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These prices are available on Amazon only.For a listing of books offered and to enter to win, click here!!-- Andrea Bandle Writer, Editor/Co-Founder editor@helpmeselfpublish.com @HelpMeSelfPub Add Comment  The dreaded sixth grade writing assignment has arrived. "Write a Story," his teacher said, and Riley dove in excitedly! Okay, you are permitted to ask yourself, "Sixth Grade? Is she kidding?!" Bear with me, I think this will be relavent for adult writers also. Riley is currently writing an Action-Adventure Novel, so this was the perfect way to see how it was going with the toughest critic he could find...his Language Arts Teacher! First, he wanted to understand the parameters:
Okay, as adult authors, our parameters might be a little different, but these actually correlate quite well, since they speak to the two most important elements: deadline and audience. Understanding the parameters allowed him to sit down and write a three page first draft story/scene from his novel in about an hour, after finishing his math and science homework, of course. Keep in mind, he has not actually started writing his novel, he has only created character profiles in Scrivener. He has written most of his novel in his head, however, which leads to his first tip:
These tips may seem elementary, but we all need to come back to the basics when we start getting too hung up on semantics, publishing details, formatting, cover art, day jobs, social media, and our family life. As for Riley, he got the critique he needed, along with a surprise. He received 100% for his efforts, and the teacher asked if she could read it to the class as an example of how to write a great story! She also asked Riley if she could copy it to share with future sixth grade classes. Riley smiled sheepishly, and said, "Sure." This 11 year old writer is floating on cloud nine, and motivated to write the rest of the book. We haven't talked about publishing yet, but I'm confident that MommyLoves Publishing will work out a deal! Do you ever stray from just writing freely from your imagination? If so, what do you do to get yourself back on track? Thanks for sharing your ideas! ~Mary Kathryn Johnson Author ~ Entrepreneur ~ Mom @SayBumpandTweet MommyLoves to Chat! Everything MommyLoves Say Bump and Take a Left  Why can't I embrace ebooks? I love email and bill pay and can't imagine sending letters or my mortgage payment via snail mail. I don’t know if it’s because I was younger when new technologies such as the internet took over (while ebooks came onto the scene after I turned 40), but to be honest, print books have a slight edge with me. Here are my five reasons why:
(BTW, writing this blog post has helped remind me to get back into the latest ebook I’ve been reading. Wish me luck.) Do you prefer ebooks to print? If so, why? If you also prefer print and you have additional reasons to add to my list, please share. -- Andrea Bandle Writer, Editor/Co-Founder editor@helpmeselfpublish.com @HelpMeSelfPub  Okay, if my 10 year old can use this software to write his books, so can you! It's called Scrivener, and it's developed by Literature Latte' so how can it be anything but smooth and satisfying?! You've probably already heard of it from some great authors like Joanna Penn and Stephen Woodfin, but I thought I would add my thoughts. Since I've only met one author who actually writes linearly - from the beginning to the end of the story - most of us fragmented people who call ourselves authors will find Scrivener very intuitive. Since I'm a Mac user, the Mac version of this software feels very natural. Here are my favorite parts: The Project Templates and Interactive Tutorial You can always start with a blank page in Scrivener, but that huge white space usually terrifies most writers. No worries, many templates are waiting for your creativity to fill them.
