50 Kickass Resources for Indie Authors

So the main difference between being an indie author versus working with a publisher is personal accountability. Though most authors come to the shocking realization that being traditionally published means MUCH less than they thought…but that’s a topic for another blog.

Back to accountability. If you’re an indie author you are solely responsible for the success of your work. That’s a big task, but it’s not impossible. And the key to making your book promotion efforts manageable is having the right resources in your arsenal. The right resources, in turn, will help you develop a plan of action.

This list I’ve compiled is in no particular order, and if there’s a resource you use religiously that we’ve left off please, please share it and give them some love — that’s what this is all about. I’m not doing this to kiss any rings; I’m doing this to help you become a better author.

I encourage you to work through this list, check them all out, and bookmark the ones that you vibe with, or the ones that meet your needs right now. And please bookmark this list as well, because as you grow, your book marketing needs will grow, and you’ll likely want to revisit a lot of these fab individuals and groups!

1. annerallen.blogspot.com: One of Writer’s Digest’s 101 Best Websites for Writers, Ann updates on Sundays and her blog includes regular contributions from former Big Six editor, Ruth Harris. @annerallen ?
2. authorfriendly.com: A self-publishing expert, Carla King’s Self-Pub Boot Campoffers friendly educational resources — videos, books, courses and a community to join. @selfpubbootcamp ?
3. authorssuccessguild.com: The Author’s Success Guild was formed out of the painfully clear need for authors to get access to high level, inexpensive book marketing training and coaching. And to get it all in one spot. Check them out.
4. bibliocrunch.com: Run by Miral Sattar, BibiloCrunch is a fantastic portal to find great service providers that have been vetted by the BiblioCrunch staff. They also have a fab #indiechat every Tuesday at 4pm EST. @BiblioCrunch
5. blog.writingspirit.com: Julie Isaac, the founder, has provided tools, solutions, and support to thousands of writers since 2003. @WritingSpirit
6. booksandsuch.com/blog: Books and Such is a Literary Management Agency. They sell books to a wide range of publishers in such categories as women’s fiction, general fiction, nonfiction, gift books, easy readers, and chapter books. @JanetKGrant
7. booklife.comPublishers Weekly’s site is dedicated to indie authors. They have success stories, author profiles, how-tos, news and more, all geared toward helping indie authors achieve their goals. @booklife
8. bookmarketingbestsellers.com: John Kremer has been around self-publishing for a long time and knows his stuff. He wrote the book 1001 Ways To Market Your Bookand shares good insight on his blog and in his book! @JohnKremer
9. bookworks.com/blog: Run by Betty Sargent, who has a very impressive publishing resume, it’s the new go-to for all thing traditionally and self-published. The blog is fantastic, with a hard-working team cranking the best and most helpful information on self-publishing. They’ve created a community where authors and professionals can come together to share guidance and insight. @BookWorksNYC
10. buildbookbuzz.com/blog: Sandra Beckwith has more than 25 years of experience as a publicist. She shares tips and writes on currently relevant topics for authors. Build Book Buzz was awarded a “Top Website for Self-Publishers” by The Alliance of Independent Authors. @sandrabeckwith
11. catherineryanhoward.com: Catherine writes from Ireland and talks a lot about self-publishing. Her posts are fun and informative. @cathryanhoward
12. Copyblogger.com: Your storytelling needs to go beyond the cover of your book, so you need great online content, at the heart of which is powerful writing. The free info on their blog will help you get started mastering content marketing so you can use it to expand your author following. @copyblogger
13. davidgaughran.wordpress.com: David Gaughran focuses on how to get visible and sell more books. He has written several books on these topics and shares tons of info about self-publishing. @DavidGaughran ?
14. Denisewakeman.com: Dubbed the Queen of Visibility, Denise really gets it. She’s got some amazingly insightful information on her blog, and via her Social Media to help you gain more readers, followers and sales. @DeniseWakeman ?
