Why Authors Shouldn’t Be Hiding Behind Their Books: What it Means to Build an Author Brand

Author Brand Expert and Publicity & Marketing Strategist Isabelle Knight discusses what is involved in building an author brand.

Whathappensafterthatexcitingmoment,onceyourbookhitsthose shelves,ordigitalsellingplatforms? Onceyou’veletallofyourfriendsand familyknowthatyou'reabonafidewriter?After you’vepostedacrossyoursocialmediachannels thatyournewbookisnowlaunched?Isittimeto crackopenthechampagne?You’vedefinitely donesomehardworkbythispoint.Butisthat all?Haveyoufiguredouthowyouaregoingto enticereaderstoyourbook,yourpositioninthe marketplaceandwhatyourmarketingandpublicitystrategyisgoingtobe?

ThefirstthingwedoinPRandPublicityistoestablish“what’sthestory”,inthesamewaythat journalistsdowhenthey’reinthenewsroom.The story,asyou’llknowifyou’reawriter,isthedriver;isthethingthatgivesabookoraneventoran actionitsreasonforbeinginthefirstplace.Storiesarewhatconnectusashumanstootherpeople,places,andthings.

Youmayhaveheardmarketerssaybeforethat peopledon’tbuyobjects,orthings.Theybuy feelings.Theybuystories;orinotherwords,what thethingssignify,theemotionalattachmentthat theyhaveassignedtothething.Thestorythatwe believeaboutthething.

Itisthesamewithbooks.We’rebuyingwhatwe believethebookisgoingtogiveus,emotionally. Howthebookwillmakeusfeel.Thismightbeto

IsabelleKnight

feelcosy,warm,transportedtoafantasyworld; ortoleaveusfeelingthatwehavereallyexpandedourmindsandlearnedanewperspective,or gainedanewinsightintoapartofthehumanexperiencewithwhichweweren’talreadyfamiliar. Thisistheprincipleconcernbeforeembarkingon PRandMarketingforyourbook.It’snotasimple paintbynumbersgameofthisreviewgoinginto thatpublicationorwebsite.Youwanttogetto theheartofyourbookandfromtheretothe heartofyourreadership.Becausenotwobooks arethesame,notwoauthorsarethesame,and notwostoriesarethesame.

“You want to get to the heart of your book.”

OneofthebigmistakesIseeauthorsmaking (especiallyoveronTikTok!)isthattheyspenda lotoftimeandenergytryingtoexplaintopotentialreaderswhattheirbookisabout.Authorscan

oftengointomind-numbingdetailontheirsocial mediaaccountsofplots,characters,viewpoints, arcsandmotives.Thisofcourseisabsolutelyessentialtohavefiguredoutwhenyou’rewriting thebook.Butwhenyou’retryingtocompelpotentialreaderstogoaheadandorderandbuyit? Notsomuch.

Tellingyourpotentialreadersorsocialmediaaudienceswhatyourbookisaboutingreatdepth, isfarmorelikelytohavethemswitchingoffyour Reelinfavourofgoingbacktowatchcatvideos.

WhatyouwanttobeabletoconveytoyourpotentialreadersisWHYyouwroteyourbook.

Whatwasyourmotivationforwritingyourbook? Whatmadeyousopassionateaboutwritingit thatyouappliedyourselfforhoursoffocused work,takingenergyandpossiblyblood,sweat andtearstoproduceawholebook?Whathasled you,eithercircumstantially,emotionally,orspiritually,towriteyourbook?Thisiswhatwewant totryandconveyintheAuthorBrandStory.

Thisisthepiecethatclearlyshowsyourpotential readerwhatitisthatdrivesyou,whatmakesyou different,whatisyouruniquenessasanauthor? Yourownexperiences,circumstancesandpassionsdriveyoutodowhatyoudo.Whatare they?Whatarethethingsthataremostimportanttoyou,orinotherwordswhatareyour corevalues?

“What you want to be able to convey to your potential readers is why you wrote your book.”

Onceyouhaveuncoveredandareabletoarticulatetheseelementsofwhoyouareasanauthor, youwillbeabletoclearlytellyourreaderwhy youwroteyourbook.IntroducingthishumanelementtoyourownAuthorBrandStory,isthe piecethatyourreaderswillbeabletoconnectto. Thisiswhatwillcompelthemtowanttoread more,topickupyourbook,buyitandreadit. I’moftenaskedbyauthorswhethertheyneedto focusonvisualstobuildtheirAuthorBrand. Thingslikeheadshots,imagesofthemselves,logos,andgraphics.Imageryhelpstoillustratea

story,butthewordsarethemostimportantthing intermsofallowingyouraudienceandreadershiptogettoknowwhoistheauthorbehindthe books.

Aswithallculturalproperties,thatincludesmovies,TVshowsandmusic,thethingthatwillultimatelysellbooksiswordofmouth.Thisiswhat mostmarketersaretryingtogenerate.Inorderto getpeopletalkingtoeachotheraboutyour books,sharingrecommendationswiththeir friendsandreviewingyourbooksonline,youas theauthorneedstodotheworkindrawingthe potentialreaders’attentiontoyourbooks. YourAuthorBrandStory,oncefullyuncovered, tellsyourpotentialreader Why youwroteyour book,thatyouwroteit for them(thattheyare youridealreader)and Why theyshouldcare aboutitenoughtoactuallyreadit.YourAuthor BrandStorycanthenformthebasisofyourmarketingandpublicityefforts,indrawinginwhomeveryouarepitchingyourselftoasanauthor(or pitchingyourbooks)toagents,publishers,journalists,awardjudgesetc.,inthefuture.

“Your Author Brand Story can then form the basis of your marketing and publicity efforts.”

Weareveryclosetoourownstories,thereforeit’s notalwayseasytoidentifyandarticulateour ownmotivationsforwhywehavewrittenthat whichwehave,butifyouwanttohaveagoat findingyourownAuthorBrandStory,agood placetobeginisbyansweringthesequestions: Whyyou?Whyhere?Whynow?

Founder of Build Your Author Brand, Isabelle Knight is an Author Brand Expert and Publicity & Marketing strategist. Formerly a publicist working in Film, TV and Books including with JK Rowling and the BBC, she now works with authors as a mentor and guide to build their brands and fulfil their own goals for success, recognition and impact.

IndianSummer

This month, poet Lis McDermott discusses the Dizain, a French poetry form, and shares her poem, Indian Summer.

Overthelastfewyears,UKSeptember’s havetendedtobefarwarmerthanin thepast,andalthough,notnecessarily therealmeaningofanIndiansummer,thatis whatIwasthinkingaboutwhenchoosinga themeforthismonth’sarticle.

TheDizainisaFrenchpoetryform.Itwaspopular thereduringthe15th and16th centuries,although ithasn’tbecomeaswidelypopularasmanyotherpoeticforms.Itmaybebecause,asaFrench formitworkedbetterintheFrenchlanguage thanEnglish.

SirPhilipSidneywrote‘My True Love hath my Heart and I have His’ usingtheDizainform.

Itisaneasyformtoremember,becausethestanza/versehas10lines,andthereare10syllablesin eachline.

TherhymepatternisABABBCCDCD.

DizainscanalsobewritteninIambicpentameter, butitisnotrequired,aslongasthepoemhas10 syllablesperline.

Itisalsoacceptabletohave8syllablelines,orto splitthe10linestanzaintotwo,5linestanzas.

ThereisalsotheoptiontowriteDoubledizains, whereyourepeattheforminasecond,10line stanza.

Themainfocusofthepoemistherhymepattern.

Occasionally,Iwritepoemsstraightoff,without planning. However,ifIdecidetowriteinaspecificform,Ibeginbythinkingofwordsthatsuit mytheme/subject,andcreateaword-bank.

Next,IlookforwordswhereIcaneasilyfindotherstorhymewiththem. Therearesomewords thatdon’thaveexactrhymes,suchasorange, pint,silver,monthandothers.

Then,Iwritetherhymepatterndownthepage, vertically:

etc.

Thishelpsmeto:-

1Rememberthepatternoftheendingrhymes.

2NoticehowmanyrhymesIneedforeachend, i.e.thereare3Brhymeendings,3CrhymeendingsandAandDonlyhave2rhymeendings.

LisMcDermott

3Workoutwhichwordsofmyword-bankhave enoughrhymestofittheendingsabove.

Next,Iwriteafirstversionwhichmorerarely lookslikethefinishedversion.

InitiallyIwrotethefirstlineas:

Following a gentle rain-fall drummer –whichI changed,becauseoftherelationbetweenbeatinganddrummer.Ithoughtthatworkedbetter.

Thefifthlinewas:

Cast off all sense, taken in by false charm –‘Taken in’wastooclunky,soIused‘beguiled.’

Ichangeline7severaltimes,butcan’tremember how!

Thelastlinewasoriginally ‘unexpected cheer’. Butintheend,Ichose‘ineffablecheer’.

WriteinTime

SirPhilipSidney1554 -1586

“Sidney’s real poem was his life.”

WilliamStigant(1858)

Sir Philip Sidney was a prominent English poet and literary critic of the Elizabethan age. He was born in Kent, England, into an aristocratic family.

None of his work was published during his lifetime. Aworkofliterarycriticism Apology for Poetrie (or The Defence of Poesy)waspublishedin1595 nineyearsafterhisdeath.Sidney’sviewofthe placeofpoetsinsocietyinfluencedfuturecritics andpoets.

IndianSummer

byLisMcDermott

Followingabeatingrain-falldrummer, Dogdayslongpassed,amomentofwarmcalmbringsforthasurpriseIndianSummer, Deceivingustograspthissoothingbalm, castoffallsense,beguiledbythefalsecharm. Baskinginthislazytranquillity, wequestionlong-termprobability, Suchlovely,weatheratthistimeofyear, whichweacceptwithgreathumility, brieflybringsusallineffablecheer.

Considered by many as the greatest Elizabethan sonneteer after Shakespeare, Sidney is thought to epitomisetheidealsoftherenaissanceliterary movement.

He is acknowledged as the first person to use the name Pamela he used the name in his long prose piece – Arcadia

NotableWorks

Astrophel and Stella (1591) asonnet

The Defence of Poesy (1595) atreatise

Arcadia ( The Countess of Pembroke’s Arcadia) (1598) alongprosepastoralromancerevisedby hissister,Mary,theCountessofPembroke.The unworkedversion,referredtoas The Old Arcadia, waspublishedinthe20thcentury.

Lis McDermott is a multi-genre author, poet and writing mentor. Visit Lis’ website: https://lismcdermottauthor.co.uk

MarketingYourBooks

Allison Symes shares how she markets her books and why you need to accept marketing is a long term, ongoing part of your writing life.

Marketingyourbooksisongoing.Naturallythereisawhirlwindofmarketing inthebuilduptoabooklaunchand justafterwards,butyoustillwanttospreadthe wordaboutyourworklongafterpublicationday.

Ioncementionedtoawritingfrienditpaysto likeyourbooksbecauseyouwillalwaysbemarketingthem.Youhavetobelieveinandloveyour work.Partofyourmarketingissharingthatlove tootherssothey’llcheckoutyourbooks.You can’tknowwhenpeoplewillfindyourworks.It isn’tnecessarilyatbookone.

Marketingissomethingyoucan’tdoallatonce evenifyouhadtheenergy.Youneedtoworkout whatsocialmediaoutletssuityoubest.There aremanydifferentwaystomarket.Ithasbeen saidsomeoneneedstoseesomethingseven timesbeforethey’llconsiderbuyingit.Dueto thatalone,youneedtothinklongterm.

“Marketing your books is ongoing.”

Ipostregularlyonsocialmedia(Facebook,Twitter,andYouTubewiththeoccasionalLinkedin thrownin).Itgetsmynameoutthereandevery sooftenIwritemarketingrelatedpostsformy books.Idon’tdothatallthetime.Nobodywants

tohearbuy,buy,buy,andnothingelse.I’vebeen onthereceivingendofthisapproachanditput meoff.

