Anne R. Allen's Blog... with Ruth Harris

Writing about writing. Mostly.

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Here Are Some of Our Most Popular Posts

 

    1. So You Want to Put Song Lyrics in Your Novel?
    2. How to Write an Author Bio When you Don’t Feel Like an Author…Yet
    3. Why You Should Be Writing Short Fiction
    4. Top 10 Self-Sabotaging Mistakes of Author-Bloggers
    5. What Should a Novelist Blog About?
    6. 7 Ways Authors Waste Time “Building Platform”
    7. How NOT to Sell Books: Top 10 Social Media Marketing Mistakes
    8. The Laws of the Amazon Jungle: 8 Rules Authors Need to Know to Stay Safe
    9. I’ve Written a Book: Now What?
    10. 10 Things Your Opening Chapter Should Do
    11. Disappearing Amazon Reviews: The Facts Behind Amazon’s Review Purges
    12. Paid Reviews: Why Authors Should Never Pay for Amazon Customer Reviews
    13. 10 Things That Red-Flag a Newbie Novelist
    14. How Not to Self-Publish: 12 Things for New Indies to Avoid
    15. Speed Kills…or Does it? How to Write Fast
    16. 12 Dumb Things Authors Do to Sidetrack our Own Success
    17. Building Platform: What Most Writers are Getting Wrong
    18. Why Novellas are Hot and How to Write One
    19. Indie Publishing: Why We Can’t Party Like it’s 2009
    20. The Slow Blog Manifesto and 8 Reasons Slow Blogging Will Help Your Career

And Here are Some of the Most Recent in Each Category

Blogging

Blogging is one of the best ways for an author to build a “platform” and establish an online presence. Unfortunately most of what you see about how to blog isn’t written for authors, who don’t need a techy, monetized blog. They simply want to interact with readers and network with other writers. Our posts on blogging tell you what rules you need to follow and which ones you can ignore.

E-Books and Technology

Both of us have been in the publishing business a long time—since back when the most technical thing a writer had to know was how to change a typewriter ribbon. We had to learn all this tech stuff the hard way. We try to simplify that information for our readers and let you know what you need to worry about and what you can ignore. We also offer recommendations of our favorite products and software.

Dealing with Reviews and Rejection

Pretty much the only thing you can count on in the writing business is that you WILL be rejected. A lot. Plus you’ll get lousy reviews. Nobody can please all the people all of the time. Reviews are always a hot-button topic with writers and never more than now when online reviews are such an essential part of Internet commerce. We give you the do’s and don’ts and offer help to get you through the rough ones.

The Business of Getting Published

The publishing industry is creaky and quirky and often irrational. We help you learn the ropes and choose the right path to publication that will work for YOU. We not only share our own experiences, but offer guest posts from literary agents, editors, and authors who are happily published with the Big Five and smaller independent presses as well as successful indie authors.

 

Scams and Alerts

With all the vast herds of writers populating the planet at the moment, it makes sense that we’ve attracted some predators. Writers need to be aware of the scammers and manipulators who are lying in wait, hoping to rob us of our dreams. We let you know the red flags to look for.

 

Self-Publishing

In these days of the “author-preneur,” self-publishing is a growing and lucrative part of the publishing market. Both of us are “hybrid” authors who are traditionally published as well as indie. We give you the ins and outs and offer advice for self-publishers. We also bring you the latest news on growing markets and new trends for indies.

 

Social Media and Marketing

Whether you’re self-published or going the traditional route, every author needs to be on social media these days. Plus we all need to do a lot of our own marketing. We offer posts on how to use social media effectively and give tips on what works and what doesn’t.

 

The Writing Life

This can be a tough business. Establishing a writing career takes time—way more time than we anticipate. But it’s not just a business—it’s a creative art. We can’t manufacture books the way a machine cranks out widgets. Authors need to know how to take care of themselves as they build a career. We offer a number of posts on how to keep the stress level down as well as inspirational pieces from bestselling authors who help us learn from their experiences.

 

Writing Craft

Nobody is born knowing how to write. It takes specific knowledge and skills. We offer sensible articles on how to get it right, whether you’re writing fiction or nonfiction, in the long, short or newly-trendy novella form. We believe that rules are made to be broken, so what we offer are guidelines rather than hard and fast “rules.”

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