Nobody Wants to Read Your Sh*t


Book Description

There's a mantra that real writers know but wannabe writers don’t. And the secret phrase is this: NOBODY WANTS TO READ YOUR SH*T. Recognizing this painful truth is the first step in the writer's transformation from amateur to professional. From Chapter Four: “When you understand that nobody wants to read your shit, you develop empathy. You acquire the skill that is indispensable to all artists and entrepreneurs—the ability to switch back and forth in your imagination from your own point of view as writer/painter/seller to the point of view of your reader/gallery-goer/customer. You learn to ask yourself with ev­ery sentence and every phrase: Is this interesting? Is it fun or challenging or inventive? Am I giving the reader enough? Is she bored? Is she following where I want to lead her?




The Story Grid


Book Description

WHAT IS THE STORY GRID? The Story Grid is a tool developed by editor Shawn Coyne to analyze stories and provide helpful editorial comments. It's like a CT Scan that takes a photo of the global story and tells the editor or writer what is working, what is not, and what must be done to make what works better and fix what's not. The Story Grid breaks down the component parts of stories to identify the problems. And finding the problems in a story is almost as difficult as the writing of the story itself (maybe even more difficult). The Story Grid is a tool with many applications: 1. It will tell a writer if a Story ?works? or ?doesn't work. 2. It pinpoints story problems but does not emotionally abuse the writer, revealing exactly where a Story (not the person creating the Story'the Story) has failed. 3. It will tell the writer the specific work necessary to fix that Story's problems. 4. It is a tool to re-envision and resuscitate a seemingly irredeemable pile of paper stuck in an attic drawer. 5. It is a tool that can inspire an original creation.




How to Write and Sell Simple Information for Fun and Profit


Book Description

Packed with income-generating ideas about creating a variety of saleable written works, this guide includes information for researching and writing effective, instructional materials and calling upon a variety of publishing channels, including magazines, traditional book publishers, self-publishing, and the Internet. The mechanics behind becoming a successful writer and information packager are presented in this resource that explores how to write and sell simple information in multiple formats, allowing writers to turn specialized knowledge into money-making books and products.




Writing to Sell


Book Description

With this guide, writers can learn how to create good fiction and publish profitably, guided by the timeless advice of the man who built the legendary literary agency that still bears his name. Includes information on creating characters, plotting a novel, formatting the manuscript, deciphering a publishing contract, and more.




You Should Really Write a Book


Book Description

Even if you don't happen to be a celebrity, this book will teach you methods for striking publishing gold—conceptualizing, selling, and marketing a memoir—while dealing with the complicated emotions that arise during the creation of your work. If you've ever been told that "You should really write a book" and you've decided to give it a try, this book is for you. It hones in on the three key measures necessary for aspiring authors to conceptualize, sell, and market their memoirs. Written especially for those who don't happen to be celebrities You Should Really Write a Book reveals why and how so many relatively unknown memoirists are making a name for themselves. With references to more than four hundred books and six memoir categories, this is essential reading for anyone wanting to write a commercially viable memoir in today's vastly changing publishing industry. The days are long gone when editors and agents were willing to take on a manuscript simply because it was based on a "good" idea or even because it was well written. With eyes focused on the bottom line, they now look for skilled and creative authors with an established audience, too. Brooks and Richardson use the latest social networking, marketing, and promotional trends and explain how to conceptualize and strategize campaigns that cause buzz, dramatically fueling word-of-mouth and attracting attention in the publishing world and beyond. Full of current examples and in-depth analysis, this guide explains what sells and why, teaches writers to think like publishers, and offers guidance on dealing with complicated emotions—essential tools for maximizing memoir success.







Write More, Sell More


Book Description

You'll Learn effective strategies for optimizing every aspect of your writing business. With Bly's proven advice you can: develop highly efficient work habits; reach better-paying markets; craft queries and proposals that get you the best deals; and generate referrals, repeat business, reprints and resales. The sample book proposals, contracts, query letters and promotional brochures included in this book will help you expand your skills, run a solid business and get more clients.




A Programmer's Guide to Computer Science


Book Description

You know how to code..but is it enough? Do you feel left out when other programmers talk about asymptotic bounds? Have you failed a job interview because you don't know computer science? The author, a senior developer at a major software company with a PhD in computer science, takes you through what you would have learned while earning a four-year computer science degree. Volume one covers the most frequently referenced topics, including algorithms and data structures, graphs, problem-solving techniques, and complexity theory. When you finish this book, you'll have the tools you need to hold your own with people who have - or expect you to have - a computer science degree.




Web. Write. Sell.: Write Ads, Headlines, and Calls to Action That People Can't Help But Click


Book Description

This entirely practical guide teaches you how to write ad copy that conveys your brand and converts clicks into sales, traffic, and sign-ups, while avoiding flashy, artistic ads that have zero selling power. Copywriter Chris Kennedy explains the rules for writing ads, describes ways to hit your advertising goals consistently, and shows how to craft ad copy for websites and social media. Because different audiences are receptive to different kinds of ads, Chris shows how to change your message and tone based on your target audience and customer persona. He also walks you through some common dos and don'ts and explains how internet advertising differs from traditional marketing. - Understand your audience. - Convert clicks to sales. - Hit your advertising goals. - Grab the reader's attention. - Research SEO keywords. - Keep content relevant. - Funnel readers to a final call-to-action instruction. - Improve the chances of acquiring new customers in your ads. - Avoid clickbait and dying trends. - Recognize the importance of choosing grammar and syntax carefully. - Master business-to-business etiquette. - Use search operators to conduct marketing research efficiently. Contents 1. Web Ads 2. Web Headlines 3. Choosing the Perfect Word or Phrase 4. Marketing to Businesses 5. Advanced Google Searches




Writing and Selling Poetry, Fiction, Articles, Plays, and Local History


Book Description

This book is designed to help both the beginning writer and the published writer who wants additional guidance in the marketing aspects of the trade. All the creative aspects of writing are covered from how to get and develop ideas to the ways and means of researching them. There are sections on copyright, contracts and computers as well as how to solve the "writer's block" and how to handle the writer's horror: rejections. An extensive bibliography serves as a guide for further reading. "Wisconsin Bookwatch" reported: "...a thoroughly 'user friendly' guide written especially for novice writers trying to cope with the necessities of marketing, as well as writer's block, handling the soul-crushing rejections, scrutinizing one's contract, and more. 'Writing and Selling' is recommended as a brief, simply presented instructional reference offering meticulous step-by-step directions, and as an effective starting primer for aspiring writers seeking remunerative publication of their work."