IWSG Newsletter, Barnes & Noble & Beer, and Upcoming Anthology

The Insecure Writer’s Support Group just welcomed a new admin - author Chrys Fey. And she dove right into her duties - putting together a newsletter for us.

The Insecure Writer's Support Group Newsletter will feature articles by industry experts, IWSG members, and administrators. There will also be a dozen links to helpful articles for writers in each edition, as well as a special Member Spotlight. Even if you're not a member of the blogging group, you'll greatly benefit from these FREE monthly newsletters.
First issue goes out on February 24! Sign up here.
(Those who are part of the IWSG monthly blogging are already signed up.)

New Republic’s article, Barnes & Noble’s new strategy: Get people drunk, really caught my attention!

Apparently Barnes & Noble is experimenting with bringing beer and wine into certain stores. Now, this is nothing new. There are independent stores that serve alcohol all the time and many who serve it during special events.

Whether it will work for Barnes & Noble remains to be seen, but they are willing to try. Some fear it might alienate families and change the dynamics of the store, although the company insists they aren’t turning stores into bars. At the rate the stores are losing money, they need to try something.

I’ve done book signings at coffee shops on wine tasting night and they were successful. My theory is that drunk people will buy anything!

What do you think about Barnes & Noble serving alcohol?

The Insecure Writer's Support Group

It’s time for another edition of The Insecure Writer’s Support Group, founded by Ninja Captain, Alex J. Cavanaugh.

I’ve been on this author journey for many years now. While many things become routine or not as fresh as they were in the beginning, it’s neat when something surprises or pleases in a new way. One of those boo-yah moments.

A couple recent boo-yah moments:

Last week, I finished editing one of the stories for my next collection. And you know what? I was just as excited about it. I love the story. It’s been so long since I wrote anything fiction, I was worried I’d forgotten how. But I love how this one turned out.

Since I teach seminars on publishing and promoting, I’m always on the lookout for new sites and ways to market books. I’d compiled some websites in a Word document and finally had time to go through them last weekend. I found a couple really cool ones that I can use myself, which was exciting.

I even learned a new trick last month concerning book formatting!

Anyone else have a boo-yah moment lately?

Over at The Insecure Writer’s Support Group, we are announcing the winners of the anthology contest today.






And for anyone looking for an editor, my dear friend Crystal has been editing professionally for over seven years and does a great job, plus she’s very reasonable. Read about her services at Crystal Cleaer Proofing.

When It Comes To Marketing, Where Should We Start?

Thanks for having me here today, Diane. Really appreciate it.

As promised I’m willing to share my marketing secrets. I’ve been sticking with smaller publishers. So when I was published, the marketing team at my fingertips was one overworked person supporting many, many authors.

If you want more then it’s up to you. Think of the marketing person as a resource full of information. They’ll share ideas and set stuff up. What stuff? Things like Facebook Virtual Parties, Cover Reveals, Blog Tours, and Scavenger Hunts.

And each one of these events needs you to lead the charge. How do you learn what to do? Watch and learn from the other writers around you. Go to their events. Make a few notes on what they did. Before you know it you’re not just learning what to do, you’re also networking.

Networking is the biggest thing you can do. Not only does it help you get out there, it’s making friends, and building team of blogger friends that can depend on each other.

Awesomesauce. Scary. Exciting. All that, and more. But if you want to sell books, the world needs to know about them. So get out there and support your writer friends. The trick is don’t be shy even if you have to fake it.

Did I miss anything? Tell me. I’m still learning too.

Find Anna Simpson: Blog / Twitter / Facebook / Goodreads /

Find her latest, White Light, at Amazon / Kobo / All Romance Books / Barnes & Noble