ALLi Blog: The Self-Publishing Advice Blog

Five Reasons Authors Need an Email List: Reaching More Readers Podcast with Dale L. Roberts and Holly Greenland

In the Reaching More Readers podcast, Dale L. Roberts and Holly Greenland discuss five compelling reasons why authors should maintain an email list. They address the common perception that email marketing is crucial for an author's business despite some authors' reluctance to embrace it. The hesitations often stem from concerns about time and effort, technical challenges, fear of spamming, and a lack of understanding or concern over costs. However, Dale and Holly argue that email marketing does not demand excessive time, expertise, or financial investment. With a plethora of online tutorials and free email marketing services available, the primary barrier for many is simply inexperience—a starting point for everyone.

Self-Publishing News: Manga Publishers Win Record Compensation in Piracy Ruling

Courts in Tokyo ruled that piracy site Manga-Mura should pay 1.7bn yen (US$10m) to three manga publishers in Japan for lost revenue.

Stress Management for Indie Authors: ALLi Member Guest Post

This week ALLi member, fiction writer and author productivity advisor Delaney Diamond shares her advice for stress management for indie authors. Members from our ALLi member community over on SelfPubConnect have also shared their tips for stress reduction to support building a sustainable author career.

Self-Publishing News: ChatGPT Update and Screenwriters Guilds Unite to Issue Ethical AI Principles

The latest version of ChatGPT will, according to OpenAI, be less roundabout, more direct, and more conversational in its answers. And, two major bodies representing script writers have issued a joint statement outlining five principles for an ethical framework for the use of AI in script writing.

AI’s Impact on Creatives and Substack’s Spotify Partnership: Self-Publishing News Podcast with Dan Holloway

In this episode of the Self-Publishing News Podcast, Dan Holloway discusses a Society of Authors survey revealing significant concerns among creatives about AI's impact on their work and income. He also covers the UK government's latest updates on AI regulation, noting a lack of protections for content creators. Additionally, Dan highlights Substack's new partnership with Spotify, which enhances podcast visibility and subscriber integration.

Self-Publishing News: Substack Syncs Up With Spotify

Spotify has been working on more tools for creators & consumers as part of its expansionist agenda to become the world’s one-stop audio shop

Shaun Loftus Explores The Book Whisperer’s Tailored Publishing Support and the ‘Unconference’ in Florence: Creating Better Books Podcast with Howard Lovy

In the latest episode of the Creating Better Books podcast, ALLi News and Podcast Producer Howard Lovy interviews Shaun Loftus, founder of The Book Whisperer, which offers complete publishing services for indie authors. Shaun shares her journey from a tech-savvy marketing director to a leader in indie publishing, emphasizing the educational approach of The Book Whisperer in guiding authors through the complexities of self-publishing. The discussion also touches on the upcoming “unconference” in Florence, a unique event designed for authors to collaboratively set the agenda and share insights in a peer-to-peer learning environment.

Self-Publishing News: UK Government AI Update and Society of Authors Survey Show Creators and Regulators Have Vastly Different AI Concerns

CMA published its latest update clarifying where the government’s concerns are. The Society of Authors’ recommendations are a world apart.

Book Tours in 2024: Eight Options for Indie Authors

In this post, we’ll take a closer look at the options you can keep in your toolkit to build a book tour that suits your time, budget and preferences, including links to other top Alliance of Independent Author posts and guides for further reading.

Inspirational Indie Author Interview: Jill Dobson. Traditionally Published as a Teen, Author Gets Tired of Waiting Game and Goes Indie

My ALLi author guest this episode is Jill Dobson, whose story is a little different from the ones I usually tell on this podcast. She found a traditional publisher at a very young age—in fact, when she was a teenager. Then she endured decades of rejection or, even worse, being ignored. She recently went indie and felt like a weight was lifted. Now, it's up to readers to decide and not a nameless gatekeeper.

Self-Publishing News: Font Selection May Help Make Print More Sustainable

HarperCollins claims to save 245.6 million pages, equivalent to over 5000 trees to improve their sustainability credentials.

April 13, 2024
Dan Holloway
News
1 Comment

Fairly Trained Certifies First Ethically Trained Large Language Model: Self-Publishing News Podcast with Dan Holloway

In this episode of the Self-Publishing News Podcast, Dan Holloway brings attention to Fairly Trained, the first platform to certify ethically trained large language models, highlighting a major advancement in AI ethics. Dan also explores HarperCollins' innovative environmental efforts in reducing paper usage through font changes and the carbon footprint disparities between print and audiobooks. Additionally, he discusses the new partnership between Draft2Digital and the social reading app Fable, a development that offers fresh opportunities for authors to connect with readers.