Writers' Forum - January 2025

The month's important publishing news, helpful writing craft tips, and savvy book marketing and publishing advice curated for you!

Hello Everyone!

Yes, it’s Monday and no it’s not the last day of January . . . Life was being life last week, and I was tired and did NOT get this Writers’ Forum organized in time to send it out Friday morning. I’ve been writing nearly every day, working hard to hit my due date for book 4 in my Circle of Nine series …. and I ‘think’?? I have a title: Circle of Nine: Mercy in the Mist. At the very least, it is my working title. Seriously though, when I'm in full writing mode, I sometimes don’t even notice it’s gotten dark out and perhaps I should cook some dinner. So that’s where my head’s been.

This past week we also had a fab visit to Books & Beer by the amazingly talented author Tracy Clark. That’s the in-person and online book club that I host at our local brew pub. We have so much fun!

Plus, I’ve been working with my awesome author clients on lots of Amazon and Facebook ads, website redesigns, book development and launch plans! In the middle of all that, I also should be working on marketing my own books . . . that’s the thing that I need to refocus on. (AND yes, I am a book publicity and marketing pro—but you know how that goes—your own ‘stuff’ often takes a back seat to client projects!) However, there was progress made on that front as well . . . I’ve received and promoted my Educator’s Guide for my middle grade novel, HAVEN, to make it easier for teachers to use my book in the classroom. And I wrote the guest posts for my upcoming virtual book tour with Partners in Crime for my mystery / suspense novel, BEYOND THE CEMETERY GATE. Looking forward to that very much!

So, you can see why I’m a little fatigued.

But I’m also excited to bring you a MASSIVE — but well curated (ha/ha) — Writers’ Forum. January is always big because there’s just so much NEWS and articles looking forward to what’s up for 2025 for the publishing industry. So without further ado . . .

FEATURED ARTICLES:

• Publishing Trends 2024 and 2025 Predictions

• Have you heard about fossil words?

• Book Banning in the News (the good and the bad)

• Neil Gaiman accused of sexual assault

• How to Get Organized in 2025: Growing your Author Business Without Losing Your Mind

Publishing Trends 2024 and 2025 Predictions

The December Writers’ Forum had a few publishing industry year-in-review type posts, and here’s the last one of that type from Jane Friedman. In My 2024 Year-End Review: Most Notable Publishing Industry Developments, the key takeaways are the way self-published authors and traditional publishers are forging partnerships, how AI licensing has come to a big five publisher, Spotify’s successful entry into the audiobook marketing, and an update on the “startup of the year,” Authors Equity.

Emma Boyer at Written Word Media gives us The Top 10 Publishing Trends for 2025 — a must-read for any authors! Of the ten, I was very interested in print-on-demand is being used (at times) by traditional publishers, how AI tools are becoming more mainstream, along with how authors are building loyal audiences and focusing on email marketing and more! (Good stuff you need to know!)

Audrey Derobert compiled Publishing Leaders Share 9 Bold Predictions for 2025 and Beyond for the BookBub Partners Blog. Key takeaways from industry pros include how digital formats will continue to grow in popularity with some interesting stats on library ebook borrowing, how the rise of AI in publishing will require the development of a legal framework to govern its use along with other AI predictions, how personal connection and authenticity will drive growth in author communities and fan bases and much more. Also a must-read to stay in tune with what’s happening.

Fossil Word List

I forget who nudged me in the direction of this wiki-page on Fossil Words, but I’m loving this list, and I’m not sure if I’m mortified or proud that I’ve recently used a few of these in my current manuscript. (Hopefully just in the historical sections? ha ha!)

Book Banning in the News

Are we tired of this yet? Yes, probably. But should we stay informed about what’s happening? Yes, we should! Good news—from the ALA: Arkansas Book-Banning Law Declared Unconstitutional. Bad news—from KEUR 90.1 Radio, Utah students can no longer bring personal copies of banned books to school. And here’s the list of the 15 books banned state wide in Utah.

Mag Details Sexual Assault Charges Against Gaiman

Michael Schaub for Kirkus Reviews summarized the accusations against Gaiman, including a link to the original story on Vulture.com.

How to Get Organized in 2025: Growing Your Author Business Without Losing Your Mind

I’ve been increasingly impressed with the quality of articles coming from Written Word Media, including this one by Ferol Vernon who gives great tips on organizing your author business. These include focusing on systems, goal setting, and tracking progress to stay accountable. While these tips don’t seem revolutionary, it’s the actionable lists he includes that are fabulous aids to get you on the right path.

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN THE NEWS

Using AI as your author assistant: Why it’s ethical, efficient, and essential

Sandra Beckwith and her Build Book Buzz posts are often featured in the Forum for her straightforward author marketing advice. This is a really interesting piece about how AI services/assistance can supplement your efforts as an author in a way that’s ethical. I find this a clear example of how we’re evolving in our AI discussion from “nope - no way” to “wait - let me learn more” to possibly? “how did I ever do this work with the AI assist.” I’m curious what other authors think. Let me know!!

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg approved the use of pirated books to train AI: Court Filing

Catch up on this news on msn.com in the article by Enacy Mapakame. Seems like Zuckerberg has some explaining to do. Read it here.

Don’t Write Every Day: 3 Things to Do Instead to Finish Your Book

Wait, what? Throwing the wisdom of ‘write every day’ out the window feels wrong but slightly freeing … learn what Allison Williams has to say about this unconventional approach in her article for Jane Friedman’s blog. She discusses that it’s important to choose the project and schedule that works for you—and having an accountability partner doesn’t hurt!

