The BookFest - Press Room

Today Panzer made a quick trip to the Horror Writers Association and Bookinfluencers The BookFest site.

 

Maybe I'll see you there.

The BookFest Fall 2022 will be held October 22 and 23. Authors, publishing representatives and agents will be available for presentations, panels and discussions. The event will be live streamed on YouTube, Facebook and The BookFest website. Information about the presenters, panels, and time is available at the site. Attendance is free.

 

Panzer says, "Sorry for the short notice. This little kitty just learned about it."

 

To read the post tootle over to The Book Fest

Publishers, Booksellers Cheer Europes Digital Markets Act - Publishing Perspectives

As Panzer was tootling around in the Catosphere, he decided to make a stop at the Publishing Perspectives site. With a little digging in the posts, he found one about the European Union's Digital Markets Act (DMA) and the Digital Services Act (DSA).

 

I don't understand.

According to Porter Anderson's post, the European Parliament has passed the Digital Markets Act and the Digital Services Act. Both Acts are against practices which European publishers and booksellers accuse Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Google, and Microsoft of doing. Both Acts go into effect in 2023.

 

Panzer says, "Hmm ... This little kitty doesn't understand how these Acts work. Does it mean, if your company does business in the EU, you have to give preferential treatment to EU publishers and booksellers to the detriment of outside the EU publishers and booksellers? I thought they didn't want the companies to give preferential treatment anymore."

 

Note: This is a very, very long post. Bring a huge cup of tea, two muffins and a jelly roll for today's reading.

 

To read the post tootle over to Europe's Digital Markets Actal

ThrillerFest XVI - ThrillerFest Website

 Today Panzer made a trip to the ThrillerFest website to get information about the annual conference.

 

No plane or hotel. Some free. I'm going.

According to the website, the International Thriller Writers' ThrillerFest will be June 28 - July 10 this year. Like most other conferences it will be virtual only. The conference includes pay and free presentations. The Master Class, X-Treme CraftFest, PitchFest and ConsultFest are all pay presentations. You can register for any or all of them. The Author Advice videos, Debut Authors videos and the Awards presentations are all free. The free presentations are hard to find, so here's what you have to do: Click X-Treme CraftFest in the band at the top of the page (below where it says ThrillerFest XVI and right next to Master Class); scroll partway down the page to the Register Today! button and click it; go all the way to the bottom of the Registration page and there you'll find the free presentations. You can read about them and the date and time of each presentation. Since these presentations are on Facebook you will need to follow the ITW on Facebook.

 
Panzer says, "If you're looking for the free presentations, follow the instructions exactly!"

 

Note: If you plan to read all the information about the conference, bring two thermoses of tea, six muffins, six chocolate chip cookies (biscuits) and six oatmeal cookies (biscuits).

 

To visit the site tootle over to Thriller Fest

Facebook Strikes Deal to Restore News Sharing in Australia - The New York Times

 Today Panzer decided to make a stop at The New York Times site. There our illustrious kitty boy found a post about Facebook in Australia.

 

What's happening without news?

According to the post by Mike Isaac and Damien Cave, Facebook is allowing Australians access to news sources again. Facebook had completely eliminated news from the company's Australian digital platform. In January Panzer told you about a proposed Australian law. The law would force news platforms such as Facebook and Google to pay media companies for their news content. The post contains links to other information about the proposed bill and persons involved in the negotiations.

 

Panzer says, "Hmm ... It's all so confusing. Would Facebook and Google have to pay for this little kitty sharing a link to an Australian news item?"

 

Note: This is a long medium length post. Bring a cup of tea and a muffin for today's reading selection. If you plan to follow the links in the post, bring a cup of tea and a muffin for each link you follow.

 

To read the post tootle over to Facebook

To read Panzer's previous post tootle over to Google 

The Six Online Bios Every Author Needs - Anne R. Allen's Blog

 Today Panzer decided to make a stop at Anne R. Allen's Blog. With a little digging in the posts our traveling kitty boy found one about the online bios authors need.

