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Guest Post Wednesday - There's Never Been a Better Time to be a Writer

2012-01-25T11:01:09Z

We are very pleased to have for Our Little Books Guest Post Wednesday, a post from author John Barlow. John published both traditionally and as an indie author, so he has seen both sides of the publishing picture. In this post, John reflects on both platforms and then comes to the conclusion that, despite the curent publishing turmoil, there has never been a better time to write! Enjoy.

There’s never been a better time to be a writer! Does that sound *suspiciously* positive, as if I’m about to sell you something? Well, in a sense I am. Writing a book is horribly difficult, time-consuming, and potentially soul-destroying. Then there’s the energy-sapping hunt for an agent, for a publisher, for sales... However, the current independent publishing revolution has turned the book business on its head, and new opportunities are opening up for writers. Suddenly, some of the pain has gone.

Independent digital publishing is not a literary Nirvana, but there’s some cause for optimism. My previous books have been published by big ‘traditional’ publishers, but for my latest book I’ve gone ‘indie’. It’s early days, but I’m pretty happy with the move. Here are some things I’ve learned from the experience so far.

I’m mid-list writer. I’ve always had to do other things to make a living, such as food journalism and ghost-writing. As time goes on, it’s getting more and more difficult to stay afloat in trad publishing. Even if your aim is simply to ‘get the book published’, you might find the process far harder than it used to be. And it was always a ball-breaker.

Self-publishing allows you to get your book out as an ebook and a POD paperback quickly and efficiently. Also, the stigma of ‘vanity’ pubbing has now vanished (or is rapidly doing so), with best-selling authors increasingly making the change. Have you read Lawrence Block’s latest? He’s doing it himself. Ditto a whole bunch of writers with solid careers in trad publishing.

The future of publishing is uncertain. Publishers are still reacting to the ebook revolution. They’re dragging their heels on ebook royalties (still very low) and there’ll probably be fewer opportunities for new/unpublished writers from hereon in. So if you’re busy writing your first book, why not start sniffing around to see what you think of indie publishing as a serious alternative to the trad route?

There are countless websites and blogs out there helping to show you the way. Writers like David Gaughran and Joe Konrath are good sources. Also, if you register with Kindle Boards, the place where indie writers go to compare notes and swap tips, you’ll pick up a sense of what serious indie publishing is all about. There’s a lot more to it than just finishing that damn book.

One particularly difficult area for many indie writers is doing publicity for their book. There are thousands of other indie writers now competing for visibility in an increasingly crowded market. Then again, if you really believe in your book, perhaps it’s not such a bad thing to have to stand up and shout about it. And remember, the traditional route has ts own issues here. There’s nothing worse than having a book out with a trad publisher and watching as, after a month or so, the publicity push fizzles out and your book dies. Doing it yourself means you can persevere; many successful indie ebook take between six months and year to gather momentum and start selling in large numbers. And who knows? You might find that you’ve got a talent for self-promotion! I’m only been an indie for a few weeks, but I’ve really enjoyed doing interviews, guest posts on book blogs, and generally trying to get people to notice my new novel.

Here’s the downside. Before you get to that stage you’ll have to take on some extra responsibilities... One huge advantage of big publishing houses is there is a bank of experts there to help get your book published. As an indie you either have to become your own editor, proof editor, cover artist, book designer and publicist, or pay people with those specific skills to help you. Increasingly, successful indie writers are paying good money for such services. A total of around $1000 for a book is not uncommon.

Shelling out a grand to get into print? The great thing for someone writing their first book is that, whatever you decide to do once it’s finished, these opportunities will all be there. In fact, there are new ones opening up all the time. Fiction streaming, Wattpad, enhanced books, Amazon Prime, a million forms of interactivity... The book world is changing at an incredible speed, and you can decide where you fit into it.

Convinced? If not, don’t worry. Trad publishing is not going to vanish, and who knows what opportunities might open up for new writers in trad publishing. Whatever, you’ll always have a fall-back position, because the ebook/indie sector is not going to go away any time soon.

John Barlow has published fiction and non-fiction with HarperCollins and FSG in the US and Canada, and has been translated into six languages. Contact John here:

http://www.johnbarlow.net/
http://twitter.com/John_Barlow_LS9

John’s crime mystery, HOPE ROAD, is set in his native West Yorkshire. Buy it here (or see other vendors on his website).