SoIcreatepostsofinterest,includingwriting tips.PeoplewillseethatiswhatIdomostofthe time.Theythenwon’tmindmymarketingposts. Indeedthey’llexpectthem.They’llseeitaspart ofwhatawriterdoes.

“Create posts of interest”

Formyflashfiction,Icreateminivideosusing graphicdesignprogram,BookBrush,andupload themtomyYouTubechannelregularly.Againit putsthewordoutandthevideoshighlightwhatI do.

Lisa Turley is from West Virginia. She is on numerous ARC street teams and reads in multiple genres. She is passionate about helping authors get the wordoutabouttheirbooks.

Non-fictionwise,Ialsowriteaweeklycolumnfor anonlinemagazineandmonthlyelsewhereand sharethesepostswidely.Iwriteatwiceweekly blogonmywebsiteandsharethattoo.People knowtoexpectapostfrommeoncertaindaysof theweek,withrareexceptions.

Allison Symes

Iambuildingupaportfolioofmywritingdoing allofthis.

InowhaveamonthlyauthornewsletterwhereI sharetips,linkstomystories(includingexclusive onestomysubscribers),plusupdatesonwhatI amuptowritingwise.NoteIhaven’tdonethis straightaway.I’vedonethisknowingIamata pointwhereIcannowcommittodoingthisregularly.

Ithashelpedmetoseemarketingasengaging withmyreaders-actualandpotential.Bygiving somethingofvaluetothem,theyaremorelikely towanttoengagewithme!

Consistencyisimportantnomatterwhatwriting andmarketingyoudo.Ican’tstressenoughhow importantthatis.LookathowoftenI’veusedthe word“regularly”inthisarticle.Iamnotonevery singlesocialmediaoutletdeliberately.IknowI canfocusonFacebook,Twitter,andYouTubeso Ido.

IamonvariouswritinggroupsonFacebook.I joininoftenwiththemarvellous#writingchat whichcanbefoundthere.Iseethisasmarketing too.Why?SometimestopicscomeupwhereI cansharetips.Notonlyitisusefultoothers, againitgetsmynameoutthere(andthenpeople maycheckoutmywebsiteandbooks).Thenice thingaboutthisis(a)it’sfunand(b)Icanpickup usefultipsIcanapplytomyworkandmarketing.

Iamnotincompetitionwithanyotherwriter.I amincompetitionwithmyself.Iwanttoimprove mywritingandseewhereitcantakeme.The writingjourneyisnotmeanttobestatic.NaturallyIwanttogetmoreofmyworkpublished.This iswhyIentercompetitionsregularly.IfI’mfortunateenoughtobelonglisted,itisnewsIcan share(andifIwin,evenmoreso!).IthelpsconfirmIhaveatrackrecord,whichmakesiteven morelikelypeoplewillcheckmyworksout.

Oneofmygreatloveswithmarketingisitisoften possibletoschedule.Thisisusefulasitmeans

youcanprepareyourmaterialingoodtime.Mix upwhatyouscheduleforTwittersaywithwhat you’replanningtoshareonFacebook.Givesome thoughtastowhatwouldworkbestoneachplatform.Studywhatotherauthorsdo.Noteverythingwillsuityoubutyouwillpickupideaswhich do.

Ifyoucantakepartinauthorevents,doso.Ifyou haven’tgotabookout,supportauthorevents. Theseareenjoyable,youcanlearnfromtheseas towhatmightworkforyouwhenyouneedto thinkabouthavingevents,andyoumakefriends.

Havingotherwritersasfriendsisgreatbecause theyunderstandtheupsanddownsofthewriting lifeinawayevenyourmostsupportivesignificant othersmightnot.Oftenauthorswillsupportthe worksofwritingfriends(Ido-youpayitforward andback)andsoyougetcrossmarketinghappening.

“You need to take the time to market.”

IplanoutmywritingweeksoIdon’tmissdeadlines.Ialsoplanmymarketingtime.Itpays.You needcreativematerialtomarket.Youneedto takethetimetomarket.Itisn’taneasybalancing acttogetrightbutbyplanningwhatIdowhen,it helpsmeensurethatIdogettocarryoutboth aspectstothewritingliferegularly.Iremindpeoplenicelyaboutmynewsletter,ifthereareoffers onmybooks,andbythewayI’malwayshappyto signandsupplymybooks(whichgivesmea chancetosharemywebsitelinketc).

Howeveryouchoosetomarket,ensureyouenjoy doingit.You’retalkingaboutsomethingyoulove -yourwriting-afterall.Thatlovehelpsyouto keepgoingforthelongterm.

Allison Symes is a flash fiction/short story writer, blogger and editor based in Hampshire. She runs writing workshops, judges competitions, and writes weekly for writers for Chandler’s Ford Today. She has two flash fiction collections published (Chapeltown Books) with a third in the pipeline.

MonthlyWritingPrompts

Wendy H. Jones and Tami C. Brown set this month’s writing prompts. They hope you enjoy them. With plenty of options to choose from - words, music and imageswhy not give it a go ?

Ascreativesourheadsareusually buzzingwithideasforstories,novels,poems,books,flashfictionand somuchmore.Infact,weusuallyhavetoo muchgoingoninsideoutheads.However, sometimesweneedjustalittlebitofhelp, soherearethismonth’swritingprompts.

WORDS

Itwasthenthebull

Cheese.Bears.Chrysanthemums.Guttering.

Usethecolourred.

MUSIC

UnhealthybyAnne-MariefeaturingShania

Twain

CarnavaldeVenise

Seashore–NatureSounds

IMAGES

(Photographic images 1-3 by Tami C. Brown)

Image1

WendyH.Jones

TamiC.Brown

Editor in chief, Wendy H. Jones is the multi-award -winning, best-selling author of adult crime thrillers and cozy mysteries, children’s picture books and non-fiction books for writers. In addition she is a writing coach, partner in Auscot Publishing and Retreats and hosts the Writing and Marketing Show podcast.

Tami C. Brown loves to have her camera ready to snap beauty wherever she goes. Her family and friends, affectionately known as the Queenies, are well prepared for random stops along the journey to have a photo op. She’s grateful for all photography opportunities and the adventures that come along with it.

Image2

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BestsellerLists:TheInsideScoop

Bestseller lists have varied nuances and rules. Marketing expert and owner of New Shelves Books, Keri Barnum, discusses what makes a book ‘popular’ and takes us behind the scenes of a number of different bestseller campaigns.

Whatdoesitlooklikebehindthescenes ofabestsellercampaign?Well,that depends.

Allthebestsellerlistshavevariednuancesand rules.Amazonupdatestheircategorybestseller lists,eachconsistingofonehundredtitles,every hour.Consideringthereareover16,000book specificcategoriesavailable,thattranslatesinto literallythousandsofchancesforyourbookto becomeabestsellereachday.

USA Today,ontheotherhand,calculatessales fromMondaythroughSundayandpublishes theirbestsellerlistsconsistingofthe150topsellingtitlesonceweeklyonWednesday. The New York Times basestheirweeklybestsellerlistson “popularbooksintheUnitedStates”whichallowsforcurationratherthanrelyingsolelyon salesnumberstodeterminethebestsellingtitles foreachoftheirsevenlists.

“All the bestseller lists have varied nuances and rules.”

Asonemightimagine,thestrategyusedtomake eachbestsellerlistmentionedabovewillbedrasticallydifferentbasedontheindividuallistrequirements.

AnAmazoncategorybestsellercampaignusually consistsofresearchingnichecategoriestoplace abookinandpushingsaleswithadsoradiscounteBookpromotionoverthecourseofaday ortwo.Dependingonthecategoryandthenumberofotherbooksyourtitleiscompeting against,abookcanmake#1bestselleronAmazonwithasfewasthreebooksales.

USA Today countspre-ordersalesonthedayof release,makingapre-ordercampaignmanyauthorsbestchanceofmakingthelist.

Forbooksthathavealreadybeenreleased,authorsandpublishersrelyheavilyonsnagginga BookBubfeatureddeal.Dependingonthedeal genre,aBookBubfeaturedealcanresultinupwardsof2,000sales.

Eitherapre-ordercampaignoraBookBubfeaturedealpairedwithadditionaleBookdiscount

KeriBarnum

newslettersandpromotions,socialmediaadvertisingandadvertisingonsiteslikeAmazon, BookBub,andGoodreadsgiveauthorsadecent shotofmakingthe3,000-5,000salestypically requiredtomakethebestsellerlist.

It’simportanttonote,however,that USA Today hasarequirementthataportionofyourweekly sales,500tobeexact,comefromplatformsotherthanAmazon.Non-Amazonsalescancome frommultipleoutletsincludingindieorchain bookstores,Kobo,Apple,etc.

The New York Times bestsellerlistisahardernut tocrack.Whilesalesdoplayapartinbecoming a NYT bestsellingauthor(youwillneed10,00020,000salestomakethelist),therulesbeyond thataremurky.

Forexample,bulksalesareincludedbutonlyat the Times’s discretion.And,asidefromthesales requirement,thelistisbasedonunpublished criteriathatmakeabook“popular.”Asubjective termatbest,itisrumoredthatthe Times team willreviewtrendingsocialmedia,newssites, blogs,podcasts,andmagazinestodeterminea book’spopularity.

Becauseofthis,a New York Times bestseller campaignwilloftenincludeheavysalespromotioninadditiontoafullPRcampaign.These campaignswilloftentakemonthstoplanand executeandthecostoftheaverage New York Times bestsellercampaignisallegedtorange fromfivehundredthousandtoonemilliondollars.However,evenawell-plannedandwellfundedcampaignneedsanothersecretingredientthatisrarelydiscussed:luck.

Planning,optimizationandmarketingareimportanttothesuccessofanybestsellercampaign,but,evenifyoudoeverythingright,the titleof“bestseller”mightstilleludeyou.Another bookcouldgoviral,pushingyourbookoffthe list.Youradsmightflop,therecouldbeaglitchin salesreporting,yourtopicmightsuddenlybecometaboo,oranynumberofotheruncontrollablefactorscouldkeepyourcampaignfromperformingasyouhadhope.Youmightevenhave fantasticsales,ranginginthethousands,andstill notmakeabestsellerlist.Whichiswhyanauthor shouldsetboththeirexpectationsandtheirdefinitionofsuccessappropriately.

“Work to find your ideal readers and put your energy into building a highly engaged raving fan base.”

Yourentiremarketingplanshouldnothingeon becomingabestsellingauthor.Setasolidfoundationofawellwritten,editedandpublished book.Worktofindyouridealreadersandput yourenergyintobuildingahighlyengagedraving fanbase.And,sure,goforbestsellerstatusbut realizethathavingabestsellingbookisn’ttheonlymeasureofanauthor’ssuccess.

Becomingapublishedauthor,havingreaders wholoveyourbook,growingadedicatedfollowingandconsistentsalesareallvalidmeasuresof success–makesureyoucelebrateeachofthem interm.

Nomarketingcampaign–orbudget–canguaranteeabookwillmakeitonabestsellerlist.

Keri-Rae Barnum is the owner and CEO of New Shelves Books. One of the most sought-after publishing experts in the U.S., she works with both traditional and indie press authors on creative marketing campaigns to achieve their goals.

“Planning, optimization and marketing are important to the success of any bestseller campaign.”

AyrWritersbyLindaBrown

Linda Brown is a writer from the small town of Newmilns in East Ayrshire. She has been a member of Ayr Writers' Club for eleven years, and currently shares the President's role with fellow member Carrie Watts. Linda credits the club for setting her on the path to publication.

Auld Ayr, wham ne’er a toon surpasses, for honest men and bonny lasses* –andtalentedwriters. *RobertBurns– Tam O’Shanter.

