Posts filed under 'Publishing'
Zero Multiplied by Two Is Still Zero: A Wordclay Free Self Publishing Math Lesson
There’s a wonderful math lesson that we all learned one day in school: the times table for the number zero. It was wonderfully simple, and it’s a shame more of the times tables couldn’t follow zero’s lead. But when Wordclay introduced its free online publishing service, a friend to writers was born, and this times table became a new source of inspiration.
Writers pour their heart and soul into their work, but it’s true that extreme fear can set in when the reality of publishing hits. Yet there’s a wonderful truth about Wordclay I’d like to point out to writers. When you’re preparing your work for publication with Wordclay, and you want to know that it’s ready – really ready – for publishing, you don’t have to wait. Just publish it.
Now, that might sound a bit crazy. But you know that you’ve put in the time with your work, so you’ve most likely ironed out any major kinks. Once published with Wordclay, if you find a couple of errors, it’s no big deal. Since you have the control to both publish and discontinue your books through Wordclay, you’ll only be out the cost of publishing your book, which is a big fat $0.00.
Time and time again, writers of all walks find out the hard way that one of the best ways to find errors that you’ve overlooked is by reviewing your work in a new format. What better way to review your manuscript than in a compact, handy book? If you do find any errors, you can simply make the corrections and republish your book with Wordclay, which again, costs you nothing.
No matter how many times you need to republish your book, and then simply delete the previous version through Wordclay with a click of your mouse, just remember that the cost of publishing, zero dollars, multiplied two (or four or ten) is still zero dollars.
Class dismissed.
Angie
2 comments August 14, 2008
Hook, Line and Sinker: Publishing with a Sub-Title Makes All the Difference
Book titles have captured the imagination with word play and symbolism for centuries, and promise to continue doing so for centuries to come. But as the Internet becomes the new publishing marketplace and bookstores pack their shelves with hundreds of new publications each month, the sub-title has become an increasingly important feature for many books today.
Consider The New York Time’s Best Seller The Story of Edgar Sawtelle (by David Wroblewski). One of the first things most readers want to know is whether this book is fiction or non-fiction. It’s a fair enough question. Some prefer novels, while others prefer memoirs and biographies. But you can hardly tell what genre Wroblewski’s book is from the title alone.
Luckily, Wroblewski is smart to this audience, and his cover includes the brief, but descriptive sub-title “A Novel.” Think about what these two simple words establish. Suddenly, readers know the genre; online retailers know under what category to list the new publication; bookstore managers know where to shelve the title; and Wroblewski’s publisher knows one more keyword to use in their book promotion campaigns.
Even with a small sub-title “A Novel” (as with The Story of Edgar Sawtelle) or say another like “A Collection of Pop Culture Essays” can make all the difference. Don’t waste your chance to associate more keywords with your book that are not only valuable to your online marketing, but just as important to communicating the heart of your book to your readership.
To avoid confusing your target audience and retailers who are prone to list your book under the wrong genre without complete information, an informative sub-title accompanying your book can ensure that potential readers find your title and buy a copy without hesitation.
The Point: While your title can be a catchy pun or symbolic reference, don’t pass up the opportunity to inform your audience and take advantage of some valuable keywords with a descriptive sub-title.
This is Justin, blogcasting from Wordclay, signing off.
1 comment August 12, 2008
The Price Is Right: Wordclay Compared to Their Major Self-Publishing Competitors
Greetings, Earthlings,
As a writer looking to self-publish your book, you probably want to know how Wordclay compares to the other major self-publishing companies. Good question. To find the answer to this question, typically you would have to scour the Internet for hours, trying to compare prices and services (if you can find them at all).
But we’ve done the legwork for you. After hours of meticulous research and number crunching, The Wordclay Blog Team welcomes you to our comprehensive guide to the major self-publishing companies currently printing successful titles.
Unfortunately, many potential authors find themselves drowning in cryptic self-publishing Web sites, struggling against vague currents of information and reaching for just a single, solid price estimation that you might not receive until after you sign a contract.
Wordclay, on the other hand, believes our company information should be as straightforward and available as possible. Publishing your book can play a major part in your future as a writer, and it’s only natural you want to be certain you’re choosing the right company.
