By Rachael K. Jones Work-for-hire writing jobs are common in novel-length work, especially in the world of tie-in fiction, but rarer in short fiction. If you’re primarily a short fiction author, you might be caught off-guard if approached with this kind of work. You may not have an agent who can give you advice. You […]
by Jelena Dunato When my publisher prepared the marketing strategy for my upcoming novel Dark Woods, Deep Water, one of the obvious labels proposed besides “fantasy” and “dark” was “Slavic.” It’s clear why—I’m Croatian; I’ve written a book featuring Morana, the Slavic Goddess of Death. And yet, this label caused me intense discomfort. It took […]
by Kelly McClymer Do you dream of seeing your indie book in your local library catalog? You are not alone. Many a traditionally published author shares your dream. Here are a few hard facts: Libraries generally purchase hardback library editions (volumes that have had the spines reinforced to hold up for multiple reads). Shelf space […]
by Anthony W. Eichenlaub Whether it’s the one-two punch of a duology or the sprawling epic of multiple loosely connected trilogies, there is no doubt that science fiction and fantasy readers love series. For an author, series can be amazing. Good sales on the first book can lead to good sales on the second, third, […]
By Lorraine Wilson Statistics are easy to quote, but difficult to connect to, don’t you think? It’s easy to say that 20% of people in the UK are disabled, but within publishing we account for only 5%. To say migraines are, according to the World Health Organization, the sixth highest cause of “Years Lost to […]
by J. Scott Coatsworth Editor’s note: All recommendations in this article are the opinions of the author and do not reflect an approval or endorsement by SFWA. Two Paths to Indie Greatness As an indie author, you have two basic choices for distribution: Go all-in on Amazon—eBooks, paperback, and Kindle Unlimited (KU). Or “go wide,” […]
by Carien Ubink It’s important to get reviews, but if you ask in the wrong way, your request might be deleted right away. So here are some do’s and don’ts when asking a blogger or fellow author for a review. Do your research. This means you need to have a good look at the blog/site/profile […]
By Sascha Stronach Note: This article first appeared in The Bulletin #216 in October 2021. Publishing (verb): the act of smashing your head against a wall until you see daylight. Publishing From Outside America (verb): as above, at long range. In the aftermath of CoNZealand, the 78th Worldcon, there was a palpable feeling of betrayal […]
Congratulations, You’ve Published Your Work and You Have Fans (and Critics): So What Do You Do Now? by Amber Benson Note: This article first appeared in The Bulletin #216 in October 2021. Before you can become a creator, you have to be a fan first. As the irrepressible Hannibal Lecter says in the film The […]
by Evan Winter (This article originally appeared in The SFWA Bulletin #215.) Not long ago, I was asked where traditional publishing spaces are failing self-published writers, and I think I may have an answer: everywhere. This is because traditional publishing spaces aren’t structured in form or objectives to value the needs of self-published writers and […]
They are the last survivors of the settlers of the moon Sturnus, forty children rescued by the benevolent people of the planet Janus. Except Bear is starting to remember, and what he remembers is nothing like what he and the others have been told.
