I am constantly approached by authors — especially those contemplating self-publishing — with requests for how-to information about writing and publishing. That includes questions about resources, such as lists of cover artists, editors, proofreaders, where to buy ISBNs, etc. Also, recommended books and blogs about fiction-writing and publishing.
That’s what this post is about. Rather than continue to respond to writers one at a time, repeating the same things, I want to compile in one place a list of links to places where you can find valuable information, resources, tips, and advice. This will include links to some of the popular advice posts scattered on this site. Some of the links below are to compendiums of other outside links — treasure troves of further information.
This list is just the beginning. I’ll constantly update this post with new information as I run across it, so make sure to check back from time to time. Bookmark this post so that you can consult it when you need further information.
Also, please share the link to this post with other writers, by email and on your social media. To do that on Twitter, Facebook, and Google+, just click their “share” buttons alongside this post.
I’ll organize this post into the following broad categories:
I. General Information and Resources
II. Fiction-Writing Resources
III. Self-Publishing
IV. Marketing Your Books
I. General Information and Resources
* New Paths to Publishing. I compiled and send out by email, at no charge, an informal outline titled “New Paths to Publishing” to any writer requesting it. This 20-page document describes and compares the various publishing options available to writers today; describes the basics of the self-publishing option; offers some basic marketing advice; and provides links to resources. If you want a copy, drop an email to: RobertTheWriter [at] gmail [dot] com.
* Helpful Links for Indie Writers, by Christiana Miller. This awesome compendium of resource links covers the how-to gamut: publishing ebooks, audiobooks, or print books; writing, editing, formatting, and conversion software; advice blogs; blogs where you can publicize your work; where to find editors, proofreaders, book interior designers, cover designers and artists, publicists, cover art and images, and much more. She also has compiled an updated, cross-referenced list of these links as a 150-page book: Self-Publishing on a Shoestring: Insanely Helpful Links for Indie Authors, which I highly recommend.
* KBoards Yellow Pages for Authors. Another list of useful resources for authors.
* KBoard Writers’ Cafe. A popular online discussion board for self-publishing authors about all aspects of writing, publishing, and marketing books. Opinions expressed and the quality of advice offered vary widely and wildly, so as always: caveat emptor.
* Bookbaby’s Free Guides for Authors. Useful guides to various aspects of publishing.
* No Rules, Just Write. The website of bestselling author C.J. Lyons is loaded with advice and resources about writing, publishing, and marketing fiction.
* The Passive Voice Blog. Maintained by intellectual property attorney David Vandegriff, this blog is daily “must reading” about all aspects of the ever-changing publishing industry, with links to the most important news stories, advice articles, and commentaries.
II. Fiction-Writing Resources
* Methods and Aids I Use to Write Fiction. In this blog post, I list my favorite books on how to write fiction, and I also describe my favorite fiction-writing software, “Write It Now.”
* Randy Ingermanson’s Advanced Fiction Writing. The creator of the “Snowflake Method” of fiction-writing, and author of the invaluable Writing Fiction for Dummies, Ingermanson maintains this website brimming with valuable writing tips and advice.
* David Farland’s website. Farland is another master teacher of fiction-writing; lots of instructive material here, too.
* Savvy Authors. A good website crammed with articles and advice for writers.
* The Bookbaby Blog. This author-services site maintains a blog filled with writing and publishing advice.
* Write It Now Novel-Writing Software. This is the outstanding software that I use to write fiction.
III. Self-Publishing
* “10 Reasons You Should Skip the Traditional Publishers and Self-Publish Ebooks Instead.” My popular summary article on the comparative benefits of self-publishing over traditional.
* Let’s Get Digital, by David Gaughran. An excellent introduction and how-to guide to self-publishing.
* Kindle Direct Publishing. Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing remains the biggest, most-used ebook publishing platform. On this page you’ll find step-by-step instructions for building and formatting an ebook, then making it available via Amazon.
* Smashwords Style Guide, by Mark Coker. A step-by-step guide to how to format and publish ebooks.
* Hugh Howey’s Blog. Howey became is a self-publishing phenomenon with his mega-selling “Wool” sci-fi series. He is now one of the most indefatigable, outspoken, and thoughtful advocates for indie publishing. He often posts about writing, as well as publishing and marketing.
* Joe Konrath’s Blog. The early Pied Piper of self-publishing, the bestselling Konrath is always feisty, hilarious, informative, and sometimes maddening — but always worth reading.
* Using Kickstarter to Fund Your Next Book. Michael J. Sullivan has successfully used Kickstarter to finance his book-writing projects, and explains how in this series of posts.
IV. Marketing Your Books
* “Start With Why.” A brilliant 18-minute video presentation by marketing expert Simon Sinek on the most fundamental principle of marketing success.
* “Author Branding.” A series of PowerPoint slides by Michael J. Sullivan, based heavily on Simon Sinek’s preceding talk, and presented at the August 2014 Writer’s Digest annual conference in New York City. Great perspective and specific tips.
* “Ten Winning Marketing Strategies for your Self-Published Book.” This highly popular blog post summarizes my best advice to authors about how to market and promote their books successfully.
* “5 Tips on How to Identify Your Target Audience,” by Joanna Penn. Narrowly focusing your marketing to your target readers is crucial to sales success, and this article has great how-to tips.
* “Building a Killer Email List,” by Nick Stephenson. Acquiring contacts to notify about your future releases can be a huge boon to sales. Here’s how to do that.
* Write2Publish, by Michael J. Sullivan. This Reddit page is a gold mine of terrific marketing suggestions from bestselling fantasy author Sullivan. He posts links on the right side of the page to a lot of valuable marketing topics.
* Michael J. Sullivan’s Book Recommendations. A great list of how-to books focusing on successful book promotion and marketing.
* Authors’ Guide to Self-Promotion, by Michael J. Sullivan. Another post by the popular fantasy author, filled with sage advice.
* Let’s Get Visible, by David Gaughran. This companion to his Let’s Get Digital presents Gaughran’s strategies for boosting sales of ebooks, especially on Amazon. Remarkable insights about how Amazon’s bestseller and popularity lists work, and how to exploit their algorithms most effectively.
* Smashwords Book Marketing Guide, by Mark Coker. This company offers a self-publishing platform and its own services, but this guide also provides a lot of sound marketing tips.
* “Using Business Cards to Build Sales.” My primer on this topic.
* Marketing Strategies of Successful Indie Authors. This KBoards discussion thread features a host of successful self-published authors discussing “what worked” for them, and what didn’t. Great insights.