Daily Archives: January 11, 2014

Jan 11 2014

What I Learned from Reading Fiction

Fiction

  1. Everything will be okay in the end, no matter how awful it seems right now.
  2. Things will get worse before they get better. Much worse.
  3. Don’t try to be a favorite; you know the underdog is going to win.
  4. Mr. Right is right under your nose; you just don’t realize it.
  5. There is a fairy tale ending for you, but it will be hell getting there.
  6. When you finally reach a state of happiness, brace yourself for the sequel.
  7. Live the life of a protagonist. You’ll have a happy ending and the life will be very rewarding.
  8. You can make life easy by being a major antagonist; you just won’t have a happy ending.
  9. The safest bet is to live life like a narrator; you get to see all the action, and you must survive to tell about it.
  10. If you’re not tall, dark, and handsome, don’t live life like you’re in a romance novel.
  11. Imagination can be a million times more exciting than reality.
  12. Reality is a million times safer than fiction.
  13. Make life more exciting by imagining you’re in a novel.
  14. Don’t trust anyone. Ever.
  15. Anything can happen to anybody at anytime.
  16. The more incredible the odds, the more likely things will work out.
  17. Be very afraid of the dark. Don’t go out at night. Don’t do anything.
  18. Good always triumphs over evil, but evil never gives up.
  19. Stay away from fiction writers: They must be totally insane.
  20. How to write better.

Copyright © 2014 Chris McMullen

Jan 11 2014

About the Author Section—What It Needs

Reason

You probably have an about the author section in the back of your book with your photo, biography, and links to your online sites.

Do you just have a list of websites, including your blog, Facebook page, Twitter, fan page, email newsletter, or other websites? Or do you also include a little more.

Here’s what you should consider adding, if you don’t already have it: a reason.

Why should the reader or fan visit the page?

If you can concisely provide a compelling reason for people to visit your sites, this can improve the chances that they will check them out.

Compare these examples.

Versus

If I include the latter in a book related to self-publishing, it’s more likely to stimulate interest in my blog.

Here are some more examples:

  • Visit my fan page at ___ to view maps and to read bonus material.
  • Sign up for my email newsletter at ___ to learn about new releases and special sale prices.
  • Check out my author website at ___ to see character sketches and learn how the book came about.
  • Read poetry and romantic short stories on my blog at ___.
  • Download a free PDF booklet with 100 book marketing ideas from my website, ___.

Of course, instead of ‘my’ you can write your name (with the apostrophe and s).

Think beyond the about the author section of your books. Anywhere you provide a link to one of your sites, consider including a concise note of what to expect.

On the other hand, if there isn’t likely to be anything of interest, don’t add a reason. For example, if your Twitter page is identical to your blog posts, provide a reason to visit your blog, but simply say, “or follow me at Twitter at ___.”

Also, don’t hype it up to make it sound better than it is. If people make a trip to your site and see something different from what they were expecting, probably all you did was waste their time and cause some frustration.

Publishing Resources

I started this blog to provide free help with writing, publishing, and marketing. You can find many free articles by clicking one of the following links:

Chris McMullen, Author of A Detailed Guide to Self-Publishing with Amazon and Other Online Booksellers

Follow me at WordPress, find my author page on Facebook, or connect with me through Twitter.