What can Stephen King teach us about writing?
By: Ginger | Posted on October 7, 2022
Many authors have probably already read Stephen King’s own words about writing from his book on the subject, but that doesn’t mean you’re done learning from him. King is a very prolific writer, and although he’s known for his horror, he’s actually written in a number of genres over the years. You can never know too much about any of the writing greats, and as Ginger points out, there are still things we can learn from King outside of what he put into his book on writing. There are common elements in his stories that draw readers in and make his novels so engaging, and those are the things that really deserve our attention. Recently, somebody mentioned to me that they enjoyed our blog series on what famous writers can teach us about the craft of storytelling. We’ve covered Agatha Christie, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Lee Child, Taika Waititi, and Ian… Read More >
Amazon Updates Return Policy Amid Pressure
By: Craig | Posted on September 30, 2022
Everyone loves a good David and Goliath story, which is why it was welcome news this week when Amazon confirmed their plans to alter their eBook return policy to make it less likely to be abused. Sure, it took them close to six months to finally relent and the change isn’t implemented yet, but at least it’s coming. Here is what we know about the upcoming changes, and what we think about them. As some of you will remember, we first reported on this story back in April amid growing reports of larger than normal return rates seen by some Amazon authors. Despite the fact that Amazon’s eBook return policy hadn’t changed in years, the increase in returns was traced back to a growing number of social media posts (mainly on Tiktok) highlighting the lack of restrictions and ease of which readers could return eBooks on Amazon, and then even… Read More >
What happens when an author gets divorced?
By: Ginger | Posted on September 23, 2022
If you’re married, divorce is hopefully not something you’ll ever have to worry about, but it doesn’t hurt to know what might happen just in case. Most people are aware of how assets generally get split up, but for authors it can be more than just a matter of who gets the house and who gets the savings bonds. At stake are not just the past and future royalties of your books, but even the intellectual rights to elements of any ongoing series. Ginger goes over some of the things you might end up facing if you’re ever in this situation, as well as what some of your options might be, but obviously it is not to be taken as any sort of official legal advise. Hope you’ll never need to worry about any of this, though! Ernest Hemingway was married four times. JK Rowling and Jackie Collins were married twice…. Read More >
What can Agatha Christie teach us about writing?
By: Hidden Gems | Posted on September 16, 2022
As he’s done in previous blogs, Ginger is breaking down the lessons we authors can take away from some of the greatest and most prolific writers in history. And there isn’t anyone more prolific or successful than Agatha Christie, having sold more copies of her books than any other modern author has ever done by a longshot. So what was the secret to her success, and how can you emulate it in your own way? Read on for Ginger’s breakdown to find out. When it comes to best-selling authors of the modern age, there’s one clear winner: Agatha Christie. Over the course of her storied life, Christie wrote and published 85 books which have sold over 4 billion copies (and that’s not a typo – that’s billion spelt with a b.) She’s sold two billion more books than any author of the modern age – and they’re books that have… Read More >
Your First 100 Clicks lead to your magic Conversion number
By: Ginger | Posted on September 9, 2022
Last week Ginger discussed spending your first $1000 on digital ads, with the goal of getting both sales and information from that spend. This week, he’s focusing more on how to interpret some of the info you gather, specifically around what those clicks tell you about your “magic” conversion number. That conversion number isn’t really magic of course, but it may seem that way in how valuable it is in terms of giving you a very clear idea as to whether or not your ads are profitable or not. Figuring out your conversion number isn’t always straightforward, though, with some ad platforms making it more transparent than others. But if you know the best place and way to figure it out, you can then use that information elsewhere. Last week, we discussed how you should spend your first $1,000 in advertising budget, and we mostly concentrated on Facebook as an… Read More >
Spending your first $1,000 on digital advertising
By: Ginger | Posted on September 2, 2022
There’s an old adage: “You’ve got to spend money to make money.” Nowhere does this wisdom apply more than in the digital advertising industry – especially when it comes to the business of selling books online. However, it’s important to make sure that any money you spend provides some kind of value – even if it isn’t initially in direct book sales. Here are some of Ginger’s guidelines regarding what authors should focus on when spending their first $1,000 on advertising their books. In 2020, advertisers spent $378 billion on digital advertising, and that looks set to double by 2024 – equivalent to the GDP of the nation of Somoa. Much of what’s driving this is access to self-service advertising platforms like Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. Self-service ads generated $28.5 billion in revenue for Facebook last year, for example. Authors comprise a significant number of those advertisers. In fact, the… Read More >
What can F. Scott Fitzgerald teach us about writing?
By: Ginger | Posted on August 26, 2022
Many people consider F. Scott Fitzgerald one of the greatest authors of all time, and his work is used as required reading in many U.S. schools. But even if you read The Great Gatsby as a child, the writing lessons you could have taken from it may have been lost on you then, or simply forgotten over the years. But with the staying power and impact that Fitzgerald’s books have had, authors would be smart to study what it was that he did right as a way to improve their own writing. That’s why Ginger is here with another breakdown on the lessons we can learn from a writing icon such as F. Scott Fitzgerald. The United States has produced some of the greatest authors of the modern age, but few are as well known or highly regarded as Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald, who wrote under the name F. Scott… Read More >
Stabbing of Salman Rushdie Demonstrates the Power of Words
By: Ginger | Posted on August 19, 2022
As a child, if someone called you a name you may have responded with the sticks and stones song, in an attempt to show how you were unbothered by mere words. And yet, nothing could be further from the truth. Words have tremendous power, and as we’ve moved into a more digital age, we’re seeing more evidence of that than ever before. Words can lift us up, or bring us crashing down. When used truthfully and logically, they can change our minds for the better, but when twisted or corrupted they can make us believe in things that aren’t true. Words push us one way or another because they appeal to our emotions, which also means our experiences shape how we interpret or react to them. That was certainly the case when Salman Rushdie published his fiction book The Satanic Verses more than 30 years ago, which instantly became one… Read More >
What can Taika Waititi teach us about Storytelling?
By: Ginger | Posted on August 12, 2022
There are plenty of places to look for inspiration when it comes to writing, and it’s not always from the famous authors that we grew up with. In an informal series of articles, Ginger has been delving into writing greats such as Lee Child and Ian Fleming, breaking down the lessons he thinks we can all take from their work. This week, however, Ginger is mixing it up just a bit, by looking at moviemaker Taika Waititi. After all, writing comes in all forms, as do authors, and the more well rounded the group you learn from, the stronger your own writing arsenal will be. Thor: Love & Thunder recently hit the cinema screens, and while it hasn’t achieved the same critical success that its predecessor, Thor: Ragnarök did, the movie has nevertheless passed $600 million at the global box office and once again established director and screenwriter Taika Waititi… Read More >
The Essentials of Speechwriting
By: Matthew Hughes | Posted on August 5, 2022
Novel writing isn’t the only way to make money as an author. At the beginning of this year we discussed a few non-traditional writing paths, but today we have a guest blogger bringing you an idea we didn’t cover during that podcast discussion. Not everyone is aware that while politicians and business leaders are great at delivering speeches, they’re often just reading the words that someone else has written for them. Before he was a multiple award-winning novelist, Matthew Hughes spent decades as a freelance speechwriter, putting words into the mouths of many talented orators. Speechwriting can be a well-paying gig, but if you’re thinking about trying to break into the industry, it helps to have an understanding of the essential components that make up a good speech. And that’s exactly what Matt is here to go over with us all today. These days, I write science fiction, fantasy, and… Read More >
