Reviews—One Author’s Experience – By Tim Patrick, Guest Blogger

Tim Patrick

The indie world has changed since I self-published my first book, Tea Cups & Tiger Claws, five years ago. Specifically, the indie market is FLOODED with books by a million baby boomers who have finally written the great American novel they always dreamed about. The sad truth is most of these books aren’t very good. The even sadder truth is that because of this glut it’s hard for the good books to get noticed. And it’s hard to get reviews. Hard but not impossible. Here’s what I’ve learned:

The Secrets I've Learned about Designing a Book Cover -- By Matthew J. Elliott

I love to create things! In fact, I do it so often that I make up random designs just to do it. Right now I have a whole file of them just waiting for me to find a place to share them.

This post is meant to give you a little insight into what I've learned it takes to design a simple yet elegant book cover.

Links to Resources for Writers -- By Sidney W. Frost

Resources change frequently. If a link doesn't work, try searching the Internet for the latest information. Send corrections and additions to sidfrost@suddenlink.net.

General Information

http://oedb.org/ilibrarian/150-writing-resources/

http://margaretatwood.ca/resources-writers/

http://www.writersdigest.com/writersresources

https://www.writingclasses.com/resources/index

http://writershelpingwriters.net/resources-for-writers/

https://writetodone.com/the-10-free-resources-every-writer-needs/

Book Writing Software

Kindlepreneur's Best Book Writing Software:  Best Book Writing Software (2021) [UPDATED!]: Coupons + Discounts (kindlepreneur.com)

ISBN, Barcodes and QR Codes

Bowker: http://www.bowker.com/

Kaywa: http://qrcode.kaywa.com/

QRStuff: http://www.qrstuff.com/

URL Shorteners

http://tinyurl.com

https://bitly.com/

https://zapier.com/blog/best-url-shorteners/

In addition, Twitter provides a service of shortening URLs in tweets.

Scheduling Tweets

TweetDeck by Twitter: https://tweetdeck.twitter.com/

Twuffer: http://twuffer.com/
Twittimer: https://twittimer.com/

HootSuite: https://hootsuite.com/

Other Tweet Apps

Tweriod: http://www.tweriod.com/

Blog Services

WordPress: http://wordpress.com/

Blogger: https://www.blogger.com/home

Blogging Platforms: http://www.wpbeginner.com/beginners-guide/how-to-choose-the-best-blogging-platform/

Blog Hops

Blog Hops for Writers: https://raimeygallant.com/2017/06/06/bloghopslistforauthors/ 

Story of Five: http://www.storyoffive.com/whats-a-blog-hop/

Contest and Giveaway Apps

http://www.rafflecopter.com/

http://giveawaytools.com/

https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway

http://promosimple.com

Examples of Using Pinterest to Advertise

Pinterest Guide: https://www.makeuseof.com/tag/your-guide-to-pinterest/

Book 3 Images: https://www.pinterest.com/sidneywfrost/love-lives-on/

Community Board: https://www.pinterest.com/crossreads/christian-books-~community-board~/

Books by Sidney W. Frost: https://www.pinterest.com/sidneywfrost/books-by-sidney-w-frost/

Book 4 Images: https://www.pinterest.com/sidneywfrost/the-vengeance-squad-goes-to-england/

Bookmobile Books: https://www.pinterest.com/sidneywfrost/books-with-bookmobile-references/

Social Book Cataloguing

https://www.goodreads.com/

E-Mail Services

Mail Chimp: http://mailchimp.com/

Constant Contact: http://constantcontact.com/

Benchmark Mail: https://www.benchmarkemail.com/

Requesting Reviews

Blue Ink Reviews: https://www.facebook.com/blueinkreview/

Amazon Guide: https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html/ref=hp_left_v4_sib?ie=UTF8&nodeId=201967050

Step-by-Step Publishing: http://ww38.stepbystepselfpublishing.net/reviewer-list.html

Advertising

Author Gifts: http://www.zazzle.com/local+author+gifts

Free and Discounted Book Listing Services

Fussy Librarian: http://www.thefussylibrarian.com/for-authors/

Christian Book Heaven: https://christianbookheaven.com/

Weight Loss for Writers

How I Trim Ugly Fat from My Manuscript!

Written by Jackie Houchin

Published by The Writers in Residence, September 2010

Republished with Permission

Okay, I’ve followed up on those cool ideas for articles (part I). I’ve conducted my interviews, checked my facts and written my piece (part II). Now I’m ready to submit my story (along with the invoice, of course) and wait for my check to arrive, right?

Wrong!

There’s one more step to take before I hit that “SEND” button. I must get out the scale and weigh my chubby little darling. What I usually discover is not pretty. My manuscript is not the lean, fit article I thought it was. There are double chins, love handles, and soft, flabby appendages. Eek! Now what?

Generate Story Ideas in less than 20 Minutes

Written by M.J. Elliott

Published by MJ Elliott Consultant, March 2018

Republished with Permission

I love to write! In fact, I love it so much that I generate story ideas just to store them in my writing file. Right now I have about 30 of them just waiting for me to find the time to write them out.

This post is meant to give you an example of one of the methods that I use.

Home Page

This blog is for Christians. Those who write and those who read. It is managed by the Christian Writers Support Group found on Facebook. Anyone can read the posts selected for the members, but only member's information will be included in the blog. If you are a Christian writer looking for information and feedback from others, signup at Facebook.

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