Future Submissions – Short Story Anthology unlike ones you’ve seen before!

Today I wanted to talk about something super-exciting; seriously, I’m like one of those Disney Characters with wonderful news just bursting to share! As you all know, we will be officially opening our SUBMISSION doors in 2015, however, (good grief I just squealed), I’ve been given the OK to let you in on one of Lost Lynx “pet” projects for 2015/2016 – and it’s going to be wonderful.

NOW CAUTION

–        PLEASE DO NOT SEND ANYTHING UNTIL SUBMISSIONS OPEN –

OK? Got that? Clear? – Great!

So, in 2015 we will be asking for submissions for a short story anthology, but not just any short story anthology! No no! This one has the theme Mother to Daughter. What’s Mother to Daughter? You know when you were a kid or a teenager and your mum or your gran would share stories with you?

Sometimes they’d read from a book but other times it’d be all in their head. And sometimes it was magical and mystical and other times it was a story about a brave, or funny, or cheeky, or naughty relative? That’s what we’re talking about here!

But wait there’s more – what we want is IMMIGRANT MOTHER TO DAUGHTER stories. So if your mum or your gran or your nanna is from non-Anglo heritage, we want to read your story and we want to share it with the world. Now, just to make it clear, we have nothing against Anglo-history, some of us are borderline Anglophiles!  The thing is, Lost Lynx wants to give a voice to the marginalised and to extract for everyone’s pleasure from the diversity that is cultural Australia, and in particular cultural Victoria.

Below are the rules & guidelines – any questions please feel free to ask. NOTE I have taken out the email address as it’s not open YET, this is for all you guys to prepare. This Christmas or Hanukkah, or Day of Ashura, or any special family, religious, cultural day in your heritage, when you and your family get together, ask Mum or Grandma to tell you again some of the wild and wonderful tales she shared when you were children… & then come share them with the world!

Some HOUSEKEEPING before you read below

Please do not send anything before the submission window opens (THIS IS VITAL), as it will not be considered. We want to give everyone as much time as possible to prepare their very best short stories.

–        There is NO FEE to send your submission

–        There is NO READING FEE to assess you submission

–        You can send up to 2 short stories

–        Once submissions open you’ll see the Twitter hashtags #M2D and/or #motherTOdaughter. By searching these on Twitter you’ll be able to keep up with any important tweets.

–        Because we accept that in some cases the author(s) of this anthology may struggles with English, we are making allowances for this and will endeavour to assist those with wonderful tales that need more grammar/syntax nurturing, than would normally be offered.

–        Sorry; Aussies only!

–        Unsure of exact date submissions will open but it will be in the very early part of 2015. It might be a good idea to follow us on Twitter and the blog for updates.

OK now, below is a pre-written post update that’ll go on the Lost Lynx website once the submissions are open. It has everything you need to know, however, if in doubt, send through a comment or question here or send one via the CONTACTS on the Lost Lynx website: http://www.lostlynxpublishing.com/

  Time to do your bit. Spread the word. Tell your friends, your neighbours.

Your work colleague is from Switzerland and always has amazing stories to tell at Christmas time? Share this anthology with his sister, is female cousin, his mother. Your girlfriend is from Fiji – wonderful! Can’t wait to read about some fantastical tale of island magic or mystery!

Below is a direct copy (without the How To Submit – that’ll be added once we are open for submissions), as it will appear on the  Lost Lynx webpage: http://www.lostlynxpublishing.com/. I’ll also be posting another blog update once we are open. But for now, read through the criteria and please feel free to pass on, to re-blog and to ask as many questions as you like!

Casting a wide Net to find Authors

Short Story Anthology (fiction) – MOTHER TO DAUGHTER

Searching for female authors from diverse cultures, religions, traditions,

– come share your customs, your history & your stories.

From fairy-tales rarely heard to family legends that have been passed down, we want to cast the net as broadly as possible. We don’t want to miss out on a wonderful GEM.

Through story-telling we develop understanding and friendship. Story telling & story sharing demonstrates our differences but more importantly, we learn just how similar we really are.

Celebrate your cultural diversity through the shared tradition of mother-to-daughter story-telling.

Sometimes it’s the small things, the small fights and the even smaller triumphs, which have an ongoing effect and make a difference.

The practice of sharing tales, fables, even family legends and secrets has been true for as long as humans have existed. But for the most part, father-son relationships were the focus, whether that be through verbal story-telling, through song, dance or wall/cave painting and yet, it is the women in our history that teach the next generation, and the one after that, our customs, our religious beliefs, our facts and our fantasies… And these are the treasures we are hoping to uncover, stories and tales passed down from one generation to the next.

