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Nate Hoffelder

Nate Hoffelder

Gutenberg Will be Released with WordPress 5.0 on 19 November – Here’s What You Need to Do

06.10.2018 No Comments

We have known for the past 18 months that Gutenberg was going to one day change just about every aspect of running a WordPress site from publishing posts to designing pages.

As I explained a couple months ago, Gutenberg represents a fundamental change in the architecture of the WordPress platform. This is WordPress’s New Coke moment and will either modernize the platform or send users fleeing to the competition.

Now we know when the Gutenberg is going to happen. Earlier this week the official word came down that Gutenberg will be released with the next major release of WordPress 5.0 on 19 November.

WordPress 5.0 will be focussed on merging the Gutenberg plugin into trunk. In addition, there are two related areas of new development:

  • Updating the default themes to work well with the block editor, and creating the new Twenty Nineteen theme.
  • Creating an upgrade experience to remove the Gutenberg plugin and offer the Classic Editor plugin.

Given the scope of this change, there won’t be any extra feature focuses. In order to ensure that we can keep the release schedule, minor changes, and bug fixes will only be included on a case-by-case basis.

I have written about Gutenberg a couple times, so I won’t repeat myself. Instead, I will discuss what I plan to do.

My current Gutenberg mitigation plan is to do my best to avoid it for as long as possible. Yes, I fully plan to build test sites in Gutenberg in the next few weeks, and I might even build new sites for clients, but I will not be using Gutenberg with existing sites because in its current form it could wreck perfectly functional sites.

Keeping a site up and running is more important than adopting the latest shiny tech, which is why I plan to install either the Classic Editor plugin or the Disable Gutenberg plugin on all of my sites and my clients' sites.

These two plugins can each restore the older editor interface, making it possible to continue to use plugins and other customizations that depend on the previous editor.

I will be installing and testing these plugins in the weeks leading up to 19 November, and I would recommend that you do the same.

Please let me know if I can help you with this.

More reading

EU Finally Allows For Lower VAT on eBooks

02.10.2018 No Comments

So six years after EU members were punished for lowering the tax they collect on the sale of an ebook in violation of EU rules, the European Union decided that this wasn’t such a terrible idea after all.

From Reuters:

European Union finance ministers decided on Tuesday to allow lower sales taxes on e-books and other digital publications and to align them to reduced levies applied to paper versions of books and magazines. The deal will allow EU states to apply reduced or even zero VAT rates to electronic publications, which are currently taxed at a minimum of 15 percent because they are treated as electronic services.

“This proposal is part of our efforts to modernize VAT for the digital economy, and enables us to keep pace with technological progress,” said Austrian Finance Minister Hartwig Loeger, who chaired the meeting.

The agreement comes after more than two years of talks after a European Commission proposal. The European Parliament supported the plan a year ago.

While it is good that the EU is finally catching up with the market, let’s not forget that it only took them 18 years to reach the conclusion that ebooks should be taxed the same as print books.

Remember, Amazon may have jump started the ebook market in 2007, but the ebook market really got its start in 2000. Many of us had been buying ebooks for years before the Kindle came along, and some had been paying an unreasonably high tax for the privilege.

Okay, things weren’t so bad in the early years before regulators was paying attention, and Europeans could duck paying VAT by buying from US ebook retailers. That doesn’t change the fact that the EU’s tax rules made no sense, and that it took 18 years to change those rules.

It’s almost as if the EU is being run by Vogons.

The Four Bios Every Author Needs

01.10.2018 No Comments

If you Google author bios you will find a million different articles, each with their own recommendation. Be short and too the point. Use the third person. Simply say who you are, and give your publishing credit. Be formulaic.

A lot of this advice is good, but I also think it is incomplete.

I recently attended a Meetup hosted by Robin Sullivan, wife and business manager of fantasy author Michael Sullivan, where she covered the topic of author branding (the following post draws heavily upon her presentation). One of the points she raised was how to write an author bio. Robin argues that authors need more than just the one bio because they are going to be used for more than one purpose.

Authors need bios that can be used on social media profiles, Goodreads and Amazon author pages, and on the web. Since we are looking at radically different lengths, this essentially means multiple different bios.

Update: I’ve just been working on my Facebook profile. It has space two bios, one of which is 101 characters long.

  • the Facebook intro bio: 101 characters
  • the Twitter bio: 160 characters
  • the podcast intro: 20 words
  • the speaker bio: 50 words
  • the Amazon/Goodreads profile bio: 250 to 400 words

Sidenote: Robin told me that the profile bio should be 800 words or more, but that’s actually longer than the examples she shared. I checked both of Michael Sullivan’s bios she provided and found that they were 247 and 387 words long. I changed the word count to reflect that detail.

I would recommend that you put all four bios on the about page on your author site so that anyone who is writing about you cam find it.

Of course, first you have to write them, but don’t stress too much because this is one of those things where you can start with "pretty good" and improve it over time.

You don’t have to put your entire life out on display, but you do need to concentrate on the things you want to be known for.  Your goal is to establish your brand, and consistently display it across all platforms (freelancers have the same issue, if that helps).

Try to define yourself in a single word or phrase. For example, Joe Konrath could be described as contentious self-pub evangelist, and anyone who knows Check Wendig would describe him as inventively foul-mouthed.

You should also try to answer the following questions.

  • What’s your purpose, your cause, your belief?
  • Why do you get out of bed in the morning?
  • Why should anyone care?

I happen to be sorely in need of better-written bios, so why don’t I go walk us through the process of rewriting my bios.

Let’s start with my goal: I want to be known as the guy who can fix your website.

As a first step, let’s change that so it reflects why I do what I do: I want to be known as the guy who can I live to fix your website. (That sounds a little obsessive, but it is okay.)

With the exception of my long bio, none of my bios really make that point, especially my Twitter bio.

Twitter bio

I build  , and blog about  at The Digital Reader ().

Not only is it too short, it’s out of date; I don’t maintain the second account anymore. The following bio might work better:

Speaker to websites. WordPress wizard. Slayer of bugs. Error code breaker. I know why tech goes thump in the night. Fixing your tech problem is my nirvana.

