Anne R. Allen's Blog... with Ruth Harris
Writing about writing. Mostly.
Some pretty scary things have been happening in the online book world recently—stuff that’s been shocking to those of us who expect our fellow book-lovers to behave like civilized adults. I spend a lot of time telling new authors how to use social media to create a “platform,” but I probably don’t warn you enough about the […]
I know. Rejections hurt. But they’re also a necessary part of your career as an author. So when you get your first one, give yourself time to feel the pain, then do something to celebrate. Maybe even print it out and frame it. Yup. You read that right. Congratulations! You now have the one thing […]
by Anne R. Allen The Oxford dictionary says the word “anthology” comes from a Greek phrase meaning a collection of flowers. I love that image. An anthology is a place to display literary or musical works that have been chosen to work together—like a floral bouquet. I’ve had the privilege of contributing to […]
by Anne R. Allen This is the third in my series on my “Social Media Secrets.” If you haven’t read the first two yet, you might want to check out #1: How to Avoid Twitter-Fritter and Facebook-Fail and #2 How to Blog Your Way Out of the Slush Pile and onto the Bestseller List.When I teach blogging, the […]
I kind of have a love-hate relationship with writers’ conferences. I’ve been to some that left me dazed and confused (and considerably poorer) but I’ve attended others that energized and inspired me. So are conferences necessary to launch your writing career? No, but it can be a great way to learn the basics of the […]
by Anne R. Allen “Blogging doesn’t sell books.” “Don’t waste your time blogging.” “Spend more time on Facebook/Pinterest/Tumblr/Twitter/YouTube/ Goodreads/Soliciting reviews/Spamming your friends with newsletters.” You’re hearing this stuff every day. But in a survey published this week, 63% of readers said they discover books most often on author websites (a blog is a website.) Facebook nearly […]
by Anne R. Allen First: many thanks to Indies Unlimited, which named this blog to its 10 Blogs and Websites Every Indie Should Know. If you’re an indie, or thinking of going indie (self-publishing or small-press), do follow them for great tips and news from a very savvy team of writers. Most writers these days […]
by Anne R. Allen What’s the difference between a dream and a goal? Short answer: reality. A dream is a creature of the imagination, full of sparkles and rainbows and magic. It’s our castle in the air where we live our fantasy lives. We all need them. But we also need to recognize them […]
by Anne R. Allen I visit a lot of author websites and blogs. Most are delightfully creative. I love how so many of the sites—especially the blogs—express the author’s personality and genre in a unique and clever way. But then there are the others… I’m talking about the sites that seem to have forgotten […]
by Anne R. Allen Authors are getting hammered with more and more demands on our time. We get escalating pressure to blog more! tweet more!! send more newsletters!!! churn out 12 books a year!!!! And don’t query unless your Klout rating is as high as Justin Beiber’s !!!!! It’s making us all feel as […]
by Anne R. Allen Let’s face it: first chapters are hard. When you’re writing your first draft, you’re writing for yourself—getting to know your characters and their world. You should let everything spill out on the page free of your inner editor’s censorship. But when you’re revising, it’s a different story. You’ll need to cut […]
by Anne R. Allen Ruth Harris will be posting on June 2 instead of today. She kindly switched with me because I’m going to be out of town next weekend, celebrating my Mom’s 92nd birthday. Thanks to all of you who downloaded my mom’s pioneer saga, ROXANNA BRITTON, and sent it to #1 in […]
by Anne R. Allen Self-publishing has lost its stigma, and it’s the publishing path of choice for a lot of writers these days. But that doesn’t mean it’s easy. Or that everybody who self-publishes will succeed. Unfortunately, I’m seeing a lot of writers dive in head first without having a clue what they’re doing. Even long-time […]