15. deanwesleysmith.com: One of modern fiction’s of most prolific writers, USA Today bestselling writer, Dean Wesley Smith published more than a hundred novels in forty years. Check out Killing the Sacred Cows of Publishing. @DeanWesleySmith ?[Tweet “What are your favorite indie author resources? Here are mine! via @bookgal #indieauthors #writerresources”]
16. SocialMediaJustforWriters.com: Frances Caballo is a self-professed social media genie and I agree with her! Her blog is a fantastic resource for not just social media but also marketing trends in general, with a dedicated Indie Author Weekly Update. @CaballoFrances ?
17. girlfridayproductions.com: Girl Friday’s diverse team — including a writer, expert, agent, self-publisher and more — offers insights on their blog, podcast, as well as various services to craft and produce your stories. @GirlFridayProd
18. goinswriter.com: Jeff Goins started his blog in 2010, with a few burning questions in mind: How do successful writers make a living? What does it really take to get published? And, how do you pursue a passion? He shares tips on writing, creativity and making a difference. @JeffGoins ?
19. Goodereader.com: Good e-Reader is the leading online news source for eBooks, e-Readers and Digital Publishing. They publish over 80 news items every week, covering the entire industry.
20. Goodreads.com: I always encourage writers to utilize Goodreads — but did you know that they have a blog dedicated to Authors and Advertisers packed with tips and good advice? Well, they do — and it’s good to read! @goodreads (Want to know how to have a top book on Goodreads? Read this!)
21. helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com: K.M. Weiland mentors authors through her blog. Her blog is one of Writer’s Digest’s 101 Best Websites for Writers.
22. Selfpublishingschool.com: Chandler Bolt is a bestselling author in his own right and has taken what’s made him successful and packaged it in a way that makes it easy for others to follow in his same path. He has a blog, a podcast, even a webinar to help you get that book finished!
23. indiereader.com: Everything about indie authors, books and the independent book scene all in one spot. Solid online venue for discriminating book-lovers to find and purchase books published by the people who wrote them.
24. selfpublishingformula.com: Mark Dawson has a podcast where he tackles a lot of really important and helpful topics for indie authors, with a lot of great guests as well. Definitely worth your time and with all the written resources out there, it’s refreshing to be have the option to learn on the go! @SelfPubForm ?
25. janefriedman.com/blog: Jane Friedman, former publisher of Writer’s Digest, specializes in educating writers about the publishing industry — from all perspectives, without hype or bias — to help them make the best long-term decisions for their careers. The Alliance of Independent Authors has awarded her a “Top Website for Self-Publishers.” @JaneFriedman
26. jodyhedlund.blogspot.com: Jody offers advice, encouragement, and inspiration based on all that she’s learned about writing, publication, and marketing in today’s tough publishing industry.
27. kindlepreneur.com/blog: Dave Chesson, founder of Kindlepreneur, is a digital marketing nut, an authority on self-publishing and multi best-selling author. He shares the hows, whys, and whens of online marketing.
28. Zbooks.co: Owner Eric Z focuses a lot on pre-publication issues a lot of authors face, like formatting, and provides templates you can use. His main goal is to help you get your book ready for sale for free. No easy feat, but he’s dedicated to walking you through it if you’re willing to learn.
29. louisem.com: Louise Myers talks all about the power of social media graphics, and offers tips on how you can make your presence more visually appealing. @Louise_Myers
30. magnoliamedianetwork.com/blog: Formerly the Future of Ink, Magnolia Media Network has a lot of content directed at helping authors navigate their marketing choices. Nancy Camden and Dr. Ellen Britt have pulled together expert interviews, tools, and great articles. Don’t miss this one! @magnolianet[Tweet “Are you an indie author who could use some great resources? Here are 50 of my favorites! via @bookgal #indieauthors #writerresources”]
31. marketingchristianbooks.wordpress.com: If you’ve written a Christian book, Sarah Bolme offers guidance on marketing to that market.
    @SarahBolme ?
32. nownovel.com:Author Bridget McNulty has designed a structured method to help you finish your novel. Get consistent motivation with tons of tips on the blog, helpful mentorship, and join an online community of writers. @bridgetmcnulty ?
