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 by: Jay Johnson Be sure to check out The Aton Project Newsletters at: http://www.self-publishinghelp.com/TheAtonProjectNewsletters.html. This newsletter, by author Tony VanSluytman, has been receiving rave revues despite it not being directed to writers. In addition, we encourage you to visit The Book Doctor at: http://www.self-publishinghelp.com/TheBOOKDOCTOR.html. You'll find his articles to be a must read for writers at all levels of accomplishment. We are quite proud of the contributions of these two dedicated authors and wish for you to learn more about them. *** Moonspinners Writer's Page (http://www.maureenmcmahon.com), the website of Maureen McMahon, has been voted one of the 101 Best Websites by Writer's Digest 2006 - specifically her Ask The Experts section, created in collaboration with fellow author Fran Silverman (http://www.maureenmcmahon.com/bookmarketing.html). The Experts Site is composed of 150 subscribers to Fran’s newsletter, Book Promotion Newsletter (http://www.bookpromotionnewsletter.com), who answer book marketing questions at no charge. Download: 10 Ways to Promote Your Book... Welcome our two (2) sponsors... ADRdomainsPlus.com for Your Domain Names and Internet Products  BOTH have GREAT rates and EXCELLENT service!  A new radio show devoted to book marketing made its debut on Tuesday, March 21, 2006 on Achieve Radio, noon to 1 p.m., MST. Host Francine Silverman will talk with authors, publishers and publicists, providing listeners with a unique perspective on book promotion. To access Book Marketing with Fran, go to http://www.achieveradio.com and click “Click to Listen” at top of page. Should you miss the show, click “Shows & Hosts” on the left and scroll down to Fran’s show and click, “More-Click Here” for the archives. Patricia Fry, president of SPAWN (Small Publishers, Artists, and Writers Network) and author of 24 books, will be Fran’s first guest. Patricia’s latest book is The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book (Matilija Press 2006), a comprehensive guide for hopeful and struggling authors. Fran is author of Book Marketing from A-Z and editor publisher of Book Promotion Newsletter, http://www.bookpromotionnewsletter.com Issue 99: December 6, 2006 ISBN 1545-5599 BOOK PROMOTION NEWSLETTER Issue 99: December 6, 2006 EDITOR: FRANCINE SILVERMAN http://www.bookpromotionnewsletter.com http://www.nystatetravel.com Issued every other Wednesday since 2003 In This Issue: 1. Feature Article 2. Grist for you Mill 3. Progress Report 4. Subscriber Seminar 5. Competition 6. Kudos 1) FEATURE ARTICLE 5 Steps to Creating Extra Income for Writers By Stephanie Chandler Freelance writers and authors have a unique opportunity to earn extra income by selling information products such as ebooks, special reports and electronic workbooks. Since you already have a talent for writing, you can use your skills to capitalize on one of the hottest online business trends. Here are five steps to success as an “Infopreneur.” 1. Develop a Niche Most writers have favorite subjects they like to write about. Decide on a topic that you are passionate about and become an expert in the field. You can establish your expertise by writing articles and/or books about the topic. Take it a step further by conducting speaking engagements or teaching related classes. Developing notoriety in your field will help you build a loyal following. 2. Host a Killer Website Once you've narrowed your focus, launch a website that focuses on your topic of interest. For example, if you like to write about parenting, you could create a website that offers parenting advice, activities for kids or resources for new moms. Fill the site with plenty of free content; useful website links, articles and interviews. By providing valuable content for free, your site visitors will not only have a reason to come back again, but they will be more inclined to purchase your information products. 