MUSE • Leslie Keenan

Self-Publishing – What, Why, How – and Why Now?

Posted by in Publishing, Writing

From my Newsletter, January 2009 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Today I want to write about the question of self-publishing versus a commercial publisher. In the past this was an easier decision. Self-publishing required quite a bit of money, and many people didn’t have the wherewithal to do it. But now, with on-demand publishing, this choice has become a viable option for many. So how do you decide? And does it work? First some definitions. On-demand publishing means that instead of ordering thousands of books from a printer which are stored in a warehouse,…read more

Apr.21
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Editing 101: How Much, What Kind, and When?

Posted by in Writing

From my Newsletter, Fall 2007. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A couple of clients have been asking me how you know what level of editing to do when. They were all non-fiction people, but I think these guidelines apply to both fiction and non-fiction. However, with fiction, you may not get to the putting it together part until you’ve already done a first draft. When you are putting together a book, you want to work from the top down, so that you don’t find yourself getting really detailed in a piece that may not…read more

Nov.11
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The Seven Basic Plots

Posted by in Writing

From my Newsletter, May 2007. Last newsletter I promised a fuller description of my new favorite book, “The Seven Basic Plots” by Christopher Booker (no kidding, that’s his name!). It’s published by Continuum in paperback and it’s over 700 pages long. (See the link below if you are interested in purchasing it.) Whether you’re working on fiction or a memoir, it’s helpful to think in terms of plot, so here’s the synopsis. The Seven Basic Plots Are: –Overcoming the Monster (think Jaws) –Rags to Riches (David Copperfield) –The Quest (Odysseus)…read more

Oct.28
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