Resources and Books for Authors

I like to read non-fiction books for authors and about book marketing. And on this page I’ve listed the most helpful books I’ve found so far. I will regularly update this list when I come across new resources and books that I would recommend.

Non-fiction books for authors

• Quit Books for Writers series by Becca Syme. This series is awesome and one of the few non-fiction books to get 5 star ratings from me. I love how these books focus on individual differences and the message that everyone is different and what works for one person, might not work for you. Dear Writer, You Need to Quit is the first book and is all about questioning certain behaviors and deciding which things you have to quit or stop doing to be more effective. Dear Writer, Are You In Burnout is the second book in the series and is all about burn out, how to avoid it, recognize it and recover from it. Dear Writer, You’re Doing It Wrong is the third book and all about questioning the premise and questioning certain common book related strategies and questioning whether they are right for you. I really can’t recommend these enough. Dear Writer, Are You in Writer’s Block tackles writer’s block with plenty of good personal advice how to get out of it and how it differs form person to person what works.
• Let’s Get Digital and From Strangers to Superfans by David Gauhgran. I’ve read both Let’s Get Digital and From Strangers to Superfans. Let’s Get Digital is a great read for (beginner) indie authors and is al about the whole process form writing a book to publishing it and marketing it. It covers the basics and gives a good overview of the whole process. From Strangers to Superfans is about the process that converts strangers into fans and to identify in which stage of the reader journey you’re losing readers and how to make sure you don’t.
• Killing it on Kobo by Mark Leslie Lefebvre. Killing it on Kobo by Mark Leslie Lefebvre is a good book if you want to know more about how Kobo and Kobo Writing Life works and how to make the most of your book on Kobo. It includes information about other markets, how to use the author dashboard and more.
• Newsletter Ninja by Tammi Labrecque. Newsletter Ninja is an awesome book about how to make the most of your newsletter. Her view on newsletter matches mine and I really like how this book is full of great advice and written in a pleasant style as well.
• Successful Self-Publishing and Audio for Authors by Joanna Penn. Successful Self-Publishing is a great read for those relatively new to self publishing. Lots of information and links to find more information about certain topics. Audio for Authors is a great read if you want to know more about audio, everything from audiobooks to podcasts and other voice technologies. It’s written in a to the point way with plenty of information and resources you can check out if you want to know even more. If you want to do more with audio this is a great one to check out.
• Plot Gardening by Chris Fox. The Write Faster, Writer Smarter series is a series that covers a broad variety of topics about book writing and marketing. I’ve read Plot Gardening so far and it’s a great look at how to plot your book, with some interesting techniques on how to do it. It’s full of information and written in a very to the point way, but also has some good examples. I’ve bought several other books in the series and hope to get to those soon as well.
• How to Writer a Sizzling Synopsis by Bryan Cohen. How to Write a Sizzling Synopsis by Bryan Cohen is such a great read about how to write your synopsis. I found this one very informative and if you’re struggling with writing synopsis I would definitely recommend it.
• Writing Killer Cover Copy by Elena M Johnson. Writing Killer Cover Copy is another excellent read about how to writer a blurb for your book or cover copy as the author calls it. I like the structure she explains for writing blurb and the different parts a blurb consist of. Well written and easy to follow.
• Writer’s Guide series by Sandra Gerth. Show, Don’t Tell by Sandra Gerth is an informative book and showing and telling and when to use showing and telling. There are plenty of handy examples and exercises. Write Great Beginnings by Sandra Gerth is another informative read by this author and this one deals with how to write great beginnings.
• Taking the Short Tack by Matty Dalrymple and Mark Leslie Lefebvre.Taking the Short Tack is an informative read that talks about all the different ways to make use of short fiction.

Facebook Groups

• Indies Together. The Indies Together Group is run by author Susan Kaye Quinn and is a place for indie authors to come together, help each other, ask questions and more.
• Indie Cover Project. The Indie Cover Project is a great place to get feedback on your covers and blurb.
• Alessandra Torre Inkers. The Alessandra Torre Inkers group is run by author Alessandra Torre. It’s a group where you can aks questions about writing and publishing.

Other Resources

• The Quitcast by Becca Syme. The Quitcast is Becca Syme’s Youtube Channel where she talks about a large variety of writer related topics. I also would recommend her Strengths for Writers videos and check out the Clifton Strength personality test to get the most of those video’s and understand which things you are best out and how to make the most out of that in your work and writing.
• The Creative Penn Podcast by Joanna Penn. The Creative Penn Podcast is a great podcast where Joanna Penn does interviews with other authors about a huge variety of topics. She has more than 500 episodes up now. She also shares some great publishing and writing related news before the start of each podcasts. I’ve listened to a few episodes now and can definitely recommend it.
• David Gauhgran’s blog. David Gauhran’s blog is full of great articles aimed at authors about a large variety of topics. I also recommend subscribing to his newsletter for even more content.
• Bookbub Partners Blog. The Bookbub Partners Blog has some great articles about how to make the most of Bookbub and Bookbub ads as well as some more general marketing advice and round up articles with how other authors handled something.