Ep#27: Orna Ross and Joanna Penn answer members' questions on writing, publishing and promoting books. Here’s the questions posed to Orna and Joanna this month: Here’s the questions posed to Orna and Joanna this month: Q: I write Fantasy. How can I show my character’s mind-speak (i.e. what they’re thinking)? Q. I’ve released my first non-fiction e-book, and I’m struggling with reads let alone sales, and I’d really like to get some book reviews. Q: “My Publisher” wants 8 books for 10 years. Do I ...
Feb 20, 2016•36 min•Ep. 27
Ep#26: Orna Ross presents a new episode of ALLI Insights: NaNoWriMo is Over, Now Publish Your Novel Did you take part in NaNoWriMo last year, and now have a finished draft in front of you, and are thinking "Now What?" You're not alone. Did you know that nearly half a million writers signed up for NaNo in 2015? That's quite a jump from 1999, when Chris (the founder of National Novel Writing Month) and 21 of his friends set themselves a target of 50,000 words in 30 days. In January and February, N...
Jan 31, 2016•36 min•Ep. 26
Ep#25: Orna Ross and Joanna Penn answer members' questions on writing, publishing and promoting books. Here’s the questions posed to Orna and Joanna this month: Q: Is ALLi continuing to work with Ingram Spark this year and are they offering a self-publishing discount to ALLi Members? Q: Do you have Insights about iUniverse Services? Q: What are the legal issues about setting up your publisher imprint? Q: What are the differences between CreateSpace and Ingram Spark POD distribution services? Q: ...
Jan 24, 2016•55 min•Ep. 25
Ep#24: Orna Ross chats with Toby Mundy about How Authors Sell rights. The writer’s path to publication has grown more complex, as new choices emerge. What once was a one-track pathway to print in now a maze of formats, platforms, apps, films, broadcast, foreign, translation, audio and more. Each of these markets offers different opportunities and operates by different rules. How are writers to find their way without a team of experts and lawyers? The Alliance of Independent Authors is releasing ...
Nov 22, 2015•43 min•Ep. 24
Ep#23: Orna Ross and Joanna Penn answer members' questions on writing, publishing and promoting books. Here’s the questions posed to Orna and Joanna this month: Q: If I get a Bookbub, what other promotional activity should I be doing? Q: Has anyone had experience with Kirkus Reviews or other paid review sites? Q: Is 2 books enough for a box set? Q: “Translating is the new black” but how do you assess the final work? Q: How can I copyright protect the short stories that I’m selling directly from ...
Nov 21, 2015•55 min•Ep. 23
Ep#22: Orna Ross and Joanna Penn answer members' questions on writing, publishing and promoting books. Here’s the questions posed to Orna and Joanna this month: Q: I’m writing my first book and I’m overwhelmed by all the other self-publishing and indie author tasks I should be doing like blogging and marketing. What should I focus on? Q: I’ve never written a book before, and wanted to know if I needed to hire a lawyer to look over the self-publishing contracts from IngramSpark and CreateSpace? Q...
Oct 25, 2015•56 min•Ep. 22
Ep#21: Orna Ross chats with mystery writer Elizabeth Spann Craig to discover how she’s using Wattpad to expand her reader demographic. If you’re looking for an uncomplicated and free way of reaching more readers, Wattpad could be the option you’re looking for. This month’s ALLi Insights event was full of information and inspiration about why and how you can leverage your existing content to reach a broader audience. Here’s Wattpad Insights to whet your appetite: Wattpad users are very mobile sav...
Oct 15, 2015•37 min•Ep. 21
Ep#20: Joanna Penn and David Penny answer members' questions on writing, publishing and promoting books. Here’s the questions posed to David and Joanna this month: Q: Is there an Indie Book Fair event planned in Australia? Q: The Legal Deposits Library has requested 5 copies of my book, do I need to send them? Q: I’ve written 5 short stories, how many should I have in a Collection? Q: What is the typical length of a book blurb? Q: What Writing Craft Resources would you recommend? Q: How should A...
