Making a lasting impression with your readers is the same principle that applies to building up your brand online—and creating an authoritative presence for yourself within your genre or niche. In today’s digital world, it’s essential to build and promote the “author you” that will engage followers and ultimately drive sales for your publications. In this blog post, we’ll explore how content marketing can help authors achieve those very goals on the web!

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Establishing your brand identity—what makes your writing unique and how to make sure it is reflected in your online presence 

Crafting a distinct brand identity is crucial for any writer hoping to stand out in the vast expanse of the internet. Your writing is unique and deserves to be reflected in your online presence. But how exactly do you ensure that your identity shines through? First and foremost, hone in on what makes your writing style special. Perhaps it’s your witty sense of humor or your talent for painting vivid imagery with words. Whatever it may be, keep it consistent throughout all of your content. Infuse that identity into your website design, social media platforms, and even your email signature. By doing so, you’ll establish yourself as a captivating and memorable writer in the digital realm.

Creating a professional website—how to design a website that captures your brand identity and the benefits of having one

Your website is your online calling card and can be the difference between a potential client choosing your services or moving on to the next competitor. But designing a website that accurately captures your brand identity can be challenging. From choosing the right colors to selecting the right images, there are a lot of elements to consider. However, if done correctly, the benefits of having a professional website are endless. A well-designed website can improve your online presence, increase brand awareness, and ultimately drive more business to your door.

Developing social media platforms—choosing which platforms are best for connecting with fans and promoting your work

Depending on your niche and audience, certain platforms may be more effective at fostering a community and promoting your work. Choosing the right platform is as important as learning the ins and outs of each one. Understanding the algorithm, ideal posting times, and how to properly engage with your audience can make all the difference. The key is to be strategic and adapt to the changing landscape of social media.

Crafting an engaging content strategy—strategies for creating content that engages readers and keeps them coming back for more

One strategy to keep your readers engaged is to use storytelling techniques that focus on real-life experiences. Another approach is to use visual aids such as infographics, photos, and videos to enhance your message. However, the most effective way to engage readers is perhaps simply being authentic and connecting with them on a personal level. Show your personality and be relatable, and your readers will keep coming back for more.

Utilizing paid advertising options—tips on using paid advertising to reach new audiences 

In the world of digital marketing, paid advertising remains a powerful tool for brands to gain new customers and build awareness. From display ads to social media campaigns, there are a plethora of options available that can help you attract fresh eyeballs to your website or social media pages. However, knowing which channel to focus on or how to craft compelling messaging that resonates with your target audience can be tricky.

Measuring results and optimizing your efforts—analyzing the effectiveness of your online presence and finding ways to improve it for future success

Staying on top of your online presence and continuously analyzing its effectiveness is an unfortunate need in this day and age. Measuring results and optimizing your efforts are the keys to improving your online success. You can make informed decisions and tailor your strategies to maximize your impact. Whether it’s tweaking your website’s SEO or honing your social media strategy, every effort put toward optimization counts.

Overall, establishing and maintaining a successful brand identity online is an essential endeavor for writers of all kinds. With the right strategies and tactics in hand, authors can capture their unique brand through their professional website and engaging content and ultimately drive engagement via paid advertising. The best way to excel in these efforts is by understanding the landscape of digital marketing and utilizing the tools available to promote your writing. At Elite Authors we offer comprehensive digital marketing services tailored specifically to writers—helping them build their online presence, optimize their content, reach new fans, and measure results reliably. So, what are you waiting for? Contact Elite Authors now to get started on your journey toward successful branding!

The post Branding for Authors: Building Your Online Presence appeared first on Elite Authors.

It’s easy to use the words writer and author interchangeably. But are they really the same?

They are not! In fact, there are several differences between the two. The biggest distinction is that an author tends to be a full-time professional writer and often has multiple publications. The word writer encompasses a wider set of people, whether they publish books or blog posts, write professionally or scribble down musings.