In this guide, we’ve gathered the pricing, printing and promotional details of the major self-publishing companies today – think of this blog as your own personal fountain of publishing knowledge!
Wordclay
Wordclay provides free book self-publishing services for writers who want to take advantage of the DIY authorship approach. The printing cost for copies of your book is built into the selling price of your book, so the amount of royalties you earn is based on the price you select within the wizard.
For example, should you select a price of $16.00 for your standard 6”x9” paperback of 250 pages (costing $9.47 for printing materials per copy) each book sold would earn you $6.53 in royalties. Check out our pricing calculator located on the Wordclay Hompage to test other page counts and prices.
Wordclay is a DIY self-publisher who is focused on providing a simple and independent Internet publishing experience for authors. The Wordclay DIY self-publishing wizard formats manuscripts with astute precision. Almost instantly, a galley is rendered for approval. Full-color cover creation is included in this free DIY self-publishing tool.
Services like book distribution and marketing support are also available for purchase. Visit the Wordclay Self-Publishing Services Store for more details.
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LuLu.com
Like Wordclay, LuLu Publishing is a free Web-based self-publisher that allows you to upload your manuscript or albums for free and then generate a book (which you can purchase at your own convenience). While LuLu and Wordclay price their books fairly, allocating royalties that can range up to 80 percent of the retail price of your book, the major difference between the two are the range of professional services available.
LuLu has only recently (more…)
3 comments August 5, 2008
The Evolution of the Book: E-Ink Technology Activating Content & Cover Images
Inserting typeset letters into a printing press only a few decades ago, who would have dreamed that the simple book would have evolved into devices like Amazon.com’s Kindle and now, with the coming publication of Esquire’s magazine cover equipped with E Ink technology, pages with active content and images that come to life?
If you’ve been reading about the future of print in the past few weeks, you’ve certainly come across the buzz around this new book technology. Can you imagine – tomorrow the images that grace the covers of our books will change, flash and even animate?
So this September, look out for the new issue of Esquire. Because the technology is still quite expensive, only 100,000 of the total 720,000 print run will be assembled by hand before hitting newsstands. Who knows where the E Ink covers will end up? Ironically, this blogger can’t help feeling a little like Charlie from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, searching for the golden ticket.
But should you notice any shifting images jumping out at you from a magazine in the coming months, you might want to snatch a copy before all of them wind up with collectors or housed in the Smithsonian.
Advocating the importance of “electronic print” for more than 11 years, E Ink has recently become popularized by producing the display technology for Amazon.com’s Kindle. Today, with the tiniest of batteries woven into the fabric of a book or magazine, their staff can create pages and covers that rotate, update and even change completely.
Each year, a new technological advance leads to a better engineered book and product package for authors. And I thought the development of print-on-demand technology that saved on paper, virtual inventories that saved space and book trailers that animated scenes from books on the Interest were exciting enough.
But there’s no end! There’s more coming!
We’re entering a whole new era of communication and technology, which will change the very trajectory of the book itself. Picture a newspaper that’s a simple plastic sheet constantly refreshed with new information. Imagine books downloaded instantaneous to your advanced Kindle machine in a wireless Internet café.
Hopefully, in the next few years, as the technology becomes affordable and widespread, more and more authors and editors with experiment with E Ink’s technology and the evolution of the book. And who knows? A few years from now, you may even see Wordclay offering E-Covers in our Services Store.
This is Justin, blogcasting from Wordclay, signing off.
Add comment July 29, 2008
Being Your Own Worst Critic: Listening to the Writing Devil on Your Shoulder
As a writer, you know that the writing process is filled with as much enjoyment as it’s loaded with doubt. As you type out your prose or draft your poetry, second guessing your word choices is hard to avoid.
Of course, every process is different. Some writers don’t think about revision until they’ve batted out a complete draft. Others reread paragraphs immediately after they’ve typed their last paragraph. Simply put, there’s no objectively correct method of writing. But there are some helpful rules of thumb you can follow when revising your work that should help you turn your writing into quality, publishable material that can eventually earn you acclaim and higher royalties.
