The

Undeniable

Ruth

®

…and the Ruth shall set you free!

  • My Favorite Things 2013

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    Ruth Carter

    Oprah used to do a “My Favorite Things” show every year so I decided to do the same, but without all the freebies. Sorry.

    I reviewed my calendar and Yelp reviews from the past year and here’s my list of my favorite things. Everything on this list is something I use or do and enjoy. I’ve not been compensated in any way for including anyone in this post.

    Working Out
    2013 half marathon pre raceFavorite Phoenix Area Race: P.F. Chang Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon

    Favorite Place to get Running Shoes: Runner’s Den

    Favorite Place to Work Out: Arizona Canal

    Favorite Device for Sore Muscles: The Stick

    Favorite Place to get Fixed when I Break Myself: Endurance Rehab

    Food
    Favorite Doughnut: Buttermilk bar from BoSa Donuts (open ‘til 10pm)

    0702131205Favorite Mexican Food: Jordan’s

    Favorite Greek Food: Greektown

    Favorite Indian Food: The Dhaba

    Favorite Dessert for Lunch: Yogurtland

    Favorite Food Truck: Jamburritos

    Favorite Dessert Food Truck: Mamma Toledo’s

    Favorite Ice Krem (Phoenix): Churn

    Favorite Ice Krem (Scottsdale): Sugar Bowl

    Favorite Place for Late-Night Eats and Work: Gay Denny’s

    Life
    0511131339Favorite Dog Park: Margaret T. Hance Dog Park

    Favorite Place for Shirts with Custom Verbiage: Brand X Custom T-shirts

    Favorite Site for Shirts with Original Artwork: Threadless

    Favorite Snuggle Wear: REI Yoga Pants

    Favorite Person for Fixing my Sore Body: Thomas Porter

    Favorite Shop for Music Geeks: Central Music

    Favorite Bookstore: Changing Hands

    Favorite TV Show: The Big Bang Theory

    Favorite Reality Show: Deadliest Catch

    Favorite Place to Go When I Really Need to Escape: Firefly Room at the Phoenix Art Museum

    No Pants Ride 2013 - Photo by Joseph Abbruscatto from Flickr (used with permission)
    No Pants Ride 2013 – Photo by Joseph Abbruscatto from Flickr (used with permission)

    Online
    Favorite Webhost: Dreamhost

    Favorite Social Media Platform: Twitter

    Favorite Podcast: Savage Lovecast

    Favorite Online Cartoon: Foamy the Squirrel

    Favorite Site for Travel Suggestions: Roadside America

    Favorite Site for Everything Else: Reddit

    Events and Activities
    Favorite Flash Mob: Improv AZ’s No Pants Light Rail Ride

    Favorite Community Event: Ignite Phoenix

    Favorite Place on a Friday Night: ASU Women’s Gymnastics Meets

    Favorite Phoenix Geek Event: Phoenix Ultimate Geek Smackdown (PUGS)

    Favorite Place to see Who’s Who in the Local Zoo: Local First Arizona Fall Festival

    I hope you’ve enjoyed my list and perhaps it’s inspired you to try some of my favorite things. 😉

  • Self-Publishing vs Using a Publisher – The Joys and Frustrations

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    Ruth Carter

    ruthcover smallerI’ve had the privilege of becoming a book author. I self-published my first book The Legal Side of Blogging: How Not to get Sued, Fired, Arrested, or Killed last year (and published a revision of it this past summer). That book led to me getting a book contract with the American Bar Association to write Flash Mob Law: The Legal Side of Planning and Participating in Pillow Fights, No Pants Rides, and Other Shenanigans, which came out this summer and The Legal Side of Blogging for Lawyers, which is due to be published in February 2014.

    Both types of publishing come with their joys and frustrations. I love the independence of being an indie author but then the responsibility is on me to do everything (or find people to outsource to). On the flip side, I’ve had a mostly great experience working with my publishing teams, but that also means more cooks in the kitchen and having to play by their rules.

    In regards to my next book, I turned the first draft in to my publisher in August with the expectation that it would be published before the end of the year. (I turned the first draft of Flash Mob Law in to my publisher in May and it was published in August.) I did not expect to hear in October that they wanted a major re-write. In the big picture, it was the right thing to do, but definitely required me to rearrange my calendar a bit. I busted my ass to get it done by Halloween so they could get it out, or at the very least get me a galley, by December.

