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Not long ago, a local literacy group asked multiple authors to appear with their books and promote literacy. They met at a library. They announced it in a few places, but it had little success. The leader sent out an email to attendees and whomever else he knew in his literary community asking for advice on how to make the event better. I took the time to ponder what I considered a successful signing, and what it takes to achieve one. Not one to waste good words, I edited it for this feature piece for FundsforWriters. Dear Sir, Having done hundreds of signings, I can relate about book signings. They are usually a bust. And if you have an event with multiple authors, it’s only as good as the most well-known author, and even that is no assurance of sales because the bigger the gap, the more people spend their money on that author and have none left for the others. Books sell based upon word of mouth and influencers, almost since the beginning of books. Books are expensive so most people think hard about the purchase. It’s even harder for an author with only a first or second book, More

I’m always posting fellowships, scholarships, and opportunities for writers to attend retreats. Some of them come with the responsibility of teaching, others require you take care of the property, maybe even the livestock. Some have you meeting in groups, collaborating on each other’s material. Others throw you solo without internet connection out in the woods or in a loft affair in urbania. People are forever asking me if I go to the writing retreats I promote. The closest I’ve ever come to a retreat was when I was on the teaching staff of a four-day affair that had classes in the morning, offering time to write in the evenings. Frankly, this editorial by author Alice Robb brought my deepest fear of a retreat to the surface, and the fact she experienced it gave me a chuckle . . . and gave me pause. Am I not a retreat person? “I imagined that I would enter a fugue state and write thousands of words a day. I’d discovered that I was not a slow writer, as I’d always thought — just a Twitter addict.” https://lithub.com/it-happened-to-me-on-being-totally-unproductive-at-a-writing-residency/ OMG, that statement cracked me up! And sobered me. I mostly write in a study at More

Sometimes you just have to ask. Conferences charge admission fees. Did you know that you can ask the conference leader if there are scholarships, fellowships, or co-op opportunities to have part or all fees covered? Sometimes they are income-related and other times you have to volunteer and work for the conference in exchange. They often do not advertise these opportunities. Just ask. Libraries rarely pay authors to come speak. Did you know that libraries have budgets of their own, and each library usually has a Friends of the Library affiliated with it, with its own budget? They might not be able to pay much, but $50 at least covers your gas. I just made such a plea to one that didn’t compensate. Now they are. Magazines and newspapers often ask writers to write articles for free. Tout your expertise and experience and show them what you have to offer then explain that you take your writing seriously, as more than a hobby, and ask to be compensated. Ask for compensation. Be willing to say no. The more you write for free, the more people expect you to write for free. You have to draw a line somewhere.   BIO – C. More

We were two grandmas, and two authors in a coffee shop discussing writing. One of us multi-published, self-confident, the other convinced her first publication in a Chicken Soup for the Soul book was a fluke. “Why would anybody be interested in my ordinary life?” said the latter, “Nothing extraordinary has ever happened to me. I can’t even think of an idea for the topics listed on the website’s possible titles for future books.” My new friend’s story had just been published in Chicken Soup for the Soul Miracles and the Unexplainable, detailing how she believed she received signs from her late father. Like when she pulled behind a car whose license plate seemed to bear a relevant “message” from him, and she believed it more than coincidence. “How many people have considered a subtle sign a significant miracle?” I said in response. “Many who do not think of themselves as writers have had your exact experience, but you chose to write about yours.” Ordinary events and shared emotions connect us as humans. We all laugh, cry, yearn, and rejoice over similar events. Convinced she was a one-and-done Chicken Soup for the Soul author, my acquaintance was in awe that I More

Last week I posted a brief editorial about mature writers still being relevant. If you are breathing, you are still able to write. Amazingly, writers came out of the woodwork thanking me for addressing that fact and respecting the senior writer. Some of them were close to giving up. Some were still going strong and even helping others. Some were in the middle and my editorial was the shot in the arm they needed. “Thanks for your reference to us ‘mature’ writers. I’m 83 and finishing the edits on my fourth novel. The first three, a thriller and two suspense novels, and a collection of short stories have been traditionally published. Novel #5 is beginning to take shape. Cheers, James Osborne“ “Wow! I know you did not know that message was intended for me! I’ve always wanted to be a freelance writer. I was beginning to get discouraged because I don’t understand the technology, or the social media ways people connect. I’m also bewildered about the best way to get published. I’ve done a lot of private writing (journaling, essays, notes), and I would really like to write for compensation. I’m 74 and I often have doubts about being an author. More

