Laurel A. Rockefeller Books

How to Format Paperbacks Without Createspace’s Interior Templates

Laurel A. Rockefeller

Mar 28, 2017
2 min

How to Format Paperbacks Without Createspace’s Interior Templates

Formatting is one of those things every independent author must learn to do. For most independent authors this means learning the quirks of publishing with kindle direct publishing, Smashwords, and Createspace. In the last five years since the initial publication of the first edition of “The Great Succession Crisis” I have published dozens of paperback editions, including an experiment with QR coded paperbacks connected to an elaborate website built around the Complete Data

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Babelcube beware: what authors need to know before signing a Babelcube contract

Laurel A. Rockefeller

Jun 30, 2016
4 min

Babelcube beware: what authors need to know before signing a Babelcube contract

The German edition of Boudicca was beautifully translated by Christina Loew. Thanks to frequent communication and Ms. Loew’s professionalism, the translation process was smooth and easy — exactly what most authors are looking for when joining Babelcube. If you subscribe to this blog you know that in 2016 I took my books deeper into the global market. After an exasperating fore into the Chinese market via Fiberead, I had high hopes for Babelcube, a platform for translation th

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Going Global: A Look at Translation Options for Independent Authors

Laurel A. Rockefeller

Apr 18, 2016
5 min

Going Global: A Look at Translation Options for Independent Authors

One of the best pieces of advice I ever received as an author was to publish as many books in as many places as possible and to sell on as many websites as possible. The writing profession is a numbers game. To win it (meaning making a living as a writer) you need to be where the customers are and sell what they want to read. You cannot achieve it with a single kindle book sold exclusively on Amazon. It won’t happen — or perhaps it could but your chances of winning the lo

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Marketing’s Big Lie: Instant Results

Laurel A. Rockefeller

Mar 19, 2015
3 min

Marketing’s Big Lie: Instant Results

Self-publishing and the digital age has changed that for both self-published and traditional publishers. Just as cigarette machines have gone by the wayside and Sherlock Holmes uses nicotine patches instead of smoking his pipe in response to smoking regulations in London, the days of in-house marketing and advertising for books by publishers are gone. Today authors must do most of the work themselves. There are no shortage of marketing firms to delegate to, of course, but a

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Laurel A. Rockefeller

Feb 16, 2015
2 min

Reblog: An Active Author Brand

Today’s book marketing post comes from Richard Ridley of Createspace. ————————————– If I had to describe the key to succeeding in indie publishing in one word, that word would be “active.” For a profession that involves a great deal of sedentary activities, those who rest on their laurels find it very difficult to sell books on a consistent basis. You have to keep moving in order to grow your author brand. Here are the three crucial areas where you should concentrate most of

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Authors: this form is not rocket science

Laurel A. Rockefeller

Jan 21, 2015
2 min

Authors: this form is not rocket science

Keywords: marketing, self-publishing, blogging It is three in the morning eastern standard time. Really truly I thought I would be back in bed like a civilized lass by now. But I am taking out a few minutes in the middle of the early morning because I am utterly baffled on something when it comes to my sister and fellow authors: why can so few of you follow kindergarten level instructions? If you follow this blog you know that on Thursdays I run a character profile column

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Reblog: 5 New Years Resolutions for Authors

Laurel A. Rockefeller

Dec 31, 2014
5 min

Reblog: 5 New Years Resolutions for Authors

Here is another gem from Book Marketing Tools. I do not agree with everything in this blog post, especially this idea that you can and should try to do all/most of this EVERYDAY. I find focus is very important to my writing and my productivity; do things ONE at a time or you will burn out trying to be everything at once. Here is that post in full: 5 New Years Resolutions for Authors Happy New Year! A new year causes us to look back at the previous year and see all that we h

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Reblog: B&N Testing Espresso Book Machines

Laurel A. Rockefeller

Sep 3, 2014
2 min

Reblog: B&N Testing Espresso Book Machines

Yesterday I found this article about “Espresso” Book Machines on Publisher’s Weekly. For those unfamiliar with the term, espresso book machines are essentially print-on-demand kiosks located in traditional book-and-mortar bookstores. That Barnes and Noble is testing these machines at their Union Square store in Manhattan doesn’t surprise me at all. It is a very long time coming and a market trend I saw as the future of paperback publishing many months ago. As a former Broo

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Reblog: Five Ways to Write Characters People Care About

Laurel A. Rockefeller

May 15, 2014
2 min

Reblog: Five Ways to Write Characters People Care About

The following is re-blogged from http://writersrelief.com/blog/2014/05/write-characters-people-care-about/ Princess Anyu from Laurel A. Rockefeller’s Peers of Beinan series “In a previous article, we explored five ways to make your characters more three-dimensional. Once your characters are believable as living, breathing individuals, the next step is to make readers care about them. When readers are invested in the characters’ struggles and personal stories, they are much mo

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Laurel A. Rockefeller

Sep 1, 2013
1 min

SmashWords author interview

A few days ago, SmashWords unveiled author interviews to all SmashWords authors. https://www.smashwords.com/interview/laurelarockefeller Learn more about SmashWords author interviews at http://blog.smashwords.com/2013/08/smashwords-interviews-helps-readers.html #interview #Author #resources #QampA #Smashwords #publishing #digital

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