7 Ways an e-Book Can Help Your Business

2012-01-22T19:37:36Z

Most people do not realize the huge benefit an e-book can provide for their business. They may be put off by the actual writing of the book, or not knowing how to get it “published”, or a myriad of other reasons that people come up with to put off writing a book. I want to let you know that writing an e-book does not have to be a Sisyphean task. After seeing the points below on how an e-book can promote your business, I think you will realize that the benefits far outweigh any of the perceived difficulties or pre-conceived notions you may have of writing an e-book.

Before we start with the benefits, I want to make it clear that the type of e-book I am talking about that will provide these benefits is one that is not ‘salesy’, but rather one that is content rich. It needs to be done correctly, be high quality and well produced. It is a reflection of your business so you want people to learn from it and then want more! If you have an e-book such as this, these are just some of the benefits you will receive:

1. Establishing yourself as an expert. As for any type of book, an e-book will increase your credibility and add value to your services. People will read your book and realize that you really do know what you are talking about! It will educate your target market providing that connection that will have people coming back.

2. Increasing your business product. Once you have your e-book, it can be re-purposed into courses, CD’s, videos etc. with less effort than starting fresh. You can bundle an e-book with a package of products that you already have which will add additional value to any of your services.

2. Aiding in promotion of your business. You can give away your e-book as a promotional item in and of itself or as a preview of a bigger book or product.

3. Building loyalty. When people sign up for your e-book, you can grow your mailing list, increase your fan base, get more ‘likes’ on Facebook and more followers on Twitter. (Just as an FYI, if you ever want to have a print book and want to publish with a traditional publisher as a new author, before they even look at your manuscript they will look very closely at your fan base to see if you have a potential ‘buying’ audience.)

4. Less actual product lying around. You don’t have to worry about actual product as people will be able to receive your e-book immediately online. Yet, at the same time, your e-book can easily be converted to a print book as additional product for your business whenever you are ready.

5. Increasing Opportunities. You can leverage your e-book to get more speaking gigs, radio interviews or TV shows, all of which increases your visibility.

6. Increasing Revenue. While many businesses will give away their e-book, you can also sell it as a product on your site. Once you have put in the work, then any future sales are just passive income for you.

7. Becoming a published author. If you write your e-book and have an ISBN, it will be “published” and you can call yourself a published author!

What other ways can you think of how an e-book can help your business?

If you have any questions, Our Little Books would be glad to guide you through the process. If you have an e-book and want to now have it in a little book form to add product to your business, as always please contact us to help!

How to Get Your e-Books on Other People's e-Readers!

2012-01-21T18:14:15Z

Now that you have your e-reader, you’ve accessorized it, you are loving reading e-books on it, it occurs to you: “Hey, I can write an e-book for others to read on their e-reader!” You write your e-book, and now you are faced with getting it out into e-book world so that people with e-readers can read it. Unfortunately, as we discussed in an earlier post in this series, it is not as simple as just putting out a Word document and making an e-book. There is certainly nothing wrong with putting your e-book up on your website and selling it as a PDF. But if you want it available to Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Sony, Kobo or the Apple store, you will have to do a bit more.

We would recommend a company like Smashwords. Just to let you know, Our Little Books has an account at Smashwords where we sell our little books in e-book format. On Smashwords, you can certainly put up your e-book as a word or PDF document and sell it or give it away like that, but that won’t get your e-book into the e-book stores. The real power of Smashwords is their e-book distribution reach to the non-Amazon retailers and mobile platforms because obviously, as an author, your objective is to maximize the availability of your book by getting listed in as many retailers as possible. Smashwords is constantly building out their distribution network, all with the goal of helping you reach more readers. While there are other companies that do the same thing as Smashwords, Smashwords is the first and we really like their personal attention. [We don’t get any remuneration for this recommendation. It’s just because they are good!]