With its references to SF and fantasy, this Twitter bio is intriguing while at the same time explaining what I do and why. And according to LetterCount.com, it is 155 characters long. Add in 5 pound symbols to turn keywords into hashtags, and we reach exactly 160 characters allowed by Twitter.

While this might not be the perfect Twitter bio, it’s also not boring or stale. It is good enough for now, so let’s move on to the profile bio.

Amazon/Goodreads profile bio

The thing you should know about the profile bio is that it is long enough that you can use the one bio for a couple different purposes. Also, you will probably want to tailor your bio to each site you use it on.

I won’t link to my profile bio; it was written to serve a very different purpose. Instead, I want to show you a a couple examples.

On Amazon the bio is going to be displayed in a sidebar on the left side of the screen next to a column of books. That’s why in this situation Michael Sullivan’s bio focuses first on the author’s origin story before listing his bibliography, current projects, and contact info.

Over on Goodreads, however, an author’s bio is displayed at the top of the page, followed by the FAQ and a lit of the author’s books. That’s why Sullivan’s bio on Goodreads focuses first on the works he is currently promoting and second on the author.

You should read both, and compare/contrast.

Podcast / Speaker bio

Here’s the speaker bio I provided to Bookbaby for the Indie Author Con (FYI: I am on a panel!). At 54 words, it is perfectly workable but still rather bland.

Nate Hoffelder has been building and running WordPress sites since 2010. He blogs about indie publishing and helps authors connect with readers by customizing websites to suit each author’s voice. In his spare time, he fosters dogs for A Forever Home, a local rescue group.  You can find him over at The Digital Reader.

One problem with the above bio is that it is little more than a Dragnet-esque recital of the facts. That is not necessarily a bad thing (in fact, I think I’ll save this bio just in case I can use it again), but it doesn’t really tell you why I do what I do.

Let’s try again:

Nate Hoffelder is here to chew bubble gum and fix broken websites, and he is all out of bubble gum. He has been blogging about indie authors since 2010 while learning new tech skills at the drop of a hat. He fixes author sites, and shares what he learns at The Digital Reader.

The bold text is the podcast bio, while the full text is the speaker bio.

TBH I am not sure that my second bio is better than the first; I think I may need y’all to A-B test it for me. Which one do you like?

Edit: I have decided to combine the old and new bios, and add a new sentence:

Nate Hoffelder has been building and running WordPress sites since 2010. He blogs about indie publishing and helps authors connect with readers by customizing websites to suit each author’s voice. You may have heard his site, The Digital Reader, mentioned on podcasts such as The Creative Penn, Wordslinger, or Sell More Books Show. In his spare time, he fosters dogs for A Forever Home, a local rescue group.

I’d love to hear what you think; please leave a comment.

The Freewrite Traveler is the True Spiritual Successor to the Alphasmart Neo

30.09.2018 No Comments

Over the past several years I have written about several E-ink laptop concepts that might one day make good writing tools. None have gotten past the concept stage (not even the Onyx Writer) but that is about to change.

I just got an email from Astrohaus, makers of the Freewrite hipster typewriter, announcing their new, smaller, distraction-free writing device.

Folks, meet the spiritual successor to the venerable Alphasmart Neo:

The Freewrite Traveler is a netbook-sized device that fixes many of the shortcomings of the 3-year-old Freewrite. The Traveler weighs less than half of the Freewrite, is promised to cost half as much, and folds into a compact clamshell.

Where the Freewrite only counted as portable if  your goal is to be seen lugging its heavy aluminum mass around, the Traveler is small enough that you could conceivably slip it into your backpack next to your laptop.

It functions essentially the same as the Freewrite, though; both devices are strictly writing devices. They don’t have any apps, and the Freewrite doesn’t even have an editing feature or a way to transfer files via USB. Instead, your work is synced over Wifi to your cloud accounts (Dropbox, Evernote, Google Drive supported).

Astrohaus has been showing off the Traveler since about March, but I don’t think it’s gotten much media coverage yet. I can’t find any videos or blog posts, or much in the way of photos.

It is officially launching on Tuesday, so the dearth of coverage will probably be resolved by tomorrow.

BTW, the Freewrite costs $500, so the Traveler should cost $250.

What do you think of the design?

In form it reminds me of the  netbook that Palm tried to launch a decade ago. That device never reached the market because Palm realized they had already been beaten by netbooks running Windows.

In function, this reminds me of the Alphasmart Neo. Released in 2004, that was one of the last in a line of classroom writing devices from Alphasmart. The Neo was little more than a keyboard with a small LCD screen – just enough hardware that you could bang out a paper, but not enough that you could play games on it.

A lot of us have fond memories of Alphasmart or one of the several devices that stepped into its niche; how do you think the Traveler will compare to them?

Astrohaus

Kobo Forma is a Kindle Oasis Clone, Will Ship on 16 October

28.09.2018 No Comments

It seems Kobo wasn’t too happy at the absolute secrecy surrounding its new ereader, so it decided to fix that situation by leaking a product render of its next ereader.

A short while ago Kobo Spain tweeted a graphic that showed a new ereader named the Kobo Forma. They quickly deleted their tweet, but not before several people snagged copies:

The Kobo Forma would appear to be the unnamed Kobo device that cleared the FCC in August.

We know almost nothing about that ereader beside the fact it had Wifi but not Bluetooth, and that the FCC unit had a 1.2Ah battery, but now it looks like it will have a one-handed design similar to that of the Kindle Oasis.

We’ll know more in a couple weeks.

I for one can’t wait to see it; I love the idea when Amazon tried it, but never found the original Oasis appealing (and Amazon wouldn’t send me an Oasis 2 review unit, so I can’t say much about it). But now Kobo is going to give it a try, and it’s like Christmas is coming early this year.

Stay tuned.

Nate’s Big List of Free Courses for Authors

27.09.2018 No Comments

Between marketing, social media, ads, writing, and book formatting, there are a million and one skills authors and other creators need to learn over the course of their career. And to make matters worse, sometimes we don’t even realize we need to learn a skill or that there are free resources which can teach us that skill.

