Welcome to AskALLi, the self-publishing advice broadcast from the Alliance of Independent Authors. This week it's our monthly IndieVoices' self-publishing salon with interviews conducted by ALLi Managing Editor Howard Lovy and updates from News Editor Dan Holloway.
This Month's IndieVoices
- Claire Baldry of East Sussex, UK, is 63 years old and recently launched a website and Facebook group focused on older readers. It's been increasingly popular as older people look for books that reflect their own experiences.
- Maggie Christensen, an Australian writer by way of Scotland, Oregon, and California, just wouldn't accept the notion that nobody wants to read about the lives of older people.
- Dan Holloway updates us on the news, including net neutrality, and the birthdays of Smashwords and Patreon.
- Dan promises poetry skydiving for June. We'll hold him to that.
Find more author advice, tips and tools at our Self-publishing Author Advice Center: https://selfpublishingadvice.org, with a huge archive of nearly 2,000 blog posts, and a handy search box to find key info on the topic you need.
And, if you haven’t already, we invite you to join our organization and become a self-publishing ally. You can do that at http://allianceindependentauthors.org.
Now, go write and publish!
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About the Hosts
Howard Lovy has been a journalist for more than 30 years, and has spent the last five years amplifying the voices of independent publishers and authors. He works with authors as a “book doctor” to prepare their work to be published. Howard is also a freelance business and technology writer. Find Howard on LinkedIn and Twitter.
Dan Holloway is a novelist, poet and spoken word artist. He is the MC of the performance arts show The New Libertines Earlier this year he competed at the National Poetry Slam final at the Royal Albert Hall. His latest collection, The Transparency of Sutures, is available on Kindle
How inspirational to know that senior authors have two such spirited advocates!
I will be 72 in August. Just published my first indie-novel. Frankly, the task is more daunting than I guessed. But the challenge of Independent Publishing drives me the way I was driven to succeed decades ago. On top of that, knowing that I am not alone in my quest to stay in the game as long as I can think and write makes me smile.
Thank you Maggie and Claire.
Claire, Maggie, I’m delighted that there are writers out there addressing this long neglected niche! I’m not surprised you’re succeeding. Dan, thank you for sharing the latest news and talking a little more about Patreon…that was an eye opener. Howard, thank you for hosting and sharing this podcast!
Don’t even try to write a sex scene with older participants. I was told nobody wanted to even imagine the saggy bits getting together.
My new book features a seventy five year old widow. Life is just as exciting for her as it is for youngsters.
I write fantasy and sci-fi novels and listening to your broadcast I realized every fantasy book I have written has an older character who is the pivot of revelations and a great influence on the protagonist throughout the book. Even now, thinking of these characters, I feel as if the books would not have power without them. It matters immensely that as a culture and society we recognize the grace and deep wisdom of older people, for they are part of what carries us forward into becoming better selves, which is what telling a story is all about.
Let’s just say that I’ve lived in the reigns of two British monarchs and leave it at that.
Age is a function of your emotional and mental attitude. Older writers have the HUGE advantage of having experienced life as a child, adolescent, young worker, parent, and senior. And what incredible times we’ve lived through.
We have such a storehouse of experience, accumulated guile and old-fashioned grounding in our language and culture, yet the energy to pursue our goals.
Sorry, youngsters.
Hi Alison:
Some years ago, I read on the web of a fella 90 years old who had written his first book.
All babies! Hah! I’m 71 and first self-published in 2015.
My undercover cop memoir went to Amazon UK #1 bestseller in two categories,It is now an audiobook and has been translated into two foreign languages and optioned for a film.
Not too shabby for an oldie!
I am 64, 65 in July and have 6 author websites.
Saturday, May 26, 2018, my town’s local newspaper is featuring an article about me and my eBooks.
I am so excited.
I don’t know how it will help me on my writing/success journey but I am glad for the publicity.
Here is the newspaper web link.
http://www.lodinews.com/news/article_e4f83812-60b0-11e8-a970-c39021e660f2.html