In more dark news for the publishing industry, media mainstay GalleyCat has announced that it will be closing its doors. The site, one of several under the umbrella of AdWeek, covered publishing industry news and offered reviews of upcoming books. According to a blog post signed by both Dianna Dilworth and Maryann Yin, "We thank you for your support and readership over the … [Read more...] about GalleyCat Closes as Industry News and Review Site
Indie Author News
Kobo Writing Life Shutdown Notice
Kobo Writing Life manually vets the e-books submitted to their service to ensure that quality content is being submitted to their online store and sold worldwide. In a recent email to authors, Kobo has disclosed that over the upcoming Christmas season they are not going to be publishing anything, until the staff have returned. "Just a reminder that as the holiday season … [Read more...] about Kobo Writing Life Shutdown Notice
The End of IndieReader
The publishing revolution has been a long and winding road, but through it all, there have been some powerhouse companies--both large and small--that have worked to bring books of every kind into the spotlight. One company, IndieReader, launched in 2009 with a very specific goal: the fan the flames of an indie book movement that had the same credibility and following of the … [Read more...] about The End of IndieReader
Bowker Releases Findings from Digital Publishing Survey
Bowker and Data Conversion Laboratory have just released their findings from their digital publishing survey. This is the third joint survey for DCL and Bowker, and this year’s attracted 698 participants, up from 579 in 2015 and 215 in 2014. The survey probes digital publishers and self-publishing authors to find trend lines across a wide swath of important topics. Question … [Read more...] about Bowker Releases Findings from Digital Publishing Survey
Indie Authors Are Ruining The e-Book Discovery Process on Amazon
There is a flood of self-published e-books on Amazon, that tell you right there in the title what they're about and how great they are. The Amazon Top 10 Book section is being flooded with indie authors optimising their titles to grab your attention, or in other words clickbait. The big trend in 2016 have been indie authors implementing copylines into book titles on Amazon. … [Read more...] about Indie Authors Are Ruining The e-Book Discovery Process on Amazon
Amazon Deletes “Incentive”-Based Reviews
For years, Amazon has fought back against paid review services. Sites that allowed authors to purchase blocks of reviews by the hundreds or even thousands gave consumers a legitimate reason to be mistrustful of any reviews, and the case of bad behavior painting all indie authors with the same brush was all to real. Amazon's initial action wasn't too popular with readers or … [Read more...] about Amazon Deletes “Incentive”-Based Reviews
Amazon Launches A New Writing Contest in the UK
Amazon wants authors in the United Kingdom to rewrite a classic and they intend on making it worth their while. The winner will receive a £2,000 Amazon gift card, a Fire Tablet and royalties for years to come. All you need to do is put a modern twist on the seminal poem "Twas Night Before Christmas". The winner of the Amazon sponsored writing competition will be will be … [Read more...] about Amazon Launches A New Writing Contest in the UK
Amazon Marketing Services Open to All Authors…Sort Of
Amazon has rolled out a new offer for authors whose titles are published through the Kindle platform: Amazon Marketing Services. Basically, this is an additional layer of potential promotion that the retailer has given authors, letting them pay for per-click advertising on their self-published titles. "Wait, Amazon's done that for ages. Why is this news?" Well, they've sort … [Read more...] about Amazon Marketing Services Open to All Authors…Sort Of
IDPF Approves Measure to Join W3C
A highly contentious move in the world of digital publishing has resulted in a combination of forces between the International Digital Publishing Forum (IDPF) and the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), a move that has caused no small measure of division among members and stakeholders. The IDPF proposed the measure last May at BookExpo, and the backlash was swift and loud. One … [Read more...] about IDPF Approves Measure to Join W3C
NaNoWriMo: But Did I Win?
With the excitement of NaNoWriMo firmly grasping authors everywhere, it's easy to forget that there are newcomers each year who are still a little perplexed by the whole process. The concept of writing the actual 50,000-word novel is already daunting enough, but then the notion of what to do with it when finished is somewhat harder. The first thing to remember about NaNo is … [Read more...] about NaNoWriMo: But Did I Win?