Self-Publishing: The Carnival of the Indies Issue #103

POSTED ON Apr 28, 2019

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By Joel Friedlander

Welcome to this issue of the Carnival of the Indies blog carnival. This issue is for April, 2019. We welcome your submissions on topics related to writing, self-publishing, book design or marketing books.

A collection of outstanding articles recently posted to blogs, your reading here will be richly rewarded.

See the end of this post for links to submit your blog posts for the next carnival, or for participating Bloggers and Featured Bloggers to grab your sidebar badges. Thanks to everyone who participated.

Featured Posts

Mark Coker presents How to Fight the Commoditization of Books posted at Publishers Weekly, saying, “This article examines how books – especially ebooks – are subject to commoditization and devaluation. It provides actionable tips on how authors can preserve the value of their intellectual property.”

Jay Artale presents What Happens When Your Nonfiction Niche goes belly-up? posted at Write Nonfiction Now, saying, “You don’t have to be a prolific nonfiction write to have read about the importance of identifying your target audience and choosing a specific content niche. But if your best laid plans go belly-up, are you ready with a Plan B?”

Amanda Linehan presents The Lazy Writer’s Guide to Marketing posted at Amanda Linehan, saying, “For us writers who are just a little lazy, here are some easy ways to market your books.”

Book Design and Production

David Crumm presents What Is Blockchain for Publishing? And, Will Blockchain Be the Next Publishing Revolution? posted at Front Edge Publishing Blog, saying, “FrontEdgePub”

Ebooks and Ebook Readers

Dmitri Barvinok presents Scratch ‘n’ Sniff eBooks: New advances in technology give readers a whiff of the ‘new book smell’ posted at Front Edge Publishing Blog.

Rebecca Mardon presents Do We Really Own Our Digital Possessions? posted at The Digital Reader, saying, “Microsoft has announced that it will close the books category of its digital store. While other software and apps will still be available via the virtual shop front, and on purchasers’ consoles and devices, the closure of the eBook store takes with it customers’ ebook libraries, and raises questions about whether we own the content we buy.”

Indie Author

Deborah Jay presents 10 things to update each time you release a new book posted at Deborah Jay Author, saying, “There is always so much to remember to do when launching a new book, I decided to create a list for my own benefit, and then realised how helpful it could be to other authors.”

Joy E. Rancatore presents What My Business Plan Taught Me posted at Logos & Mythos, saying, “For Indie Authors, taking the time to draft an in-depth business plan sets us up for a higher likelihood of success. Business plans narrow our focus, check our reality and push us to research the publishing industry and market while digging deeper to discover how we fit into—and stand out from—this massive industry.”

Ron Herron presents What’s Your Writing Voice? posted at Painting With Light.

Marketing and Selling Your Books

Belinda Griffin presents Guest Blogging to Reach More Readers posted at BookWorks Blog, saying, “BookWorks.com’s Reader Relationships expert, Belinda Griffin, continues her series on how to reach your target reader with detailed advice on guest blogging.”

Chris Well presents Author Publicity Media Tips for the Camera Shy posted at BookWorks Blog, saying, “BookWorks.com’s Media & PR expert has some great tips on how to get author publicity from the media even if you’re an introvert.”

Frances Caballo presents How to Use and Share Instagram Videos and IGTV posted at Social Media Just for Writers, saying, “This is a five-part series on Instagram. In this fourth installment, we talk about Instagram videos and IGTV.”

Geoff Hughes presents How To Build Your Author’s Platform posted at Madhouse Media Publishing, saying, “If you are serious about building a business as an independent author/publisher you need to consider building your author’s platform. That’s because in this shouty media age, it’s just not enough to write your book, upload it to Smashwords or KDP and press PUBLISH while hoping for best.”

Jay Artale presents 4 Key Elements of Content Marketing for Beginners posted at Birds of a Feather Press, saying, “In this 10 minute podcast travel writer Jay Artale introduces beginners to the four key elements of content marketing: Point of View, Target Audience, Content, and Platforms. Together these create a framework for book marketing success.”

