Why You Should Write Regularly

Blog post updated 23/01/2019

Writing regularly can seem impossible, especially when you're try to cope with writer's block, and a everyday living.  It's a skill that requires developing and honing

When you make writing a regular part of your life, it not only instills discipline, but also offers up some other important betterment's, such as:

1. Raising Your Level of Creativity

Your creativity will start to shine through after a couple of weeks.  Ideas will flow, and inspiration will start oozing out of your pores.  By simply exercising your creative muscle, you open the doors to endless possibilities.

2. Increasing Your Confidence

Fear holds creativity back for many people, leaving them to succumb to perfectionism and anxiety of being rejected by others. A good writer will rely on their own steam to get them by.

Write a little everyday, and your writing fear will disappear.  Your confidence will overflow, because you've learnt to conquer your fear. 

3.  Empowering You to Explore Different Forms of Writing

There are lots of different kinds of writing to choose from.  Writing regularly allows you to dabble a little, and stretch your writing muscle. If you're writing blog posts, why not try copywriting.  If you're in the middle of writing a book, try writing a short poem.

4. Valuing Everything You Write

Perfectionism is an easy trap to fall into, leaving you to think that you should only be doing your best work all of the time. Even for the most proficient writer, writing a perfect draft is an impossibility.   By only seeking perfection, you miss out learning from your mistakes, and overcoming your fear of failing as a writer. 

5. Wrestling Writer's Block

By far the most common problem for all writer's is writer's block, which can easily be beaten with these simple tips:

1. Have a reason to write something, like a writing a journal or a short or poem.
2. Make a point of writing for 15 minutes a day.  Shut the world out, and just write.
3. Make a note on your calendar or diary, and choose when you want to write.
4. Even the really great writer's we all know and love, made mistakes.  If you make mistakes, embrace them.

So in short, simple terms set yourself reminders, stay focused and write. 

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What You Need to Know About Book Cover Design

Book cover design plays an integral part in the selling of any book, be it fiction or non-fiction.  Creating an attractive and unique design can be challenging for those of us who aren't art smart.

A well-designed book cover can be both a curiosity, and hint to the true content of a book. 

For the avid reader a book cover needs to be memorable, simple and unique.  Just enough to make you want to buy the book.  This compells most readers into buying the book, all because the book has a cover that stands out from the rest. 

Here are some crucial points to consider when you design a book cover:

1. The Book Cover is a Reflection of its Contents

In other words you need to know what's written inside before you start your design.

2. Don't Complicate It

Don't confuse your audience with a meaningless design, people need to understand what it's about within seconds of  setting their eyes on the cover.

3. Don't Overdo the Design

Don't be overly ambitious when you start creating your book cover, this could leave your design lifeless, and a detriment to you the author.

4. Does it Require a Personal Photo?

This usually comes more into play with autobiographies than any other kind of book.  You only need a personal photo if the personality is fairly well-known or prominent in the public eye.

5. Make Sure Its Clear Enough to Read as a Thumbnail

Amazon is the largest current self-publishing platform online today, so it makes sense to create a cover that can be seen by people using their tablets, mobile phones and computers.

6.  Don't Give it All Away on Your Book Cover

This pertains more to fiction than non-fiction titles, your cover design needs to reflect the book content without giving away the story.

7.  Follow the Rules

A book cover image should be a high resolution of 300 PPI (DPI), at least.

8. Disclose the Hook

The hook is is there to keep the reader both engaged and interested, this should be incorporated on the front cover.

9. Recognise the Various Publishing Techniques

Consider whether your book will be sold electronically or as a paperback, eBooks are different to paperback or hardback books, which can have an impact on the design of the book.

10.  Make Your Design Compelling and Captivating

Your book cover should be adequate enough to attract potential customers, and visually appealing to draw your audiences attention.

11.  Choose Your Colour Motif Carefully

Each colour has a specific basic meaning, so care needs to be taken when choosing the final graphic design of your book cover.

12.  Choose the Right Typeface

This will bring personality to the book cover, used in your title, tagline and author's name.

13. Adhere to the Message of Your Book

Make sure all of your typography and colours convey the right message, don't confuse your audience with a mixture of colours and typography that doesn't match up.

14.  Avert Banality

Make your book cover as memorable as possible, it needs to jump out of the web page, and be tantalising to the eye.

15. Ask Your Followers for Their Opinions

If you're not sure about your book cover design, ask your Twitter followers for some perspective.

