Protecting yourself from Social Media scams

The novice self-published author is always at risk of being scammed. It is hard to avoid these traps if you don't know what they are. That is why joining writer groups online or following blogs that talk about the ups and downs of self-publishing is so important. One of my favorite sites to follow is Writer Beware® 

Today they had a great post about social media scams:

http://accrispin.blogspot.com/2015/08/beware-social-media-snake-oil.html

BEWARE SOCIAL MEDIA SNAKE OIL

This week I've got another great guest post for you, from marketing expert Chris Syme.

We writers have all heard that we "have" to be on social media, which is presented to us--both by experts and the not-so-expert--as the Holy Grail of marketing and self-promotion. But apart from the thorny questions of which platforms to use (Twitter? Facebook? Pinterest? Some of them? All of them?), and how to use them (How often should we post? What's the proper mix of friendly interaction and self-promotion?), there's the problem of "services" that want to exploit our confusion to rip us off.

Read on for solid advice on how to separate the worthwhile from the worthless, and warnings about some common social media scams.

----------

Social Media Snake Oil Comes In All Shapes And Sizes
by 
Chris Syme

click to read the article

http://accrispin.blogspot.com/2015/08/beware-social-media-snake-oil.html

For authors: Candid Covers- a free, private cover feedback service

Authors know the importance of a great book cover. The cover is the first impression your book makes. But even though an author knows this, some still try to squeak by with a sub par cover, and others have no idea their Photoshop skills are a hot mess. Some self-pub authors can do this successfully! Some. Can. Not.

How do you know if your cover will be successful or end up featured on a cover shaming blog? You need a trusted and objective view point. Not your friends, fans or family.

Wouldn't it be great if you could show your cover privately to a large panel of experienced bloggers, avid readers and graphic artists for an objective and honest opinion.

Candid Covers is a private Facebook group made up of bloggers, readers and graphic artists who are willing to give you some feedback for free. 

Authors can submit a cover which will be posted in our private group for two days, and the author will be invited into the group for the discussion. Only you and the group will see what goes on. The one rule is: What ever happens in Candid Covers, stays in Candid Covers. No one on our feedback panel will talk about or mention you or your covers outside of the group. Once you have gotten your cover feedback you will be removed from the group and your cover thread will be deleted. There will be no evidence of our discussion. Then the next cover/author will be invited in.

Now you need to be prepared for the good, the bad and the ugly. The group's opinions are not a personal attack on you or your book, but we will not sugar coat things. On the plus side, you just might get some great advice on how to improve your cover. Look at us as cover editors.

To submit a cover send an email with "Candid Covers" in the subject line, along with your cover attached, the genre of your book and the blurb to

devilinthedetailsediting@yahoo.com

Once your cover is posted to the group, you can request to join here:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/candidcoverreviews/

or I can send you an invite via email. If you would rather us discuss your book without you there, I can send you an email with all our comments when we are done.

Candid Covers is an experiment to see if authors want, cause let's face it...lots need it, this type of help. We will be making tweaks to the process once we find out what works and doesn't. The key is for everyone to behave professionally. If you don't like what is said about your cover that is fine. No one outside the group will ever know what was said so there is no reason to take your anger out on any of our panelists. They are doing this for free as a service to help self-pub authors.

Steps for submitting to Candid Covers
1. Send email with "Candid Covers" in the subject line with cover, blurb, genre (devilinthedetailsediting@yahoo.com).
2. Once given the go ahead join the group.
3. Put on your big girl/boy panties and bring a sense of humor (borrow one if you have too)
4. Have an open mind to feedback without getting defensive (hence the big girl/boy panties).
5. Ask questions, get advice.
6. Go forth and be awesome!

Remember the one rule:

What ever happens in Candid Covers, stays in Candid Covers.

Self Editing Tip: Catching Dialogue Punctuation Errors

Dialogue! Yikes, there is an awful lot of punctuation going on there. One of the first things I do if I have to proof read a manuscript is use the find feature in Track Changes and search for " (quotation mark)

The wonderful thing is, it highlights every quote mark and you can now page down checking each piece of dialogue one at a time. Tedious, yes. But so important.

First thing you will be able to check is pairing of the quote marks. All dialogue has an opening and closing mark (except when the same person is speaking and you start a new paragraph, yadda, yadda, you know what I mean.)

Second, look at the dialogue tag. Did you use the comma correctly, the ? or !, did you only capitalize when you should?

It is that easy, but it can be slow going. If you are paying an editor by the hour then this will cut their editing time down. You will be surprised at how many quote marks you use...I had one with over 7000!

