Archive for the ‘Features’ Category
Posted on March 3, 2010 - by Monica Valentinelli
Guest SFWA Blog Post on Website Usability and Design
Hop on over to the Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America website to read my latest guest post entitled, Authors! 8 Tips For Your Website’s Usability and Design.
Here’s a quote from the article:
In today’s article, I’d like to share with you some tips to consider when you’re reviewing your current website or when you’re [...]
Posted on February 18, 2010 - by Monica Valentinelli
Guest Post: Gender Portrayals and Genres at Apex Book Company
This month, I talk about Gender Portrayals and Genres over at Apex Book Company.
In early science fiction and even horror, gender roles were often idealized according to the culture and the author’s views and experiences at the time the work was written. A good example of that are the few female characters in H.P. [...]
Posted on January 25, 2010 - by Monica Valentinelli
Calculating the Cost of an E-Book
I’ve had a lot of positive feedback from my previous post entitled Weighing in on E-Books, so I wanted to talk about ways to calculate the cost of an e-book.
First, let’s pull some arbitrary numbers. (And by arbitrary, I mean that these are not precise figures.) Let’s say that we paid our author $3,000 for [...]
Posted on January 22, 2010 - by Monica Valentinelli
New Guest Post on Apex: Discussing Rape, Incest and Abuse in Horror
This week, I offered the folks over at Apex Book Company a blog post entitled, “Why Do Some Horror Authors Write about Rape, Incest and Abuse?“ This was a sensitive topic to write about, and I found out after the article was published that I made a slight oversight in the post.
My goal for this [...]
Posted on January 2, 2010 - by Monica Valentinelli
“Brand” Mistakes You Don’t Want to Make
One of the things that I find really interesting, is how many authors and publishers treat their public relations and marketing channels. (This can include reviews, interviews, appearances, etc.)
The “old think” was that PR was something you needed to pay for. You’d incorporate your PR with your marketing, and you’d work with other “paid” [...]
Posted on November 12, 2009 - by Monica Valentinelli
Guest Blog on SFWA: Do You Know How to Sell Your Sword?
In my latest guest post on the SFWA blog, I discuss the sales cycle from an online and an offline perspective. Do You Know How to Sell Your Sword? offers you my perspective from working in online and offline retail, by providing you with a metaphor about a blacksmith who is trying to sell a [...]
Posted on October 31, 2009 - by Monica Valentinelli
Read my Guest Post about Dracula on the Crackle.com Blog
Folks, I’m pleased to announce that I have a guest post over at Crackle.com.The best part about Crackle.com, is that you can legally watch original and older content for free online — without a lot of commercials! As part of their Halloween celebration, they’re offering really, fun movies for fans to watch like GHOSTBUSTERS and [...]
Posted on July 21, 2009 - by Monica Valentinelli
Guest Post: Apex Publishing’s Sizemore on Why Authors Need to Market
Today’s guest post is brought to you by Jason Sizemore of the small press publishing house, Apex Book Company. Apex Books has been embracing both traditional publishing methods as well as new technology through their Apex Book Company e-books on DriveThruSciFi.com. In this post, Jason talks about why it’s important for authors to embrace online [...]
Posted on July 10, 2009 - by Monica Valentinelli
Special Thanks to Author Paul Genesse
One of the things I love about being a writer, is the ability to connect with other authors and professionals I admire. Usually I go to quite a few conventions every year, and in about a month I’ll be speaking at the Writer’s Symposium as part of GenCon: Indy 2009. I’m very grateful to Jean [...]
Posted on July 5, 2009 - by Monica Valentinelli
Read my Guest Blog Post at Apex Books
The kind people over at Apex Books, a science fiction meets horror small press publishing company, had asked me to write a guest post about book marketing. After narrowing down a few choices, I ended up writing about Why Not Every Book Promotion Will Work For Your Book.
Here’s an excerpt from the article:
Why [...]
Posted on June 18, 2009 - by Monica Valentinelli
Interacting with Celebrities or Authors? Don’t be “that Guy.”
One of the benefits of following your favorite celebrities or authors on Twitter, MySpace, Facebook or through their blogs, is that you can interact with them like you would one of your friends.
Unfortunately, this accessibility also encourages the notion that these highly visible people are your personal friends. Friends that you can make recommendations to, [...]
Posted on June 16, 2009 - by Monica Valentinelli
Guest Blog Post: Brozek on Editing Anthologies
Readers, I asked Jennifer Brozek to offer a guest blog today. Jennifer is an editor, writer and a game designer who has recently done some work through Apex Books and Morrigan Books. This post is about her perspective on editing a fiction anthology. I know that many of you are looking for places to submit [...]
Posted on June 8, 2009 - by Monica Valentinelli
Publishing’s Future may be a Paradigm Shift
One of the hot topics over the past, few weeks as been the “future of publishing.” At BookExpo America, the Future is Digital, according to the Washington Post. (You can also find a lot more information on the topic through Publishers Weekly.) While I’m offering my opinions related to the future of professional publishing and [...]