Whichever template you choose, the formatting is ready for your content. The current Ghost Writing project I'm writing called for the non-fiction template which came formatted with Title Page, Contents, Forward, Chapter folder, Endnotes and Research Folders at the ready. The entire manuscript can be viewed at a glance as note cards on a cork board or written outline form. There are many icons, formatting and organizational options to satisfy my anal-retentive side, and the freedom I crave for my creative side. Ready, Set...Compile! The compile feature is just like the export feature of Pages on my Mac, only 5 times better...literally! First, you can format your manuscript as the following:
If you are a writer hoping to be a published author, or a writer who already is published, Scrivener might just be the best tool in your self publishing arsenal. It certainly makes my self publishing life a lot easier! Happy Writing! ~Mary Kathryn Johnson Author ~ Entrepreneur ~ Mom @SayBumpandTweet MommyLoves to Chat! Everything MommyLoves Say Bump and Take a Left  A couple of months ago, I wrote a post concerning the potential need for liability insurance. The comments ranged from it being unnecessary and a potential waste of money, to fear of not having it and deciding to research it further. Today, one of our followers let us know that a major bookstore chain would only carry his book if he had liability insurance, so he asked us for a recommendation. While neither Mary nor I have anyone personally to recommend, I did discover that the Authors Guild is now offering media liability insurance policies for their members. Have any other authors needed to carry liability insurance as part of a bookstore deal? We're curious to learn if this is becoming a trend. -- Andrea Bandle Writer, Editor/Co-Founder editor@helpmeselfpublish.com @HelpMeSelfPub  What is the saying again? A picture is worth a thousand words? What if your novel is 80,000 words? Is the picture (cover) you've chosen worth 80,000 words? If it isn't, readers will not be drawn to your book, buy it, read it and possibly review it! Andrea and I recently helped a client choose an illustrator for her cover, and we faced the same issues we face each time we search for the perfect cover for a client's book. So, I thought we would try and answer the question: What makes a successful cover for YOUR self published book? It would be great if the answer to this question was as simple as taking a picture of your favorite waterfall, typing the title of your book in any open space, and adding your name as the author towards the bottom in somewhat smaller font...but it's not. Although picture, title and author are key components, their position, size and meaning are vital. You may even need slightly different covers for electronic and physical versions of your book to account for thumbnails vs. competition for attention in bookstores. Let's consider the key parts. ~ Title/Author. If you have had more than one edit - content and copy - your initial title may well have changed during this process. Therefore, the key elements you want your title and cover to convey may have also changed. You must also consider what style font you wish to use for both title and author, and whether the text will share or compete for attention with an image. I wouldn't suggest assigning your ISBN, designing your cover or blogging/networking about your new book until you have completed edits and are relatively sure of the exact title. ~ The Picture/Background. Your favorite waterfall may have very little, if anything to do with the content of your book. Therefore, if you want a picture on your cover, the first thing you must consider is graphic arts or illustration. Each has a unique look and feel as illustrated below.  The Harry Potter book is a drawing/illustration. The Of Poseidon book is created using Graphic Arts. Either way, you need to convey to the artist creating your cover the feeling you want a reader to have when they initially see your book. A good cover artist will be sure there is enough non-essential space available for your title and author name to stand out, and that all elements come together to create an outstanding representation of the work your cover protects and advertises. I can't wait to share our latest client's book cover with you, as the illustrator is amazing, but first, all the above details must be worked out. What were the key components you wanted your book cover to show a potential reader? How did you ensure it would entice a possible reader to click or pick up your book? Please share! ~Mary Kathryn Johnson Author ~ Entrepreneur ~ Mom @SayBumpandTweet MommyLoves to Chat! Everything MommyLoves Say Bump and Take a Left  Great Expectations Moby Dick Pride & Prejudice Huckleberry Finn Anything by Shakespeare... If written today, would these classic titles have survived the test of time or even been noticed? We live in a world of short attention spans, ADD, multimedia, ads posted on buses, cars, billboards, and even some restaurant bathrooms. (Albeit not very nice restaurants.) We write in small shorthanded snippets, lucky if an entire sentence gets created and read by scanning headlines and bullet points. So, could any of the books we’ve grown up knowing as classics have ever made themselves known or even read in this new society? Thanks to self-publishing, tens of thousands of books are being published when we might have seen only hundreds in years past. But, this ever increasing competition for our attention, along with our inability to focus for more than mere minutes or even seconds, has made it signficiantly more difficult to imagine having the patience to commit to a heavy novel unless it was riddled with action or suspense. Recently, I’ve read articles telling authors to split stories down into shorter books and market them as a series. Written even just a decade ago, that would mean the Harry Potter series would have been 15 books instead of 7, which seems a little insane. Regardless of the insanity, it's not a coincidence that today, the most successful self published authors are the ones producing the 'fluffy reading candy,' turning the once regarded act of reading into the equivalent of watching tv, or even playing a video game. I’d like to believe that a good story is timeless. I just have to wonder how the above ‘classics’ might have been written and/or marketed differently for them to compete today. It makes me shudder to think they may not have been written or published at all. Will the ‘Classics’ even be remembered 100 years from now? Will they continue to be read? Do you think the pendulum will swing back to a time when we’re tired of the over-stimulation? -- Andrea Bandle Writer/Editor, Co-founder editor@helpmeselfpublish.com @HelpMeSelfPub  Choosing the right editor can be like hiring a contractor. Both are helping you construct your vision and turn it into a reality. But, like a poor contractor, the wrong editor can leave you frustrated or depressed over an unfinished product and money down the drain. On the other hand, the right editor can help you bring your story to life. Most importantly, your editor's main goal should be helping you create the best book possible! So, what should you look for in a good editor?