Simply put: almost all authors are writers, but not all writers are authors. So how do you know whether to classify yourself as a writer or an author?

The difference between a writer and an author

There is an ongoing debate on how to use the terms writer and author. For the most part, a person who has created a formal literary work—and has published and sold that work—is an author. Many writers, on the other hand, often work behind the scenes as freelance writers or ghostwriters.

Characterizing an author

Authors are talented and dedicated writers. They tend to have more experience in the researching and publishing fields than those who consider themselves writers. And authors are professional storytellers who may specialize in writing any genre at any length, from short stories to full-length books.

Regardless of whether you work in fiction or nonfiction, to be an author, you must dedicate yourself to your creating and writing craft.

An author might also hire a literary agent, who can help boost the author’s career with book tours, marketing, and publishing. Since an author may need to make a living off creating and crafting works of literature, they often need an agent to help sell their books.

Defining a writer

The connotation of the word writer is that it is a more casual title than the title of author. But did you know that you can be a full-time professional writer without being an author? Ghostwriting, content writing, and even editing are all potential professions for a writer.

You can have a lucrative and fulfilling career as a freelance writer—and you’ll always be in demand! Businesses, periodicals, and other professionals consistently hire writers to help create content. Think of all the websites on the internet. Every blog and every page needs to be written.

As a professional writer, you can help clients create blog posts, website content, social media posts, and more! You may not be considered an author, but you will be a successful writer.

Consulting the dictionary

Merriam-Webster is one of the most trusted dictionaries available, so it makes sense to rely on its definitions of author and writer! It identifies the term author not only as a noun but also as a verb. For instance, you can author a book or even a law.

As a verb, author is simply a more distinguished term for write. A writer can be anyone who writes anything. An author is a distinguished and professional writer who has published and sold their work.

Your choice: should you be an author or a writer?

Authors write, and writers write. But which one is right—for you? Sure, you’re pursuing a career as someone who writes professionally. But will you consider yourself an author or a writer? You want to use the correct title. This isn’t just for accuracy—it will also help you find work. If you’re an author, you might already be hard at work on a new book. And if you’re a writer, you’ll need to market yourself to potential clients.

Considering your options as a writer

Not everyone can produce good writing. It is a specialized skill that requires hard work, practice, and experience. But many talented people earn a comfortable living as professional writers, and there are a lot of options available to you if you’d like to pursue this career path.

One of the best ways to earn a living as a freelance writer is to become a ghostwriter. A lot of companies—and the professionals that work within these companies—hire professional writers to create content. A ghostwriter might create anything—a journalistic article, a blog, a screenplay, or something else entirely.

Basically, your employer comes up with an idea and an outline, and you’re the wordsmith who ties it all together. As a ghostwriter you generally won’t receive credit for the content you create. But it’s a great way to make a living!

Another popular option for a professional writer is journalism. The news media and periodicals are always looking for fresh and exciting content. So try it out! Contact as many publications as possible to see if you can secure a consistent writing gig—or at least an occasional writing job.

Becoming an author

It’s difficult to become an author. It requires discipline, a lot of hard work, and true dedication to your work. A writer will finish one project and move onto the next. Conversely, an author might spend years on just one book. Here are a few of the aspects of creating a book as an author:

• Invent a story
• Determine whether the narrator will be first person, second person, or third person
• Develop the characters
• Make sure the story flows well

On top of all of that, the book has to be interesting enough to sell to the public! While writers can complete multiple projects in a month, an author is likely engrossed by one work for a year or more.

Classifying yourself as a professional writer

There are many different specialties in the writing world. As a professional writer, you’ll have many options for job titles to pursue:

• Author
• Short story writer
• Freelance writer
• Ghostwriter
• Blogger
• Journalist

And that just names a few! It really just depends on finding your specialty. Do you want to write fiction? Maybe you’ll end up as a published author. Or maybe you want to focus on creating strong content for your clients to post on their websites or in their publications.

