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September 17, 2023 By Anne R. Allen 92 Comments

Amazon Removes the “Look Inside” Feature: Resistance is Futile

Amazon Removes the “Look Inside” Feature: Resistance is Futile

  by Anne R. Allen Last week a few readers clued me in on the loss of Amazon’s “Look Inside” feature. That was the thing that allowed readers to browse the first few chapters of a book before plunking down their money. The feature allowed readers shopping for books on Amazon have the same opportunity […]

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Filed Under: E-Books and Technology for Writers Tagged With: Amazon, Look Inside, Tech overlords, The Lady of the Lakewood Diner

October 17, 2021 By Anne R. Allen 71 Comments

Chapter Titles Are a Great Marketing Tool in the Age of E-Books

Chapter Titles Are a Great Marketing Tool in the Age of E-Books

by Anne R. Allen “Chapter titles!?” sez you. What is this, the 18th century? What am I supposed to write? Something like this? Chapter the first, in which our hero is born, discovers that fire is hot, learns to pull up his own breeches, and slays a smallish dragon. Hey, those 18th century writers knew […]

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Filed Under: Social Media and Marketing For Writers, Writing Craft Tagged With: Anne R. Allen, Book titles, Chapter titles, Look Inside, So Much for Buckingham

March 28, 2021 By Anne R. Allen 38 Comments

How to Lose a Book Sale. The One You Almost Made

How to Lose a Book Sale. The One You Almost Made

by Ruth Harris Your title is just right for your genre. Your cover is on-target, too. Perfect image, just-so font, come-hither colors. This is a cover that will end up in the book cover wing of the Louvre. You know, that premium spot right next to the Mona Lisa. Your blurb is totally irresistible. I […]

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Filed Under: The Publishing Business, Writing Craft Tagged With: first chapters, First page, Husband Training School, Look Inside, Ruth Harris

January 14, 2018 By Anne R. Allen 65 Comments

The One Thing That Will Kill Book Sales Dead—And 10 Ways to Avoid it.

The One Thing That Will Kill Book Sales Dead—And 10 Ways to Avoid it.

Don’t kill book sales dead with a less than enticing “look inside” sample. by Anne R. Allen I never have as much time to read as I think I will, and my trusty old Kindle is pretty loaded up. So I’m a picky book-buyer. Unfortunately, there are a lot of readers like me out here, […]

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Filed Under: E-Books and Technology for Writers, Self-Publishing, Social Media and Marketing For Writers, Writing Craft Tagged With: book editing, first chapters, Look Inside, Novel openers, The Best Revenge

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writers digest 101 best websites for writers award

Anne R. AllenAnne R. Allen writes funny mysteries and how-to-books for writers. She also writes poetry and short stories on occasion. She’s a contributor to Writer’s Digest and the Novel and Short Story Writer’s Market.

Her bestselling Camilla Randall Mystery Series features perennially down-on-her-luck former socialite Camilla Randall—who is a magnet for murder, mayhem and Mr. Wrong, but always solves the mystery in her quirky, but oh-so-polite way.

Ruth Harris NYT best selling authorRuth is a million-copy New York Times bestselling author, Romantic Times award winner, former Big 5 editor, publisher, and news junkie.

Her emotional, entertaining women’s fiction and critically praised novels have sold millions of copies in hard cover, paperback and ebook editions, been translated into 19 languages, sold in 30 countries, and were prominent selections of leading book clubs including the Literary Guild and the Book Of The Month Club.

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