What you’ve heard is true. Don’t get too attached to your title. I’ve just submitted my third attempt at coming up with a title that my editor will like for a book that will come out around this time next year. My fingers are crossed that this time I’ve succeeded. In the publishing world there […]

1. Expect overnight success.
2. Compare your career to other writers.
3. Write only to impress others.
4. Depend on your family and friends to support your career.
5. Write only for money or fame.
6. Take every criticism personally.
7. Save all your rejections and read them every day.
8. Write for approval from family and friends.
9. Set out to write a masterpiece in three days.
10. Base your self worth on […]

The Black Hole
A lot of books get published then disappear from sight. Not because of authors not promoting them, but because of bad publishers. A group I like to refer to as The Black Hole, because their damage is wide and never ending.
Scenario #1:
A publisher emailed an aspiring author offering publication. She had posted part […]

Coming January 2008

Yay! The Cover Gods have smiled down on me. This is the cover for my next book. What do you think?

Donald Trump knows marketing. But this ploy is impressive. The October 17th book signing for his title Think Big and Kick Ass in Business and Life written with Bill Zanker, president and founder of the Learning Annex, brought up a good question about the crowd of people there.
Were they there for the authors […]

Whether you’re a newbie or experienced I suggest How I Got Published: Famous Authors Tell You in Their Own Words edited by Ray White. Read the stories of how unknowns became novelists and more. You get to read the journeys of J.A. Jance, Clive Cussler, John Lescroart, Marian Keyes and many others. There are great […]

Beware the Ghostwriter
Some writers, for a variety of reasons, choose to use ghostwriters. However, you have to be careful. The following is a rather tragic story and I feel for the duped author, Lanaia Lee.
It seems that she hired ghostwriter Christopher Hill to work on her book Of Atlantis. Unfortunately, he decided to copy […]

The Harpy
So I’m at a conference for small publishers mixing and mingling with people who love books—editors, agents, booksellers etc…, when an author approaches me and ask if I’m accepting manuscripts. I say no. I give my spiel about being new to the business and direct her to several other publishers. But noooo… she is […]

To celebrate the coming of Halloween I want to share horrific tales I (or others) have experienced in the publishing industry. Here I will share tales about agents that will make you cringe, stories about authors that will make you shiver, and anecdotes about publishers that will make you run away in horror.
Okay they may […]

Got a novel? Then here are two contests to consider.
Search for the Next Great Crime Writer Contest
Borders has teamed up with Court TV for their mystery/ crime novel contest. The contest prize is 1,000 US dollars and if the author agrees to a contract they’ll receive an advance of 5,000 US dollars and “Borders will […]