Traditional publishing, from the “Big Five” to indie publishers, can be complex to navigate, is elusive for many writers, and requires that writers relinquish a considerable amount of control over their work and its potential profits. But there are also a growing number of nontraditional options for publishing a book, depending on an author’s specific goals and needs. From ebook self-publishing services and print-on-demand services, to self-publishing companies that typically offer marketing, design, and distribution and hybrid publishers that combine editorial selectivity with an initial investment by the author, and everything in-between, writers have increasing control over how their work is released into the world.
In this panel, moderated by self-published author and MWPA instructor Briana Bizier, four authors will discuss their experiences with a variety of nontraditional and self-publishing formats, their successes and failures, and the practical details they wish they’d known throughout the process of publishing their books. The panel will conclude with a Q&A session.
+ PLEASE NOTE This talk will occur online via Zoom. Attendees do not need to create an account to participate, but should test out Zoom before the presentation if they are first-time users. The presenter and MWPA staff will not have the capacity to help attendees with tech issues during the talk.
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Claire Ackroyd is a landscape designer, independent organic inspector and writer. Murder in the Maple Woods is her debut novel, inspired by the time she has spent inspecting remote maple camps in the Maine woods. Murder in the Maple Woods was a finalist in MWPA's 2021 Maine Literary Awards competition and has received many complimentary reviews from people who know and love the Maine woods.
Claire grew up in England, where she earned a Bachelor's degree in Horticulture, before coming to graduate school in America. After completing a Master's degree in Plant and Soil Science at the University of Maryland, she found her way to Maine, where for sixteen years she owned and operated The Growing Concern, a garden center and landscape company in Orono.
She has travelled widely in various professional capacities, including an internship in Israel, and a consulting position in Guyana. She has taught horticulture to Vocational students in Bangor and undergraduates at the University of Maine in Orono.
Danielle Bannister lives with her two teenage children in Midcoast Maine along with her precious coffee pot and peppermint mocha creamer. She holds a BA in Theatre from the University of Southern Maine and her Masters in Literary Education from the University of Orono. To date, she has published 16 titles ranging from Young Adult to fantasy, to romance. When she's not on the stage, or on the page, you'll find her binge-watching Marvel Movies. As one does.
Briana Bizier is the self-published author of four novels, a short story collection, and multiple novellas under the pen names Samantha MacLeod and Meredith Hart. Readers have downloaded over 40,000 copies of her titles. She has over a decade of teaching experience at institutions including Daemen College and Kennebec Valley Community College. Her novella The Night Watch was published by Less Than Three Press, and her short stories have appeared in literary magazines such as Typehouse and The Bookends Review Best of 2016 Anthology. Bizier holds a bachelor’s degree from Colby College and an M.A. from the University of Chicago. She lives in Raymond, Maine with her husband, two children, and assorted cats and dogs.
Robin Clifford Wood is an author, poet, blogger, and essayist. She has a BA from Yale, an MA in English from University of Rochester and an MFA in creative writing from University of Southern Maine's Stonecoast program. Wood's writing has been featured in Port City Life magazine, Bangor Metro, Bangor Daily News, Maine Public Radio's "Music That Moves Me" series, The Maine Review, and Solstice Literary Magazine, which published her essay, "How Do You Help Your Parents Die" in 2019. One of her poems won second place in the 2020 Writer's Digest Annual Competition, and another, "The Ballad of Hadlock, the Seal Hunter Showman," was produced by Penobscot Theatre Company as part of their fall 2020 audio theatre program. Wood's first book is a biography-memoir hybrid called, The Field House: A Writer's Life Lost and Found on an Island in Maine. Wood lives in central Maine with her husband and dogs. She enjoys the outdoors, piano-playing, crossword puzzles, a really good cheeseburger, and regular visits with her four children and their growing families. Wood welcomes you to visit her website: robincliffordwood.com.
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