diane jane ball

When you first step into the world of publishing, you discover a whole range of confusing words that you have not come across before: ISBNs, metadata, trim sizes, distribution channels, to name but a few. One term that often puzzles new authors is “imprint.” It sounds quite technical, but in reality, it’s very straightforward. What is an imprint? An imprint is the publishing name that appears on your books. It is the name that readers, booksellers and libraries see on: · the copyright...

Advertising can feel overwhelming for authors with so many platforms, budgets and targeting options to choose from. It is so easy to spend money and yet not see much return on your investment. This is where the SMART process can help you: a simple and structured method designed to plan precise advertising campaigns and measure what works. SMART is used by businesses across the globe and not just by writers, but it can be very useful to you as an author if you are planning to run an ad on...

Most writers have an online presence for readers to explore their books and follow their work, and a favicon is a discreet and powerful part of this process. Literally short for ‘favourite icon’, a favicon is the tiny icon that appears next to someone’s page in browser tabs, bookmarks, and mobile shortcuts. You can design one however you want it to look, so that it reflects your genre or your personality. It is far more than a decoration, but a discreet way to build a brand and help your...