Foundedfifty-threeyearsago,AyrWriters’ ClubisoneofScotland’sbiggestand mostsuccessfulwritingclubs.Meeting onWednesdayeveningsbetweenSeptember andMayattheMercureHotelinAyr, weextend awarmwelcometoeveryoneinterestedinthe artofwriting.Membersrangefromnovicewriterstoexperienced,publishedauthors,poets anddramatists.

AyrWriters’Clubthrivesonanexcitinganddiverseprogrammeofspeakers’evenings,workshopsandfeedbacknightscoveringnovels, shortstories,poetry,drama,non-fiction,children’sfictionandmore.Pastspeakerswho haveinspiredmembersincludeJaniceGalloway,GraemeMcCraeBurnet,JohnCairnie,Caro RamsayandMichaelMalone.

Ourimpressivecompetitionprogrammeofelevencompetitions,adjudicatedbyexpertsineach

field,whoalsoprovideconstructivefeedback,encouragesmemberstotrytheirhandatallformsof writingwiththechanceofwinningbooktoken prizesandtrophies.EveryMayweholdanAwards Dinnertocelebrateoursuccessfulwinners.

AyrWriters’Cluboffersvariety,inspiration,motivation,support,friendshipand,mostimportantly,fun.

Comeandjoinus!

Checkoutwww.ayrwritersclub.co.uk formembershipinformation,theclub’s2023-24programmeandcompetitionscheduleandcontact details.

LindaBrown frontrow,bottomfarright withsomeofthemembersofAyrWriters takenattheirawardsdinner2023

ANGUSaliveMobileLibrary

Our Library of the Month is ANGUSalive mobile library. This mobile library service travels around the county of Angus in Scotland bringing library services to rural communities. We think it is a fabulous venture. Librarian Christine Sharp tells us all about it.

ANGUSalivereplacedtheirtwomobile libraryvansin2019–with“Glen”completewithmoustacheand‘Isla’withher eyelashes.

Themobilelibraryvansofferthesamelibrary servicesasalibraryinabuilding–peoplecan borrowfictionandnonfictionbooks,largeprint andaudiobooks.TheyalsocarryleafletandinformationsuchasMacmillanCancerSupport leaflets,DementiamemoryboxesandfreeWiFi accessforcustomers.

Thetwomobilelibraryvansareoutontheroads ofAngusfourdaysaweek,coveringvillages, hamletsandrurallocationsalloverthecounty. Theyalsovisitsomeruralschoolsandnurseries toallowchildrentheopportunitytovisitthe van,borrowbooksandperhapshearastory.

Atimetableofstops,daysandtimesisavailable ontheANGUSalivewebsite.

Currentlyamobilelibraryvanistakingpartina fundedproject,spendingFridaysinacommunityforlongerperiodstoshowcaseotherlibrary servicesincludingmeetingauthors,Bookbug sessionsandfamilyancestryandlocalhistory information.

OurmobilelibraryteamofCarolyn,ColinandNatashalookforwardtowelcomingeveryone onboard!

Formoreinformation-https://angusalive.scot/ libraries/mobile-library/

Mobile library team member Carolyn Couper outside one of the mobile libraries

HowToWriteAMercurialMagazineArticle(Part2)

In part 2 of his two part article, John Greeves moves away from generating ideas for magazines and looks at the benefits of research, the importance of a good pitch, interview technique and adds some of his own reflections on crafting a magazine article.

Someoneoncetoldmethatmagazinewritingconsistedof40%researchand60% writing.Whateverthepercentages,researchisanimportantpartoftheprocess.Talkingtopeopleabouttheirfieldorinterest,assumesyou’vetakentimetoknowaboutthetopic andhaveacompetentunderstandingoftheissuesinvolved.

“Research gives you a clear direction for your pitch.”

Researchisimportantforanumberreasons:

• Itprovidesaworkinginsightintothesubject/ story.Oftenthisinvolvesasharplearning curve,beforeyouinterviewthespecialist/ expertwhowillassumeyouhavedoneyour homework.

• Itcreatesafocusforyourinterviewquestions andgivesgreateropportunitytodevelopin depthquestionswhiledispellingtherunof themillquestions.

• Researchgivesyouacleardirectionforyour pitch.Ithelpsyoutoestablish:Whatthefuturearticleisabout,whatitwillcontainand howitwillappealtothereadership.

JohnGreeves

Undertakingtheresearchalsoassumesyouhave studiedtheactualmagazineandyouknow:what themagazinecovers,thehousestyleitemploys, thedemographic,typicalarticlelengthsandotherpertinentfeatures.Youneedtoseehowmany articlesarewrittenin-house,andhowmanyare pennedbyfreelancewriters.Thisgroundworkis important.Failuretochecktoseeifthemagazineevenacceptsunsolicitedmanuscriptscan leaveyoudisappointed.

“It creates a focus for your interview questions.”

The Writers’and Artists’ Yearbook listskeyinformationaboutmagazinesandwhichmagazines acceptunsolicitedmanuscripts.

TheQueryorPitch

It’s vital to create a good impression when pitching to an editor for the first time. A concise and well crafted pitch allows the editor not only to assess the article proposal, but enables the editortomakeajudgementaboutyouasawriter.

Yourqueryshouldincludethefollowing:

• The query should be semi-formal and exhibit an element of professionalism when e-mailed to theeditorinperson.

• Atitlethatconveysthearticleinaneyecatchingway.

• The topic of your proposed article, expressed inoneortwosentences.

• Why the article will interest their readerswhynow(timely),whyme(asafepairofhands).

• Sourcesyouwillinterview.

• How you will present the topic in a fresh and appealingway.(What’stheangle?)

Don’tpromisewhatyoucan’tdeliver.

TheInterview

PerhapstheonethingI’velearnedovertheyears istolearntolistenandtryingnottointerjectin aninterview.Ialwaystrytopickalocationand timethatsuitstheintervieweeandworkhardto makethepersonfeelcomfortable.Ipreparemy goalsandquestionswellaheadbutI’maware theyaren’tsetinstoneandknowthedirectionof theinterviewcansuddenlychange.

“Learn to listen and try not to interject in an interview.”

ingsdidn’tgoasplanned.Mysubjecthadhisown agendaandwanteddesperatelytotellmeabout howhisfishingseasonwasnowsetbackto16 May.Thischange,representedabout25%ofhis catchandendangeredhistraditionalwayoflife andthepossibleclosureofthefisheryandmade afarmorecompellingstoryandoutlinedtheabilityfor‘flexibility’ineverysituation.

Intermsoftechnique,Icontinuetoworkonthe flowofmyquestionsandtrytointegratethem seamlesslyintotheinterview,asifI’mhavinga chat.Youneedtostrikeabalancebetweenaconversation(whichhelpsyoursubjectfeelcomfortable)andgettingthejobdone.Allowingthepersontotellthestoryintheirownwordswithout yourinterventionwithafew“that’sinteresting” “orIsee”alsohelps.Sometimesthepersoncan deviatetoofar,thenit’stimetoreinthemin.Despitethebestpreparation,youcansometimes senseareluctancebysomeindividualstoanswer aquestion.Youhavetoaskyourselfwhythispersondoesn’twanttotalkaboutitandhowyouwill proceed.

“Use audio recording while taking notes.”

Avoidobsessingandrecordingeverylittledetail yoursubjectsays.Iusuallyuseaudiorecording whiletakingnotesaswell.Imakesurenamesor unfamiliartermsarespeltcorrectly.Mostpeople willforgiveyoumostthings,exceptspellingtheir nameincorrectly.Sometimesthesubjectcanbe hesitantgivingonewordrepliesandit’sthena caseofaskingthemiftheycouldelaborate,or whytheythinkthis,orcouldtheygiveyouaparticularexample.Attimesyouneedtoprobeharderandaskthemdirectly,“Whytheycareabout theissue?”

IonceinterviewedthelastoftheputcherfishermeninWales.Theinterviewwassupposedtobe anostalgicpreambleaboutthisancientformof salmonfishingontheriverSevern,butproceed-

Re-framingthequestionlateron,canalsoproducetheansweryoufailedtoobtain(firsttime round)nowthepersonisfarmorerelaxed.Ialwaysofferthereluctantinterviewee,theopportunitytoseethedraftbeforeit’spublished,so theycanamendanyinaccuraciesandinconsistenciesbeforethearticlegoestopressandthis

alwaysseemstowork.

Deliveringthearticles

Assumingyou’vesucceededintheseformative steps,thenit’sdowntothewriting.You’reprepared,youareawareofthehousestyle,youknow thewordcountandarefamiliarwiththemagazinesguidelines.It’simperativetodelivertheeditor’sthreelinebriefandworkwithintheseparameterstoo.Nowtherestisuptoyou.Youneedto grabthereader’sattentionfromthestart,ifyou don’t,theywontreadon.Theoldadageaboutincludingthewho,why,where,whenwhatandhow stillapplies,butIalsobelievethatwritingshould haveanimmediacywhichdrawsthereaderinright away.Asoneeditortoldme,startwithabangand endwithabanganddon’tloseyourreaderinbetween.

OnceIwroteaboutapersonwhohandreared55 abandonedleveretsandreturnedthemtothewild. Thearticlewasentitled The Hare Whisperer andthe openingsentenceread:“The phone in Susan’s house can ring at any time of day or night with calls coming from across Britain, and indeed even as far as Australia or Iceland asking for help or advice about leverets (a young hare in it’s first year).”Not onlydoesthissetthescene,buthopefullyithas drawnthereaderin.

Thearticlewascarefullymappedoutaftertheinterview.TheparagraphsprovideddetailsonSusan’sbackgroundandhermission.Ittalkedabout howtheleveretscameintohercareandwhatthe publicmustdobeforeremovingthem.Timewas spentexploringbreedingbehaviourinthewildand aboutthehare’sdecliningnumbers.Focusthen centredonSusan,herdedicatedlevelofcare,the challengesandsuccesseswhichallleadeventually tothereleaseofthesesentientcreaturesintothe wild.Throughoutthearticle,IwantedSusan’spassionforherchargestoresonatethroughherwords andfortheparagraphstohavesmoothtransitions. Theuseofcarefullyinsertedquoteshelpedthe readertomakethatvitalemotionallyconnection withSusanandthebondshehadwithhertinylev-

erets.

Editingthearticle

Ihavealwaysbeentold,“Writewiththedoor open,editwiththedoorshut.”Allwritingneeds shapingandrefining. Lookafreshatyourwork. Tryleavingitforafewdays,thisgivesyouthe detachmentyouneedtoeditit.Readitaloud, noticewhereitdoesn’tflow.Askyourselfwhetheryou’veansweredtheallthequestionsthe readerwouldwanttoknowandcontinuetocut outanyredundancies.

Youcanalsotestyourarticletoseeifthewho, what,where,when,whyquestionsandareall deliveredinthearticle.Proofreadingisessential. Ensuringyourvoiceisconsistent,thearticle flowswiththetransitionsseemingeffortless.Ask yourselfifyoufeelyou’vemadethatconnection withyourallimportantreaders.

Avoidedusingabstractionsandfocusonlyonthe concrete.Anythingyoucansee,touch,smell, hearortasteisconcrete.Akissforexamplecan beseen,felt,possiblyheardwhile‘love’remains anabstractformwhichhasweakerwordcurrencyinthewrittenworld.Excessiveadjectivesandadverbsneedtogo,youdon’tneed ‘walkedquickly,’when‘hurried’doesthesame job.Looktoseeifsentencesareactiverather thaninthepassivevoice.Don’twrite,‘Thetail waswaggedbythedog,”it’spassive,butwrite insteadthe‘Thedogwaggeditstail”(active).

Yourwritingmustappeareffortlessandlight, evenifthisbeliesthetruth.Thearticlemayhave requiredseveraldrafts,buttheeffortisworthit. Keepallthedrafts,butbemindfulof‘overediting.’Thiscanlosethespontaneityinyourearlier drafts.RememberLeonardodaVinci’swords: A Work of Art Is Never Finished, Merely Abandoned, andit’simportantyoutrustyourselfandsuppresstheself-criticthatsitsontheopposite shouldertothemuse.