3. Publish an E-zine Sending a monthly or weekly e-zine is the one of the best ways to market to your audience. Since the average consumer must be exposed to a product six to eight times before making a buying decision, the more you can get your name in front of them, the better. This also allows you to build a rapport with your audience, thus giving them more incentive to buy from you. 4. Develop and Sell Your Information Products One of the most important keys to success with information products is meeting the needs of your audience. Consider what your audience wants to know, or better yet, ask them! Next, make a list of product ideas. For example, a photographer could write a special report on how to take flattering pictures, a pet fanatic could write an ebook about first aid for pets or a gardener could write an ebook on plant care in the winter. Once your first product is ready, you can set up your website to automate the sales and delivery process. One company that offers an affordable solution is http://www.payloadz.com. This service allows you to create shopping cart buttons for your website, process payments seamlessly via Paypal, and sends the buyer an automatic email with instructions for downloading the product. This allows you to earn money while you sleep! 5. Market Your Website and Products There are many ways to get the word out about your online product business. You can include a link to your website in your author bio when you publish articles. You can offer reprints of your articles for others to publish on their websites and e-zines, each with your author bio and a link back to your site. You can swap links with websites in your industry and offer to exchange ads in each other's e-zines. With a bit of effort and some perseverance, your information products could generate revenues beyond your wildest dreams, as well as add some variety to your working life. An added bonus: magazine editors will appreciate the niche expertise that you have to offer. --- Stephanie Chandler is the author of FROM ENTREPRENEUR TO INFOPRENEUR: MAKE M0NEY WITH BOOKS, EBOOKS AND INFORMATION PRODUCTS (Wiley, Dec 2006) and the founder of http://www.businessinfoguide.com, a directory of resources for entrepreneurs. 2) GRIST FOR YOUR MILL Monique Rider submitted the following. She says “SCORE has been such an important link to my business growth - I think your members can really benefit from knowing about them.” SCORE, Counselors to America's Small Business, recognizes BodyLife Dynamics coaching company and its founder, Monique Rider. Ms. Rider draws attention to entrepreneurship and the benefits to business owners who seek support. Access the complete article: http://www.bodylifedynamics.com/SCORE_Press_Coverage.pdf Lee Ann Butler-Owens asks that you speak out for humanity! Please join the Lulla Blog and use your voice to share your thoughts on Humanity and Peace! Click on the link below and scroll down to Lullalee Blog! http://www.lullaleeproductions.com/lullakidsevents/lullaleemembership.html Thanks for making your thoughts a difference for all! Authors Katherine Scherer and Eileen Bodoh seek donors and ideas for their 3/30 Prison Campaign to help women prisoners. http://www.gratitudeworks.com Best selling relationship authors Judith Sherven, PhD and Jim Sniechowski, PhD have created "A Fr..ee Gift of Love" from their second book, OPENING TO LOVE 365 DAYS A YEARS (Health Communications 2000). With their publisher's permission, they loaded each page into an autoresponder system and make it available as a viral marketing gift (while also promoting the book itself). To check it out, sign up at http://www.judithandjim.com/openingtolove The couple urges other authors to do the same with their books. Patricia Fry submitted the following. Her article on book promotion is worth reading: Here's my holiday gift to you--a new blog entry with ideas for getting the exposure you need in order to succeed as an author, artist, freelance writer or entrepreneur. This article is for those of you with products and services to sell as well as those who are just gearing up to produce a book or offer a valuable service. It is never too soon to start building your platform. Have you Googled your name, lately? How do you rate on a Google search? http://www.matilijapress.com/publishingblog Patricia is author of 24 books. Her latest is THE RIGHT WAY TO WRITE, PUBLISH AND SELL YOUR BOOK (Matilija Press 2006). 