I’m swamped! Our son, Matt, is arriving tomorrow, followed shortly thereafter by my cool step-mother-in-law, Rita, and then more fun family!
So, this week I’m sharing a few of our popular articles.
Enjoy! 🙂
Don’t Invite a Lawsuit with Your Memoir
We recently received an angry email from a woman who claimed her father’s book, which we published, constituted a violation of her privacy. She said she was going to have an attorney contact us (she didn’t have one yet). I know the author, and also know he would never knowingly hurt anyone so I was pretty puzzled. I immediately opened the book file and searched for his daughter’s name. He’d only used her first name in the book (she has a different last name now as she’s an adult), and only talked about her in glowing, fatherly terms throughout the book. On one page, he mentioned in one sentence that she’d gotten pregnant at the age of 16. He then went on to write warmly of meeting his grandchild for the first time. Could that constitute an invasion of privacy?
READ MORE HERE:
Don’t Invite a Lawsuit with Your Memoir
Don’t Invite Lawsuits by Real People Featured in Your Book! (Hint: You Can Still Be Sued Even If You Don’t Name Them!)
Did you see the news last week about a libel lawsuit against a deceased author? A judge has ruled that the lawsuit can proceed but it now involves his widow. Aside from only publishing facts that you can prove beyond any doubt, how can you protect yourself and your family from these types of lawsuits?
READ MORE HERE:
Don’t Invite Lawsuits by Real People Featured in Your Book! (Hint: You Can Still Be Sued Even If You Don’t Name Them!)
Authors Beware! “Gifting” Your Kindle E-Books May BACKFIRE!
I received an email from an author last week asking why he never received his “royalties” for a Kindle “gift” ebook he bought for someone. It was his own book and he had documentation proving he’d purchased the ebook version from Amazon. I checked Amazon’s reports and they didn’t show the sale for that month. I wrote to Amazon and the author was not happy with their response…
READ MORE HERE:
Authors Beware! “Gifting” Your Kindle E-Books May BACKFIRE!
RELATED:
Do Ebooks Make Good Children’s Gifts? Not Really…
Does That “Fictitious” Business Name In Your Novel Already Belong To Somebody Else?
Well, it happened again. An author submitted a novel and a so-called “fictitious”, non-profit organization he created for his novel was accused, in his novel, of being involved in a child abuse ring. He listed the “fictional” organization’s name and website URL in his novel. I’ve seen this before and it took me a mere second to Google the name and the website address and, guess what? They both exist (though they are not related to each other)…
READ MORE HERE:
Does that “Fictitious” Business Name in Your Novel Already Belong to Somebody Else?
Throwing Away Your Money On Review Copies?
Here are some common questions I hear from new authors…
1. Do you have a list of book reviewers who review (sci-fi, romance, business, finance, self-help, religions, etc.) books?
2. Should I send a copy of my ebook to book reviewers by email?
3. If I give you a list of reviewers, will you send them all a copy of my book with a form letter?
READ MORE HERE:
Throwing Away Your Money on Review Copies?
HOW MY BOOK BECAME A LIFETIME MOVIE! The Secret S*x Life Of A Single Mom
When my book, The Secret S*x Life of a Single Mom, was just a manuscript, a few people (including two literary agents) told me they thought it would make an awesome movie. I took it with a grain of salt, assuming every author thinks the same of his/her work. Nonetheless, when my publisher, Seal Press, bought it, I held onto 100% of the movie rights “just in case…”
READ MORE HERE:
HOW MY BOOK BECAME A LIFETIME MOVIE! The Secret S*x Life of a Single Mom
14 Tips To Give Yourself A Leg Up In Writing Contests!
The next quarterly 24-Hour Short Story Contest is right around the corner! Despite the fact that our guidelines have a list of hints for writers, many either don’t read it, or ignore it. After more than a decade of hosting and judging quarterly writing contests, we’re sharing some hints on how to get a leg up on the other contestants…
READ MORE HERE:
14 Tips To Give Yourself A Leg Up In Writing Contests!
Top 10 Mistakes New Authors Make When Contacting Libraries
A good friend of ours is a librarian. He has worked at a large city library since he graduated from college many, many years ago. He is also married to another librarian. Here is advice he shared about the biggest mistakes new authors make when approaching libraries for possible book sales…
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Top 10 Mistakes New Authors Make When Contacting Libraries
PRINT ON DEMAND (POD) PRICE COMPARISON!
POD Publisher Price Comparison Chart
READ MORE HERE:
https://www.writersweekly.com/pod-price-comparison.php
How To Get An Honest Critique Of Your Writing (HINT: Don’s Ask Your Mom!)
I see it all the time in book proposals and query letters.
“My mom says my book will be a bestseller.”
“My best friend says my book will make a great movie.”
“My boyfriend says my manuscript is the best he’s ever read.”
READ MORE HERE:
How to Get an Honest Critique of Your Writing (HINT: Don’s Ask Your Mom!)
Got questions about Print On Demand and Self-publishing? Ask Angela Hoy.
About The Author
Angela Hoy is the publisher of WritersWeekly.com, the author of 19 books, and the co-owner of BookLocker.com (one of the original POD publishers that still gets books to market in less than a month), PubPreppers.com (print and ebook design for authors who truly want to self-publish), and Abuzz Press (the publishing co-op that charges no setup fees).
Angela has lived and traveled across the U.S. with her kids in an RV, settled in a river-side home in Bradenton, FL, and lived on a 52 ft Irwin sailboat. Angela now resides on a mountaintop in Northwest Georgia, where she plans to spend the rest of her days bird watching, gardening, hiking, and taking in all of the amazing sunrises.
WritersWeekly.com - the free marketing ezine for writers, which features new paying markets and freelance job listings every Wednesday.
BookLocker.com - According to attorney Mark Levine, author of The Fine Print, BookLocker is: "As close to perfection as you're going to find in the world of ebook and POD publishing. The ebook royalties are the highest I've ever seen, and the print royalties are better than average. BookLocker understands what new authors experience, and have put together a package that is the best in the business. You can't go wrong here. Plus, they're selective and won't publish any manuscript just because it's accompanied by a check. Also, the web site is well trafficked. If you can find a POD or epublisher with as much integrity and dedication to selling authors' books, but with lower POD publishing fees, please let me know."
Abuzz Press offers FAST and FREE book publication, but only accepts a small percentage of submissions, and only works with U.S. authors.
PubPreppers.com - "We Prep, You Publish!" Print and ebook design for authors who truly want to self-publish. Offers formatting and design services only, and then provides simple instructions for authors on where to sign up to have the print and ebook editions printed/listed/sold. Cut out the middle man. Keep 100% of what bookstores pay for your book!
Angela's POD Secrets Revealed Series can be found HERE.
Have a POD Book with another publisher? See if BookLocker can give you a better deal. (BookLocker offers "disgruntled author discounts" to those who want to move from other POD services.)
See BookLocker's publishing packages HERE.
ANGELA ON TWITTER https://twitter.com/AngelaHoy
BOOKLOCKER ON FACEBOOK - Provides links to free excerpts!
https://www.facebook.com/booklockerbooks
ANGELA ON FACEBOOK
https://www.facebook.com/angela.hoy.750
ANGELA ON LINKEDIN
https://www.linkedin.com/in/angelahoy/
Angela is the creator of the Original 24-Hour Short Story Contest!
https://24hourshortstorycontest.com/
Read More Of Angela's Articles HERE