Basically, what a company like Smashwords does if you want your e-books in virtual stores, is to offer you a conversion of your file and distribution into the stores. Again, your book has to be formatted correctly, so that can take a bit of trial and error. But, since you want your readers to have a good experience, you need to take the time to do so. Your cover needs to look sharp. The formatting needs to be smooth. Your e-book is, after all, a reflection on you. You will need an ISBN number if you want to get into the e-stores. You can get one yourself, have Smashwords give you one of theirs, or, if you are working with a publisher like Our Little Books, we provide one for you.

Then you set a price and determine whether or not a reader can see a portion of your book. We highly recommend this part. Our Little Books is set to 20%. What we have found is people download 20%, love what they see and then buy the book. You can even give away your e-book for free. For some who may have several e-books, that is an excellent marketing tool as a reader will download the free one, like what they read and then buy your others.

Bottom line? Get yourself and your e-books out there. There are services, like Smashwords to help, or as always, Our Little Books would be glad to help you with any of your publishing needs!

How To Accessorize Your New e-Reader

2012-01-21T02:15:44Z

You have finally decided on your e-reader and you have one that fits your needs. Now, the next step is getting the accessories to fit your style!

If you are like me, you tend to drop things…especially the more important electronics which is not only annoying but can get expensive! So, the first accessories that you want to look at for your reader are cases and skins. They can also be called slipcovers, jackets, or sleeves. No matter what you call them, what is fun about them is that not only can you get protection, but you can show off your personality!

Because e-readers/tablets tend to be different sizes, you will have to look for your particular e-reader to check out what sort of covers they offer. You can get something simple like a slipcover where you just slip in your reader or something or elaborate with pockets. However, just because they are practical does not mean that they can’t be fashionable. Covers come from synthetic materials to soft leather; from plain to zebra stripes; from ‘60’s psychedelic to business-like. What ever fits your personality is probably out there.

You can get jackets that fold over for protection. You can get water resistant or water proof jackets. Some even look like real books so that you can pretend you are reading a book! Some come with built in lights (for e-readers that need lights). My favorite is the hard shell (due to my above-mentioned tendency to drop things). This enables you to protect your e-reader from drops or hits, but even they come in various colors and designs so that I can show my whimsy by customizing and protecting at the same time. (Now, if they can just add some magical stickiness so that I don’t drop it…)

There are skins which are very thin, yet hard so they protect your screen from fingerprints, scratches and dirt. You can get them for the entire e-reader or just for the screen itself. Going bigger there are bags along the lines of laptop bags. Beautiful messenger style or over the shoulder bags.

You want to get some earphones so when you are around other people, you can hear audio books without bothering anyone. Another necessity is a power adapter. Even though most reader batteries have staying power (my husband went backpacking for 3 weeks and even though he read everyday, he still had battery life when he got out of the wilds), you will need to charge your e-reader. You might consider an additional car charger as well.

The reading experience with, for example, the Kindle is like reading a real book, so if you are outside, there is no problem seeing the print. However, since it is not back lit, if you want to read at night, you will need a light that snaps on top to see. E-readers like the iPad are back lit so they do not need a light, however, then it is sometimes difficult when reading outside in bright sunlight. Recently, they have now come out with solar lighted cases. Who knows what may be out there in just the next year!

The other accessory that I absolutely needed was an attachable keyboard. From the basic Kindle with a tiny keyboard on up to touch screens with larger touch keyboards, I knew that I needed actual keys. This is one accessory that I am very grateful to have gotten as it makes imputing information so much easier- whether taking notes on the books I’m reading, or moving around the e-reader. Other similar accessories might be a stylus pen which you would use if you would rather not use your fingers directly on a touch screen. Finally, if you do a lot of reading in bed, there are floor or bed stands that ‘float’ the readers for hands-free use.

Basically, no matter what you get to accessorize your e-reader, it is an inexpensive way to protect your investment, enhance your reading pleasure and show some individuality!

7 Features to Consider Before Buying Your e-Reader

2012-01-19T11:00:11Z

There are a huge amount of different features available when you are considering which e-reader device to buy. Here are some things to consider prior to making your decision. Obviously, the more features, the higher the cost and if you want to just read books, then it might be best to stay with the basic Kindle or Kobo and look no further. There is no right or wrong, or any recommendations, just options to consider before you choose your device.

