Welcome to Top Picks Thursday!
In Cairo, Egypt, Owen and Mzee photographer Peter Greste is awaiting trial with two other journalists.
Libraries are lifeblood of the community. In New York, the controversial New York Public Library renovation plan waits for the go-ahead from the new De Blasio administration. In England, author Philip Pullman champions school libraries, and in Manhattan, a six-year-old decides that homeless kids deserve books, too.
In the United Kingdom, the Hugo Awards announced this year’s hose: celebrity Jonathan Ross. Then Twitter exploded against Ross and he stepped down. Neil Gaiman expressed his disappointment in the SF/F fans, and Andrea Phillips says the SF/F community needs to practice the tolerance, forgiveness, and education they claim to espouse, because no one is perfect.
There is a movement afoot to get publishers to give up gender-labeling for books.
This is not a post about writing, but it is an important post for many writers and for our society at large. Libba Bray opens up eloquently about what it’s like to live under the burden of depression. Many writers suffer from depression and other mental illnesses, and our society is woefully uneducated about them. Help can be hard to find. If you need help, reach out–there is help, and you are not alone.
On a lighter note, this 16th century arms manual shows rocket cat weaponry (yes, I said rocket cat); and check out these insanely titled books that actually made it to the shelves.
CRAFT
Time to write! Roz Morris shows us how to plan our story checklist; Janalyn Voigt tells us how to fix flat writing; and Ava Jae shares 5 tips for writing dual POV stories.
If you write for children, Allan Boroughs says it is imperative to research your novel, and Wise Ink shares some rules for writing for struggling readers.
When you’re done writing, you need feedback. But what if you’ve chosen the wrong critique partner?
Even before your book is out in the wild, you’ll need an author bio. Heather Hummel has 10 tips on how to write an author bio. And if your book eventually goes out of print, Laurel Snyder shows us an awesome way to go out of print.
Writing about real life events, or basing your characters on real people, can work wonderfully, or it can prove dicey. Judith and Dennis Fradin retold Oscar-winner 12 Years a Slave for younger children successfully–and they pulled no punches. John le Carré, on the other hand, is defending himself against accusations that his portrayal of the espionage world had hurt his former mentor, the inspiration for le Carré’s George Smiley.
Speaking of inspiration, Janice Gable Bashman explores the inspirations that keep us writing; Jenny Mayhew discusses the weirdness of published life; and Alice Walker talks creativity.
BUSINESS
Amazon workers seek justice from a business-friendly Supreme Court. Can they prevail?
In other Amazon news, Audible (owned by Amazon) cuts its royalty rate from up to 90% to a flat 40%. Porter Anderson examines what this means for Audible, authors, and what it might portend for book royalties from Amazon.
Kristen Lamb discusses if authors should have to market themselves; Alex J. Cavanaugh tells us where to advertise your ebook discounts and freebies; and Kristine Kathryn Rusch explains how networking can help discoverability.
In this day and age, we do need to have internet visibility, whether we like it or not. Anne R. Allen reminds us of a simple way to build platform; Kimberly Grabas tells us how to get book reviews; Pauline shares 43 strategies to grow your blog with Pinterest; and Jeff Bullas has 11 tips to double your Twitter followers.
THE UNIQUE SHELF
Read Across America month celebrates Dr. Seuss. Heather Newman gathers 21 delicious treats for Dr. Seuss fans.
Books stir the imagination and the emotions. Check out these 17 ingenious photos of people posing with books; some of England’s iconic authors dressed up as favorite children’s book characters; and books for comfort reads.
Jane Austen fans: take a video visit to Jane Austen’s Chawton Cottage home, and read an 1814 letter to her sister Cassandra.
Kat Lister debunks the myths surrounding Zelda Fitzgerald.
Finally, here are 10 huge misconceptions about famous Medieval figures–including Gutenberg.
That’s it from us this week!
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The Author Chronicles 
Welcome to Top Picks Thursday!
In Cairo, Egypt, Owen and Mzee photographer Peter Greste is awaiting trial with two other journalists.
Libraries are lifeblood of the community. In New York, the controversial New York Public Library renovation plan waits for the go-ahead from the new De Blasio administration. In England, author Philip Pullman champions school libraries, and in Manhattan, a six-year-old decides that homeless kids deserve books, too.
In the United Kingdom, the Hugo Awards announced this year’s hose: celebrity Jonathan Ross. Then Twitter exploded against Ross and he stepped down. Neil Gaiman expressed his disappointment in the SF/F fans, and Andrea Phillips says the SF/F community needs to practice the tolerance, forgiveness, and education they claim to espouse, because no one is perfect.
There is a movement afoot to get publishers to give up gender-labeling for books.
This is not a post about writing, but it is an important post for many writers and for our society at large. Libba Bray opens up eloquently about what it’s like to live under the burden of depression. Many writers suffer from depression and other mental illnesses, and our society is woefully uneducated about them. Help can be hard to find. If you need help, reach out–there is help, and you are not alone.
On a lighter note, this 16th century arms manual shows rocket cat weaponry (yes, I said rocket cat); and check out these insanely titled books that actually made it to the shelves.