Choose your focus, and your title will follow. And as a writer, you might wear different hats and therefore hold multiple titles. You can do whatever you set your mind to. So pick the path that you’re most comfortable with, and get writing!

The vast world of writers and authors

The world of writing is immense. And that’s a good thing! It allows writers to be successful in many different ways. You can really choose your own destiny as a writer. You can be a freelance writer or ghostwriter and work for companies across many different industries. Or you can make a living writing books and traveling the world on book tours.

Remember: there are different types of writers and authors, and each type has their own specialty. Together, they make up the wonderful world of writing.

Gaining authorship status

In general, writers receive authorship status when they publish a book or a manuscript. So when you as a writer successfully publish and sell your work, you will likely be considered an author. It doesn’t matter if you’ve created a work of fiction or nonfiction; it can even be a short story. If you are successful in publishing and selling your writing, you can call yourself an author!

Becoming both writer and author of a work

Very often, the same person both writes and authors a work. Think of the classic novels and short stories that you read in school. Renowned storytellers have been both the author and the writer of countless works of literature throughout history. And you can do this too!

First, in order to author the book, you’ll need to create and outline the story. You’ll determine your story’s voice and take great care in developing the characters. You might also want to bring in your literary agent and publishing company to make sure that your book idea will be a hit.

Next, you can begin the writing process. Use your wordsmith abilities to craft interesting sentences. And make sure the story flows together. You want a lot of people to read and enjoy your work. So make every word in your manuscript count!

Even if you play the roles of both author and writer for your book, you will need help editing. An editor will look at your manuscript with fresh eyes to make sure it’s ready for the public eye. They will put your work under a microscope and look for everything from plot holes to typos.

This is a good thing! You want your editor to catch any mistakes before you try to publish, print, and sell your book. You can’t do everything on your own, so let an expert help you.

Authoring a work without writing it

While we often think of a work’s author as being the writer as well, that’s not always the case. It’s quite common for an author to hire a professional writer to finish their work.

A professional and published author might add a writer to their team to ghostwrite an entire story. They also might ask a writer to start the editing process and look for ways to improve the language that’s already been written.

Some authors—particularly very famous people who have created multiple successful works—consistently hire professional writers to actually write the words that the public will read.

The continuing debate

Writing is an art. It continues to grow and evolve. And like all art, good writing is subject to debate. What makes a person a writer, and what makes a person an author? What are the differences and similarities between these two professions?

Observing the opinions in the writer versus author debate

It’s human nature to want to express your opinion. Because of that, there are countless opinions on what defines a writer versus what defines an author. This has been an ongoing debate for decades and will likely stick around for decades to come.

Many people agree that all authors are writers but that not all writers are authors. Some avid readers argue that a writer is similar to a student. A student wants to learn, and a writer wants to write. Conversely, they compare an author to a scholar. A scholar is wholly dedicated to their studies just like an author is wholly dedicated to their books.

Identifying the writers of biographies and autobiographies?

You’ve heard the terms biographer and autobiographer. These are common titles and household terms. A professional author can create a nonfictional book about a historical person. This involves a great deal of research because the literary work absolutely must be factual and accurate. But who else might put in the work on a biography or autobiography?

Authors sometimes hire professional ghostwriters to craft the language and verbiage throughout their manuscripts. Additionally, authors will need editing teams to make sure their books are ready for publishing and printing. The best authors know that they need assistance to perfect their book before it goes public—and they welcome the help of writers and editors.

Looking for the commonalities between writers and authors

You love words. You love reading. And you have a special talent for creating good content. That’s why you’re pursuing a career in professional writing! But there’s more than just a love of wordsmithing that writers and authors have in common.

One of the biggest commonalities that writers and authors share is their ability to accept constructive criticism. Whether you’re working on children’s books, novels, or freelance content creation, your writing will be scrutinized. Your editor and proofreader will point out mistakes. And not everyone who reads your work will like it.

