Calling All Authors and Self-Pub'rs

[MJ DeMarco]

Would you guys be interested in a new forum, specifically centered around the business of writing and self-publishing? I'm talking about a NEW FORUM on an entirely different domain.

I'm thinking about starting another forum for this specific industry. While I have no plans to close down this particular sub-forum of Fastlane, I think the industry needs better gathering places than what's available.

In @AroundTheWorld's thread, she mentioned she wished there was a place to "test" her writing, or a place for beta-testers. This is the type of thing that the forum would offer as well as a bunch of other industry specific forums. Additionally, I'd like to not only focus on B2B, but B2C (eventually) and help new authors promote their books. I'm thinking the business/author side of the forum would be mostly private (or eventually go private) if a consumer division actually went live.

Let me know your thoughts.

~ MJ

PS: Forgot to mention that most of the author side would be private and not indexed so authors can talk more freely about their titles.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[Rainy_TX]

I'm totally on board with that idea. Would be great to have different branches under the authorship title - marketing, descriptions, covers, character/world building, etc... sort of like what Nano has. That would be great!

 

[AroundTheWorld]

I would be interested, depending upon what is being offered.

What follows is a list of several random, unorganized thoughts:

It seems that there are several "tools" or "resources" for writers, but that they aren't in the same place.
You can find beta readers at goodreads. You can find abandoned plots or characters in the Nano boards.
You can find inspiration here, in the form of progress threads.

It is interesting to me that the threads in the writing subforum here seem to have a different flavor than most other sub-forums here. It is almost exclusively progress threads. People drop a ton of awesome nuggets of information and resources within these progress threads, but our community of authors don't seem to discuss "topics" as stand alone threads. I would actually find that more helpful.

Which author was it that discussed the use of the snowball method? In which thread was that information about managing pen names? designing or obtaining covers, and on and on.

It WOULD be really nice to have a close circle of people in which we could take turns brainstorming or looking at a WIP. I'm not sure that would EVER be practical in an open forum, though, and as some authors here have stated, it isn't actually a good idea to share your WIP too soon. It can stall you out, cause you to second guess yourself too soon in the process, etc. I think I would like to be able to share a plot outline though - go get feedback at that point, before I actually start writing.

On the CON side, it would be "one more place" for me to visit on the internet and therefore ONE MORE DISTRACTION. I wouldn't stop coming here, so it would have to be really compelling to go elsewhere. I would honestly perfer some modifications here rather than a totally separate place.

 

[Cruor Vult]

On the CON side, it would be "one more place" for me to visit on the internet and therefore ONE MORE DISTRACTION. I wouldn't stop coming here, so it would have to be really compelling to go elsewhere. I would honestly perfer some modifications here rather than a totally separate place.

Agreed. I really like the writing/publishing part of this forum. Seeing all this in the context of the MFL is useful in keeping focus.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[JPBB]

I think what sets the writing/publishing threads apart is the focus on providing value to the market, producing, and not going on and on about characters or sub-plots (which other writer's hang outs tend to do).

Getting feedback on writing is helpful as long as discussions on "the craft" of writing are segmented from the business of making a product that the market wants.

That said, I'm 100% interested!

 

[safia]

Sounds like a good idea. More and more people enter the business of writing and self publishing so a new forum focused on it would be great, provided it keeps the high quality as this one

 

[Heraclides]

Sorry for this question but what stands for B2B and B2C? Can someone tell me? as I saw those terms many times in this forum. Thanks.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[AndrewNC]

I would join. With that being said, even if it's not indexed, I would be hesitant to open up 100% about everything outside a small, trusted group.

 

[Blueskies4me]

It is interesting to me that the threads in the writing subforum here seem to have a different flavor than most other sub-forums here. It is almost exclusively progress threads. People drop a ton of awesome nuggets of information and resources within these progress threads, but our community of authors don't seem to discuss "topics" as stand alone threads. I would actually find that more helpful.

Agreed.

 

[JPBB]

Sorry for this question but what stands for B2B and B2C? Can someone tell me? as I saw those terms many times in this forum. Thanks.

Business-to-business (B2B), Business-to-consumer (B2C)

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[Lauryn]

That would be totally awesome.

 

[ctcrompton]

I think it's a good idea if executed properly. As others said, I like this self-publishing forum/author forum, and I think it could be an awesome thing to have a private forum for serious authors/self-pubbers only, but the bottom line is writing. As much as I read from other threads, it only goes so far. I have to take it and practice it in real life through writing.