 

According to the post by Nate Hoffelder, an author needs six online bios. In the post he describes each of the six as Twitter, Facebook, Podcast/Speaker, Amazon/Goodreads, and Memberships. He dissects and rewrites his own bios as examples of what to do with your author bios.

 

I'm on Amazon/Goodreads & Twitter.

Panzer says, "How does he find the time for all those places?"

Note: This is a long, long post. Bring a thermos of cocoa, two muffins, two brownies and a chocolate chip cookie (biscuit).

 

To read the post tootle over to online bios

An Australia With No Google? The Bitter Fight Behind a Drastic Threat - The New York Times

 Panzer was working on the Panzermobile's window cleaners when he heard crying and screaming coming from the Catosphere. Jumping in the pilot's seat, our brave kitty headed out to find the source of all the noise. Following the hubbub took him to The New York Times site. With no digging at all, he discovered a post about a dispute between Google and Facebook and the Australian senate.

 

According to the post by Damien Cave,  Google is threatening to remove it's search engine capabilities from Australia. At issue is a three part senate legislation. The proposed legislation would force online companies like Google and Facebook to pay a fee when Australians use their services to search for online news articles. In addition, if the company and the news media source can't come to an agreement on the fee, the company is forced into arbitration. Finally, the companies would be required to tell the media sources when they plan to change their algorithms.

 

I can blink. I'm not part of it.

Panzer says, "Hmm ... An old fashioned stare down. I wonder who will blink first."

 

Note: This is a humongous post. Bring a thermos of tea and six muffins for today's reading selection.

 

To read the post tootle over to Google and Facebook

Facebook threatens to block Australians from sharing news in battle over landmark media law - The Guardian

Panzer was tootling around in the Catosphere when he heard crying and shouting coming from outside the Panzermobile. Following all the hullabaloo took our adventuresome kitty boy to The Guardian site. With a little digging in the posts there he found one about Facebook in Australia.

 Can't you read it at other places?

According to the post by Amanda Meade, Facebook is in a disagreement with the Australian government. There is a proposal under consideration to charge digital platforms that carry news. If Australia passes a new law forcing Facebook to pay for news content posted to the platform, the company will be forced to ban Australians from posting news content. Australian government officials say they won't be bullied by Facebook and are continuing to work on the proposed new law. Facebook says they already have a program to pay news sources. The post contains several links to information about the new proposed law, including a link to Facebook's post about their response to Australia's proposed law.

Panzer says, "When you follow the link below to the post at The Guardian site, you might be asked to register to read it. It's free to signup."

Note: This is a humongous post. Bring tea, cocoa, water, muffins, cookies (biscuits), your breakfast, and your lunch to read it. If you plan to follow the links, bring a sleeping bag and your dinner.

To read the post tootle over to Facebook

10 Tips to Avoid Leaving Tracks Around the Internet - The New York Times

What's His Name is still sick and Panzer has been helping Mom with her nursing duties, so his trip into the Catosphere was a quick one. Our speedy kitty stopped in at The New York Times site. With a little digging in the posts, he found one about protecting your privacy online.

According to David Pogue, the post is a collection of privacy ideas submitted by Crowdwise readers. There is a total of ten ideas to avoid or at least cut down on the ads, cookies and tracks that follow us around the Internet. Included are the usual culprits Google and Facebook. plus eight more. This is a followup to the Google privacy post Panzer told you about earlier this month. There are links to ad blockers, privacy settings pages and other helpful sites included in the post.

Cookies are bad for you? Say it isn't so!

Panzer says, "Why does The New York Times tell how to avoid cookies? Sometimes here, Mom says to eat chocolate chip cookies, so I know she likes cookies."

