Writing.com: Creative Internet Strategies to Advance Your Writing Career (Mass Market Paperback)

~ Moira Allen (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

"One of the big fears about the Internet," says Moira Anderson Allen in Writing.com, "has been that it would (or will) replace traditional markets for writers." Instead, it seems not only to have increased the number of markets for writers, but also to have made the process of writing for traditional markets easier. Research can be conducted from the privacy of your own home (and the information found, though at times questionable, is more likely to be up-to-date). Potential markets can be checked out online. You can schmooze with other writers without buying a cup of burnt coffee at your nearest bookstore café. In short, the Internet saves writers time and money. Allen divides her book into three sections: researching online (including evaluating and using search engines), communicating online, and publishing online. Her appendixes include 500 "excellent" writing sites.

Can you query via e-mail? How about conduct an interview? Are online critique groups and classes worthwhile? The answer to all these questions is a qualified "yes." Allen's most resounding "yes" is to the writer who asks whether it's necessary to have a Web site. Why? To post clips, "to establish your expertise and/or educate readers," to promote your books, and to educate writers. Don't be daunted; Allen tells you what a writer's Web site should and shouldn't include (leave out the snapshot of Fido), as well as how to construct and then promote a Web site. Yes, publishing online has resulted in some significant losses of rights for writers, which are clearly discussed in Allen's book. But it can also bring you worldwide exposure, even if you live in the middle of nowhere. Just be sure your chosen nowhere is supported by a decent ISP. --Jane Steinberg

Review

"Moira Allen is delivering her vital message to writers in a time of exciting change." -- Dan Poynter, Amazon.com

"Moira Allen's book is an excellent resource for writers of all levels of experience. Well-organized and 'user-friendly,' Writing.com is packed with useful tips about online research and e-mail communication from a writer's perspective as well as covering topics such as electronic rights, online communities, promotion, critiquing, long-distance learning, creating one's own Web site, and online publishing. Whether you're new to the Internet or a well-seasoned pro, you'll find this book invaluable in your writing career. Highly recommended." -- Debbie Ridpath Ohi, Editor and Publisher, Inkspot/Inklings

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Allworth Press (August 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1581150296
• ISBN-13: 978-1581150292
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,457,240 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect for the net-savvy writer!, January 25, 2000

By	Andres Kabel (Melbourne, Australia) - See all my reviews

I'm a computer-savvy fiction writer who has used the Internet extensively in connection with my writing. This book has really hit the spot for me, as I'm just beginning to formulate more comprehensive Internet strategies. I actually know a lot of the detailed stuff in the book, but no one has ever encapsulated my potential choices so well. The book is well laid out, well written, and imbued with the voice of experience. A must-have for writers keen to blossom in the age of the Internet

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Thought about writing for the Internet?, October 4, 2003

By	Norman Goldman "Editor of Bookpleasures.com" (Montreal) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Writing. Com: Creative Internet Strategies to Advance Your Writing Career (Paperback)

Have you ever thought about writing for the Internet and were afraid to ask how to go about it? Fret no longer, Moira Anderson Allen has probably written the bible pertaining to writing and the Internet.

Her comprehensive tome entitled Writing.Com: Creative Internet Strategies To Advance Your Writing Career-Revised Edition is an update of a previous book published in 1998. As she mentions in her introduction, "the purpose of the second edition is to take a fresh look at the Internet and answer the question, "What does it mean to writers today?"

A non- fiction book pertaining to a particular subject matter is worth reading, provided it painlessly imparts a great deal of information. This is exactly what Allen has managed to achieve in covering just about all you need to know and more about Internet publishing.

In addition, the book comes with an electronic guide to online resources for writers. This guide offers nearly two thousand listings that are available as a downloadable PDF file. A password and URL site are provided.

Extremely well organized, complete with an alphabetical list of online resources and index, the book divides itself into eighteen chapters and two appendices. The author explores where writers and the internet are today, mechanics of the Internet, online research, writing communities, finding markets online, email queries and submissions, screenwriting and the Internet, electronic rights protection, piracy, scams, promoting your book, web sites, e-zines and newsletters, various kinds of publishing, e-books, and the future. At the end of every chapter, Allen provides Internet resources, where you can further your knowledge on the various topics.

What is interesting about Allen's writing is she never strays from what she is trying to explain. She neatly sums all the queries a novice or a veteran would like to know about Internet publishing. Moreover, Allen's writing is crisp and clear, and she avoids using sophisticated technical terms that would turn off many a reader.

For example, a glance at the chapter dealing with networking online and joining the writing community, the reader is immediately informed that many of the people who contribute to these forms are top-name authors and editors. The reader is then given a list and explanation of all of the possibilities-newsgroups, forums, chat, blogs, advantages, disadvantages, and twenty tips on effective discussion. There is also within the same section an excellent analysis of critique groups, their advantages and disadvantages. All of this is followed by a list of Internet resources.

Another plus is that you don't have to start at the beginning to enjoy this book. Open any section and you will be intrigued by the abundance of interesting information exposed on the chapter's topic. If you are already familiar with copyright, you can move onto the next section without skipping a beat.

The book represents a welcome contribution to a greater understanding of the many opportunities the Internet presents to authors and writers. A must purchase by Internet publishing beginners as well as the more experienced.

This book was first reviewed on the reviewer's own site: BOOKPLEASURES.COM

14 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must-have for your Christmas wish list!, October 19, 1999

By A Customer

If you're a beginning, intermediate or advanced writer hoping to harness the power of the 'Net and advance your writing career, Moira Anderson Allen's book helps you do just that. Concise and informative, Writing.com is one book you'll want to add to your "writer's wish list" for the coming holiday season!