Practical Advice that Inspires

Reviewed by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, award-winning author of This is the Place, Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered and The Frugal Book Promoter: How to do What Your Publisher Won’t

So, you’re a writer. Those of us who are often listen to a voice that nags us into believing that we'll never make a living at it. Sometimes that voice comes from the Web, sometimes from our own heads, sometimes from the ether. We hear it in so many places it begins to affect us at a cellular level, may even affect our career choices and our writing.

Peter Bowerman to the rescue. He, the practical author of the Well-Fed series, tells it as it is; in the process, his down-to-earth advice becomes inspirational. There is a way to make a living writing. There's also a way to support a writing habit by -- you guessed it -- writing! So those of you who are discouraged today or likely to be tomorrow, listen up:

The Well-Fed Self-Publisher is a solid book that assures us not only that we writers can take control of our own careers but that, if we choose self-publishing, it is "a process," In other words it is not an aptitude that is out of our reach. That's good news for any writer who has considered self-publishing and been cowed by terms like formatting, ISBN, distributors, indexing and a thousand more.

If you're considering self-publishing for any one of a multitude of reasons that make good business sense and good sense for your creative self, this is the book for you. What if you're not?

This is a book that can save you from missteps and the accompanying pain anyway. Admittedly, sections on Why Self-Publishing? and Learning to Love S&M (Sales & Marketing) will appeal more to the writer who has already discovered that when the writing is done, the job has just begun. This book, however, is for every writer because there is something in it for every one.

I think the section called "When a POD Publisher Says This, Hold on to Your Wallet." will be one every writer will want to read. It's a "reality check" we all need and you'll want to load up on books about marketing your book instead of paying someone else to do it for you.

I found the Table of Contents a bit disconcerting because it lacked page cues; I suspect that's because my copy was a special run for reviewers. If that isn't the case, a minor difficulty like that should not be a deterrent. I don't know a single writer -- no matter how experienced -- who couldn't learn something from Peter Bowerman.