But not just any generation to generation, what we want is to delve into how our immigrant parents or grand parents shared their past with their Australian born children and grand children.

Everyone knows *Disney-style fables and tales, we want to discover unknown Norse Gods, and stories of Desert Princesses once shared by women in travelling caravans. We want to uncover wild and woolly tales of malevolent wizards, ferocious dragons and nasty witches in Slavic folklore & exotically named and wondrous deities from Asia.

We’re also looking family legends, tales and fables or stories about magic beings and wild forests with supernatural creatures and/or family legends; tales of travel, tragedy, of make-believe and making quits… show us what you’ve got, we’re very excited to see what we can get. And don’t restrict yourself by religion either. We want Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, any and all religions.

We want hybrid tales where pagan practises and traditions mix with traditional religious beliefs.

Please ensure you follow the guidelines.

Guidelines – Please adhere to the guidelines, I cannot repeat this strongly enough, adhere to the submission guidelines; failure to do so may result in your submission being rejected.

(i)                 Entry is Free – there is no charge to enter your short story

(ii)               Short stories to be between 1,000 – 5,000 words

(iii)             The final number will depend on the length of the stories chosen to make up the anthology. It is anticipated the final number of author’s will be between 12-24

(iv)             Lost Lynx will take full responsibility for publication (e-book and possible paperback)

(v)               Authors selected to participate will be required to sign an agreement giving Lost Lynx exclusive right to publish the story. (the story remains the property of the author)

(vi)             Authors selected to participate in the anthology will be paid a small advance. The figure will depend on the final number of works accepted, the more author’s the less per author.

(vii)           Authors signed to participate in the anthology will need to make themselves available for promotions and marketing events, such as but not limited to, launch events.

(viii)         Authors will also be expected to direct third parties to events, points of sale etc. – in other words help promote the anthology.

(ix)             Short stories can be any of the following:

a.      A fable or legend unique to your culture or community

b.      A family tale / story unique to your family or your region

c.      A unknown fairytale or scary-story shared with small children at bedtime or on special occasions

d.      A fictional account of how something came to be – for example, are your relatives German and did they tell you the story of St. Nicholas?

e.      Other – tales, stories, legends; anything fictional & exceptional to your culture, heritage, or your family.

f.        Legend of a cultural hero / heroine.

g.      Other? Unsure? Shoot us a message via CONTACTS, leave a comment on our Blog and/or Tweet a question.

(x)               At least one grandparent of the AUTHOR must be from a non-Anglo Saxon background and within your submission detail you must describe the link.

(xi)             Author does not need to be an immigrant but immigrants more than welcome.

(xii)           The stories we are looking for are of non-Anglo Saxon heritage for example:

a.      Indian/Asian

b.      Slavic (think Polish, Russian, Croatian, Slovak etc.)

c.      Viking/Norse

d.      West African

e.      South African

f.        Arabic (all religions and sects)

g.      Western & Eastern European (mainland)

h.     Welsh/Irish/Scottish

i.        Central American

j.         Any other (non Anglo)

(xiii)         Author must be FEMALE

(xiv)         Author must be resident of Australia and preferably reside in Victoria.

(xv)           Author must be over eighteen years of age. No maximum age.

Because we understand in some cases English is not a first language, we will be much more forgiving with issues such as grammar, syntax, perfect dialogue, however, we strongly recommend all those submitting to ask a native English Speaking friends to read through their story.

For anyone for whom English is a second language and is struggling to obtain assistance in improving the written quality of their submission, please contact us via our “CONTACT US” option and advise your cultural heritage, place of birth, language spoken and current location. We will do our best to link you with some who can help prepare your final draft.

Please note

(i)                 we can make no promises and

(ii)               if you leave your submission until the last minute then we cannot help you as time becomes our enemy.

Time to prepare, time to write, time to revise and time to surprise us and the world!

When do I need an Editor – & what does an Editor do anyway?

Hi again,

Today I wanted to talk about editors. I’ve recently seen quite a bit of discussion on blogs and sites regarding editorial services, charges and options & frankly, if I wasn’t in the industry I’d be as confused as many author’s are.

So I decided to help set the records straight. Let’s start with the various types of editors.