Jay Artale presents How and why to order author copies from Amazon KDP and IngramSpark posted at Birds of a Feather Press, saying, “You can purchase retail versions of your paperback at a reduced cost from Amazon KDP and IngramSpark. Find out how to order them, and what to do with them once you’ve got them.”

Kimberley Grabas presents Building Your Author Brand: The Most Common Mistakes Writers Make posted at Your Writer Platform, saying, “Your author brand is the cornerstone of your writer platform and pivotal to the long-term success of your career as a writer. And whether you actively shape it or not, with every touchpoint or seemingly ‘insignificant’ interaction, your brand is being formed. That’s why it’s critical to decide up front what story you want to tell – and avoid these nine costly mistakes. (Part 2 in the Author Branding Series)”

Nicky Bond presents What a Difference a Second Books Makes… posted at Nicky Bond and Writer’s Ramblings, saying, “When I published my first book, I knew very little and learnt on the job. It’s still my proudest achievement, but since then, there have been many times that I’ve thought, “If I only I knew this back then.’ With book two, I could be a little more prepared. The two year window between my books gave me time to understand more fully the ways in which I could help myself. This list of tips and insights isn’t exhaustive. It’s simply made up of things I did differently the second time around.”

Sarah Bolme presents Your Next Big Break posted at Marketing Christian Books, saying, “Your big break—that media interview, that stellar endorsement, an influencer willing to work with you, a large book order, that awesome speaking engagement—might be right around the corner. You never know when it will happen… but I can guarantee it won’t happen if you don’t plant seeds.”

Sophie Anderson presents Distributing Your Self-Published Book – Tips for Ebooks posted at Carmine Proofreading, saying, “Once you have written your book, you need to have a method ready to distribute it to readers. This blog looks at some of the different things you can try for ebooks.”

Self-Publishing Success

Carla King presents Comparing the 5 Most Popular eBook Distribution Companies posted at BookWorks Blog, saying, “BookWorks.com’s Tech expert, Carla King, compares 5 popular eBook distribution and publishing companies that she has tested and used for her own and her clients’ books.”

Lisa Poisso presents Should you use volunteers to proofread your book? posted at Clarity, saying, “Get the best of both worlds by setting your volunteer posse on the hunt, then asking your editor to review their findings. You may be able to have this done as part of your editing follow-up or for a very low rate.”

Writing Tools and Tips

Karen Conlin presents Spellcheck Cannot Save You! Dialogue Tags, Beats & Single Quotes posted at BookWorks Blog, saying, “BookWorks.com’s Indie Editor-at-Large, Karen Conlin, is back with her Dialogue 101 series, this time on how to use dialogue tags, beats and single/nested quotes.”

Lisa Poisso presents What every writer should know before writing a first novel posted at Clarity, saying, “Before you jump the gun and publish a premature effort, learn what many authors wish they’d known before they started writing that book in the first place.”

Louise Harnby presents 6 tips on writing process to help you grow as an author posted at The Parlour, saying, “Every writer has a process. What works for you might not work for someone else, and your approach might change over time. Here are 6 tips from indie author Kristina Adams that show how changing your writing process to suit mindset and circumstances can help you grow as a writer.”

Stefanie Newell presents Best Apps For Writing A Book posted at The Life Of A Writer.

Stefanie Newell presents How To Write A Book In Google Docs posted at The Life Of A Writer.

Zara Altair presents A Mystery’s Pivotal Character is The Victim posted at Write Time, saying, “Deep character background on the victim enriches the puzzle of your mystery.”

Well, that wraps up this issue. I hope you enjoy some of the great articles here, and let other people interested in self-publishing know about the Carnival—Use the share buttons to Tweet it, Share it on Facebook, Link to it!

The next issue is May 26, 2019 and the deadline for submissions will be May 15, 2019. Don’t miss it!

Here are all the links you’ll need