Note: This is a long post. Bring a cup of tea and two muffins for today's reading selection. If you plan to follow all the links in the post, also bring a gallon of tea and a dozen muffins. Oh yeah, bring six chocolate chip cookies too.

To read the post tootle over to Internet privacy

To read Panzer's post about Google privacy from last week, tootle over to Google data

3 Facebook Changes You Need to Know About - dbw (Digital Book World)

Panzer was tootling around in the Catosphere today just enjoy the quiet day. Our traveling kitty boy decided to make a quick stop at the dbw (Digital Book World) site. There he found some news about Facebook.

Don't let them out of your sight.

According to the post by Chris Syme, Facebook has made three changes that authors need to pay attention to. First, Facebook has changed their 20 percent text ad rule. What this means for authors is the more text in your ads, the higher the cost, and the lower the distribution. Second, Facebook has changed the Friends and Family rules. Authors need to ask their fans to "designate your page as one they want to 'See First'." And finally, third, Facebook has changed your page layout. It's not your imagination. Your page is different.

Panzer says, "Facebook must have gotten tired of changing your privacy settings and decided to confuse you by changing other stuff."

Note: This is a medium post. Bring a cup of tea and two muffins for today's reading selection.

To read the post, tootle over to Facebook

HarperCollins Launches Programming for Facebook Live - Book Business

I'll be watching this.

Panzer stopped in at the Book Business site today. There our exploring kitty boy found a post about HarperCollins Book Studio 16 continuing marketing campaign.

Back on June 4 Panzer told you about HarperCollins Book Studio 16 YouTube launch. Now, according to a post by Ellen Harvey, HarperCollins expanded their Book Studio 16 and on June 12 launched on Facebook Live. Each day Monday through Friday will have a different theme. Fiction and nonfiction authors will be interviewed, authors will cook, and writing will be discussed as well as other features. The post includes the full HarperCollins press release at the end.

Panzer says, "This sounds like it will be interesting."

Note: This is a shortish medium post. You'll need a cup of tea and a muffin for today's reading selection.

To read the post, tootle over to HarperCollins

To read Panzer's post about the YouTube launch, tootle over to HarperCollins video

Anne R. Allen's Blog: 7 Ways Authors Waste Time "Building Platform" on S...

Whew!

Panzer was out in the Catosphere today looking for something besides marketing ideas. He has spent so much time over the last few months trying to build his author platform!

Well guess what he found. The ultimate anti-platform guide by Anne R. Allen. He read it over and then insisted I read it. Now he wants you to read it.

Whew! Facebook? Twitter? Tumblr? Nah. Now we can rest and get back to writing our next book.

If you want to know if building your platform is worth it, tootle over to Anne R. Allen's Blog: 7 Ways Authors Waste Time "Building Platform" on S...: Authors are getting hammered with more and more demands on our time. We get escalating pressure to blog more! tweet more!! send more newsl...

Miss Writerly Crankypants: The Facebook Walk of Shame

I am so bad!

Oh, no! Panzer's friend Miss Crankypants is in trouble with the Facebook police!

Some days Panzer feels just like she does.

To see why, tootle over to Miss Writerly Crankypants: The Facebook Walk of Shame: The other day, Miss Crankypants got her hand slapped by the Facebook police . Now this wasn't the first time. Miss CP has a nose for ...

Cats and Marketing

Introvert? Not this cat!

Panzer was out in the Catosphere looking for some marketing tips. He happened to find an oldie but goodie from last year. Jane Friedman interviewed Bob Tarte about marketing. Bob is the author Kitty Cornered.

Turns out Bob is a huge introvert and does his marketing with Twitter, Facebook, and podcasting. Now, we all know that being an introvert is not a word anyone would use to describe my bad boy. But, we all need some online marketing advice now and then.

If you need a refresher course on using online sources for you ebook marketing, tootle on over to Introverts and Successful Marketing

Facebook Pages vs Profiles

Panzer and I are still not feeling 100%, but we managed a short trip into the Catosphere today.