Theintegrityofanarticleisimportant. Ionce

interviewedaladyaged111severalyearsago.Of course,Iwantedtoknow,“Whatwasthesecret toherlongevity?”Herexpectantreplywasnota balancedregimeofdietorexercise,butapassionforbettingonhorseraces.Idecidedtouse thisdetailinthearticle,knowingitrancontrary topopularthinking.Aswriterswehavearesponsibilitytouseoromitdetailsandthishasabearingontheobjectivity,balanceandintegrityof ourwork.

Perhaps,themorecomfortableyouarewith yourownvoice,themorerelaxedthereaderwill bewithyourwriting.

Oneformulaforasuccessfulmagazinearticle, notmyown,postulatedaformulaforsuccessful magazinewritingandwaswrittenasE/A+I+I²+ I=S.

HereE/Astandsforentertainment,Irepresents information,I²isusingintelligencebothways; oneensuringsenseandclarityandtwodrawing thereaderinsoheorshefeelslike‘aninsider.’ ThefinalIisforproviding‘Insight’andanswers thequestion“WhyIamreadinganarticlelike thisnow?”IfyouputthisalltogetherthenSuccessmustsurelyfollow.

John Greeves originally hails from Lincolnshire. He believes in the power of poetry and writing to change people’s lives and the need for language to move and connect people to the modern world. Since retiring from Cardiff University, Greeves works as a freelance journalist who's interested in an eclectic range of topics.

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WritingBookoftheMonth

On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft byStephenKing

Reviewed by Pauline Tait

Publisher:Hodder&Stoughten(October2012)

Partmemoir,partmasterclassbyoneofthebestsellingauthorsofalltime,thissuperbvolumeisarevealingandpracticalviewofthewriter'scraft,comprisingthebasictoolsofthe tradeeverywritermusthave.

King'sadviceisgroundedinhisvividmemoriesfromchildhoodthroughhisemergenceasawriter,fromhisstruggling earlycareertohiswidelyreported,near-fatalaccidentin1999 -andhowtheinextricablelinkbetweenwritingandliving spurredhisrecovery.Immenselyhelpfulandilluminatingto anyaspiringwriter,thisspecialeditionofStephenKing'scriticallylauded,million-copybestsellersharestheexperiences, habits,andconvictionsthathaveshapedhimandhiswork.

Brilliantlystructured,friendlyandinspiring,OnWritingwill empowerandentertaineveryonewhoreadsit-fans,writers, andanyonewholovesagreatstorywelltold.

Review

Nothavingastomachforhorror,thiswasabookthatwasregularlymentionedamongstauthorfriends, yetI’dsuccessfullyavoideditforyears.Nowmycopysitswell-read,andwithanarrayofcolourfulpost-it notessplayingfromitsinvaluablepages.

Awritingbookwithadifferenceasoneoftheworld’smostacclaimedauthorstakesreadersbacktohis earlychildhoodandlifewithhisolderbrotherandmotherastheynavigatedtheupsanddownsthatlife inevitablythrewtheirway.Amemoir,intermingledwithwritingadviceandtipsthateveryaspiringwriter shouldknow,thisisabookthatwillhaveyoulaughingoutloud,whilelearningandhoningthecraftof writing.

Whilehisexampleofeditingwillbeparticularlyusefultonewerwriterswhohaveyettohonetheartof lessismore,theadvicegiventhroughoutthesepageswillundoubtedlystaywithwritersastheynavigate theirownwritingjourney.Advicecomingfromoneofthegreatsisnottobesniffedat.Stephenopenly andenthusiasticallyshareshisknowledge,whathehaslearntalongthewayandencouragesusinour ownwritingjourneys,nomatterourgenre.

Inconclusion,thisisabookthateverywritershouldreadatleastonce,butI’mwillingtobetthatmany willrefertoitregularly,especiallyinthoseearlyyearsofwriting.

BookshopoftheMonth

The New Bookshop

Main Street, Cockermouth, England

The Heart of the Community

TheNewBookshopisaplaceofjoy.HalfwayalongMainStreet,Cockermouththe firstsmallstorewasopenedbyDavidand AngelaWinkworthin1968.Whentheirdaughter CatherineHetheringtontookover,sheendured twomajorfloods,withthewaterlevelrisingto firstfloorlevelallalongthestreet.Thisdisaster washeadlinedworld-wide.Lesswassaidofthe outstandingcommunityefforttorebuildthe town.Thebookshopclosedformonthsasthe familystruggledtorebuildthebusiness,andthe shopinnards,butlocalsupport helpedthem andmanyotherbusinessestopullthrough.

Todaynewownerskeepfaithwiththelocalclientele.Ablackboardliststimesanddatesofbook groups.FutureauthortalksincludeMWCravenin July,HelenRebankinSeptember.Thepremises haveexpandedanddevelopedtomeetthechallengesofthe2020s.On-linebusinessisconstant, andawriters’weekendinMarchwassuccessful enoughtopromisearepeat.

Thecaféisafavouritemeetingplace,withoutdoortablesinthesummer.Wednesdaymorning isachildren’sStorytimeandeventsforolderchildrentimedforafterschool.Surelytheydeserve tosucceed.

Margaret(Meg)Woodwardhasretiredafteralifeofpublishing,teachingandheritagetoCockermouth,a Georgian‘gemtown’justoutsidetheLakeDistrictNationalPark.Shehashadmanyarticlesandstories publishedandisstillwriting,mainlynovelsnow,thelatestbeingTheDevil’sBairn,a14th centurymurder investigationsetinPluscardennearherbirthplace.

MargaretWoodward

WritingForOnlineMagazines

Onlinemagazineshavebeenamajor partofmywritinglifeforyears.This includesmylong-runningweeklycolumnwith Chandler’s Ford Today andamonthly flashfictioncolumnfor Mom’s Favorite Reads I wroteforabouttwoyears.Iblogelsewheretoo. NowI’mthrilledtobewritingfor Writers’ Narrative andtobepartoftheeditorialteam Theidea ofanonlinemagazinewrittenbywritersforwritersisgreat.InwritingforonlinemarketsI’ve learnedmanytipswhichIhopeyou’llfinduseful too.

WhyOnlineMagazines?

WhydoIloveonlinemagazines?Cantheyreplaceprintmagazines?

Idon’twanttoseethedeathoftheprintmagazine.Magazines,inwhateverformat,arefabulous.

Thereareadvantagestotheonlinemagazine. Theyareamoreinteractiveexperienceforthe reader.Icanshareaudioclips,videos,hyperlinksetcforanonlinearticle.

Itiseasiertolinkpreviousarticlesonarelated topictooneyouarecurrentlywriting.Idothis for Chandler’s Ford Today,especiallyifIaminterviewingguestauthors.Wheretheyhavebeen onCFTbefore,Icanincludethelinkstotheir previousappearances,sopeoplecaneasilylook theseup.Youmakeiteasyforareadertofollow

throughshouldtheywishtodoso.Tohaverelatedarticlesinoneplace,onehandylinkifyou like,isuseful.

AppearancesMatter

Youstillneedhighstandardsofediting.For onlineworkyoumustbeawareofhowitwill lookonscreen.Bigparagraphsareawkwardto read.IjudgedacompetitionwhereoneparagraphtookupalmostawholepageofA4-abeginner’serror.Onscreen,thatlooksworse.I’ve seenexamples.Itdeters.Asthereissomuch choiceofreadingmaterial,youmustmakeyour onlinearticlestandout.Makingiteasytolookat andtakeinmatters.

Short,snappyparagraphsaretheorderofthe daythenbutthisisagooddisciplinetogetinto forotherwritingformstoo.Youbecomemore awareoftheneedsforwhitespaceandtosplit upthetextwithinterestingsnippets,whether thesearepictures,pullquotes,otheritemsof interest.Allofthesehelpkeepthereaderengaged.

OtherAdvantagesofOnlineMagazines

Printisexpensiveandbecomingmoreso.Online magazineshavetheadvantageof not needing

AllisonSymes

Allison Symes discusses the value of online magazines and shares tips on how to write them.

paper,ink,andassociatedcosts.Thatmeansitis possibletohaveonlinemagazinesforanaudiencewhereitwouldbetoocostlytohaveaprint version.

TheotheraspectwhichIthinkhashelpedonline magazinestakeoffhasbeenthechangeinthe wayinwhichpeopleread.Peoplereadon screen,whetheritistheirphone,laptop,orotherdevice.They’rereadingbooksandstoriesthis waysowhynotonlinemagazinestoo?

Planning

Knowingyouraudienceisjustasimportantfor theonlinemarketasitisfortheprintone.With onlinemagazines,youcanmakeiteasyforpeopletocontactyou.OnCFT,thereisacomments box.Idon’talwaysreceivecommentsonmy postsbutwhenIdo,Itakenotice.Why?Simply becausefeedbackisalwaysuseful.Itisharderto dothisforprintmagazinesduetothetimescales involved.

Youstillneedtoworktoawordcountforonline articles.Ialsoplanoutthelookofthearticle.I usesub-headings,pictures,clips,bulletpoints etcandensuremyarticlecanbesplitintoeasy toreadandattractivesections,justasIhave donehere.

TopTips

I’vefoundthefollowingtipsuseful.

• Studyonlinemagazinesinandoutofyourgenre,payingcloseattentiontohowthearticles look.

youwillneedtopay.Goldenrulehereisifin doubt,don’t.Alwayscheckyoucangenuinelyuse somethinglikethis.

• Talkingofpictures,assumingyouhavechecked orknowthesearefinetouse,checkwithyoureditorwhatsizeimages they want.ForCFT,Iuse640 x460pixels(myeditor’srequirements-thissize looksgoodonscreen.Doesn’ttakelongtouploadeither.Thatmatterswhenpeoplearereadingondevices).

• Think“tight”writing.Keepitdirect.Useyour titleasahookforyourpiece.Youwantthistobe eye-catching.Titlesstandoutmorewithonline magazines.ForCFTIcanusecolourformysubheadings.AgainhelpsthingsstandoutbutIstick toonecolourthroughout.Iseeitasbranding.

• Payattentiontowhatyoureditorwants! Writers’ Narrative istextbasedbecausewe’resharinginformationandadvice.Youreditorhastoworkout whatwillfitwhere.Therewillbegoodreasonsfor themaskingforwhattheyhave.

• Knowyouraudience.Thiswillhelpyougetthe toneofyourarticleright.

Conclusion

• Thinkeasyread.You’reengagingwithreaders. Youarepitchingtothem.Youwantthemtostay withyouuntiltheendofthearticleandbeeager toreadyournextone.

• Thinkwhataspectsyoucouldbringintomake yourarticlelookattractive.Beawareifyouuse pictures,theyhavetobecopyright/royaltyfree orfromasitelike Pixabay oryourownpictures oryougettherelevantpermissions,forwhich

Onlinemagazineshavehelpedprintversionssurvive.Theygiveanalternativewaytoreadinformationsocanincreaseanaudiencemakingit easiertosupporttheprintversion.Theycanalso attractthosewhodonotwantprintforvarious reasons(includinghealthones).Thereisamarket.Aswithanymarket,youneedtostudywhat isoutthereandfollowtheguidelines,butthey arefuntowritefor.

Allison Symes is a flash fiction/short story writer, blogger and editor based in England. She runs writing workshops, judges competitions, and writes weekly for writers for Chandler’s Ford Today. She has two flash fiction collections published (Chapeltown Books) with a third in the pipeline.

RecentReleases

TheLostBookshopbyEvieWoods

ASIN : B0BMF2M8Z6

Publisher : One More Chapter (June 2023)

TheKeeperofStoriesmeetsTheLostApothecaryinthisevocativeandcharmingnovelfullofmysteryandsecrets.

