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Book Review & Contest Insights from Real Reviews and Submissions

What separates great books from the rest? Below are articles with insights from real reviews and contest submissions—what works, what doesn’t, and how to improve your book. Below that are hundreds of articles on topics all authors face in today’s literary landscape. Get help and advice on Writing, Marketing, Publishing, Social Networking and more. Each article has a Comments section so you can read advice from other authors and leave your own.

Why Some Books Win Awards (And Most Don’t) — Insights From Real Contest Submissions New!

What separates award-winning books from the rest? After evaluating contest submissions across a wide range of genres, certain patterns become clear. Some books consistently rise to the top. Others, even with strong ideas and clear effort behind them, fall short. The difference is rarely dramatic—it...

What We’ve Learned From Reviewing Hundreds of Thousands of Books (And Why Most Don’t Stand Out) New!

After reviewing and evaluating books across thousands of submissions over the past two decades, certain patterns become impossible to ignore. Some books immediately stand out to reviewers. Others—even well-intentioned ones—fade into the middle or fall short. The difference is rarely luck. It comes down to...

Three Most Common Excuses For Authors To Avoid Social Media

It is undeniable that social media has caused an explosion in human communication. Social media has localized communities that are geographically thousands of miles away. When it comes to authors, social media has made it much easier for them to directly connect with their readers...

The 5 Most Influential Social Media Sites for Authors

As an independent author you are solely responsible for promoting your books. One of the most effective ways to do so is through social media networking sites. Here are five of the best. Facebook is arguably the biggest social media site in terms of global traffic....

Social Media Planning for New Self-published Authors

As a new self-published author, you really need to embrace the world of social media if you want to become known as an author. Social media will honestly become your new best friend and most importantly will allow you to connect with readers. The questions then...

Should Every Author Use Social Media?

Should every author use social media to help promote their book/s and their author presence? There are many reasons why using social media is beneficial for the author, especially the self-published author. Here are a few of them. If you want to increase your author presence,...

Promote an Upcoming Author Event Through Social Media

Social media really is an excellent way in which to promote any forthcoming events regarding your book or brand as an author. However, how do you go about this? Well, the main thing is to promote on as many social media sites as possible. Firstly create...

Online Book Promotions via KDP Select and Do They Increase Sales?

The Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) platform allows independent authors to publish Kindle e-books. The KDP Select Program is a publishing agreement between Amazon and the author. When the author enrolls in the program, they can take advantage of the several marketing tools that are on offer, one...

Myths Surrounding Social Media Marketing for Authors

Many people think that social media is a fantastic way to market their book, but this is not necessarily true. Social media is a fantastic way to build relationships and network with people, but not the best place to sell your book. People will soon...

Is Twitter a Useful Tool for the Self-published Author?

Social media really is the self-published author’s best friend when it comes to marketing and promoting their book. One of the obvious choices is Twitter. So how do you best use Twitter to promote your work? Firstly, you need to follow authors who are well established and...

How to use Facebook to Promote Your Self-published Book

If you already use Facebook to stay connected with family and friends you should, as a self-published author, have an author fan page in which you can promote your book. By creating a fan page you can provide information to potential readers about your book and...

Reasons Why All Social Media Is A Waste Of Time Except Facebook

Social media is a great place for authors to meet their readers. However, some experienced authors feel that it can also be a waste of time, especially if an author wants to promote his/her book. If you are an author and want your book to...