3) PROGRESS REPORT These are spots I found for my clients: David Spero RN was the guest of Jeff Farias on Tuesday, December 5, 2006 on the Mike Newcomb Show on Air America Phoenix. http://www.mikenewcomb.net David is author of THE ART OF GETTING WELL: MAXIMIZING HEALTH WHEN YOU HAVE A CHRONIC ILLNESS (Hunter House 2002) and DIABETES: SUGAR-COATED CRISIS: WHO GETS IT, WHO PROFITS, AND HOW TO STOP IT (New Society Publishers 2006). http://www.davidsperoRN.com Judith Colombo was a guest on the Jackie Sue Show on Thursday, November 30, 2006 http://www.internetvoicesradio.com Judith is author of THE FABLESINGER (The Cross Press 1989), a fantasy set among the myth and magic of the Caribbean, republished as an Authors Guild Backinprint.Com Edition in June 2001. AmErica House Book Publishers published her second novel, NIGHT CRIMES, a mystery/suspense tale, in April of 2001. http://odin.prohosting.com/night01 Tricia Molloy taped an interview with Wayne Turmel, host of The Cranky Middle Manager Show, which she believes should be up around December 19, 2006. http://cmm.thepodcastnetwork.com http://www.achismarketing.com/CrankyMiddleManager.html Tricia is author of DIVINE WISDOM AT WORK: 10 UNIVERSAL PRINCPLES FOR ENLIGHTENED ENTREPRENEURS (Aha! House 2006). http://www.divinewisdomatwork.com 4) SUBSCRIBER SEMINAR Nancy Sharp Wagner is hosting a series of Novel Writing Retreats called Novel Secrets: A Novel Retreat in 3 Acts, which you can read about at her website: http://www.nlsharp.com/content/blogcategory/96/96/ http://www.NLSharp.com Nancy is an award-winning children's book author and educational writing consultant whose books are THE RING BEAR (Prairieland Press 2006), EFFIE'S IMAGE (Prairieland Press 2005), winner of Learning Magazine's 2006 Teacher Choice Award, and FISHING WITH MY DAD (Boyds Mills Press 1997). 5) COMPETITION This from Nolene Dougan: With Christmas quickly approaching, http://www.spinetinglers.co.uk has launched a Christmas Ghost Story Competition. Spinetinglers believes some of the greatest ghost stories ever written take place during Christmas time (The Woman in Black and A Christmas Carol, to name a few), and this is why we have launched this competition for December. There is an entrance fee of £2, but the winner will have their story published on the site on Christmas Eve and will receive £50 (about $90 US dollars). We hope that many of you will enter as we can't wait to read your stories. There is no better time to sit by the fire than on a cold Christmas Eve night and read a spinetingling tale. Nolene is author of VROLOK (Authorhouse 2005), the Slovakian word for “vampire.” http://www.vrolok.co.uk 5) KUDOS Kathe Gogolewski has three books released from Amazon Shorts. The latest is PONY PALACE (2006) for children aged 8 to 13. A retired elementary teacher, Kathe wrote Pony Palace to “inspire children to work toward something they want, instead of begging for it!” The other stories, THE GOLD COIN (2006) and WEIGHING IN (2005), are both for adults and have been best sellers at Amazon. Started in August, 2005, Amazon Shorts features 800 short stories by new and well-known authors alike for 49 cents each. The website boasts “previously unpublished short story literature for sale exclusively at Amazon.com,” and has expanded to include some of today's “freshest literary voices.” Amazon Shorts are only delivered electronically. There are no print editions. http://www.amazon.com/PonyPalace/dp/B000KLPH7U/sr=1-3/qid=1164747299/ref=sr_1_3/102-3993851-2836959?ie=UTF8&s=books Kathe, writing under the pen name Ann Durand, is author of A PROMISE TO KEEP (Double Dragon Publishing 2005), a romantic suspense, and TATO, a middle grade fantasy adventure published by Wings Press. Suzanne Gold has been writing a weekly column for United Press International's Religion and Spirituality website for a year and was recently invited by the San Francisco Chronicle to write a blog called "Surviving a Dysfunctional Family and Finding Spirit in Every Day" for its SFGate.com website. “They chose 20 people whose writing they knew through their 'Two Cents' column, and the website debuted to the public last week,” says Suzanne. “I feel honored to be included in these projects, and enjoy the challenge to my critical thinking and the opportunity to share my ideas about life, love, and everything.” Her book-in-progress is "Surviving A Dysfunctional Family." Her page at the Chronicle is at http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/contribute/sn/persona?plckPersonaPage=PersonaBlog&User=suzanne_gold Her contributions to the UPI site are available at http://www.religionandspirituality.com/columnists/columns.php?FixtureID=sgold Judge Janice Law, Houston, Texas will be a panelist/featured author at the March 21-25 Virginia Festival of the Book in Charlottesville, and will lecture on non-fiction writing at the Ann Arbor (Michigan) Book Festival May 17-20. http://www.judgejanicelaw.com Francine Silverman is author of CATSKILLS ALIVE (second edition) and LONG