Tips and tricks to sell your ebook on Kindle
On 21 May 2021, I published my first ebook on Amazon Kindle using KDP. I went into it with little idea except for second-hand knowledge. My friends had been doing it, and it seemed to be working well for them and I wanted in on that action. Ever since then, it has been a learning process of all the things I did right and all the things I did wrong. I’m hoping to list them all down here for me to remember and share them with everyone.
Note: I’ve also co-written a biography which is self-published by the author (launching…
And giving the iPhone 13 a hard pass
In December of 2020, I bought the iPhone 12. I wrote about it here. And here. Since then, I’ve fallen in love with it. I do most of my work on an iPad Pro, and one of the best parts about using an iPad as the main computer is that I get a scaled down version (or sometimes the full experience) on my iPhone as the OS is mostly the same. In a place where I have no iPad (read: a boring party I did not plan to attend) I can whip out my phone and be productive.
With the…
In the last Late Night Writing Circle I’d hosted, we had a hearty conversation about short stories. I’d been putting together my portfolio (more on that later) and I was thinking a lot about all the short stories I’d written and how having a bunch of stories not only looks impressive on a writer’s portfolio, but how much each one teaches a writer about writing and how to weave stories.
One of the questions raised during the writing circle was if there was any resource which would point to good short stories. While in the world of books and stories…
And why you can’t buy Kindle e-books from the iOS app
My friend recently published her poetry collection on Kindle. It’s a gorgeous book and you should definitely check it out. But shameless plug aside, she like me owns an iPad and an iPhone and does not own a Kindle. After publishing her book, she did the most natural thing: She downloaded the Kindle app on her phone, hoping to get it there. While she could see the listing, there was no option to purchase it. I imagine she shrugged her shoulders, switched to the Amazon app. Maybe you need to buy it from Amazon directly?
She found her listing on…
Returning to the gym after 18 months of lockdown
My father runs a chain of gyms here in Mumbai. As a child, I grew up in them and around machines meant to pump iron. I met bodybuilders with bulging muscles who kept comparing their diets (“Only six eggs? I eat at least eighteen.”). As I grew older, I aspired to have big muscles — if only to get my father’s nod of approval.
Before the pandemic hit, I was a regular gym rat. My work as a writer made my life sedentary. But at the gym, I could move. And sweat. When the lockdowns hit and the gyms shut…
Newsletter #16
While the Apple TV+ catalogue is not expansive, the originals on the platform are really good. It helps when you have big names and requirements for high quality. So if you are subscribed to Apple TV+, or have bought an Apple device in the last year that gives you a free pass, here are three things you should definitely check out:
1. Wolfwalkers
I love animated movies, and the animation of Wolfwalkers is so on point. I’d seen the trailer for it before they released the movie, and I had added it to my list. One Saturday night, I sat down…
To remember and to forget.
A few months ago, I started a Late Night Writing Circle. It is a safe space for writers to band together and talk about writing. As it was online (Zoom) and late at night (11 pm IST), people joined in their pyjamas. (I think the best writing is done in pyjamas and boxers. How can you ever write anything worthwhile in jeans?)
I tend to start each writing circle with a question, hoping to guide a conversation around topics that I’ve been thinking about and discussing with other writers. Last week’s question was “What is writing?” …
Newsletter #15
Today, I’m going to recommend an entire universe.
My interest was piqued when I first saw the trailer for the Netflix show — Shadow and Bone. Fantasy fiction, set in another world where light and darkness are at odds with each other, with monsters and teeth and bones and a protagonist who does not want to fight — sign me up, right? As all good things are, the show is based on a book. …
It’s not the Magic Keyboard Case
Story Time:
When I first bought my iPad Pro 2018, it ran iOS 12. I got a Bluetooth keyboard attached to it and I grew adept at using keyboard shortcuts. But there were still certain tasks that required me to lift my hand and touch the screen. There was no getting around the fact that the iPad was a touch first tablet. This led to a lot of hand fatigue and breaks in flow.
Come iPadOS 13.3, we got mouse support. I instantly got a simple, inexpensive mouse: the Logitech Pebble. It served me well for a year. It’s small, portable and…
Based on true life events
His allergies were easily activated and he’d start sneezing. Not once, but he’d go on a spree. He often joked that he should get a T-shirt printed with the legend Serial Sneezer.
On a date with his new-ish girlfriend, he took her to a garden. They sat on the grass under a tree, using a headphone splitter to enjoy music together. It started as something romantic. But the pollen got to him and the sneezes started. This was not how he thought date would go, but he was a slave to his allergies.
He turned to apologise to her. But…
