I have a wide variety of post in this week’s roundup. Let’s start with book covers. To me, designing book covers is not only an art it’s a science. Luckily, Joel Friedlander makes it easier for all of us by reviewing dozens of them every month and imparting his wisdom. Be sure to review his thoughts on this month’s submissions. Jane Friedman, meanwhile, wrote a wonderful post on what to expect from a publicist. I know someone who is paying a publicist $10,000 for two months worth of work. Is he happy with the results? It’s too early to tell. Every writer thinking about hiring a publicist should read Jane’s post. There are three other great posts below and I hope you’ll check out all of them.

41 redundancies you should ditch from Ragan.com: I ‘ve always believed that editing someone else’s work is easier than writing your own. Lately, though, I’ve been asked to “work my magic” on so many bad writing projects—blog posts, emails, articles—that I am not so sure anymore. Sometimes I just stare at the screen wondering, “What can I possibly do with this?”

The Real Key to Strong Book Sales from The Passive Voice Blog: It has been a mantra in self-publishing circles that an author’s most reliable pathway to long-term financial success is to rapidly write and publish more and more books. This strategy is supposed to increase your exposure and name recognition, and therefore the “discoverability” of your books to buyers who browse retail websites like Amazon.

Simple Tips on Finding and Working with a Book Publicist from TweetSpeak by Jane Friedman: I’ve heard a lot of nightmare stories from authors who hired freelance publicists and didn’t get what they wanted out of the relationship or investment. Sometimes I think that happens because of misaligned expectations, or even a misunderstanding of what publicists can achieve or accomplish.Put another way: When it comes to book marketing and sales, it’s not always easy to say “Effort A led to Outcome B,” especially if book sales gain momentum from word of mouth (that’s still often the case), and authors don’t have access to precise sales analytics. You can’t always figure out how or why someone decided to visit Amazon or their local bookstore to buy your book.

e-Book Cover Design Awards, October 2013 from The Book Designer: Each month, Joel Friedlander reviews book covers while imparting important insights to his decisions. This month he received 99 covers in the fiction category and 17 in the nonfiction category. Take a look at what he has to say about them.

Self-Publishing And Direct Sales: Pros, Cons And Problems from Forbes: A few months ago, I pulled my ebook from Amazon and decided that I would only sell direct for a while. I made that decision mainly because I was fed up with the hideously basic tools that Amazon provide and wanted to experiment more than Amazon would let me. Since then, I’ve released an anthology of non-fiction writing, A Passion for Science, which I’m also only selling direct as an ebook.

 

About the Author: Frances Caballo is a social media strategist, trainer, and author of Social Media Just for Writers: The Best Online Marketing Tips for Selling Your Books and Blogging Just for Writers. Presently, she is the Social Media Manager for the Women’s National Book Association-SF Chapter, the San Francisco Writers Conference, and the Bay Area Independent Publishers Association. You can find her on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and Google+.