Perhaps an alternative to creating an entirely separate forum would be to create a few sticky threads in the current self-pub forums for compiled information found throughout the various threads. One thread could be devoted to topics, another devoted to keyword research, etc...

 

[ActionMan]

I would definitely be interested in a separate forum. For me with there being so much here it's distracting. Although that could be because I'm new to the forum too.

Sent from my SCH-I605 using Tapatalk

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[DennisD]

I think it's a phenomenal idea. It will bring in more serious writers. I'd love to get some bestsellers giving us advice alongside our existing fastlaners.

This will take off and become it's own marketable brand.
Right now my main discussion with other authors is on a facebook group that Pat Flynn started.
It'd be nice to have a place a bit more intimate where more in-depth discussions are allowed... without all the spam.

Great need analysis MJ.

On the CON side, it would be "one more place" for me to visit on the internet and therefore ONE MORE DISTRACTION. I wouldn't stop coming here, so it would have to be really compelling to go elsewhere. I would honestly perfer some modifications here rather than a totally separate place.

This is the real problem, isn't it?
It's not TOO big a deal for me. When I'm in writing mode, I'M IN WRITING MODE and a separate place would be my main destination to keep myself in the right head-space... but when I'm NOT in 'writing mode' I don't know how I'd interact with YET another site. If we're looking at an eventual paid subscription, it's just not something I'd do on top of INSIDERS.

Worth consideration:
A "fastlane passport" typa deal would be great, where I still have my speed, my rep, my profile, my avatar, my INSIDERS's perks (no ads)...
Where my posts are connected to my profile... but it's ONLY searchable within the new site. Connected, yet separate gateway and privileges.

I don't know if it's technically possible. But that would be ideal.

If you wanted to later add to the 'fastlane network' you can build out a specific subforum for ONLY those interested in real estate, investing, etc. as the brand grows and the needs arise. I know it's WAY too early to be thinking about expanding in so many directions, but the possibility's totally there.

 

[COSenior]

Lots of great ideas here. I'd add my vote to sticky topic threads, non-indexed, and still part of THIS forum for several of the above-stated reasons. I tend to hang out in this sub-forum more often than anything else, but time constraints, especially, would prevent me from doing both if it were entirely separate. Maybe a separate INSIDERS sub-forum? I'm torn between keeping my private stuff private and attracting new participants with more to contribute. Would they only come from visitors to this forum, MJ? Or would you market the new forum for serious writers? (By whom, I mean action-takers.)

 

[Dave C]

I personally wouldn't use it at all.

It just creates more roadblocks to success.

We know that everyone on this particular forum is working towards the same goal with a similar starting point (The Millionaire Fastlane ) but when you create something that specific, you'll get more people posting. In my experience that always means more noise, less signal. I think the quality would drop dramatically.

When I think of what you're saying I'm picturing the Warrior forums which have a lot of contradictory information and you have to work so hard there to find usable data compared to here were it's very easy to find quality.

Right now we have a good mix of hard workers, people who have made it and unique insights but that'd change on a bigger space. Which is why I'd just keep posting here and avoid the bigger area.

Of course it could be a great idea from a business point of view but not for me.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[Erock87]

I agree with Dave.

While I'm sure you will have success with it and others will find it useful, I wouldn't visit it. I frequent this forum because it's full of like-minded individuals, but even now I only check this once every few days (I try to limit the amount of time I spend on websites). My progress thread is meant to inform others wanting to publish books, and keep myself accountable.

I feel like there are other author-type forums out there, but I don't bother browsing them. Maybe I'm in the minority and delaying my success, but when I'm not at my slowlane job or working on my writing, I'm with my family.

 

[Greyson F]

I've actually been working on a website design for a website that serves this exact purpose. It's a meeting place to discuss/share/promote your writing and get yourself known and edited by other writers. I wouldn't mind you using the site design or name if you'd like MJ, I know your purpose would serve more people than mine.

 

[joanna]

I second the sentiment above. What would be different from the myriad of existing forums, including the already established writer hangouts like kindleboards? I like the small community here and the focus everyone has on treating this as a business.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[GiroudJD]

If it was private, and some sort of barrier to entry, I think it could offer something different than kboards.

 

[Magik]

This is a good idea, as long as it is still centered around the same Fastlane principles that this forum is built upon. The goal should be to take writers all the way from start to finish. There should be an emphasis on technique, staying focused, editing, writing to the finish, marketing (something very few writers understand), self-publishing trends, etc. It can be done and still be focused on the Fastlane process, and there could be ways to weed out those who are event driven.

I say go for it. If you went forward with it, I would be an early adopter and would gladly help out in any way possible (including moderating).