November 21, 2022
By Paul Goat Allen
As someone who has been in the self-publishing business for decades—from purchasing titles for a national book chain to reviewing thousands of self-published titles for Kirkus, BlueInk, etc. to interviewing countless self-published authors for various sites—I’ve seen cover art quality for self-published titles increase exponentially over the last few decades […]
January 11, 2021
We asked dozens of experts in self-publishing what were the two most important tips they had for indie authors. They responded with advice on everything from book covers to copyrights to social media—and much more! Over the next month, we will share one tip each day on our Facebook and Twitter feeds. Don’t miss […]
May 18, 2020
The idiom “don’t judge a book by its cover” may be true when applied metaphorically to the worth or value of certain people, objects, and situations, but, sadly, when it comes to books, the exact opposite is often the case.
Readers judge books by their covers all the time. Don’t […]
April 14, 2020
For the last 25 years, I’ve been a full-time genre fiction book critic—writing for companies from BlueInk Review to Publishers Weekly to The Chicago Tribune. I’ve evaluated titles in every genre category and reviewed both traditionally published and independently published titles.
I’ve read and reviewed enough books (10,000+) to know […]
June 12, 2017
Nothing detracts more from a book’s appeal than a bad back cover.
Whether your reader is a potential buyer, book reviewer, media professional or someone who wants to hire you for your expertise, your book’s back cover has to communicate to your target audience: “buy me, trust me!”
Authors often spend […]
May 18, 2017
You’re in a hurry. We get it.
After all, you’ve had the idea for your book rolling around in your head for decades and finally you’ve gotten around to writing it. Why drag your heels now? You want that book in the hands of readers— the sooner the better.
But […]
August 12, 2015
By BlueInk Review Staff
We all know the feeling of end-of-summer lethargy: the tempting daydreams of poolside slumber; grocery lists that include nothing but lemonade, watermelon, and popsicles; the longing to simply sink into a lounge chair and cultivate a freckle or two. But if you want to get ahead in self publishing, now is […]
August 5, 2014
Trade Secrets is an ongoing blog where we ask professionals from the traditional publishing world to explain how they approach their jobs, in order to help self-publishers understand the intricacies of the publishing process and glean some tips.
Today, we talk with book cover artist Gabrielle Bordwin. Bordwin worked for Random […]
November 5, 2013
“At Your Service” is a blog series in which we ask a self-publishing industry professional to describe his or her services, in order to help self-publishers understand the intricacies of the various steps needed to create a polished book.
Today, Nick Zelinger shares with us an insider’s perspective on cover and […]
July 29, 2013
