Self-Publishing Questions Answered! | Q&A Monday: Episode 14
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- Опубліковано 2 лип 2024
- It's Q&A Monday! Woo! Today during our self-publishing chat, we're talking about insurance, pen names, author websites, and commercial-use fonts.
Let's be Pen Pals:
Courtney Young | PO BOX 697 | Groves, TX 77619
Do you have a question about self-publishing?
ASK ME ANYTHING FOR MY Q&A MONDAY SERIES: forms.gle/fVbKesmhhCcUDBeP7
My List of Recommended Books for Self-Published Authors:
Dear Writer, You Need to Quit - amzn.to/3at1yyk
Romancing the Beat - amzn.to/38rfc2C
Save the Cat! Writes a Novel - amzn.to/34pmNxl
Let's Get Publishing Series - amzn.to/2WvDKBP
Newsletter Ninja - amzn.to/3oPOXwx
Help! My Facebook Ads Suck - amzn.to/3as81IH
//A B O U T M E//
Pen names: Lyra Parish & Kennedy Fox (we're an author duo!)
I've been in the indie scene since 2011. I published my first romance novel in 2014 (Weak for Him). Under Kennedy Fox, we've made USA Today 5 times since 2017. As Lyra Parish, I made the top 100 list several times on Amazon.
If you're looking for those books, you will not find them. I unpublished my Lyra Parish backlist in 2020 with zero regrets. You can watch that video here: bit.ly/3k8P6pa
Want to check out Kennedy Fox's Books? Visit: www.kennedyfoxbooks.com
___
//Searching for a Motivational Writing Group?//
I have a writing group on Facebook where you can earn stickers for writing 10K in a day or 50K in a month. You can choose your own day. It's a supportive community that's also fun. If you're international, feel free to join! I've sent stickers to people all around the world since July 2019! In 2021, those who write Half a Million or 1 Million words in a year, will be sent an enamel pin!
groups/write10kinaday
___
//S O C I A L M E D I A//
→ TikTok:
/ lyraparish
/ kennedyfoxbooks
→ instagram:
lyraparish
kennedyfoxbooks
→facebook:
/ lyraparishauthor
/ kennedyfoxbooks
→ twitter:
lyraparish
kennedyfoxbooks
→ my personal email: lyraparish@gmail.com
→ If you want to follow my writing partner too:
Tiktok: / brookekfox
Instagram: brookekfox
Facebook: / authorbrookecumberland
Twitter: / blcumberland
//Affiliate Links //
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Vellum - Best Book Formatting Program EVER!
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Scrivener - Application I use to write!
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Otter - Dictation app I use (get a month of pro-light for free)
otter.ai/referrals/FDSZW8XM
Streamyard - Best Live Streaming Software! (get $10 off!)
streamyard.com?pal=5688077045465088
Flodesk - Newsletter Sender (get 50% off). It's easy to use + afforadable!
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#writer #author #selfpublish #writingadvice #selfpublishing #writingtips #authortube
Excellent, Courtney! You didn't talk too much. Talking is your job here.
Have a good, productive, happy week!
Thank you so much and thanks for the reminder!
MARKETING SERIES? Yes, please. Sprinkle that success all over, Courtney! Can't wait 😍
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When I first started writing I had shiny object syndrome. I used to call them plot bunnies because they reproduced so fast like rabbits. I found that writing down those idea and saving them for another day helped me
Absolutely! I’ve also learned that when I let them sit for a while, I’m not as excited about it. Helps me toss ideas easier.
Your pen name suggestion reminds me of how Nora Robert & J. D. Robb does. Connected but different. Very smart.
Yes!!! Makes it so much easier to keep up with socials!
Thank you once for more for this useful information, and thank you for providing the free resource for finding new fonts!
You’re welcome! Happy font downloading! ☺️☺️
I love these Q&A videos! You’re so open and transparent about everything that’s worked for you and everything that hasn’t, and it really demystifies the self-publishing process. Keep doing what you do! It’s been such a big help; thank you!!
Thank you so much. I’m so glad you like them! Means a lot!
Thanks for the font site!!
You’re welcome! ❤️
That was all so helpful, Courtney! Thank you for taking the time to answer these questions. Another video bookmarked!
So glad you found it helpful! :) Thank you!
I had shiny object syndrome when I was younger. I had more unfinished manuscripts on my hard drive than finished ones. But then I read a writing book by one of my favorite authors that talked about abandoning projects. His suggestion was to go finish those stories. Make it a habit to actually finish the works you started. It worked. Now I only abandon ideas/manuscripts if I realize it’s not the right direction. When I start avoiding my manuscript, I know something isn’t quite right.