33. pegfitzpatrick.com: I got to know Peg through her work with Guy Kawasaki. A social media goddess, I really love her mega-creative, super insightful posts. If you want to stay current on all things social media, and get some great ideas in the process, Peg is your gal. @PegFitzpatrick
34. Peggydekay.com: Peggy DeKay, award-winning author ofSelf Publishing for Virgins, runs The Business of Writing Today. Scope out her blog, resources, and podcasts. @peggydekay ?
35. Publicityhound.com: Joan is the Publicity Hound and she is as tenacious as the name suggests. Joan is my go-to for all things marketing. She has fantastic resources on her website, great webinars and shares a ton of helpful marketing insight via Twitter. @PublicityHound ?
36. Indiesunlimited.com: This is a beast of a site with so much content they even refer to themselves as the “nuclear powered Death Star of a blog” but it’s worth your time. Not only do they have a lot of great content, they have writing challenges, social media promos, a newsletter and even a place to promote your eBook for free. @IndiesUnlimited ?
37. selfpublishingpodcast.com: Johnny, Sean and Dave will speak to you. Literally. Interactive and helpful advice.
38. writetodone.com: Mary Jaksch, Chief Editor, believes your writing practice needs to be directed in a positive way. Write to Done helps you learn new skills, practice them and become a better writer. @WritetoDone ?
39. sellingbooks.com: Cathy Stucker shares useful tips and techniques for writing, publishing and selling books. She has free downloads available to help authors build their platform. @CathyStucker ?
40. Smashwords.com: Mark Coker,Founder of Smashwords, has become the voice of the independent author. He works tirelessly to give authors the best possible experience on his site, and he often releases real-time stats on book publishing that are mind-blowing. He’s also a great speaker — I always love his sessions. @markcoker ?
41. socialmediajustforwriters.com: Frances Caballo shares tips and suggestions for using social media to your advantage to market your work. @CaballoFrances ?
42. thebookdesigner.com: Joel Friedlander aka The Book Designer has countless articles (organized into easy to navigate topics) on his site that help self-published authors with every thing you need to know, and do. @JFbookman ?
43. thecreativepenn.com/blog: The Creative Penn is packed with information and resources. The best way to navigate through it all is to click on the “Start here!” link. @thecreativepenn ?
44. theindependentpublishingmagazine.com: Mick Rooney’s site and magazine offers in-depth reviews of just about every publishing service out there. Check out his reviews, resources, and loads of info on indie publishing. @theindiepubmag ?
45. trainingauthors.com: Shelley and Heather of Training Authors have a goal to help authors achieve book marketing success. Their site is full of resources and free downloads. @trainingauthors[Tweet “Here are 50 Kickass Resources for Indie Authors! What are your favorites? via @bookgal #indieauthors #writerresources”]
46. wiseinkblog.com: Wise Ink is an online community created to help passionate authors through the hurdles of publishing. The two editors, Dara Beevas and Amy Quale, both work for an indie publisher in the Twin Cities. @Wiseink ?
47. writenonfictionnow.com: Nina Amir, the Inspiration-to-Creation Coach, began this blog to motivate nonfiction writers, entrepreneurs, and even non-writers build a businesses around your books and writing. @NinaAmir
48. www.writersdigest.com:These guys literally “wrote the book” on writing and getting published. The experts at Writer’s Digest, for 90+ years, have been publishing books, magazines, competitions, conferences and distance education materials for writers who want to polish their skills and hone their craft. @WritersDigest
49. writerunboxed.com: Writer Unboxed has articles from a ton of contributors that all offer advice and food for thought on the craft and business of writing fiction. @WriterUnboxed ?
50. amarketingexpert.com: Okay we had to put ourselves on here for those of you who may be reading this from a share. We try very hard to focus our blog on very actionable tips that can help your success TODAY, that are accessible to pretty much any author out there, from the well-established to the newbie. We put a strong focus on Amazon too so we can be your go-to for keeping up with the retail giant! @Bookgal ?

Please share this list with your networks, because remember, the better we all are as authors, the better book publishing gets!

This article originally appeared on AMarketingExpert.com.