The Next Web

All you aspiring writers out there, wake up!

Written on March 21, 2008 – 2:43 pm
Ernst-Jan Pfauth, editor in chief

I’d like to start this post with a quote from the classic ‘How to be Creative‘ article by Gapingvoid’s Hugh MacLeod. In this piece, he writes about his friend Chantal in Paris who is an aspiring writer. One problem though, she doesn’t manage to break through in the high-brow literature scene of Paris. When she tells Hugh about this, he replies:

“Your book has thirteen chapters, voila! That’s thirteen blog posts. One chapter per blog post. Put it online, and you’ll have a book offer within six months. Trust me.”

And that’s just how it is. Examples enough. Like Tom Reynolds, the London ambulance driver who got a book deal based on his blog writings. So why is it that these DIY book sites keep popping up?

I just found another on eHub. Matthew Murphy writes about Wordclay, a DIY self-publishing service. Users can setup a free account, let a step-by-step wizard do the magic and the New York Times bestseller list is already glooming at the horizon.

Ok, maybe I’m a bit too cynical here, a lot of people will probably get a kick out of their slightly customized book cover in an online store. Yet to me, the service seems pretty old-fashioned. Web 1.0, anybody?

Rather to follow Hugh’s advice. Create a blog, join communities like Paragraphr (ignore the horrifying design) and start working on your online reputation. That’s how things work now, be patient - after all you’ve already spent months on your book -, gain credibility and get ready for some Internet fame.

Don’t be fooled by WordClay. Success doesn’t come easy, especially with books.

Useful links for aspiring writers

This blog: How to boost your book sales the Paulo Coelho way
Publishing 2.0: the book publishing category
Bookmarketing: Research Competing Title Sales And How To Market Books Online
Caro Clarke: Are you a writer?

I hope you like that post!

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