For example, I taught myself how to make blog graphics one brutal, error-filled, frustrating step at a time because I didn’t know there was a free course that could have saved me a lot of time and effort.

In the interest of saving you from repeating my mistakes, I have pulled together a list of courses that authors and other creatives can take for free. I actually came across a few of these courses earlier this week and found them so useful that I wanted to share my good fortune.

All of the courses listed here are free, and I will continue to add courses over time. If you want to recommend a course for inclusion please fill out the form at the end of this post. (This goes double if it’s your course; one other reason for this post is that I wanted to give experts who teach these courses a reason to reach out to me.)

For the most part these are video courses, and that may present accessibility problems. (Reedsy is the exception; most/all of their courses are text-based.)

Let’s start with the course platforms. If you can’t find the course you need in this post there is a chance you’ll find it on one of these sites.

Name Details
Udemy Along with Pluralsight, Udemy is a leading online learning platform. Udemy has an extensive catalog of free courses, including nearly 500 just in the marketing category.
Reedsy Reedsy is a services marketplace where authors can hire freelancers, and it also hosts a number of free courses.
MIT Open Courseware MIT maintains an extensive listing of free online courses. Alas, it is organized like an academic catalog, and thus frustrating to navigate.
The Open University Over 900 free courses, including one on how to start writing fiction.
Coursera From what I can see this is primarily a paid courses platform, but I found a bunch of courses where you can audit a course for free.
EDX an aggregator of courses from dozens of schools
Owl (Online Writing Lab) Purdue University offers the writing resources and instructional material from its writing lab as a free service.
name details

I will add more online course platforms as I come across them, but for now here are the free courses you came here to find.

Free Courses

Name Instructor Topic Notes
Pinterest Power Summer Tannhauser  Pinterest An intro course on how to market on Pinterest.
The Roadmap to Writing Successs Rebecca Hamilton, Author Grow Planning Your Author Career an overview course
Lead Magnet Challenge Maya, Blog Brand Hustle  better lead magnets for mailing lists NA
Graphic Design Mini Course Kristin, AppleCart Lane  Beginner graphics mistakes a great course on how not to design graphics
Amazon Adverts for Books Dave Chesson, Kindlepreneur  AMS NA
Plan Your Novel Rachelle Rea Cobb  developing a roadmap for your first novel  a course for bloggers who want to transition to book-length writing
The Perfect Year J A Huss  book launches subtitled "a successful book release strategy for authors"
Build a Brand Style Guide Sarah Crosley, The Creative Boss  how to develop a style guide NA
Self-Publishing Mastery Iain Rob Wright  Intro to book publishing NA
How To Build An Email List That Sells More Books Chris Syme, Smart Marketing for Authors  building a mailing list a 45-minute class
The Free Email Course Kirsten Oliphant  building a mailing list a 7-video course
Advanced Writer’s Toolkit Susie May, Novel Academy  topic details
Thriller Story Structure 101 Mike Dickson,  Fiction Formula  plotting, writing NA
Thriller Outlining 101 Mike Dickson,  Fiction Formula  outlines, wriitng NA
Pinterest for Business Trina Krug  Pintrest marketing  An intro course on how to market on Pinterest.
Get Started as a Speaker Grant Baldwin  public speaking NA
Take Better Pictures  Image Maven  photography NA
Why You Should Turn Your Facts into Fiction Jessica Lourey  writing  NA
The Art of Writing Authentically Jessica Lourey  writing  NA
How to Get More Twitter Followers Kelsye Nelson, Gutsy Creative  Twitter details
Master the Lost Art of Keyword Research Authority Labs  website SEO NA
How to Write an Email Sequence and Sell More Stuff Abbi Friedman Perets, Successful Freelance Mom  mailing list NA
Focus for Writers Pauline Wiles Productivity & Focus Would you like your writing to flow, not flounder? Is your lack of focus holding you back? Join this free, 5-part mini course, delivered in bite-size email lessons.
TBD tbd  tbd tbd

I’d like to thank the many people who suggested courses on Facebook, as well as Kirsten of Create If for pointing me to her post on free courses.

If you know of a course not listed above, please let me know!

Fill out the form below, and I’ll add the course to the list.

[contact-form][contact-field label=’Course name' type=’name' required=’1’/][contact-field label=’Instructor' type=’text' required=’1’/][contact-field label=’URL' type=’url' required=’1’/][contact-field label=’Topic' type=’text' required=’1’/][contact-field label=’Details' type=’textarea' required=’1’/][/contact-form]

Nate’s Big List of Writing, Marketing, and Publishing Podcasts

23.09.2018 No Comments

What do you call a group of 3 or more adults under 40? (a podcast)

Podcasts are now so widespread that they inspired me to write the above joke, but that prevalence is also a curse. There are so many podcasts in production right now that it can be difficult to find one with a focus on the topics that interest you.

With that in mind, over the last month I have been looking for  podcasts that cover book publishing. I have so far found ten nineteen podcasts, and gathered them into the following list. (Fun fact: I have been a guest on two of the podcasts, and have also been mentioned on at least five of them.)

This has been an interesting project for me because it helped me refine my thinking on podcasts.  As I see it, there are two ways to classify podcasts: industry and topic. The difference is that some podcasts cover a topic that applies to many industries, while others focus on several topics within a single industry.

Almost all of the podcasts listed below are industry podcasts, not topic podcasts. These are great podcasts, but one way topic podcasts may be better is they will introduce you to ideas from other industries, possibly inspiring out of the box solutions to your problems.

If you are looking for more podcasts to follow, that is worth keeping in mind.

Update: Over on Twitter Bonnie Loshbaugh tipped me to a list of romance-focused podcasts, and I have added three more podcasts to my list.

