In the fifth part of this series, Chris Holifield gives an update on
writers' routes to their audiences:
It is a supreme irony that at time when creative writing courses are
turning out large numbers of keen writers and almost everyone seems to think
they have a book in them, it has never been so hard to find a publisher.
First article:
Bookselling
Second article:
Publishing
Third article: Print on Demand and the
Long Tail
Fourth article: Self-publishing - career
suicide or 'really great'
Read the two winning poems from the gifted young 7-8 and 9-11
year-old poets who have won first prizes in this international competition.
John is on feisty form this month as he attacks the 'log-rolling' of
reviews and the silly results from best books of the year round-ups - for
which he gives his own suggested list.
Zoe Jenny, who was born in Switzerland but is shortly publishing her
first book written in English:
'Now that I am writing in English I have to start all over again, earning
my credentials in a new market. I am essentially back to square one. But
maybe that is the most exciting place to be.'
My Say 7: Timothy Hallinan on the Writing
Session.
My Say 8: Jae Watson on the magic formula which
enables writers to 'cross that fine, elusive line dividing unpublished and
published writers'.
Fauzia Burke is founder of a an Internet marketing firm specializing in
creating online awareness for books and authors. Her article shows how
successful niche publishers are reaching communities of readers on the web.
Maureen Kincaid Speller reviews this useful new book and concludes that:
'It is true the handbook asks for a lot from the reader in terms of
participation and active thought, but for those writers who are extremely
serious about improving their work, it provides a valuable course in how to
think about the art and craft of writing.'
'Very few works of non-fiction can do without an index of some description...
If the reader is lucky, the index will allow them to find the term they seek and
take them immediately to a relevant and useful mention of that term or
concept... So why can’t a computer programme achieve this?
Joanne Phillips' article on Indexing looks at why non-fiction books need
them, why it's a specialist job and why computers can't achieve the same result
as a skilled indexer.
A professional index is essential for any work of non-fiction. Readers expect
to find a useful, well-presented index at the back of a book, and can get very
frustrated if the index doesn’t quickly lead them to the information they seek.
- Are you an author planning to compile your own index?
- Have you been asked by your publisher to provide an index for your
book?
- Are you self-publishing your work? If so, don’t let your readers
down by offering them a sub-standard index.
A professional index will set your work apart from other self-published
books. Indexing need not be expensive – and an effective index is the key to a
good non-fiction book.
