The last two and a half years of my life have been a kind of painful hell. It took some doing, but I’m currently being worked up for a chronic Lyme diagnosis, and I’m finally getting treatment as a result, but my path out of pain is non-linear and uncertain. Now you have context for why I wrote this non-exhaustive list of writing advice that has a ring of ableism to it. Click the title above to continue reading.
Category: On Finding Your Writing Community
How people are democratizing the publishing industry #AuthorToolboxBlogHop
There are people out there doing the hard thing in order to democratize the publishing industry. They’re risking their jobs, their income, their industry relationships, their mental health, and even their lives, all to make publishing more accessible, transparent, and accountable. Below are a few examples of people who did the hard thing and effected change in publishing as a result. Click the title above to continue reading.
How white people uphold systemic racism in publishing #AuthorToolboxBlogHop
White people uphold systemic racism in publishing by not doing the right thing sometimes when it means doing the right thing will benefit people of color and especially BIPOC (Black and Indigenous people of color) in publishing more than it will benefit white people. Upholding systemic racism happens with both actions and inactions. The latter is what we’re focusing on here, which is to say, doing nothing. The only thing necessary for systemic racism in publishing to triumph, is for authors and other publishing professionals to do nothing.
The 2 kinds of diversity advocates in publishing
You might have noticed that a 9,000-member literary organization has been in the news since it wrongfully censured author Courtney Milan on December 23, 2019. I’m a member of that organization and a white woman, and I am still watching as other members who are also white women, over and over again, refuse to believe women of color. Click the title above to continue reading.
Why your ego needs an author community (#IWSG Blog Hop)
Family and friends are great, but they don’t understand author milestones, nor do they understand what it takes to achieve them. And when we fall, they don’t have the first clue about how to help us up. This is why, authors, we need to stock our author communities. Because when it comes to being an author, family and friends a cheerleading section do not make. Click on the title above to continue reading.
Pro Litsy tips from fellow bookworms updated 9Mar2020
Litsy is a wonderful, new-ish social media platform all about books: reviews, reading challenges and games, giveaways, etc. I recommend it to readers, but I especially recommend it to authors, because it’s high interaction and relatively easy to gain a following. To get a feel for how high and how easy, click the title above to continue reading.
My list of blog hops for authors (#IWSG Blog Hop)
The benefits of blog hops are many. Sometimes called link-up parties, hops are a great way to meet other writers/bloggers and build your author community; gain traffic and engagement on your site; and I’ve even seen them used as a tool in virtual book-launch tours. Click the title above to continue reading.
#AuthorToolboxBlogHop: monthly hop for authors who want to learn more about being authors (updated 13Jan2021)
Welcome to the third year of the #AuthorToolboxBlogHop, which is a monthly blog hop on the theme of resources/learning for authors: posts related to the craft of writing, editing, querying, marketing, publishing, blogging tips for authors, reviews of author-related products, anything that an author would find helpful. Click the title above to continue reading.
2017 List of Twitter Chats for Writers (latest new chat added Sep 2018)
Here’s my list of 31 active Twitter chats. Search the list for which ones you might be interested in checking out, add a reminder to your calendar, and join in the discussions. Click the title above to continue reading.
Raimey Gallant 