    I was frustrated as hell when I heard that wasn’t possible, especially after I worked so hard to keep things on schedule. How long does it take to format, copyedit, and print a book? It’s already cleared legal review and I know I can review edits in 24 hours if I have to. My publication date is only delayed by a few months and in the long run everything will be fine but I definitely had a few expressive moments while I was adjusting to that information.

    Here’s my compilation of the joys and frustrations that come with being an indie author and having a publisher.

    INDIE AUTHOR PUBLISHER
    PUBLICATION DATE I pick it. They pick it.
    WRITING My work. My way. They can require re-writes.
    DEADLINES No one’s holding my feet to the fire but me. Hard deadlines.
    COPYEDITTING I’m responsible for hiring a good copyeditor. They take care of it. I have 5 days after receiving a draft to approve edits.
    COVER ART I’m responsible for hiring a graphic designer and describing what I think I want. They have a team of artists and I get to pick the final version from the options they provide.
    MARKETING That’s my job too. They have a team for that.
    EBOOK OPTION Of course! They say they’re going to do it.
    PAPER OPTION I got frustrated trying to figure out CreateSpace and gave up. Available on the ABA website.
    PRICE I decide ($3.99). They decide ($39.95).
    ROYALTIES Monthly. Annually.
    SALES I work for every sale. Minimum sales guaranteed.
    MY WORK Never ends. Basically done once the final draft is done, except for reviewing galleys.
    COPYRIGHT Guaranteed mine. Had to negotiate to keep it.

    Created with the HTML Table Generator

    There is no one right way to be an author but it’s good to understand what you’re getting into when you decide which path you’re going to take.

  • Just When I Thought My Book Was Finished . . .

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    Ruth Carter

    Everyone who knows me or follows me on Twitter knows I’ve been writing up a storm this year. I did a revision of my self-published ebook The Legal Side of Blogging: How Not to get Sued, Fired, Arrested, or Killed and published Flash Mob Law: The Legal Side of Planning and Participating in Pillow Fights, No Pants Rides, and Other Shenanigans through the American Bar Association (ABA). (I’ve got to get shorter subtitles.) I finished the first draft of the manuscript for The Legal Side of Blogging for Lawyers in August and I thought the majority of my book writing obligations were done for the year. I was wrong.

    Editing a Paper by Nic McPhee from Flickr (Creative Commons License)
    Editing a Paper by Nic McPhee from Flickr (Creative Commons License)

    My book is being published by the Law Practice (LP) section of the ABA. (For you non-lawyers, this is the section that’s all about how to run a law firm more effectively.) When you write for them, you get a team of people who work on your book. Here’s a glimpse of who I’m working with:

    • Shawn my project manager
    • Evan and Dennis my peer reviewers (who make sure everything I wrote is legally sound)
    • Tom the head of the LP publishing department (who makes himself read everything before it gets published)
    • The copywriter (who will fix all my bad grammar)
    • The marketing team who is charge of my cover and promotions

    I got to see a lot of my team at the recent LP fall meeting in Phoenix. When I turned my manuscript over to them, I thought I was basically done except of approving my cover art and proofreading edits. The team loves my book and said it’s a great first draft, but they’ve asked for a re-write which might include a re-arrangement of chapters, a new forward, and changing the forward into an afterword. I appreciated the feedback and I’m all for putting out the best book possible, but it’s going to be a challenge timewise.

    The LP section wants my book done and published by the ABA TechShow in March 2014. I responded that I’m meeting Gary Vaynerchuk in person when he does his book signing for his new book Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook in Arizona in December and I promised him a paper copy. (Yes, I’m fully aware and embrace the fact that I have a massive professional hard-on for Gary Vaynerchuk.)

    My mug from the Space Age Cafe in Gila Bend
    My mug from the Space Age Cafe in Gila Bend

    My calendar is pretty full for the rest of October and November that I’m at the point where I have to think hard before agreeing to go to any events or activities that aren’t already on my schedule. And now I need to figure out how I’m going to do a re-write by Halloween on top of all that so it can get through peer-review, copy editing, and get a galley printed and shipped to me by December 5th.

    This is going to be fun . . . and by fun, I mean high-caffeinated. 😉

    I had a chance to speak with Tom at the LP fall meeting. He said he really liked that my first draft was easy to read and then he asked if I had more books in me. That was a very flattering statement coming from him, but at the same time my first thought was to punch him in the face. After working on three books this year, I’m going to need a break from book writing once this book is done before I start thinking about the next one.