Caveat Emptor

Caveat Emptor

Publishing is an unregulated industry. Freelancing is unregulated, too. Gig workers don’t receive benefits like healthcare coverage, retirement contributions, and other perks that employers use to make full-time employment attractive. In short, freelancing...
The cost of publishing

The cost of publishing

Publishing is free. Really. Many misguided authors speak of “self-publishing” companies they hire to provide comprehensive services to produce their books and publish them; however, there’s no such thing as a self-publishing company. When you publish...
Advice for new writers

Advice for new writers

I see an awful lot of “new” writers who are beginning or working on their first novel length manuscripts. They’ve never written a book before, but they want to know how much money they’ll earn, how long the book should be, who are the best...
Answering basic questions

Answering basic questions

In the last few days, I’ve responded to inquiries as to whether an author can do everything oneself. My response to those questions is to ask another question: Yes, you can produce your book yourself, but should you? To determine whether you should produce your...
Editing software: Do or don’t?

Editing software: Do or don’t?

Remember those old Virginia Slims commercials? “You’ve come a long way, baby!” That same sentiment may be applied to editing software. It’s come a long way since those laughable spell checkers unable to distinguish between “from”...