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Rockland, ME 04841
(207) 594-0091
Fax: (207) 226-2015
Contact us today to learn if independent publishing is for you!
Jane Karker, President
Cheryl McKeary, Consultant
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| Raylan, the office dog, on his lunch break (Photo by Nikki Giglia). |
"Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower."
--Albert Camus
Our authors had a busy summer filled with festivals, fairs, and book signing events! Autumn brought MAP's new trade catalog, and Kelly has been hard at work visiting bookstores all over Maine. Make sure you check out your local bookstore for books by Maine authors--you might see a few of our titles.
We wish you all a happy holiday season and a wonderful New Year!
You can keep up to date on the doings of MAP and our authors by following us on
social media or by checking out our
events section below.
Our fall/winter trade catalog is now available! Take a look through and find the perfect read for the chilly days ahead or for a holiday gift. Click here to download the PDF and then visit our website to place an order.
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The Benefits of Goodreads
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Have you ever heard of Goodreads? Ever wondered what it was about? If it was worth looking into?
Goodreads is a social network for readers and authors with over 20 million members. The site offers a variety of ways to bring these two groups together. Readers can create profiles and add books to their virtual bookshelves, marking what they've read, want to read, and are currently reading. Members can rate books, write reviews, create online book clubs, and interact with authors and other readers. As an author, these are all avenues to spread the word about your book.
By creating a Goodreads author page, you are increasing your online presence. You can host Q&A's, list your books so users can interact with them, write a blog, list upcoming events, post videos, join various groups, and more! Opening yourself up to this level of interaction and presence online is an opportunity that you should take advantage of.
We would like to encourage you to at least list your book on Goodreads and make an author page. Goodreads was made for authors and readers, so interacting and participating on the site may come more naturally to you if you are hesitant about social media as a whole.
Check out this
Goodreads page which explains some the site's features and feel free to get in touch with us if you want to know more about Goodreads or how we can help you create an account.
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Thank you for supporting indie authors!
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"Writing Requires Editing"
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 Writing requires editing. Most of us agree that editing is not as much fun as writing. But editing a book is like raising a child--it takes stamina, input from others, and a willingness to allow the work to grow.
There are three types of pre-publishing edits: self edits, revisions based on reader feedback, and professional edits. I want to address one tool for self edits. A quick way to improve your writing is to read your work aloud. A few days after you have finished a chapter, sit on your deck (or in your office or in your car) and read the chapter out loud. (Yes, I have done this in my car.) The important contributing factors for success are quiet and a keen ear.
Why would you do this? When you read your work aloud your brain processes the text in a different way than when you read it on the screen or in silence.
What are you listening for? Tone, pace, stumble points, tense issues, and niggling things like the use of "than" for "then." Listen for what isn't on the page. Where do you find yourself changing your tone or stressing a sentence that you want the reader to get? Will the reader get the point without your "inside-the-writer's-head" interpretation? Does the text rely on qualifying phrases and an abundance of adverbs? Does the dialogue sound realistic? Does the dialogue move the action forward, and is it in keeping with the tone of action?
Sounds like a lot of work, doesn't it? In reality it takes twenty to thirty minutes to read a chapter aloud, mark it up, and read it again after changes. What have you got to lose?
Lee Heffner, Writer, Writer's Coach, Instructor, and Consultant for Maine Authors Publishing
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New Book Arrivals by Authors in our MAP Cooperative Plan
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All books in the cooperative plan are available for purchase on our
website or from your local bookstore.
Dead Drunk, Jean Ayer. Fiction. A Maine whodunit set in a seaside Maine summer community.
Fu-Fu's Bistro, Giddy Gragert. Children's. Danny goes sightseeing in Paris and his lunch decides to "play."
Least Angel, Jean Ann Pollard. Children's. An engaging tale about the lighting the Christmas Star.
The Eastern, Deborah Gould. Historical Fiction. The history of five families who settled on the Eastern River in Pittston in the 1800s.
The Galloping Horses of Willowbrook, Judith Thyng & Jean Flahive. Children's. The heartwarming true story of Ivory Fenderson.
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New Book Arrivals by Authors in our Indie Author Plan
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Acadia and Me, Wini Smart. Memoir. Wini Smart's story of living on a houseboat with her children, beginning a gallery, and becoming a well-known artist.
Back Burner Cooking, Hannah Tays. Cookbook. Recipes for elders and others with difficulty eating
Chewonki: 100 Years of Learning Outdoors, Nonfiction. Filled with stories of how people's experiences at Chewonki has transformed lives and made the world a better place.
