Editor’s Letter: Endings and Beginnings
Although you’re reading this in January—or maybe even later into the new year—I’m writing this letter in December 2023. My family’s Christmas tree is still halfway decorated. I still have packages to ship, letters to mail, and several deadlines to meet for our staff before I sign out for the holidays. I may be clinging […]
Editor’s Letter: Your Career, Your Way
Another year is nearly complete, and I feel confident saying it’s been a busy one for most of us. It’s one of the side effects of being an indie author, after all. Generally, the word “leisurely” is not in our vocabulary. If you’re anything like me, at this point, your schedule is probably filled with […]
Letter from the Editor – November 2023
I once had a college professor remind me that, in some professions, doing everything right means most people won’t see the work you did. I can’t remember now if the advice came as part of a journalism or editing course, but after several years of working in both fields, I’ll admit it seems to apply […]
Letter From the Editor : October 2023
Why did you pursue independent publishing? We could surely all answer differently. In my case, I knew traditional publishing could be a long and taxing process. I knew the book I wanted to write was in a niche genre and therefore would be harder to sell to an agent, even if I also knew it […]
From the Contributing Editors: October 2023
You’re not doing marketing wrong; you’re doing the wrong marketing. If there’s one thing we’ve learned over our combined twenty-five-plus years of helping authors, it’s that most people don’t hate marketing; they hate the marketing they are forced to do. Whether that means putting your books in Kindle Unlimited, being on every social media platform, […]
Editor’s Letter- September 2023
To anyone who thought the discussions around AI might be quieting down, let this past month be an assurance: among authors, at least, the debate rages on. On August 7, author and industry expert Jane Friedman wrote a blog post expressing frustration with Amazon and Goodreads after she discovered a series of nonfiction books, which […]
Editor’s Letter- Grammarian Gratitude
Ah, editing. The stage of the publishing process every author always seems eager to reach … until they reach it. Don’t feel bad. Editors get it. We know you’ve probably frowned at your screen in confusion at some of our questions (“How do you want me to style your ellipses?”), or you’ve grumbled not-so-nice words […]
Editor’s Letter: A New View on Metadata
Some of the best things about being an editor for Indie Author Magazine are the gems of wisdom I come across in our writers’ stories. Take Eryka Parker’s feature on keywords in this month’s issue. Like many of you, I’m sure, I’ve always viewed managing metadata as a bit of a chore—something we do to […]
Books, Tools, & Podcasts To Explore in July
Book: The Anatomy of a Best Seller: 3 Steps to Deconstruct Winning Books and Teach Yourself Craft (Better Writers) Sasha Black Anatomy of a Best-Seller” by Sacha Black is an engaging guide for aspiring authors aiming to understand the crafting of best-selling books. This comprehensive guide provides a step-by-step process for deconstructing your favorite books, […]
Editor’s Letter: Protecting What’s Precious
Once you’ve written “The End,” how do you prepare for your manuscript to go in front of new eyes? By “new eyes,” I mean those of your editor, beta readers, or ARC team—that special selection of people who get to see your “book” before it’s truly a book. Putting your published book out into the […]