Self-Published Book Awards

Nat RussoOpinion, Publishing 13 Comments

Based on the email I received this morning from Writer’s Digest, it’s that time of year again.

No, I’m not talking about Christmas! I’m talking about the time of year to decide whether you’re entering the annual Writer’s Digest Self-Published Book Awards.

I want to offer my perspective, since I participated in the 2014 award cycle.

Writer's Digest 23rd Annual Self-Published Book Awards

Frankly, I was rather disappointed with the result last year, and it wound up being a $100 (USD) experiment I won’t repeat. Full disclosure: I was not a finalist. However, that’s not my concern, and that’s not what’s driving me to share my experience.

I assure you, the content of this article would be no different if I’d won the contest. All I want to do is examine the value proposition, using my experience as a basis. For those not up on Marketing-speak, “value proposition” is that special something that makes a product or service offering attractive to customers. (As an aside: I hope all of you who read my blog regularly are spinning up on some basic marketing. You don’t need a degree, but a little knowledge will do wonders for your publishing business.)

Independent authors typically have limited resources, and I’m concerned that the advertised value proposition doesn’t accurately reflect $100 expectations.

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Violence Vs. Sex In American Culture

Nat RussoArt, Culture, Opinion 56 Comments

I hope you don’t mind me taking an uncharacteristic journey into self-indulgence for a moment. This will be short, I promise. The title of the article is probably far more lofty than it deserves. Earlier this evening on Facebook, I spotted the following image:

George R.R. Martin

This rustled my jimmies enough to share the image on my page with a bit of a rant. I know many of you will disagree with what I said, and that’s ok! No, really! It’s ok!

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As You Know, Bob…

Nat RussoBasics 26 Comments

Psst. Yeah you. I’ve talked to Bob, and you’re pissing him off. He thinks you’re a pretentious know-it-all, and people are leaving the cocktail party in droves. They didn’t come here to listen to the same old stories. Oh bloody hell. That literary agent just walked out. You have any idea how hard it was to get her here in the first place?!

Wait. You look confused.

Ok, I’ll back up. If you’re a new writer, it’s possible you have absolutely no idea what I’m going on about. That’s ok. Because you are precisely the person I’m writing this article for.

As you know, Bob...

That’s an image of a HorribleWriteTip meme I created a while back and shared with folks on social media. It’s a joke, of course—see the smiling, slobbering skeleton?—but like most jokes, it’s pointing at reality. In this case, it’s referring to a very real error new writers are prone to commit. That error is called an “As you know, Bob….” And if you have absolutely no idea how to properly handle your back story or other expository material, you’re in danger of committing it.

Let’s take a look at some obvious examples, and then have a chat about possible ways to avoid it. But first, why are we at risk?

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So You Want To Start A Blog

Nat RussoBasics, How-To, Platform 30 Comments

Updated January 24th, 2020.

You know you want to.

You’ve considered doing it for a while now, but something always stops you. Maybe you’ve already done it once or twice, but it didn’t feel right, so you swore you’d never do it again. It made you feel uncomfortable. Or worse, it turned you into a slave and you couldn’t handle it. All your friends do it, and they look at you funny when you say “I’m not judging, but I just don’t get it.” You’re tempted, but a trusted friend, teacher, or family member advised against it, and their words were powerful.

No, I’m not talking about doing drugs. I’m talking about you wanting to start a blog!

So you want to start a blog...

You’re right to hesitate. Blogging isn’t something you should plunge into blindly. But if you approach it professionally and systematically, and you do the necessary preparation work, you can and will be successful at it.

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Review: Quirky Claus by Sebastian White

Nat RussoHoliday, Reviews 1 Comment

I’m not going to lie. My first reaction whenever a writer asks me to read and review his/her book is usually “I don’t wanna do this…I don’t wanna do this…I don’t wanna do this!” And I really need to get my attitude in check, because I’ve been blessed, lately, with a slew of awesome independently-published books. Quirky Claus is one such book.

It’s not often that I’m delighted while reading a book I’m reviewing, but delighted is exactly how Quirky Claus left me feeling.