Name Host Frequency Details
Wordslinger Kevin Tumlinson  2 to 3 episodes per month Kevin Tumlinson talks to authors and entrepreneurs to get their behind-the-scenes story. Tune in to a full hour of wisdom and insight from some of the most intriguing people on the planet. It’s all about the story here.
The Creative Penn Joanna Penn  weekly Information, inspiration and interviews on writing, self-publishing, book marketing, and making a living with your writing.
Sell More Books Show Jim Kukral, Bryan Cohen  weekly Authors, are you struggling to get the word out about your books? Discover the latest book marketing and self publishing news, tools and strategies.  Every week you’ll get helpful tips and ideas to make your book sales soar.
Frontmatter Len Epps weekly In the Frontmatter podcast authors talk about their careers and their areas of expertise, making it a general interest podcast covering everything authors write books about, from startups to biology to software development and the future of labor.
AskALLi  varies  weekly The “AskALLi Self-Publishing Advice Broadcast" is a rotating series of four monthly podcasts crafted to help you cut through the noise to get only the most up-to-date and important self-publishing advice.
Self-Publishing Formula Mark Dawson, James Blatch weekly Two writers. One just starting out. The other a best-selling indie author. Join James Blatch and Mark Dawson and their amazing guests as they discuss how you can make a living telling stories. There’s never been a better time to be a writer.
Hear Us Roar Maggie Smith weekly Each Debut Author Podcast is a conversation between our moderator Maggie Smith and a debut women’s fiction author.
Rocky Mountain Writers Mark Stevens weekly Interviews with members of Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers and those involved in RMFW conferences, workshops and other writing-related events. Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers is a non-profit, volunteer-run organization dedicated to supporting, encouraging, and educating writers seeking publication in commercial fiction.
Written on the Edge Jayne Lockwood, SA “Baz” Collins, Vance Bastian weekly Tune in for weekly discussions about LGBTQ storytelling in all genres and mediums. Our guests share personal accounts on living the artistic life and their personal experiences writing, crafting, and reading stories that explore the edges of what’s accepted and where storytelling should be headed.
Self-Publishing Authors Cheryl Phipps, Trudi Jaye, Shar Barratt, Wendy Vella weekly Cheryl Phipps, Trudi Jaye, Shar Barratt and Wendy Vella are four writers (romance & urban fantasy) from New Zealand who podcast weekly about self-publishing. Especially for those new or curious about self publishing, our podcast is full of full of tips, resources and honest tales from the trenches!
The Story Studio Johny, Sean, Dave  weekly Stories turn songs into symphonies, events into memories, and lives into legends. In our crowded world, “knowing your story” cuts through the noise so you can make your mark — whether you want to sell more books, increase profits, or just make a difference. At Sterling & Stone, Story is our business. The Story Studio Podcast is where we explore ways we can all tell our stories better.
Self-Publishing Journeys Paul Teague  weekly The Self Publishing Journeys podcast is a weekly show for all indie authors. Show host Paul Teague interviews self- published authors about their writing journeys, passing on hints, tips and tricks along the way.
So You Want to be a Writer Valerie Khoo, Allison Tait  weekly Valerie Khoo and Allison Tait, both successful journalists and authors, bring you the latest in news, opportunities, trends – and gossip – in the world of writing blogging and publishing. Whether you love the creative inspiration of Elizabeth Gilbert, the life-hacking non-fiction of Tim Ferriss or the phenomena that is JK Rowling, you’ll find it here.
The Worried Writer Sarah Painter  monthly Hear how bestselling authors such as Mark Edwards, Miranda Dickinson, C.L. Taylor, Mel Sherratt and Julie Cohen write, and follow their top tips for getting the work done.
The Authorpreneur Amelia D. Hay  weekly (?) The Authorpreneur Podcast is a virtual writing and business coach for fiction writers, hosted by Amelia D. Hay. The podcast will teach you how to develop a story idea, create compelling characters and outline your novel. Learn how to write your first draft, revise your story, self-publish, establish your author platform, and reach readers in less than fifteen minutes a day. Every week, Amelia releases a Behind the Scenes Podcast Diary (BTS) where she shares an honest account of her journey to self-publishing her novels.
Create If Writing Kirsten Oliphant weekly