Closing the Season, Brad Burns. Nonfiction. A celebration of the joys of salmon fishing in a great Canadian watershed.
Evening Paper, Volume 1, Fall 2015. The Center for Narrative Practice literary journal.
Finding Home, Ellen Waldron Richards, Memoir. The story of the author's childhood and youth in a changing world.
Island: Paintings by Joel Janowitz, gWatson Gallery. Nonfiction. A collection of artwork inspired by Great Spruce Head Island in Penobscot Bay.
Smaller Churches, David R. Ray. Nonfiction. A wealth of proven ideas and visionary thinking that offers new life to smaller churches.
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From Nana's Window by Margaret Gousse was the
winner in the birds category of the Animals Animals Animals Book Festival.
Mary Atkinson, author of
Owl Girl, was
interviewed by ReaderKidZ.
Jim Haskell, author of
Two Tents, was featured in the
Bangor Daily News and
The Salem News. He was also interviewed by
WAMC, the National Public Radio affiliate in Albany, and
WHDD, the NPR affiliate in northwestern Connecticut.
Deborah Cummins's poem "Another Life" (from her collection Counting the Waves) appeared on The Writer's Almanac with Garrison Keillor.
Marisue and John Pickering, authors of Maine - Beyond the Usual, appeared in the Acadia issue of Maine Thing Quarterly. You can see them in Chapter 1 and Chapter 3.
A Tale of Life & War by Christopher Morin was featured in the September 2015 edition of Kirkus Reviews magazine.
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- November 27, Naya Clifford, Into the North Woods. Reading and signing, 2-4pm, Booke Shoppe, 519 Main Street, Medina, NY.
- December 5, Kathy Eliscu, Not Even Dark Chocolate Can Fix This Mess. Book signing, 1 pm, Letterpress Books, 91 Auburn St., Portland, ME.
- December 9, Sally Loughridge, Daniel and his Starry Night Blanket. Reading for children and caregivers, 4-5pm. Presentation: "Hey, Don't Forget About Me!" Balancing the Needs of Healthy as well as Ill Children, 5-6pm. The Patrick Dempsey Center for Cancer Hope & Healing, 29 Lowell Street, Lewiston, Maine. Free, but preregistration is required: 207-795-8250.
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Past Events (just a few of the exciting things MAP authors have been doing)!
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Lisa Canino, author "Rescued Recipes," taught a
class at Stonewall Kitchen.
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MAP had a blast at the Maine Lobster Festival!
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Introduction to Book Marketing
- Classes held at Maine Authors Publishing, 558 Main Street, Rockland. Class includes a broad range of information and answers questions you may have about marketing as an independent author. The workshop is free to coop members and $20 for non-members. Refreshments and materials are provided! Reservations required by calling 207-594-0091.
- Wednesday, January 20, 2:30-6:00 pm
- Saturday, February 6, 10:30 am-2:00 pm
Independent Publishing for Maine Writers classes by Jane Karker being offered for the winter 2015 and spring 2016 include:
- Thursday, December 3, 6:15-8:30, Rockport Adult Ed
- Thursday, December 10, 2015,6:15-8:30pm, Mount Desert Island Adult Ed
- Thursday, February 4, 2016, 6:15-8:30pm, Rockport Adult Ed
- Thursday, May 18, 2016, 6:15-8:30pm, Gardiner Adult Ed
- Thursday, May 26, 2016, 6:15-8:30pm, Freeport Adult Ed
To sign up for classes, contact the individual schools or library.
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| Don't forget to follow us on social media! |
Keep updated on Maine Authors Publishing and our authors by checking out our social media pages:
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| For MAP/BWP Members Only |
AUTHOR FORUM and PRIVATE FACEBOOK PAGE
For MAP and BWP Authors that are currently in the Cooperative or Indie Author Warehouse plans, we offer two private author forums. We have recently set up a new PRIVATE Facebook page available by invitation only. The other author forum is also a private forum but is for authors who may or may not use Facebook. It includes information on upcoming awards you can apply for and book sales for the previous month along with questions you can ask other authors.
If you haven't joined the forum or the private Facebook page, email Nikki at nikki@maineauthorspublishing.com for information on how to join.
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Maine Authors Publishing, located in Rockland, ME, produces and markets books for independent authors. Maine Authors Cooperative is a program within the company that offers catalog and fulfillment services to get independently published books into Maine bookstores.
Boston Writers Publishing, located in Waltham, MA, offers the same services as Maine Authors Publishing for authors and bookstores in Massachusetts.
Please contact me today if you'd like to learn more about independently publishing your own book.
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Jane Karker, President
Maine Authors Publishing
Boston Writers Publishing
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