‘Thethingaboutbooks,’shesaid‘isthattheyhelpyoutoimaginealifebiggerandbetterthanyoucouldeverdreamof.’

OnaquietstreetinDublin,alostbookshopiswaitingtobe found…

Fortoolong,Opaline,MarthaandHenryhavebeentheside charactersintheirownlives.Butwhenavanishingbookshop castsitsspell,thesethreeunsuspectingstrangerswilldiscover thattheirownstoriesareeverybitasextraordinaryastheones foundinthepagesoftheirbelovedbooks.Andbyunlockingthe secretsoftheshelves,theyfindthemselvestransportedtoa worldofwonder…wherenothingisasitseems.

One Moment in Time byShariLow

ASIN : B0BSSS742S

Publisher : Boldwood Books (May 2023)

Afterthreedecadesofmarriage,BrendaJoneshasdecidedto leaveherhusband,justassoonastheybothreturnfromamysterytripwiththeirdaughterZara.ButshehasnoideathatZara isflyingthemtoLasVegastorenewtheirvows.ZaraJoneshas recreatedalmosteverydetailofherparent’soriginalweddingnowheronlychallengeistrackingdownthetwofriendswho werepicturedwithhermumanddadbackin1993.

AidenGreggisdealingwithhisownrelationshipwoeswhenhe receivesanunexpectedmessagefromacompletestranger. WIththehelpofFacebook,Zarahastrackedhimdownandis askingifhisparentsaretheothercoupleintheoldphoto?And ifso,couldhebringthemtoVegasforasurprisereunion?What ZaraandAidendon’tknowisthatthirtyyearsago,OneMomentInTimechangedeverything.

Willrewindingtheclockrightthewrongsofthepast?Orare theyallcountingdowntoarendezvouswithdisaster?

Writing AKiller First Line

Getting that first line right can prove a challenge for many writers. Wendy H. Jones discusses some of the different forms a first line can take.

Whenwritinganarticleonfirstlinesone wouldthinkstartingwithstatistics wouldnotbethebestfirstline.However,sometimesthesecondlineistheonethat deliversthepunch–considerthisstatistic,there arefourmillionbookspublishedgloballyevery year.Thatis456booksperhour.Thesearemind blowingstatistics.Inaddition,theattentionspan oftheaverageconsumerisgoingdown.Inanage ofsocialmediascrolling,youmayhavefractions ofasecondtograbthereader’sattentionand makethemwanttoreadon.

Afirstlinehasmanyfunctionstoperform.Itsfirst functionistodrawthereaderin,totantalise themandtointrigue.Youwantthemtoreadthe firstsentence,thenthenext,andthenext.Your firstlineshouldalsobeusedtosetthetoneofthe novelandestablishyouruniquevoice.Itiswidely thoughtstartingwithdialogueisneveragood move.Yet,let’sconsiderthefollowingopening line.

‘Putdownthegun,Thomas.’

AlexGrayin Still Dark

Thesefivewordsperformseveralfunctions.Firstly,theyplacethereadersquarelyintheheartof theaction.Theyalsorampupthetension.Anotherfunctiontheyperformistoraisequestionsin thereader’smind.WhoisThomas?Whydoeshe haveagun?Whoishepointingthegunat?Whois calmlyaskinghimtoputthegundown?Whatis thesituationthatwarrantsThomaspullinga gun?Allofthismeansthereaderiseagertoread

furtheranditcanbethedifferencebetweenthem poppingthebookintheirbasketorputtingit backontheshelf.

Firstlinescanbeusedinmanydifferentways-to shock,makethereaderlaugh,informthem,set historicalcontext,buildworlds,introduceacharacter,andsomuchmore.Useyourfirstlinewisely,craftit,polishit,playaboutwithdifferentversions,trytheseoutonreadersandfindoutwhat resonates.

Onewordofwarning donotspendmonthswritingandrewritingthefirstline;therestofthe bookneedstobewrittenaswell.Often,myfirst linewillchangebythetimethebookisfinished. Remember,youreditorwillalsobetakinggreat noticeofyourfirstlineandthereisstilltimeto makechanges.

Wendy H. Jones is the multi-award-winning, bestselling author of adult crime thrillers and cozy mysteries, children’s picture books and nonfiction books for writers. In addition she is a writing coach, editor in chief of Writers’ Narrative, partner in Auscot Publishing and Retreats and hosts the Writing and Marketing Show podcast.

HowToPitchAWritingMagazine

Author and copyeditor, Jeannete The Writer, shares her tips for pitching articles to writing magazines.

Ifyouwanttobepublishedinamagazine, thenit’simportanttoknowhowtopitchone properly.It’snotdifficult,butitdoestake diligence,research,andalittlebitofgumption togetitright.Herearesometipsforpitchinga writingmagazine(suchasthisone).

AnatomyofaPitch

Theformatissimple,andyoushouldkeepeverythingconcisebecauseeditorsarebusypeople andtheydon’tneedyourlifestoryinyourpitch email.Here’showtodoit...

SubjectLine:

Showyourintentclearlyandkeepitshort.Think ofhowtheeditormightsearchforitlaterintheir inbox.E.g.,“TwoPitchesfor[Magazine]”or “[YourName]Pitchfor[Magazine]”.

Greeting:

AddresstheEditor-in-Chieforsectioneditorby name.Youcanalsoadd“andteam”or“and crew”etc.toincludeotherreaderswhomay screenpitchemails.Showoffyourwritingskills byusingthedirectaddress/vocativecomma(the onethatgoesbetweenthesalutationandthe person’sname).

Connection:

Inonetotwosentences,summarizewhyyouare pitchingthisparticulareditorormagazine.Ifyou haveaconnection(professional,personal,referral,orjustasareader)mentionit.

Pitches: Includerelevantdetailsincludingpossibletitles, thearticle’saudience,whatitwillcover,specific examples/sectionstoexpect,andthelesson learned.Keepthistothreeorfoursentencesper pitch max.

Qualifications:

Brieflydescribewhyyou’rerighttowritethisarticle.Youdon’thavetohavespecificaccoladesor degrees.Itcanbeanythingthatmakesyou uniquelyqualified.

Closing:

Bepositive.Leavetheballintheircourttoindicateyouwouldloveareplyandmakeiteasyto respondtoyou.E.g.,“Ilookforwardtohearing backsoon.Youcanreplytomehere”.

OtherTipsforPitching

 Readthepublicationtoavoidpitchingtopics similartothoserecentlypublished.Thisalso givesyouanideaofthevoice,tone,length, andformatofarticles.

JeanetteTheWriter

 Readthepitchingrequirements!Youneedto showthemyoucanfollowinstructionsand willbeeasytoworkwith.

 Checkspellingandgrammartoensureno typosorissuesremain.Youremailisan audition,sotreatitasseriouslyasyouwould thearticle.

 Don’tself-reject.Theysaypeople(especially women)don’tapplyforjobsbecausethey feel unqualifiedwhenthey are qualified. Don’tself-rejectbeforetheeditorhasa chancetodecideforthemselves.

 Readthemagazine’sreply.Theymayaskfor moreideas,modificationstoideas,or havefollow-upquestionstosetyouupfor writingoneofthepitches.Replythoroughly togetoffontherightfoot.

TipsforPitchingToAWritingMagazine

SubjectLine: Showyourintentclearlyandkeepitshort

Greeting: AddresstheEditor-in-Chieforsectioneditorby name

Connection: Inonetotwosentences,summarizewhyyouare pitchingthisparticulareditorormagazine

Pitches: Includerelevantdetailsincludingpossibletitles

Whetherit’syourfirstpublicationoryourdream publication,pitchingisaprocessthattakestime toperfect.Chooseyourpublicationswelland takethechance.Shareeverythingyouknow(no matterhowbasicorobviousitfeels)because youneverknowwhoneedstohearit.

Goodluck!

Closing: Bepositive. OtherTips

Readthepublicationtoavoidpitchingtopics similartothoserecentlypublished.

Readthepitchingrequirements

Checkspellingandgrammar

Don’tself-reject

Readthemagazine’sreply.

Jeanetteisawriterandcopyeditorbasedin Dallas,Texas.Whennotmovingcommas around,sheenjoysscubadiving,grammar blogging,crafting,andannoyinghercatsby tryingtomakethemfamousonInstagram.

“Pitching is a process that takes time to perfect.”

TheArtOfFaffing

Do you sometimes find yourself procrastinating rather than getting down to writing? Jenny Sanders describes the many competing demands on her time on some days that stop her from sitting down to write. Or is she just perfecting the art of ‘faffing’?

Never put off ’til tomorrow what you can do the day after tomorrow

MarkTwain

Wewritersareafunnybunch. We spendhoursjottingdownideas,creatingstoryarcs,ponderingcharacter development,excitingplotsanddramaticdenouements;butthecuriousfactis,thateven onceallthatarduousworkiscompleted–evenif onlyinourheads–actuallysittingdowntowrite doesn’talwaysthrill.

Notonlythat,butmanyofus,myselfincluded, findourselvesputtingoffthemomentwhenwe positionourselvesinfrontofourscreentodo someserious,focusedwork. Ireallydon’tunderstandit. Wegetsofrustratedwhenotherdemandscrowdourscheduleandwritingis squeezedoutyetagain;then,theideaofanentiredaydevotedtonothingbutwritingsounds likeacompletedream.

“Actually sitting down to write doesn’t always thrill.”

So,whydowestrugglewhentheopportunity presentsitselftosimplygetonwithit? Whyisit

thatwefindourselvesinexplicablydrawntoa thousandothertasks?

“The idea of an entire day devoted to nothing but writing sounds like a complete dream.”

Suddenly,defrostingthefreezerbecomesanurgentprojectthatsimplyhastobeattendedtoimmediately. There’sthecouchthatdemandsrepositioningwhich,ofcourse,showsthatvacuuming hasbeenratherlaxoflate;wemustrectifyitwhile wethinkaboutit. Thefilingsystemthatwe’ve beenmeaningtorearrangeandhaveignoredfor manymonths,nowappearstobethemostattractiveofoptionsandwethrowourselvesintoorganisingitwithgusto.

Therearelawnstobemowed,laundrytobedone, lightbulbstobereplaced,sockstobepaired,forgottenboxesunderourbedsthatrequireexploration,windowstowashandtoenailstocut/paint.

JennySanders

Thosecobwebsthatwe’vebeenignoringfor weeks,nowwaftacrossoureyelinewiththe samefranticgestureasadrowningbather,simplyscreamingtobehelped.

Onanysuchday,whichhadbegunwithsuch promise,Icanachieveagreatdeal,butverylittle hasanythingtodowithcapturingwordsonmy screen.

Ican

Descalethekettle;re-alphabetisemyCDcollection;gluethebrokenhandlebackonthemug that’ssatonthewindowsillsincelastMay(or wasitMarch?);oilthesqueakydoorhinge;read thearticlesIsavedaboutlifehacks(oh,theirony)/deforestationintheAmazon/tradeagreementsintheBRICSnations;sorttherecycling; wipeouteverylastpeskycrumbfromthebread bin;highlighttheseedsIwantfromthefreecataloguethatarrivedwiththeweekendnewspapers;orderpacksofChristmascardsfromthe charitywebsite;createanewsnackcombousing cornflakes,grapesandstrawberrysauce;sift throughthosesadandstickyoutofdatesauces atthebackofthefridge;findthebirthdaychocolateIboughtformyhusband,hidinthecupboardandforgotabout;bakecookies;tryonall theclothesinmywardrobewithaviewtodeclutteringandblessingthelocalcharityshop; takeanonlinequizaboutactionmovies;fiddle withthatpuzzlecamefreewithamagazine,and washmymakeupbrushes.

No-onecandeny,it’sbeenadayofimpressive accomplishment. But,alas,nocompositionhas madeittothescreen.

