#How to Write a Bestseller

[toutmoi24]

The Ultimate Guide to Self-Publishing in 2025

Self-publishing has revolutionized the publishing industry, making it easier than ever for authors to share their stories with the world. However, navigating the process can be overwhelming, especially for beginners. This guide provides a comprehensive roadmap to help you confidently embark on your self-publishing journey in 2025. Step 1: Write and Edit Your Manuscript The Writing…

[bookshelf-in-progress]

Now that I know more about writing, I'm upset at all the writing advice that urged new writers to find the one best way to write stories, when they should be telling us to play with writing techniques like toys.

Don't tell us to avoid certain points of view! Don't box us into the one currently popular prose style! Let us play and see what effects different techniques achieve, so we can learn the best ways to make use of them! Give us a whole ton of possibility instead of one cookie-cutter template!

[flythesail]

Okay so maybe I turn this oshamir idea into an original novel

[boyfujo]

hi tree howre u <- my acc got nuked from orbit

noooooo vaniphobia :((( during pride month no less

[szollibisz]

been thinking about this a loooot recently (even if my "writing style" annoys the shit out of me now) but yeahw.. my little guy my favourite doomed gay.....

[ofmermaidstories]

prostrate in the sawdust of my enclosure staring up at the ceiling.

[petiolata]

Boring and bad advice from someone whose only qualification is "I've written!". Volume =/= quality or qualification. There are millions-word long garbage fics.

"400k in fanfiction" yeah me too. Along with pretty much every fanfic writer I know.

"Professional beta reader" lol. Seriously, lol. A beta-reader's job (including ones who are paid) is to give insight from a reader POV. While there are definitely better or worse ones, there is no required skills or skill level to be paid to beta-read. It's not like being an editor. (While in the fanfic world, the more editor-y the beta is, the better, when it comes to *pro writing* and paid roles, the editor and beta reader are intentionally distinct and beta readers serve the function of a focus group; they're a preview into how your actual audience will perceive the book. If your target demographic is LGBT young adults who reads queer YA novels, then a beta reader's qualification is being an LGBT young adult who reads queer YA novels. They don't have to know anything about the craft of writing.)

My #1 piece of holy grail advice is don't take advice from OP or the thousands of nobodies like them. Find authors with real qualifications and proven chops and read their books on things like showing vs telling, plotting suspensefully, etc.

The endless amounts of crap writing advice posts that gets reblogged and sharing is nothing short of amazing.

As for OP: your books don't sell. There's a reason for that. Stop giving advice and start reading it. Hopefully from some authors who actually know what they're talking about.

my 10 holy grail pieces of writing advice for beginners

from an indie author who's published 4 books and written 20+, as well as 400k in fanfiction (who is also a professional beta reader who encounters the same issues in my clients' books over and over)

show don't tell is every bit as important as they say it is, no matter how sick you are of hearing about it. "the floor shifted beneath her feet" hits harder than "she felt sick with shock."

no head hopping. if you want to change pov mid scene, put a scene break. you can change it multiple times in the same scene! just put a break so your readers know you've changed pov.

if you have to infodump, do it through dialogue instead of exposition. your reader will feel like they're learning alongside the character, and it will flow naturally into your story.

never open your book with an exposition dump. instead, your opening scene should drop into the heart of the action with little to no context. raise questions to the reader and sprinkle in the answers bit by bit. let your reader discover the context slowly instead of holding their hand from the start. trust your reader; donn't overexplain the details. this is how you create a perfect hook.

every chapter should end on a cliffhanger. doesn't have to be major, can be as simple as ending a chapter mid conversation and picking it up immediately on the next one. tease your reader and make them need to turn the page.

every scene should subvert the character's expectations, as big as a plot twist or as small as a conversation having a surprising outcome. scenes that meet the character's expectations, such as a boring supply run, should be summarized.

