Jami’s rants

What Is the Goal of Ranting?

January 26, 2012 Writing Stuff
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*sigh*  It’s happened again.  An author has insulted other authors and a huge percentage of readers.  Why do people do this? Between social media, the interrelationships of the publishing industry, and the permanent nature of the internet, news of negativity travels far and wide.  Sure, we can’t spout unicorns and rainbows all the time, but [...]

Tagged as: advice for writers, Jami Gold, Jami's rants, paranormal author, professionalism, romance fans, romance haters, romance novels, social media

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The Insanity Behind the Pressure to Have “Numbers”

October 20, 2011 Writing Stuff
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Confession:  I broke one of the unwritten rules of the Writer Code. I ranted.  In public.  On an agent’s blog. And yet I’m still here to tell to the tale.  In fact, the agent responded to my comment and then—in a show of fantastic grace—emailed me to make sure I didn’t take offense.  We ended [...]

Tagged as: advice for writers, agents, authors, blogging, Jami Gold, Jami is insane, Jami's rants, Kristen Lamb, paranormal author, risk, self-publishing, social media, traditional publishing, Twitter

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How To Avoid the Publishing Kool-Aid

October 4, 2011 Writing Stuff
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This isn’t going to be one of those “let’s bash traditional publishing/self-publishing” posts.  There are still too many of those opinions on both sides, and I don’t want any part of that. Two people I respect blogged recently about publishing and kool-aid.  Agent Janet Reid posted about the ten things authors should be doing right now. [...]

Tagged as: advice for writers, agents, dreams, ebooks, happiness, Jami Gold, Jami's rants, paranormal author, self-publishing, traditional publishing

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Should Books Have a Rating System?

July 28, 2011 Random Musings
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This must be the week for me stepping into controversial topics.  It’s a good thing I’m still wearing my flameproof jacket from my last post on plot vs. character.  *smile* It’s been a while since Meghan Cox Gurdon’s article at the Wall Street Journal and her contention that young adult (YA) books are too dark.  I’m [...]

Tagged as: book ratings, censorship, genre, Jami Gold, Jami's rants, listening to characters, muse, paranormal author, self-publishing, traditional publishing, YA

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How Do You Choose Blog Topics?

June 9, 2011 Random Musings
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In case you missed it, Kristen Lamb started a debate with her post yesterday—Sacred Cow-Tipping–Why Writers Blogging About Writing is Bad.  A collective whine went up from the writing community.  ”No blogging about writing?  Then what are we supposed to blog about?” *raises hand*  I was right there with the crowd, joining in the hyperventilating.  What [...]

Tagged as: advice for writers, blogging, branding, Jami Gold, Jami's rants, Kristen Lamb, paranormal author

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When Shouldn’t You Self Publish?

April 12, 2011 Writing Stuff
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Many articles have been written about traditional vs. self publishing (this blog is no exception, as my articles here and here prove), and agent Rachelle Gardner’s recent post added an intriguing twist to the conversation.  She asked her readers who are sticking with traditional publishing to explain their reasons why. Good question.  And I don’t [...]

Tagged as: agents, beta reader, feedback, Jami Gold, Jami's rants, paranormal author, professionalism, queries, self-publishing, traditional publishing, writing contests

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How Much More Do You Have to Learn?

April 7, 2011 Writing Stuff
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In my last post, I lamented how it’s hard for us to see our learning curve and know how much more we have yet to understand.  I wanted to know how close I was to that elusive “destination” of knowing everything I need to know about writing. *pshaw*  Silly me for thinking such a destination actually [...]

Tagged as: advice for writers, agents, grammar, Jami Gold, Jami's rants, paranormal author, perfectionism, plotter vs. pantser, professionalism

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Can Karma Help You Become a Better Writer?

April 5, 2011 Random Musings
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Yesterday, author Jody Hedlund had a blog post about why most writers are blind to their own faults.  The first reason she mentioned really resonated with me: We naturally view our work through our maturity level. When we first start any new project, writing or otherwise, we don’t know what all we don’t know.  This [...]

Tagged as: advice for writers, authors, beta reader, critique partners/groups, Edittorrent, feedback, Jami Gold, Jami's rants, paranormal author, professionalism

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Traditional vs. Self Publishing: How Much Does the Debate Matter?

March 29, 2011 Writing Stuff
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How many times in the past week have we heard “Traditional NY publishing is dead.  Barry Eisler has proved it.”  Or “NY publishing isn’t dead.  Amanda Hocking has proved it.” So which is it?  Or does it not matter? If you haven’t heard about the debate, the gist of it is that Barry Eisler turned [...]

Tagged as: Amanda Hocking, ebooks, Jami Gold, Jami's rants, paranormal author, professionalism, self-publishing, Susan Bischoff, traditional publishing

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Is Perfectionism Good or Bad?

March 24, 2011 Over-Achieving Perfectionist
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My Twitter friend Austin Wulf wrote a blog post yesterday, What’s So Bad About Perfectionism?, and that question got me thinking.  My blog readers might know I call myself not just a perfectionist, but an over-achieving perfectionist.  Is that a bad thing? *smile*  I think it depends. Is Perfectionism Bad? As with many things, a [...]

Tagged as: blogging, deadlines, editing, Jami Gold, Jami's rants, life balance, paranormal author, perfectionism

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