ISLAND ALIVE, both published in 2003 by Hunter Publishing and geared to every interest. To learn more about her guidebooks and for links to hundreds of attractions on Long Island and in the Catskills, visit Fran's one-stop website at http://www.nystatetravel.com BOOK MARKETING FROM A-Z (Infinity Publishing 2005) is written by 325 paid subscribers to Book Promotion Newsletter and available at http://www.buybooksontheweb.com (Category: Marketing) and at http://www.amazon.com Subscribers are entitled to a 20% discount. Contact Fran at franalive@optonline.net for code. The publisher's toll free number does not work outside the continental US and orders cannot be processed from its website for shipping outside the US. Subscribers in foreign countries who wish to purchase the book with the discount may email Michelle at michelle@infinitypublishing.com or fax an order (610/941-9959). She will provide confirmation that your order has been received and will be processed promptly. When using these options subscribers should put everything to Michelle's attention and reference the Promotional Code (contact Fran for code). If emailing Michelle, DO NOT put your credit card number in any email correspondence as this is not secure. Mail: Infinity Publishing, 1094 New Dehaven St, Suite 100, West Conshohocken, PA 19428 Issue 100: December 20, 2006 ISSN 1545-5599 BOOK PROMOTION NEWSLETTER Issue 100: December 20, 2006 EDITOR: FRANCINE SILVERMAN http://www.bookpromotionnewsletter.com http://www.nystatetravel.com Issued every other Wednesday since 2003 In This Issue: (1)Feature Article (2)Grist for your Mill (3)Progress Report (4)Workshop (5)Kudos Please consider adding http://www.AuthorsandExperts.com and http://www.SchoolBookings.com to your list of resources. These are great places for authors, experts, and speakers to connect with members of the media, those searching for speakers, and schools. Free to schools and media members and an economical resource for authors and experts. 1) FEATURE ARTICLE Drive Traffic to Your Nonfiction Book's Web Site with a Blog By Marilyn Haight The Internet has become so commercialized that savvy Web surfers, including the media, weed out advertisements by searching for information in the blogosphere - a sub-category of the Internet. So even though you may have a Web site, if you don't have a blog, you could be overlooked. A blog is a journal on the Internet. It's like a Web site, with its own Internet address, but it's designed to let you to post comments in a sequence by calendar date. This makes a blog an ideal tool for associating your book's topic with news events. To drive blog searchers to your Web site, think of yourself as a news commentator. Scan online news sources for topics related to your book and add your expertise to the conversation. Offer free, useful advice in your blog articles. For example, when the movie The Devil Wears Prada was released, I blogged about it because its bad-boss plot relates to my book, Who's Afraid of the Big, Bad Boss? 13 Types and How to Survive Them. In my blog article at http://www.bigbadbossbook.blogspot.com, I offered career advice to people with a bad boss like the one in the movie. Be careful not to advertise in your blog-you'll drive people away. Instead, provide a link to your book's Web site as a reference (the blog's instructions tell you how to do this-it's easy). Give the link an intriguing title. I label the link to my book's site, "Tips for Dealing with Bad Bosses." Blogs are free and easy to use for non-techies, like me. You can set up a blog in about 10 minutes without having to learn anything new about technology. Check out free blogs available from these sites: Blogger.com, http://www.blogger.com; Typepad.com, http://www.typepad.com; LiveJournal.com, http://www.livejournal.com and WordPress.com http://www.wordpress.com More than 30% of the traffic to my book's Web site comes from its blog. Not a bad return for spending a little time, day or night, marketing in your pajamas. Marilyn Haight, President of the Metro-Phoenix Chapter of the Society of Southwestern Authors, is the author of the newly released e-book, "How to Market Your Nonfiction Advice Book on the Internet: A Guide for Non-Techies Like Me" (http://www.lulu.com/content/531796) and "The Instruction Writer's Guide: How to Explain How to Do Anything" and “Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Boss,” both published in 2005 by Infinity Publishing. 