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Hello Reader, Have you ever had an impact moment? Something that changed everything for you? Almost dying in 2024 and spending 3 weeks in the hospital and three months in recovery was my impact event that led me to a lot of soul searching and deep digging about where I want to spend my time and energy. And from that came a realization that I want to make some changes. For my health and family. When I launched Write|Publish|Sell in 2014, honestly, I barely knew what I was doing. I had self-published two books and taught myself how to format and other skills, and I knew I had more knowledge than someone who had never published a book, but I was still learning. I wanted to help everyone I could possibly help navigate the challenges of writing, publishing, and selling a book. Most importantly, I hoped to help them avoid the pitfalls and bad actors. As time passed, I expanded my business to include 3 different publishing houses, and into virtual conferences. I launched the Women in Publishing Summit and published many more books. I have learned more than I could ever have imagined about the publishing industry, and continue to learn, because it's always changing. I have grown my business acumen and really embraced entrepreneurship. The biggest thing I have learned is - it's really hard to run 4 businesses at the same time. And do them well. As the Women in Publishing Summit and Alexa's Publishing Chat Podcast have grown, Write|Publish|Sell has had to take a back seat. Remember back in the day when you got a jam-packed newsletter every Monday with all the latest industry news? I haven't been able to bring that to you in a couple of years. We still have our Thursday email, but it is much more focused on teaching fundamentals and introducing concepts. The transformation has begun! We stopped running the monthly workshops this year - those are only included in WIP Society. And I haven't been as engaged in the WPS Facebook group. But it's still there! And we try to pop in with useful info and events. Write|Publish|Sell will continue to be a resource for new and mid-level authors who want information on getting started with writing a book, the publishing process, publishing professionally, insights on tools and resources to help you, and launch and marketing info. Marketing is my JAM and I will continue to run Book Launch in a Box and Instagram for Authors. We'll continue adding tutorials and guidance to the blog and to the YouTube channel and sharing them in our emails. I invite you to stay on this email list for those items and the Thursday newsletter, which will be revamped and relaunched in April to provide more up to date information on the information you need to make good decisions about your publishing journey. I'll also continue to partner with other companies in the industry, like our friends at 100 Covers, Publisher Rocket, Savannah Gilbo, Derek Doepker, and so many other great companies and will continue to share their summits, programs, and more. But if you're a seasoned author or an industry expert looking to learn from, engage with, and collaborate with other publishing industry experts, your best place will be the resources that will come from The Women in Publishing Summit events. We are digging into more advanced topics and really creating a very close-knit community that brings together authors AND publishers, publishing professionals, editors, graphic designers, etc, because we are BETTER TOGETHER. If Write|Publish|Sell is for learning the ropes, the Women in Publishing Summit is for building the ecosystem and business growth. We're only about a month out from the 9th annual Women in Publishing Summit, and I want to take a moment to give you some insight and information.I wasn’t certain we would have this year’s Summit. In fact, last year, I announced 2025 would be the last year. After nearly losing my life in 2024, my team and community supported me and made sure last year’s Summit went on as usual. This event is such a powerful opportunity for women in the publishing industry, but it takes a massive amount of behind-the-scenes work (and a ginormous budget) to make it happen. Honestly, leading up to last year’s event, I was beyond tired. I was soul-crushingly exhausted, and I just didn't know if I COULD or even WANTED to run the event again. Then, things began to happen—unexpected things. The outpouring of love and encouragement during the event and testimonials about everything that had been accomplished because of the Women in Publishing Summit - books published, publishers found, editors connected to authors, indie presses launched, and so much JOY from the event... I realized I didn't want to end this community, I wanted to transform how we run it. We revamped our membership community into WIP Society and WIP Society PRO, and our ride-or-dies responded positively to help us create the start of a truly one-stop group, filled with year-round training, support, and community, for authors and professionals at every level. Our team decided to add several two-day Bootcamps throughout the year to offer specific deep dives into some of the most important challenges our industry faces: marketing, business, and content strategy. Opportunities began to open up for me, personally and professionally, and I began to dream big about new endeavors and to consider following new passions. To follow those dreams, though, I knew I couldn’t do it alone, especially if we were going to continue to offer all the programs we’re known for. My team has grown and deepened over the past few months in surprising and unexpected ways. They are helping me put new systems in place and streamline processes and—in some cases—take tasks off of me, so I can live my YOLO year and accept new challenges, like adding Adjunct Professor to my résumé. Wherever you are in your journey in life—personal or professional—I encourage you to embrace new dreams or challenges. When the voice of doubt creeps up and whispers, “You can’t do this alone,” reply with “I don’t have to” and then look around you. The same mantra that carried Women in Publishing through to March 2026 and our ninth annual virtual Summit is the one that will propel you forward to your own new heights: #BetterTogether. So if you're looking for true community, more advanced publishing and marketing training, and support, I hope you'll join us at the 2026 Women in Publishing Summit. And if you're comfortable staying here and getting the weekly updates and announcements, we'll continue serving information and tips and advice to help you write, publish, and sell your book! Write on! Alexa Alexa Bigwarfe Publishing Consultant & Book Marketing Expert Write|Publish|Sell Alexa's Publishing Chat Podcast: Ranked #9 of the 2025 Best 25 Book Marketing Podcasts by Feedspot! Follow us: TIP JAR! We provide a lot of resources at no charge. If you'd like to send a little "Thank you" at any time, you can do so here! PO BOX 290041, COLUMBIA, SC 29229 |
Join this email list for tips, tools, and advice on writing, publishing, and selling your book! From tips for entrepreneurs who want to grow their business with a book, to fiction authors, to other nonfiction and children's book authors, we provide the knowledge base you need to make informed decisions about your publishing journey. Alexa Bigwarfe is the founder and CEO of Write|Publish|Sell and host of the Women in Publishing Summit. Alexa provides events, training opportunities, tools, resources, and content to guide and educate authors and industry professionals through the process of publishing and marketing books. She also is a publishing consultant for those who'd like some extra guidance in the process.
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