I’ve seen a lot of messes that were supposed to become books. I learned that fixing messes is neither cheap nor fast, and the results are rarely great. A mess before you start writing is manageable; afterwards, not so much. What is a mess? Authors that build books haphazardly create messes. What is a mess?…
When we learned that Scribe Media, one of the largest publishing services companies, had laid off most of its staff, I figured we’d get the straight story in a few days. Nope. Two weeks later, we’ve heard mostly bullshit. The dishonest and unprofessional way in which this company has abused its authors, staff, and freelancers…
In my heart of hearts, there’s only one real reason I wrote Build a Better Business Book. It’s because it makes me so sad to see authors stymied — or worse, exploited — because they don’t understand how the process of authoring a book works. In other words, I don’t just want you to succeed….
When pitching yourself as a ghostwriter, you may worry most that you won’t get the job. But perhaps you should worry more about what happens if you succeed. At the start of ghostwriting projects, everyone is smiling and optimistic. It’s no fun to think about what might go wrong. But unless you protect yourself, you…
Publisher’s Lunch, usually a reputable source, is reporting that “Ghostwriting and publishing services firm Scribe Media abruptly shut down yesterday, laying off its staff.” A second source that I trust received an email saying that Scribe had laid off most of the staff in preparation for a sale. Other authors are reporting no response to…
You say you’re a writer? Good for you. But if you really want to be valued (and paid more), you need to constantly increase your versatility. You need to be a full-stack writer. Full-stack developers are valuable A full-stack application developer is one who is adept at all elements of creating software, including both front-end…
Google Docs is a pain for book collaboration. That was the general sentiment in a recent discussion I had with a bunch of writers, editors, and ghostwriters. If you’re going to use Google Docs, learn about access control. That’s the key to collaborating without driving each other bonkers. The challenge writers and editors face with…
Any nonfiction book with more than one contributor needs a carefully designed collaboration process. Not all tools are appropriate for all authors. So before you begin, plan how you’re going to move from ideation to research to drafts to completion and how everyone will contribute or approve content all along the way. To demonstrate how…
I helped these authors, can I help you? I’ve worked on 45 nonfiction book projects: big idea books, how-to books, textbooks, even memoirs. My philosophy is simple: Help authors refine their big idea, choose the right publishing model, write great prose, and make an impact on readers. I’d rather work closely with a few passionate…