Review: The Write Stuff! Write Publish and Sell -Sounds just about Right
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 10 7, 2012
In this book Stuart details his 49 step plan to getting your first book done and dusted and ready for sale on Amazon Kindle. He likes the Number 7 which does have a certain ring to it, I have to admit. Perhaps it stems from the original 7 Deadly Writers Sins! It's actually his lucky number hence the Seven Sections.I particularly like the way the Author delves into the whys and wherefores of your writing strategy. Having already self published a number of other books prior to this "How To Tips Book" he shares how a prospective Author should approach the project with regard to the research activity. I like his Pareto Principle analogy which intimates that while research might only be 20 % of the effort it could well be responsible for 80 % of the results!This Tip no 2 (spend time on research) will obviously pay dividends in the end. He details the different places to conduct your research such as Google and Amazon, which are essential if you are not only to write and publish your book, but to actually have it sell.The fictions tips I have to admit I skipped, since that doesn't interest me but realise that perhaps this might be the part of the book that would be of more interest to others who are planning on writing in this arena. So ignore my impatience and go read every bit of this great book!The choice of software is looked at in Tip no 13 and a resource called Ultimate E book Creator, which the Author uses must be worth investigating as is a free program called Fast Pencil. Yes I think we could all use a little (or a lot of) a fast pencil most days to beat that old gremlin procrastination. The W.B phrase we don't use when we are a writer (you must know what this means so I am not going to tell you!)Stuart goes into some detail about setting up your Amazon account and the various options within the Kindle publishing program such as KDP select which offers an opportunity to have your book offered free for 5 days during the first three months. This is Tip 32. Tip 35 is an excellent discussion on setting the price of your books and Stuart gives examples of the strategies that he has been trying out. This is a very useful section on what can or should be attempted.KDP is an interesting marketing avenue and one that should be looked at by all new Authors I think. In Tip no 43 the Author talks about Social Media Marketing with Blogs and Forums on tip number 44. There is a great summary of Research tools at the end of the book with appropriate links.The Author's drama of losing a years work when his P.C was stolen make for essential reading...OOOH Painful!  This danger should be addressed by all writers. My own Daughter lost months of work when her new Lap Top was stolen from a locked room in her College! So take Stuart's advice and get onto it!An excellent and instructive book written from experience. That's what all Newbies need. What you don't need is to be buying any of the many One Click Kindle Millionaire courses that have invaded the market place in the recent past promising riches without ever writing a word or doing any work! Thoroughly recommended and deserving of five stars!