Kirsten Oliphant interviews experts to find out how they are building email lists, connecting through Twitter, and using Facebook groups. These practical episodes are balanced out with inspirational interviews from successful writers and bloggers who have made it big and want to share the struggles, the creative process, and tips for reaching your goals whether you are an author publishing books or creating an online presence through blogging.
The Bestseller Experiment Mark Stay, Mark Desvaux weekly oin author and screenwriter Mark Stay with coach, entrepreneur and recording artist Mark Desvaux, as they discover the secrets to writing a bestseller and challenge themselves and you to write, market and self-published a bestselling book in just one year. Each week, they are guided by and interview million-selling, chart-topping authors, publishers on the inside, editors, agents, social media specialists, and many more big names who play a part in the bestseller process. From the writing to marketing, plotting to publishing, learn the secrets to help you write your way to the top of the charts.
Writing Excuses varies weekly "Fifteen minutes long, because you’re in a hurry, and we’re not that smart."
Author Stories podcast Hank Garner weekly AUTHOR INTERVIEWS, WRITING ADVICE, Several published per week.
Kobo Writing Life varies weekly The Kobo Writing Life Podcast features exciting interviews with bestselling authors, tips on the craft and business of writing, and advice for successfully self-publishing. Millions of readers are waiting to discover your book – self-publish today at www.kobo.com/writinglife
OtherPPL Brad Listi weekly OtherPPL features in-depth interviews with today’s leading authors, poets, and screenwriters.
Beautiful Writers Podcast Linda Sivertsen monthly Each episode features an interview. Topics cover in-depth insights on the writing and publishing processes, from breakout successes to authors with staying power, featuring inspirational personal anecdotes, advice, and encouragement.
I Should Be Writing Mur Lafferty monthly Tthis podcast focuses on providing encouragement, writing tips, and publishing advice to aspiring authors via success stories from authors releasing new books. The interviews focus on the goal of achieving traditional publication, so they only feature traditionally published authors.
The Manuscript Academy Jessica Sinsheimer biweekly Features interviews with agents and editors, who share plenty of behind-the-scenes publishing insights. It’s part of #MSWL (Manuscript Wish List), which helps authors more effectively connect with agents and editors seeking projects like theirs, and includes plenty of query tips for authors looking to sign with an agent.
Helping Writers Become Authors K.M. Weiland weekly  HWBA covers a variety of topics on the craft of writing — from creating characters to outlining novels to polishing prose — as well as getting into the creative mindset, being productive, and writing mistakes to avoid.
SPA Girls Podcast Cheryl Phipps, Shar Barratt, Trudi Jaye, and Wendy Vella weekly A weekly podcast on indie publishing tips, resources, advice, and real-life case studies. Some episodes dive deep into a specific topic, but most feature interviews with successful self-published authors or industry professionals.
Write or Die Claribel Ortega weekly Often times in publishing we only hear about the quick sales and overnight successes – but for most of us, publishing is hard AF! This podcast shares those stories – the real, gritty, pull your hair out because it’s been years – stories of writers who didn’t give up despite it all, and are now living out their dream.
Print Run Laura Zats, Erik Hane weekly This podcast’s aim is simple: to have the conversations surrounding the book and writing industries that too often are glossed over by conventional wisdom, institutional optimism, and false seriousness.
Shipping & Handling Bridget Smith, Jennifer Udden monthly Join two literary agents as they discuss books, publishing, writing, fandom, and more!
 The Creative Writers Toolbelt Andrew Chamberlain weekly The Creative Writer’s Toolbelt gives practical, accessible that you can apply straight away to your own writing. Each episode explores an aspect of the craft, with examples. We also throw in occasional interviews with writers, editors, marketers and other artists.
JoinedUp Writing Podcast Wayne Kelly weekly The Joined Up Writing Podcast is for writers and readers alike. It features loads of great interviews with authors, editors, publishers and anyone else who can help and inspire you on your Writing or Reading journey. Our main episodes feature long-form interviews packed with fascinating stories and insight. Our shorter ‘Epilogue’ shows are quick-hit ten minute episodes based on a bonus topic or question not included in the main interview.
Wine, Women, and Words Diana Giovinazzo Tierney and Michele Leiva weekly A literary podcast that interviews authors over a glass of wine. We talk about their writing process, the books that we love and, of course, wine.
Go Publish Yourself Robin Cutler and Justine Bylo  ??? IngramSpark’s Director, Robin Cutler, and Manager of IngramSpark’s Author Acquisition Program, Justine Bylo, will be joined by experts throughout essential fields in the publishing industry to provide you with self-publishing resources in a new format. These short episodes are an easy way to gain quick insights for how to self-publish.
Stark Reflections Mark Leslie Lefebvre weekly Perspectives and reflections on the writing and publishing life. Mark Leslie Lefebvre, a writer, bookseller, digital publishing advocate, professional speaker, and publishing consultant explores inclusive and collaborative opportunities for writers and book publishing professionals via interviews, discussions, and reflections about the industry.
DIY MFA Radio Gabriela Pereira weekly If the DIY MFA website were a campus, the DIY MFA podcast would be the school’s radio station. Hosted by instigator Gabriela Pereira, this show emulates the traditional MFA speaker series where authors and industry experts speak to students about writing, but makes these conversations accessible to anyone with an internet connection.
The Career Author J THorn, Hack Bohannan weekly The Career Author Podcast
Becoming a full-time writer can be overwhelming. Join J. Thorn and Zach Bohannon as they help you improve your craft and find your audience, so you too can become…a career author. This is The Career Author Podcast.
The Fearless Storyteller Ethan Freckleton weekly Join The Fearless Storyteller, as we explore the heart and soul of writing stories, songs, and scripts that sell—with the people who write them. Each guest has their own unique Hero’s Journey and insights into the intersections between limiting beliefs and success.

Weekly episodes feature interviews, inspiration, and insights for writers of any level.
Webcomics Reviews and Interviews Jamais Jochim weekly WCRI is a webcomic podcast devoted to the creation and monetization of webcomics. There are how-to shows on how to create, draw, write, and market webcomics, as well as reviews on webcomics. There are also interview shows with creators, businessmen and others involved with webcomics. In short, if you want to create and make money from webcomics, this is where you start. Potential subjects can e-mail [email protected] to set up interviews.
(your podcast) host s frequency details

If you know of a podcast on writing, publishing, or book marketing which isn’t mentioned here, please fill out the form below.

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Kindle Unlimited Funding Pool Grew in August 2018 While the Per-Page Rate Didn’t Change

20.09.2018 No Comments

Amazon announced on Friday that the Kindle Unlimited funding pool grew to $23.3 million in August (plus bonuses), up from $23.1 million in July 2018. At the same time the per-page rate royalty essentially didn’t change, remaining at   $0.004491, compared to $0.004460 in June and $0.00454 in May 2018.

  • US: $0.0045 (USD)
  • UK: £0.0034 (GBP)
  • Canada: $0.0044 (CAD)
  • Germany: €0.0029 (EUR)
  • Netherlands, France, Spain, Italy: €0.0045 (EUR)
  • Brazil: R$ 0.0109 (BRL)
  • Japan: 0.5567 (JPY )
  • India: 0.8736 (INR)
  • Mexico, Australia: unknown

Here’s a list of the monthly funding pools. It does not include the bonuses paid out each month.

  • July 2014: $2.5 million (Kindle Unlimited launches early in the month)
  • August 2014: $4.7 million
  • September 2014: $5 million
  • October 2014: $5.5 million
  • November 2014: $6.5 million
  • December 2014: $7.25 million
  • January 2015 – $8.5 million
  • February 2015: $8 million
  • March 2015: $9.3 million
  • April 2015: $9.8 million
  • May 2015: $10.8 million
  • June 2015: $11.3 million
  • July 2015: $11.5 million
  • August 2015: $11.8 million
  • September 2015: $12 million
  • October 2015: $12.4 million
  • November 2015: $12.7 million
  • December 2015: $13.5 million
  • January 2016: $15 million
  • February 2016: $14 million
  • March 2016: $14.9 million
  • April 2016: $14.9 million
  • May 2016: $15.3 million
  • June 2016: $15.4 million
  • July 2016: $15.5 million
  • August 2016: $15.8 million
  • September 2016: $15.9 million
  • October 2016: $16.2 million
  • November 2016: $16.3 million
  • December 2016: $16.8 million
  • January 2017: : $17.8 million
  • February 2017: : $16.8 million
  • March 2017: $17.7 million
  • April 2017: $17.8 million
  • May 2017 :$17.9 million
  • June 2017: $18 million
  • July 2017: $19 million
  • August 2017: $19.4 million
  • September 2017: $19.5 million
  • October 2017: $19.7 million
  • November 2017: $19.8 million
  • December 2017: $19.9 million
  • January 2018: $20.9 million
  • February 2018: $20 million
  • March 2018: $21 million
  • April 2018: $21.2 million
  • May 2018: $22.5 million
  • June 2018: $22.6 million
  • July 2018: $23.1 million
  • August 2018: $23.3 million

via Self Publisher Bibel

Instafreebie to Rebrand as Prolific Works

17.09.2018 No Comments

The free ebook distribution service Instafreebie announced on Monday that they rebranding the company on 1 October in anticipation of a pivot to provide new services.

