Your email list is one of the most valuable marketing assets you'll ever build as an author. Unlike social media, where algorithms determine who sees your content, your email list gives you a direct line of communication with readers who have chosen...

Researching your nonfiction book is one of the first steps you’ll take in your author journey. When you require more than just your own expertise and knowledge to complete your book, put your best foot forward by consulting the research tools listed...

As a new author, there are many unknowns, and how to get your book into brick-and-mortar stores for traditional retail is one of the big ones. It seems easy enough, right? You have a great cover. Your book has a great message that everyone needs to hear...

There are many paths to success for authors beyond submitting your writing to publishers. Contests open the door to both publication and financial awards. Grants and fellowships provide financial support for your work, and residencies offer time to concentrate...

Strong stories need a plot, a setting, and most importantly, engaging characters. Agents and editors will tell you that all stories are character-driven. However, if your characters are stereotypes, one-dimensional, or predictable, the reader will soon...

Freelance editor Erin Brown gives tips on improving your chances of landing an agent to represent you and your book. Finding an agent can be an impossible-sounding, daunting task. Doing your research before you send out query letters is one of the...

In the self-promotion world, learning the vocabulary needed to run your own publicity and marketing is quite difficult. Marika Flatt, founder of PR By The Book, explains the difference between marketing and publicity. There are many differences and...

Mystery author Serita Stevens breaks down the essential elements of a great mystery novel. If you think of a book like “And Then There Were None” by Agatha Christie, you see that a great mystery is made not because of how a murder was committed, but...

Marika Flatt, public relations expert at PR by the Book, offers some perspective on how a publicist can help authors. In the last few decades, the online work that publicists do has obviously changed in previously unimaginable ways. Online media...