But that’s okay! Writers and authors need to understand that constructive criticism is part of being a professional writer.

How to start your professional writing career—today!

Writers and authors have fun and exciting professions. And these professions will be around forever! People will always need to hire content writers, and readers will always want access to new stories.

Elite Authors is here to help you achieve success. Read here to find out how we can help you build your writing career!

The post Difference between a Writer and an Author appeared first on Elite Authors.

Copyediting is an often-overlooked service, and people frequently confuse it with proofreading. But they’re both extremely important steps before you publish your manuscript. Basically, copyediting happens during the draft stage, before you format your book. Proofreading happens after your book has been formatted—it’s the last step before the book goes to print.

You worked very hard on your manuscript. Now it’s time to let a professional editing service make sure it’s pristine before you start formatting and printing.

Rely on our copyediting services for authors.

Congratulations on your finished masterpiece! You’ve poured your heart and soul into your work. Although you’re excited about sending it off to be published, there is a crucial next step: copyediting!

You understand that copyediting is important for basic spelling and grammatical errors. But do you know how vital copyediting is—or even what copyediting is? It’s a failsafe to make sure that everything is ready to be published. Without copyediting, you risk embarrassing typos, misspelled words, and grammatical errors.

Copyediting can be a scary process. Your work is going under a microscope and is vulnerable to criticism. But when you hire the right professional editing service, you’re hiring a partner that will offer suggestions to make your work the best it can possibly be. A professional copy editor is the cornerstone of your book’s success.

How much copyediting experience does Elite Authors offer to authors?

Elite Authors comprises a team of experienced professionals. They work on manuscripts every day to make sure each one is thoroughly edited and ready to publish. They’re passionate about words, language, and storytelling. That means they pour their hearts and souls into your work!

Elite Authors can assist you through the entire prepublishing process. Did you know there are multiple stages of editing before you even get to the copyedit? Here are a couple of the additional editing phases:

• Developmental editing is a big-picture review of your manuscript. A developmental edit will examine the structure and style of your work. For works of fiction, developmental editors will make sure that the plot flows well and doesn’t contain holes. For nonfiction books, developmental editing will address the organization of the information in your book.
• Line editing is pretty self-explanatory. During the line edit, the editor goes through your book line by line looking for grammatical or spelling errors. This phase of editing might include suggestions on how to improve or upgrade your use of words. Since this phase of editing might lead to changes to your manuscript, you’ll need a copy editor to go over your work after the line edit.

The Elite Authors team knows how hard you worked on your manuscript. Remember the sense of pride and fulfillment that you felt when you finished your book? The Elite Authors staff puts that same investment into every piece of writing that they copyedit.

Why should you choose Elite Authors for your copyediting service?

Elite Authors are thought leaders in the field of copyediting. They understand the ins and outs of the publishing industry and will read your manuscript with a keen eye focused on making you successful.

All authors—new and established—need a strong copy editor on their team. You put a lot of yourself into writing your book. Let the experts take you the rest of the way.

Why does your manuscript need copyediting?

A manuscript takes a long time to create. You’ve probably read it a hundred times and are now blind to any grammatical and spelling errors. Or maybe there’s a plot hole that you’ve overlooked since you’ve spent so much time buried in your book. You need a fresh set of eyes: a professional editing service.

Most published works have to go through an average of six to eight rounds of editing. This sounds daunting, but each of these rounds is a crucial component of your success. If you’re self-publishing and don’t hire a professional copy editor, you are risking sending fixable mistakes to all of your potential readers. If you’re working with a traditional publisher, they might not read past the first few errors. Your manuscript deserves the very best. Hire a professional copy editor to take great care of your work.

How to find your perfect match

Your manuscript is just that: yours. In order to keep it yours, you have to find the right copy editor to fit your needs and exceed your expectations. In researching your options, you should look for a flexible editing service whose editors understand that your book is unique and can’t just fit into a boilerplate package.

