Episode 193 – LitRPG Trademark, Patreon Fees, and Estate Planning

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Question of the Week: If you created or popularized a term that later became a successful product or genre for multiple people, would you consider trademarking it? Why or why not

If you came up with a term that became popular, would you lawyer up and trademark it? Jim and Bryan start out by thanking their wonderful patrons: The Newbie’s Guide To Sell More Books With Less Marketing, The Secret Blush, and What Sells Books. They had some valuable tips to share this week including how best to communicate with Amazon in order to resolve author issues, thinking like artisans rather than manufacturers, how one urban fantasy author Shayne Silvers went from earning a few hundred a month to five-figures after taking some time to do research, and The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America is looking for more SFWA members to participate in a new indie bundle. News items include how authors can revamp their book covers with trend predictions from 99Designs, Hoopla is expanding their catalogs for young kids and comic lovers, the importance of proper estate planning regarding author’s intellectual property, indies aren’t happy about Patreon’s new fee structure, and Aleron Kong has trademarked the term “LitRPG”, irking others in the genre. Question of the Week: If you created or popularized a term that later became a successful product or genre for multiple people, would you consider trademarking it? Why or why not?
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What You’ll Learn:
  • Why authors should think like Jeff Bezos when dealing with Amazon reps
  • Why authors need to think like artisans, not manufacturers
  • How one author used research to earn five figures a month
  • How sci-fi authors can submit their story to SWFA’s storybundle
  • What new cover design styles are expected to thrive in 2018
  • How Hoopla is expanding its young reader and comic book catalog
  • Why authors should plan their IP estates now and how to get started
  • Why creators are frustrated with Patreon’s new payment structure
  • How one author trademarked “LitRPG” and what it means for the genre
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