I enjoy visiting libraries. They have purpose, and they can give your book a lift in the community they are responsible for tending, literally. They definitely fill a need. When I appear at libraries, my preference is to make a presentation. I’ve visited libraries to teach how to write, how to publish, how to put a story together, and how I came to be a writer and continue to thrive as a writer, in hope that people learn from my experience. My preference is NOT to appear to sign books. Remember, people come to libraries to learn . . . and expect whatever they find at a library, whether listening to a presenter or checking out a book . . . to be free. Therefore, libraries are not the place to sell books. Yes, you want your books on the library shelves. Yes, you want librarians to love you. Yes, you want to get the word out to book lovers in the community. Yes, you support literacy. But you sell more books at a place where people expect to pay for things. At a bookstore, a craft fair, a festival, a conference, a coffee shop, an organized group where you are keynote. We More

Most writers have had or still work a full-time career. In our working years, we acquired knowledge for that job, and whether we retire or segue into full-time writing, we often think that information isn’t relevant any longer in our lives, but it is. Said experience could be beneficial for future writing income, especially when it comes to blogging. As a paralegal for over thirty years, I left the job still in possession of that experience, so I decided to use it to write blog posts for attorneys and legal blogs. One of my current clients is my former boss. Get started by making a list of potential topics you’d be comfortable writing about. Draft a few posts about those topics. Become accustomed to writing general information about the information your job required, not about the job itself. I don’t write about what it’s like to be a paralegal. Instead, I write posts like how the legal system on television differs from real life or what you can expect when hiring an attorney. One of the best ways to use your knowledge is to solve problems or answer questions. If you’ve been in retail service, you could easily write a More

From a reader: <<As the weather warms, I notice your list of readings/signings growing. Recently I looked at (another author’s) site and saw that before covid she had constant speaking engagements. The schedule looked exhausting! Another acquaintance hired a publicist to set up his tour. So would you write more about setting up engagements now that we can get out and about again? Some publishers set up tours, some don’t. If you’re self-published of course, you’re on your own. How do you choose the places? How far ahead do you book? Would you hire someone to do it for you? What do publicists charge? This whole thing seems overwhelming organizationally.>> This is a lot of ground to cover, mainly because no two authors do the same when it comes to appearances. Frankly, unless you are a big-named author, and we’re talking sales in the 50,000+ range, you are on your own in this appearance business. The big publishing houses will set up appearances for their big names, but not necessarily pay for all their expenses. Step down to the solid mid-list people, and they get assistance from the promotion department, making sure books are at various places for signings, creating More

Someone recently told me she was too old to try to write. I reminded her she was still breathing, which was all the reason she needed to put pen to paper. I get it. Sometimes we see technology over the writing. All the talk about AI, writing to SEO, white-papers on topics we do not understand, the need to promote via podcasts, TikTok, and Instagram. It can feel daunting that not only do we not understand a lot of the topics that need writing about out there, but if we write for ourselves, the publishing of it scares us away. Take a breath. Just write. Write your story. Enjoy using all your word tiles and creating beautiful sentences with them. Let the writing be its own reward. A neighbor of mine is 90 years old. He has had an incredible life as a self-made man. Over ten years ago, he decided his life needed to be recorded, so he’d stay up each night and write. I could see his light on across the cove from me as he scribbled in his notebooks. Finally, he decided he’d reached the end and got someone to type up the manuscript. They he had More

Writers can spend years taking writing classes and attending conferences, and never land a book deal. Often the problem is that writers want to be published with one of the Big Five, and forget there are other ways of birthing a book. For instance, have you heard of graded readers? Graded readers are books to teach language learners how to read and enjoy the language they’re learning. Reading at the appropriate level helps revise and reinforce grammar, and teaches new vocabulary in context. These readers are written at different levels from beginner to advanced, and put a lot of emphasis on the pleasure of reading, rather than on the study of language, like the books you read in your native language. Graded readers can be about original stories covering many fiction genres such as romance like A New Song for Nina by National Geographic Learning or comedy like What is Brian? by Paper Planes Teens. Whatever your genre, there’ll be a learner who’ll want to read it. Readers can also be adapted from classics like Dracula by Macmillan or from contemporary books written by authors like Stephen King. There are also nonfiction graded readers focusing on biographies of famous people More