Caffeinated Press, Inc.

Fancy Yourself a Writer? Then Never Pay to be Published!

There’s never any circumstance where it’s okay to pay someone to publish your book.

Six Nuggets of Advice for Novelists New to Publishing

Many first-time writers honor some well-intended but misleading advice about how to be an author. The advice usually falls along the vein of: “Anyone can be a writer! All you need to do is just have discipline — write every day, and pretty soon you’ll have your debut novel. After that, reach out to agents and publishers to begin the publishing process. If you work hard and keep at it, success will find you sooner or later!”

The problem, of course, is that this advice simply isn’t true. 

A Mid-Year Report Card

Some folks have noticed that so far in 2018, we’ve seemed rather quiet. Perhaps *too* quiet. So we’re here to offer some behind-the-scenes scoops about our year so far and about what we’ve got planned for the rest of the summer and into the cold-weather months.

Introducing: “Measuring the Marigolds”

“Measuring the Marigolds,” a poetry collection by Miriam Bat-Ami, celebrates place–both the inner and outer landscape of her experience as a mother, teacher and long-term West Michigan resident.

Drop-In Writing Hours for April 2018

We’re opening drop-in writing/editing/planning hours at our office for you to get stuff done away from the familiar distractions of home.

Thoughts on Metonymy, Agency and Voice

Used well, metonymy can advance a story. Used poorly, it confuses the flow of the narrative and diminishes the voice of the POV character.

Introducing: “Establishing Yourself as a Professional Writer”

Have you ever been curious about what it takes to grow from “curious about publishing” to “published author?” Consider signing up for our new brief online course, “Establishing Yourself as a Professional Writer.”

Welcome to 2018!

We’re proud of what we’ve accomplished so far, and we look forward to a great upcoming year—a year marked by a new emphasis on network building and community growth.

ANNOUNCING: “Isle Royale from the AIR”

Caffeinated Press is pleased to announce the release of “Isle Royale from the AIR: Poems, Stories, and Songs from 25 Years of Artists-in-Residence.” This collection of essays, poems and songs was edited by Phillip Sterling and features contributions from 18 author and poets and six visual artists.

Celebrating Our Pushcart Prize Nominees

Caffeinated Press is pleased to announce that we’ve nominated six authors for the Pushcart Prize, an annual literary series honoring the best of small presses and literary journals.

Attend our Fall Boost Event!

Caffeinated Press is proud to host our Fall Boost Event this Wednesday, Nov. 8, from 6p to 9p at the Books and Mortar store at 955 Cherry Street in beautiful Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Four Ways to Punch Up Your #NaNoWriMo Prose

Behold! National Novel Writing Month is almost upon us. As you get ready to write or revise your magnum opus, your friends at Caffeinated Press—presently embroiled in final line editing, so it’s top of mind—offer a few construction suggestions for you

Getting Ready for #NaNoWriMo

NaNo is coming. Are you ready?

ANNOUNCING “Jot That Down: Encouraging Essays for New Writers”

Caffeinated Press is pleased to announce the release of “Jot That Down: Encouraging Essays for New Writers.” This collection of essays was edited by A.L. Rogers and features contributions from 19 published authors, poets and illustrators.

Wanted: Book Developer

We’re looking for a motivated self-starter to serve as our primary book developer.

What’s New at Caffeinated Press?

Where, oh where, has the summer gone? With all the activity going on at Caffeinated Press, it’s hard to believe we’re already closer to next Christmas than to last.

Welcome Tabitha!

The Caffeinated Press board of directors is pleased to share that Tabitha Maloley, a long-time senior editor, has joined the board of directors, effective May 26.

Upcoming Events & Opportunities

Looking for stuff to do to expand your literary chops? Consider these six upcoming opportunities!

Open Office Hours

As a sign of partnership with GLCL — a literary non-profit advancing, promoting and celebrating the literary arts in our community — we’re offering our office space for drop-in writing and editing time.

Four Upcoming Opportunities

Hey, you. Yes, you. You look like a writer. Can I interest you in any of the following opportunities?

Reflections on Commercially Viable Manuscripts

Manuscript queries get rejected for all sorts of reasons, but “goodness of fit” and “commercial viability” present an obstacle that a good line edit or peer review is unlikely to overcome.

Why Isn’t My Book Selling?

Whether you’re self-published and need guidance or have been published by a small- or mid-sized press, take comfort in knowing that some strategies — while they’re not guaranteed to sell you even one additional book — have, on balance, proved helpful to other authors looking to grow their sales.

Are You Ready … for Brewed Awakenings 3?

The third installment of our annual house anthology, Brewed Awakenings, will be released this coming October. The reading window for this volume closes on May 31 — so you have plenty of time, and no excuses, for crafting a short story or an essay for submission.

Interview: Chris Galford

Chris Galford is an author, photographer and journalist with deep roots in West Michigan. His short story, Furniture City, is available in both the print and ebook version of Brewed Awakenings 2. Learn more about this dynamic young man and his craft by visiting galfordchris.com.

