WRITING TIP!

LONG PARAGRAPHS

Editors often visually inspect manuscripts and may reject a submission on sight if something about the format or layout rubs them the wrong way. In addition to improper manuscript format, excessively long paragraphs stand out like a sore thumb. Lengthy paragraphs are not visually appealing as they resemble legal documents (and who wants to read those?) Break apart paragraphs longer than a half-page. And watch for any one character's dialogue that runs on too long without a break. Isn't it annoying when you talk to someone who won't shut up and allow you to give any input? Long-winded characters give much the same impression.

Self-publication itself is easy. It's selling self-published books that can be practically impossible!

Self-publication has been around forever and has been a reliable alternative for professionals who have written non-fiction books. However, I can't think of a single instance wherein a self-published novel benefited its author at all. If you're writing fiction, save your money. Use it instead to attend conferences and workshops to learn how to be published the old-fashioned way.

Print-on-demand publishing has made more and writers actually consider self-publication, but beware of their typical sales pitch and promises:

(1) YOUR SELF-PUBLISHED NOVEL WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR SALE ON AMAZON.COM
While it's true that your novel may be listed on Amazon.com, imagine all of the books that are also listed there. How likely is it that a stranger will conduct a search on Amazon.com, find your book and actually buy it? You can calculate the odds yourself. For my money, I wouldn't count on selling a single copy there.

(2) YOUR SELF-PUBLISHED NOVEL WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR SALE AT THE P.O.D. PUBLISHER'S ONLINE BOOK STORE
Sure, they'll give you an impressive listing in their online book store, but again, who's going to go online and search P.O.D. publishers for a book? Wouldn't 99.99% of book buyers go to Amazon.com instead? Again, I wouldn't count on selling a single copy at a P.O.D. publisher's online book store.

(3) YOUR SELF-PUBLISHED NOVEL WILL GET A LISTING WITH INGRAM BOOK COMPANY, AMERICA'S LARGEST BOOK DISTRIBUTOR, AND WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR ORDER BY VIRTUALLY ANY BOOK STORE IN THE NATION
Sounds impressive, huh? But wait! Imagine all of the other titles also listed with Ingram. And in order for a book store, or anyone else for that matter, to order your novel through Ingram, they have to know it exists, right? How will they know? Sorry to keep saying the same thing over and over, but I wouldn't count on selling a single copy through an Ingram listing.

(4) SELF-PUBLICATION NO LONGER CARRIES THE NEGATIVE IMAGE OF THE PAST.
I'm sorry, but industry professionals have not changed their minds. Self-publication is no indication at all that you're talented a writer. It only means that you were willing to spend your own money to be published, same as always.

(5) OPTIONAL MARKETING PACKAGES WILL HELP SELL YOUR BOOK
P.O.D publishers are hi-tech printers. They're not publicists nor promoters. Sure, they can write and distribute press releases, but you can do that on your own at a much lower cost.

The bottom line is this: if you're asked to contribute money toward the publication of your book, if you're required to purchase a minimum number of copies or guarantee the eventual sale of a specific number of books, you're essentially being self-published. Legitimate publishers absorb all production costs and pay you. In some instances self-publishing non-fiction books can make sense. Self-publishing fiction, however, is a waste of time and money.

I'll be happy to address other issues here as well if you'll drop me an e-mail.

And finally, yes, it's true that John Grisham originally self-published A Time to Kill but did it have any impact at all on his eventual success? No way! Not until he was published by a traditional publisher and get a talented literary agent did his career take off.

To learn more about the issue of self-publication, consider attending my brief workshop as described below:

THE TRUTH ABOUT SELF-PUBLICATION

Traditionally, self-publication, or the “Vanity Press,” has been frowned upon for all but the most ambitious non-fiction writers. Today, however, with the advent of print-on-demand publishing, self-publication has become the perfect low-cost solution for many writers who wish to target a specific audience and maintain complete control over their finished books. With as little as a $500 investment, your professional-quality book can be listed on Amazon.com and ready to market around the world in only a few weeks. Learn how to make the most of this exciting new technology and avoid traditional publishers if your situation lends itself well to self-publication. The included textbook also serves as a sample of the quality to be expected from print-on-demand publication.

One Session, Two-to-Three Hours

If you're a fiction writer, learn what it takes to sell to major publishers. You can learn writing skills from college professors but to learn the strategy of getting published, consider my workshop series: