Blisscraft Life With Christina Katz

Permission Granted, 45 Reasons To Micro-publish updates the conversation to modern concerns writers and authors have on the topic. Get your copy today!

Here’s a round up of some of my past posts on Micro-publishing:

I’d like to close with a quote from literary agent Chip MacGregor. I stumbled on it today and felt like it nicely echoes the message in Permission Granted. I have always felt that Chip’s advice for writers is honest and helpful.

Christina Katz knows micro-publishing. She teaches an excellent course on it and she has successfully micro-published several works herself. She also knows frictionless writing – writing that is succinct and easy to read that can be delivered readily and steadily to waiting readers. For any writer who has been wondering where the future of publishing and self-publishing lies, Katz creates a compelling case for short digital works playing a key role for authors and writers of many stripes. ~ Lara Krupicka

Christina Katz has written a concise, accessible overview of reasons why any writer should micro-publish. From the unknown writer to the multi-published traditional author, micro-publishing opens the doors of opportunity to increased creativity, success, income, and control over the writing and publishing process. A must-read for every writer. ~ Crystal Howe

Christina Katz has done it again! She’s taken on micro-publishing and broken it down into bite-sized pieces for any writer to digest. The take-away? There isn’t a writer around that can’t benefit from the sustainable career enhancement that micro-publishing offers. ~ Pam Torres

Permission Granted makes a compelling argument that the future is already here and micro-publishing is a promising way for writers to serve their readers. If you have ever considered micro-publishing or are just curious about it, read this book! ~ Laura Lane

For any fence-riders who might be considering self-publishing, Christina Katz’s Permission Granted might be just the push one needs to be persuaded to test the waters with micro-publishing. ~ Julia Mozingo

This is a timely book for all authors and would-be authors. Lots of information and advice in navigating the tricky world of publishing today. ~ Jan Pierce

As a student of Christina’s, I was already sold on the idea of micro-publishing. But this e-book really laid out all my future possibilities. It shows any writer how your first e-book is just the beginning. ~ Sarah Swofford

Christina pulls no punches with this informative, honest, and contagiously enthusiastic guide to the publishing wave of the future. ~ Lucie Winborne

After reading Permission Granted, I got excited at how the writing world is experiencing a revolutionary shift in power thanks to innovations in technology and self-publishing. With this empowering and thoughtful look at the future of publishing, Christina proves herself once again as an insightful and visionary leader in the writing world. This is a must-read for any professional writer. ~ Christa Melnyk Hines

Between now and the end of 2013, I will be rolling out a series of quote bubbles from Permission Granted, 45 Reasons To Micro-publish.

These quote bubbles are designed to help my fans more easily spread the word about book one of The Future Is Frictionless Series.

I hope that these quotes make you think.

I hope they challenge your assumptions and less examined beliefs, as I am accustomed to challenging my students.

More than anything, I hope they help us all wake up, and embrace a publishing future that is already here.

I have this crazy idea that publishing should be not only manageable for the average writer but also fun and celebratory.

So let the quote party begin! Please do me the favor of pinning these quotes into Pinterest.

Or feel free to grab them and post them wherever you like — in your blog, on social media sites, anywhere!

If you want to make the bubbles link back to me, simply link them back to https://christinakatz.com/. But I am not going to worry about it, since they are already attributed.

Thank you, as always, for your support.

At 1:00 pm Pacific Time today I am launching my latest micro-pub, Permission Granted, 45 Reasons To Micro-publish.

I have been micro-publishing, teaching micro-publishing, and helping to mid-wife micro-pubs into the world with my long-time students for several years now.

The reason I chose to make permission the topic of my first book on micro-publishing is because it has been an issue I have struggled with mightily over the years.

As a three-time traditionally published author, it was not easy for me to allow myself to publish outside the traditional system the first time. Of course, this got easier over the years as book advances plummeted while more and more was expected from authors for less and less.

I think most of us already know that the traditional system is undergoing massive changes, but what concerns me is most aspiring authors don’t seem to understand how much the onus is on them to produce their own success, whether they work with the traditional system or not.

You cannot read Permission Granted without gaining a clear idea of what to expect from a traditional deal vs. micro-publishing your own work. You will also learn important publishing terms and find your micro-publishing concerns addressed whether you are an author already, an aspiring author, or even an aspiring writer.

The benefits of micro-publishing are numerous, so I had no problem coming up with 45 reasons. What’s critical is to understand that a micro-publishing evolution is already coming for publishers of all sizes, whether you get with the program or not. In order for each of us to make the most informed decisions, we need to be informed about the full array of choices that we have.