Traditional Revision Guidelines
Only Time Will Tell
Give your manuscript time to cool off. As soon as you finish a writing piece, you might be too close to your sentences and characters. As a result, you may overlook typos and opportunities to enrich the dramatic action of your story. Giving yourself a few weeks to forget about what you wrote may give you the objectivity to return with a clean, unbiased eye.
Honesty Is the Best Policy
Don’t lie to yourself about a chapter, a section or even a single line. Anyone can convince themselves that a piece of writing reads beautifully, but only an honest writer can weed out their weakness and strengthen them with careful, honest revision.
Don’t Be So Hard On Yourself
But if a critic should smell blood or find the smallest underdeveloped detail in your new publication, heaven knows they’ll be vicious and cutthroat. Remember, the harder you are on your writing during revision, the deeper your characters will become and the more your prose will blossom into an undeniably profound story or poem. Don’t give your potential book reviewers fuel for the book burning party. Instead, when revising, listen to the writing devil on your shoulder before your real critics catch wind.
Note: Many writers actually keep annoying stuffed animals or little gnome figurines on their desks as dummy critics. This way you can project your doubtful voice and discuss your choices with your worst critic in real time.
Listening to Yourself
Sharing your work with others is a great way to begin the revision process. Their objective eye and constructive comments may give you insight into your own writing. That said, never discount your own instincts. In fact, your instincts are what give you a unique voice as a writer after all. Of course, constructive criticism is helpful and should be evaluated, but don’t make changes with which you’re not comfortable. Essentially, don’t compromise your whole project trying to please everyone. It’s impossible to please every reader and critic. Remember, write for yourself, not others.
Done and Doner…
Approaching contest deadlines combined with your publishing enthusiasm, you may want to publish your manuscript as soon as possible. But you should also be careful of jumping the gun. Don’t rush your creative process. By rushing to finish your piece, typos and writing flaws may slip past your editorial eye, and your may end up inadvertently hurting your future book as a result. Of course, nothing is ever 100 percent finished, but keep in mind that a false start could injure your entire writing career before you really get started.
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Following these basic revision guidelines should give you the added editorial edge over other competing authors, whose writing may have suffered due to an inadequate revision process.
This is Justin, blogcasting from Wordclay, signing off.
Add comment July 3, 2008
Enjoy the Fruits of Wordclay’s Writing Contests: Grand Prize-Winning Poetry Collection Now Available
It’s official: Brenda Mirsky’s winning poetry collection, Spare Parts is now available. If you’re a reader of poetry, or maybe you’ve been meaning to start, here’s your chance to enjoy this superb collection.
Most of the poems are based on real incidents in Mirsky’s life. “Writing poetry helps me get things in perspective,” Mirsky says. “And it’s way less expensive than therapy!”
Here’s a description of Spare Parts from Wordclay’s Bookstore:
Brenda Mirsky’s Spare Parts opens logically with the poem, ‘On the Day I Was Born’ and follows in the earthy footsteps of Mary Oliver with the sharp narrative focus of Robert Wrigley or Billy Collins. In the title poem ‘Spare Parts,’ the story of losing a father is interwoven with the coming and going of the television repairman, reminding us how quickly life can change and how we can be reminded of this passing at the oddest times. Mirsky has written a personal, thought-provoking collection of poems.
After we posted an interview with Mirsky back in April, Mirsky’s husband, Stuart, provided a comment and excellent description of her writing talent: “Ginsberg and (more…)
Add comment June 19, 2008
Insider’s Tips: How to Get Your Book Stocked in an Independent Bookstore
For most of my adult working-life, long before becoming a book designer, I’ve worked at independent bookstores. Most recently, for about nine years, I worked at The Book Corner — a Bloomington, Ind. institution for more than 60 years (in one form or another). Though we didn’t sell the same volume of books as the larger corporate stores, we had a pretty faithful customer-base and the best magazine selection in the whole city. Some of what I learned at The Book Corner might be helpful for self-published or print-on-demand authors.
We had our share of local authors coming into the store, trying to get us to put their books on our shelves. Margaret, the owner and manager of the store, had pretty clear-cut criteria for what would allow her to carry a local author’s self-published book.
