These DIY resources were originally collected for writers, but apply to anyone looking for digital and social media info and advice. If you have any questions, just let me know.
Writing Tips
• Writing a book Not sure how to get started writing your book? Prolific author Jerry Jenkins has written a post called “How to Write a Book: Everything You Need to Know in 20 Steps” which shares his best practices on getting started, keeping going, and what to do once you’re done writing. Everyone’s work styles are different, but you might find Jenkins’ hard-won writing advice illuminating. https://www.jerryjenkins.com/how-to-write-a-book/
• Having trouble finishing your book? Or maybe you’ve finished your book but now want someone to give it a professional look-over? Look into Diane O’Connell’s Write to Sell Your Book editorial coaching services. http://www.writetosellyourbook.com/work-with-diane/
• Top Tools for Writers https://www.eadeverell.com/creative-writing-tools/
Advice for Producing your Book
• Making your book Joel Friedlander, a veteran book designer, has put together quite a resource site over the past few years—from editorial & writing tips to publishing timelines, along with lots of production advice. He’s trying to monetize his site now with webinars and programs, which are also useful. Make sure to especially check out his various book templates, if you’re trying to layout a book yourself. https://www.thebookdesigner.com/ As of March 2017: Friedlander has launched a soup-to-nuts book production company for indie writers and publishers. http://thebookmakers.com/
• Book cover design This tip comes from reader Emily Strum. After doing lots of searching she found the folks at 99designs.com to offer the best cover design services. The site makes it super-easy to match your project to a potential designer at a very good price. (It happens in contest fashion, where you are the final judge.) They also have human consultants who can walk you through the process, if you prefer. https://99designs.com/ Another resource for ready-made covers is Canva. This wonderful graphic design website has an extensive library of customizable book cover templates for any sort of fiction or nonfiction book. Free after sign-up. (Canva is also great for easily designing FB or Pinterest graphics about your book.) https://www.canva.com/templates/book-covers
Building a Website
• Why to have a website just in case you’re still wondering! This article is aimed at authors, but applies to all those who still don’t have a website. The larger FSBassociates.com website is a goldmine of helpful posts about promoting your book. fsbassociates.com/blog/making-case-authors-need-websites
• DIY If you’re not using the services of a designer, Website Setup (again per reader Emily Strum) is a very helpful site that walks you through the steps of setting up a WordPress website. (And also helps you understand the terms “domains,” “platforms,” “plugins,” and “themes.”) WordPress used to be best known for its powerful blog aspects but now most of its themes give you choices about how prominent the blog appears on your site. The owner of WebsiteSetup.com, Robert Mening, says he gets more than 50 questions a day from readers (I bet!) and tries his best to answer them. WebsiteSetup.com
» If you don’t feel up to figuring out Wordpress and want a website today, NOW, I suggest using the click-and-drag website builders Wix.com, Squarespace.com, or the templates that are often offered when you buy your domain. They all will get you up and running in under a day (if you have the content and images all ready to go)—but may not be a longterm solution if you also need a robust blog, video, or sales cart functions on your website.
Here’s a 2019 comparison of the most popular website builders, if you’re having trouble deciding among them. https://www.wpbeginner.com/beginners-guide/how-to-choose-the-best-website-builder/
• Hire a designer Many website owners don’t want to get their hands dirty with the backend of website building nor with creating the graphics that make their sites unique. If that applies to you, you may be best off hiring a designer. But since you won’t know how to make your own future changes, that may mean you’re tied to your designer for life! The best way to find an agreeable designer is to get references from satisfied customers. Find a site you admire and that has the functions you suspect you need on your website, and use the contact page to write to the owner and ask who designed her site. You can also use many of the design project matchmaker services, like the above-mentioned 99designs.com. And remember: keep the info on your website updated!
Why to Get on the Social Media Bandwagon
• Why every author needs a powerful online presence by Michael Hyatt, former CEO of Thomas Nelson Publishers, now consultant and blogging evangelist http://michaelhyatt.com/why-every-author-needs-a-powerful-online-presence.html
Building a Social Following
• Author Websites — How to Get Search Engine Traffic For all those wondering how best to get people to know about you and your books, The Book Marketing Maven, Dana Lynn Smith, shares how to make your author website more search-engine friendly—some easy tips mixed in with some technical advice. Good stuff to know! http://bookmarketingmaven.typepad.com/book_marketing_maven/2012/03/author-websites-getting-search-engine-traffic.html
• Author’s Plan for Social Media Efforts A great list that’s exhausting even to read, from social media superstar blogger Chris Brogan.http://www.chrisbrogan.com/author-social-media/
• 7 Tips to Building an Online Following by Nathan Bransford, author and former literary agent now working in the tech industry, and a wealth of information for authors. http://blog.nathanbransford.com/2010/11/seven-tips-on-how-to-build-following.html
• 5 Tips for Managing Your Online Reputation by Debra Murphy, who runs a top-notch digital marketing services website. She offers tips on monitoring what’s being said about you online and how to combat negative comments and reviews. http://masterful-marketing.com/5-tips-for-managing-your-online-reputation/