Theremustbeascientificexplanationforwhat goesoninourbrainsatthesemoments. Our neuralpathwaysmustsurelybealightwith messageszingingacrossoursynapses,alerting ustothefactthatourdayisrapidlyvanishing andyellingfranticallythatwereallymustbuckledowntosomeseriousworkifwe’retopull anythinghalfdecentfromthiscarwreckofa day.

“I can achieve a great deal, but very little has anything to do with capturing words on my screen.”

BythetimeI’vemademultiplecupsofastimulatingbrewandenduredthemultipleandinevitablebathroomtripsinconsequence,IfindI haveapproximatelyfortyminutesofwriting timeleft,solongasIcanresisttheurgetoclear my‘in’box.

Ireallyshouldmakeeveryoneofthemcount.

OrperhapsIshouldforgetitandtryagaintomorrow.

JennySandersisawriter,speaker,encouragerandmentor. Sheloveswriting,readingandwalkinginnature. Forthepastseveralyearsshe’slivedbetweenthebeautifulcitiesofBath,UKandCapeTown,SAfrica. Herexcitingandhumorousnewchildren’sbook The Magnificent Moustache and Other Stories isnow availablepublishedbyTheConradPress.

TheArtofRe-Drafting

S. Bee provides a reminder to writers not to give up on their tales. Here, she shares her experience of redrafting a short story several times before it was finally accepted for publication.

Somewriterscanbepreciousabouttheir workandrefusetochangeevenaword, letalonethecharacter'snameorthe mainplot.IusedtofeellikethatwhenIsetout in2010,tryingtosellmyworktothewoman's magazinefictionmarket.Butovertime,I changedmymindwhenIrealisedthattosell,I neededtoadoptamoreflexibleapproach.This pieceoutlinesmyexperienceofhowIre-drafted astoryseveraltimesforittobeaccepted,published,andsold.

Ifirstwroteastorycalled Too Good to be True aroundeightyearsago.Itwasaboutamiddleagedhairdresser(Marion)who,onherdayoffat home,answeredthedoortoanoutoftheblue caller-hertwenty-somethingdaughter'schildhoodfriend,Lisa.Marionhadn'tseenLisafor decades,soshehardlyrecognisedher. Yetshe invitedherinforacuppa.DaughterAbbeywas awayonholidayabroad.

Overtea,LisaspunMarionastoryofwoe.She wascurrentlyhomeless,unemployedandwas goingtobekickedoutofahostelbecausethey neededherroom.SheaskedifMarionwould considerherasalive-inhousekeeper.Feeling sorryforher,andputonthespot,Marionsaid yes

butshecametoregretherdecision.

Lisadidn'tdoanyhousework,hoggedthephone andplayedhermusicloud.Mild-manneredMariontriedtoconfrontLisa,butnothingchanged.

Theloudmusicattractedadishymaleneighbour, Ken.Talkingaboutthesituation,heaskedMarion out.Theygoonadinnerdateandcomeupwith optionsforLisa.

WhentheyreturntoMarion's,theydiscoverthat Lisahasdisappeared.Asapartinggift,she's cleanedthehouse.

Andthatwastheendofthestory.Marionfound romanceandthe'Lisasituation'hadsolveditself!

Isubbeditaroundthemagazines,butitdidn't getanywhere.Itwasonlythroughthedistanceof timethatIunderstandwhy.Forastart,social problemsaren'tverywomagfriendly.No-one wantstoreadabouthostelsandunemployment. Marion'sdaughterdidn'tappearanywhereinthe story,either.LisawastheconnectiontoAbbey, soAbbeyoughttohavemadeanappearance. Plus,whywouldLisachangeherways,thensuddenlydisappear?

Istilllikedtheideaofanidentityfraudstertaking advantageofsomeone'skindnature,soIputthe storyasideforawhileandconcentratedonother work.WhenIfeltready,Ibeganversion2,called

S.Bee

'TheTwoLisa's.'Thebasicplotwasthesameas before,butIdroppedthedishyneighbour.As before,Marionarrivedhomefromworktofind Lisahaddisappeared.Yetthistime,she'dleft thehouseinacompletemess.ThenAbbey rockedupearlyfromherholiday,with–yes, you'veguessedit,heroldpal,Lisa–she'd bumpedintoherattheairport.

TherealLisaexplainedthatTrinaposedasLisa, preyingontheparentsofherformerfriends,to gainfreelodgingsandfood.Shefoundtheseold playmatesona'friendsre-united'typeofwebsite.LikeMarion,theparentswouldn'trecognise her-soshegotawaywithit.Lisaexplainedthat Trinahadprobablyrunofftojoinaboyfriendin Paris,asthiswasherpatternofbehaviour.Marion'sheadwhirled -AndIadmitthatminedid too!

WhenLisaleft,MarionandAbbeybothsuspectedLisaandTrinaofbeingslyscammersincahoots.ThelastlinewaswhenMarionturnedto Abbeyandasked,'Howdoweknowthatwasthe realLisa?'Howindeed!

AlthoughI'dlefttheendingopen,Iwasconvincedithadafantastictwist.Withhopeshigh,I subbedittosuitablemagazinesagain.Yetthere wasnojoy.Monthslater,Icouldclearlyseethat theplotwastoocomplicated.Itraisedmore questionsthananswers.IfTrinaandLisawere partnersincrime,whatexactlydidtheyget awaywith?Nothingwasactuallystolen.Ididn't likethe'trackingdownfolkviaawebsite'aspect,either.Itwaswaytoosinister.Andasmy womagwritingcritiquefriendspointedout,certainpartsoftheplotjustdidn'tringtrue.

WhywouldLisa/Trinagotoallthattrouble,just forthesakeofgrabbing2week'sfreenosh?If shehadafellainParis,whywasn'tshewith him?WhywouldtherealLisahelpTrina scroungelikethis?Whatwouldshegetoutofit? Itwasalsobitofacoincidencethatshe'd bumpedintoAbbeyattheairport.Surely,ifLisa wasarip-offmerchant,she'dwanttoavoidher?

Icouldn'tthinkofawayarounditthatwasless complex.Iwasseriouslystruggling.SoIasked myself,whatwasthemostimportantangle,for me,withthisstory?Well,Iwantedtoemphasise the'nevertrustastranger'concept.Wheninspirationstruck,Idecidedtoditchthewhole 'daughter'sfakeschoolfriend'set-up.Butpassive,politeMarionneededsomeoneonherside, soIkeptAbbey.

“Don't give up on a tale you have faith in.”

Versionnumber3wascalled The Doorstep Stranger.Ithadneveroccurredtometobringin theMC'sjob–Marionwasahairdresser.Butthis time,Idid.Thebigquestioninthenewversion was–hadMarionbeenconnedbyLinda,who calledherselfamarketresearcher?Inthisversion, I'dtryandkeepthereaderguessingwhetherLindawasgenuineornot.Abbeymadeanappearanceatthehalf-waypoint,tolistentoherMum's reservations–andtoconfrontLinda.

Ialsocutdownonthewordstomakeitshortand snappy,plusIneededtodothistosuitthemagazine'slength.ThenewplotinvolvedMariondiscoveringthatLindahadstolenherjewellery whilstpretendingtoneedtheloo.Lindaturned outtobethedaughterofMarion'snewworkmate.Marionhadfoundthisnewrecruitdifficult andhadgivenheratellingoff.So,thenewbieand herdaughterhadcookeduparevengeplot.

Iwashugelyrelievedwheninearly2022,TakeA Break'sFictionFeast(amonthlyUKnationwide magazine)acceptedit.

Sothemoralofthestoryis–don'tgiveupona taleyouhavefaithin,evenifitrequirestheartof re-drafting!

S. Bee lives in West Yorkshire. She has had several short stories published in a wide range of women's magazines, here in the UK and in titles abroad. She has also had letters and rhyming poems published in magazines.

ShouldYouBeUsingTikTokAsAPromotionalTool?

Wendy H. Jones shares some of what she has learned about TikTok and the use of this social media platform as a marketing tool for writers.

Forthoseofyouwhohavenotheardof TikTok,andIamsuretherearefew,itis avideocentricsocialmediaplatform.I havebeenusingTikTokforsometimenowas partofmymarketingendeavours,hencemy sharingsomeofwhatIhavelearnedinthisarticle.

Forthoseofyouwhosignedup,sawmillionsof lip-synchingyoungstersandnearlylostthewill toliveandpromptlyleft,thisarticleisforyou. ForthosewhohavenottriedTikTokyet,thisarticleisforyou.ForthosewhoareTikTokveteransandfeelingalittlejaded,thismayhelprevitaliseyouruseoftheApp.Ibelievewecanalwayslearnsomething.

Whilst,aswritersweusetheothersocialmedia platformsasamixtureofbothpersonaland business,TikTokonlyworksifyoustayfirmlyin yourlane.Whatvideosareservedup,andwho theyserveyourvideostoareentirelybasedon yourviewinghabits.Therefore,ifyoulikewatchingfunnycatvideos,TikTokisnotthesocialmediaplatformtouse.

Itdoestakeaboutforty-eighthourstotrainthe algorithm,soyouwillhavetoputupwiththe dancingyoungstersuntilTikTokgetstoknow whatyoulike.Thewayyoutrainitistolookat hashtagssuchas#BookTokand#AuthorTokand likingandcommentingonyourposts.

LikingandFollowing

TrainingYourAlgorithm

ItisimportanttonotethatTikTokworksby trainingyouralgorithm.Thismeansitisimportanttostayfocussed.

Inadditiontolikingandcommentingonposts youseeandenjoyitisalsocrucialthatyoufollownumerousBookTokersandAuthorTokers. Youwillfindthattheystarttofollowyouback. Buildingupafollowingisextremelyimportant onTikTok.Notonlyshouldyoufollowthembut watchtheirvideos.TikTokalsoworksbasedon howmuchtimeyouspendwatchingvideos.The moreyouwatchvideosthemorelikelyTikTokis

WendyH.Jones

toserveyourvideostothefeedofotherusers.If you'resaying,thissoundslikeahugetimesuck, itcanbe.Iwouldadviseyoutolimitthesections oftimeyouspendonthere.Youmaywanttoset atimer.Yes,really.Rememberwhatyou're meanttobedoingisuseitasamarketingtool, notasaprevaricationtechnique.Dotrytospend sometimeonthereeachday.

‘TikTok works by training your algorithm.’

Viewsandlikesareasimportantasfollowers. Themoreviewsandlikesyougetthemoreyour videoswillbeshown.Viewsonlycountifsomeonewatchesyourwholevideo.

GainingFollowers

Likeanyothersocialmediaplatform,gainingfollowerscanbehard.Thereisnosubstituteforinteractingandproducingqualityvideosthatpeopleenjoywatching.Makesuretolikeandcommentonseveralvideoseachday,remembering tokeepitwithinthereadingandwritingcommunity.

Youcanalsodofollowtrains–typeinBookTok followtrainandthenclickononeofthem.Follow theinstructionse.g.typeinwhatyouarereading now.Thenfollowtheonesyouareinterestedin. Whilstthisisanexcellentwayofgainingfollowers,makesuretofollowonlytheonesyouare interestedinotherwiseyourfeedmightbefilled upwitheroticainsteadoffantasy.Ifyouareconcernedyouwillendupwithfollowerswhoare notinterestedinyourcontent,remember,many readersreadinmultiplegenres.

ContentandProducingVideos

VideosareproducedwithinTikTokitself.Whilst youcanproducevideoselsewhereanduploadto TikToktheydonotdoaswellasthoseproduced intheapp.Onewaytodoitistoproduceavideo withyourcovers,sayinCanvaorBookbrush,uploadtoTikTokandthenaddtextandmusicwithintheTikTokapp.Thesetypesofvideostendto dobetter.TheTikTokAppisanoutstandingvideoeditingtoolandsimplicityitselftouse.

