DEADLINE FOR READER BRAGS DRAWING NEAR

REMINDER: The deadline for submitting reader brags to the December issue of the Writers' Tricks of the Trade newsletter is drawing near.

The newsletter publishes on the 15th of each month and the deadline for submission of brags or requests to write an article for future issues is the 5th.

Thanks to all of my readers, as the popularity has been growing steadily as evidenced by the traffic counts, but the number of blog followers has not increased much. This is probably because I always send out notices to those on my list. If you enjoy the blog and newsletter, please become a follower. As many of you know, I plan to transition the Writers' Tricks of the Trade newsletter to a small online magazine by mid-2012.

There is still time to order a copy of Writers' Tricks of the Trade: 39 Things You Need to Know About the ABCs of Writing Fiction as a holiday gift to yourself or the aspiring and published writers on your list. Check Amazon, B&N and most online booksellers or order from your favorite local bookstore.

Doonesbury on Book Remainders

When I read this in this morning's L.A. Times, I couldn't resist adding to yesterday's post. I'm sure all you Doonsbury fans have seen this already, but for those who haven't, here it is. A peek at reality of book sales.

Adding your blog to directories

It is pretty time consuming to add your blog to directories, but this way you are listing in a place unique visitors might see it. With everyone jockeying for space and recognition on the web, we need all the help we can get and I believe the time spent is worth it.

Some sites will ask for verification codes like  D2RFM2NUYSER or some other combination of letters and numbers. That's good because they are verifying that it is really you. Others simply want a return email click. They also request information on RSS feeds. You can find that by looking at your blog as a visitor and clicking the symbol for RSS feed. If you don't have one, most blog sites make it easy to add with gadgets or widgets. This broadcasts your posts.

Cartoonists have fun with writers today

Ah, one of my favorite pursuits--reading the morning comics. Well, it hasn't been as much fun in recent years because many of the strips  I enjoyed have disappeared from the L.A. Times and others have simply become silly.

In my humble opinion, two that stay consistently funny or timely are Pearls to Swine and Doonesbury. Today didn't disappoint as they aimed their humor at the writers' community. Better than talking about it, let me show you what I mean.

How true! The father tries to get his point across that shipments and sales are two different things, but the son who is high on presumed success views it as jealousy. As authors and publishers know, book stores can return unsold books, without having paid the bill, months after the shipment. 50,000 books. If only 20% were sold, imagine the impact. Returns can arrive in any condition, resaleable or not.

If you are not a New York Times bestseller, or have a high profile or a ton of fans, try to head off possible heavy returns by cautioning a bookstore to order light for a signing. Most of them will allow you to supplement from your own stock, then they order that amount of books to replace the stock you've "lent" them. Of course, we all hope every book they order sells out, but that is not always the case.

There are so many blogs out there now, how do you get yours noticed? Like everyone else, I've been addressing the issue. Interesting content brings people back once they've found you, but how do they find you?

I just took some of the advice Stephanie Campbell offered in her article about blogging in the November issue of the Writers' Tricks of the Trade newsletter and have begun listing my blog with blog directories. Putting the news of new posts on Facebook and Twitter is important, of course, but for the most part I think the same people see them each time.

Directories expose you to new "eyeballs" and hopefully they will like what you have to say, come back often and share your link with their friends.

BELIEVE IN YOURSELF

Excerpt from LA   Examiner.com

November 18, 2011- Like this? Subscribe to get instant updates

Morgan St. James, LA Writing Examiner

Writers’ Tricks of the Trade: Believe in yourself

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Why this is so important
Today’s column is not a how-to tip unique to writing, but is very important to every author and writer.

It is about believing in yourself.

Believing in yourself probably comes under the heading of Success 101, because it is so important in every facet of life. If you don’t have unwavering belief in yourself, how can you expect others to? Writing the book, story, columns, screenplay, poetry or other creative form of putting words together and making them work in a way readers like is only one part of it. What really counts heavily is everything that comes next, and belief is high on the list.

Just as good writers’ groups can be found in Los Angeles, through a simple internet search or asking a writer friend, you can usually find a local group in your city or town. Writers’ groups are a wonderful reinforcement for an author’s belief system. In addition to offering encouragement, they help you realize you are not alone.

Continue reading on Examiner.com Writers’ Tricks of the Trade: Believe in yourself - Los Angeles Writing | Examiner.com

The November 2011 Newsletter just posted

The new 28 page Writers' Tricks of the Trade Newsletter just posted and I absolutely working with the new format. Watching it evolve is so exciting. I am projecting that by the middle of next year it will be a feature-filled online magazine.

I want to take this opportunity to thank all of the guest contributors and readers for supporting this new publication. Keep watching, because as it continues to grow new features will be added and there will be FREE bonuses for subscribers. HINT, HINT...become a follower, click the subscribe button and the monthly issues will be delivered to you automatically.

If you would like to submit a topic to be considered for a future issue, the ideal length for an article is between 500 and 1,000 words. However, as you can see some are longer, and some are split into two installments. If you want to suggest an article about a timely or helpful topic to be written by someone else, please either comment and post it on the blog or click CONTACT and suggest it by email. Have you got a brag, an announcement or suggestion for a fabulous book you've just read, please submit it.

Deadlines are the 5th of the month, no exceptions. The newsletter publishes on the 15th which gives you time to have read all of the other newsletters that publish on the 1st.

Amazon links to contributors' and some recommended books are provided for convenience, but please try to support local bookstores, too. While digital books are becoming more and more popular, there is something special about paging through printed books and making a selection. Bookstores bear the cost of overhead and stock, and if we don't support them as well, they will go the way so many have during the past few years.

Thanks for your support. Comments always welcome.

TWO GUEST BLOG APPEARANCES

Yesterday I was a guest on M.M. Gornell's blog. We had a great chat, and instead of going into details, I'd like to invite you to click the link and read all about what I had to say:

http://www.mmgornell.wordpress.com

Tomorrow I'l be guest blogging at the Thoughts in Progress blog. It's all about how an idea became a column, then a book, a blog and a newsletter. Check it out and post your comments.

Thoughts in Progress