Instafreebie sent out an email to authors today, informing them of the change:

We’ve come to realize “Instafreebie” no longer fits us as our name and brand.

We started Instafreebie four and a half years ago with one primary goal: to make it easier for readers to download free ebooks.

We’re proud to have achieved that goal!

In the past four and a half years, readers have claimed over 35 million ebooks on our platform! We’ve made it much easier for readers to download and read ebooks, and in the process much easier for authors to spread their work to the world.

We’ve built an amazing foundation for this platform, and achieved a major milestone in our larger mission to accelerate great stories and big ideas.

However, our vision for this platform has expanded, and our goals have expanded along with it!

Instafreebie did not go into detail about the pivot, but they did end the email with the announcement that they will hold a webinar on 25 September "during which our founder and CEO, Jason Freeman, will talk about all these exciting new changes in detail".

We will find out more next Tuesday. In the meantime, all we have to go on is Instafreebie’s other announcement today. They sent out an email to users and told them that IF is launching user accounts on the Instafreebie website.

We’re excited to announce that today, Instafreebie has gone live with new and improved online reader accounts!

You are now able to create a reader account online and access your own personal “Library” on the Instafreebie website.

Similar to our app, your “Library” page houses all the content you’ve claimed on Instafreebie in one, convenient location. You’ll be able to sort and search through all your claims, and see recommended lists of new content to claim, based on your selection of genres during the sign-up process.

Completely free for readers, Instafreebie is funded by the authors who give away the ebooks. It currently charges authors either nothing, $20, or $50 per month. The upper service tiers include more features like Mailerlite integration and support for multiple pen names.

It’s not clear how the two announcements are connected, but the most obvious possibility is that IF plans to expand into ebook sales, and is changing its name in anticipation of adding payment processing.

That would be the most logical next step, but the name Prolific Works is so bland that it could be used as a label for just about any service the company could offer.

French Booksellers Lose Their Shit Over a Self-Published Book Being Considered for the Prix Renaudot

12.09.2018 No Comments

Booksellers have many reasons to dislike Amazon, the least of which is that it is better at selling books than they are.

This has spurred many booksellers to blacklist Amazon-published books, and now that irrational hatred has been expanded to include not just Amazon but also anyone who uses Amazon’s services.

France24, Actualitte, and other sources report that French booksellers are objecting to a self-published book making it to the long list for a prestigious French book prize.

Booksellers are furious a novel distributed only by Amazon has made it onto the long-list for one of France’s top literary prizes, saying it rewards the goliath that threatens both their livelihood and the country’s heritage.

… one of the country’s top literary prizes – the Prix Renaudot – has sparked similar outrage among bookstores this week by selecting a novel distributed by their mortal foe Amazon.

The book, Bande de Français by French-Israeli author Marco Koskas, was included in a long-list of seven essays and 17 novels competing for the Renaudot, generally regarded as the second most prestigious French-language prize after the Goncourt. It is self-published and available only on Amazon – unless bookstores choose to order it from the online platform, a step many are loath to take.

“Do they want us to pay our most ferocious competitor? To give him money so he can kill us?” asked Mélanie Le Saux, a bookseller in the Paris region who posted an open letter on Facebook on Sunday in which she blasted the Renaudot jury for “throwing the door wide open to the beast”.

“Either we buy the book from our competitor, or we just won’t have it,” Le Saux told FRANCE 24. “It’s a very strong signal: Amazon has won their blessing.”

Just to be clear, this is not a book published by Amazon; this is a self-published book which is being distributed through Createspace.

Some booksellers have already vowed that, prestigious award or not, they will not be ordering this book. No, fighting Amazon matters more than championing French literature, which is why several booksellers have called for a boycott of the Prix Renaudot this year. 

The Syndicat de la librairie française, the trade group for French bookstores, has published a statement both condemning the Prix Renaudot jury and showing they suffer from Amazon Derangement Syndrome.

“With this decision, does the Prix Renaudot realize it is doing a disservice to the author himself and to bookshops, as well as sending a worrying signal for the future of the industry?” the statement read. The Syndicat added: “How deceitful and sinister Amazon’s dream world is. No more hierarchy between works, reduced to mere usernames on a platform; no editorial policy but millions of titles accumulated haphazardly; no books in lively areas of ‘commerce’; no people hired to bring works and authors to readers; warehouses and a sophisticated algorithm instead of spoken words.”

Apparently the Syndicat believes that no other publisher or distributor uses warehouses, or software, or any type of automation to produce and distribute books. No, only Amazon uses technology; all other books are delivered by fairies after springing fully formed from the brow of their noble creators.

Why is it that so many of Amazon’s detractors are so blinded by their hatred that they lose their ability to think critically or make a coherent argument?

The thing is, there is no good argument to be made for blacklisting this book. It was not published by Amazon; instead, it is the work of an author who used Amazon’s services.

To put it another way, the booksellers are refusing to stock a book because it was delivered by the truck company belonging to their mortal enemy.

Where is the sense in that?

image by ActuaLitté via Flickr

 

InkBook Lumos Review: Buy Something Else

11.09.2018 No Comments

For the first time in a very long while, a new review unit has crossed my desk.

Update: This post combines both an introduction and first look, as well as a more in depth review posted on 11 September.

