Wandering in the Labyrinth of the Internet

This morning I began listening to Chasing the Bard by Philippa Ballantine, AKA Pip Ballantine, (free on iTunes as a podcast) which is a fantasy novel. I had no idea that you could find such quality writing for on iTunes. The second book in the series is also free and called Digital Magic. I found out about these while listening to The Creative Penn podcast by author JoAnna Penn.

The Creative Penn is full of loads of information on self-publishing, writing, marketing, traditional publishing, and everything you could want to know about becoming an author. It is a wonderful resource. JoAnna has four years of podcasts on her website free for anyone who wants to take a listen. Some of the information from 2010 is a little outdated because the self-publishing market has changed quite a lot over the last four years.

JoAnna interviews various authors and entrepreneurs. I have found them very helpful in navigating the very intimidating world of becoming an author. She also provides a lot of inspiration and hope for me as well. She began her writing career with a non-fiction book and initially wrote while holding down her day job. I started the same way beginning with my memoir Fighting for a Chance to Dream, which has been vacationing in my closet waiting for another edit and me to save the money for a professional editor and book designer (for a cover, maps, and internal formatting).

When I first began writing my memoir, I wanted to go the traditional publishing route, but having learned more about self-publishing I know that it the best path for me and my books. I falsely believed that going the traditional route would save me time, which is a huge commodity in my life, because  I would not have to do the marketing, but the more I delved into the well of information the more I learned that this is just not true. Most agents and publishing houses will not even consider looking at your work if you haven’t spent a year or more marketing it and yourself before publishing. I am sure there are exceptions to this rule, but I didn’t make it through law school and as an ultrarunner with two children in tow believing I was the exception to the rule.

There is so much information about self-publishing and becoming an author on the internet and the various social media sites that it is frankly overwhelming. I’ve tried to put some sort of boundary on where I am getting my information only to maintain my own sanity and sense of control.

Here is a list of the sites I have been relying on for information:

TheCreativePenn.com (Author JoAnna Penn)

• Marketing, platform, self-publishing (all aspects), traditional publishing, and craft is sprinkled in here and there.

Helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com (Author K.M. Weiland)

• Craft of writing.

Terribleminds.com

• Flash Fiction Fridays, information about the state of the publishing world and other authors.

From these sites, I explore the sites of authors and others involved in the business of writing. Check them out if you haven’t already. I hope they help you as much as they have helped me.