Why to Blog
• Four surprising conclusions about author websites by Michael Hyatt, former CEO of Thomas Nelson Publishers, now consultant and blogging evangelist http://michaelhyatt.com/four-surprising-conclusions-about-author-websites.html
• Anatomy of writing a good 500-word blog post by Michael Hyatt, former CEO of Thomas Nelson Publishers, now consultant and blogging evangelist http://michaelhyatt.com/anatomy-of-an-effective-blog-post.html
• 6 Ways for Writers to Make Their Blogs More Search-Engine Friendly http://alexisgrant.com/2011/02/22/seo-tips/
• Authors, Plan Your Marketing with a Blogging Calendar https://www.thebookdesigner.com/2015/01/authors-plan-your-marketing-with-a-content-calendar/
• Must-See SEO Guide for All WordPress Bloggers An advanced primer on how to write items that search engines will find http://www.wpbeginner.com/beginners-guide/must-see-seo-guide-for-all-wordpress-bloggers/
• Twitter Etiquette for Authors – How Not to be Obnoxious Tips for those who don’t want to tweet about what they ate for breakfast, from Bibliocrunch, a hub for indie writers http://blog.bibliocrunch.com/twitter-tips/
• 33 Twitter Tips for Authors and Book Marketers Good list of current (2012) tips by Brian Feinblum, the creator and author of BookMarketingBuzzBlog http://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2012/04/33-twitter-tips-for-authors-book.html
• Should I Tweet? by agent Betsy Lerner, one of my favorite tough-talking publishing bloggers http://publishingperspectives.com/2010/11/should-i-tweet/
• The Beginner’s Guide to Twitter by Michael Hyatt, former CEO of Thomas Nelson Publishers, now consultant and blogging evangelist You can tell this was written several years ago, since Michael Hyatt uses the term “twittering” rather than the more commonly used “tweeting,” but still is a great primer. http://michaelhyatt.com/the-beginners-guide-to-twitter.html
• How to Set Up Twitter Lists (so you’re not overwhelmed with all the streaming posts) A short primer from the New York Times Gadgetwise blog (which has lots of great techie tips) http://gadgetwise.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/01/29/qa-how-to-set-up-twitter-lists/?emc=eta1
• Twitter Lingo & Tips for New Twitter & Facebook Users by Kristy, social media maven at the informative Kikolani blog http://kikolani.com/twitter-lingo-tips-twitter-facebook-users.html
• Why to create a Facebook Author page Good advice from blogger/writer Joanna Penn, a wonderful writers’ resource based in Australia. http://www.thecreativepenn.com/2010/12/02/how-to-create-a-facebook-fan-page-for-your-book-or-author-brand/
• The Easiest and Most Idiot Proof Guide to Facebook in the World A great primer for Facebook skeptics, from the savvy women at the useful Mojo40.com site. http://www.mojo40.com/how-facebook-works-for-job-search-plus-facebook-faq/
• 4 Ways To Use Instagram To Market Your Books by Joanna Penn https://www.thecreativepenn.com/2017/09/16/instagram-market-books/
• How to Leverage the Power of LinkedIn to Promote Your Book by Joanna Penn https://www.thecreativepenn.com/2017/12/01/leverage-linkedin-non-fiction/
• How to Use Pinterest to Market Books by Rob Eager, head of a dynamic marketing firm for authors and others looking to “spread their message like wildfire.” http://wildfiremarketing.blogspot.com/2012/03/monday-morning-marketing-tip-how-to-use.html
Goodreads
• How to Promote Your Book on Goodreads.com https://www.authormedia.com/how-to-promote-books-goodreads/
• How Authors Can Use GoodReads http://www.goodreads.com/author/how_to
Amazon
• 10 Ways to Sell Books on Amazon by Carolyn Howard Johnson, author of The Frugal Book Promoter http://www.bookbuzzr.com/blog/author-interviews/ten-ways-to-sell-books-on-amazon/
Podcasting
• Authors and Podcasting by Joanna Penn, author and book marketer at The Creative Penn http://www.thecreativepenn.com/2011/01/15/how-to-create-a-podcast/
Networking via Blogging
• 15 Places for Authors to Guest Post https://www.selfpublishingreview.com/2017/06/15-places-for-authors-to-write-a-guest-post/
• Use Blog Commenting as a Networking Superweapon by Arik Hansen, ACH Communications, and the great Social Media Examiner blog http://socialmediaexaminer.com/how-to-use-blog-commenting-as-a-networking-superweapon
Making an Audiobook
• The Dollars and Sense of Audiobooks: What Indie Publishers Need to Know http://www.laura-e-kelly.com/how-to-make-money-perhaps-from-audiobooks-in-2018/
Backlist Marketing
• How to market an “old” book by Terry Cordingley, book marketer http://terrycordingley.blogspot.com/2010/12/selling-your-book-when-its-no-longer.html
Royalty Info
• E-Book Royalty Math (the House Always Wins) by the Authors Guild http://authorsguild.org/advocacy/articles/e-book-royalty-math-the-big.html
Being More Productive
• Excellent list of tech tools and apps to be the most productive writer/speaker/blogger you can be by Michael Hyatt, former CEO of Thomas Nelson Publishers, now consultant and blogging evangelist http://michaelhyatt.com/my-tools
• MacFreedom A simple productivity application that locks you away from the internet on Mac or Windows computers for up to eight hours at a time. http://macfreedom.com/
• Scrivener Long-form writing software that helps with organizing notes and revisions http://literatureandlatte.com/scrivener.php
• Evernote: A Better Filing System for Writers by Michael Hyatt http://michaelhyatt.com/a-better-filing-system-for-public-speakers.html
• How to Manage Your E-mail Inbox by Nicole Marie Richardson, Inc. magazine http://www.inc.com/guides/2010/05/manage-email-inbox.html 
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Two More Great Resources
Jane Friedman is loves to help people starting out in the publishing business and can tell you all about how to publish and promote your book on her blog. Sign up for her newsletter!
JaneFriedman.com
Joel Friedlander of The Book Designer is a goldmine of info on the self-publishing world—the information on his site goes FAR beyond book design.
TheBookDesigner.com
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