Photo by Michael Porter via Flickr

Connectivity. The content (books or whatever else you are reading) of your e-reader is downloaded via the internet, so you have to consider how you connect to the internet. Most e-readers offer the option to either connect via WiFi or 3G. If you have WiFi then you have to consider where and when you can connect. You don’t want to be stuck without a connection when you want to read your morning newspaper. If you have 3G, that won’t be an issue but you probably will have to pay a monthly fee to have access to your 3G. Some e-readers offer free 3G (Kindle and Nook for example).

What do you want to read? Amazon (maker of the Kindle) has the largest library, PDFs and available documents, but again, because of the proprietary formatting, you will only be able to read their content on your Kindle. Most of the other e-readers can access most of what Amazon offers, as long as the content is also available in .epub. Depending on what you read, check the availability and that may determine which e-reader you get.

Other stuff. Do you want to listen to music on your e-reader? See movies. Take pictures. Store pictures or any other multi-media stuff. Do you want to access the web, write documents. If so, then a basic Kindle will not do it for you and tablets may be a better option.

How fast? With a basic e-reader, speed goes to how fast you want your page to turn over. Probably that won’t make a huge difference to your reading pleasure. However, if you want some of that other stuff mentioned above, then speed will make a difference, especially if you want to watch movies.

Size. This can be an issue for more mature people whose eyes are changing. How big do you want your screen. Or, in the alternative, do you have the ability to adjust the type and make it bigger even if you have a smaller screen. But if you have a bigger screen, then the device itself will be bigger and you may lose the ease of carrying around a smaller device. Also, what is the size of your storage. How many books do you want to store. If you have pictures or music or movies, then your storage size needs to be bigger. Size does matter…

How often do I have to charge the battery? If you don’t mind hooking up to an outlet on a frequent basis, then having a tablet like the iPad which does everything else as well as being an e-reader will not be a problem. However, if you want a battery life that can literally last for a month if you are not using WiFi and just reading books, then you will be happy with a basic Kindle.

And of course, cost. Obviously, if you want to or can only spend $80.00, then none of the above really matters. You will be very happy with a basic Kindle or something like a Kobo device. However, if price is not a huge issue and you want more features, then you can spend up to $800 on a top of the line, all bells and whistles included device.

Bottom line? As pointed out in yesterday’s post, you really have to know what you want to do with your device before you go out looking. Once you know what you want to do with your device, then all of the above choices should fall into place and the decision should be easy!

Which e-Reader is the Best For You?

2012-01-18T11:00:05Z

You finally decide that maybe you’ll jump on the band wagon and get an e-reader. After all, it certainly doesn’t prevent you from reading “real” books, but at the same time, it does open up the ability to cut down on your baggage fees when you are traveling and want to bring along those 20 favorite books. So, next question, what do you look for in an e-reader? There are so many out there. Which is the best? Or even better question, which is the best for you?

As we talked about yesterday, formatting is a big issue. Even though .epub is the most recognized formatting around and many e-readers use it, Amazon.com came out with the Kindle first, and so their proprietary .mobi formatting fits just for the Kindle. Many of the smaller e-readers might display .epub but not have the extensions to be able to read charts, graphs or see pictures. So it really depends on what you want to do with your e-reader, especially if you want to do more than just read books.

There are dedicated e-readers, which (surprise, surprise) are dedicated to pretty much reading books. The basic Kindle is a great example of that and started the whole e-reader craze. Since then, it’s been interesting to watch the development of the e-readers as each new one leap-frogs the last one with increased abilities. Now, some of the e-readers are actually mini-computers (tablets). After the basic Kindle, the Barnes and Nobel Nook came out with color and the ability to lend to other Nook owners (you couldn’t share with a Kindle). Then the iPad came out that not only read books, but could be used to access the internet, your email, draft documents, etc. Amazon caught up and the Kindle Fire does the same thing. In between, many different e-readers came on the scene, but never gained enough attention to overtake the leaders. Again, it all depends on what you want to do with your e-reader as to whether you want to get caught up in needing “all the best and newest”.

