Are You EPIC? @EPICorg

EPIC, the Electronic Publishing Industry Coalition™ (www.epicorg.com) was established in 1998 and is a global organization of published authors and industry-related professionals who actively advocate continuing education and further enlightenment of electronic publications.

The EPIC eBook Competition™ is the oldest competition honoring eBooks and the ePublishing industry. This is a premier event for authors and publishing houses. The ARIANA Cover Art Competition™ celebrates artwork from imaginative and eye-catching eBook covers with this prestigious award, applauding the finest artwork of eBook publishing.

Literacy is close to the hearts of EPIC members and we are very proud of our New Voices Young Writers Competition™. This competition encourages reading and writing in public, private and home-based schools and is the perfect forum for young people to learn the versatility of eBooks, to experience a taste of the ePublishing world. This competition is open to young writers 11 to 18 years old.

EPIC’s annual conference, EPICon™, invites industry professionals to share the latest eIndustry information, hone writing and editing skills, and explore new markets and promotional ideas. Keynote luncheon speakers range from world-renowned authors to established publishing houses to eBook and print agents. For more information, please visit http://www.epicorg.com.

Now, why should you attend EPICon 2014? 

For the fabulous workshops?

For the entertainment factor?

For the exciting networking opportunities?

For the delightful Texas charm in San Antonio?

Yes! Yes! Yes! & Yes!

We have workshops to help Doctor a Sick Manuscript, Branding in the Digital Marketplace. The ABCs of Social Media and evenTaxes - the Dreaded Monster in the Closet. What about When Opportuntiy Strikes? The Perfect Pitch? Speed Dating with Publishers? The Gritty Details of Prison Life? Oh yes and don't forget Body Language for Writers and Paint the Picture.

All of this while networking with industry professionals, seeing old friends and making new ones at the eFiesta and Gala eBook Awards Banquet. Delight your senses on a San Antonio River Cruise and gear up for a Ghost tour of the historic--and haunted--Menger Hotel

Register today at EPIC.org!

This message was provided by Karen Cote from EPIC.

Is the editor always right? #wwow

Chances are, if you've written a book and are published or attempting to publish, you're going to encounter an editor at some point. The question is, is the editor always right?

Most likely, you're your biggest fan. You love your story. You've read it countless times and it rocks! But now the hard part, someone else is going to read it and make notes, request chances, and so on.  This can be scary? What if the editor you have dislikes your story, then what? Well, hopefully the editor you get likes your story and if they don't, they are able to keep their feelings to themselves. However, if you do get an editor that absolutely hates your work and you can tell, if you're with a publisher, request a new one. If you're self publishing, you have the option to use anyone you choose.

First up. Grammatical changes, such as commas, periods, and such. Yes, your editor is probably right. You have four sentences in a row starting with she. Yes, you should probably change at least one so it doesn't feel repetitive. This stuff is pretty simple. Some publishers have specific house rules and even if its a way you don't agree with, like okay vs OK, if it's the pubs rule to use one of them, then you have to go along with it.

Now, what about when a editor makes rewrite request - such as an entire scene? Then what? Who is right?

This is where you, the author, need to take a step back. Read the notes the editor has left about the scene. If you're feeling super annoyed that the editor didn't get what you were trying to say, move on for the time being. Call you best friend and vent. After you have the anger out of your system, go back a re-read the notes and then remember that this person has not read your story 20 times. This person is not inside your head. And the notes portray how they read the scene. Is this what you're wanting readers to get out of the scene? Yes or no?

Guess what, you can tell the editor no. However, you'd better have good reason you can explain. Sometimes the editor will let it be. In my experience, the only time the editor has come back to me and said, "Uh-uh." Is only when it really was something that really needed to be changed and I simply didn't see it. We worked together and finally polished that scene up, staying in my vision and theirs.

So, is the editor always right? No. Is the author always right? No. And the sooner the two can work together, the sooner a beautiful manuscript is born.

Now please, don't take the article and think you can run rampant in the streets and tell your editor no about everything. Just know, if you've taken the time to think about it and in your heart you don't want to change a scene or make the requested rewrites, be prepared to tell them why and possibly still have to come to a compromise on the scene.

Happy writing!

* * * * * * * * 

Lacey Wolfe has always had a passion for words, whether it’s getting lost in a book or writing her own. From the time she was a child she would slip away to write short stories about people she knew and

fantasies she wished would happen. It has always been her dream to be a published author and with her two children now of school age, she finally has the time to work on making her dream come true.

Lacey lives in Georgia with her husband, son and daughter, their six cats and one black lab who rules the house.

You can find Lacey at the following places:
Facebook / Facebook Page / Twitter

WWoW! Marketing Summer Camp for Writers!

One of the best things to happen to me as an author was MFRW.

When I published my first book, I felt like a tiny guppy dumped into an enormous, dark and scary ocean where everyone else knew what was going on... but me. The #1 best piece of advice I received was when someone in my publishing house recommended I join Marketing for Romance Writers.

MFRW MOTTO: Seek, teach, share, learn, succeed.

"MFRW is open to the literary community. We focus on marketing and publicity efforts. We brainstorm ideas, get feedback, and find others for mutual promotion. If you seek advice on how to promote you're welcome here. We enforce our simple group rules. Keep it business-only. No promos, excerpts, contests, newsletters, or flaming. We respect those on digest by trimming our posts. Questions, promo ideas, requests for help are welcome."

I joined. I read everything. I participated or lurked in everything they offered and I learned so much from the other authors. The networking grew my reach. When I had trouble with twitter early on, the group rose up and helped me as a whole (my follow ratio was skewed and by them following me, my twitter account was restored!) - the founder, author Kayelle Allen, actually did a shout out to support little guppy me. All of a sudden, I felt like all those other rainbow fish swimming around me in the ocean. Everyone was so supportive.

My confidence rose as I participated in their member services... MFRW Authors blog is open to authors to post to, MFRW Pinterest boards bring added book exposure, MFRW pitch camp and other social marketing trainings throughout the year are added bonuses. There's a monthly MFRW newsletter - see a copy of the latest edition on my right sidebar. There's also a monthly banner advertising project and for those authors on twitter, MFRW publishes a weekly Paper.li where you may be featured base on tweets. You can also follow MFRW twitter account. MFRW is just beginning to organize their own blog hops with the most updated hop software available. We even have a facebook group which is less formal than the Yahoo group.

AND, *insert drum roll here*, the VERY BEST PART is... MFRW's Summer Camp! 

Camp starts this Friday, July 12th and ends on Sunday, July 14th. It's packed with a variety of topics and top-notch instructors. No sleeping bags or camping equipment required for this camp - it's all on-line. Plus, it's free. Sign up for camp by joining the CoffeeTime Romance Forum. ALL classes will be held there. Here are the instructions to follow. The official camp hashtag is #MFRWcamp if you want to follow on twitter.

Now, what are you waiting for? 

Go ahead and join!

Don't miss out on this opportunity to network and grow

as an author. There's no question that marketing ourselves is a huge part of what we do in this ocean of ebook publishing. Let MFRW guide your way. 

I'd love to hear if something I said in my post convinced you to join! COMMENT below and let me know...

Paloma