CREATING KIDS’ AND YA BOOKS

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Write Links

Nicholas Lochel Inspires Write Links Members

PictureAuthor Nicholas Lochel signs his book for Write Links member Jillann Harrison

Last month’s meeting was one to remember.

First there was the spectacular view from the boardroom at the top level at the Brisbane State Library followed by a passionate and insightful talk by Nicholas Lochel author of Zarkora.

Nicholas and his sister Alison have had enormous success self-publishing their fantasy series Zarkora with their books available in most Dymocks stores in Brisbane and most independent book shops.

Their books are in constant demand by children from ages ten up with quite a few adults fans. Both Nicholas and his sister have frequent book signings across Brisbane since their first book: The Fyrelit Tragedy, was published in 2012. Book two: The Lost Kingdom is out now, with book three due for release May 30, 2015 and book four scheduled for the same year.

Nicholas and Alison are an amazing success story and more big things are coming their way soon.

Thanks for taking the time out to come and chat with us, Nicholas, we could have listened to you all day!


PictureWhat better place to meet than the Boardroom at the State Library Qld.

Here are some tips from Nicholas:

•    Do your research and know what you want        in your product, from paper quality to fonts         and editing services
•      Your goal in self-publishing: to break even
•   Put any earnings straight back into your                 books
•    Handing out bookmarks works
•    Print no more than 500 copies initially
•    Make connections with bookstores and build relationships
•    Work your book signing, stay around as long as you can
•  The sweet spot for book signing in a book store is from 9 to 10am and 2 to 4pm
•    You have to love writing and selling books (and a fair amount of stress), otherwise don’t do it!
•    Set up your fan base


PictureThe picture book critique group in action.

Here are some recent success by some of our members:
Katrin Dreiling
sold her first illustration, Samantha Wheeler received a May Gibbs Trust Fellowhip, June Perkins had several poems accepted to the Prints Rhyming Poetry Anthology, Yvonne Mes signed a contract for picture book  Meet Sidney Nolan with Random House Australia, Fay Dent’s Izadora books are selling like hotcakes.
Charmaine Clancy shared the latest details of her upcoming Rainforest Retreat for writers and Jenny Stubbs has been busy planning the StoryArts festival.

PictureThe Junior Fiction group looking right at home.

Here are some pictures of our critique groups hard at work. Our critique groups go for 2 hours and are broken up into picture book, junior fiction and young adult. Members exchange manuscripts a week before the meeting.



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What a view! Her is the YA critique group hard at it.

Comments

  • Jacqui Halpin
    August 11, 2014

    You’ve summed up the meeting perfectly, Yvonne! 🙂

  • The Fast Fingers
    April 12, 2015

    I’m not an author but I have known a lot of authors already because of my job. I really learned a lot from this post. Thanks for the tips! Good to see how authors work together to achieve common goal. 🙂

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