As our governing officials turn their attention to how to reopen our nation after the coronavirus recedes, this is a good time for writers to ask themselves, What’s next? What kind of books will consumers want to buy?
Readers
The Importance of Knowing Your Reader
Several years ago, I taught a workshop on the importance of knowing your reader. The attendees were multi-book published authors. So I posed this question to a few, random writers in the audience to answer aloud: Who is your reader?…
Why Book Pre-Orders Matter
Publishers will tell you that one of the best ways to build momentum for your upcoming book is to encourage pre-orders from readers. What’s the big deal about pre-orders?
Pre-orders are stockpiled and then counted officially as sales the first
…
Reading Groups and Why We Love Them
Writers, for the most part, are readers. And that means they have two reasons to feel fondness for reading groups: as a grand place to connect with fellow readers and discuss a book; as an author who knows connecting with …
How to Write Great Discussion Questions
by Janet Kobobel Grant
Some authors choose to write discussion questions that will appear at the back of a book or to be available on the writer’s website. Having written a slew of such questions and having been trained in …
Quick Character Labels
By Wendy Lawton
I was reading a fiction manuscript last week that quickly described a character as a cripple. I winced when I read the word and stopped to think about why I had such an immediate revulsion. After all, …
What’s the Difference Between an Influencer and a Street Team Member?
By Janet Kobobel Grant
Authors, especially new authors, often struggle to figure out the difference between an influencer and a street team member. Let alone puzzle through the best way to ask either person to help promote your upcoming book.…
What’s the Difference Between an Influencer and a Street Team Member?Read More
Every Author’s Two Audiences
Blogger: Janet Kobobel Grant
Several times recently I found myself having the same conversation with various Books & Such clients, and I realized what often seems obvious to me isn’t obvious to everyone: Every author has two audiences.
An Author’s
…Publishing Forecast Part 4
Blogger: Janet Kobobel Grant
We’ve reached the final installment in my publishing forecast blogs. As a reminder, we’ve explored the following book delivery methods:
The double-figure growth of audiobooks.
The potential of using the subscription model with books.
The new …
Publishing Forecast–Part 2
Blogger: Janet Kobobel Grant
In my most recent blog post, I explored the double-digit growth of digital audiobooks and what that could mean for publishing’s future. Today I want to make another publishing forecast: the use of the subscription …