arrive late and leave early to every scene. if you're character's at a party, open with them mid conversation instead of describing how they got dressed, left their house, arrived at the party, (because those things don't subvert their expectations). and when you're done with the reason for the scene is there, i.e. an important conversation, end it. once you've shown what you needed to show, get out, instead of describing your character commuting home (because it doesn't subvert expectations!)

epithets are the devil. "the blond man smiled--" you've lost me. use their name. use it often. don't be afraid of it. the reader won't get tired of it. it will serve you far better than epithets, especially if you have two people of the same pronouns interacting.

your character should always be working towards a goal, internal or external (i.e learning to love themself/killing the villain.) try to establish that goal as soon as possible in the reader's mind. the goal can change, the goal can evolve. as long as the reader knows the character isn't floating aimlessly through the world around them with no agency and no desire. that gets boring fast.

plan scenes that you know you'll have fun writing, instead of scenes that might seem cool in your head but you know you'll loathe every second of. besides the fact that your top priority in writing should be writing for only yourself and having fun, if you're just dragging through a scene you really hate, the scene will suffer for it, and readers can tell. the scenes i get the most praise on are always the scenes i had the most fun writing. an ideal outline shouldn't have parts that make you groan to look at. you'll thank yourself later.

happy writing :)

[technologyequality]

Behind the Bestseller: The Business of Ghostwriting with Dr. Marcia Layton Turner

Behind the Bestseller The Business of Ghostwriting with Dr. Marcia Layton Turner I’ve never believed in doing everything myself. Delegation has always been part of my strategy, it’s why I built the 4D framework in the first place. But when I was running my business while covering private school and college tuition for my daughter, I didn’t have the budget or bandwidth to outsource the…

[lookwhatyoumademelou]

.

[eraofprocrastination]

my writing WIPs and their general vibes

I'm having a lot of trouble deciding which WIP I want to develop because most of the advice I get is "choose the story you want to tell" DON'T YOU SEE I WANT TO TELL ALL OF THEM. they are all personal to me in some way how do I gauge which is the "most personal" HOW CAN YOU TELL anyway

here are rambles

A: urban fantasy in which superpowered (mildly) traumatized teenagers become (even more) traumatized because they have to fight demon monsters (mostly real ones). city lights at nighttime, training in a special academy, the shine of steel from both guns and swords, spring mist obscuring neon signs, forces of nature but controlled by humans, a couple betrayals. lots of queerness and mental health issues.

B: very much a siren-and-ship-captain dynamic except there's three main characters and the third one is just a guest onboard the ship. no real romance but strong levels of tension. rage against colonizers. spotlight and moonlight and seafoam. storms in the middle of the ocean. cruise-ship type luxury. the resonance of a theater hall vs. the hushed atmosphere behind the curtains. shifting allegiances, shifting tides.

C: dark academia but make it Southeast Asia. more rage against colonizers. psychology, history, mythology. incense in ancient shrines, copious cups of tea, feverish studying, a furious drive to be the best, to be perfect, to make up for past failures. complicated mother-daughter relationships. probably some madness. indecision, gifted burnout syndrome, twisting conversations about the workings of the human psyche. humidity mingling with desperation in the air.

D: the story (stories) of Atalanta told in a cyberpunk-esque situation. thoughts on classism and police corruption. romance vs. independence. motorcycles and enchanted graffiti and maybe a knife fight. hunting billionaires instead of animals. bloody confessions of love charged with slightly dangerous amounts of electricity. probably a couple gangs. neon light and electric junk and mechanical parts scattered across the floor.

thoughts? opinions? ideas? I have lost track of what I am doing with my writing.