Quirky Claus by Sebastian White

 

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Serve the Story

Nat RussoBasics, How-To, Writing 23 Comments

Many of you who follow me on Twitter have seen this tweet that I send out periodically:

It’s all about the story. When deciding what to cut, ask yourself: does it serve the story? #writetip

Those of us who have been writing for a while have this ingrained in our DNA. Make no mistake about it, though. We didn’t start our writing career that way. Like any other element of the craft, this is something we had to learn over time. Writing is like a muscle. The more you write, the stronger you get.

At Your Service

“Also, the Harry Potter novels are just fun, pure story from beginning to end.” – Stephen King on the Harry Potter series.

Even Uncle Steve seems to be saying something about the notion of “story” here. You can infer from those words that some books aren’t “pure story”. But just what does it mean to serve the story? 

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Erindor Press October Giveaway

Nat RussoGiveaway Leave a Comment

October is here! I don’t know about you, but Fall is my second favorite season (Winter is my first…I’m odd like that). In honor of these gloriously lower temperatures, changing colors, and anticipation of the upcoming holidays, I’m offering a chance to win a signed copy of Necromancer Awakening, or a digital edition for your Kindle reader/app.

Also, for the next 7 days, BOTH of my books are on Kindle Countdown Sale on Amazon! I know e-books can be a little pricey at times, so for the next few days you can find both Necromancer Awakening and The Road To Dar Rodon on EXTREME discount! Please take advantage of this while you can.

Here are the details for the giveaway. I use Rafflecopter to administer the process, and you may need to log in to receive credit for your entry. As always, your information will never be shared, and it is used only to make sure you get credit for your entry.

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

5 Writing Tips From Robert Pruneda

Nat RussoGuest Posts, Writing 12 Comments

It’s with great pleasure that I hand over the reigns to my friend and fellow author Robert “Sharky” Pruneda for today’s post. Robert is the author of Amazon bestselling horror Devil’s Nightmare, is a gamer like myself, and is an all-around scholar and gentleman! Oh, and if that weren’t enough selling points, he’s a fellow Texan!

In today’s post, Robert shares 5 writing tips I wish I would have known when I was starting out.

 

Devil's Nightmare Blog Tour

 

 

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Honesty In Writing

Nat RussoHow-To, Voice, Writing 40 Comments

There are many bits of common writerly wisdom that I tweet on a regular basis using the #writetip hashtag. Some of these nuggets are mine and others are parroting the masters. Most are widely held to be axiomatic, but some are confusing or enigmatic. Such is the limitation of 140 characters.

One of the more confusing writetips deals with honesty in writing.

Above all else, be honest in your writing. Readers sense fakes a mile away. #writetip

Whenever this one comes up in the rotation, I get a flood of questions. I get some heated, sarcastic answers as well, but that’s to be expected from time to time. In general, there’s an overwhelming confusion among aspiring authors about just what it means to “be honest” in one’s writing. I understand this confusion. I once shared it.

It is at once the most simple and most elusive quality to attain. But attaining it is a must! For once you have it, you’ll write with a confidence you’ve never known before. Take this quote from Mark Twain:

Mark Twain on Telling the Truth

You’ve heard this before, I’m sure, in many contexts. But I’m betting you’ve never considered its application to writing.

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The Road To Dar Rodon Hits Two Bestseller Lists

Nat RussoFantasy, Releases Leave a Comment

I’m proud to say that The Road To Dar Rodon landed on two Amazon Bestseller lists less than twelve hours after publication! It’s hard to wrap my head around this.

Thank you all so much for your continued support, and thank you for the kind words you’ve all shared with me about this new story. Many of you reading this are writers yourselves, so you know how surreal it can be to release a piece of art into the world and have it accepted by people you don’t even know.

Something else I’m not used to is that people seem to actually like my cover this time around!

Thanks again. I know it’s been said countless times, but I can assure you it’s been true each time: this simply wouldn’t be possible without your support.

 

 

Cover for The Road To Dar RodonRead More