Debut writers face an uphill battle with getting their titles noticed. It can be quite challenging to convince online reviewers to read a specific title or get newspapers to write an article. Kobo wants to help, the company has just announced their second annual Emerging Writer Prize. The Kobo Emerging Writer Prize identifies and rewards exceptional debut authors in three … [Read more...] about Kobo Just Announced a New Writing Contest
Indie Author News
Kobo Wants Indie Authors to Buy ISBN Numbers
Kobo wants indie authors who publish via Kobo Writing Life to buy ISBN numbers. This will allow companies like Nielsen who track digital book sales to be able to accurately track sales figures for the purchase of meaningful data. Kobo has just partnered with Bowker to give Writing Life Authors a discount on ISBN numbers. You can now buy a single ISBN for $100, marked down … [Read more...] about Kobo Wants Indie Authors to Buy ISBN Numbers
Public Domain e-books are all about the cover art
Many small publishing companies get their start by taking public domain e-books and selling them on Apple, Amazon and Kobo. Many of these titles all have to same cover art and do not stand out. Have you ever browsed Project Gutenberg? Many of the top downloaded content simply has the authors name and the book title which is not very compelling. In the last few years, the e-book … [Read more...] about Public Domain e-books are all about the cover art
What authors need to know about the new Kindle warning system
Amazon has announced that they will be publicly warning users if an e-book has spelling mistakes or formatting errors. This is meant to protect the average reader so they don't make an impulse purchase and regret it. Thousands of authors are asking a ton of questions about this new warning system and today we will answer the most common issues. One of the most common … [Read more...] about What authors need to know about the new Kindle warning system
Microsoft is offering support for Apple Pencil
The iPad Pro is starting to resonate with authors who like to scribble and jot down notes. Microsoft is listening and they are in the process of updating their complete line of Office apps to be compatible with the Apple Pencil. Microsoft said in a statement "As part of our effort to make Office even more intuitive and easier to use, we want to make pen and ink a primary … [Read more...] about Microsoft is offering support for Apple Pencil
Kindle e-Books will have a warning message if they have spelling mistakes or bad formatting
There are thousands of e-books on the Amazon Kindle Store that have content errors. This can be as simple as a series of spelling mistakes or the book might have formatting issues. Starting February 3, 2016 Amazon will begin showing customers a warning message on the Kindle store detail pages of books that contain several validated quality issues. The warning message will be … [Read more...] about Kindle e-Books will have a warning message if they have spelling mistakes or bad formatting
Please Pay My Bills So I Can Write
Female authors are dominating the romance and erotica genres when it comes to overall e-book sales. The Top 5 bestselling authors on iBooks are all women and in any given week they also account for 64% of the Top 100. Meanwhile at Amazon, 56% of the top 100 bestsellers are women and there have been times when the Publishers Weekly top 25 has been dominated by women. How is it … [Read more...] about Please Pay My Bills So I Can Write
Penguin Random House has Sold Author Solutions
Author Solutions is one of the most hated companies in the self-publishing arena because they prey on new writers and sell them packages that range between $3,000 and $12,000 dollars. Their promise is to get your book sold, and authors have reported that their telemarketers harass them on a daily basis trying to get them to spend more money. The animosity was so great, that … [Read more...] about Penguin Random House has Sold Author Solutions
Amazon thinks self-publishing is the key to growth in India
One of the only companies with enough market presence to pull off self-publishing in India is Amazon. The Seattle company is poised to do big business in India in the coming years, primarily due to FlipKart abandoning the e-book space and giving all of their customers away to Kobo. Neal Thompson is Amazon’s director for author and publishing relations. In a recent interview … [Read more...] about Amazon thinks self-publishing is the key to growth in India
Global Audiobook Trends and Statistics for 2016
Audiobooks are the fastest growing segment in publishing and everyone within the industry is very bullish about the future of the format. There are a number of new start-ups that are making waves and retailers are beginning to release that audiobooks are worth investing in. The global audiobook industry is currently evaluated at 2.8 billion dollars and this is primarily due … [Read more...] about Global Audiobook Trends and Statistics for 2016