I don’t often blog about the books I’m working on – but today my publishers sent me the cover of a book of mine they’re releasing in September. It’s been professionally designed and looks fantastic. Cover reveal? Sure. When the moment comes – this is a commercially published book and there’ll be a marketing campaign. … More Sixty second writing tip: covers do sell books
Another local bookshop has become memory here in Wellington this month. Bennetts Government Bookshop announced it’s closing its doors. It’s the sign of a new age. Five years ago there were seven bookstores down the golden mile of Lambton Quay – the top retail street in New Zealand. You could conjure with their names; Parsons, Bennetts, Borders, … More A lament to the lost world of bookstores
American crime novellist Sue Grafton got indie and self-published authors’ blood boiling the other week by suggesting that they were too lazy to do the hard yards – they hadn’t paid their dues. That copped a broadside from British indie writer Adam Croft, according to a report in The Guardian. Self-published authors, he was reported … More Self-publish vs trad – who works hardest?
Author and blogger Susan Keirnan-Lewis posted the other day about the current trend among agents and the publishing industry to view books as having a ‘shelf life’. Even a slightly old manuscript is seen as dated – ‘trunk fodder’ – and unsaleable. That idea, as Susan pointed out, is rubbish. The best stories are timeless. … More How to make your story timeless – part 1
There was a bit of a shuffle in the corner of the blog-o-sphere I inhabit this last week. An author reported that she’d been pinged for using a photo on her blog which she’d found via Google but which, it turned out, was copyright – and the photographer chased her for it. The photographer was … More The authors’ copyright dilemna
Self-publishing for writers is decidedly in these days, as we discover that 21st century computing isn’t about psychotic AI mainframes – it’s about connectivity. A brave new world for those with a yen to write books. But some things haven’t changed – such as when to publish, and how often. This is about best exploiting … More Market slot and your publication – how, why and when
A friend pointed me to this the other day. Someone’s come up with a way for print to compete with e-books. http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/technology-blog/book-printed-disappearing-ink-eventually-goes-blank-155955712.html How? According to the report, they print the book in disappearing ink. Apparently that will FORCE the customer to read it quickly before their purchase becomes a worthless paperweight. We have a saying about that … More This has to be the world’s stupidest publishing idea
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – your voice, as a writer, is important. It sets the tone. And if you do it right, it will set your writing apart. Sometimes a distinctive voice works even if other things are wrong. Take Hamish Clayton’s novel Wulf (Penguin 2011). It’s a fantastic read – up … More How to build your writing voice and meet great people in one go
I posted a comment the other week on Roger Colby’s blog about print-on-demand book making. POD. A relatively new technology. It’s also an interesting technology, especially for writers – and, for that matter, small publishers. I thought I’d extend those thoughts a bit. Digital print has been around a while. Basically, it’s photocopying – same … More The pros and cons of POD books. Er – pod what?
I thought I’d share a few tips about page layout today. Professional publishers work hard to give each book an individuality, even if it is a text-only paperback. Self-publishers should too. There are a few rules – which apply irrespective of software. These days most word processing software will do layout to some extent – … More Giving your e-book the professional edge
Matthew Wright 
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