A Pretty Good New Website For Anyone Interested In Writing

[kynelleharris]

It's still growing and has bugs that are attacked fast, but the promise is HUGE. A one-stop shopping website containing everything an author, agent, editor, or publisher may want and need (something like that). Has plenty to offer FREE right now:

http://www.literarypowerhouse.com/

[Kimmy]

I've been watching as this site has been mentioned on an agent blog, but did you see the cost of membership?? It's a lot!

[kynelleharris]

How much of this can you take advantage of without paying a nickel? Investigate that.

Oh, and I did pay for a membership. There are several options depending on what you want.

I've been disheartened by some sites that offer free services, such as some open ones for writer groups. True, it's free to submit a query to an agent, but as a published author and one who is shopping another ms., there are things here I found worth paying for from a business standpoint.

Philosophically there is something to be said for paying to get your carcass in the door. Maybe, just maybe, you find the people there are a cut above average. It's an aspect of business from the Peter Principle : a barrier to entry. If there is some sort of barrier to entry (paying for a membership being just one kind), you might be able to cut through to a less busy and more business-efficient situation. I'm using the live chat and calendar features, and I can post relevant photos and videos, and organize my writing in ways I'm just not finding elsewhere. Groups, event calendar, project organizer, way more.

There will be a live "tour" on the 30th, with an official launch February 1st.

Maybe it's just that I'm used to jumping from comfortable situations. Over 500 skydives will do that to a person.

[shadowwalker]

I just took a look at it - totally unimpressed with their home page (and first impressions are important). Darn thing wouldn't stay put long enough to read it. Then I looked at the various services - and again, wasn't really impressed. In the "traditional" publishing section (which set me off immediately since the correct term is "commercial" publishing), they seem to be wanting to be paid to act as an agent - to find an agent.

I just don't see the point of paying for services which, in the end, offer no more guarantee of success for the author than had s/he done it themselves. It's easier to spend the money than spend the time, but still...

[kynelleharris]

I looked close, and hard, and deeply researched this. What I found is tools to be more organized, I find information faster than a web search--by clicking a tab, and many elements of a writing system in one place. I also found everyone on the forum upbeat and professional, and you always have to give points for that in this business.

I'm a published author who is about to launch a second round of marketing on a six-year-old book that's being republished in March as a paperback and ebook. I can use many of the features I found there.

If you're looking for some kind of guarantees out of this, I can sell you a car, instead.

If you always think that it can't be useful unless it's free, well, our opinions differ, but not completely. My laptop contains a few really handy software packages that happen to be free, and I'm sometimes so pleased, I'd pay money for them.

You should also note that this agent is currently swamped, closed to queries, and she tells readers to go query other agents. I applaud her honesty, letting us know up-front that she may take many months to get to anything she requests, or even answers queries. This, in contrast with a few agents I found whose websites have obviously not been updated in months, and sometimes years. Do you query any agents who do not even use email?

So you took a look at the home page and was unimpressed. I know that feeling from the other side, from my many dozens of rejections from agents who were not impressed with me. I know they took a quick glance and they didn't have one of those "sectional organisms" right away, so I was rejected.
 

[kynelleharris]

Something about your comment confused me so I returned to the home page and did some investigating. Looks like you bypassed a big bunch of more convenient links and scrolled to the bottom, where author website design is offered.

A-ha!

I thank you for doing this. My current site is a suck-o-matic. I designed it myself and it has free hosting. Those may be problems. I could stand an upgrade, and in the business the way it is now, I really need a sharp-looking site to compete, and I also need to research my options, including cost for the features I want and need. I may not necessarily settle on this particular offer; there are plenty out there.

I thank you again for your comment.

--Dave

[shadowwalker]

So one of the people is a swamped agent. That's fine. I don't think I said anything about their credentials. The homepage on their site has a rolling text which, even when one hits on the sidebar for it, stops only for a second, not enough time to read the thing - so why have it? If that's an indication of their website design advice...

Basically I clicked on the buttons for those things that would be of interest/value to me, and didn't see anything there that was worth paying for - certainly not the prices they were asking. They're just putting another middle man in the picture. If it works for you, fine. I have better things to spend my money on, that's all.

[AnyaHarker]

I couldn't even find where the prices were listed. I was curious as to what they were charging.

[LateToTheParty]

If it works for you, great. When I checked this site out, John Pinette's line, "if it's that tough it doesn't want to be food," came to mind. 

Ms. McMaster Bujold, Mr. Hines, and countless others made it from the slush pile; without an agent. I'll make with with cold querying agents or at writer's conferences or I won't make it. I may not get paid to play but I absolutely refuse to pay to play. Just saying. 

[Novelista85]

Great website. Thanks!

Karma to you for sharing.

[Falen]

Ms. McMaster Bujold, Mr. Hines, and countless others made it from the slush pile; without an agent.

I've had brunch with Ms. McMaster Bujold (she lives near me) and i'm not going to lie, she's amazeballs.



I don't know, i'm not impressed by this site. I totally agree that the scrolling home page is ridiculous. But that's just one aspect that i can overlook. When i click on the "about us" section it states:

"As the entire publishing industry undergoes huge shifts, we recognize a need for a literary "home" - a place to find answers to questions, interact with experts, colleagues and peers through forums and live chats, create your own blog, boost your social media presence, and learn from numerous workshops and seminars"

I'm just really not impressed by that at all, especially since there are free and better established alternative to almost everything on that list.

I can pay to start a blog? My free blogger blog is 2 years old and has over 400 followers.
Want to interact with peeps in the business (agents, publishers, authors)? twitter has really cornered the market on that.
Need questions answered? I just use the googles or check agent blogs.
Forums? I love the QT forum, and AW really can't be beat for depth of information.
Boost my social media presence? The way to do that is, to, you know, actually use social media.

I don't know. $130 for a year seems so overpriced to me. Hell, i'm hitting two conferences this year where i can actually have lunch and speak with industry professionals, as well as get my MS professionally critiqued and they're costing me about $80 together.


Eh, it just seems like a lot of money for things you can do for free or for less money. Your mileage may vary, of course

[LateToTheParty]

I've had brunch with Ms. McMaster Bujold (she lives near me) and i'm not going to lie, she's amazeballs.

You know, I'm a committed, (boy howdie) Sith but you keep trying to seduce me to the success-in-writing side and you just might bring me over. 

Yeah, I'm a lowly, low-paid state employee and $130 is a lot to play for a problem with a lot of free fixes out there. I'm attending the Houston Writer's Guild's Spring Conference b/c I volunteer to ferry folks from the airport. My Mrs. gave me ThrillFest for my birth day and I'm still struggling with that check.  So I'll keep my own counsel on the site itself but it's not my kind of party.