If you follow me on Instagram, you'd know that I'm currently obsessed with bookstagramming. I'm pretty sure that's not an official word yet, but people who do it would know what I mean. Basically, it means taking pretty pictures of books. There are different ways to take such photos, but one of the more frequently seen styles used for bookstagramming is flat lay. Basically (oh, wow, I've used this twice now but hey, this piece isn't something I'm selling so let's just keep it that way so everything feels natural :P), it's taking a bird's eye view of your subject, and I don't know about you but it took me a loooooooong time to figure the ins and outs of it.
I still don't consider myself an expert and if you think that's false modesty, well you can just compare my photos to those of (my inspirations) New Leaf Writer,  Folded Pages Distillery (awesome handle, right?!), and Betty Books, and you'll know. I am no expert (but yes, naturally, I hope to be really good at it one day).
I have good and bad days flatlaying, and usually during my off days it's like nothing comes together no matter what I do. In my good days, though, I can easily envision the layout in my mind and when I start doing it, everything comes together.
Anyway, I actually wrote a post like this in my personal blog but I thought I should also share it here, in case you're interested in using this as your de-stressing technique. I often say I'm de-stressing, and basically that's the time when my mind's too concerned about things it's not supposed to be concerned about (i.e. what my readers would think about my WIP). It's not that I don't care about my readers - of course I do, duh - but there's a RIGHT way to care.
If you worry about readers saying you're a shitty writer and how embarrassed you'd feel, then that's just pride talking. I hope you get what I mean. 
Well, anyway, those are the moments when I need to de-stress and look to bookstagramming for relief. I sucked at it big time at the start, but not so much now and I'm going to share with you a couple of tips and tricks I've discovered in my (ongoing) flatlay journey.

I've mentioned a couple already above, but you can look for your own sources of inspiration just by checking out #bookstagram on IG. You'll notice a couple of similarities, like the fact that they often use a white plain background and candles - there are a lot of books-and-candles posts. The same things may or may not work for you - you just need to experiment and find your own "style".

One of the reasons why I had a hard time with bookstagramming at the start was because I hadn't been able to find the perfect lighting for it. Natural lighting is best, but if not then look for a place in your home that would allow you to take top-view shots without casting shadows. Once I found that perfect spot in our home, everything was a loooot easier. It will be the same for you, too!

Although I often see plain white backgrounds used in bookstagrams and I have given this a try, I don't really find it all that inspiring and exciting to work with. Actually, it's a struggle for me, and I've just learned to accept that plain-white backgrounds don't suit my personality. It's too...elegant, and I am far from being elegant IRL. Maybe this is just me (with regard to the process), but it's what I feel.
Another thing I've noticed is that maps are also a frequent background choice for bookstagrams, and when I gave this a try, I was very much surprised that it worked extremely well for me. So yay for that!
P.S. The map I use for my bookstagram posts (seen in the photos below) is something I got for free from the Kyoto train station (hehehe). ​

It's what makes choosing props for your posts easier, but I don't think it's always necessary. Color can be a theme, or in this case, I displayed books in the same collection but I also wanted to highlight two titles because they both had a scientific theme going on (titles are self-explanatory, yes?). So with that in mind, there were certain props that were no-brainers and which I knew would go perfectly well with these books. 
Ruler, compass, pen, and that silver thing on the lower right - I have no idea what it is, actually. It's my boyfriend's but when I saw it I knew right away it had to be in my photo, hahaha! Everything feels, err, brainy, right? 
Oh, and when you have more than one book in your photo, you may need to use a bookend / book stopper (if you see flashes of pink peeking out in my photos, that's it).

Added a couple more geeky things or at least something with the same feel.

• Normally, I use my more colorful pens (metallic) but those felt too girly for this photo so I opted for something more 'serious'. 
• Added more stuff from my boyfriend, and I still have no idea what they are.
• The sticker sheet and Little Prince notebook are examples of props that have the same "feel" but have nothing to do with the theme, haha! Or they just feel right to me at least. :P 

Now, the lower left corner feels a bit too empty to me so I added graphing paper to this part. 
Sometimes, I take a "peek" at the layout to check spatial arrangement between props. Basically, I hold my phone over the entire set and look through it, then move objects here and there until they're spaced properly.

I've decided to flip the notebook over and show its back cover instead becauseI felt "The Little Prince" was too distracting. I think it worked better this way, right? And if you've been wondering about the glaringly empty space in the middle, well, that's the spot I reserve for my cup of coffee, hehe. 
Warning: You should do all of these preparations prior to having your coffee made. Because if you do it the other way around, your coffee will taste blah by the time you're done. >.< Trust me. I speak from experience. :D That or AT makes coffee more quickly than I can bookstagram. DAMMIT.

Something you rarely see with bookstagrams are behind the scenes photos. I mean, what kind of work gets into those photos? Don't you ever wonder about that? I know I do, all the time, especially with photos that have SO MANY PROPS!
​Well, here's what happens when I bookstagram.

