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News and Notes

Observations and opinions about the brave new publishing world.

Around the Publishing World (March 21)

21 Mar 2016
Around the Publishing World, author tips
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At Chicago Author Solutions (a division of Eckhartz Press), we stay on top of happenings/trends in the publishing world to help out busy writers who are spending their time doing what they should be doing: writing.

 
 

1. 12 Social Media Tools You Might Not Know
We are not social media experts, but the writer of this piece surely is. He reveals several new places to explore in this social media world.

 

2. The difference between ebook formatting and conversion
We offer both of these services at Chicago Author Solutions, but most writers don’t quite understand the difference. This is a good primer.
 

3. Books that have been unfairly maligned
Two New York Times writers debate which books they believe have been unfairly criticized. See if you agree with them, and add your own suggestions.

 

4. How pitching a novel is like being in the Secret Service
This is a comparison we would never make, but that’s because we’ve never been Secret Service agents. The writer of this piece has. Interesting read.

 

5. Conan’s grammatical take on classic rock:

Around the Publishing World (March 14)

14 Mar 2016
Around the Publishing World, author tips
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At Chicago Author Solutions (a division of Eckhartz Press), we stay on top of happenings/trends in the publishing world to help out busy writers who are spending their time doing what they should be doing: writing.

 

 

1. Steve Martin’s advice for how to “make it”

 

2. Five Ways to Improve Your Book’s Description
Once you’ve written your book and the finish line is within your grasp, you have a tendency to slack a little when it comes time to write a description of your book. This is a gigantic mistake. This article gives you a few good tips to help you through the drudgery.

 

3. Why Having an English Degree Is More Useful Than You Think
English degrees are widely mocked by society at large, but the writer of this piece presents the other side of the story. The true side.

 

4. New JK Rowling Story About Magic
Yes, it’s about magic, but it’s about Native American magic. More info at the link.

 

5. Google Copyright Takedown Requests
If you have a Youtube channel you may have already noticed this, but wow are they getting aggressive in pursuing copyright claims. Youtube and Google shoot first, and ask questions later. According to this piece, the number of claims jumped 75 million over the past month.

 

6. Blogging IS self publishing
The author of this piece points out something bloggers have known for years…blogging IS self publishing. Every blog post is published. For a writer, there’s no better writing practice. Take advantage of it.

 

7. Monkey in the Middle Book Launch Party
The party is tonight! Come one, come all. 8:30pm.
Dobie Zanies

Around the Publishing World (March 1)

01 Mar 2016
Around the Publishing World, author tips
Comments: 1
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At Chicago Author Solutions (a division of Eckhartz Press), we stay on top of happenings/trends in the publishing world to help out busy writers who are spending their time doing what they should be doing: writing.

 

 

1. From the Librarian Hall of Fame
No, there isn’t actually a librarian hall of fame, but if there were, this 60-year library veteran would be in there.

 

2. Building your author platform
Great advice in this piece, including this little tidbit: “As old fashioned as email is, it is still by a very long way, the most powerful means of getting your message out. To be really blunt, 100 Facebook posts do not even come close to having the same affect as one well written and targeted email.” TRUTH.

 

3. Diversity in publishing
Hollywood isn’t the only place that has an issue here. Good piece by the Creative Penn.

 

4. Four Mindsets That Could Doom Your Social Media Marketing Efforts
Both ends of the spectrum are tackled here. Don’t be an “I’m everywhere” or an “I’m nowhere”. You need a good balance.

 

5. Seven Traits of the Social Writer
We particularly endorse the first one: “Embrace proactivity. If you have never written a blog post, never Tweeted or made a YouTube video, now is the time to learn. Old dogs can learn new tricks. See a post as a short article you have been asked to write, a Tweet as a link to something interesting and a YouTube video as a chance to talk.”

 

6. The “Monkey in the Middle” Book Release Party
Eckhartz Press’ very own Dobie Maxwell is hosting a free party at Zanies Comedy Club in Chicago (on Wells Street) on March 14th at 8:30pm. Comedy…and a book! You can’t beat it.

Around the Publishing World (February 22)

22 Feb 2016
Around the Publishing World, author tips
Comments: 0
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At Chicago Author Solutions (a division of Eckhartz Press), we stay on top of happenings/trends in the publishing world to help out busy writers who are spending their time doing what they should be doing: writing.

 

 

1. Jay Leno’s warmup guy
The celebrity-memoir is a popular category of book, but we’ve always been drawn to the memoir of people who worked with celebrities, but didn’t really become a celebrity themselves. Read this piece for a great example of what we mean. Sounds like a fun book.

 

2. Should I enroll in KDP Select?
Just Publishing Advice gives you the pros and cons of KDP Select. We’ve had an author or two try it, but as soon as they did, they were no longer our authors. That’s part of the deal.

 

3. The backstory and lasting impact of “The Jungle”
“The Jungle” is a classic, but this article in DNAinfo.com has all sorts of details about the backstory that you might not know. For instance, Upton Sinclair only lived in Chicago briefly while he wrote it.

 

4. RIP Harper Lee
One of the all-time great authors died this week. Her reputation might have been dimished slightly by the release of her “prequel” last year, but nothing can take away the lasting power and inspiration of her classic “To Kill a Mockingbird”. It’s simply one of the best novels ever written.

 

5. Self Publishing is About Breaking the Rules
Derek Haines at the Vandal points out something that all “traditional” authors should think about–there really aren’t any rules in publishing anymore. The only rule is “try it and see if it works”. He has a few good examples in this article.

 

6. The importance of keywords to ranking your book on amazon
There are some really great tips here. When you submit your book or e-book to amazon you have a few chances to submit keywords. Choosing those wisely is essential.

 

7. Eckhartz Press’ Latest Release: Monkey in the Middle
Our publishing company (Eckhartz Press) has a new book available for pre-order. It’s called “Monkey in the Middle and it’s an incredible memoir. Comedian Dobie Maxwell tells the tale of how his life was affected by not one, but two bank robberies. Monkey in the Middle is hilarious, tragic, joyous, dark, and smart. In short, it’s just like the real life narrator of the story; Dobie Maxwell himself.

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