(2015 edition using Word 2007) If you are impatient with carefully written explanations and confident in your ability to navigate Windows 7 and Word 2007, jump to the end for the summary. This is a frequent topic on the CreateSpace boards: “Why does CS reject my PDF because my images are less than 200dpi? I’m […]

One way to approach marketing your book is to think of the tribes out there that not only would be interested in it, but want to know more about it! Yes, there will be people who are curious about your book if it reflects their interests. I learned that lesson at a cat show. My […]

How is indie writing like vaudeville? Let me start with a history lesson. It’s been said by people cleverer than myself that history doesn’t repeat itself, it rhymes. I rather like that, because the longer I’ve lived, the more I see certain things coming around in a slightly different form or from a completely unexpected […]

A writer these days needs more than Virginia Woolf’s “money and a room of one’s own.” She would probably add “and tools for distraction free writing so I can stop spending the day on Twitter and Facebook.” Coping with distractions is an important part of the writer’s job. The same inventions that have allowed us […]

The most important story that you can write is the one that’s read after you die: your will. An author’s estate leaves behind something potentially more valuable than money, insurance policies, collectible Beanie Babies, and other valuables. We have intellectual property: books, unpublished works, and personal papers. Complete works that can be republished; incomplete works […]

[Blog Post by Anonymous Author] Have you seen what the politician leading Australia just said? What a load of rubbish! How can any right-thinking Aussie support such a menace is beyond me. This waste of a carbon-based life form is a Foster’s-swilling, boomerang-cracking, digeridoo-thumping, wallaby-eating wanker of the first water, and if you agree with […]

In his novel David Copperfield, Charles Dickens defined happiness as having an annual income of twenty pounds and annual expenses of nineteen pounds, nineteen shillings, and six pence. While it’s debatable whether that can be the sole source of happiness—there’s a lot to be said for a loving companion, a secure belief system, and quenching […]

To make a career out of writing, it’s important to be a healthy writer. But why is it more important than you think? Chapter II. Taking Care of Yourself There is a big difference between working for anyone and working for yourself. It’s such a huge difference that it can send some people who thought […]

Keeping records is an important part of your business. There are two reasons why: one that’s important for the business and another that’s important for you. It’s important for you to do this because it’s another tangible way to reinforce that you are operating a business. That there is an entity outside yourself that you […]

(This is a continuation of a post about author appearances. Read Part One covering book-signings.) 2. Speeches and Presentations The one disadvantage of doing a book-signing is that it relies on people knowing who you are to come out and buy a book. If you’re just starting out, the number of people in that class […]