A year of conversations with writers from Dan Blank

In this truly marvelous post, Dan Blank looks back on the moments, milestones, and connections that truly matter . . . but that description doesn’t do this article justice. One of the key questions he asks his clients — creators just like us — is “when in your life did you feel most alive?” So this is a lovely read that takes us from that question to the weighing of risks and the outcomes of taking risks. Read it here and please take a moment to follow Dan’s substack!

40 Good Ideas for Books to Get You Inspired

The Good Story Company’s Rhiannon Richardson gives us this epic brainstorming list of 40 ideas to help jumpstart your next story, divided by character, plot, theme, and setting. These are super fun—read ‘em here.

How to Start Writing a Book (when you’re a beginner) in 4 Steps

A helpful how-to for new writers from Kevin J. Duncan on the Kindlepreneur.com. (One of my favorite places for great tools and advice.) I love that he starts with validate your idea (asking yourself—Is there a market for this kind of book?), he is also a fan of at least some sort of outlining and choosing the right software to write before you get to it—the writing.

In our first podcast episode of the year, T.K. Sheffield and I talk about how to get started as well—we’re focusing on the indie publishing journey, but this advice is great for any writer no matter the path you’re planning on pursuing.

How to Find Your Memoir’s Narrative Arc (There May Be More Than One)

I love the way Bonny Reichert openly discusses her ‘fake it ‘til you make it’ strategy when it came to being asked about her narrative arc while penning her own memoir. It’s sometimes hard to pin down your themes and what your book is truly about—memoir makes this doubly difficult because it’s YOUR LIFE!! This advice is worth a read for all writers (fiction as well.) The best quote—Bonny says, “A memoir is not the story of your life, but a story from your life.”

Ways to Hook A Reader

I love these short videos from Mary Kole at the Good Story Company. In this 6 minute video you’ll get Mary’s take on hooking the reader—and we all know how important it is to get that right!

How to Name Characters in a Fantasy Novel

I think that this article appealed to me because I’m in the midst of naming so many new characters for my fantasy series—which is one of my FAVORITE things to do. In Fantasy writing, you have (perhaps) more freedom to be creative, but also might want to keep your cast of characters unified in interesting ways. See if this advice helps!

Manuscript Length

Is it time for a refresher on Manuscript Length?? Why not. Here’s a quick 7 minute video from Mary Kole (again!!) on ideal manuscript lengths/ranges for different genres. Book mark this advice for future reference.

Writing a Second Edition

Florence Wetzel (for Readerviews.com) gives us the ins/outs of creating a second edition of a previously published book: why you might want to do it—what it entails from unpublishing the first edition—getting a new ISBN and more. It’s a chore to be sure, but if you need to update content in an older book, take the time to read this to see if you definitely need to call it a second edition or not. And whether you’re publishing something for the first time or republishing, you might like to reference this article from the Author Help website on ISBNs and Barcodes.

Should You Hire a Professional Designer for Your Book Interior?

Freelance book designer Andrea Reider gives this handy list of considerations in a post for Jane Friedman’s blog. I’ve outsourced my formatting in the past, but I’m now using Atticus software to do my own. I love doing it, but it is time consuming and one more thing I had to learn.

Key Book Publishing Paths 2025-26 from Jane Friedman & A Hybrid Publisher’s Rebuttal

Jane Friedman’s popular Key Book Publishing Path document shouldn’t be controversial; however, there are some complicated views on what hybrid publishing is and isn’t. Brooke Warner from She Writes Press noted that this Key Book Publishing Path doc has expanded because pathways to publishing are more complex than ever. Mainly she takes issue with the Jane’s statement that “sometimes there isn’t a difference between hybrid publishers and services provides”—and explains where she feels Jane gets things wrong about the hybrid publishing experience. Both the publishing path document and Warner’s rebuttal are must reads for anyone in the publishing world.

Karma’s a Bitch: The Law Catches Up with PageTurner Press and Media

Victoria Strauss at Writer Beware has our backs! Here she details the scam practices of PageTurner Press and what’s being done about it.

Going Indie

You may have seen this article from Cynthia Swanson on Book Life’s website about how she’s forging a new path as an indie author after having been successfully traditionally published but then ran into a series of setbacks due to staff changes, editorial decisions, covid, and more—eventually leading her to indie publish. Fascinating story!

Advice on Writing for Competitions

B.A. Durham from the Chicago Writers Association gives excellent tips on how to make writing competitions work for you. I’m including this in the marketing area of the Forum because most of these competitions have entry fees, and I include this expense in my author marketing budget because the reason you enter these contests is for greater visibility — which is essentially a publicity/marketing activity/goal.

The Ultimate Guide to Getting Your Book Picked by Reader Book Clubs

This is a super helpful cheat sheet from Sandra Beckwith for authors looking to be a featured read at book clubs. She addresses key things like ‘what makes your book worthy of a book club’, but I think the best part is the list on where to find book clubs you can approach with your title. Check it out here.

More Marketing Advice!

Author Victoria Jayne’s article 13 Fiction Book Marketing Tips from an Experienced Novelist is worth a read. These are great tips—and I (mostly) agree with all of them. She doesn’t like the idea of first-time authors using advertising—like FB or Amazon to market their books. While there are reasons that an author with just one book out (particularly one that shares royalties with a publisher) might not have success with ads, many do. And here’s another post with wonderful advice from Sandra Beckwith. In 3 Author Marketing Mistakes to Avoid in 2025 and How to Thrive she pinpoints more than 3 super easy things you can fix (if you’re doing them). . . for instance, have you ever put up a social media post about your book without a purchase link??? Yup—we’ve probably all done that!

Thanks for reading to the end and I hope this information is helpful to your writing life and career!! Happy Writing!! - Valerie