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10 Perfect Creativelive Courses for Writers

"Never give up on a dream just because of the time it will take to accomplish it.  The time will pass away".  -  Earl Nightingale.

It's never too late to learn new things, especially if you're a writer.  As a writer we owe our readers the best of our knowledge, keeping up-to-date with the latest software, blogging techniques etc. 

Creativelive is a great way to learn courses to improve your writing, or look further a field at other points such as blogging and copywriting. 

Take a look at these 10 perfect Creativelive courses that cover a variety of areas for writers:

How to Break the Habit of Self-Doubt and Build Real Confidence

If you're plagued by impostor syndrome, thinking your accomplishments aren't real, and that you're secretly a fraud or failure.  Mel Robbins will give you actionable, concrete advice, and steps to practice, to help you stop being plagued by the constant worries that are crippling your daily life.

Starving to Successful: How to Become a Full-Time Writer

Many writers dream of making their hobby into a full-time job.  Under Jeff Goins guidance you'll discover that the days of the starving artist are gone, and writing is profitable, all you need to do is get over your mental blocks.

Overcome Writer's Block

You're not really a writer until you've suffered from writer's block. Unfortunately it's something that needs to be nipped in the bud pretty quickly.  You can't afford to wait until it passes you by.  Thankfully Dave Ursillo's course will get to the crux of writer's block and help you understand how to beat it.

How to Create Addictive Content

It can feel like an uphill struggle at times, coming up with content that's both fresh and innovative.  If you're looking to boost your content skills, look no further than Melissa Cassera's course.  She teaches you how to create content that is both engaging, and tells a story.

Time Management 101

A massive part of being a successful writer is being organised and productive, which requires time management.  24 hours in a day can seem like not long enough, being able to use those hours effectively will help you gain control over your priorities, and eliminate all distractions, helping you to crush your goals.

Copywriting for Crafters

Copywriting is the wordsmithing technique that will bring purchasers onto your website.  Lisa Jacobs, a dedicated creative consultant teaches you the words that will reach your customers or readers, and motivate them to buy your products and books.

Develop a creative Mindset and Write

Self-doubt and lack of discipline, fear of rejection, the list goes on, many of these things conspire to keep you from achieving your writing dream.  Take the class and learn how to crush the obstacles that stand in your way and prevent you from making writing a priority in your life.

Make More Money and Discover Your Worth

Knowing the real value of your work as a writer, means you often don't earn enough to pay the bills.  Sue Bryce and Tiffany Angeles show you how to value yourself and stop getting in your own way when it comes to making money.

Effective Email and Newsletter Marketing

Jeff Goins covers everything you need to know to integrate a thriving email marketing plan into your business or blog.  Teaching you ways to communicate with your clients.  Finding out exactly what you need, and how to use that information to effectively sell to your readers/customers.

How to Fufill Reader's Expectations

Learn how to decode your reader's hardwired expectations, which have nothing to do with the plot or words you've written.  So you can create a story that rivets them from the very first sentence.

This post contains affiliate links.  This means if you purchase through these links you are supporting 1976write and we thank you for that.

7 Reasons Why You Should Give Your eBook Away for Free

Every 90 days one of my eBooks is priced at $0 on Amazon, sounds crazy, here are my reasons for pricing my eBooks at zero: 

Reasons Why You Should Give Your eBook Away for Free

1. New authors need as many eyeballs as possible reading my their eBooks.

2. According to Amazon rankings there's no difference between a bought eBook or a free eBook. Either way the more people download it for free, the higher your book will be ranked.

3. New readers will recommend you to their friends and family.

4. More people reading your book, the more chance of a review.

5. A great way to promote your book, and inexpensive way to attract attention to your work.

6. Free isn't forever.

7. Think about what your future sales could be, just by giving an eBook away for free.

Why I Made My eBook Free

I'm still an unknown author on such a huge platform, it's in my best interest to get as many people as possible downloading or buying a copy of any of my books.

People love free stuff, don't hide away your writing, you need as many people as possible reading your work.  As crazy as it sounds, it's a great selling strategy. 

The Outlook is Promising

Over the coming years I have no idea how it will pan out, but I do know that people love free stuff, and finding a book worth reading for free is a must-have item.

Allowing people access to your eBooks for free can only help you as new author.  In these tough times you have to think outside the box to survive. 

This post contains affiliate links.  This means if you purchase through these links you are supporting 1976write and we thank you for that.

