Transcript [00:00:00] Dave Bricker: Want to expand your speaking and storytelling skills and grow your influence business? This is “Speakipedia Media,” brought to you by speakipedia.com. I’m your host, Dave Bricker, bringing you straight talk, smart strategies, and amazing … More ☛
Transcription Dave Bricker (00:07) Want to expand your speaking and storytelling skills and grow your influence business? This is Speekipedia Media, brought to you by speakipedia.com. I’m your host, Dave Bricker, bringing you straight talk and smart strategies from visionary … More ☛
“People from technology don’t understand the creative process … companies go through to make their products, and they don’t appreciate how hard it is. And the creative companies don’t appreciate how creative technology is; they think it’s just something you … More ☛
The Speakipedia Influencer Tools are based on careful study of story structures. It’s easy to ask AI to “write a story” or “create an introduction for my next speech,” but unless we provide specific information and careful instructions, the AI … More ☛
Since time immemorial, clichés have sneaked in the door when we least expect them to. They’re low-hanging fruit for writers who abscond with them quickly instead of striving for excellence. But to the trained eye, writing clichés stick out like … More ☛
There are plenty of good reasons to self-publish, but not all are profit-oriented or even rational. Before you invest in your book, take a look in the mirror and ask yourself some serious questions. Why did I write my book? … More ☛
Business, technology, and how-to books can be viewed as one-sided sales conversations. Though the author may hope to sell products or services, what’s usually being sold directly to the reader is an idea—a strategy or philosophy that can be used … More ☛
Verbs are the engines that move your writing and your readers, but many authors don’t spend enough time choosing the right ones. If your writing was an electric guitar, your verbs would be the volume, tone, and distortion controls that … More ☛
Selecting a book font seems simple enough, but important subtleties and fine points of typography are not obvious to the average writer. This article offers insights into fonts suitable for book typography. Though it won’t turn the average author into … More ☛
Book cover design tells the story of the story. It must convey the spirit and intentions of the author authentically, and it also has a few practical chores to perform. If a book cover design is to accomplish these things … More ☛
The following publishing advice is based on my own experiences and those of my clients. I hope you find it valuable and encouraging, even if it changes your expectations. I’ve written and published 12 books. I’ve guided many remarkable people … More ☛
This article discusses the pros and cons of traditional publishing. Abandon your biases, study the business of publishing, and choose the publishing method that best suits you and your book. Perhaps the biggest myth in publishing is that as a … More ☛
Writers often ask about the difference between “straight” or “dumb” quotation marks and traditional printers’ quotes, commonly referred to as “smart quotes” or “curly quotes.” Add in the need to distinguish between left single quotes and apostrophes, and the primes … More ☛
Two-word clichés are perhaps the least obvious kind. Unless we’re vigilant, they sneak into our prose, steal color, mask our individual writer’s voice, and make us sound like millions of other writers who mindlessly employ the same worn out word … More ☛
Many self-publishers start their book projects with unrealistic expectations and misunderstandings about how publishing works. A huge industry has arisen to prey on writers who are unsure of the path. This article explains the basics of how publishing scams work … More ☛
Should you give away books for free? The value of book giveaways can’t be assessed by formula. The prevailing mythology suggests that the goal of publishing is to sell books, but the huge majority of indie publishers don’t do the … More ☛
This article explains how to produce and market a professional quality audiobook using Amazon ACX. Through ACX (Audiobook Creation Exchange), I was able to audition voiceover talent, choose a professional producer, review the work in progress, and make my audiobook … More ☛
Here’s an addendum to Publishing Scams and How they Work. I wonder why so many authors, after spending thousands of hours working on a book, fail to conduct a few critical hours of research that will save them thousands of … More ☛
This article explores page layout strategies for books based on the Rule of Thirds. A grid system based on traditional guidelines ensures harmonious proportions and placement of objects on a page. Page layout for books is governed by a range of factors. Trade … More ☛
Once you have your book cover design looking spirited and professional on your computer screen, how can you ensure that your masterpiece will translate accurately to the printing press? Ink on paper is an entirely different medium from pixels on … More ☛
Page layout programs like Adobe Indesign and Quark, allow typographers to exert fine control over justified text to remove gaps and “rivers.” The default settings produce “pretty good” results—better than a word processor—but a few small tweaks will dramatically improve … More ☛
Digital typography offers capabilities that printers working with hot lead type and wood type could only dream of. Digital type can be stretched and resized infinitely, justified within unusual boundaries, or wrapped around almost any shape. And yet, traditional letterpress … More ☛
Hyphens are an important contributor to elegant, easy-to-read typography, especially when text is fully justified as is the convention in book typography. This article explains how justified text works, and how proper hyphenation improves the legibility of your type. Text … More ☛
Book design has changed since publishing became a gigantic industry. Typesetting was once performed by trained craftsmen who apprenticed to masters before inking their own plates. Phototypesetting arrived in the 1960s and by the late 1980s, digital publishing transferred the … More ☛
In my work with writers, I come across many common technical problems with manuscripts. These usually spring from the best of intentions as the writer attempts to create the feel of the finished book within the manuscript. Though they’re trying … More ☛
You threw a grand party but nobody came. Your novel is so good but you’re not selling books. What happened? You were supposed to appear on Oprah’s show. Terry Gross isn’t calling you for an interview. You may be an … More ☛
Dialogue presents challenges for writers. Some prefer to simply declare what was “said.” Many authors feel that “said” is both traditional and invisible: “I’m going to write some dialogue,” said Bill. “I look forward to reading it, ”said Helene. But … More ☛
Are images analogous to words? Is what makes a sentence sound “right” the same thing that makes an image “pop” or a jazz solo “burn?” The similarities are noteworthy but the differences are important. Just as the best of writers … More ☛
“Passive writing” refers to a specific set of grammatical circumstances where emphasis switches from subject to object. The money was stolen by Jill. instead of Jill stole the money. This is confusing if you’re writing about Jill but perfectly acceptable … More ☛
Generic descriptions are telltale signs of lazy writing. Add color to your writing by replacing overused and boring words. It’s such a nice day today. He’s very bright. My dog is really funny. Bill is a good soccer player. Shari … More ☛
This third installment of Judging a Book by its Cover looks at great book cover designs that won the 2012 Design Observer 50 Books-50 Covers award. Part 1 explored how most book design rarely rises above “competent.” Part 2 looked … More ☛
As a graphic designer, I see numerous parallels between the values that create engaging imagery and the values that create engaging prose. So many designs fail because the designer arranged elements on a page without questioning their purpose, hierarchy, or … More ☛