Videoscanbeassimpleorascomplexasyou wouldlikethemtobe.Youcandoasimpletalkingheadvideowhereyouaretalkingtocamera, oryoucandoafullblowngettingdressedupand actingoutascenefromyourbook.Youcankeep yourvideossimilar,oryoucanchangethemup, justremembertokeepinyourlane.Goingback tothosecatvideosIsaidyoushouldbeavoiding; youcanhaveyourcatinyourvideoaslongas you'retalkingaboutbooksaswell.Youcanalso dovideoswhichhaveaclipfromyourbookappearing,infacttheonlylimitationisyourimagination.So,havingyourcatsittingasthough they'rereadingyourbookisagoodwaytouse TikTok.Onecaveat,whenyouusehashtagsdon't usethecathashtagsinyourvideos,keepitto writingandbookrelatedhashtags.

Ideasforvideosinclude:

 Talkingaboutthebookyouarereading

 Talkingaboutoneofyourbooks

 Readingfromabook

 Newreleaseannouncement.

 Coverreveal

 Booksyouareaddingtoyourbasketina bookshop

 Whereyouarewriting

 Writingretreatyouareon

 Writinghintsandtips

 QuotesfromyourWIP

Myonepieceofadviceisletyourimaginationgo wild.WhenIwasonaresearchtriptotheCaribbean,Iaskedthebartenderstomakecocktails basedonthecolourofmybookcovers.Theyrose tothechallenge,andIpostedabookandcocktailvideoeachday.Thesegotthousandsoflikes, commentsandviewswhichmeantmybooks wereinfrontofreaderseverydaywithoutme sayingbuymybooks.

Hashtags

HashtagsarekeywhenitcomestousingTikTok orBookTokasitisknowninthewritingand readingcommunity.Theseservetwopurposes:

 Theyhelpthealgorithmworkoutwhomight beinterestedinviewingyourcontent.

 Servestocategorisethevideos.

Threetofourhashtagsarerecommended.Using toomanyconfusesthealgorithmanditwillnot serveyourvideotoviewersorwillserveittothe wrongones.Theotherreasonforusinghashtags isthatthedescriptionofyourpostislimitedto 2200characters.Whilstthismightseemgenerous astheoriginalcharactercountwas150,itsoon getsusedupifstuffedwithhashtags.Acoupleof hashtagusesarebelow:

Showcasing a crime thriller - #BookTok #crimethriller #readertok #thrillertok

Showcasing your writing services - #authortok #editortok #bookcoach #writingcoach

Thesearejustacoupleofexamples.Ifyoutype somethinginTikTokwillgiveyouseveralsuggestions.Again,keepittightand,asIsay,donotmix upthosecatvideoandbookvideohashtags.You mightgetmillionsofviewsandgoviralbutit’s targetedviewsthatareimportant.Youneedto makesureyoutargetyourintendedaudience.

Gettingstressedaboutpostingisnotworthit.If youfeelyoucansustainonceaday,goforit.If youfeelyoucansustaineveryotherday,dothis. Themainpointistobeconsistentaspeopleare morelikelytobelookingforyourpostsandthey aremorelikelytogetservedtothefeed.

“TikTok is a platform which is worth exploring.”

DoesitHelpAuthorsSellBooks?

Theanswertothatis–yes,itdoes.Most bookshopsandmanylibrariesnowhaveaTikTokrecommendssection.AuthorssuchasColleenHooverhavegrownmassivecareersthrough strategicuseofTikTok,soitverydefinitelydoes sellbooks.Willitsellyourbooks?ThatissomethingIdonotknow.Itissomethingyoudonot know.Inordertofindoutyouwillneedtosetup aTikTokaccountandappearconsistentlyonthe platformoversomemonths.Givingupaftera weekbecauseyoudon’tseeresultsisnotgoing toshowyouhowtheplatformcanhelpyouasan author.Iwillsayitdoeshelpmetosellbooks andIamverygratefulithas.

“Most bookshops and many libraries now have a TikTok recommends section.”

GoingViral

Everyonewantstogoviral.Yes,goingviralisawesomebutonlyifitisdoneintherightway.Going viraltomillionsofcrime,fantasy,orromance readersiseveryBookToker’sdream.Goingviralto millionsofpeoplewhodon’treadisjustamomentarybuzz.

HowOftenShouldYouPost?

Thisisentirelyuptoyou;however,consistencyis key.Itisrecommendedthatyoupostthreetimes adaywhenyoufirststartout.Iwouldsuggest thatisquiteapunishingschedule.Iaimforoncea day,andIhavebuiltupadecentfollowingbased onthat.AcoupleoftimesIhavehadtotakea breakandIjustgetbackonitwhenIamable.

Inconclusion,TikTokisaplatformwhichis worthexploringespeciallyifyoulikeusingvideos.Yes,itcanbeatimesuckbut,likeanyother socialmediaplatform,itisimportanttosetyour ownboundaries.Mytakeawayis,itnotonly helpsyousellbooksbutisalsoalotoffun.

Wendy H. Jones is the multi-award-winning, bestselling author of adult crime thrillers and cozy mysteries, children’s picture books and non-fiction books for writers. She is also a writing coach and a partner in Auscot Publishing and Retreats and hosts the Writing and Marketing Show podcast.

MarketingMattersbyWendyH.Jones

ReviewedbySheenaMacleod

Marketing Matters: Sell More Books

(Book2 WritingMattersSeries)

BookMarketingandPromotion

Publisher–ScottandLawson (July2020)

ISBN-10 : 1913372014

Blurb

Rightnowisthetimetostartmarketingyourbookandgettingitintoreaders'hands.Whetheryou’rea firsttimeauthor,orapublishingveteranlookingtorevitaliseyoursales,thisbookisheretohelp.

Itisjam-packedfullofsimplestrategies,hintsandtipswhichwilltakeyouthrougheverystepofthemarketingprocess.Fromrunningabuzzingbooklaunch,andbuildingyourmailinglist,throughtoeffective socialmediamarketing,youwillexplorehowtogetyourbooksnoticedandboughtbyreaders.

Eachofthesetechniqueshasbeenusedsuccessfullybytheauthortobuildagrowingplatformdesigned torevolutioniseyourbooksales.Learnfromherwhatworksandwhatdoesn’tandusethisbooktobuild amarketingplanwhichwillseeyourbooksalessoaring.

Review

Fittingrightinwiththismonth’sthemeofmarketing,it’sapleasuretoreviewWendyH.Jones’marketingbookforwriters.Intoday’sbusymarketplaceitcanoftenfeellikeaconstantstruggletopromote andgetourbooksnoticed. Butfearnot,inMarketingMatters,WendyH.Jonesexpertlyguidesyou througheverythingyouneedtoknowaboutdevelopingamarketingplanforyourbook.Fromcreating anauthorbrandtousingsocialmediaandstayingpositivethisisagreatlittleresourceforanywriter.

Itisfullofhelpfultipsandexercisestogetyoustartedandkeepyoumotivated.Youcandipinandoutof itasandwhenyouwant,readitstraightthroughorselectchapterstofocuson.

IwouldrecommendMarketingMatterstoanyonewhowantstodevelopabookmarketing planoreven thosewhowanttorevisitandupdatetheircurrentplan.

WritingMarketableChildren sBooks

Novelist and children’s author, Pauline Tait, discusses the key points to consider when marketing books to the children’s market.

Asanauthorofbothchildren’spicture booksandromanticsuspense,it’simperativethatIknowmyrespectiveaudiences andthevaryingaspectsofmarketingtotheseaudiences.

Thiscanbeanafterthoughtandsomethingnewerwritersoftenleaveuntiltheyareholdingtheir preciousnewbookintheirhands.Butthereis powerinforwardplanning,moretoensuring yourbooksellsthanjusttellingpeopleaboutit, andacceptingtheknowledgethatmarketing can’tstartsoonenough.

“There

s power in forward planning.”

Asauthors,wemustwearmanyhats,onebeing ourwritinghat,andanotherourbusinesshat.No matterwhatageofchildrenwechoosetowrite for,itisessentialweensureourbooksaremarketablebeforewritingthatfirstword.

Weplotandplanourcharacters,arcs,themes, andmoralswithoutquestion,Greatthoughtgoes intoaccompanyingillustrationsandwhatour much-lovedprotagonistwilllooklike. Butlet’s stripthisback.Let’slookatthisasthebusinessit is.

Whatsells?Whatcanwedotoensureourbooks

standoutfromthecrowd?Whatcanwedoto ensureourbookshaveanongoingshelflifeina worldwherechildren’scharacterscomeandgo, andfadsandfashionsdictatethelatesttrends? Believeme,thisissomethingwecanovercome fromtheoutset,longbeforewehaveabookto sell.

Firstly,wecanchoosetowriteabouttimeless characters,suchasfairies,dinosaurs,cars,nature,andanimalsandwekeepitsimple.And whatdoImeanbysimple?Imean,don’tinclude anythingcontemporarythatwilldateovertime. Forexample,Ihavewrittenaboutfairiesand kepttheiranticsconfinedtothewoods.Thereis nothingabouttheirenvironmentthatis manmade,thatwilleventuallylookoutofplace ordatemystories.

“Remember your targeted age group.”

Secondly,remember,writinginseriessellsbut rememberyourtargetedagegroup.Whenit comestopicturebooks,atrilogycanbethe

PaulineTait

magicnumber.Butforolderchildrenaseriesof sixormorecanhookreadersandparentsalike. And,addingafestivebooktoaseriesortrilogy won’tdoyouanyharm,either.

Finally,andprobablytheleastconsideredessentialwhenitcomestowritingchildren’sbooks, knowtheindustrystandards.Whetheryouare writingpicturebooks,orbooksaimedat5to9 years,9to12years,oryoungadult,knowthe industrystandardwordcounts.Andinthecase ofpicturebooks,theexpectedwordandpage counts.Theseareessential,especiallyifyouare hopingtograspsomeofthemuchsoughtafter shelfspaceinretailerssuchasWaterstonesand Barnes&Noble.

Andbeaware,UKandUSAagerangesdiffer slightlytoensuretheyareinlinewiththeireducationalsystems.So,knowyourmarket,your countriesexpectedindustrystandards,and writetothatmarket.Followingtheseguidelines willalsostandyouinbettersteadifyouhopeto visitschoolsthroughauthorvisitswithyour books.

“When it comes to writing children’s books, know the industry standards.”

Followingthesebasicguidelinesfromthestart willmeanthatwhenitcomestomarketingboth youandyourbook,andbelieveme,theybothgo handinhand,youarestartingfromastrongand credibleposition.

Knowyourrespectiveaudiencesandthe varyingaspectsofmarketingtothese audiences

Marketingcan’tstartsoonenough

Thereispowerinforwardplanning W

riteabouttimelesscharacters

Don’tincludeanythingcontemporary thatwilldateovertime Rememberyourtargetedagegroup

Knowtheindustrystandardsandmarket andwritetothatmarket

PaulineTaitisaprolificnovelistandchildren’sauthor.BasedinPerthshire,Scotland,shewritesboth romanticsuspenseandchildren’spicturebooksfor3to7years.WithabackgroundinPrimaryLiteracy Support,Paulineispassionateinencouragingchildrenintheirownreadingandwriting.Shedoesthis throughschoolvisitsthroughoutScotland,wheresheeitherreadstoandtalkstochildrenaboutcreativewritingorshedeliverscreativewritinglessons.

ThePerilsofAnthropomorphising

With little advice available on developing animals as believable fictional characters, published authors Peter Thomas and spaniel, Sophie, fill that gap.

Forthosewhowriteaboutanimalsthere ispreciouslittleadvicefromtheperspectiveoftheiranimalreaders.Asapublishedauthorandaspaniel,Ihavebeencharged withfillingthatgap.Whendogsreadastoryinvolvinganimals,wewantittofeaturecompellingcharactersfulfillingtheirtruecreaturelypotential.