What has been your experience with editor(s)? Any additional advice you'd like to share? -- Andrea Bandle Writer/Editor, Co-founder editor@helpmeselfpublish.com @HelpMeSelfPub  In my mind, the real difference between self publishing and traditional is the control factor. Traditional publishing houses own the rights to the author’s book; therefore, they’re in control of everything from how the story is written to who the audience will be. If they want something rewritten to their specification, the author doesn’t have any choice once they’ve signed the contract. Because of that, many writers decide to self publish. But, does that mean they’re completely on their own, having to learn how to edit, design covers and the ins/outs of formatting? Not necessarily. In fact, it’s just the control factor that's different. Instead of taking on the entire publishing process on their own, they can hire people to assist them. But, the big difference is that the author remains in control. They’re the employer instead of the employee and their vision remains in tact while others are allowed to help bring it to life. So, which services should a writer hire out and which should they tackle on their own? To create a self published product worthy of competing in the big leagues, authors want to be sure they hire a professional editor. A good editor should work with the writer from plot to proofreading. They will not only look for the holes and inconsistencies, but the best ones will offer recommendations and solutions to make the story shine it’s brightest, without losing its core vision. Of course, most writers want their story to remain as it was originally intended, but they should also be certain they write a page turning story where their audience gets lost in the prose. Nothing breaks that spell more than boring, unnecessary back story, dialogue that doesn’t fit with the character’s personality, and/or plot lines that are going nowhere, leaving the reader with more questions than answers. The cover art is the next service that should be hired out. (Unless the author is a professional graphic artist.) Self Publishing has made it easier than ever for an author to get their work out to the public; but the downside is there are also many more books with which they must compete. With a book’s first impression based on the cover art, no writer should squelch on this important publishing decision. There is some investment involved: either time or money. But, the recent explosion in self publishing has increased the competition for those pre-publishing services, so it is possible to find highly competitive rates. Like with any important purchase, it’s always best to shop around and/or get referrals. For those services an author may choose to forge on their own, a whole host of free information on how-to self publish can be found. Are you an author that has published on your own? If so, which services did you hire out and which did you feel you could handle yourself? Did you have to learn a whole new skill set to do it? I'd love to hear your experiences. -- Andrea Bandle Writer/Editor, Co-Founder editor@helpmeselfpublish @HelpMeSelfPub  I have a dear friend who is getting ready to publish her first novel, and I am one of her Beta Readers. I have been a Beta Tester for a Beta Launch or Beta Version, but a Beta Reader for a novel? What a novel idea - I love it! If you are ready to self publish, right before you hire an editor, you might seriously want to consider finding some Beta Readers of your manuscript to ensure the best possible success of your hard work. Before you simply go ask Aunt Martha to read your book, and give her your pile of college-ruled, lined paper filled with your one-of-a-kind, handwritten brilliance, here are some things that might make the experience actually worth your (and your Beta Readers') time:
Have you used Beta Readers prior to self publishing? How would you characterize the experience - Successful? Painful? Please share ~ ~Mary Kathryn Johnson Author ~ Entrepreneur ~ Mom @SayBumpandTweet MommyLoves to Chat! Everything MommyLoves Say Bump and Take a Left | Cross the Bridge
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