This week I learned that Canadian Dreadful will be reviewed by the excellent Kendall Reviews. Needless to say, I’m pretty excited about this. For those who aren’t familiar with the site, it’s a great resource for horror writers and readers alike. Books are reviewed, authors are interviewed, and horror is promoted and advanced to the delight and general betterment of all. I’ll post links to the review and my interview here when they go live.
In other news, I’ll be adding another course to the repertoire. Beginning this fall, “An Introduction to Publishing” will be offered once per semester (or more, if the demand is high). What’s this all about, you may ask. Well, in “Crafting the Short Story” we cover a lot of the basics of actual writing – character development, scene writing, plot, good writing habits, and so on. All the tools you need to start (or continue) writing in one convenient stop.
But over the years many have expressed a desire to learn more about the publishing side of things. “You’ve taught us to write,” they’ve said, “but now what? What do we do with the things we’ve written?” An excellent question. I attempt to touch on some of the basics in my course, but time constraints don’t allow for much more than a quick overview that doesn’t really do it justice. I feel like there are a lot of pitfalls to navigate along the way, many of which are avoidable. I took these concerns to the powers that be, and we agreed that such a course could be beneficial.
I’m no expert, and there are plenty of things I don’t know. What I can offer are the things I do know: all the little tips and tricks I’ve picked up along the way, from speaking with other authors to having gone through the publishing process myself. How to locate and identify potential markets for your work. What red flags to watch for in a publishing contract. Whether a given publisher is a good fit for you. The scams that pervade our industry. These are things that are far less pleasant to learn the hard way, and I’m happy to share what insights I have into these and other topics.
This course can be viewed as a companion to Crafting the Short Story, a sort of extension. It can also, however, stand alone as a very informative session even for those who haven’t taken the first course.
I’ll update and share links when all the T’s are crossed and the I’s are dotted. Speaking of which, the next session of Crafting the Short Story kicks off on September 23rd. I realize that’s over a month away but fear not, I will post ample reminders between now and then!
– JP
Joe Powers, Author 