The Story Reading Ape

A blogger who introduces readers to authors, provides writing resources and book promos, plus more at: http://www.thestoryreadingapeblog.com

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Canva
Fast and Easy Book Trailer Videos Using Canva: A Step-by-Step Guide – by Manon Wogahn…
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Videos are one of the best and most popular new mediums for connecting with your audience. On Facebook, for example, videos perform better than any …
Hardy
Why Writers Should Want Nitpicky Critiquers – by Janice Hardy…
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Being nitpicky in a critique isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Aside from my critique partners, I also have a critique group I meet with twice a month. …
Emotions
Action That Evokes Emotion in Your Readers – by C.S. Lakin…
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Have you ever read a passage in a novel that made you cry? Stirred up indignation? Real terror? I am often moved by passages I read in both fiction …
Conundrum
The Declining Web Traffic Conundrum
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Have the number of people visiting your website declined this year? I have noticed a downward trend in the number of organic site visitors for …
Self-Publishing
Self-Publishing Basics
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This is a guest post by Linda Cartwright. Linda is an educator and a writer on the verge of coming out as an independent author after years of …
125 Book Promotion Ideas to Sell More Books and Build Your Brand – by Penny Sansevieri…
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Coming up with, and executing, book promotion ideas on a consistent schedule to ensure you’re always reaching new potential buyers can be exhausting. …
Arnold Schwarzenegger
6 Rules to Pump Up Your Writing – by Laurence MacNaughton…
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Being an author is a difficult job at times, and some days are harder than others. Rejections, self doubt, fear, and countless frustrations can make …
Self-Publishing
Why Self-Publishing Authors Should Consider Establishing Their Own Imprint – by David Wogahn…
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Since 2012, the year I began working exclusively with self-publishers, I’ve helped more than 100 authors create self-publishing imprints. Some of …
Books
Sally’s Cafe and Bookstore – Book Marketing – Setting up your Amazon Author Page by Sally Cronin
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I began promoting authors and their books back in 2001 and then it was all about splashy book launches, press releases and getting local coverage. …
David Griffin
Writing Tips: Creating Memorable Characters – by David Griffin Brown…
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When we read, we may love well-plotted books, but what we are connecting with is the people involved in those plots. In other words, the characters. …
Grammar
How You Can Use Inversion In English To Improve Your Writing – by Derek Haines…
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Inversion is when you place the verb before the subject. We use this type of inversion in question forms using the verb to be, modal and auxiliary …
Writing
21 Ways to Improve Your Writing – by Melissa Donovan…
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It’s not possible to improve your writing overnight, unless you hire an expert to do it for you. People study the craft for years, decades even, and …
Content Marketing
Book Marketing: Content Marketing Strategy – by Pamela Wilson..
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Paid advertising may spike your book sales for the short term, but if you stop paying, you stop selling. With content marketing, you can create value …
Success
In It to WIN It: How Committed Are You to Being a Successful Author? – by Kristen Lamb…
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When it comes to being successful in anything, one personal quality decimates everything else. Success doesn’t necessarily go to the rich, the …
A Notebook and a Pen – by Melissa Donovan…
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Today’s post is an excerpt from my book, Ready, Set, Write: A Guide to Creative Writing. Enjoy! These days, we writers use computers, electronic …
The Decline of Mainstream Fiction: Why Authors Need a Genre in Today’s Fragmented Publishing World – by Anne R. Allen…
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Choosing a genre for your novel is one of the toughest challenges for many new writers. This week both former agent Nathan Bransford and current agent …
Writing
Can Common Writing Advice Be Wrong? – by Jami Gold…
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I’ve often said that there’s no “one right way” in writing. That truth is evident from many perspectives. I’ve posted about how there’s no “one right …
Poetry
How to Write a Poem – by Melissa Donovan…
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There’s no right or wrong way to write a poem. There are techniques and methods you can learn, forms and formulas you can choose, and writing …
Microsoft Word
10 Totally Free Microsoft Word Alternatives For Writers – by Derek Haines…
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Do you really need all those Microsoft Office programs just to write? I’m sure you don’t prepare business plans with charts and graphs. You don’t use …
Humanism
The Birth of the Semicolon – by Cecelia Watson…
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It was meant to signify a pause of a length somewhere between that of the comma and that of the colon, and this heritage was reflected in its form, …
Success
Follow Up Your PR Pitch: 7 Secrets for Success – by Chris Well…
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You sent a PR pitch to the media. Hurray! When promoting your book, publicity is one of the cheapest, easiest, and most effective ways to get your …
Cover Art
Cover Design: 4 Tips to Keep in Mind – by Renee Wittman…
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If we’ve been part of the writing community for a while, we’ve probably come across some basic advice about cover design. Those of us who get a say …
Aka or A.k.a. – What is Correct? – by Writing Explained…
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Should you use aka or a.k.a.? If you have ever stressed over those three little periods, you aren’t alone. Both aka and a.k.a. see frequent use in print, …
College & University
The Misunderstanding of Write What You Know – by Harrison Demchick…
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Short of the ubiquitous show, don’t tell, there may be no better known writing aphorism than write what you know. You read it on blogs and in books, …
Spelling
Homophones for Music Lovers: Turn up the Bass and Play a Chord – by Melissa Donovan…
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Homophones are words that sound alike but have different meanings. Many homophones also have different spellings, and all too often, people mix them …
Hardy
First vs. Third Person: Choosing the Right Point of View for Your Novel – by Janice Hardy…
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Point of view is one of the strongest tools a writer has in their toolbox, because a story can drastically change just by changing who’s telling it …
Unique
Use unusual September holidays for book promotion – by Sandra Beckwith…
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September brings many opportunities for book promotion when you link your book to one of the many offbeat and unexpected holidays that are unique to …
Sargent
Dear Editor: Any Advice on Writing Memoir? – by Betty Sargent…
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Do you have a life story worth telling? If you’ve been mulling the idea of writing a memoir, BookWorks founder and veteran editor, Betty Kelly …
Mastering Emotion a Must for Fiction Writers – by C.S. Lakin…
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One of the biggest complaints I hear from literary agents is the manuscripts they read fail to move them. They read terrific plots, steamy romance, …
Writing
Finding Book Recommendations Beyond the Usual – by Jami Gold…
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A bit over a month ago, I posted about a quote I saw—”I ran out of books in my to-be-read pile”—and wondered how anyone could run out of stories to …