BOOK MARKETING: “Has Your Experience with CreateSpace Been a Positive One?” By Lorilyn Roberts

Recently, I received this question from William Burt, a YA Christian fantasy author, and a member of the John 3:16 Marketing Network.

I’m curious: Has your experience with CreateSpace been a positive one? New authors are asking for recommendations.

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My initial reaction was another question: Do you need to have an account with CreateSpace if you load your book at this new Ingram Spark website:  http://www.ingramspark.com/

I’m in the process of helping a traditionally published author make the transition to indie, and since this is a new Ingram/Spark website, I’m looking into this as I write.

This is a complicated question — short answer, yes, I have been happy with CreateSpace. But Lightning Source is of higher quality, and if you can get author copies as cheaply through Ingram Spark as you can through CreateSpace (at the above website), you may not need to publish through CreateSpace.

My books are on Lighting Source through a different platform, much less user-friendly, the original site, so that’s why I have my books on CreateSpace — it’s free and convenient.

The one time I had issues with CreateSpace, they made it right.  I had ordered 30 books for an event, and two days before the event and long after they promised delivery, I called them because I hadn’t received the shipment. They sent those books out expedited free of charge through a different printer.  They have more than one printer.

I eventually received the first shipment and CreateSpace gave the books to me for free.  Sometimes a book isn’t printed properly, but in my opinion, having grown up in a family business that published maps, I know that is to be expected. There will be some that need to be thrown out.  When I was a child, that was one of my jobs, to cull out those that had any kind of issue — and CreateSpace will reship those books for free. I’ve done this in the past.

Also, I saw on one website where authors were complaining that CreateSpace wasn’t free and they would try to sell you all their other products — covers, editing, et cetera.  That’s YOUR CHOICE.  I felt like that was misleading and unfair.  

 

The site where the article was posted was also a competitor, and they had stirred up the fires to generate more business for themselves—what I consider very deceptive advertising. Authors had simply jumped on the bandwagon with complaints, some of which were unfair. I have nothing to gain or lose with this statement. This is my opinion based on years of being an indie author and having published my books with multiple publishers. 

I have never paid a dime to CreateSpace to publish my books, and I have nine books published through them. Those extra paid services are there for those who need them.  AND — I have republished the same book through CreateSpace when I have found mistakes or done revisions, and I have never been charged for those updates. 

That is VERY DIFFERENT from Lightning Source or any POD publisher. There is a fee for everything. I would recommend new authors learn the ropes with CreateSpace (for free), and then once they know what they are doing, add on Ingram Spark. Why? You will never get your books into bookstores and libraries in any significant way without returnability. CreateSpace doesn’t give you that.

Also, one final comment on CreateSpace: Your books are almost immediately available through CreateSpace once they have been vetted. That process might take a couple of days. You can also use their online program to check your book before giving the final approval to CreateSpace — for things like margin placement, and you can start the process over as many times as you need FOR FREE until you get it right. CreateSpace gives you a free template to use, and they have phone support FOR FREE.

I don’t think you will find any publisher that gives you this level of support FOR FREE. 

Great question, William. If you have more questions, send them my way, and I will try to answer them through blog posts.

To learn more about Lorilyn Roberts, the founder of the John 3:16 Marketing Network, visit LorilynRoberts.com

BOOK REVIEW: “Seventh Dimension – The City: A Young Adult Fantasy,” Five Stars from Readers’ Favorite Reviewer Emily-Jane Hills Orford

Reviewed by Emily-Jane Hills Orford for Readers’ Favorite

“Time is an illusion until God’s appointed time.” This is oft repeated, stressed, in fact, in Lorilyn Roberts’ aspiring young adult novel, Seventh Dimension: The City. And what is the seventh dimension? Mathematically, it is quite beyond our simple expectations, but if we think in God’s perspective, it is all consuming, everything and beyond. 

Shale and Daniel are off on another adventure, one that takes them into the realms beyond this world: the underworld and Hades. Evil forces are set upon luring the young couple from their blossoming faith in the Messiah, King Yeshua. Shale has spoken out about her faith at school, to her mother and her friends, even to her father, Brutus, and his frighteningly mystical wife, Scylla. 

Not all have listened, but when she’s sent on a treacherous mission across the ocean to Israel to find the scrolls she had buried in another time, another dimension, she continues to share her belief even when she feels her own faith challenged. 

It is a difficult time with her home country of the United States blacked out by some mysterious force, and the world and within Israel erupting in chaos. 

But once she meets her old friend, Daniel, whom she met previously in another time, another dimension, she is set on her course to follow him and find his father who is being held captive somewhere in Nepal. To what end? Well, that’s the adventure and it’s a real end-of-the-world thriller with all the evil forces rising up. Armageddon is nigh, but will evil prevail?

Lorilyn Roberts captures the reader’s attention from the very first line and carries the excitement to a compelling climax and resolution. Her sense of adventure parallels the adventure of learning and accepting our Messiah, in living our faith to its fullest. 

The story is one of a series, but it can and does stand alone as a powerful witness to the supremacy of our living God. An exciting read, but also a deeply emotional and thought-provoking one.

To learn more or to purchase, click here.

