And now for the news!

Some highlights from this month in the world of self-publishing, specifically interviews with or articles written by self-publishing authors and experts!

• Local memoirists share experiences

There is literally nothing more exciting and potentially explosive (in a literary sense) than a group of like-minded individuals getting together to accomplish something, and when that something happens to be writing and publishing one’s memoirs, the possibilities are endless! Or so the experiences of the Toledo Writer’s Workshop, interviewed at length by Nicki Gorny for the Toledo Blade, would seem to indicate–everyone there has a different story, both in terms of what they want to write and how their publishing process has gone. The workshop, which is made up of Chris Kwapich, Sarah Charles, James C. Mack, Chris Cummings, Don Slessman, Mohan Pandey, Bob Beach, and Mary Bush Shipko, is just as varied in terms of who chose to pursue a traditional publishing route and who opted to self-publish. Gorny dedicates page space to each author in turn, and each has something valuable to say about the process of writing a memoir. You can read the full article at the link!

• Author sees sci-fi book about dystopian future published after losing job (just like his protagonist)

Talk about a story for the ages! “Author Mark Cantrell was never expecting to have something in common with the protagonist of his latest novel,” begins Philip Cullinane’s article for the Stoke Sentinel, “But when the company he was working for went bust, the 46-year-old suddenly found himself unemployed, much like the character in his new book Citizen Zero.” So the story begins, yes, but it definitely doesn’t end there, as Cullinane chronicles Cantrell’s journey to self-publication, and his recovery after such a major career check. Citizen Zero, according to the article, conveys a world in which the gap between rich and poor is continually growing, where heavy-handed authoritarian governments are considered normal, and jobs are continually at risk of being rendered obsolete by artificial intelligence. Sound familiar? Well, maybe most of us don’t have to worry about AI yet, but some of us do. For more of Cullinane’s article interviewing Cantrell, visit the Stoke Sentinel website.

• The CXC Interviews – Marnie Galloway on Parenting, Time and Particle Wave

Every now and then, we like to talk comics, graphic novels, and heavily illustrated works on this blog, in part because they are just as commonly self-published as “word-based” literature, and in part because some members of the comics community are so totally, incredibly dedicated to their work–and we ant to honor that! This interview, conducted by Philippe Leblanc as part of a series at Cartoon Crossroads Columbus (CXC), takes advantage of the four-day festival’s intense concentration of independent artists to interview Marnie Galloway. Galloway, a Chicago cartoonist whose latest collection of publications includes Burrow, self-published in part with funds from the Pulitzer Arts Foundation, also uses Patreon to raise support in order to pay for daycare. A new mother, she speaks openly and frankly about the pressures of being both parent and artist in this interview, which you can read in full on The Beat. 

As a self-publishing author, you may find it helpful to stay up-to-date on the trends and news related to the self-publishing industry.This will help you make informed decisions before, during and after the self-publishing process, which will lead to a greater self-publishing experience. To help you stay current on self-publishing topics, simply visit our blog every Monday to find out the hottest news. If you have other big news to share, please comment below.