Literarygreatslike The Taming of the Shrew and Of Mice and Men andpopulartitleslike Where Eagles Dare and The Dogs of War sharethesame flaw.Theanimalsinthetitlesnevermakeanappearanceinthenarrative. Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?isahugedisappointment.Frankly,that kindofbaitandswitchshouldbeillegal.Butauthorscancommitanevengreatersinagainst animalsandthatisbyanthropomorphisingtheir characters.

Politicaltheoristsmayregard Animal Farm highly,butOrwell’sowndescriptionasasatireisno defenceforhisabysmalrepresentationofpigs asconnivingand,evenworse,hismiscastingof dogsasmindlesslackeys.

Mole,RatandBadgerin The Wind in the Willows arethinlyveiledcaricaturesofhumanbeings

withnoresemblancetotheirtruespecies,and MrToadisaninsulttoamphibianseverywhere. Humanswouldn’twanttoreadaboutotherhumansactingandtalkinglikewombatsandferrets.Theyseeenoughofthateverydayonthe news.Inthesameway,animalshavenodesire whatsoevertoreadaboutcreaturesactingasif theywerehumans.

Incontrast,BeatrixPotter’scharacterisationsof rabbits,squirrels,ducks,andkittensgiveatimelessmasterclassinwritinganimalsbehavingtrue totype.Shewasdoubtlessguidedbyherown loyal,big-hearted,wise,andfriendlycolliedog, Kep,theherowhorescuedJemimaPuddle-Duck fromthemachinationsofthefoxy-whiskered gentleman.Kepsurelydeservedhisownstories, andIamsuresomelostdraftswillturnupone daysoon.

PeterThomasandSophie

Cat-loversappreciatetherealismofthefeline poetryofT.S.Eliot.Behindtheliterarydeviceofa worldoftoys,A.A.Milneequallydepictsanimals astheyreallyare.FromofficiousRabbittoeverwiseOwl,amaternalkangarootoamorosedonkey,fromtimidPiglettotheprotagonistBearof VeryLittleBrain,everypersonalityismeticulouslyobservedandrecorded.CompareMilne’splayfulandenthusiastictigerwiththepantheratigris whoturnsimplausiblyvegandespitebeingadrift onaboatwithanannoyinghumanfor227days. YoucanguesswhichnovelIjudgemoreworthy oftheDogBookerPrize.

Therearesomanycontendersforthemostaccurateportrayalofadog.Forcouragewecanlook toLassieandthePawPatrolteamandforprofoundwisdomandintelligencethereareGromit andMuttley.NanaandBeethovendemonstrate doggedfaithfulnessandasexamplesoftruelove wehavePerditaandPongo,andLadyandthe Tramp.Wefindallthesecaninequalities,togetherwithunlimitedhumourandboundlessenjoymentoflife,supremelyembodiedinjustoneindividual.

Authorsseekinginspirationfortheiranimalcharactersshouldlooknofurtherthanmyhero, Snoopy.Letyourdogsbedogsandyourcatsbe cats.Snoopy’sadviceappliestoallcharacters, animalorhuman.“Beyourself.Noonecansay you’redoingitwrong.”

WriteinTime

NellieBly1864 -1922

“From the moment I entered the insane ward on the Island, I made no attempt to keep up the assumed role of insanity. I talked and acted just as I do in ordinary life. Yet strange to say, the more sanely I talked and acted, the crazier I was thought to be by all.”

(From Ten Days in A Madhouse by NellieBly,1887)

Nellie Bly was born Elizabeth Jane Cochran near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Her father was a mill owner whose family originated in County Londonderry, Ireland in the 1790’s.

Married Name: Elizabeth Cochrane Seaman

Pen name : Nellie Bly

Pioneering investigative journalist and author.

One of America’s best-known women journalists of the 19th century.

PublishedWorks

An undercover investigative assignment led Elizabeth to publish an exposé in 1887 on Blackwell Island Insane Asylum Ten Days in A Madhouse (1887) New York: Ian L. Munro.

Rev Peter Thomas has published three non-fiction books and is delighted now to assist Sophie in her creative writing projects. Originally a teacher and author in the fields of chemistry and computing, Peter retired in 2023 after 36 years as a Minister of local Baptist Churches. He continues to add to his blog and videos of more than a thousand sermons and reflections found at www.pbthomas.com.

Jules Verne’s adventure novel Around The World in Eighty Days published in 1873 inspired Elizabeth to emulate the journey of the fictional characters Phileas Fogg and his valet, achieving this in a recordbreaking 72 days.

In addition to her many other published works, Elizabeth wrote one non-fiction novel The Mystery In Central Park published in 1889.

ProgrammesforDevelopingMarketingImages

When marketing books, writers need images to support their marketing endeavours. Wendy H. Jones discusses some of the different packages and programmes available and the ways in which they can be used.

Asauthors,whateverwaywemarketour books,wewillneedtofindanduseimagestosupportourmarketingendeavours. Whilstastraightphotoofyourbookoryour bookcoverwillwork,thecorrectimagecanlift yourbookoffthepageandgivetherightvibefor yourbook.Inordertoproduceimages,Iuse differentprogrammesfordifferentimages,dependingonwhatIamlookingfor.

CoverDesigner

Myfirstpointofcallismycoverdesigner–Cathy HelmsofAvalonGraphics.Notonlyissheamazingatproducingbookcoversbutshealsodoes fabulousmarketinggraphics.Ifyouspeakto yourowncoverdesigner,theywillbeableto provideyouwithamazinggraphics.Cathyalso providesmewith3dImagesofmybooks.

3dCoverCreator

Ifyouwantaquickimageofyourbookonan ipad,tablet,phone,orasa3dpaperbackthenI canrecommendafreeprogrammecalledDIY BookDesign.Ittookmesecondstocreatethe followingcompositeofmybook.Althoughnot

complex,thesesimpledesignscanbeaneffective graphicshowingthedifferentformatsforyour book.Theyalsohaveasectionfordeveloping promotionalgraphics.Whilstthesearenotnumerous,theyareallfree,soshouldservetoget youstarted.Iwillsay,thepromotionalgraphics arenotthemostintuitiveIhaveeverusedbut,as afreetool,theyarestillworthexploring.

WendyH.Jones

Canvaisanonlinedesigntoolwhichwillcoverall yourmarketingneeds.Fromsocialmediapoststo posters,videostoflyers,businesscardstoevent invites,Canvaquiteliterallyhasitall.Foraprice. Althoughthereisafreeversionthisislimitedin itsscopeandanyoneusingitwillsoonwantto usethemoresophisticatedtoolsandimagesthat arecontainedwithinCanva.Youcanalsoupload yourownimagesandmanipulatethem.Youcan alsododifferentversionsofyourimagefordifferentsocialmediasites.

WiththepaidversionIcancreateanimagefor Facebookandataclickofabuttoncanchange thistoaFacebookStory,Instagramimage,InstagramStoryimageorevenuseitonTikTok.Thisis atimesaver.

Youareprobablywonderingwhatthecostsare andiftheyareworthit.Theimagebelowshows youthecostings.Astowhetheryouthinktheyare worthit–thatissomethingyouwillneedtodecideforyourself.Itisacomplexprogrammewith highlyprofessionalresults,andImadethedecisionformybusinesstohavethepaidversion.

Overandabovethisyoucanmakeunending changestoanydesignwithsimpleanimationfeatures.Therearealsonumeroustemplatesfor differentaspectsofyourbusiness.Iusetheemail signaturetemplatewhichIcanthencolourcoordinatetothecoverofthebookIamusing.There aresomanywaystouseBookbrushthatitwould needanentirearticlejustforthisprogram.I wouldhighlyrecommendtryingitout.Ofcourse, costingisimportant,sotheimagebelowoutlines thecurrentcosts.

Bookbrush

Bookbrushisanonlinedesigntooldeveloped specificallyforauthors.Thereisnofreeversionof thisprogramme,butyoucandesignanddownload15imagesforfreebeforeyouhavetostart paying.ItismuchlikeCanvabutsomucheasier touse.Theinstantmockupsmeanyoudon’teven havetoworryaboutdesign.Thefivemainways youcanuseitare:

Youwillneedtoexplorewhatyougetforeachlevel.IloveitsomuchIamalifetimePlatinumsubscriberasIwanttobeabletouseallthedifferent toolsthatBookbrushhasatitsdisposal.Theonly thingIwouldsayitlacksistheabilitytouseit effectivelyonmobiledevicesasitisdesignedto workonlaptopsandcomputers.

Thesearejustsomeofthepackagesavailable.I haven’tcoveredtheadobepackagesfortworeasons–IfindAdobedifficulttouseandasteep learningcurveandIonlyuseMaccomputersso cannotuseAdobeanyway.Iwouldadviseyouto explorethedifferentprogramsandwaysinwhich youcanusethemtoupyourmarketinggame.

Wendy H. Jones is the multi-award-winning, bestselling author of adult crime thrillers and cozy mysteries, children’s picture books and nonfiction books for writers. In addition she is a writing coach, editor in chief of Writers’ Narrative, partner in Auscot Publishing and Retreats and hosts the Writing and Marketing Show podcast.

1.InstantMockups

2.CustomCreator

3.TrailerCreator

4.CoverCreator

5.BoxSetCreator

SUBMISSIONGUIDELINES

Writers’NarrativeeMagazine

We are interested in submissions on any aspect of writing and publishing and will accept simultaneous submissions. All interviewsmustbepitchedtotheEditorinChieffirstbeforedoingtheinterview.

We accept varying lengths of submissions depending on the topic - 500, 1000, 1,500. Book reviews can be shorter but should include a substantial review in addition to the book blurb. Only submit previously unpublished work (either onlineorinprint).

MonthlythemeswillbepromulgatedinboththemagazineandintheFacebookGroup.

Please use Hart’s Rules: The Oxford Style Guide. Light editing will be undertaken. If major editingis required, the article willbereturnedwithgeneraladviceonwhatisrequiredtobringituptopublicationstandard.

All submissions are to be in Times New Roman or Times, size 12 font, single spaced, with no formatting. All formatting willbecarriedoutbytheeditorialteam.

The only images which should be submitted with your articles are your author photograph and book covers if doing a bookreview.

Includeabriefbioandauthorphotographalongwithyourfirstsubmission.

Pleasestate themonthfor whichyouare submittingyour article.However, this may bechangedifit is felt it better suits adifferentissue.

Writers’Narrativeispublishedmonthly.Submissioncutoffdates:

January–7th November

February–7th December

March–7th January

April-7th February

May–7th March

June–7th April

July–7th May

August–7th June

September–7th July

October–7th August

November–7th September

December–7th October

Submissionsviaemailto writersnarrative@gmail.com

To nominate your writing group, local library or bookshop to be featured in future issues and for any queries including advertisingwithusemailwritersnarrative@gmail.comsubjectheadedfortheattentionofEditorinChief

Whilethereisamonthlythemeandfocus,thiswillnotbetheonlytopicforthemagazine.General articlescanalsobesubmittedforpublication.

Themesfor2023

Month Theme

August General–introductorymagazine

September Marketingyourbooks–thiswillbeoutintimefortheChristmasbookbuyingspree.

October WritingHorror –Ofcourse.It’sHalloween

November WritingNovels –TiesinwithNationalNovelWritingMonth

December FinishingStrong –wrappingupyourbookwithendingsthatsatisfy.Tying uplooseends.Leavingyour readersatisfied.

Themesfor2024

Month Theme

January Newbeginnings –settingthescenefortheyearahead

February RomanceWriting –whatelseinFebruary

March WritingforChildren–TiesinwithWorldBookDay

April Editing –selfediting,workingwithaneditoretc.

May WritingMemoir–It’sNationalMemoirMonth

June WritingPoetry

July WritingNon-Fiction

August WritingHistoricalFiction

September ScienceFictionandFantasyit’sNationalScienceFictionMonth

October Worldbuilding

November WritingCozyMysteries

December WritingHabits.

ComingNextMonth….

October2023

SpecialHorrorEdition FeaturedAuthorInterview—TananariveDue

WritingHorror

Newreleasesandmuchmore...