The Speakipedia Influencer Tools are based on careful study of story structures. It's easy to ask AI to "write a…
Business, technology, and how-to books can be viewed as one-sided sales conversations. Though the author may hope to sell products…
Verbs are the engines that move your writing and your readers, but many authors don’t spend enough time choosing the…
Selecting a book font seems simple enough, but important subtleties and fine points of typography are not obvious to the…
Book cover design tells the story of the story. It must convey the spirit and intentions of the author authentically,…
The following publishing advice is based on my own experiences and those of my clients. I hope you find it…
This article explores page layout strategies for books based on the Rule of Thirds. A grid system based on traditional guidelines ensures harmonious…
In my work with writers, I come across many common technical problems with manuscripts. These usually spring from the best…
You threw a grand party but nobody came. Your novel is so good but you're not selling books. What happened?…
Are images analogous to words? Is what makes a sentence sound "right" the same thing that makes an image "pop"…
This third installment of Judging a Book by its Cover looks at great book cover designs that won the 2012…
As a graphic designer, I see numerous parallels between the values that create engaging imagery and the values that create…
Part 1 of Book Cover Design: Judging a Book by its Cover critiqued "professional" covers taken from Amazon's Editor's choice…
I recently responded to a question in a writers’ forum from an author who was in the process of designing…
Few subjects arouse more passion among writers and designers than the debate over how many spaces should follow a period.…
Nothing screams “amateur” like a poorly crafted book cover. The standards for book design aspired to by trade publishers are…
One question that loops endlessly on writers’ forums is “How can I sell more books?” The question is a natural…
After completing the final draft of a manuscript for my fifth book, I wanted a reality check. I hired a…
The word processor has placed new burdens on writers to understand how to use italics, big and small capitals, dashes,…
Indie publishers complain that the mainstream publishing establishment acts as a "gatekeeper." Many readers rely on big publishing houses to…
The notion of real publishing as opposed to self-publishing and the stigma surrounding it is obsolete. I have no objections…
Use of Small Capitals—uppercase characters designed at lowercase scale—is one aspect of writing and book design that isn’t taught in…
Part 3 of Book Design Basics explores better ways to present numbers on your pages. Numbers (called figures) look simple…
Book design is a lost art. Though book design discussions usually focus on covers, consider how much more time a…
Part 2 of Fundamentals of Book Design explores optical margins, paragraph formatting and spaces. Read about margins, layout and leading…
Designers, writers and publishers will benefit from Beatrice Warde’s eloquent perspectives on the craft of typography, the power of type…
Thesis writing is one of the purest forms of self-publishing. In my work as a professor, I regularly encountered students…
Most book designers make the same errors. One sore spot for me and with many of my university design students,…
Here's a useful definition. Think of a publisher as an individual or entity that assumes the financial risk for a…
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