PaperBox Books

Hi, all short story writers.

One of the cool things about e-publishing is the ability to publish ‘non-standard’ length work. When you are putting books on physical bookshelves, you need to meet a size range. The short story has no place alone on the shelf. There are plenty of collections there, meaning your reader has to buy a bunch of stories they don’t necessarily want in order to read yours.

In the e-publishing world there’s no physical shelf. If you put out a 45,000 word novella, it’s about pricing and attraction. If you put out a 1,500 word short story or a 10,000 word kind of long story, you just need to figure out what the right price is. Then you need to find your fans and let them know it’s for sale.

This is one of the reasons Sue and I brought PaperBox Books into existence. We saw the possibilities and decided we were up for the challenge.

We’re working on a branded line of short stories these days. Before we go all out looking for authors we need to think of a brand and a pricing strategy. But if you have a short story or two sitting in a folder, think about submitting it to PaperBox Books when we send out the call.

Follow us on Twitter @paperboxbooks and watch for the call for submissions.

Perry

2 Comments | In: What's New with PBB | tags: How to Submit, publishing, Short Stories, Twitter. | #

I think the answer to the question is, yes they are. Sometimes they are just worth gaining an interesting new perspective, and sometimes they are the first step in getting to the next level. What’s the best free opinion? One you agree to hear.

So, we’ve sent out two tweets offering a free first read and opinion for writers out in our followers, and the followers of our followers, and – with luck – the followers of our follower’s followers. Okay that got me wondering if follower is really a word.

So, the first call gave us three great stories. They weren’t perfect but wow, there was talent there. We were able to get back to people really quickly. Today we sent out the second call – okay Sue did the work – and we’re hoping to get  few more submissions before the offer ends.

The benefits are huge for us, and I hope the authors. PaperBox Books benefits from the opportunity to talk to new authors and the author gets a bit of free critique from a publisher. What is cool for me is that I also get a chance to look for the same blemishes and tics in my own work. Something I become better at as I go through critiquing.

If you are thinking about sending in something, please know we’re here to help, not to destroy. We are writers, too. We know how hard it is to hear that something isn’t working, but we also know it sometimes takes a fresh eye to find out what needs work, and what kind of work it needs. And, even better for the fragile writer’s ego – what is working. We give the good and the bad.

Happy writing.

Perry

No Comments | In: Opinions, Submissions | tags: How to Submit, opinion, revision, Twitter, Writing Tips. | #

Hi, short post this time to let you know that we tweeted out an offer to give an opinion on the first 10 pages of a manuscript. We got three submissions faster than – insert your favorite cliche here – and we were wowed by the work people sent.

To the three people who have now received our comments, well done. All three had us wanting to read more.

Sue and I are going to do this periodically, so follow PaperBox Books on twitter and watch for the invitation.

It’s sunny here – and still a bit windy. But who is going to say no thanks to a nice sunny day.

Happy writing

Perry

No Comments | In: Opinions, Submissions, What's New with PBB | tags: How to Submit, opinion, Twitter. | #