Some people – a small but very important part of this audience – read this blog for one specific reason: they want advice on how to write and publish a fiction novel.
I know plenty about great writing, and I definitely know about writing a great book, and while I sometimes post advice on better fiction writing right here on the blog, I haven’t yet created a Damn Fine Fiction writing course and likely never will.
Writing fiction? Crafting a novel? Self-publishing? There are plenty of resources on how to write great fiction out there already, and they do a good job of it.
Today, I’d like to tell you about one of the best I’ve seen yet.
Write. Publish. Repeat.: The No-Luck Guide to Self-Publishing Success
Johnny B. Truant is a good friend of mine, and he knows writing inside and out. I know him from business circles, but a few years back, he began sliding away from his business ventures, because he wanted to write fiction.
In fact, Johnny had been wanting to write fiction for a long time – and he took time to do just that.
Johnny wrote fiction, applied all his savvy marketing to self-publishing, and delved into the inner workings of making self-publishing work. He’s been talking about self-publishing with his fellow self-publisher Sean Platt on the aptly-titled Self-Publishing Podcast for about a year now. (That’s a lot of self-publishing knowledge right there.)
Johnny’s made a fair amount of money self-publishing the several novels he churned out, and he’s been teaching others how to do the same on the podcast with Sean. They decided to compile everything they know about writing a fiction novel and self-publishing it in a giant 300+ page tome.
It’s called Write. Publish. Repeat., and it’s on sale for the next three days at $2.99. If you’ve been on this list wishing for my advice on writing a fiction novel, then this is it: I think this book is well worth it, and I’ll tell you why.
- It’s smart. Johnny’s a bright guy. He gives straightforward advice with absolutely no messing around. He’s smart, and he thinks you’re smart, and he treats you like a capable adult with an interest in self-publishing. I like that, and I think you will too.
- It doesn’t over-promise. You’re not going to become J.K. Rowling or Stephen King, and Johnny doesn’t pretend you will. He’s a big fan people making money for their hard work and wants to help teach you how, but he isn’t promising the moon and the stars. He’s promising what he can deliver.
- It’s thorough. In the 300 pages, Johnny covers the current state of self-publishing, your place in it, how to get your work taken seriously, where to publish, what to charge, and how to market effectively. There’s no filler and lots of examples, and you’ll feel completely in control of your self-publishing career when you’re through.
Are there parts of it I didn’t like? Well, the intro part where everyone involved tells you who they are and what this book is about is a little long for my tastes, and since I knew Johnny and Sean, I skipped it completely. You might not, if you’ve never heard of either fellow, and that intro’s a good place to learn more about both of them.
But that’s about it. I read the book looking to measure whether it was useful, practical, applicable and helpful, and that it certainly was. The how-tos and advice are solid and plentiful, and most of it is the same advice I’d probably share if I’d written this book.
So if your dream is to write and publish your own fiction novel, and you’re not too sure how to go about it, you should probably grab this book and do what it tells you to do.
It’s on sale for $2.99 for the next three days, and you can get your copy here:
Write. Publish. Repeat.: The No-Luck-Required Guide to Self-Publishing Success
That’s a digital version, though, so here’s the (more expensive) paperback version if you like the traditional way of reading a book best:
Write. Publish. Repeat.: The No-Luck Guide to Self-Publishing Success (paperback version)
If you do put this book to good use, publish your fiction novel, and see awesome results, let me know. I’d love to hear from you! And if you know of any other great fiction writing or self-publishing resources, let me know in the comments.