2016: Review, Reflection & Resolutions

The last day of a year that taxed our collective national consciousness draws to a close. Many of us offer a sigh of relief, cut by a sliver of hope that 2017 will prove to be more tranquil and fulfilling. Or at least, marked by less drama and fewer tragedies.

Site Enhancements!

We’re pleased to announce a general refresh of our entire Web platform. Enjoy!

Perfect Your Manuscript!

As you walk away with practical advice for preparing your manuscript, you’ll feel full — of accomplishment, of excitement to edit, of coffee and snacks.

Behind the Curtain: 2016 Editorial Statistics

Being good at the basics of querying will help get your work reviewed, and using beta readers will see your work float closer to the top of the acceptance pile.

Announcing: “Grayson Rising,” “Brewed Awakenings 2” and “The 3288 Review” (Vol. 2, Issue 1)

Caffeinated Press is pleased to announce the release of three exciting new titles — Grayson Rising authored by AJ Powell, Brewed Awakenings 2 edited by Jason Gillikin and vol. 2, issue 1 of The 3288 Review.

November Schedule

November comes, and with it, National Novel Writing Month.

A Few Words Concerning Our Recent @Site5 Technical Debacle

Thanks for your patience as we’ve worked through this most frustrating experience with Site5.

Typing Your Way to Creativity

Writing only sometimes features rapid-fire composing then revising, but it always requires getting the story right in your heart so that it fills your head and then flows from your fingers toward the paper — even if it’s through one type hammer at a time.

Writing with Plain Text and Version Control

A little bit of learning about Markdown or Multimarkdown and version-control systems will help you become a more efficient author — perhaps you’ll find the technical setup worth it in the long run.

A Year-Long “Get Fit to Print” Program for Aspiring Authors

Although you simply cannot distill creative writing into a proscriptive algorithm — people start in different places, and they learn in different ways — a review of the literature suggests that there’s perhaps too little scaffolding offered to new writers.

The Sarcastic Narrator

Too many authors, especially those early in their writing career, tend to use sarcasm as the default inner voice of a character.

8 Ways to Engage with the Local Literary Community

Good literary citizenship ensures that readers get great books, authors obtain the exposure they deserve, indie bookstores remain viable and small presses can fund worthy projects.

Jason’s 36 Rules of Fiction Writing

These little maxims are the “big ideas” I share with early-career authors eager for advice about the craft of writing.

Conflict Resolution 101: An Author’s Guide

Whether the disagreement is sourced in a contractual dispute, or concerns about edits, or in the misinterpretation of a social-media post, authors will inevitably have to engage in some classic dispute-resolution activities.

5 Tips for Writing for the Market

If you can position your work solidly within a constellation of known sellers, you’ll do a better job of convincing a hesitant agent or publisher to give you the green light.

A Year In …

We’ve come a very long way in a very short period of time. We’re proud of the connections we’re making and of the literary endeavors we’re supporting, although (obviously) it hasn’t always been sunshine and roses.

Multiple and Simultaneous Submissions

Think carefully about multiple and simultaneous submissions.

Developing Ethically Coherent Characters

Never underestimate the power of base moral conflict to drive tension and keep a plot advancing.

How I Edit: Assessing Inbound Queries

Let me show you how I triage inbound submissions for “The 3288 Review” — with pointers about the most common reasons we decline to accept a query package.

Sell Your Books!

Caffeinated Press is pleased — giddy, even — to attend this year’s Ann Arbor Book Festival. On Saturday, June 18, from noon until 5 p.m., we’ll be participating as a retail vendor during the downtown street fair.

The Discipline of Writing

Writing the Great American Novel isn’t much different from studying a martial art or learning to scuba dive or qualifying for the Boston Marathon: You need a wee bit o’ talent, of course, but success follows from mastery, which follows from putting in the time to advance from novice to expert.

Wheat from Chaff

While it may be true that certain writing rules apply broadly, or even universally, the application of those rules can vary widely as a function of genre and story length.

Reduce Your Risk of Rejection with One Painful Step

One of the worst things an author can do is shop queries on the open market for material that hasn’t been substantially revised in light of feedback from competent beta readers.

How I’ve Written: A Voyage of Exploration

I don’t think there’s a “One Weird Trick” approach to building a writer’s toolkit that will work for everyone. The ways I’ve written in the past don’t work for me today, and today’s method may not work for me a year from now. What’s important is that your infrastructure blend into the background; you should use it, without being aware that it’s there. And when it doesn’t work, change it up.

The Mysterious Art of Preparing a Fiction Synopsis

Although publisher/agent guidelines vary in the specifics, most novel queries require a cover letter, one to three sample chapters and a synopsis. Synopses, however, tend to bedevil early-career writers. They’re presented, usually, as an afterthought, or as some sort of back-of-the-cover tease — and therefore, the synopsis becomes the silent killer of what otherwise could have been a perfect pitch.

The Layers of an Author’s Onion: Getting Started as an Author

Like it or not, although writing as an activity is inherently solitary, writing for publication is an astonishingly social cultural phenomenon that requires much networking and relationship building.

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