	TITLE	Job Description
A	Editors-in-Chief	Working for Publishers/Magazines/Journals. Sometimes called “editors at large” – Often at the highest editorial level, they manage not only the look and tone of the final product (with other departments as necessary), but other editors, writers, freelance editors etc.
B	Acquisitions Editor	This title generally refers to Book Publishing Houses, but is also used by some newspapers and magazines. These editors search for new writers, stories, and/or manuscripts, and decide whether a submission is a yes or no.
C	Developmental Editor	Sometimes also called substantive editors. This title generally refers to Book Publishing Houses & Educational Publishers. Developmental Editors guide a writer from the inception of an idea to the finished Product. It’s the developmental editor’s job to look at the “big picture” of the work rather than the fine details. Issues in structure and consistency are addressed. If editing fiction, issues such as plot flow, themes, and character development are addressed. With non-fiction, its section flow, facts presented, and the strength of arguments.
D	Copy Editor	Copy editors are primarily concerned with the nuts and bolts of a piece: grammar, word choice, punctuation, and spelling. They also ensure that each piece adheres to the style guidelines set. It’s the copy editors job to ensure they meet the requirements of the Publisher/Client. Copy Editors can work FREELANCE or for a Publishing House, magazine etc. Depending on the size of an organisation, a copy-editor may also act as a proof-reader or may pass this on to an assistant.
E	Proof-Reader	Similar to a Copy Editor. Proof-readers can work for an organisation or freelance. Generally, proof-readers are copy-editors “in-the-making” often working with a copy editor or acquisition editor as their supervisor.
F	Line Editor	Again, can work alone or as part of a Team. Can be employed by a Publisher/Magazine (etc.) or work freelance. Line editors are looking for issues of grammar/syntax and sometimes fact/plot-holes (depending on their experience and your needs). Line editors can also be copy editors who want to deal with the “nuts & bolts” issue before moving on to the plot issues or they can work on instruction of a copy or developmental editor.

The question many people ask is: do I need an editor and how much will it cost? The short answer is YES you do need an editor and IT DEPENDS (we’ll come back to the second bit later)

But before you look to finding yourself an editor, there are a few things you should, no must do first. In order to not waste more money than needed, you should edit your work as best you can before an editor (or an agent) sees it. By doing this, you’ll not only improve your manuscript, you’ll look like a professional who is serious about their craft and the business of writing. To do that you should:

(i)                 Let your MS sit for at least a month, work on something new and then come back and re-read and revise. Repeat 2-3 times.

(ii)               Join a Writers Group or match up with a CP partner and swap manuscripts. By working on each others MS projects you are not only about to get valuable feedback, but you’ll also learn the skill of honest editing. Repeat at least 2 times (after revising of course)

(iii)             Get yourself a BETA* reader and either return the favour or, while your waiting, start a new project, CP for other people or BETA read for someone else. Again you are gaining experience, an additional opinion and valuable social brownie points that’ll help you when the times comes to call on REVIEWERS for your novel.

(iv)             Re-write after notes. Let it sit for a week or two, re-read & revise yet again.

*BETA readers are so called because BETA is the second letter of the Greek Alphabet. Alpha is the author/writer and Beta is the second person to read.

Now you are ready for your next phase. Depending on the path you want to take (Agent submissions, Publisher direct submissions or Self Publishing) will decide your next step. If Agent or Publisher, now is the time to sharpen your query letter/submission letter and if SP is your path, now is the time to start working on a cover design and interviewing editors.

You’ve decided your path and sorted out your introduction letter, re-read your MS one more time and send out your query, your submission or your first pages to editors for them to give you a ball-park estimate on their services.

But I hear someone saying, how much will an editor cost me?

If you are with an agent and/or a publisher, then nothing, it’s part of the process to publishing. If you are planning on SP, then it depends on what you want (referring above), the experience of the editor and the amount of work involved on your particular project.

What I will say is this:

(i)                 Be careful of people who quote on a PER WORD basis only. That is to say, someone who quotes say one cent per word, as there is variation in the work from job to job. There is nothing wrong with giving a ball-park (as I do) however, any editor worth their salt will want to read some of your material and confirm their rate. They will also add into the agreement that should the figure likely change they will inform you before continuing.

(ii)               Only consider editor’s who work in your field/genre/category. If someone advertises they accept all work (or practically all), this should signal further discussion. No one can specialise in all areas and all fields.

(iii)             Professional editors who do freelance work will always offer 5-odd pages free. The point of this is to assess the author’s skill-set as well as assessing if this project fits the editor’s area of interest and expertise. If an editor does not offer a “free” X-number of pages for assessment, they might not be the right match for you.

