This week, I’m sharing some holiday cheer, history, and other artistic goodies from WritersWeekly. Enjoy!
THE POD OF CHRISTMAS PAST: Self-Publishing in 1843 by Steve Anderson
Does this sound familiar? Traditional publishers won’t take a chance on an author’s new book, so he decides to publish it himself. He works late into the night, barely pausing to eat, scrambling to finish his new project while keeping up with existing deadlines. He writes a groundbreaking novel in just six weeks, gets it into the bookstores and, almost immediately, cheap knockoffs start showing up down the street.
That’s life in the twenty-first century, right? Except, it wasn’t. It was 1843.
Like many of us, Charles Dickens was consumed by an idea…
Keep reading HERE.
HOW TO KEEP WRITING through Holidays, Special Events, and More! by Wendy Hobday Haugh
For years, I allowed hosting responsibilities for family birthdays, holidays, and other special occasions to sidetrack me from writing. As a mother of 3, and piano teacher to 25, the needs of my family and regular paycheck always came first, and my writing? Dead last.
My worst time of year, writing-wise, ran from mid-November through New Year’s when, inevitably, I’d drop my pen and become a party-planner of the grumpier sort. Entertaining wasn’t second nature for me, so I often felt resentful of my obligations. But, one year I discovered that wasn’t the only way to party…
Keep reading HERE.
MAKE MONEY WRITING SANTA LETTERS by Julie Engelhardt
We’ve all heard the expression ìnecessity is the mother of invention,î and as the days before Christmas begin to dwindle down, this mother needed to think of an invention that would bring in some extra money for holiday presents.
As of late, there hasn’t been much writing work coming my way, so I went online and typed in ìquick ways to make Christmas money.î The typical answers of ëtake on a part time job!’ or ëhave a garage sale!’ popped up, but those held little interest for me. But one idea did surface ñ something I knew I could definitely do that would allow me to use my writing skills.
The answer to my dilemma came in the form of ìHow to Make Money Writing Santa Letters…”
Keep reading HERE.
H-O-L-I-D-A-Y-S can spell W-O-R-K for Freelancers By Philomena Lawrence
Editors are always on the lookout for feature articles for the year’s biggies ñ Mother’s, Father’s and Valentine’s Days, to name a few. With budget cuts, especially in newspapers, staff writers don’t always have the time to write feature articles in perfect prose. Enter the freelancer with a well-researched, well-timed and well-suited story idea and what harried editor wouldn’t seriously consider the query letter?
Holiday-based stories comprise a large portion of my freelance portfolio…
Keep reading HERE.
BEAT THE NEW YEAR’S CASH CRUNCH – Rev Up Marketing Now for Ongoing Pay! By Sonya Carmichael Jones
The holiday season is synonymous with big spending. For writers, this means assignment heaven. From the hospitality industry, to fashion, to auto dealers, real-estate firms, and even banking, businesses are rushing to promote new products and services in time for holiday splurging. The good thing is that a lot of these promotions carry over months after the New Year, making now a prime time for enterprising writers to cash in on the action.
Where are assignments hidden? Here are a few tips to help you start digging…
Keep reading HERE.
FIVE WAYS TO BOOST YOUR HOLIDAY INCOME by Debbie Swanson
Here are creative ways to have fun with your writing, and bring in a little holiday cash:
– Ghostwrite family holiday letters
– Write holiday flyers or newsletters for local businesses
– Write Santa letters to children
– and more!
Keep reading HERE.
THE HOLIDAYS = Article Ideas in Abundance! By Angela Hoy
As we all deck the halls, light the Menorah or Kinara, or simply stare in awe at snowflakes prancing through the air, it’s the perfect time to start keeping a list of memorable holiday moments that will make great articles in print next year. Pull out a small notebook and keep a journal of each holiday happening. Just a few moments of reflection and note-taking at bedtime will provide you with plenty of material! Then, in January, review what you’ve written and start composing queries…
Keep reading HERE.
YOUR CREATIVITY AS A LOVING, INEXPENSIVE (AND PERHAPS EVEN FUNNY) HOLIDAY GIFT!
Includes info (and photos!) on how to make:
– Unique Photo Magnets
– Personalized Paper Sculptures
– Photo dolls (creepy but cute)
– A Quilted Felt House and Personalized Photo Ornaments
– Cookies and Candy with Personalized Recipe Cards
– Grandma’s Coloring Book
– And lots of other great ideas from our readers!
Click to see it all HERE.
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
