The World of Marketing 5: The Tyranny of Numbers
Writers trying to sell their books often fail at converting prospects to readers because of one simple aspect of the marketing process:...
6 More Hard Truths About Marketing
Continuing on from the previous article, here are some more perhaps slightly unpalatable truths: 7. Don’t depend on inspiration. Work...
6 Hard Truths About Marketing
Here are some of the things that I have learned about marketing which can be stated - in no particular order - without a great deal of...
The Focus of Your Writing
One of the deepest lessons of being a successful writer is to do with where to place focus. I don’t mean the focus that the writer puts...
The World of Marketing 4: Cold Marketing
A writer recently asked me this question as part of my coaching programme: I sent a promotion to a cold list offering a free e-copy of my...
Learn what a story really is...
Learn: • what a story really is • what it is actually doing to and for you and other readers ​ • the magnetic power that attracts readers...
Why Do Writers Become Writers? And Why Do They Fail?
Most writers become writers for three main reasons, not necessarily in this order. The first reason is income. They hope that writing can...
The World of Marketing 3
When you think about genres like science fiction, fantasy or horror, what are the first names that come to mind? Asimov? Tolkien? King?...
'The Signalman': An Exercise in Close Reading
I’m going to show you here an excerpt from the beginning of Charles Dickens’ masterpiece of a short story, 'The Signalman'. Then I’m...