This month marks five years since I entered the world of publishing. Here are some things I’ve learned:
Book Genres
- My book can’t be categorized.
- My book ended up in a category.
Writing Advice
- Plot is the most important element.
- Character is the most important element.
- Theme is the most important element.
- In writing, there are no rules.
Inspiration
- Your best ideas come while you’re in the shower.
- Everything you wrote yesterday sounds stupid today.
Persistence
- Keep revising your book until it’s perfect.
- You’ll never write a perfect book.
Editing Advice
- Proofread your manuscript.
- Hire a proofreader.
Traditional Publishing
- Publishers won’t look at your manuscript unless you have an agent.
- Agents won’t look at your manuscript unless you have a publisher.
Independent Publishing
- You need a professional cover design to sell your book.
- You need professional formatting to sell your book.
- You need a website to sell your book.
- You need a digital version to sell your book.
- You need an audio version to sell your book.
- You’ll never sell enough books to pay for all this.
- The only thing denser than Kindle Publishing instructions is the U.S. Tax Code.
Blogging
- You need a blog to get readers.
- You’re too busy writing books to write blogs.
- You need guest bloggers to take up the slack.
- You need followers to get guest bloggers.
- You need readers to get followers.
- You need a blog to get readers.
Book Reviews
- You must have book reviews to get readers.
- Book reviewers are too busy reviewing other books to review yours.
- There is no proof that book reviews sell books.
Marketing
- Software will help match your book with an audience.
- Only software engineers can understand it.
Fiction
- There aren’t enough romance novels.
- There aren’t enough mystery novels.
- There aren’t enough science fiction novels.
- There aren’t enough (fill in the blank).
Nonfiction
- There aren’t enough cookbooks.
- There aren’t enough computer books.
- There aren’t enough career books.
- There aren’t enough (fill in the blank).
Book Covers
- Men in romance novels cannot afford shirts, but they can afford tattoos.
- Women in romance novels can afford only underwear.
- Men in religious novels wear cowboy hats and live on farms.
- Women in religious novels wear little white bonnets and live on farms.
- All fantasy characters buy their outfits from the same store.
- All fantasy characters own swords, axes and light sabers.
- My book cover is special. I designed it using stock images.
That’s all for now. I have to go. I’m working on a new book.