We parked the Panzermobile at author Nathan Bransford's blog. He has an informative post about whether as an author you should use Facebook's Pages option or Profiles option. He's got the pros and cons of each listed for you. You can study each and make your own decision about which is right for you.

Tootle on over to Author Nathan Bransford's Blog.

Karen Woodward: What Is A Writer's Platform?

Panzer likes stopping in at Karen Woodward's blog every once in a while to see what she's up to.

Karen is writing a series about building your writer platform. This post centers on what your platform is made up of. It includes the usual, Facebook, Twitter, etc; but also includes audio and video. As you already know, Panzer plans to add audio and video to his platform. You'll also find some useful links included in this post.

So ... tootle on over to  Karen Woodward: What Is A Writer's Platform?: This is the first post in a series on the subject of creating a writing platform.  This is how I think of a writer's platform: A writ...

Criminal Minds: Social Media Will Not Sell Your Book

Twitter? Ha!

Panzer is so unhappy!

Over at Criminal Minds Hilary Davidson says, "Social media won't sell your book!"

Oh, no! Panzer can't believe it!

Facebook won't do it? Pinterest won't do it? Twitter won't do it? (Well, that one doesn't surprise any self-respecting cat!) None of the others either?

Hilary, say it isn't so!

Panzer says tootle on over to Criminal Minds: Social Media Will Not Sell Your Book: and see if you agree with Hilary.

The Spirit of Poe a major bust

Panzer is not happy. 

He went to visit Jason Dark today and got some very disturbing news. Guido Henkel has a warning for all of us over at his blog.

Henkel and several other writers submitted stories to a proposed charity book to raise money for the Edgar Allan Poe house. The book publisher has turned out to be nothing but trouble for the writers involved.

Panzer says you need to read what happened to our fellow writers. Pass the word around about this situation with your tweets, on your Facebook page and your blog.

Tootle on over to Henkel's  The Spirit of Poe a major bust .

Remember: you never want to make this black cat mad!

Jan Friedman's 5 Principles for Using Facebook

Panzer and I were looking around the Catosphere for some help with setting up a Facebook page. Our search took us over to Jane Friedman's blog. Ms. Friedman, a past Writer's Digest publisher, has a post about the five principles for creating a high traffic Facebook Fan Page.

Her five principles are more about the dos and don'ts of using your Facebook Fan Page for marketing. Which is actually what Panzer and I were wondering about.

No -- we don't intend to be one of those, "Please, please, please. Oh, please. Like My Page!" authors.  We hate those whiny sites that are trying to get as many "Likes" as they can. Guess what? Ms. Friedman doesn't like them either!

So, to get your daily dose of dos and don'ts tootle on over to 5 Principles for Using Facebook.

Your Facebook Fan Page

Okay, I keep hearing the popular wisdom that to be a successful indie writer you need to have a Facebook page to connect with your readers.

Well, I admit it. I don't have a Facebook page. From what I hear from my friends, I think it's a huge time suck.

But ... I've just heard about the Facebook Fan Page. I understand it's easier to set up, doesn't need as much upkeep as a personal page, and from what I've seen it's fun.

Indie fantasy author Lindsay Buroker has a great beginner's level post for Creating a Facebook Fan Page for Authors . After you read her post, go check out her Fan Page. It's nice, simple and clean. I think it looks great. Just what a fan would like. (Hint. Hint.)

Writer's Digest contributing editor Jane Friedman has a slightly different opinion on the Fan Page at 3 Principles for Facebook Fan Pages . Ms. Friedman doesn't believe a writer should have a Fan Page until you have fans looking for you.

Uhmmm. Looks kind of like which came first the chicken (Fan Page)  or the egg (fan) to me. It seems like this would be an excellent way to get fans by including the Fan Page contact information at the end of a Kindle ebook.

I have to admit, I like the idea of the Fan Page. What do you think?