(iv)             Avoid at ALL COSTS open-ended agreements. Phrases/sentences to look for are:

a.       Let’s see how we go, I’ll get back to you.

b.      I never go over X/Y/Z hours.

(v)               Open ended reply dates. There should be a clear indication of turn around time. Yes, things change and delays happen, however, if you need your manuscript back in two weeks then this forms PART of the agreement and PUT IT IN WRITING.

(vi)             Full payment upfront. NEVER ever pay 100% upfront. It is not uncommon to pay 50% deposit, especially for larger jobs, but if an editor wants 100% payment upfront, then I would be running for the hills. At the same time, the editor wants to know you are good ‘for the money’ so to speak and by agreeing to pay a portion upfront (and paying it) the editor is more likely to be keen to begin work on your project. You are welcome to negotiate. For example, you could offer to pay 25% upfront and a further 25% a week or two later and the balance on completion. But less than 25% upfront payment would be unreasonable.

 So how much should you be paying? For a full and complete editorial service, assuming you have done your BETA and CP part already, it could cost anywhere between $2,000-5,000 – sometimes even more.

However, if you initially hire an editor to do proof or line editing, the cost should be in the $100’s and when the notes are returned, there are more often than not hints on other issues (plot holes, repetition of word usage, too many adverbs, too much exposition and so on). By working through the proof-read / line edit and by addressing those other issues, you will likely save yourself $1,000 or more in the long-run.

Now for the bad news. No one is perfect. Not even editors.

They (we) miss things. Sometimes its little things, and sometimes its bigger things. This does not mean you’ve had a poor or bad editor, it simply means you’ve had a human working with you.

After you have finished and your editor is finished I STRONGLY recommend having a new BETA reader or (if you are at the ARC’s stage) future REVIEWER’S read your ARC copy, so as to pick up anything everyone has missed.

The more set’s of eyes the better.

Don’t disparage your editor, whether you are with a publishing house or you are self publishing, because they missed a few things on a 100,000 word manuscript. But at the same time, don’t think they (we) are infallible.

That’s why ARC’s are sent out very, very, early. Not only for your reviewers to read and prepare for your launch but also so they can catch anything that has slipped through the editorial net.

Editors are VITAL. They are your additional skill-set and will help your work go from mundane to great but at the end of the day, it is your work and your responsibility to ensure you have the right editor for your project and to also ensure your project is as sharp as possible before opening it to the general public.

How to Get a Book Review – or the Art of Launching without becoming a Nuisance!

Reviews – Getting what you want!

I have a confession to make. I’m a bit of an internet snoop. I troll, stalk, errh check-out dozens of author blog sites, and when I say AUTHOR I mean that in every context, traditionally published fiction & non-fiction author’s, self-published, aspiring, New York Times and Major Prize Winning author’s and the little guys.. In other words, I’m interested in everyone from traditional to hybrid, to self-published to as-yet-unpublished.

All of these sub-groups of authors have numerous things in common, especially “getting-word-out” marketing needs. And lately I’ve been seeing a lot of“How do I get my book reviewed” tweets, questions on LinkedIn and on Blogs. And it’s a fair enough question. If you don’t have an agent, and/or a medium to larger publisher, you’ll need to do a lot of marketing yourself.

Let me repeat that. Even with a publisher behind you. Even with a decent sized publisher, you will have to do a lot of marketing yourself…

“OK” I hear you saying, “But how?”

Here’s the truth, ideally your marketing started LONG before you signed a publishing deal. Yes, it’s true you DO NOT need to have a public/social profile presence to become a NYT Best Seller. But here’s a reality check, not many authors will be NYT Best Sellers, at least not with your first novel. It DOES happen, but not often. So your job is not only to write a killer novel and drop-dead-gorgeous submission, you also have to be prepared for the day you’ll need reviewers.

Now, I’m going to assume that you’ve got a Twitter and/or Facebook, LinkedIn (etc.) profile and that you’ve been interacting with agents, editors, other authors, friends and the general public and have a ½ decent following and a few loyal friends that you’ll be able to call on first as BETA’S and then as Reviewers. (If you don’t … get on to it and if you’re really stuck, leave a message and if I get enough messages I’ll post a blog update on developing a platform and social profile at another time).

For the purposes of this blog, I’m going to assume you have signed with either a small-ish publisher or are self-publishing… and therefore will be expected to do a lot of marketing yourself. First thing to accept is: With few exceptions, major news publications do not review Self-Published books, even though 100s of 1000s of self-published titles have been published and some of them have become Best Sellers. Even so, the lack of coverage in traditional media outlets has not stopped SP authors from their rise.

