Lisa Lang Blakeney – USA Today Bestselling Author

Author: Lisa Lang Blakeney

  • Common First Time Author Mistakes

    I love this piece written by Maria Murname on two common mistakes made by first time authors. It definitely hit home. Here’s an excerpt:

    1)    All the characters sound the same.

    Dialogue is a great tool for character development because it gives your readers a direct line into your characters’ heads. If they all sound the same, however, it can be confusing. When crafting a conversation, think about how the people in your own life talk. Some of them may have pet phrases, or a particular gesture they like to use when making a point. Having your characters do the same will differentiate them from the pack.

    Tip: Once I finish the first draft of a novel, I go back and check the dialogue to make sure what my characters are saying is consistent with their personality. My characters tend to evolve as I write, so I often end up rewriting some of their earlier lines because they just don’t “fit” anymore. When you find yourself thinking, “That doesn’t sound like something Sally would say,” you know you’re on the right track.

    To read about the second mistake (hint: word replacements for the word said), click here.

    Thanks Maria!

  • Self Published Authors Earn More Than Big 5 Published Authors

    I’m so excited to see all the statistics and graphs compiled by the people over at Author Earnings. In their latest earnings report, the data they’ve revealed shows that for the first time self published authors are earning more than authors who are published by the 5 major publishing houses.

    author earnings

    That’s BIG news for us.

    That means that being self published is no longer your “second choice” when a big 5 won’t accept your book. It’s what you can decide to do first. It makes the most fiscal sense in most genres.

     

  • Indie Inspiration: Kristen Ashley (How To Publish Like A Pro)

    kristen-ashley-author

    When I first started reading independent authors, I heard about Kristen Ashley. She is well known in the indie romance community (books like Rock Chick Series and The Dream Man Series), but according to her, it wasn’t always that way. It wasn’t overnight success by a long shot. It was a slow and steady climb (which is nice to know) and a little bit of “being ready” when lady luck called her number.

    She talked about this at a RT Convention and I thought it was a pretty inspirational piece for independent authors. Here’s a snippet:

    Ashley willingly became a full-time author, working 16 hour days to self-publish books via Smashwords and Kindle Direct, but barely sold anything.

    Ashley then stressed to aspiring writers in the audience that they should be ready for the moment when someone gives them a break. Writers should write, but there’s a lot more to being a self-published author than putting out books. Ashley’s advice: “Lay the foundation for that stroke of luck.”

    That foundation for Ashley was her online presence. She spent hours updating her website with news and free book excerpts, working on email newsletter campaigns and contributing to the conversation among her slowly growing fanbase on social media. When readers discovered one of Ashley’s self-published e-books, they could go to her website and immediately find other titles.

    “If you don’t have another book coming out or you’re not working on it, they’ll forget about you,” Ashley said.

    Read the entire article here:
    http://www.rtbookreviews.com/rt-daily-blog/self-pub-pro-kristen-ashley-tells-all-2014-rt-convention

    Visit Kristen’s site here:
    http://www.kristenashley.net

  • Author E.L. James On Forbes Most Powerful Celebrity List

    E.L. James
    Having sold over 70 million copies of her trilogy, Fifty Shades Of Grey, we’re not all going to be fan fiction phenoms like E.L. James, but it’s inspirational all the same to see an author holding her own on Forbes Most Powerful Celebrity List right under Howard Stern and above Simon Cowell! Cool right? And all from her very first published trilogy. Love it!!!

  • Indie Inspiration – H.M. Ward

    H.M. Ward is my first pick for the Indie Inspiration Writer Series.

    H.M. Ward Indie Inspiration

    H.M. Ward – The Facts

    H.M. Ward is a New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author of New Adult and YA Fiction. While her following began with her YA supernatural novels, her career really took off after publishing her New Adult fiction including “The Arrangement” serials and her big full length novel “Damaged: The Ferro Family“.

    Since 2011 she has sold 4 million books. That’s staggering! And because she is a 100% indie author, think about the paychecks she brought home. Her serials cost $2.99 USD and her full length novels cost about $3.99. So you do the math.

    In 2013 she had 11 titles appear on the New York Times bestseller list. Ummm…that’s nutty!

    Why She’s An Inspiration

    One of the things that struck me most about this author is her bravado. First, I love how she writes new adult serials. If you grew up on daytime soap operas and love a drama filled “cliffhanger” then you’ll understand what I mean. But what I really like is how she doesn’t waffle on her decision on writing them.

    She writes them. If fans want more, she writes another. She absolutely sticks to her price, unless there’s a special sale or promotion. And she doesn’t buckle under what I feel is unfair whining about how she needs to “end the series” or “she charges too much” for her books.

    I cram to understand readers who leave reviews like that. She clearly states EVERYWHERE that it is a serial. How many pages it is and the price. It’s up to you whether you are going to pay for it or not. And let me say this. No one has ever complained that the writing is horrible. Because it isn’t.

    The other brave thing I love about this author is how she proudly wears the “indie” title on her chest. In fact, she wrote a really powerful blog post on why she has decided against traditional publishing or hybrid publishing. Because the big 5 have come after her, but she’s said no. Several times.

    Inspirational Posts By HM Ward

    Here are a few of my favorite posts that HM Ward wrote specifically for authors. I go back to these when I need a little writing inspiration:

    A Writers Guide To Social Media (Specifically Facebook)

    Book Release Day Marketing Tips

    Evolution Of A Book Cover

    Connect With The Author

    Official Website: http://www.sexyawesomebooks.com/

    Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorHMWard

    Amazon: HM Ward’s Amazon Page

    P.S. She has awesome giveaways!!! So make sure to stalk her FB page.

  • Writing Tips From Fiction Writer Holly Lisle

    Fiction writer Holly Lisle spends a lot of her time teaching new writers how to write novels. She has written well over 30 novels herself and has also written several courses for fiction writers which are quite popular. In this video that I am sharing below, Holly conducted a question and answer Google+ chat, and it was really good! There were definitely some good tips I picked up from it as well as an impromptu writing exercise she’ll walk you through which was awesome!