Micro-publishing is a great way to learn how to treat your writing like a business, how to be in charge of producing your own works, and how to take 100% responsibility for your writing career success — which is something that I have been teaching my entire career.

Anyone who is trying to sell you on the idea of landing a book deal and becoming the famous author you always dreamed of becoming, is doing you and your future readers a dis-service.

Readers should not have to wait for you to become a famous author to hear what you have to say. There are too many things that need to be said today and too many people who are perfectly capable of saying them.

I am not saying that everyone is ready to micro-publish tomorrow. But I am saying that more people are better prepared to micro-publish than they are ready to be discovered by traditional publishing.

I predict that one year from now, micro-publishing will be as common as having a website and the benefits of micro-publishing will be widely known from personal experience.

That’s win-win-win. And win-win-win is the way things ought to be.

Stay tuned! It won’t be long now.

What I do for a living is bad for my health.

I don’t intend to change what I do, so I had to come up with ways to respond to what would otherwise become inevitable damage.

I plan to stick around for a long time. So, I take proactive steps against the damage, and all of these steps have really helped.

Here is my philosophy in a nutshell. I cover basic recommendations in my supplements to balance out imbalances caused by my lifestyle and diet.

Basically my supplements are an assortment of quality products that most experts agree are good for everyone. When I take them, exercise and drink enough water, I feel calm, centered, balanced and like I am taking great care of myself.

When I wasn’t supplementing, I felt sluggish, crabby, and emotional. I am not the greatest eater. I do not drink as much water as I should. I am way too sedentary. I exercise regularly but could probably exercise even more.

In response, these are the habits I’ve gotten into and the products I use. I hope this list is helpful.

An Elliptical Machine (Check your local big box store or Amazon Prime)

If I didn’t have this machine, I would not exercise through the cold months. And I find that I enjoy switching things up, running in the warm months and using the machine in the laundry room during the cold months. I have a relatively inexpensive model that I got on sale from Costco.com. It would be the equivalent of something like this one on Amazon. For me, it’s not about having a fancy model, it’s about having one that works well and gets the job done. After just one season, I feel like this is an investment that has already paid for itself.

Healthforce Vitamineral Green Tablets LINK

This is the product I can’t live without. I take a half-dose a day, which is four capsules a day, because I am more interested in health maintenance than cleansing, but you can use this product for de-toxing if you are into it. Whenever anyone has a cold around here, I push these capsules on them until they feel better.

Nordic Naturals, Nordic GLA LINK

This product has made a huge difference for me. If you have any kinds of hormonal issue (you may not even know you have them, I didn’t), try this and see if you notice a difference, too.

New Chapter Zyflamend Whole Body LINK

I have arthritis in my neck, so I take an anti-inflammatory. If you have any kind of bone or joint issues, I suggest you try this. I think it works great.

Jarrow Formulas Jarro-dophilius +FOS LINK

This is the brand of pro-biotic I currently take. If you will not use swift shipping, purchase probiotic supplements at your local health food store. Look in the refrigerated section.

Healthforce Vitamineral Earth Powder LINK

I mix this with vanilla almond milk, a frozen banana, and a bit of honey and it tastes pretty good. If you like Chai tea, you will probably like the flavor. I always feel great after drinking this, though I don’t drink it every day.

Healthforce Acai Resveratrol Ultimate Orac Antioxidant Extreme LINK

I like taking this supplement because it makes me feel like I am doing the maximum I can do for my body, but I’d think of it as an extra. See if you feel like you need it.

L-Theanine 200 mg LINK

This supplement is helpful for mental clarity and I find that it really helps, especially if my brain is feeling sluggish or slow for whatever reason.

Yerba Maté Tea Check out the Guayaki brand in your local health foods section

Yerba Maté tea was recommended to me for mental clarity (it contains caffeine) and also for increasing metabolism when used regularly. I probably don’t drink enough for the second effect, but it’s a great coffee substitute when you need to be sharp and alert. I stock up on this when it goes on sale to offset the cost.

San Pellegrino Mineral Water Check your local big box store

I drink this when I just can’t get myself to drink tap water. Luckily drinking more water comes part and parcel with taking supplements. I sometimes have my supplements as a snack with water because just taking them fills me up.

This probably seems like a lot of supplements, if you are not accustomed to taking any, but I have winnowed out any that didn’t seem to help, and stuck with those that do.

These supplements work for me. I am not a doctor and this is not medical advice. But if your health feels like it is in decline because of overwork, stress, or lifestyle choices, I would say that you probably can’t go wrong trying any of these products.

If you feel so inclined, test them on yourself and see what you think.