Here is an example of what you will see:

While you are at it use that find feature to look up these words and get rid of them where you can: just, that, had, here, there.

Look for "to be" verbs and replace them with stronger verbs. "To be" verbs:  is, am, are, was, were, has, have, had, do, does, did, been, being.

Look, need, want are all weak and usually happen when you are telling not showing. ex. "He looked scared." Could be "His eyes darted from door to to door while his hands shook." (I'm obviously not a writer, but you get the idea)

Happy editing! Sharon

Book Cover Design: Should you hire a professional or do it yourself?

Book Cover Design: Should you hire a professional or do it yourself? - Melissa Alvarez

Indie publishing has been around forever but now, in our digital age, it’s easier than ever before to publish a book and become a successful author. As a self-publishing author, you have a responsibility to your readers not only to write a fantastic book, but to hire a knowledgeable editor and to utilize a creative cover so that you sell a high quality, professional product. Even if you’re a great editor, it’s always a good idea to have a second set of eyes look over your book to catch any typos, grammar mistakes or hanging threads that you might have missed. If you have the software skills and creativity you can make a cover too. Why would you need to hire a professional when you could do it all yourself?

The answer is if you’re good at design, understand the market trends and what will make a cover sell a book then you don’t need to hire anyone for your cover. But if you try your hand at making your own cover and ask other people their opinion only to discover they don’t “get” what you’re trying to convey about your book, then it might be time to go the professional route. A poorly designed cover can turn a reader off just as quickly as a great design can spur sales. I know I’ve purposefully bought indie books just because the cover was awesome and discovered new authors that are now on my must read list.

A professional cover designer will create a dynamic cover that grabs the reader’s attention from the start. Most book cover designers follow the New York publishing houses releases and pay attention to trends in cover design. They know what types of covers are selling well in a variety of genres and will use that knowledge and your book’s details to create a cover that will portray your book in the best light possible. Because Indie authors often hire quality cover designers, it’s becoming harder to distinguish a self-published Indie book from a New York published book on retailer’s websites.

When you start searching for a cover designer, there are a few things to keep in mind. Just as there are books that are written poorly, mediocre books, and books that are so well-written that you just can’t put them down, there is the same within cover designs. Some designers put together compelling covers that make you salivate to know what’s within those pages, some create good covers, and some produce cheap-looking, bad designs. It’s up to you as the author of your product to find the best designer possible for your book.

Consider the following when choosing a designer:

· Look at their portfolio. How many covers have they designed?

· Are the cover images clear, blended properly and does the concept “pop”? Or do their covers look amateurish and unprofessional?

· Are the covers comparable to the quality of covers on New York published books?

· Has the designer created “brands” for authors through their cover design work that will help grow the author’s career?

· Do they clearly state their policies on their website? (You don’t want a designer who is going to take royalties on your book sales simply because they designed the cover.)

· Do they seem easy to work with? Do they have a fair refund policy in place if they can’t design a cover that you love?

· Are the pre-designed covers offered of the same quality as the custom designs? Are they unique and one of a kind or can you find a very similar cover at other designer’s sites?

· Are the prices fair and compatible with industry standards?

Let’s talk pricing for a minute. With the influx of Indie books into the marketplace there has also been an influx of editors, ebook formatters, and cover designers. This is great because there needs to be quality professionals to handle the sheer volume of new Indie authors who need help. You can currently find cover designers online that charge from five dollars a cover to over several thousand dollars a cover at some of the large graphic design studios. That’s a wide range.

Remember that you get what you pay for but you shouldn’t have to pay an exorbitant amount for an excellent cover. Many of the really good designers are going to cost more but they’ll also deliver more. They normally give you a variety of package options with different prices levels to choose from as well. Creating an excellent cover takes time, especially if you’re trying to recreate characters from a book, and it’s the designer’s time and experience that you’re paying for when you’re hiring them to create a cover for you. Buying a low-cost cover may not always be the best route because you may end up unhappy with it and paying a new designer to replace it in the future.

You’ve put a lot of time and effort in the creation of your manuscript so take the time necessary to research and choose a professional designer, or to create a fantastic design if you do it yourself, so that your book will stand out in the crowd.

Melissa Alvarez

Read Melissa’s complete bio at http://bookcovers.us/about 

Premier Pre-designed Print & eBook

Covers in addition to Custom Design Services: http://BookCovers.Us

Custom Book Cover Design Services: http://BookCoversGalore.com