CH-CH-CH-CHANGES: Amazon Reviews and Verified Purchases

When you buy books online, do you read reviews? Of course you do. I look at the general star ranking, read a couple of 5-stars, then 1-stars, then 3- stars, for an overall assessment. Unfortunately, people have tried to game the system over the years, and controversies have flared about authors paying for reviews, deliberately … Read more

The 5 Things I Hate About Writing Crime Fiction

Imagine a writer, okay – me — sitting with my feet up, happily tapping on my keyboard, writing 1500 words a day. Nice idea, right? But that’s all it is. An idea. The reality is I am usually sweating it out, getting up from the keyboard, cursing, and maybe—if it’s a good day— sitting back … Read more

Writing Lite Tip 50: Never pay for a review

Writing Lite Tip 50: Never pay for a review. It will come back to bite you.

Enough said? You don’t need to pay for reviews. You can find reviewers online, on Facebook (Check Reviewing groups), Twitter, Google+, and more. Some kind souls have even made lists of reviewers who will review self-published books, but you’ll have to check to see how timely they are. Make sure you craft a respectful, polite … Read more

Traditional vs Self-Publishing: An Update (Part Two)

  COMPARISON OF TRADITIONAL VS SELF PUBLISHING TRADITIONAL PUBLISHING Pros Cons Support Distribution Editing Bookstores Awards Reviews Agents Ebook Rights and RoyaltiesReporting and payments Smaller advance/print runs Limited time/shelf space Hinky contracts Possible Bankrupty Accounting irregularities Agents   Hi, again. In part one we tackled the supposed “pros” of support and distribution that I thought … Read more