What does a copy editor correct?

A copy editor will correct everything that you and the larger-scale editors might miss. Your copy editor will focus in on each word to make sure it’s spelled and used correctly. The last thing you want to do is to send off your masterpiece with typos!

It’s extremely important to pick an editing service that has a strong history and track record—and that understands that your work is your pride and joy. In addition, you’ll want to choose an editing service whose editors pride themselves on keeping up with the ever-changing trends in the writing and publishing industries.

Why should you work with an experienced copy editor?

Your manuscript is the fruit of your labor. Writing a book isn’t easy, but you did it! Now you need professional assistance to make sure it’s ready for publishing. Sure, you can ask your friends and family to proofread it for spelling errors. But you also need an experienced editor to view it through the professional lens of copyediting.

A professional copy editor will be able to identify and help you correct any issues that will raise a red flag to your publisher. After all of the time and resources that you poured into your manuscript, you deserve to have an expert put it through the copyediting process.

What are the risks of publishing without using a copy editor service?

Whether you’re self-publishing or working with a traditional publisher, there are major risks if you don’t hire a professional copyediting service. And although spellcheck software will remove some of the margin of error, it won’t catch everything. Here are a few of the dangerous mistakes that you might not catch without personal and professional assistance:

• Spelling. Are all of your words spelled correctly? What about commonly misused words like “your” and “you’re”?
• Word choice errors. Spellcheck software also won’t flag a word that is accurately spelled but incorrectly used. Do you mean “pour” or “pore”? “Definitely” or “defiantly”?
• Grammatical errors. “Your” and “you’re” also fit into this category. But keep in mind that spellcheck will not catch most errors with apostrophes, commas, semicolons, and other punctuation.

These are embarrassing, but they happen to everyone! All manuscripts—regardless of their length—will almost certainly have an error here or there. Don’t leave yourself vulnerable to easily fixed mistakes. Hire a professional editor to guide you to success.

Why should you choose Elite Authors for your copyediting?

In order to give your manuscript the best chance of success, your work needs to be clean, understandable, and free of errors. The best way to achieve this is to partner with a professional copy editor who will closely study your book.

And since every author is unique, Elite Authors offers multiple packages and custom services to ensure that you get the best service available. They understand that writing isn’t a “one size fits all” profession, and they are set up to provide custom options for each author.

How can Elite Authors protect your reputation as an author?

Everyone has experienced typos. They’re bad enough in text messages and emails. But they’re even worse in professional and published manuscripts! Elite Authors understands that your credibility is on the line and that even small mistakes will have a negative impact on your work.

Typos, misspellings, and grammatical errors are embarrassing and sometimes difficult to overcome. In the case of published literary works, they can be detrimental.

Consumers and readers might not take you seriously as an author if they see mistakes that you missed. And traditional publishing companies might toss your manuscript out if they see too many errors.

Elite Authors understands that your reputation and credibility are at risk. Their team of specialized copy editors is available to protect you from these mistakes and set you up for success.

How do Elite Authors’ copy editors work with authors?

Elite Authors understands that copyediting needs to be a cooperative process. Multiple revisions and proactive communication are part of this process.

Elite Authors will use Microsoft Word’s Track Changes feature so that you can review each and every suggestion they make and comment they write. They will be a full-fledged partner to help your book succeed.

What manuscript editing services does Elite Authors offer?

Elite Authors knows that helping you succeed has multiple phases. That’s why they offer several manuscript editing services:

• Developmental editing
• Line editing
• Copyediting
• Proofreading

Each of these phases is as important as the next. You need a trusted partner to help you on your way. And you deserve to be successful! Elite Authors will work to make sure that you achieve the highest level of success at the best price available. Copyediting is an investment in your book. Don’t leave this to chance—hire the esteemed professionals!

Common copyediting questions

Most authors want to focus on the substance of their manuscript. You have a story to tell or information to share. You have enough on your plate developing the characters and organizing the plot.