Deciding which one is best for you is actually a difficult decision because there are so many different options on each e-reader; from screens to resolution to size and weight to cost. Your neighbor has one and so does your brother-in-law and they both swear by the one they have. A recommendation? Don’t let anyone recommend one for you without understanding what your needs are. What is great for your neighbor, may not satisfy your brother-in-law, and at the same time, may be way more than you need. So do your due diligence in first deciding what are your needs and what you want an e-reader for. Then stick to that, and find one that is perfect for you. Tomorrow, I will discuss some of the different options so that you can take your needs and wants and see how they fit with what is available in the different e-readers.

Why You Can’t Just Take Your File and Make an e-Book!

2012-01-17T11:00:19Z

An e-book (electronic book) is any type of publication in digital form, published for an electronic device. A dedicated e-reader (electronic reader) is one such device and allows you to read a book stored in the e-reader. The books themselves can be printed books made into electronic form or books which were developed specifically for e-readers. So basically, an e-book is an electronic form of a printed book read on an e-reader such as a Kindle, Nook or iPad.

To the average reader, you just turn on your e-reader and read your book. To a publisher however, it is not so simple. First, you can’t just take a book and put it on an e-reader. The information has to be formatted in a form that can be read by the e-reader. To complicate matters, most e-readers demand their own specific formatting to fit their reader. So a book that can be read on the Kindle, may not be able to be read by an iPad because the formatting is different.

First, a little back ground on e-readers. When you are reading a book, unlike a static page of a printed book, the text on an e-reader actually flows to fit the screen. This is called reflowable text (like word wrap). It allows the text to fit on whatever screen you are viewing at the time. So a page you might read on your iPhone would be different than the same page you view on your iPad. The words flow to fit the size of your screen.

Another difference from the printed page is that the actual text you see on your e-reader is different than the styling. Both are kept in different files. When you call up a book, your text is loaded first, and then styled. Since this process for the different types of e-readers may differ, the formatting will be different. While you may see nice charts in one e-reader, the same information may show up as gobbly gook in another. It is this formatting that makes your reading easy and clear.

And it is this formatting which makes it difficult to read the same material on different e-readers. The most used format is .epub which tends to be widely supported. For example, .epub is used on Apple’s iOS devices (iPhones, iTouchs, iPads), Sony Reader, B&N's Nook and many other devices. Devices that can’t read it directly have special adaptations to allow their e-readers to use .epub. In addition, some formats combine or add extensions (like an .html extension), so that not only text can be read, but also enables a limited audio and video within the text.

Amazon’s format for the Kindle is .azw, better known as mobi. It is proprietary and does not have integrated support for the .epub format. But because your books are downloaded automatically onto the Kindle, you don’t really see the type of files so it doesn’t tend to be an issue unless you want to read your Kindle book directly on your iPad (without a Kindle app). Unfortunately, no matter which format you use, it is not as simple as just putting your Word document through some sort of .epub or .mobi filter to come out the other side with a readable e-book. (For example, Our Little Books uses one of our design editors to prepare our little books for all the different forms for e-book publishing of the printed little books.)

Why is this important? Because if you are writing an e-book and want to get it into Amazon or in the Apple store, it has to be formatted in the correct manner to not only be read by your readers, but to be accepted by the stores for sale. After all, you certainly want your readers to be able to read the wonderful book you have just written!

Are e-Readers Changing the Publishing World with their Popularity?

2012-01-16T11:00:43Z

You would have to be living under a stone to not know what an e-reader is – either you have one yourself, or you know of someone who has one, or you’ve given one as a gift. They are everywhere!

The statistics just for this past holiday season are pretty incredible, and not just for the better known iPad and Kindle variations of e-readers. Although during the year, 27 million e-readers were sold, that was just through the middle of December. Then came the holidays. Here are some amazing facts about this past holiday sales for e-readers.[1]

iPad

The iPad accounted for 7% of all online sales on Christmas Day; not that these were sales OF the iPad, but there were so many iPads out there that 7% of all purchases made online December 25th were made from an iPad. [2]

Kindle

As for Kindle, Amazon announced that 2011 was the best holiday ever for all the different variations of the Kindle family. Millions of Kindle Fires and Kindle e-readers were bought and given for the holidays.[3]

