Let's face it, Macmillan isn't known for its love of e-books. From the moment Jim Baen and, later, Amazon showed the viability of the new technology, Macmillan and others did their best to torpedo the new market. The Big 5 (remember when it was the Big 6) engaged in price collusion, ongoing attempts to undermine... Continue Reading →
Friction
I bought a frozen lasagna for dinner for the family. I love to make lasagna, and have a great recipe a fellow author gave me, but... There was friction. In other words, it was Friday night, had been a very long week, and I was so tired it hurt. So I did something to reduce... Continue Reading →
Of pricing and release dates
I don't know a single indie author who doesn't wish there was a handbook out there that was constantly kept up-to-date with information about formatting, blurbs, promotion, when to release your books and pricing. The best we can do is watch trends and be ready to adapt not only when necessary but as quickly as... Continue Reading →
Nearly Summer Indie Author Sale
Clearly, summer is upon us. Have you got your beach reads lined on the Kindle yet? Well, here are a whole list of selections on sale, or free!, for you to choose from. Already have one? Want to share the joy you found in reading it? You know it's easy to give the gift of... Continue Reading →
Indie Author Christmas Sale!
Just in time for Christmas giving, here's a list of books, stories, and other readables. Who doesn't love to get a book in their virtual stocking? Bonus is that this gift won't sit around collecting dust or taking up space. And you don't have to go out and fight the traffic to buy it, or... Continue Reading →
Reading Through Con Crud
I don't wind up with con crud after every con, but it seems like it sometimes. The First Reader, on the other hand, has had it once. The current theory is that some people are most susceptible to it, like me. It could also be because I'm a hugger and he isn't. For whatever reason,... Continue Reading →
E-Readers are Dead! Long Live… Ebooks?
Seriously, people. As we see the usually flurry of post-Christmas articles about sales, and what is, or isn't moving as fast as was predicted, I'm seeing more of the same. Ereaders didn't sell as well as they did in 2013. Ergo, ebooks are a passing fad, and we can all return to our traditionally published... Continue Reading →
Museum Books
I was looking at one of the photos I took at the High Desert Museum in Bend, Oregon, when it crossed my mind to try and find copies of the books in their little library. Perhaps, I thought, all the old books will have entered public domain, and be readily available to those of us... Continue Reading →
Of Apple and Amazon and e-book sales
Sitting here this morning, wondering why I dreamed about having to bug-out because of an invasion of man-eating spiders (which, btw, are a lot worse than zombies because spiders can hide in much smaller places), I scanned the publishing news for the last few days and found myself wondering if we've stepped back in time.... Continue Reading →
How to taunt your pet writer
And other charming things to do... "Even better fun than force-feeding diabetics candy-canes, leading blind people over open manholes, and telling kids and Dave Freer there is no Santa Claus" -Ima Meeni (the late Ima Meeni. How dare he say that about someone I've been good* all year** for.) I think the best is telling... Continue Reading →