Articles, how-to’s, opinion and tips and tricks in the self-publishing arena
Five Ways To Self-Publish Your Book in 2024
Here are the main five methods in 2024 to self-publish, with advantages and disadvantages.
Amazon KDP
The easiest choice for self-publishing on both paperback and Kindle, Amazon holds the lion’s share when it comes to distribution and sales, meaning you will get the best platform and the quickest to reach readers, as long as you use the tools available to the maximum advantage when releasing your book. The advantages of using Amazon cannot be overestimated where stats show 70% of all readers buy their books from Amazon. To make sure you get the most out of Amazon, follow these steps:[…]
Is Amazon Censoring Customer Reviews? Seems Like It.
Lately, there has been much said about censorship of writing in the United States. But now it seems Amazon has got on the morality bandwagon with the slashing of customer review content.
Amazon has rightfully always had its standards when it comes to customers writing product reviews. But now it seems that words used in reviews are being judged as “hate speech” when they are simple criticism or review of a subject discussed in a book.
Mary, a reviewer from Colorado, says, “I bought and reviewed a book about hitting fifty and reaching the Menopause. I was pleased to have […]
Twelve Must-Read Books on Self-Publishing for 2023
It’s hard to know where to start with such a wide range of books out there claiming to be written by experts for self-published writers. Here are our picks from Amazon for writing, marketing, and publishing your book.
“The Successful Author Mindset: A Handbook for Surviving the Writer’s Journey” by Joanna Penn
Joanna Penn is a veteran self-publisher who has made a decades-long career in writing and speaking about her journey.
“On Writing” by Stephen King
Yes, that Stephen King. King used to be a writing teacher, and he was a fabulous one. Here, he imparts […]
How To Rank in Amazon Kindle Categories
SPR’s Cate Baum takes a look at what methods work and don’t work this spring for ranking higher in Amazon’s Best Seller charts with your Kindle eBook.
Amazon has been messing about with its categories quite extensively, but does this mean ranking is going to become more difficult? Yes and no.
Genre is relevant
Now categories are expanded with search terms, it’s more important than ever that you stay in your genre and categories.
Indie romance books will still be able to gain very high ranking when they make sales due to advertising within a niche market. However, without […]
What’s Happening With Amazon’s Ranking Right Now?
There’s something going on with ranking on Amazon again, and there’s been lots of speculation this week without much real evidence being posted on various blogs for authors. So we’ve done some real-life tests on ranking, and here’s a set of live findings so far on real book promotions, offered without too much speculation.
FINDINGS JAN 17 2022 – FEB 06 2022
Real data conclusions from Amazon promotions run in this period of various genres.
The main finding, and not always applicable, is that there is a general lag in ranking of about 18 – 24 hours right now on […]
Five Ways I Hate Your Dinkus
The dinkus. You know, the three asterisks beloved of a certain kind of fiction writer to split the chapter into some kind of sub-chapter. The three asterisks that boldly chop a book into TV scenes, as if watching it on a screen, and… DINKUS! FADE TO BLACK!
Here’s why, as a book editor and reader, Cate Baum can’t stand this beloved flowery operator, and why you should stop using it so lavishly in your book.
1. Formatting your book is suddenly a massive pain
When I receive manuscripts to format into paperbacks or eBooks, I cannot do what I would […]