It wasn’t just Kindle or iPad sales in the United States, it was world wide. For example, according to UK government statistics, approximately 1.2 million Kindles were given as gifts in the UK this holiday season, which meant that for the UK, 1 in 40 adults either gave or received the e-readers as a gift. Other statistics from the UK show:

In total 1.33 million e-readers were given away, with Kindles 92% of the market share.
61% of Kindles were received by women, with over 55 year olds twice as likely as 18-24 year olds to receive one.
640,000 tablets were given as gifts to adults, with the iPad dominating the market with 72% of sales.[4]

Kobo

Kobo e-reader (from Canada) saw its highest e-reader and e-book sales this past Christmas. Internationally for the Kobo, France had over 7,000% growth, the UK had over 1,000% and Germany had a little less than 1,000%.[5]

Nook

Even though the total sales of Nook devices rose 70% during the holiday shopping season, it may have been hurt too much by sales of the Kindle. Shortly after Christmas, Barns and Nobel (the makers of the Nook) suggested they were going to spin off their Nook business.[6]

Obviously, with so many e-readers, e-book sales also increased. USA TODAY's Best-Selling Books list, which tracks combined sales of e-book and print editions shows that based on sales data from Dec. 26 to Jan. 1, the e-book editions were the most popular format in 42 of the top 50 titles sold.[7]

All these statistics, while interesting (and maybe boring), nonetheless indicate the e-readers are certainly here to stay. Of course, that means e-books are also here to stay. The publishing industry is definitely going through a massive restructuring and it will be interesting to see what happens to print books.

Do you have an e-reader? Did you get one or give one this past holiday season? If you have an e-reader, did you either purchase or receive e-books for your reader? What do you think of e-readers and e-books?

[1] http://goodereader.com/blog/e-reader-radio/good-e-reader-radio-holiday-sales-e-readers-in-the-class-and-more/

[2] http://www.forbes.com/sites/erikamorphy/2011/12/26/ios-took-13-4-of-online-sales-on-christmas-day/

[3] http://hothardware.com/News/Amazon-Celebrates-A-Wild-Holiday-2011-Kindle-Sales-Way-Up/

[4] http://econsultancy.com/us/blog/8615-christmas-2011-e-commerce-stats-round-up

[5] http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/kobo-breaks-ereader-and-ebook-sales-records-this-holiday-season-highest-ereader-and-ebook-sales-in-kobo-history-136728238.html

[6] http://www.technewsworld.com/story/74114.html

[7] http://www.usatoday.com/life/books/news/story/2012-01-09/ebooks-sales-surge/52458672/1

Guest Post Wednesday - Nine Ideas for Original Writing

2012-01-11T11:01:06Z

We are very pleased to present a wonderful blog post from an Australian author, Summer Goodwin, for Our Little Books Guest Post Wednesday. How many times have we, whether writing fiction or non-fiction, been stumped in coming up with something to write about? Summer has come up with nine different ideas to get us moving forward again. Enjoy and be sure to check out Summer's blog while you are at it!

Mum and I are both authors - she writes fiction and I write non-fiction. In deciding what to contribute in this guest post, I asked mum what subject she would find most useful. She said her greatest challenge was coming up with new ideas.

I can certainly relate. I often struggle with generating ideas for my blog. In today's world, where we self-publish online in blogs and social media, producing fresh content on a regular basis can be quite challenging.

So, mum gave me the idea of writing about... well, ideas and how to get them. Here's nine to start the conversation, I'd love to hear your ideas too.

1. Ask your audience.

It may be helpful to ask your target audience - for me, that's other writers - what they would like to read. If an audience member suggests a subject (like my mum did) other readers will probably relate too.

2. Tell the story again.

American journalist Barbara Grizzuti Harrison said: "There are no original ideas. There are only original people." Even if a subject has been covered a thousand times, you have a unique voice and perspective. As a writer, your voice is your greatest asset. So, be yourself, feel the fear and do it anyway.

3. Start tweeting.

If you're a writer, you have to be on twitter. Twitter is like Disneyland for us. There are so many wonderful people and so much great content, it's a virtual treasure chest of ideas.

4. Share a secret.

In her autobiography, Australian publishing icon Ita Buttrose disclosed she was once so angry with a former boss that she wrote his name on a piece of paper and stuck pins in it. This confession not only surprises the reader but shows Ita's humanity. Readers empathize with human frailty. The truth is very powerful.