According to the New York Times, “Self-published titles made up roughly one-quarter of the top-selling books on Amazon last year.”

And according to Digital book World in May 2013, at least ten self-published books were best sellers. Books like Rachel Van Dyken’s The Bet, Katy Evans’Wool Omnibus Edition and Abbi Glines’ Twisted Perfection.

Further down, I will add some KNOWN REVIEWERS but for now, let us assume you are one of those who may struggle to find accredited reviewers. So what do you do?

Let’s look at time-lines first. Most professional reviewers need to receive a copy of your novel AT LEAST 3 months before Launch-Date, therefore you should be contacting EVERYONE 5-6 months before hand.

Types of reviews: There are three basic review types for a book.

(i)                 Cover Reveal/Book Launch. This is the simplest and often is the most popular for other authors with blogs as you’ll provide a cover, a blurb, a brief bio, a list of links (with the link) where the books are available and often a discount voucher that people reading the review can use.

(ii)               Q&A & Cover Reveal. This is more detailed and usually involves reading some or ideally all of the novel, or knowing the blogger/reviewer  quite well, and they you, (hence all that work you’ve been doing on social media) where they’ll pose a list of questions about you, your writing process and your novel. It’s much more in-depth, time consuming for both parties and much more intimate for the reader of the review. You’ll still provide a cover, a blurb, a brief bio, a list of links (with the link) where the books are available and so on.

(iii)             Full review of the Novel. This can also mix *(ii) but is always completely honest. The reviewer will be given a copy of your novel to read and in return they will write an honest and frank REVIEW of the novel. You will also supply links & a jepg cover of your novel as well as a brief Bio and often a photo of yourself. The reviewer will decide what to write ,what to omit and have a free hand – and they will also post a review on (for example) Amazon, Goodreads, Smashwords, etc.

How to decide who to send what? That’s up to you, but remember this, the bigger the name/following of your reviewer, the more people will read the review… good or bad. I tend toward an initial email to all (non-professional) reviewers, that is to say, Twitter/Facebook/LinkedIn friends that feature books & authors on their blogs. The initial email should be something like:

Hi there,

As you know my novel (TITLE) is due to be launched mid November 2015 and I am looking for people who might be interested in (List all three options). If you’re interested in being part of the launch please reply email me.

If your launch date is November 2015, you should be sending your first email out in June 2015, with a follow-up at the end of July to those who have not replied. NOTE one follow-up is more than enough, don’t become annoying! For those that have replied they want to do *(ii) or *(iii) send them a copy of the blurb, cover and/or book, thank them for their time and ask them to let you know “If we missed something” – I’ll let you in on a secret, everyone misses something and 5-10 extra sets of eyes are awesome!

NUMBERS:

Ideally you should be looking for (min):

5-10 in the (i) section

10 in the (ii) section

And at least another 10 in the (iii) section

Though that’s not always possible, it should be your min. aim. You also want to stagger the Launch.

In August, after you’ve heard back from those people who’ve read the novel and fixed the last of those annoying little errors, you (or your publisher), will now be ready to confirm a launch time-table. And if you don’t think reviews work, read this:

One best selling book that was boosted by an online book review was Colleen Hoover’s Hopeless. Maryse Black, whose blog reviews mostly S/P chick lit and contemporary romance, was one of Hoover’s early fans. Hoover self-published her third book, Hopeless, in December 2012 and it became a New York Times best seller. Black wrote a rave review of Hopeless around the time it was released, and within a few hours over 20 people commented, many saying they had purchased the book and were excited to read it. 

For Self-Published, Hybrid and authors with Small Press, word-of-mouth marketing is key, that’s a big-deal. Having those early, positive reviews was the first step into making Hopeless successful as it helped direct readers to the book, who then bought copies, and in turn posted their own reviews, creating a snowball effect that advanced it best seller status. FYI, after self-publishing several books on her own, Colleen Hoover is now with a traditional publisher thank-you-very-much. Hoover has also sold the movie rights to some of her work. Johanna Castillo, VP and senior editor of Atria Press, first learned about Hoover from book blogs.

And that’s how momentum starts. Funnily enough IT IS and IS NOT about numbers. You only need ONE GREAT REVIEW that is read by many to start a momentum but you might need to have 50 people review your novel in order to get that one great review.