And if you have any habits or products that have made a difference for you, and you are not a company representative, please share in the comments.

~ Photo by Marsmett Tallahassee

Writers often dismiss platform development and platform building. But they are denying themselves the fun that comes part and parcel with platform development.

The other thing they deny themselves is the self-awareness that comes from playing around with platform, not to mention the professional strides that can be taken in thoughtful directions because of personal insights and epiphanies that can be gained from platform building.

Writers often make assumptions that lead to mistakes. And believing that platform is all about “selling out” rather than what it is really about, which is turning your potential into something powerful in the world.

Long story short, if you think platform is just about expanding your audience, then you are selling the process and your career short.

If you focus only on what is happening out there in response to your work at this expense of what is happening (and has happened and will happen) inside of you, then there is no alchemy.

The most successful platforms are about transmuting your potential into actual successful work in the world.

So, stop your groaning and get off your high horse and get to work on your platform, writers.

You are going to get around to it some day anyway. There is no getting around it in today’s marketplace.

But you could be enjoying the process right now, if only you would stop treating it like medicine you refuse to swallow.

These are some of my many offerings designed to help writers establish, develop, and grow their platforms. All of them, are educational, expansive, and yes, even fun.

If you do not have a platform yet:

Get Known Before The Book Deal, Use Your Personal Strengths To Grow Your Author Platform, my book on foundational platform principles

Discover Your Platform Potential, A Companion Workbook For Get Known Before The Book Deal

Platform Bingo, Level One, A 24-day Challenge

Discover Your Specialty & Launch Your Platform, A Six-week Class

If you have a platform already:

50 Simple Ways To Build Your Platform In Five Minutes A Day, an article I wrote for Writer’s Digest Magazine

Platform Bingo Level One, When it’s time to update your bio

Platform Bingo Level Two, A 24-day Challenge, When you want to expand & update your website

Platform Bingo Level Three, A 24-day Challenge, To help you acquire more professional credibility

The Writer’s Workout, 366 Tips, Tasks & Techniques From Your Writing Career Coach, when you want to learn how to juggle platform evolution with long-term writing career growth

I took the 21 Moments Writing Challenge myself last spring and was somewhat shocked by how empowering it was even though I did not complete the challenge perfectly.

The challenge woke me up. I felt more present each day to my thoughts, feelings, and responses to life all around me.

A few months later, as I was making submissions for fall publications, I started to realize that my writing had changed. It had become more personal, more passionate, more in line with topics I care deeply about.

Apparently I had things I needed to say and the 21 Moments Writing challenge was going to help me say them, only more eloquently than they might have come tumbling out otherwise, and certainly more clearly than what I wrote wrote hurriedly during the challenge.

As writers, we sometimes forget the transformative power of writing explicitly for ourselves. This is easy to do and understandable to feel with all the pressures and distractions of modern life.

And yet, in just 21 days of practicing my own challenge–the one that I created–I took my writing to a whole new level. And now I am seeing the results and I am pleased.

This is how I know that the challenge not only works, but is powerful and satisfaction-deepening. I’m so glad I took it and I can’t wait to take it again. There is no doubt that it also took me to a new level of permission with the three e-books I am currently launching.

In the meantime, here are more ways to use the challenge in the words of those who have already taken it. See if any of these ways appeals to your creative itch, and then scratch it, quick! Because this is the last round until January 1st.

• As inspiration to write better during the first 21 days of NaNoWriMo.
• To help you remember why they call it “great literature.”
• To motivate a young adult who aspires to become an author some day or just likes to write.
• To get your creating writing groove back.
• To discover all the possibilities for writing opportunities in your daily life.
• To write more because you are inspired, not because of stress or pressure.
• To feel like a real writer for 21 days.
• To be in the company of other real writers, and all be working on your own stuff.
• To write whatever you want to write for a change.
• To write cathartically, if this is what you feel you need to do this month.
• To help your imagination come alive.
• As a substitute for the “Morning Pages” you used to write.
• To break out of a writing slump.
• To tackle the short forms of writing that make up the long forms of writing.
• To reign in your wandering mind and focus.
• To find a present in your inbox every morning.
• To play around with genres or at least not care about them temporarily.
• To fill your journal with potent writing starts.
• To get the ideas in your head down on the page.
• To help get your through a longer writing project.
• To re-vivify your writing voice.
• To do the real writing, not just the warm-up.
• To find and hit your writing stride.
• To remember all the things you want to write about some day.
• To painlessly establish a daily writing routine.
• To recapture the sheer joy and pleasure of writing again.