CRAFT
Time to write! Roz Morris shows us how to plan our story checklist; Janalyn Voigt tells us how to fix flat writing; and Ava Jae shares 5 tips for writing dual POV stories.
If you write for children, Allan Boroughs says it is imperative to research your novel, and Wise Ink shares some rules for writing for struggling readers.
When you’re done writing, you need feedback. But what if you’ve chosen the wrong critique partner?
Even before your book is out in the wild, you’ll need an author bio. Heather Hummel has 10 tips on how to write an author bio. And if your book eventually goes out of print, Laurel Snyder shows us an awesome way to go out of print.
Writing about real life events, or basing your characters on real people, can work wonderfully, or it can prove dicey. Judith and Dennis Fradin retold Oscar-winner 12 Years a Slave for younger children successfully–and they pulled no punches. John le Carré, on the other hand, is defending himself against accusations that his portrayal of the espionage world had hurt his former mentor, the inspiration for le Carré’s George Smiley.
Speaking of inspiration, Janice Gable Bashman explores the inspirations that keep us writing; Jenny Mayhew discusses the weirdness of published life; and Alice Walker talks creativity.
BUSINESS
Amazon workers seek justice from a business-friendly Supreme Court. Can they prevail?
In other Amazon news, Audible (owned by Amazon) cuts its royalty rate from up to 90% to a flat 40%. Porter Anderson examines what this means for Audible, authors, and what it might portend for book royalties from Amazon.
Kristen Lamb discusses if authors should have to market themselves; Alex J. Cavanaugh tells us where to advertise your ebook discounts and freebies; and Kristine Kathryn Rusch explains how networking can help discoverability.
In this day and age, we do need to have internet visibility, whether we like it or not. Anne R. Allen reminds us of a simple way to build platform; Kimberly Grabas tells us how to get book reviews; Pauline shares 43 strategies to grow your blog with Pinterest; and Jeff Bullas has 11 tips to double your Twitter followers.
THE UNIQUE SHELF
Read Across America month celebrates Dr. Seuss. Heather Newman gathers 21 delicious treats for Dr. Seuss fans.
Books stir the imagination and the emotions. Check out these 17 ingenious photos of people posing with books; some of England’s iconic authors dressed up as favorite children’s book characters; and books for comfort reads.
Jane Austen fans: take a video visit to Jane Austen’s Chawton Cottage home, and read an 1814 letter to her sister Cassandra.
Kat Lister debunks the myths surrounding Zelda Fitzgerald.
Finally, here are 10 huge misconceptions about famous Medieval figures–including Gutenberg.
That’s it from us this week!
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Posted in Audio Books, Blogging, Booksellers, Character, Creativity, Editing, Libraries, Marketing, Outreach, Pacing, Point of View POV, Reading, Self-publishing, Social Media, The Writing Life, Twitter, Writing Business, Writing Craft | Tags: 10 misconceptions about famous Medieval figures, 10 tips to write a bio, 11 tips to double your twitter followers, 12 Years A Slave for younger readers, 21 delicious treats for Seuss fans, 43 ways to use Pinterest to grow your blog traffic, 5 dual POV writing tips, a boy starts library for homeless kids, Alex J. Cavanaugh, Alice Walker on creativity, Alison Flood, Allan Boroughs, Amazon workers seek justice from Supreme Court, Andrea Phillips, Andrew Leonard, Anne R. Allen, Audible cuts royalty rates, Ava Jae, blog comments raise your platform, Brainpickings, BuzzFeed, Chapter Book Challenge, comfort reads, Darah Goodyear, debunking myths about Zelda Fitzgerald, Dennis Fradin, Deus Ex Machinatio, discoverability, England's top authors dress up as favorite children's book characters, Feminist Times, flat writing fixes, give up gender-labeling for books, Gwendolyn Huber, Heather Hummel, Heather Newman, Helping Writers Become Authors, how to get book reviews, Huffington Post, Hugo Awards host controversy, Insecure Writers Support Group, J. Thomas Ross, Janalyn Voigt, Jane Austen's letter to her sister, Jane Friedman, Jeff Bullas, Jenny Mayhew, John le Carre and George Smiley inspiration, Jonathan Ross, Joshua Farrington, Joshua T. Garcia, Judith Fradin, Kat Lister, Kerry Gans, Kimberly Grabas, KM Weiland, Kristen Lamb, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Laurel Snyder goes out of print, Libba Bray on depression, ListVesrse, Live Write Breathe, Matt Q. McGovern, Michael Ribinkam, Nancy Keim Comley, National Geographic, Neil Gaiman, New York Public Library renovation on hold, New York Times, Nina Terrero, PastNow, people posing with books, Philip Pullman champions school libraries, photographer Peter Greste awaits trial in Egypt, Porter Anderson, Rachel Hartigan, researching your novel, Robin Edds, Robin Pogrebin, rocket cats, Roz Morris, SF/F community needs to practice forgiveness, Shea, Shelf Life, should authors have to market themselves, story checklist, The Atlantic Cities, The Author Chronicles, The Bookseller, The daily Beast, The Guardian, The MetaPicture, tules for writing for struggling readers, TwelveSkip, weird book titles, weirdness of published life, when you have the wrong critique partner, where to advertise your ebook, Wise Ink, Writers and Artists