First, the book had to be available from Ingram Book Company. More than likely, we weren’t going to order the book directly from the publisher because we’d have to pay (more…)
2 comments June 12, 2008
Protect Yourself! Learn to Identify Legal Issues in Your Work When Self-Publishing
You might enjoy slinging a little dirt when you write privately at home in your personal notebook. Maybe you like making up stories involving Parris Hilton. And perhaps you’re also a Photoshop wiz who creates pictures that include of you beside Donald Trump. It’s all fun and games, right? Well, not when you cross the magical threshold of the public sphere, especially a major one called publishing.
As a writer, you deserve to experience the thrill and satisfaction of publishing. And, one thing that will truly spoil your fun is a lawsuit. To ensure that your self-publishing experience remains a positive one, it’s critical to understand a few legal basics before publishing your work, including how to recognize and avoid content that constitutes invasion of privacy, libel and copyright infringement.
Did You Hear? Secrets about Invasion of Privacy
An invasion of privacy lawsuit can occur when a person (specifically, a living individual … ghosts do not apply, and if they did, they’d just haunt you instead) feels their right to control personal information has been violated, causing emotional distress for this person. There are various categories of invasion of privacy, but for publishing purposes, those that apply include: the disclosure of private facts that a “reasonable” person would find objectionable; publication of (more…)
6 comments June 5, 2008
Behind the Publishing Scenes: Wordclay at BookExpo America
Justin here, giving you a peek behind the scenes of Wordclay at BookExpo America.
For those of you who don’t know about BookExpo America (or BEA), it’s only the biggest gathering of book distributors, publishers and authors in the United States. Those attending get a sneak peek into the publishing industry and the future of book printing. In addition to the tradeshow floor where publishers exhibit their fall titles as well as manuscript submission information, BEA hosts education and information sessions, author breakfasts and lunches, as well as other special events. Not only is BEA the perfect opportunity to network with booksellers, publishers and other emerging writers, but it’s an insightful experience of the ever-growing publishing world as well.
Our parent company, Author Solutions Inc. , had a booth at BEA and represented all of the ASI brands including Wordclay. Unfortunately, this blogger was unable to attend, holding down home base here at Wordclay. But Sandra Powell, one of Wordclay’s fearless leaders and ambassador, womanned the booth.
Just take a look at some of the pictures.
Also in attendance were such organizations as WritingRoom.com, WOW! , Gather.com, American Heroes, Shelfari, among others. Just imagine everyone in the publishing industry crammed into one building, frequenting conference after conference for three days straight.
Now, even upon Sandy’s return, we’ve got our work cut out for us. Partnerships and new communities will emerge, and we’ve got inside information on them all. Keep an eye out for announcements and listings of all the information the Wordclay crew was able to gather from authors and book publishing professionals. You wouldn’t want to be left behind in this exciting time of online author networks and budding publishing technology like Kindle and AuthorCrossing.
If you were at BEA and would like to share your experience with us, please feel free to post a comment here. If not, don’t be shy. Post a question about the conference, and maybe even arrange for a booth at next year’s BookExpo America, scheduled May 28 - May 31, 2009, at the Jacob K. Javits Center, in New York City.
This is Justin Dimos, blogcasting from Wordclay, signing off.
Add comment June 3, 2008
Wordclay Self-Publishing Feedback: Step Right Up & Take Your Best Shot
Greetings, Earthlings,
Wordbot here, and today Wordclay has authorized this publishing robot to open the floor up to our fellow bloggers.
Think about it – now’s your chance to tell Wordclay your opinion of our Web site and publishing philosophy without inhibiting or censoring yourself. The gloves are off, and we want to improve based on what you, emerging writers and authors, want!
Questions To Consider:
There’s no limit to the feedback you can provide. Simply be honest and reasonable, and our professionals will make every effort to adapt. Our ultimate goal for publishing is to make the process as hassle-free as humanly possible for contemporary authors looking for an affordable publishing solution, both now and well into the future.
Obviously, submitting your viewpoint is integral to our future in the publishing marketplace, and your opinions will definitely help us create (and sustain) a Wordclay environment where authors (and robots) can publish a book on their own terms, their own timelines, with their own royalty rates. So post your comment below and “help us help you.”
Or, if you’re shy, you can always e-mail your comments to customersupport@wordclay.com with “attn: Wordclay Blog” in the subject line.
Wordbot upload completed. Transmission ended.
2 comments June 24, 2008