Most book covers fail. Yours doesn't have to.Readers really do judge books by their covers. A great story with the wrong cover sells like a bad one. A beautiful cover in the wrong genre sells worse than a plain one.The difference between a cover that converts and a cover that gathers dust isn't art. It's design strategy — and most authors have never been taught what that means.Dan Van Oss has designed thousands of book covers for indie authors across every major gen...

The reason most writing careers stall isn't talent. It's the decisions made in the dark.Sean Platt has spent the last decade-plus making a living writing fiction and watching plenty of writers chase the same dream into wildly different outcomes. The ones who thrive aren't the most talented. They're the ones who notice what every yes costs them, and decide on purpose.A Tale of Two Authors is the parable about that. Alexa and Pete chase the same indi...

Stop typing. Start talking. Write more books in just 15 minutes a day.Sean Platt spent over a decade trying to learn dictation. He failed every time — frustrated, deflated, and convinced he just wasn't built for it.Then he figured out the trick. And now he writes books with his mouth.Sean, co-author of Write. Publish. Repeat. and Yesterday's Gone, with millions of words published, finally cracked the code on dictation and put every...

Forget the hustle and grind. The career-author difference is compounding.Sean Platt and Johnny B. Truant have spent over a decade running Sterling & Stone — millions of words published, dozens of titles, hundreds of authors mentored along the way. They've watched plenty of talented writers quit. And they've watched plenty of less-talented writers build careers that last.The difference, almost every time, comes down to mindset. Not the cheesy kind. The compo...

Create an army of rabid fans by telling richer, deeper stories that readers love.David Wright has garnered thousands of avid fans by writing dark stories that pull his readers in and keep them hooked to the last page. He masterfully balances darkness and light to create gripping stories his readers can't put down, with just enough hope that they are left feeling satisfied and dying to read the next book.In Into The Darkness, Dave takes you into his world and shows you how h...

Fewer words. Sharper stories. Bigger impact.Stuck in prose that drags? Worried readers are skimming past your descriptions to get back to the story? Time to say F*ck the Details and write fiction that moves.Description doesn't have to be a speed bump. Used right, it disappears — and the story keeps moving. Used wrong, it grinds everything to a halt, and your reader puts the book down.Sawyer Black has spent years st...

What if you could generate creative ideas for your writing on demand and never had to stare at a blank screen again?Books require ideas. From the initial idea for a novel or series, right down to the objects in a scene and words in a sentence. In a single project you may need hundreds or even thousands of ideas. If you rely on lightning to strike or ideas to simply "come to you," you could be left waiting until they are shoveling in the dirt on top of you.I...

What if you could write faster without sacrificing quality?In the indie publishing world of rapid release and blistering words-per-hour, it’s easy to end up burnt out, creating subpar work, and losing your enjoyment of your craft.There’s a better way.In How to Write Fast, Platt and Silver show you how to shift your approach to writing to increase your natural speed, while tapping into your inner storyteller and releasing mo...

There's no luck in a fiction career that lasts. There's a formula.Sean Platt and Johnny B. Truant have written more than a hundred fiction books between them at Sterling & Stone, the indie publishing operation they built from scratch. They didn't get there on instinct. They got there with a formula, refined over a decade of writing, publishing, and watching what actually works.The Fiction Formula is the fiction-specific companion to Write. Publ...

There is a storyteller in you. She doesn't care how old you are.She doesn't care if you're retired, semi-retired, nearing retirement, or just over it. She doesn't care if you used to be a repairman, an accountant, or a rodeo clown. She doesn't care how sure you are that it's too late to start something new.There is a storyteller in you. And it's time you started listening.My name is Ninie Hammon and I'm 72 years old. (If you say 72 years young

What will take your fiction from good to great? From decent to dazzling? From lackluster to blockbuster?Characters who "jump off the page."Of course plot matters. So does conflict, and scenes, and every other aspect of the fiction craft. But without unforgettable characters, your books will always be less than they could be.Don't let that happen.In WRITING UNFORGETTABLE CHARACTERS you'll learn:How to lay the foundation for a me...

The bestselling author of Take Off Your Pants!, the popular outlining guide for writers, is back with another how-to manual for those seeking to start a career in historical fiction.There’s no doubt that historical fiction is popular with readers. In fact, the genre is expanding all the time, gaining market share and influencing other media at a rapid pace. But the HF market has some peculiar quirks that can challenge any writer.In Making It in Historical Ficti...