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Discoverability: Make readers aware of your books

February 16, 2017 By Ruth Kaufman

A buzz word in self-publishing right now is discoverability. You can have an amazing book in a popular genre, a stunning, stand-out cover, even some great reviews and/or a major contest win and some press/social media, but very few sales. So how do you make your book discoverable?

Why? As of this writing, there are more than 1.1 million novels in Kindle ebooks alone, and more than 90,000 new releases in the lat 30 days. There are dozens if not hundreds of ways to browse on Amazon alone. By subgenre, best sellers, daily deals, countdown deals and of course author and title, just to name a few. There are of course other sites, libraries and even stores.

Here are the top three ways that have helped me: [Read more…] about Discoverability: Make readers aware of your books

Prioritizing when your schedule isn’t in your control

August 4, 2016 By Ruth Kaufman

In addition to writing romance novels, I’m an actor. Because I usually don’t get more than 24-hour notice of auditions or sometimes even VO and OC bookings, I don’t always have control over my schedule.

I might set aside an afternoon for my work-in-progress only to learn I have an audition for, say, a national TV commercial, at 2:55 the next day, and may have lines and/or specific wardrobe and/or hair to prepare. Often the specs and storyboard or copy don’t arrive until the end of the day. Of course I’m thrilled for every opportunity to practice my craft. [Read more…] about Prioritizing when your schedule isn’t in your control

Top 5 reasons not to write a screenplay

September 24, 2015 By Ruth Kaufman

Since I’m an on-camera talent in addition to being a novelist, I often get asked if I’m going to write screenplays for my books.

For me, that answer is no, though sometimes I get a nagging feeling I should try. Here’s why I haven’t:

1) It’s hard enough to learn about and market to the romance novel industry while self-publishing more and writing new books. Learning about and taking the time to write and then sell screenplays is, honestly, a bit daunting. I doubt I could do both at once in addition to acting and freelance writing, which help pay the bills.

2) My current releases are set in medieval England, so production costs would be sky high. I need castles, horses, armor and swords. One book has an important battle scene. Shows like Reign clearly have the budget for the settings and gorgeous costumes (whether historically accurate or not). Yes, these days there’s crowdfunding, but running a Kickstarter or Indiegogo campaign for that much money would be difficult and yet another thing to learn about and fit into my day.

3) Many more famous author friends and those I follow in the community haven’t had movies made of their bestselling novels. I know of a few that were optioned, which is great, but never heard that the films were made. One friend’s book will be turned into a movie for the Hallmark Channel. And she did write the screenplay…but she’s had multiple bestselling novels. I haven’t. Yet?

4) Some may think screenplays are easier because they’re much shorter than most novels and don’t require all of the description and internal monologue. I think they’re harder, because most of the story, emotion and conflict must be conveyed through dialogue alone.

5) I’ve seen many scripts I think could be better…in the story and/or the actual writing. I’ve even edited several, and the authors were quite pleased with my suggestions and comments. Yet I’ve never been motivated to try my hand at one.

Will I change my mind? Time will tell.

So you want to write a book? Start today!

May 7, 2015 By Ruth Kaufman

I often meet people who say they want to write a book or have been working on one for a long time. I say, “What are you waiting for? Why don’t you start (or finish)?” They hem and haw, “Well, blah blah blah, this or that excuse.”

What’s stopping you from moving forward with your dreams? Fear of failure, or success? Laziness? Not sure where to start? Why repeatedly say you want to do something, yet remain mired in inaction? Consider getting to the bottom of your reasons so you can stop them from hindering you.

If you want to write a book or pursue another passion (or eat better, exercise more), don’t wait another day. Take one step forward. Even if it’s a small one. Change for the better isn’t easy, and requires some discipline. Can you push yourself, or find an accountability partner?

If you’re not sure where to begin, write down your ideas. What genre do you want to write–mystery, romance, thriller, or __________? Familiarize yourself with the bestsellers in your market. Consider taking an online workshop, class, or reading a book or two about writing books. I recommend Dwight Swain’s Techniques of the Selling Writer and Debra Dixon’s GMC: Goal, Motivation, and Conflict.

Is there any research you need to do before writing–is your protagonist a cop, lawyer, wizard, knight, but you lack knowledge of job specifics? If so, make sure you don’t dwell too long on learning about writing and research and call that “writing.” That was a mistake I made when I first started…since I write medievals, I’d spend hours perusing books on the 15th century. It took hearing Catherine Coulter say in a speech at an RWA Conference that only new pages counted as writing to spark me to set weekly page/word count goals.

Make a list of next steps. Create a writing schedule and make appointments with yourself so you don’t keep putting it off.

I bet you’ll feel good about making progress, and might even be motivated to do more. Wanting something that’s in your control but not taking action can weigh on you.

Writers write. BICHOK: butt in chair, hands on keyboard. As the incomparable Nora Roberts says, “You can’t edit a blank page.” If you write just one page a day, approximately 250 words, you’ll have a book or a couple of novellas in a year. And maybe you’ll want to write a sequel or another book.

Happy writing!