Art Walk Success

Art Walk Success!

When you read those words, I imagine you’re thinking, “Wow, they sold a lot of books.” That’s how most people measure success, I think. They measure it by money.

And although it was our best Art Walk event in those terms, that’s not what I mean when I say it was a success. To me, what was important was meeting all those people who stopped by our booth to talk. Whether it was dogs and cats, zombies, old men, or Sci-Fi history, we shared a great deal in discussions with so many people.

That, to me, made it a success. So much so, that I couldn’t wait to post my impression of the night. It started out hot, but Bria had a cheap tablecloth we hung up behind us that blocked the sun. And even though it was hot, there was a nice breeze coming off the bay that helped keep us somewhat cool.

Once the sun dropped out of sight, the cool night air refreshed us. It was a beautiful night – more of an October or November night to me – made even better by the friends who stopped by, and others who took the time to say hi and chat about anything.

New Zombie Signups

We also had several people sign up to be in an upcoming Cord Wheaton episode. J Gerard Michaels will be in touch with them to decide how he will craft them into the story. We are expecting a release date of early next year, or maybe even late this year!

Prometheus a Hit

The anthology – historical science fiction – was a big hit, and Bria was occupied quite a bit talking about the book, and selling them quickly. It also gave her an opportunity to try out some new technology, with great success.

The night flew by so fast, we forgot to eat. What a difference from some of the other nights, where we would easily go pick up food at a local restaurant, unconcerned that we would miss someone stopping by.

So, thank you to all those who came out to say hello and support us. We had a great time!

Meet the Authors

Meet the Authors in Gulfport

Several of our authors will be signing books at the Gulfport Art Walk this Saturday, September 19, from 6pm – 10pm. Included will be Bria Burton and John Rehg (who writes as Grandpa Tic and J Gerard Michaels). Bria will be introducing a new print edition of the compilation The Prometheus Saga, previously available in Kindle format, in which she’s a contributing author.

In Print Yourself

Have you ever wanted to be in a story? Either as yourself or as a character? You can sign up to be in the next Cord Wheaton episode, written by JG Michaels. Publication is targeted for February of 2016.

Or, have you always wanted to publish your own book? We’ll be glad to show you how it can be done for very little money (even free if you’re willing to do it yourself).

The Art Walk is a nice way to spend a night, with plenty of restaurants to choose from for dinner, and a variety of vendors on both sides of the street. Please stop by and say hello if you can make it.

Future Events

The rest of the year you’ll find us at various places throughout the Tampa Bay area, including The 5K Zombie Run and the Tampa Bay Book Fair. We look forward to enjoying the people at all these events, and will mention them in more detail in the near future.

As they say, “Stay Tuned!”

Premature Formatting: Headers

premature Formatting

Premature formatting means adding unnecessary work to the process, something you’ll have to remove and regenerate later. Keep in mind when you’re writing your story that you want to keep your formatting to a bare minimum. This means, no headers or footers, and no page numbers.
Why?
Two reasons. First, ebooks do not use page numbers and headers/footers, so you’ll have to remove them before you submit your file to an ebook service (either publisher or aggregator*). Second, if you decide to create a print book, and you use a layout program like Scribus (the one we use here), you’ll add headers or footers and page numbers in the layout program.
So, either way, you’ll have to remove them as you move forward.

Do the Work When It’s Time

Remember, your word processor will show you how many pages you have. There’s no need to add more work to your process.

One caveat – if you use a third party template, they may include this information and have a way of stripping it out for ebook formulation. Always follow their directions when using a template system. And if you have a publisher or agent, follow their advice for formatting.

But if you are generating a book yourself, for friends or family or to push your way to a best seller, hold off on the fancy formatting until you’re ready to produce your book, until the time it’s absolutely necessary.

*aggregator: A company that takes your ebook and sends it to multiple formats/companies, usually for a small percentage of your royalties.