[mehmetyildizmelbourne-blog]

How to Be Successful on Substack: A Case Study

Featured Stories from Bestselling Substack Authors The First Curated Story of ILLUMINATION Writing Academy “In August 2024, I Made a Decision that Changed Everything” by Yana G.Y. A boosted story on Substack.com Yesterday, I introduced the initial submission guidelines of our first public publication, ILLUMINATION Writing and Reading Academy, on Substack. Although the story received only a…

[toutmoi24]

Top Tips for Writing a Bestseller: Your 30-Day Plan

How to Write a Bestseller in 30 Days: Step-by-Step Guide Every aspiring author dreams of crafting a bestseller, but the process often feels daunting. Writing a book in 30 days may sound ambitious, but with the right plan and focus, it’s entirely achievable. Whether you’re a first-time writer or an experienced author looking to streamline your process, this guide is tailored to help you succeed.…

[scottrandygerber]

THE KDP EFFECT, Your Blueprint to Self-Publishing Success book is currently available on Amazon by Author Scott Randy Gerber.

It has been a busy year with all the projects and completing the two books. The latest book is all about self-publishing and is called THE KDP EFFECT and is available on Amazon as of a few days ago. The book covers everything you need to know to be successful using KDP for self publishing.

Are you ready to take your writing career into your own hands and unlock the full potential of Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP)? Whether you're a first-time author or a seasoned writer, this step-by-step guide will teach you how to self-publish like a pro and turn your book into a global bestseller. Inside The KDP Effect, you’ll learn:

How to effortlessly navigate the Amazon KDP platform.Discover the Secrets to Self-Publishing Success with The KDP Effect!

Proven strategies for writing, formatting, and publishing a professional-quality book.

Expert tips on creating a stunning book cover that grabs readers’ attention.

Advanced marketing techniques to boost your book’s visibility and sales.

How to establish your author brand and build a loyal reader base.

Strategies for earning passive income through your books.

From crafting your manuscript to seeing your book rank in Amazon’s bestseller lists, this guide is your blueprint to self-publishing success. With real-world examples, actionable insights, and tools tailored for today’s digital author, The KDP Effect will empower you to bring your story to life. Take the first step toward becoming a self-published author today. Your audience is waiting!

[zephyrins]

I remember how I was about eleven years old and the teacher said during one of the classes that we'll not become famous; we are talentless; we are just a gray mass and our only purpose is to be a background wall for the real stars

I just wonder how traumatized that teacher was to tell something like THAT to a bunch of kids who only started middle school

[nobie]

I love being moots with writers y’all really make my day!

[morallysuperiorlips]

PLEASE Write Your Book!

I'm serious. Please write it. If you need a sign to start, continue, or whatever is inbetween, this is it. Go do it.

I spent the past couple weeks indulging myself in some BookTok recommendations. While some were indeed good (Kings of Sin, my beloved), some were just...I don't need to finish my sentence there.

I DNF'd some books for the first time since I read Lord of the Flies (sorry Golding, you put me to sleep with your descriptions) and I powered through others in hopes that they would eventually get better. The general consensus I ended up getting was that I could not understand for the fucking life of me how these books got published. The writing in some of them was no better than that of a 2010s teen writing Maximum Ride fic on Wattpad for the first time, with the characterization abysmal enough to match.

I don't want to knock any specific author or book here, because I will concede one thing: they finished their books. They got them published. They're successful. For that, I commend them, because I'm still on my way there myself and I can't take that away from them. Jolly good show.

But that brings me to my point: if they can do it, YOU absolutely can do it too.

If some of these Amazon and NYT bestsellers can have prose on a Wattpad level with characters that have enough poorly-written cognitive dissonance to make Deadpool or Walter White jealous, your fleshed out, deeply intuitive, and remarkably creative epic can sit right alongside them no problem. Whether you're writing the next GoT or a romantic slice-of-life, there is a not a goddamn thing on this planet stopping you from rolling up with the big dogs.

If these guys can do it, so can you.

So, stop telling yourself you can't. Stop letting other people tell you you can't. Stop comparing yourself to these authors who, respectfully and bluntly, can't write for shit (or at least need to fire their fucking editors, good lord).

WRITE YOUR DAMN BOOK. PLEASE. WE NEED IT.

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