Register For Your Next Round, In Order:

One of the reasons I love writing for regional parenting publications so much is that I enjoy writing seasonal pieces that are based on real-life experiences.

In other words, I take the fodder from my life and I turn it into parenting articles that earn me money year after year.

Pay for regional parenting articles is on the low side, but the business is consistent, so if you can play a long-term game instead of only being focused on short-term profits, you can do well.

And nothing beats the feeling of making the most of your personal experience and unique point of view and putting it all in service of like-minded others.

If this sounds like fun to you, please check out my latest e-book, Write For Regional Parenting Publications For Fun & Profit, which is now available in every digital format under the sun!

Here are some of my latest articles for my parent readers:

More Magic & Few Meltdowns: Tips For Trick-Or-Treating Parents Neapolitan Family LINK

Not Too Scary Halloween Movies The Whole Family Can Watch Together Metro Parent LINK

13 Reasons Our Tween Does Not Have A Cell Phone Yet in Western New York Family LINK

Give Dance A Chance: 21 Reasons To Try Consistent Classes Volusia Parent LINK

Relax More, Mom: Portable Hobbies For A Happier You in Calgary’s Child LINK

Bonding Time: Ten Easy Ways To Bring Your Family Back Together Montgomery Parent LINK

Ready to pen your own parenting articles?

Check out Write For Parenting Publications For Fun & Profit and learn how.

The skills in this e-book will build up your professionalism and your portfolio and help you get ready for higher paying gigs in the future.

Everyone has to start somewhere, and I highly recommend writing for regional parenting magazines as a way to get some good writing practice and break into writing for publication.

For more support, check out my class, Writing & Publishing The Short Stuff. I’ll be offering a scholarship in December for the January class. Stick around, the learning is fine!

It is a truth universally acknowledged that not every writer relishes the idea of platform development. Until now…

Platform Bingo allows any writer to analyze, assess, and assemble the platform of his or her making in just 24 days.

If you have ever had questions about platform…what it is, do you have one, and how much is enough to get started? You will know the score by the time you complete Platform Bingo Level One with Christina Katz.

What a fun, easy  way to see where you are with your writing and platform!  ~ Erika G.

My shelf sags under the weight of 100+ writing books, but time doesn’t allow me to plunge in wholeheartedly. Some days are so busy, there are only moments to spare for writing. Desiring to grow and be intentional as a writer, I was looking for  a quick and easy daily prompt. Platform Bingo fit the bill perfectly.  ~ Christa S.

Platform Bingo, Level One helped me objectively assess the work I’ve done on my platform and very quickly made it obvious where I need to put in more time and effort. The class lessons are short, to-the-point and very effective for anyone wishing to enhance their writing career.  ~ Virginia W.

Platform Bingo definitely makes you think about your writing, but it also makes you examine your life. Less expensive than an appointment with your therapist, and just as valuable!  ~ Lauren B.

Platform Bingo helped me think of my whole writing career, not just the things I do on a day to day basis. This expansion has helped me see other opportunities to grow and expand in ways consistent with doing what I love the most.  ~ Cindy H.

Platform Bingo, Level One is a simple and effective way to develop my writer’s platform. I’m looking forward to future levels and the platform I create with Christina’s coaching.  ~ Anne V.
I loved finding out that I was doing things right. I loved finding out how to refocus that things I was not doing right. And I loved having it all in bite-sized daily portions.  ~ Heather D.

Platform Bingo, Level One broke my mindset that a platform is a blog. My platform is everything I do to get my words and voice off my computer and into the world.  ~ Kim R.

Platform Bingo is really for everyone – from newbie to hardened platform junkie. I am somewhere in the middle of those two and I got so much out of really revisiting some areas that I haven’t addressed for ages – bio, accomplishments, articles, ideas I had previously generated. I feel that now I know what I need to tackle next. I am sure that somebody has already said this – but if you want to do it right platform development really is a marathon, and not a sprint!  ~ Krysty K.

I loved the simplicity of the assignments and was quite surprised by the ‘whole’ of what I had completed in the end.  ~ Tina G.

The first level of Platform Bingo has been great for enabling me to get a bird’s-eye view of my writing career. The breadth of questions asked and the amount of information I have gathered about my work and its impact on the world is stunning. Within the 24 days of Platform Bingo I’ve learned much about what is going well (and better than I’d imagined) and where my platform is weak. It has been an empowering process. Now I know where better to focus my platform building efforts.  ~ Lara K.

Thanks to Platform Bingo, I came away with a better appreciation for where I am at in my writing career.  ~ Kim T.

Register here for the next round of Platform Bingo with Christina Katz.