And believe me, I've been really methodical already with my choice of props. When my thoughts are all over the place (which they often are), it looks more like a disaster zone like the photo below---

 Now, I used to be really fond of filters for bookstagramming but because most people seem to prefer otherwise I've stopped using it and instead started playing around with the built-in editing options of IG. So far, I really find tools to sharpen / brighten the photo really useful. I also like playing with levels for warmth / structure / fade / highlight, depending on what the photo needs. 
Here's the before / after of my first non-filter photo.

Too vivid, eh?
Here's another one, which is one of my faves because it's my first attempt, using a white background (although obviously it's not completely white, I still used a patterned background for a portion of the photo).

Layout changed a bit, too, but more than that, with the help of editing, I made the white background brighten up a lot, which I really liked. Another thing I realized with this particular bookstagram is how it's essential for your backgrounds to blend with each other when you're using more than one. The red background really didn't do it for me. 
With a wood background...

To compare the two, here are bookstagram posts styled by my cover designer CT. 

Either is great. You just need to find which works better for you. With messy layouts, you need LOTS of props, and theme is even more important. With the latter, you need to play around with spacing, and since you're working with fewer props, everything you add to the photo matters. :D
And that's it! Hope you enjoyed this post as much as I enjoyed writing it (which was as relaxing as bookstagramming itself actually haha). If you have questions, just let me know! ;) I love talking about this, OBVIOUSLY! :D

A week or so ago, I had to turn down an invitation to be part of a major lit event here in PH, and for reasons that aren't hard to guess. AKA I'm shy  and never attend any public event as an author (okay, the sole exception was an in-person interview with Ms. Alma Anonas-Carpio, because she's the type of person you can't or shouldn't say no to, haha!).
Anyway, I've been thinking that I should at least write a blog post that could serve as my way of making up for missing that event (and missing out on the opportunity to help other writers, assuming that there are those who think I could be of help). I'm even more convinced now (of doing this), after reading a post on Facebook about the plight of several Wattpad writers and their (ongoing) battle for rights reversion.

Listed below are my suggestions for jumpstarting your Writing Career 2.0. Again, let me stress that all these are suggestions. NONE of it is a guarantee for instant success. Everything is only meant to improve your chances of selling your book.

