Indie Pub Eras

Indie Pub Eras

The world of indie publishing is a dynamic market that has undergone dramatic change in a remarkably short time. To better understand this rapidly evolving industry, it behooves us to take a look back at the stages of indie pub's development. Pre-Kindle Before Amazon's introduction of the Kindle eReader, traditional…
November 28, 201712 Comments
Cult of Worlds

Cult of Worlds

Recently on Google+, Nathan Housley pondered whether science fiction authors should stop thinking of science fiction fans as their target audience and focus on making fans of their secondary worlds. Here's Nathan: Between the current trends of science fiction marketing and that games audience link, I'm beginning to think that…
October 19, 201717 Comments
The Currentest of Years

The Currentest of Years

Dragon Award loser John Scalzi has come down with writer's block. The cause of the Tor author's affliction? President Donald Trump and the weather: I started Head On in January with the plan to be done in the first half of the year, to leave the rest of the year…
October 3, 201781 Comments
Authors: Control Your IPs

Authors: Control Your IPs

Author Kristine Kathryn Rusch hammers home the importance of intellectual property rights and observes how decades of tradpub conditioning has left most authors woefully inept at controlling their IPs. I wrote the following sentence to someone who wanted to take my entire IP in a series for a pittance: I’ve…
September 21, 201716 Comments
Casting Call: The Secret Kings

Casting Call: The Secret Kings

Every author daydreams about casting hypothetical movie versions of his books. Today I present to you my preferred cast for 2017 Dragon Award finalist The Secret Kings. Note: this list will only cover characters who are new to this book or who haven't been cast before. Actors already chosen for…
September 13, 2017
Editing Defined

Editing Defined

Publishing is an old industry that's assembled its own internal lexicon. As you'll find with any trade, publishing jargon can be difficult for laymen--and even authors--to decipher. A widely misunderstood term is the deceptively simple title of editor. When most people; again even some authors, hear the word "editor", they…
September 1, 20176 Comments
Hillary Hard Choices

Kiss Tradpub Goodbye

Evidence continues mounting that indie authors publishing with Amazon have sent the Big Five traditional publishers into a death spiral. An inexorable reality of today’s commercial book publishing world is that it is shrinking. Although there have been no obvious signs yet that actual long-form book reading itself has declined…
August 10, 201710 Comments
2017 Dragon Award Finalist The Secret Kings

2017 Dragon Award Finalist The Secret Kings

The final ballot for the 2017 Dragon Awards has been released! I'm honored to announce that my highly praised space opera novel The Secret Kings has been nominated for Best Science Fiction Novel. Because the Dragon Awards do not yet have a Best Editor category, I promised to share the honor with…
August 4, 201710 Comments
Pulp Speed

Pulp Speed

Greetings, writers, critics, and fans of the Pulp Revolution! Today I bring you a two-in-one history and writing lesson from one of the smartest and most prolific indie authors working today: Mr. Dean Wesley Smith. Lest you're tempted to think that's just flattery, Mr. Smith displays knowledge of the real…
April 21, 201718 Comments

The Sad Puppies Saga Explained

The most common reaction when people find out I was nominated for a Hugo Award is for them to ask "What's a Hugo Award?" So I wouldn't be surprised if the number of people who are vaguely aware of propaganda claiming that right-wing bigots tried to deny women and minorities…
December 12, 20166 Comments