For many writers, copyediting is the last thing on their list—if it’s even on their radar at all! But that doesn’t mean that copyediting is unimportant. In fact, it’s a vital part of fully finishing a book.

What is copyediting?

Copyediting is the crucial step between finishing your manuscript and having it published. Without copyediting, you are opening yourself up to simple errors like spelling and grammatical mistakes. You’re also vulnerable to larger gaffs like using the wrong word.

A professional copy editor will capture all of these errors. And the best editing service will offer you multiple phases of editing. You’ll need help with big-picture edits like developmental editing all the way down to the nitty-gritty aspects of line editing.

What is the difference between copyediting and proofreading?

Copyediting happens in the draft stage, before you have fully formatted your book. Since the formatting process generally involves typesetting instead of simply copying from a word processing document and pasting into a book template, mistakes can happen when you format.

The proofreader is the final set of eyes on your formatted book before you send it to publish and print. Your proofreader is your last line of defense against simple mistakes.

So hire a professional editing service! Their expertise will help pave the way for your book’s success.

Why does a manuscript need multiple rounds of editing?

Your manuscript wasn’t written in a day. It took a lot of time to perfect, and you had to read it and reorganize aspects of the plot multiple times. Your work is complex and deserves a complex team to ensure that it’s ready for your readers.

Every book needs a few experts to put their lens to different aspects of the work. A developmental editor will make sure that the plot flows smoothly and the characters make sense or the information is organized in a cohesive, impactful way.

And a line editor will put each sentence under a microscope. Your copy editor will check for grammatical and spelling errors.

Once your manuscript has been formatted into your book, a proofreader will review it for any remaining errors or errors introduced in formatting. Each team member will offer suggestions or recommendations if they see anything that can be improved.

Although it can be difficult to accept constructive criticism, this is an absolutely vital part of the writing process. Your editing team is here to help you ring up book sales once you’ve published your work. Let them provide suggestions to improve your manuscript.

Get ready to publish everywhere.

You’ve finished your book and are ready to prepare it for publishing. Whether you’re an established author or a newcomer to the writing field, this is quite an accomplishment! Now it’s time to get ready to publish your work everywhere.

How does copyediting prepare your manuscript for online publication?

Copyediting will ensure that your manuscript is ready to publish. If you’re planning to publish your work as an e-book, your copy editor can even help you prepare your work accordingly. The best copyediting services even have tips and tricks to publish with huge companies like Amazon and Barnes & Noble, so you know you’re in good hands!

How do the publishing requirements of online media houses differ?

Each online media house has different publishing requirements. If you’re publishing an e-book, you’ll need to reformat your manuscript to comply with each house’s template. Additionally, the various print-on-demand companies will have differing requirements for page counts and formatting.

Your professional editing team can help you with all sorts of formatting, so just be sure to inform them of your publishing goals.

Why is copyediting recommended for traditional publishing as well as self-publishing?

The editing process is an anxious one for many authors. You’re putting your raw work into a professional’s hands so that they can put it under a microscope and identify problems that you need to fix.

Sometimes the relationship between an editor and an author can be strained because of this anxiety. But it’s important to remember that your copy editor is a teammate who is trying to help you.

If you’re sending your manuscript to a traditional publisher, you’ll need the aid of a professional copy editor to ensure that there are no errors.

Traditional publishers receive a lot of book proposals, and the slightest mistake might make them toss your work in the trash. And if you’re self-publishing, you could unknowingly release an error-riddled manuscript into the world. Hiring a professional copy editor saves you from these disasters.

Hire a copy editor to ensure your success.

You gave your best effort to your manuscript. Now it’s time to partner with a professional copy editor so that they can give their best effort to making it ready to publish.

When you rely on an expert copyediting and proofreading service, you are setting yourself up for success. And when you partner with Elite Authors, you are hiring the cream of the crop. Let Elite Authors start copyediting your masterpiece today!

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