​Writer's block, that dreaded obstacle that stands between a writer and their creativity, is a common challenge that plagues even the most experienced wordsmiths. It can strike at any time, leaving you staring at a blank page, struggling to find the right words. 

Guest Post by Dean Burgess.
Doing what you love is one of the secrets to having a successful and fulfilling career. And for those with a passion for writing, what could be better than turning that passion into a thriving business? While this might sound like a daunting endeavor at first, with the right approach and guidance there is nothing stopping you from achieving your goals. In this article by JD&J Book Cover Design, we’ll explore the best practices you can follow for turning your hobby into a business. 

Self-publishing a book is an easy way to bring your book to market, you don’t need to have an agent or go cap-in-hand to a publisher, but that being said, it does require a great deal of hard work in order to make sales, and as you’re doing it yourself, you’ll need to budget for everything that goes along with preparing and promoting a book.

And because the pathway to self-publishing is quite straightforward, many authors choose this option, as a result, there were over 2.3 million self-published books released in 2022 (and if you include traditional published books, the total number is over 4 million). That’s over 6,000 self-published books launched every day (over 10,000 if you include traditionally published books too).

So, there are a lot of authors writing and publishing their work, great for those of us who love to read!
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But how many authors who choose to do it by themselves are successful? It’s quite easy to get bogged down in the numbers, but self-pub authors can make break throughs and become true best sellers, here is a list of some of the best indie authors who you may not have realized self-published.

Working in the publishing world you get to meet with lots of wonderful, and very talented authors, creative individuals who have spent a great deal of their time developing an idea into a story, or sharing an experience, or writing specific details of their knowledge within a certain arena, all dedicated to bringing this to an audience of interested and engaged readers.

And for the readers, we love to lose ourselves in a great author’s work, being taken on a journey or to learn something we never knew before, there are lots of reasons why we read and there are lots of ways that we can support those self-publishing authors that we love.

So, this year, why not support your favorite self-publishing / indie author, here are TEN ways that any reader can help.

For authors, writing is not just a hobby, it’s a way of life, so if you are passionate about writing and want to make some extra money, or even cultivate a full-time career from your passion, here are 10 ways to make additional income from your craft.

1 – Writing a blog

Starting your own blog may sound like an obvious option for many writers, as it enables you to select a topic that you are passionate about and then give your opinions and thoughts on that subject, over time you should be able to grow your audience/visitors which will help you to make money.

There are several ways to create an income stream from your blog, but the first one will be from advertising, signing up for a Google Adsense account will allow you to place adverts within your content that will be of interest to each visitor to your site, when they click on the ad, you get paid.

You can also look at affiliate products and services advertised within your blog, again, when one is sold using the unique link from your site to the seller’s page, you will get a commission.

Doing what you love

The dream for most authors and writers is to make a career (or even a side hustle) from their creative talents, being able to do what you love and make money when and where you want.

But when you think of writing and making money, you may only come up with a couple of ideas and even then, these ideas may be limited.

However, with some creativity you can do what you love and make some money at the same time, here are TEN great ways for you to make money with writing.

Ten books to help every self-publishing author

Getting a book published can be a challenging task, but luckily enough, there are some great books to help fellow authors, from these you can learn from successful writers and experts within the publishing industry, here are our top ten picks for books you should check out today.

​Freelance writing is an excellent way to supplement your income, and it can even blossom into a full-time career if you put in the necessary work. Whether you’re a stay-at-home mom, studying at university, or simply trying to figure out what to do with your career, writing could be an ideal job. And if you constantly seek to sharpen your research and writing skills, you can build a client base to be reckoned with. This quick guide will show you how to get started!

There are lots of benefits in writing daily within a journal, along with those well documented for mental health, there are great reasons on how it also helps with increasing your skill as an author. Journaling has been shown to help deal with negative thoughts, stress, anxiety and depression, so it is certainly worth considering taking up this practice for many of us (regardless of our writing aspirations).
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But for those who are looking at journaling purely from a writing viewpoint, here are several reasons why you should start writing one today.