Why It's Good to Take a Breather from Writing

If you're like me and you love to write and want to write well, the thought of taking a break or time out, can seem pretty scary.  Especially if you're working on a big project.

Every time you sit down to write your thoughts need to be fresh.  When you start to feel lethargic or fed up then its time to take stock of your situation.

Check out these 3 reasons why taking a break from your writing is so important:

1. Resist Burnout

Going straight from one writing task to the next will sicken you and eventually wear you down.  That feeling of  elation when you see how many projects you've completed, will soon start to bore you.  The enjoyment you have for writing will slowly start to disappear.  That's why you need to take take time out, to clear your mind.

2. A New Point of View

A eureka moment, or moment of inspiration that comes over you suddenly,  is your brain engaging in passive thinking.  To put it simply, your brain keeps you chomping on a problem in a whole new way, while you're trying to stop it.

3.  Reinvigorated Mind

When you rest your body, your brain replenishes and restores you back to full power again.  So have a lazy day every once in a while, you'll discover how much more dynamic your writing will become.

Feel Transformed, Take a Break

You don't need to work your fingers to the bone to be a great writer.  Give yourself a day or two to chill out, then come back refreshed and ready for your next set of challenges. 

What are your thoughts about taking a break away from your writing? Let me know in the comments below.

This post contains affiliate links.  This means if you purchase through these links you are supporting 1976write and we thank you for that.

How to Select the Right Price for Your Book

When you self-publish a book you have no printing costs, publishing fees, postage or packaging costs to worry about, this is all taken care of when you decide to publish your book through a platform such as Amazon.

So bearing all that in mind the list below will help to decide on how you want to price your book.
Here are some of the most important elements to think about when pricing your book:

 1. What is Your Objective as an Author?

A lot of writers see themselves as authorpreneurs than just authors, and expect a large return on their investment.  Their end game is to price their book like any other earnings based business.

Fiction authors want you to love their books and tend to sell their books at a lower price, not minding the low rewards.

The third kind of author falls inbetween both of the above categories, who loves writing but wants their books to make money and be loved by all. 

2. Using Psychological Pricing

Commonly known as charm pricing, this strategy hangs on the theory that certain prices hold a psychological impact on the buyer.

That's why you see a lot of authors, particularly fiction writers who sell their eBooks at $0.99. 

3. Book Production Cost

If you've paid someone else to write, proofread or create an book cover design you need to factor that into your pricing.

4. Pricing Numerous Books

If you've written two books of a similar length and genre, pricing them the same might seem like a good option right?

You could make one $15.99 and the other $10.99, making the latter of the two look more appealing to buyers.  A lot of people will go for the cheaper of the two, but some people will think the more expensive book is a better option. 

5. Amazon Pricing

You have two royalty options when you sell your eBook through Amazon, 35% royalty or 70%, meaing your eBook can be priced between $2.99 - $9.99. 

6. Value and Uniqueness of Content

Does Your Book Stand-Out From the Crowd?

If your book is solving a problem, this is seen as something of value, particularly if it offers a unique perspective, along with your own knowledge and insight on a particular subject, all adding to the value of your book. 

7. Experiment with Pricing

With a platform such as Amazon you have flexibility when it comes to pricing.  For instance, when you first start selling your book you may want it at a lower price, but later on whebn sales really start picking up, you can move up your price on both your eBooks and paperbacks.

8. Is It Your First Book?

If you're a new author and your thinking of pricing your eBook low, think about the time and effort you've gone to to research your book.  Or the imagination that has gone into your novel.  I think $2.99 is a good place to start with a first eBook, even for a newbie.

My eBooks are all priced at $2.99, and paperbacks differently priced depending upon genre and amount of information in each.

Quick Summary

• Recognise your production cost
• Are you pricing the same or similar books already published?
• Does your books uniqueness warrant a higher price?
• Is it your first book?

This post contains affiliate links.  This means if you purchase through these links you are supporting 1976write and we thank you for that.

How to Keep Your Blog Fresh, and Handle Old Content

Managing your blog is a job in its self, its like cleaning out your closets.  It's always there for you to do, but something else always pops up that requires more attention.  Often leaving you with dry stagnant blog posts that require attentio.  You can read more about blogging in Blogger: Build Your Blogger Website in Five Steps from Start to Finish.

I'm going to show you why its so important to keep your blog content up-to-date.