And thank you for sharing about Font Squirrel. I don’t need it but I’m sure I’ll find a ton more fonts to add to my collection. I have more than a slight obsession with fonts. It’s a full blown addiction and I’m sure I need an intervention. I mean when do you have enough fonts? When you have over 800 different ones or before that? 🤷🏽♀️😂🤣😂
that’s great advice! Haha Font Squirrel is great!! 😂 I love their San Serifs!
@@TheCourtneyProject I’m sure when I feel as if none of the many fonts I have work, I’ll be using Font Squirrel to find some, lol
So glad to see you today--am off on holiday and this was a great way to spend my afternoon.
Aww yay!! ❤️❤️
I love these Q&A videos you do, Courtney. I'm bookmarking this video for when I make an author website. All writers get shiny object syndrome, I think. I take it as a sign that my creative mind is active. If the idea I have doesn't have anything to do with my current project, I squirrel it away for later. I don't usually write those ideas down because I think that if it's that good an idea it will resurface when I need it. But everyone's brain works differently.
That’s a good idea! ❤️
Great Q & A video! I checked out your website based on the question you received and it's awesome! Very sleek, stylish. I wish I was tech savvy enough to build a website. Anything tech related that I try I just end up frustrated. I'm considering hiring someone to create my website for me when the time comes to save myself the aggravation. I had webpages for when I was blogging on Word Press (not the same as the build it yourself site) and Blogger. It's been quite a long time since I had those blog sites, so I'm not sure if things have changed.
Thank you so much! Appreciate the compliments on the site. I think WordPress is still the same as it was a decade ago with a few updates. :) I like to say start small and do what you can then learn how to do all the cool stuff with time. Knowing how to build websites doesn’t happen overnight and everything is easily googleable.
Thanks for your thoughts on the questions and for the font website! Downloading some new fonts now! haha 🤣🤣🤣
You’re welcome and yay! Join the font addiction club! 😂
"you tend not to finish projects" out here coming for my throat!
re: having a different penname for YA and reading Stephen King - For me it always comes back to if the teen (and their parents) wants to read outside YA then more power to them, that's a choice they can make. But marketing adult books to teens feels *weird*.
I agree. I don't think I could market adult books to teens either.
Love this video soooo much!
Thank you! ❤️❤️
GEOCITIES!!!! All the Newsies fan fic. Mecca. LOL
yesssss, Geocities and angelfire were the shizzzz!
Great Q&A sesh as always. I have Shiny object syndrome in most aspects of my life lol it's been in me since I was a kid lmao. What I do these days to control it is jot down the ideas I'm having for the other new project in point form. Then offer myself treats (small things like maybe a video game, or a new book I wanna read) for sticking to and completing my current WIP. I find that if there's a reward I really want I'll stick to what I'm writing and the point form trick gets the other thing out of my system.
lol, same girl. 😂😂
Will you do a vidoe about how to format a book with Atticus?
I won’t. I don’t use Atticus. 😂 I’m a vellum girl.
I feel like this video was speaking to me. I have a cute-and-creepy theme for my books. I write paranormal, but I literally have short story horror. I liken my niche to Nightmare Before Christmas (or anything Tim Burton for that matter). I've only published one book, so maybe I should start targeting New Adult instead of YA??? Can a book be New Adult or Adult if there's high school characters as the main leads?
Yep! We cross between NA/Adult all the time!
"you don't want to have several KDP accounts". You are NOT allowed to have more than one KDP account unless you want to be banned by Amazon. I think you meant Amazon author central account.
Just leaving this here because this is already a subject that way too many people are unaware of or confused about.
You actually can if you have several LLC’s with different EINs. I have my own and then our business has one. Under TOS, I am not breaking the rules.
@@TheCourtneyProject true! I should have been more specific. I was just thinking in terms of personal accounts. Quite a number of people think KDP is like Instagram. Just sign up with a different email address and you're good to go.
@@notnow6946 yes, you’re correct! Not more than one personal accounts, that is against TOS. ☺️
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Don’t mind me, just going through all your videos. 😍🫶🏼 I was a teen website builder, too, and totally had my Geocites days! 😂👏🏼👏🏼 Talk about a blast from the past! I made several fanlistings and had a WordPress hosted fansite for my fave musician in high school… yesss! 😂🫶🏼❤️ Building websites was a fun hobby for me, so your mention of that was a fun blast from the past moment! 😄
Haha, I love it!! I mean, what else was there to do when we couldn’t drive and had to stay home on the weekends? 😂😂 Learn to code.