So, it’s the end of August, you have your super-dooper-polished book ready to go. You have your reviewers ready to rock & dates booked in. Some *(i) & (ii)* will happen in Late September through to book-launch date and *(iii)* will start in October with IDEALLY one reviewer per week, every week from Mid October through to mid December.

Now you are ready to approach PROFESSIONAL REVIEWERS.

First, there is nothing wrong with sending copies to the New York Times. Yes it’s unlikely they will review your book but what the hell right? And should you make it the NYT Best Seller list, it would be kind of cool to be able to give interviews where you say “Well NY Times didn’t want to review my book when it first came out, that goodness for…” (and name those that DID help!)

Other people worth approaching:

Firstly, you MUST approach these people in August or at the latest September if you want their review to coincide with your launch. No, that is not a RULE however; many reviewer’s like to be “the first” to have found the next big thing, rather than hashing over what others have said.

Second, approaching does not equal a YES answer. I have prepared a list of some of the best international ones that are happy to cater for self-published and/or small-press authors. As you can imagine, they are all getting 100’s if not 1000’s of requests. Still, it CANNOT hurt to send a quick email.

Maryse Black http://www.maryse.net/

Black said she posts on average three reviews each week and that about 80 percent of the books she reviews are Self-published/ Indie authors.

We Fancy Books http://wefancybooks.blogspot.com.au/

“We Fancy Books” has five reviewers and focuses on YA fiction, contemporary, sci-fi, and paranormal romance. Approximately 20 percent of the books reviewed on We Fancy Books are Self-published/ Indie authors.

Dear Author http://dearauthor.com/

Jane Litte, the founder of romance review blog “Dear Author”, said her site posts 12 books each week, two per weekday and two on the weekend. “Dear Author” has eight reviewers, over 170,000 visitors each month, and it receives around 300 review requests each month from authors and publishers.

Chick Lit Central http://www.chicklitcentral.com/

Melissa Amster from “Chick Lit Central” said the website usually reviews two to three books per week, and they have a balanced mix of traditionally and self-published books.

indieBRAG http://www.bragmedallion.com/

“IndieBRAG” has a program called B.R.A.G. Medallion that reviews all genres of self-published print and digital books. Readers tell “indieBRAG” their preferred genres and then choose from a short list of titles which books to review.

Building Relationships with Book Reviewers

Some book reviewers try to stay in touch with authors after reading their books. Though in a few cases this helps an author get reviews for subsequent books, most reviewers said they decide whether or not to read new books by previously reviewed authors based on the content and quality of the book, and not by their relationship with the author.

Online Book Review Sites

Here’s a couple of  additional sites worth considering:

–         Blog Nation, http://www.blognation.com/blogs/book-reviews

–         The Indie View, http://www.theindieview.com/indie-reviewers/

–         iDreamBooks, https://idreambooks.com/

And don’t forget to post something on sites like LinkedIn, on Facebook, on your Blog. Also join sites like Scribophile (http://www.scribophile.com/ ) where you can not only get feedback & honest critique on your WIP, Query Letters & Synopsis, but you can also let people know you need reviewers and announce a publication.

And because we are an Australian organisation, I could not have a post without at least a few links to Aussie reviewers/options!

 –         The Sydney Morning Herald http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/books

–         Australian Book Review https://www.australianbookreview.com.au/

–         Aussie Reviews http://aussiereviews.com/

–         Aussie Authors http://www.aussieauthors.com/reviewers.htm

–         Aussie Bookworm Express http://aussiebookworm.wordpress.com/

–         The Age Entertainment http://www.theage.com.au/entertainment/books/type/book-review

So there you have it. More work – Sorry!

Don’t forget to talk to all your author, musician, artist and entertainment friends as well as anyone who has worked with you on your novel, from BETA’S to editors to illustrators, to CP partners… ask how they did it/are doing it. Share information, and knowledge and contacts.

And IRL you work as an accountant when you’re not bashing the keyboard? GREAT! Ask your friends at work to review your novel and give it a rating on Amazon & Goodreads. You volunteer at the local primary school tuck-shop every other Friday AWESOME! While you’re cutting sandwiches let the other parents know you have a book coming out… and when. Your local community centre as a small hall that can be hired out for events? WONDERFUL – arrange a book signing and drinks/BBQ/Meet-and-greet afternoon. Free food and/or free drinks will bring many along!

You need to be as active and as creative in your marketing approach as you were in writing your novel, even if that means stepping out of your comfort-zone and asking for help. Also, if anyone has anything to add to any of the above, any hints or suggestions, things that worked or did not work, I’d love to hear from you, as I know many, many others would 🙂