GUEST APPEARANCE ON CAROLE BROWN'S BLOG Stitches Thru Time: A Visit with YA Author Lorilyn Roberts: Her books ...

Please visit Carole Brown’s blog where she is featuring me today. If you leave a comment, you might win a signed copy of Seventh Dimension - The City: A Young Adult Fantasy, Book 5 in the Seventh Dimension Series.

Stitches Thru Time: A Visit with YA Author Lorilyn Roberts: Her books ...: It's with real pleasure I introduce and welcome Lorilyn Roberts today as our guest. Her books are delightful young adult and award winni...

BOOK REVIEW: “Seventh Dimension – The City: A Young Adult Fantasy”: Five Stars from Literary Classics Awards

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Eighteen-year-old Shale's name is discovered on an ancient scroll which dates back over 2,000 years. The Illuminati are determined to get their hands on the two remaining scrolls to ensure no-one learns about the truths which lie behind these documents. Shale, and her friend Daniel, risk all to ensure the scrolls won't get into the wrong hands. As the two travel through time and space they encounter the forces of good and evil as ancient prophecies of the end-times unfold.

The City, the fourth book in the Seventh Dimension Series, is an exciting page-turner which will keep readers engaged from beginning to end. Fans of author Lorilyn Roberts’ work will continue to be enthralled by this intense supernatural thriller in which religion and science go head to head. The City is recommended for home and school libraries and has earned the Literary Classics Seal of Approval.

Seventh Dimension - The City is a silver medalist in the Literary Classics Awards for 2016. 

The City, Click here to learn more and/or order. 

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CREATIVE WRITING INSIGHTS: “How To Write A Memoir In Twelve Easy Steps,” by Lorilyn Roberts

trip to Disney with my daughters

All of us have lived through dramatic times of ecstasy and pain. For the sensitive and sensate person, memories of these events are etched in the psyche and have molded us into who we are. A memoir is a way to touch at the heart of those feelings and allow them to be shared with others.

A memoir is different from an autobiography because it takes a “snapshot” of certain events in a person's life. A memoir tends to read more like a novel. Usually a memoir is written in more colorful language than an autobiography and only relevant information is included—not everything about a person's life should be shared. How do I get started, you may ask? Here are twelve steps I followed in writing my adoption memoir Children of Dreams.

1. A memoir should have a beginning, a middle, and an end. There should be a problem, a conflict, and a resolution. 

2. It might be helpful to pull out old pictures, diaries, and objects to bring to memory the experiences you are writing.  If possible, go to the scene and relive the events in your mind.

3. Allow your feelings to flow freely from your mind and heart—they may be painful, terrifying, hurtful, crazy, or not understood, but to write a good memoir, you must bring the buried nemeses to the surface and write with passion.

4. Listen to music that will transport you from your surroundings to the time and place of the memoir. I like classical music, but anything that stirs your emotions and allows your mind to be absorbed back into that moment will work.

5. Don't do any major editing until you've written all that you can remember. Worry later about clean-up. If you edit too soon, you may change something that is important.

6. Expect to feel like you are going crazy. Your feelings may create powerful emotions that are buried deep, but when you write those hidden passions and distorted thoughts on paper, it can be cathartic. The story may even write itself and come to a resolution you never thought possible. 

7. Make sure you validate facts. A memoir is based on truth, so dates, times, names, people, and sequence of events are important. Otherwise, your credibility may come into question if something you have written is shown not to be true. It may be necessary to change names or locations, and this is acceptable provided you put a disclaimer at the beginning.

8. A good memoir is rich in color—metaphors, similes, descriptions, dialogue, and feelings will make your memoir come alive.

9. After you've written around one hundred pages, take some time to reflect on what you have said. Then put it aside for a few days, don't look at it, and come back and re‑read it. It will be easier to spot things that need to be revised or rewritten. Save deletions for later.

Vietnam when I adopted Joy from my Memoir Children of Dreams

10.  Be kind to yourself. Writing a memoir is a very personal, gut-wrenching journey.

11. After you have written the rough draft and edited it as much as you can, including deletions, give your memoir to some trusted friends for feedback. You may see a pattern in their comments, and that's a good indication of what needs further revision. Don't be shy and seek a professional editor if needed.  

12. Never give up. Never, never give up. Need I say it again? Never, never, never give up. 

Why Write a Memoir?

First, the memories are important to you. The intimate details will soon be forgotten if they are not written down. The memoir validates your experience and gives meaning to your life. Your memories become a treasured journey for others to learn from and enjoy.

A memoir can be a gift to your children, your parents, your friends, your country, and the world. Only you can tell the story that you've been given, and other people's lives will be enriched. Most of all, if you're like me, you will be set free from the past and empowered to write your next story.

You will be changed and healed in ways that would not have been possible without writing your story. Having gone through the journey twice, you will be wiser. Perhaps you will touch others in a way you couldn’t have imagined because the “gestalt” of your experience is universal. Most importantly, you will have accomplished what you set out to do, and that is to write your memoir.   

I say it again, never give up. It will be worth it when you have finished.

You can purchase the new audiobook of my adoption memoir Children of Dreams by clicking here.