First Look

The  InkBook Lumos from Arta Tech is an odd little beast. With a price tag of $100 (at Amazon), the Lumos is intended to be a competitor to the basic Kindle, and it has its strengths. It runs Android 4.2 on a dual-core CPU, and it has a color-changing frontlight as well as a card slot, but it also has its weaknesses.

The Lumos has a low-resolution 800 x 600 E-ink screen and is limited to only 512 RAM, which means that even though you can install your own Android apps, they’re not going to run fast or look as god as they would on better Android ereaders. (There’s also no Google Play, but that was to be expected for low-cost device.)

I can live with the screen (it’s the same resolution as on the basic Kindle) but the RAM shortfall has proven to be a serious issue.

Arta Tech makes it easy to install the Kindle app (it takes just two clicks) but that doesn’t really help any because I can’t run the Kindle app. It crashes the first three times I ran it, and once I managed to log in, the app struggled to even show me my library.

I’m going to half to test this further, but what I have seen so far is not encouraging. Half the value of an Android ereader is installing Android apps, so if I can’t install apps then this might as well be a basic ereader that runs Linux rather than Android.

Review

If you read its specs you would think that the Lumos’s selling points include a color-shifting frontlight and the option of installing reading apps on Android 4.2.2, and that its chief weakness was an 800 x 600 screen resolution.

That’s what the specs would tell you, but real life use has shown me that the screen resolution isn’t a problem (I didn’t even notice) but the software is.

I spent a couple weeks reading on the Lumos. I really got into the first book in a series, so I kept reading the second and third installments on the Lumos. With most ereaders that would be a strong recommendation, but with the Lumos those 3 books instead gave me enough time to truly appreciate the ereader’s shortcomings.

The Lumos runs a buggy and unstable reading app that kept crashing when it wasn’t getting stuck in a feedback loop of phantom touchscreen presses. Furthermore, I found that I could not get apps to run due to limited RAM (512 MB).

I also found myself frequently frustrated by the page turn buttons. There’s a pair of buttons on either side of the screen, and they are too close together. I kept flipping back a page when I wanted to go forward. (To be fair, I realized while writing this review that I could have fixed this annoyance by changing the settings on the page turn buttons. Setting both buttons on the right to page forward would have been a good idea.)

The Lumos did have one small point in its favor, though; its frontlight was quite mild, and was actually nicer to use than the frontlight on Kobo devices. (I am still trying to get the frontlight on video; its range is so small that it’s really hard to pick up.)

Conclusion: Buy something else. The Kobo Clara HD would be a good choice; it costs a little more but it has solid software and hardware.

Pro

  • pleasantly mild frontlight color options ranging from blue-white to a soft yellow

Con

  • buggy and unstable
  • outdated OS
  • limited RAM, and limited support for Android apps

InkBook Lumos

Specs

  • CPU: 1GHz dual-core
  • RAM: 512MB
  • OS: Android 4.2
  • Storage: 8GB, microSD card slot
  • Screen: 800 x 600 E-ink display
  • Touchscreen: Capacitive
  • Frontlight: color-changing (but only to a light shade of orange)
  • Battery: 2Ah
  • Buttons: Home, Power,  Page Turn (4)
  • Connectivity: Wifi
  • Dimensions: 159×114×9 mm
  • Weight: 165 grams

Barnes & Noble Revenues Down 6.9% in 1Q2019

06.09.2018 No Comments

Barnes & Noble just released their financial report for the first full quarter following the wholesale sacking of its more experienced (and expensive employees), and the news is not good.

According to the SEC filing and the press release, the company’s revenues fell almost seven percent last quarter, to $795 million. (Nook revenues fell 8.6%, to $25.3 million.)

I will listen to the investor conference call (well, I’ll wait for the transcript and read it) and update this post with additional details, but at this point it looks like the company continues to be FUBAR.

Edit: Seeking Alpha has the investor phone call. What little good news there was included: The rate of decline in sales slowed: Comparable store sales sequentially improved each month throughout the quarter declining 7.8% in May, 6.1% in June and 4.5% in July.

That was really the only part that could be described as good news; much of the rest of the call was taken up with details like B&N’s 5 restaurants are a bust, and how B&N had lots of plans on what to sell to people in the coming quarters.

As we looked at fall, we expect our business to benefit from a more robust publishing calendar than we had last year. There are big releases to support growing genres like personal growth, current affairs, history and religion. For political junkies, it seems like there’s a new book every week this fall including fear, Trump in the White House by Bob Woodward that is getting so much media attention this week.

Nick Sparks, Joni Mitchell and Mitch Albom who don’t publish every year will be on shelves by October. Other big titles include Michelle Obama’s Becoming a memoir by the former First Lady. John Grissom’s The Reckoning, which is his fortieth title and will sure delight his fans and be one of the season’s largest fiction books. Fire & Blood which will give George R.R. Martin fans a new appreciation for the dynamic and fascinating history of Westeros.

There was also a mention of Parneros’s lawsuit, but no new details were released.

Press release:

B&N today reported sales and earnings for its fiscal 2019 first quarter ended July 28, 2018.

Total sales for the first quarter were $795 million, declining 6.9% as compared to the prior year, with comparable store sales declining 6.1%. Comparable store sales improved each month of the quarter, declining 7.8%, 6.1% and 4.5%. The sales trend continued to improve into the second quarter, declining 0.8% in August.

“We fully realize that cutting expenses does not alone provide a path to the long term viability of any retail business. Therefore, our short and long term focus is to grow our top line, and, by doing so, provide us the cash flow needed to grow our business,” said Len Riggio, Chairman of Barnes & Noble, Inc. “Comparable store sales have sequentially improved each month and continued into the second quarter. Thanks are due to our team of merchants and the entire store management group from top to bottom.”

The consolidated first quarter net loss was $17.0 million, or $0.23 per share, as compared to a loss of $10.8 million, or $0.15 per share, in the prior year.

The consolidated first quarter operating loss was $16.2 million, slightly higher than the prior year operating loss of $15.2 million, as the sales decline was partially mitigated by $22 million in expense reductions. Consolidated first quarter EBITDA was $7.7 million, as compared to $11.2 million a year ago.