5. Think like a journalist.

If you generally write opinion in your blog - and most of us do - get inspired by journalism. You could produce a feature about a local event or interview a person relevant to your readers and write a Q&A piece.

6. Explore a new genre or medium.

Writers are artists, we use words like a sculptor uses clay. Experimenting with a different genre or medium can be fun and produce some interesting content too. If you usually write non-fiction, why not try fiction? How about photography or producing a video? You may even discover a hidden talent or passion.

7. Voice your views.

Share your thoughts about news and current affairs. Even if everyone is talking about the Royal Wedding, for example, you bring a distinctive voice to the conversation.

8. Find inspiration in the everyday.

French author Anais Nin said: "My ideas usually come not at my desk writing but in the midst of living." A poem on a fridge, a conversation with a friend, a sentence in a book - all have inspired ideas for my blog.

9. Don't Google it.

The first thing writers tend to do is research. But if you Google your idea, you'll find it has already been written about. So, just write from the heart. Even if the idea is unoriginal, you are an original person. Your writing will be original if you write first and Google later.

How do you get ideas? What inspires you?

Summer Goodwin is an Australian author, journalist, blogger and public relations professional. Her blog Summer's notebook aims to connect, inspire and support emerging and established writers. She is currently writing her autobiography.

Twitter: @summer_goodwin
Facebook: Summer Goodwin

3 Reasons Why Becoming a Published Author in 2012 Should Be Your Top Resolution

2012-01-09T17:21:07Z

It is the New Year, 2012. Most of us have made our New Year’s resolutions and are trying hard to implement them, right? In all those resolutions, how many of you made the commitment to publish a book in 2012? Hmmmmm, are any hands raising out there? Is that something you have never thought about or if you have, you’ve decided it is not for you? Well, I am here to tell you that becoming a published author in 2012 is a wonderful and absolutely ‘doable’ goal, and one that if you haven’t already put on your 2012 ‘to-do’ list, I highly recommend you do so today!

First, for those who don’t know the huge value of having a book, why would you even want to be a published author? Does the time spent writing the book equate with rewards that actually make it worth while? Absolutely! When you are a published author, you gain credibility and prove you are an expert in your field. Being seen as an expert will open doors where they may have not even existed before. You get asked to be a speaker more often; the media calls you for your ‘expert’ opinion; you sell your books in the back of the room; you re-purpose your book into CDs, e-courses, seminars. The opportunities you gain by having a book are endless and only limited by your imagination!

Second, there are many different ways you can become a published author and they all don’t have to be scary, long, or tedious. You can go the traditional way and find a publisher who wants to publish your book. [As an aside, unless you have a huge fan base or have a new concept, it will be very difficult for you to find a traditional publisher in today’s new publishing world.] You can self-publish. There are obviously pros and cons to self publishing, but self-publishing has really opened up the ability to get published. [If you choose to self-publish, just understand that you have to take full responsibility for making sure all the steps to get a good book out are followed.] Or, you can go the Indie way (such as what Our Little Books does) and work with a publisher, retaining control over your book while having hand holding and quality control along the way.

Third, being a published author does not mean you have to slave over writing a 250 page book. In the past, that kind of book was always your only option. While having a 250 page book is wonderful, it can take several years to get done unless you dedicate yourself to getting it out sooner. There are other ways. You can become a published author by being in a compilation book, where many authors get together and all submit a chapter in a book. You have many authors all promoting the book so you get out there to people who may not have know you before. However, it is not entirely ‘your’ book as you share in the content. Finally, you can be inventive and unique and choose a different style, size or length. For example, the little books from Our Little Books are usually around 7000 words as opposed to 70,000 words. Smaller. Leaner, but still a ‘real’ book! But no matter which way you choose to publish, you can call yourself an author!

As you can see, there are many reasons and ways to become a published author, and any one can fit your style or time frame. But the bottom line is that you have to make the commitment to just do it. Make the resolution to become an author in 2012. You will be glad you did!

As always, if you have any questions about being an author or how to publish your book in any form, please contact Our Little Books and we will work with you to find the best way for you to become a published author!