• Consider the most popular trends in your romance sub-genre of choice. For contemporary, stepbrothers, billionaires, best friends are still / always hot. Athletes, CEOs, firefighters, even porn stars are pretty in demand. Rockstars are popular as well but to a lesser extent (those who have already established a name for rockstar romances still do amazingly well, though). In the end, focus on what you love and write best.
• Writing in English (not Filipino, not Taglish) is a must for an international market.
• Writing about Western characters is preferable and strongly recommended if you want to earn more quickly.  I also suggest the use of Western settings for the same reasons. (P.S. I have never been to Greece but I write about Greek billionaires. I have never met a werewolf or a demon, but I write about them, too).
• Writing steamy is optional but it's easier to sell when you do. Sex sells. Sorry, it's a fact. But if you don't enjoy reading or writing it, forget it. It's still best to write what you truly enjoy.
• Genre fiction is a means of escape for most readers, and this is especially true for ROMANCE. If you plan to kill off your major characters, I'm sorry but your book is unlikely to sell.
• When writing your book, set aside all thoughts of negativity and doubt. Just focus on writing a story that you would personally enjoy reading. For now, let's not care about grammar and what your peers would say about your work. Just. Focus. On. Writing. An. Enjoyable. Story.
• Write a standalone romance. Better yet, write a three-book series because readers prefer to buy authors who aren't one-hit wonders. Standalone, fyi, means a book with a non-cliffhanger ending. In romance, this means your couple gets their happy-ever-after (let's avoid the happy-for-now ending...for now, pun intended).
• For now, come up with straightforward titles that let readers know exactly what they can expect from your book. Ex: The Greek Billionaire and His Secretary (that's mine, by the way).
• Great looking covers are recommended, but yes there are exceptions (i.e. books that do spectacularly well despite having not-so-pretty covers). However, one thing I've noticed is that these exceptions tend to have compelling stories, and you know what they say: content is king.
• Editing is necessary if - after objectively evaluating your story - you know that your writing will likely prove incoherent to native English readers. Objective is the keyword here. OTOH if you're confident about your ability to self-edit your work then that's cool.
• Sign up for a free account at Mailchimp.com to build your newsletter. Research on how to do this.
• Learn how to format your story for e-publishing. Again, a lot of info is available online for this, and it's free. You can also outsource this if you're willing to pay.
• Work on your blurb. Basically, this is the product description of your book. It's the summary that you see on the product page. It can be short or long, up to you - just make sure it will get readers to click. Think about your favorite book. What about its blurb drew you in? Try to replicate the same thing with your book.
• Prepare front and back matter (basically this is marketing info at the beginning and end of your book). Let's say you have a three-book series.
  • For Book 1, start with an invitation for readers to sign up with your readers and explain why they should do so (e.g. exclusive sneak peeks of upcoming books, random giveaways). At the end, invite them again to sign up and add links to Books 2 and 3 once they're ready. 
  • For Book 2, do the same but link to Book 1 and 3. You get the drift.
• Give out ARCs to trusted readers or friends who are able to post reviews on Amazon. If they're also willing to buy the book on Amazon, SO MUCH THE BETTER! Verified reviews (this means reviews posted by people who bought the book) carry more weight than unverified reviews. And yes, we have a way of knowing this. Just check any book on Amazon. If you see a review tagged with 'verified purchase' then that's a review posted by someone who bought the book. REVIEWS are everything on Amazon and elsewhere so you want to collect as many reviews as possible and make a huge splash on your debut.
• Decide whether you want to take advantage of Amazon's Kindle Unlimited (KU) or not.
  • What's Kindle Unlimited? This is a subscription program that requires you to publish your book exclusively on Amazon for three months. After this, your contract expires (as long as you didn't tick the box for automatic re-enlistment), and it's up to you if you want to sign up for another three months. With KU, you are paid $.004 for every page read. But you can still also sell your book (it's up to you to choose the price of your book) on Amazon. So basically, when you're in KU you can earn from sales and pages read but ONLY on Amazon. This means you can't publish your book on Nook, Google Play, Buqo, etc. However, you can sell your book in print wherever and whenever. It's only the ebook distribution that KU cares about.
  • KU Benefit #1: Free days! During your three-month contract with KU, you can set your book for free for five days. You can do this consecutively or you can do this one day a week. It's up to you. Anything goes for those five days. This is an essential benefit because free books are another promotion tool. It allows readers to try unknown authors risk-free, and if they like what they read then they're more likely to buy the next book. Without KU, you cannot set your book for free immediately on Amazon. You need to wait for them to price-match. More on this later.
  • KU Benefit #2: More visibility. Not surprisingly, Amazon favors books that are published exclusively with them and so KU books are given better rankings. The better your rank is, the more people are likely to see your book and the more chances of getting sales or pages read.
  • KU Benefit #3: So many readers have subscribed to KU, and since your books are technically free for them to read (their subscription rate doesn't change no matter how many books they read), they're more likely to take a chance on your work even if they don't know who you are.
  • KU Disadvantage #1: The $.004/page rate I mentioned earlier is an estimate. It can go up or down anytime. 
  • KU Disadvantage #2: Since you're exclusive with Amazon, your book can't be published elsewhere. This puts you at Amazon's mercy, in case they change the rules again (in a bad way).
• My 2 cents:
  • If you're writing contemporary romance, I think you shouldn't jump into KU right away. You should see how your first books do by going wide (publishing everywhere).
  • If you're writing paranormal romance, I'll go with KU because they don't sell as great outside Amazon.
  • If you're writing young adult romance, I'll also go with KU because of the same reasons above.
  • If you wrote a serial instead of a series of standalone novels, I think I'll risk going wide.
  • Whether you wrote full-length books or serials, I would choose to make the first book free and then the next two books $2.99 each. This price point is my personal sweet spot, and I believe that my books are worth $2.99. This is also the minimum price you need to set in order to enjoy 70% royalty. Anything below this price point only earns 35% royalty.
• To publish your ebook, you will need to set up an account on Amazon and any other retailer. Again, do your research. Consider downloading the self-publishing manuals by David Gaughran for more tips

...does not require you to tweet or post constantly about your book. Instead, consider doing the things I've listed below.

• Set up a Facebook page, Twitter account and other social media accounts you're comfortable using for your author profile. Start a website or a blog if you can't afford to pay for your website's domain just yet. Please research about this.
• Set up your author account on Amazon's Author Central page. Add books to your author page.
• Post on your social media accounts just once or twice a week about your books. Interact with your readers. 
• Write your next book. This is the most important way to market your old books. Write as many as you can. Release regularly. Don't pay attention to bad reviews. As long as you've put your heart in your writing, then you did a great job. Continue writing. Continue reading. As long as you're objective with your work, then you'll be able to tell if you're not writing shit.

• Book cover design (self or outsourced)
• Editing (self or outsourced)
• Title (be strategic still)
• Blurb (work it!)
• Front and back matter (invite readers to sign up for your newsletter, explain why, give them a list of your older books, and invite them to review your books, too)
• Format your book (self or outsourced)
• Give out ARCs and remind them gently about the need for posting reviews ASAP
• Publish
• Send out newsletter to let readers know that your new book is out. Include an exclusive excerpt (not the first chapter because this can already be seen in Amazon's Look Inside preview) and high-resolution image of your photo.
• Update front and back matter of older books to include link to your newest book.
• Post on social media accounts about new release.
• Recycle and repeat.

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I'm lucky that I came just early enough in the game that it was possible to build a following without having to shell out large sums of money on paid marketing. These days though, it seems like paid marketing to an extent is inevitable. Please research this on your own. I don't feel comfortable suggesting stuff that involves money.
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