2) GRIST FOR YOUR MILL Peter Bowerman will be Yvonne Perry's podcast guest on Writers in the Sky on January 5, 2006. Both are subscribers. Yvonne is author of MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE (Write on! Publishing, first printing, Booksurge.com, second printing, 2005). http://www.yvonneperry.net/WritersintheSkyPodcast.htm Peter's latest book is THE WELL-FED SELF-PUBLISHER (Fanove Publishing 2007). http://www.wellfedsp.com http://www.wellfedwriter.com Shirley Cheng recommended this link: http://www.scribd.com. It “allows you to post any writing which can be displayed in a number of formats, including embedded pdf for websites,” she says. “It is very easy to use. It is still in beta.” I took this info from the radio station, Lime.com. Anyone interested in having excerpts from their book read on the air should tune into Nancy's show: Writing from the Heart Nancy Aronie has been writing and telling her stories for 23 years in newspaper columns, magazines such as McCalls and on National Public Radio's All Things Considered. Dubbed “the midwife for words that want to come out,” she's been conducting Writing from the Heart workshops for 18 years from her home in Martha's Vineyard, creating a safe space for writers to express themselves without judgment. Now, in her weekly Writing From the Heart radio talk show, Nancy will introduce a topic for listeners to write about (400 to 700 words), then after e-mailing them to her staff of readers, several will be chosen to be read aloud on Nancy's show. Comments (all positive, of course!) will be phoned in live. Join Nancy and everyone who has a story to tell-that means YOU! Unleash your inner writer... Premieres: Thursdays 2 PM EST Encores: Tuesdays 7 PM, Fridays 7 AM, Sundays 2 PM Have a question? E-mail Nancy at http://www.writingfromtheheart.com Subscriber Vito Santoro has provided a holiday gift. It includes a fr-ee subscription to his Internet Book Marketing e-zine, a 10 part course on Internet Book Marketing and a software program that allows you to create PDF and Web page files, as well as edit PDF files. To obtain your gi-fts, go to: http://www.proauthors.com Sandy Fox was asked to be a guest speaker on the web based weekly radio show "Healing the Grieving Heart" Thursday, January 4, 9 a.m. Pacific (Noon Eastern) where she will talk about her book I HAVE NO INTENTION OF SAYING GOODBYE (iUniverse, 2001 with a new edition in 2005), stories of hope, courage and survival techniques from parents who have lost a child. Sandy will tell you what these parents from all over the United States have done to move on with their lives, some of whom have done fantastic things. You can listen to the show on http://www.health.voiceamerica.com in addition to calling in live at 1-866-369-3742 to ask Sandy any questions you may have dealing with grief. The show is hosted by Dr. Gloria Horsley, who has worked in the field of family therapy for 22 years. She also lost a son. Each show is rebroadcast 12 hours later and is archived on the Compassionate Friends website. http://www.sandyfoxauthor.com The annual fee for this newsletter is $7.50 Please send cash or check payable to Francine Silverman to Francine Silverman, P.O. Box 1333, Riverdale, New York 10471, or make payment via PayPal to franalive@optonline.net 3) PROGRESS REPORT These are spots I found for my clients: Erica Miner was a guest on the Los Angeles-based radio show, 'MidLife Miracle' at 2 p.m. Pacific Time (5 p.m. Eastern Time) Monday, December 18, 2006 online at http://www.HealthyLife.net. The topic was '"MidLife Miracle - The Path of Self-Discovery.' Host Moira Shepard interviewed Erica about surviving and overcoming life crises. Erica is author of TRAVELS WITH MY LOVERS (Authorhouse 2002), winner of the Fiction Prize in the 2003 Author Book Awards. http://www.ericaminer.com 4) WORKSHOP Arlene Uslander sent this on behalf of her friend: Winning Words: Three Steps to Standing Out in the Erma Bombeck Writers Workshop Contest The Erma Bombeck Writers Workshop contest is scheduled to open for entries on January 3, 2007. You know you're every bit as funny as Erma. You think you might have a shot at winning, which is good because you're sure that if you won this contest, the course of your writing career would be forever changed. You just might be right. Winning the Erma Bombeck Writers Workshop Global Humor Contest two years in a row definitely opened doors for me. I made connections I might ordinarily have never made. And yes, I ended up with a regular gig - a biweekly humor column in The Kansas City Star. And you can change the course of your career, too. Winning Words is your chance to tip the scale in your favor. Who better to coach you on how to catch the eyes of the workshop judges than someone who has done it twice? If you plan to enter the 2007 contest, you can't afford to miss this class. Monday, Jan. 8, 2007: Step 1: Understanding Erma's language. We will analyze Erma's humor and discover just what it was that made her so darn funny. Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2007: Open Q&A Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2007: Step 2: Been There/Read That. Discovering unique humor in your everyday life; we will discuss how the absence of this is your ticket out of the running. Thursday, Jan. 11, 2007: Open Q&A Friday, Jan. 12, 2007: Step 3: Editing to Perfection. What can you do to make sure your essay stands out in the crowd? The week will conclude with private (email) critiquing/editing/mentoring of your specific essay one-on-one with the instructor. Jennifer Brown is an award-winning freelance writer, with over 100 bylines in such publications as Writer's Journal and Chicken Soup for the Soul. http://www.freewebs.com/jennifer_brown. http://lsswritingschool.com/ErmaBombeckPrep.html 5) KUDOS Melissa Alvarez sold her book, NIGHT VISIONS (Crystal Prism 2004), written under her pen name, Ariana Dupre, to Cerridwen Press, a mainstream publisher, and it's been expanded, revised and re-edited for release on January 18, 2007. http://MelissaAlvarez.com The new holiday issue of “Mystery Scene Magazine” gives an extensive and very positive mention of John Dandola's 1940's New Jersey-based mystery novels, DEAD AT THE BOX OFFICE, DEAD IN THEIR SIGHTS (both published in 2001 by Quincannon Pub Group), and the forthcoming Dead by All Appearances, in an article entitled "Nefarious New Jersey." “As you may already know, Mystery Scene is quite a prestigious (and high-end glossy) magazine among mystery readers,” he says. http://www.JohnDandola.com THE SMART COUPLE'S GUIDE TO THE WEDDING OF YOUR DREAMS (New World Library 2005) by Judith Sherven and Jim Sniechowski will be featured in January and February in the following publications: The Baltimore Sun's Maryland Weddings The Hudson Valley Magazine (3 pages on the authors and the book) Long Island Brides and Grooms magazine The Guide Maggie Mae Magazine In addition, Wegman's Supermarket chain is featuring it in its store-wide wedding displays and doing a half hour podcast for The Wedding Planning Audiocast . . . http://www.judithandjim.com http://www.smartweddingcouples.com couples.com Francine Silverman is author of CATSKILLS ALIVE (second edition) and LONG ISLAND ALIVE, both published in 2003 by Hunter Publishing and geared to every interest. To learn more about her guidebooks and for links to hundreds of attractions on Long Island and in the Catskills, visit Fran's one-stop website at http://www.nystatetravel.com BOOK MARKETING FROM A-Z (Infinity Publishing 2005) is written by 325 paid subscribers to Book Promotion Newsletter and available at http://www.buybooksontheweb.com (Category: Marketing) and at http://www.amazon.com Subscribers are entitled to a 20% discount. Contact Fran at franalive@optonline.net for code. The publisher's toll free number does not work outside the continental US and orders cannot be processed from its website for shipping outside the US. Subscribers in foreign countries who wish to purchase the book with the discount may email Michelle at michelle@infinitypublishing.com or fax an order (610/941-9959). She will provide confirmation that your order has been received and will be processed promptly. When using these options subscribers should put everything to Michelle's attention and reference the Promotional Code (contact Fran for code). If emailing Michelle, DO NOT put your credit card number in any email correspondence as this is not secure. Mail: Infinity Publishing, 1094 New Dehaven St, Suite 100, West Conshohocken, PA 19428 Betty B's Arcana Connection by Betty Bradford Byers INNER-VIEWS WITH CELEBRITIES Short Stories Corner Poetry Corner Write On Southwest...Book Reviews by Connie Gotsch The BOOK DOCTOR Book Reviewer's Corner Public Service links And so much more! | Return Home | The BOOK DOCTOR | The BANYON NETWORK | The Banyon Buzz Newsletters | The Aton Project Newsletters | Contact Us | |
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