Outlook

As the Company prepares for the holiday season, it is encouraged by the sequential improvement in its sales trend and the fall title line-up. The organization is focused on its merchandising initiatives to grow sales, while continuing to control expenses.

For fiscal 2019, the Company continues to expect EBITDA to be in a range of $175 million to $200 million.

Conference Call

A conference call with Barnes & Noble, Inc.’s senior management will be webcast beginning at 10:00 A.M. ET on Thursday, September 6, 2018, and is accessible at investors.barnesandnobleinc.com.

Barnes & Noble, Inc. will report fiscal 2019 second quarter results on or about November 20, 2018.

image  by davidwilson1949 via Flickr

Icarus Illumina XL6 Features a 7.8″ Screen, Octacore CPU, Ships Next Month for 268 Euros

06.09.2018 No Comments

When I scooped my competition with the news of the Likebook Mars Android ereader earlier this week, the two questions everyone was asking were when could we buy it, and what OS did it run.

I can now report that the Likebook Mars runs a version of Android 6.0, and it is scheduled to be released in Europe at the beginning of next month (it shipped in China this week, which is where the Youtube videos came from).

The European ereader importer Icarus is now listing a new ereader called the Illumina XL6. While Icarus doesn’t say this explicitly, this is actually a rebranded Boyue Likebook Mars, and it is going to cost 268 euros.

The Illumina XL6 features a Rockchip RK3368 octa-core, 64-bit processor and 2GB RAM. That seems like overkill for an ereader, but as we saw in the videos earlier this week, Boyue built this machine to do more than just read ebooks.

It ships with Google Play, and clearly Boyue is intending the Illumina XL6 to be much more than just an ereader. That’s why it has audio, and a newer version of Android, and more processing power than any mainstream ereader short of the Kindle Oasis (while the Oasis only has a dual-core CPU, its Freescale chip is also more capable than a Rockchip CPU).

The Illumina XL6 is another bid to be the E-ink Android tablet desired by a niche market segment (I used to be one of them), and with a price of 268 euros it is priced to compete.

Specs

  • CPU: 1.5GHz octa-core RK3368 CPU
  • OS: Likebook OS (Android 6.0.1)
  • RAM: 2GB
  • Storage: 16GB, microSD card slot (up to 128GB)
  • Screen: 7.8″ Carta E-ink display, 1404 x 1872 resolution (300 ppi)
  • Battery: 2.8 Ah battery
  • Connectivity: Wifi, BT
  • Dimensions: 14.5 cm x 20 cm x 9 mm
  • Weight: 275 grams

via MobileRead

Penguin Random House Dramatically Worsens License Terms for Library eBooks

04.09.2018 No Comments

PW reports that starting next month, Penguin Random House is changing its license terms for library ebooks from "insanely expensive" to "ridiculously expensive and short-lived".

As of October 1, 2018, PRH is moving from a perpetual access model (where libraries pay a higher price but retain access to the e-book forever) to a metered model (with lower prices on e-books that expire after two years). In a letter to library customers, PRH v-p Skip Dye said the change was made after listening to librarians' feedback.

“We have heard–loud and clear–that while libraries appreciate the concept of ‘perpetual access,’ the reality is that circs for many titles drop off dramatically six to eight months after the initial release. This is true especially for fiction bestsellers,” Dye wrote. “Most librarians are telling us they would rather pay lower prices across our frontlists and backlists, in exchange for a copy that expires after a given time period. In response to this feedback, we are happy to tell you that we will be lowering our prices on our entire catalogue of adult and children’s fiction and nonfiction titles. Under our new terms, e-books will expire after two years from original purchase date with the aligned pricing lowered for our e-books.”

After October 1, libraries' previously purchased ‘perpetual access’ e-books will remain permanently owned. In addition, PRH announced that the publisher will be creating a program exclusively for academic libraries, under which they will be able to purchase perpetual access copies, although at “a significantly higher price” than public library copies.

The change in terms will apply to all Penguin Random House U.S., Penguin Random House Canada, DK and DK Canada titles. Under the new pricing, frontlist adult titles in the U.S. will be priced up to $55 (currently, adult prices are capped at $65.); Young adult titles up to $45; and children’s titles up to $35. The changes do not apply to e-books distributed by Penguin Random House Publisher Services.

No one has posted the full letter yet; if you saw it, can you please send me a copy?

With first Macmillan and now Penguin Random House drastically changing the terms they license ebooks to libraries, 2018 is becoming the year that libraries got screwed by publishers.

And what’s even more insulting is that PRH had the gall to claim that libraries actually wanted to pay $55 for an ebook that expired in two years.

I have heard some impressive whoppers in this industry, including the industry’s belief in screen fatigue (it’s a myth) and the claim that the Price Fix Six didn’t succeed in raising ebook prices.

But to claim that libraries want to spend their limited funds on $55 ebooks that expire after two years is next-level bullshit.

image by Mirko Junge via Flickr

 

Boyue Likebook Mars Features an Octacore CPU

04.09.2018 No Comments

It looks like the next device from Chinese ereader maker Boyue has leaked on Youtube.

The Boyue Likebook Mars is a 7.8″ very similar to last year’s Likebook Plus, only with double the RAM, a color-shifting frontlight, and possibly running a newer version of Android.

The Likebook Mars has a 7.8″, 300 ppi Carta E-ink screen with frontlight and capacitive touchscreen. According to the description on Youtube, it runs Likebook OS on an octa-core Rockchip CPU with 2GB RAM and 16GB storage.

Edit: Boyue told me that Likebook OS is based on Android 6.0.1.

Weighing in at 290 grams, the Likebook Mars has a 2.8Ah battery and measures a mere 9.3mm thin. It also has Wifi, BT, a microSD card slot, and a headphone jack.

All in all this is almost the same ereader as the Likebook Plus, but there are a couple subtle improvements. The description says the Likebook Mars has twice the RAM, and a color-changing frontlight similar to what you can find on Kobo’s ereaders.

That second detail was confirmed by another Youtube video:

There’s no word yet on when the Likebook mars will be released.

via MobileRead