On Publishing, Indie-Publishing and Making a “Name” as a Published Author

Hey Folks, I received a query from a writer who’s interested in a copyedit. He also asked whether I would help him find an agent and a traditional publisher. Uhh, no. After I explained why I thought the agent chase and traditional publishing in general was not a good idea, he wrote in reponse “About publication: I agree with you. However, I want not money but name as a published author, which you know somebody does … Read more

Scammers in Pretty Clothing

Note: This post was originally scheduled for early 2015. It didn’t post to MailChimp, so I’m posting it again now. I’ve revised the original post so it’s up to date. This post first appeared in slightly different form as an article in the November 2014 issue of  the Society of Southwestern Authors (SSA) newsletter, The Write Word. Hey Folks, I recently received an email from a place called Publish Wholesale. They were interested in “publishing my … Read more

Pricing and Various Sales Venues

Hi Folks, A little rant this time, but a well-reasoned rant. It really is attrocious what Amazon does to authors regarding royalties. This problem came fully home to me awhile back when I uploaded the new version of The Wes Crowley Saga (10 full novels in one book) to Amazon and Smashwords. At Amazon, to get a 70% royalty, a book must be priced between $2.99 and $9.99. All other prices glean the author a 35% … Read more

The Journal, Tuesday, 12/20

Hey Folks, Probably today will be a nonwriting day, and possibly a non-copyediting day as well. My son will be here in a couple of hours to help me buy, register, etc. a Toyota Tacoma 4WD pickup. I suspect much of the day will be devoted to that and visiting. I don’t get to see my children nearly as much as I like. Still, for resources alone, this is a Journal entry you don’t want to … Read more

Prepping to Epublish

Hi Folks, Note: This post was originally scheduled for 8/30/2013. It didn’t post to MailChimp, so I’m posting it again now. I have NOT revised the original post other than reparagraphing some of it. This post goes hand in hand with my previous post on Busting the Myths of Digital Publishing. I often hear from folks who say they want to “publish like you, on Amazon” but they don’t mention any other venues. If you self-publish, … Read more

Busting the Myths of Digital Publishing, Redux

Hi Folks, Note: This post was originally scheduled for 8/20/2013. It didn’t post to MailChimp, so I’m posting it again now. I’ve revised the original post so it’s up to date. First, a brief announcement. I’ve reopened my copyediting and eformatting service. I’ve kept my prices LOW. Former editing clients are preferred, but new clients are welcome too. For details, please click http://harveystanbrough.com/copyediting/. Okay, back in August, 2012 I updated and republished a post titled “Busting … Read more

Update to Brave New World of Publishing

Hi Folks, This morning as I emailed a friend, I had occasion to revisit an old blog post, one I wrote here back in October, 2015. The information in it bears repeating, especially in light of recent posts over at Dean Wesley Smith’s website. I recommend you read my older blog post before continuing with this one, even if you think you remember everything about it. To do so, click Brave New World of Publishing. After … Read more

Going on the Cheap

Don’t do it. There. End of lecture. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if that’s all it took? If you’re a writer and if you’re serious about your work and if you want others to take you seriously, invest in your product (your writing, your cover, your book). The rest of this post is assuming that you already are investing time and money into learning your craft (writing). But the actual writing is only the beginning of the … Read more

Busting the Myths of Digital Publishing (Again)

Hi Folks, Well, this is yet one more updated version of a post I’ve published before. Busting the Myths of Digital Publishing doesn’t really become dated because the myths persist. There seem always to be new writers who have the wrong information about digital (ebook) publishing. And frankly, unfortunately, a lot of writers who’ve been at it awhile also have wrong information about digital publishing. As I write this, I just met with a bunch of … Read more

Writing and Selling Short Fiction

Hi Folks, I’m thinking about doing a daylong seminar on this. It would depend on interest. If you happen to be interested and able to travel to Tucson, let me know by email please at harveystanbrough@gmail.com. A brief announcement for a friend. JoAnn Popek and Deborah Owen recently told me about a no-fee short story contest. The deadline is September 15 though, so get cracking. (grin) For guidelines, visit Creative Writing Institute and scroll down. I’ve had questions … Read more