Writing Archives

The Long Road to Publication: When a Story Takes Decades to Write

In an industry that often celebrates speed—quick drafts, rapid releases, and fast turnarounds—it’s easy to forget the long road to publication some books must take. A story might begin with a spark of inspiration, only to sit untouched for years. Life intervenes. Confidence wavers. Priorities shift. But for certain authors, the pull of the unfinished manuscript never fades.

After NaNoWriMo: How Authors Are Moving on from the Challenge That Started It All

When news broke that NaNoWriMo is shutting down, it marked more than the end of a writing challenge. For many writers, it was the loss of a ritual, a motivator, and even a career-launching platform.

How to Plan Your Self-Published Book: Guidance for Plotters and Planners

There are different ways to get started when writing a book. Some authors prefer to write spontaneously, seeing how one action leads to the next as they write. These authors are often described as ‘Pantsers’ meaning they write ‘by the seat of their pants’! We’ll be covering this writing approach in a future blog. In this post we’re looking at the plotter (or ‘planner’ for non-fiction) approach, with advice provided by ALLi partner member 1106 Design.

ALLi Authorpreneur Case Study: Pivot to Become a Bestseller with Amanda Richardson

Today we follow the indie author case study of Amanda Richardson as she shares her story of resilience and difficult decisions that took her career from author to authorpreneur, bringing her to Kindle bestseller status.

An Introduction to Writing to Trend: A Five-Step Guide

One big benefit of indie publishing is that it’s up to us, as authors, what genre we write in, what niche we explore and which audience we write for. By undertaking our own research and planning, we can identify opportunities to make the most of emerging trends and reader interest in them. So today at ALLi, we're looking at what a ‘trend’ really is, how to identify one that works for you, and how to fulfil the expectations of your readers.

Moving from Associate to Author: ALLi Member Top Tips for Levelling Up

Today’s post looks at the experience of our indie author community as we level up from an associate, just starting out with writing, to a fully-fledged author. What does it feel like, how do things change, and what can we do to move to the next level? We’ll share the experience of Alli team members and community members based on the top tips and stories shared with us through our member forums on Facebook and SelfPubConnect.

The Ultimate Guide to Writing for Audio

Audiobooks are big business. But what exactly does "writing for audio" mean? And how do you do it? Today, the Alliance of Independent Authors welcomes author member, Jules Horne, and partner member Pozotron, to discuss exactly that. This is the ultimate guide to writing for audio.

Planning Ahead for a Creative and Productive Year in Your Author Business: Advanced Self-Publishing Podcast With Orna Ross and Joanna Penn

Planning ahead is an important step for your author business, enabling you to make decisions about what you want to focus on as well as make time to achieve your writing and financial goals.

January 8, 2021
Howard Lovy
Business & Planning, Opinion, Podcast, Process 1. Editorial, Process 5 & 6: Marketing & Promotion, Writing
3 Comments

TwitterChat: Improving your Writing with ProWritingAid

On the ALLi Twitter chat (#indieAuthorChat) this week we asked questions about Improving your Writing with ProWritingAid

December 29, 2020
Timothy Lewis
Process 3 & 4: Production & Distribution, Writing
0 Comments

Launching a First Poetry Book, with Orna Ross and Lauren Lott — Self-Publishing Poetry Podcast

Joining Orna Ross in this month's #AskALLi Self-Publishing Poetry Salon is indie poet Lauren Lott who will outline the steps she took to launch her first poetry collection, The Remains of Burning. “Choosing between wounds and scars” is how she describes sorting out which poems would go into her collection.