Sep 27, 2015•54 min•Ep. 20
Ep#19: Orna Ross chats with Katie Donelan from BookBub to reveal how to increase your chances of getting your book selected for a BookBub Promotion. Competition to be included in the daily BookBub email is fierce, especially in popular categories like Romance, so if you want to increase your chances of being “BookBubbed” it’s best to familiarise yourself with the selection criteria process used by the BookBub editors. Historically publishing has not been a direct to consumer market, but BookBub ...
Sep 13, 2015•41 min•Ep. 19
Ep#18: Orna Ross and Joanna Penn answer members' questions on writing, publishing and promoting books. Here’s the questions posed to Orna and Joanna this month: Q: How should authors deal with lines from songs… what is fair use? Q: For a 1st time self-publishers, how many months out should you advertise your first release Q: How can I boost my sales? Releasing a new book in January with a preorder in October. First book didn’t do well, how can I promote my second book better? Q: Why aren’t my ke...
Aug 22, 2015•50 min•Ep. 18
Ep#17: Orna Ross chats with Helen Sedwick discuss copyright to add clarity around what a writer owns vs. what they don’t. Other topics being discussed are: How authors can protect their work. How to keep others from taking more than their fair share by understanding the nuances between licenses vs. assignments, exclusive vs. non-exclusives and termination clauses. Author scams and what red flags indie authors should look out for. Our weekly Self-Publishing Advice broadcast is brought to you by A...
Jul 10, 2015•40 min•Ep. 17
Ep#16: Orna Ross and Joanna Penn answer members' questions on writing, publishing and promoting books. Here’s the questions posed to Orna and Joanna this month: Q: I’m toying with the idea of using Facebook ads for 1) collecting email subscribers by offering some free content and 2) promoting my books directly. I’ve been through Mark Dawson’s 3 free videos and probably have enough information to try this .. should I do it? Q: Google Play: What is it? Should I put my books in there or not? What r...
Jun 25, 2015•47 min•Ep. 16
Ep#15: Orna Ross and Joanna Penn answer members' questions on writing, publishing and promoting books. Our weekly Self-Publishing Advice broadcast is brought to you by ALLi, the Alliance of Independent Authors. This Member Self-Publishing Q&A is one of four regular shows, which include a more advanced salon, a beginners' salon and a special guest highlight presentation from the Indie Author Fringe, ALLi’s free online author conference. Find more author advice, tips and tools at our self-publ...
May 23, 2015•53 min•Ep. 15
Ep#14: Alliance of Independent Authors (ALLi) Director Orna Ross and Joanna Penn, of The Creative Penn, answer members' questions on writing, publishing and promoting books. Our weekly Self-Publishing Advice broadcast is brought to you by ALLi, the Alliance of Independent Authors. This Member Self-Publishing Q&A is one of four regular shows, which include a more advanced salon, a beginners' salon and a special guest highlight presentation from the Indie Author Fringe, ALLi’s free online auth...
Apr 21, 2015•56 min•Ep. 14
Ep#13: Alliance of Independent Authors (ALLi) Director Orna Ross and Joanna Penn, of The Creative Penn, answer members' questions on writing, publishing and promoting books. Our weekly Self-Publishing Advice broadcast is brought to you by ALLi, the Alliance of Independent Authors. This Member Self-Publishing Q&A is one of four regular shows, which include a more advanced salon, a beginners' salon and a special guest highlight presentation from the Indie Author Fringe, ALLi’s free online auth...
Jan 28, 2015•54 min•Ep. 13
Ep#3: Alliance of Independent Authors (ALLi) Director Orna Ross and Joanna Penn, of The Creative Penn, answer members' questions on writing, publishing and promoting books. Our weekly Self-Publishing Advice broadcast is brought to you by ALLi, the Alliance of Independent Authors. This Member Self-Publishing Q&A is one of four regular shows, which include a more advanced salon, a beginners' salon and a special guest highlight presentation from the Indie Author Fringe, ALLi’s free online autho...
Oct 29, 2014•49 min•Ep. 3
