by Kathryn, TFR

Keeping in a similar theme with last week’s post about unique sources of writing inspiration, this week, I’m going to talk about finding sources of PRODUCTIVE background noise.

No, that does not mean pulling up your favorite show on Netflix or Hulu to listen to while you work (In the interest of complete transparency, I’m writing this after starting the fourteenth season of CSI. Do as I say, not as I do, people).

on Just Publishing Advice:

Surprising words Shakespeare invented that we all use today

William Shakespeare has been part of all of our high school days, and although interesting, his work was not always enjoyable for all.

There are some books where you have almost to decipher what you are reading.

We have to understand that at the time he wrote it was very different and the English language has changed a lot since then.

It is said that there are more than 2,200 English words in Shakespeare’s writing that were not in use in English until his time.

Continue reading HERE

Which social media do you use to promote your blog?

There are so many personalized reader/news websites, how do we choose? I can’t keep up with all of them. New ones, old ones, coming and going every day. It’s exhausting.

Flipboard, StumbleUpon/Mix, Medium, Feedly, Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus,  Linkedin, Reddit, Tumbler, Pocket, Pinterest or…

• StumbleUpon. I loved this one until they changed. Every time I added my blog post to their website, I found other great writers.  Now that they’ve migrated over to Mix, I’m not so sure. Changes aren’t always for the better. At 40 million users, I can’t help but wonder how many will make the transition.
• Flipboard.  Another one I like. But, I don’t use it as often as I probably should. I find the format a bit intimidating and that easy to use. With over 100 million users, maybe I need to…

First the released my data to Cambridge Analytica. That led to having my identity stolen and my computer hacked. How many new ways can they find to become worthless?

FROM WORDPRESS:

You have probably gotten the same message via email, but in case you missed it or deleted it without reading it, you might want to read it. Many of us use Facebook for publicizing our blogs. This will stop the day after tomorrow. You can return to what I used to do: copy and paste your link into Facebook, especially if you have a fair number of followers on Facebook as I do. I already disconnected it from Publicize. I’ll probably manually post pieces as I see fit. I guess we will all have to make our own choices about this.

We wanted to update you about an upcoming change Facebook is introducing to their platform, and which affects…

on The Book Designer:

Feeling proud for persuading a local radio station to air a half-hour interview with you? Or for getting a two-page spread in a national magazine?

If you’re an amateur publicity seeker, you’re content with whatever you can get. If you’re a real Publicity Hound, however, you know the fun is just beginning. The challenge, of course, is to turn one media “hit” into multiple hits. It’s not that difficult. In fact, recycling publicity is like rolling a snowball downhill and watching it get bigger and bigger.

When you get publicity, here are 11 ways to let the world know – and sometimes get even more.

Continue reading HERE

I haven’t sent my work out to writing contests, but I know many unpublished authors have used them as a tool, and they can be an effective avenue for getting noticed.

If you have contemplated following this route, there are some things to keep in mind that will give you an advantage. Using contests the wrong way are a waste of time and money. Educate yourself on how to make them work for you.

Make sure only your best work leaves the house                                                                        Edit and reedit you work before sending it out to a contest just as you would with a literary agent or editor. It has to be as close to perfect as…

We’ve all had those days — the ones where we clock out of our day jobs, greet our fur babies, sit down on the couch for five minutes … and then it’s 9 PM and oops we didn’t write again oh well maybe tomorrow!

And repeat.

But there are also days we do try to write. And it doesn’t always go well. Sometimes the words just aren’t coming out right. Or you got another rejection email and you don’t want to even look at your computer screen anymore. Or the 40-hour workweek is exhausting you so intensely that even your small writing accomplishments don’t feel worth celebrating.

Sometimes … you just don’t feel like a writer.

And then you start questioning whether or not what you’re doing actually matters.

You haven’t published a best-seller. You’re tweeting into the void and no one’s responding. You barely even blog anymore. Should you…

CreateSpace DVD / CD production is shutting down and it is possible that Createspace is being faded out, moving from CreateSpace to Amazon Media on Demand.

“Bit by bit, Amazon has been shutting down different parts of Createspace. First they launch KDP Print, a competing/replacement POD service, then they shut down Createspace’s publishing services unit, and now they have shifted the DVD and CD production to another part of Amazon. As a result, there isn’t much left in Createspace besides the book POD service.” https://the-digital-reader.com/2018/07/25/createspace-dvd-cd-production-is-shutting-down-with-accounts-moving-to-amazon-media-on-demand/

This is important if you use Createspace for paperback copies of your book. It is possible CreateSpace POD is going next. I am still reading into it but it is advised that if you have paperback books published through Createspace that you move them over to KDP Print before CreateSpace is officially out and you have to rush to move. Below are some articles…