1. Old Content Should Be Managed

A poorly managed blog might end up costing you a lot more than you think, especially with outdated information.  Check out the reasons below:

Blog Image

You only get one change to make a good impression, if your readers stumble upon archaic information they're more likely to view your website as a outdated, and unreliable.

Accountability

By interpretation a blog is a collection of public statements about your business.  Any outdated information may hold you accountable financially and legally.

Disastrous for SEO

Irrelevant and outdated content is bad for SEO, taking up space and offering no value.  Search engines such as Google look for good quality content to increase rankings.

Fall in Revenue

Old content may still be getting some traffic, and could still be a money maker.  So don't delete in haste. These posts should be recycled, and turned into revenue makers again.  Check out my blog post The Definitive Guide to Writing a Blog Post for tips on maximising your blog content.

Don't Delete in Haste!

Don't go crazy and start deleting all of your old blog posts, you need to go through each one and see if there is any potential left, and use what you have.  Here are some tips on repurposing your old content:

Update to gain more traffic

If your blog post has useful links simply refresh and update them.

Reaffirm their relevance

See what other bloggers are doing in your field and make your blog posts relevant again.

Save time and money by updating content

Your time is taken up by writing new posts, so why not refresh the old stuff you've already written and keep your blog content evergreen.

2. Tune Up Your Blog

Give your blog a tune up by recycling or updating old blog posts.  You can do this by:

Revitalizing Good Content

Make it relevant again by:

• Checking over important information such as people, titles etc.
• Checking references to obsolete technology and old business information.
• Referencing current trends.
• Amending time based references and making them relative to the post date.
• Amending tenses and make them relevant again.
• Making sure your reader knows that you've updated a blog post, by letting them know with a simple note above each.

Restore SEO to Updated Blog Posts

• Update your blog post with a new image, to make it more visually appealing.
• Turn your new updated blog posts into an eBook.
• Make a video, and create a second format. 

3. Promote Your Repurposed Content

You've given your old blog posts a face lift, now its time to promote them again.

Make the most of social media, especially Twitter and Pinterest, as soon as you publish them post them!  Link your refreshed blog posts with your current content.

4. Give Your Blog a Long Shelf Life

Work on producing evergreen content, with subjects that have elements that don't change over time.
Stay clear of the latest trend in your blogging arena, these never last.

Make your references strong, for example, say June of 2017 instead of June of last year.

5. Establish a Regular Blog Post Review/Refresh Process

• Review your blog posts regularly
• Go through your Google Analytics for low page performers.
• Check incoming links for relevancy.
• Do search testing for your blog.
• Delete only blog posts that are no longer relevant to your brand, outdated or damaging.

In a Nutshell

Keep your blog up-to-date, and don't be afraid to clean out your closets every now and again.

This post contains affiliate links.  This means if you purchase through these links you are supporting 1976write and we thank you for that.

How to Design a Book Cover on Fotor

It's a simple fact these days that image is everything, especially when it comes to book covers.  In the early days of self-publishing authors didn't have many options when it came to creating their book cover.

But with the recent improvements in both graphics and design, you don't need to be book cover designer to produce a best selling book cover with Fotor.

How to Create Your Book Cover on Fotor

1. Select book cover option on Fotor's landing page.  Click on Book Cover button, and you'll be directed to the numerous templates available.  Gain access to all templates with Fotor Pro.

 

When you're going through all of the templates on offer, think about which category your book is in.  You'll discover templates for both fiction and non-fiction alike.

2. Choose Your Template

If you're still unsure about which template to choose here's an example of the template I used for the recent cover of my Amazing and Interesting Facts book on Amazon.

 

If you don't like the templates provided their are plenty of backgrounds and stickers available to create your own.

Backgrounds

 


Stickers

You also have the option to use a different template and resize it, I used this Pinterest post design on another book I published recently, The Writers Guide to Writing Well .

Template

My Book Cover as seen on Amazon

3. Choosing Your Font

If you've already chosen a template, you probably won't need to change your font, but you can always experiment with other fonts, to customise your template.

As you can see from my book cover above I decided to go with a larger font than the one chosen on Fotor.

After you've created your design and signed in to Fotor, you can go Pro and have the full choice of  templates on offered.  This is gives you freedom and choice, like my book covers above, and many many more templates.

It makes a world of difference designing a book cover with the right tools.  Go to Fotor (Best free online photo editor, collage maker and designer!) and start your book cover design today!

This post contains affiliate links.  This means if you purchase through these links you are supporting 1976write and we thank you for that.