The Poetteer

Hello Poetteers,  I'm sharing more poetry books I discovered and am excited to read! March Coming Home to Her By Emily Juniper It is a celebration of being human. It is a coming out journey, an exploration of sexuality, femininity, loving, and being loved. How to Bloom By Tatyana White Jenkins A collection of poems about the enthralling, complex, grueling, and beautiful journey of growth. April The Gravity Inside Us By Chloe Frayne  An ode to whatever it is we carry that pulls us in and out of place, and speaks so insistently of fate. The Medicine That Burns by Molly S Hillery It is a raw declaration on what a life of trauma can look like after the dust settles and the poems have happy endings. It is an unflinching narrative on how hurt is cyclical, how recovery must be redefined repeatedly, and how shame can poison us in the worst ways. I See How You've Kept Me by Aisha Adams A debut poetry book that takes you through a journey of brokenness to reach complete healing. May The...

Hello Poetteers,  Going wide can be overwhelming. Finding a good distributor can help lessen the stress. I started using Draft2Digital to reach ebook retailers unavailable through Smashwords. Like Smashwords and Amazon, it’s free and easy to use. I enjoy using D2D for its features. The interface is easier to use while Smashwords needs an updated facelift. You can schedule sales ahead of time on D2D while on Smashwords you need to set the sale on the same day. On Amazon, you can’t place your book for sale or free unless you exclusively publish with them. Smashwords sales use coupon codes that buyers will have to remember. A benefit from that is you can have a private or public sale. Smashwords can be nit-picky about your book format. If it fails the review, your book won’t be available on the Premium Catalog. D2D helps with table of contents and adding in end matter. It allows you to add a design style. It’s accessible to download MOBI and EPUB. You can pick which retailers you want...

Hello Poetteers,  Self publishing can vary from being free to expensive. It depends on your skills, if you're willing to be self taught and hire out for higher quality work.  Indie author publishing tools A cover designer can run between $150-$300  An editor costs between $200-$400  There are other expenses like formatter and illustrator.  Or you could do the cover and interior by yourself on programs like InDesign which costs about $240 a year. Vellum is $250, a book formatting software for Mac.  Distributors IngramSpark is $50 - to upload a book & then $25 for each revision. Other expenses Isbns $125 - from the Bowker site (for US only). You can purchase an isbn (2 for each: paperback & ebook) to have your name and LLC attached to your book. You can also use a free one through your distributors. Their publishing company will be attached to your book. Also, you’ll have several different isbns for your book through all the distributors you use. Re...

Hello Poetteers, How to know you’re over-editing Something we all worry about is over-editing. It’s bound to happen. Over-editing is when your work is no longer moving forward. It happens when you doubt it's not good enough and are attached to what readers think. You will know when the emotion in the poems are lost and you're not excited anymore. The poems sound the same & you feel tired with the poems. There are no questions left to ask. You're focused on the same section and tiny details. You can't finish because it's hard to let go.  How to tackle it when it happens Remind yourself that you're writing for yourself. Hopefully you are saving each draft. Don’t be afraid to go back to an older version of the poems. How to prevent it Set deadlines. Take breaks in between each round and use a checklist. Send it to beta readers and an editor.  Are you looking for a poetry editor? Check out my services and snag a spot!  Stay inspired,  Fida 

Hello Poetteers,  Editing my own work is harder than editing for my clients. With my clients I see it from an outside perspective. I’m attached to my poems. I may not see the plot holes or may not pay attention to the tone of poem. Editing is a skill you can improve on. Analyze the poems you read and study the songs you listen to. Ask yourself what you like and dislike about the poems? What would you do differently?  Are you looking for a poetry editor? Check out  my services  and snag a spot! 

Hello Poetteers,  There are four options when it comes to editing a body of work. It's best to use all of them. You can't rely on online editing apps unconditionally. It doesn't replace an actual editor. It helps you have a clean manuscript to give to your editor. With that, they can dive deep into your story to give you the copy edits you're looking for.  Self editing : find a checklist and familiarize yourself with the track changes feature on your word processor.  Editing software : services like Grammarly, ProWritingAid, and AutoCrit Beta readers and sensitivity readers : they will give an outside perspective and look for accuracy.  Professional editor : hire one that specializes in your genre and provides the feedback you're looking for.  Formatting your work is the next step after editing. Two softwares to consider are Vellum and Indesign. I wish you the best of luck with your work!  Are you looking for a poetry editor? Check out my services and snag...

Hello Poetteers,  When it comes to editing their poetry chapbooks poets print out every poem and rearrange it until it best tells a story and flows well. It's a good method that helps you physically see how the story can work and moves your headspace so that you don't feel stuck.  My body of works are larger and honestly I don't want to waste paper. It could work better for smaller projects. I could possibly focus on the rearrangement by chapter. What works for me is to have a list of the titles, a topic jogger and number it in the order I want them in. Then I go into the document and move the poems. After all that my first step is to read it in full and read it aloud. As I do that I take notes on paper or through track changes. I start with the smaller tasks and move on to the bigger ones.  For Individual Poems: Remove unnecessary words and lines Look up synonyms and rhymes Rearrange lines or stanzas and change POV Expand and personalize: research about the topic, look a...

Hello Poetteers,  I'm here again to compile the upcoming poetry book releases of 2021.   January I Must Belong Somewhere By Dawn Lanuza  Written during her year of rest and travel, this new collection speaks to the indescribable feelings of displacement and longing for the companionship she left behind. If I Tell The Truth by Jasmin Kaur Told in prose, poetry, and illustration, this heartrending story talks about living undocumented and the constant anxiety over safety. Poems for the Dawn by Jen Rogue In her Letters for the Universe Goodreads Choice Nominated poet J.R. Rogue shares intimate poems written lovingly for her readers. Take a journey through the eyes of author and reader as Rogue shares a glimpse into the private task of writing poetry dedicated to readers worldwide. Shine Your Icy Crown by Amanda Lovelace This is a story about not letting society dictate the limits of your potential. it’s time to take back your power & realize that you don’t need a king i...