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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. and FREE Writing Course http://creativewritingworkshop.info. 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 You are the Box Office Smash: The Personal Screenplay by Gordy Hoffman Right this very second, in the heart of every struggling, undiscovered screenwriter, in the dark, hidden corner deep within, there is a voice, a clear whisper, saying one thing: You're never gonna figure this out. And this is not referring to the story with its gaping hole, the finale missing a payoff, the hit and miss humor, the flat title. I'm talking about freedom. The freedom to work as a screenwriter. Compensation for a home for family and a life. The resources to wake up and ply your craft and pay the freight, without obstacle. The chance to see your writing made into pictures, to work with the industry's best, to fulfill this goal of professional screenwriter. Hollywood success. Behind this voice is the idea that somehow, some way, you'll find the hero, or the hook, logline or pitch that will punch your golden ticket. If you could only figure out what the studio wants, if you can only get a solid bead to this game, you know you can write and execute. What is the script I should write to get an agent? What is the one that will sell? It's not that I don't know how to write, I know how to write screenplays, I just need to know what they want, even though I think I know what they want, but I don't think I have the idea that they want. Yeah. I'm not gonna figure this out, whispers the voice. Why this uneasiness? Does it originate within ourselves? I don't think so. But where does it come from? The daily obsession with box office grosses? The news of the seven figure deals to newbies? The endless procession of boneheadedly conceived franchises-in-waiting arriving in the theatres every Friday? People winning Academy Awards for movies you would not be caught dead writing? Recognizing an idea you came up with years ago on your couch, produced with a $130 million budget drowning in CGI? All these things are but a few of the possible reasons why this seeds unhealthy doubt and confusion in the modern screenwriter. Tracking these forces outside us and beyond our control in an effort to trudge the path to a successful screenwriting career will prove to most to be unproductive and corrosive. Basically, trying to figure out what Hollywood wants will land us in a resentment that makes "giving up" a sane response to the very challenge which used to inspire us. In short, we cannot chase a perceived trend and remember our dreams. You cannot look at the marketplace and find your voice. You can find ideas, trends, and inspiration there, perhaps, but you can find these things driving in traffic as well. But listening to your voice is the key to creating original, compelling stories. Your life is your own story. You have a completely unique thread of experience. By allowing yourself to express these emotional experiences, your screenplay, your story, will be different from any other and powerful, as original as your fingerprint. Why is it powerful? When we have the courage to be specific about what we know about living, we create an authentic world an audience recognizes as the life they are living on planet Earth. This connects your audience to your story. This connection is the foundation of the phenomena of story. Why does story mean so much to us? We recognize the triumphs and tragedies of our lives, with all the hilarity and tears. By seeing it, we are validated and it underscores meaning and purpose to living. If we don't use what we've collected in life in our hearts and spirits, then our story loses its authenticity and the connection the audience should make fails. They do not see themselves, and when they leave the theater, they do not call their friends. When people do not call their friends after seeing a movie, the movie bombs. When a writer opens their person to their work, when they allow themselves to be vulnerable, to risk exposure of the secrets of their life story, they take a huge step towards creating a screenplay of substantial value, a screenplay with a greater potential of a large number of tickets sold. This is precisely why art and commerce have remained bedfellows for thousands of years. To look at the relationship between art and commerce as adversarial or incompatible is just plain foolish. Art happens when people invest their spirits in their work without fear, and story is artful when the writing is truthful and the writer is authentic. And what do we have to be honest about? We can only lie about what we know, and we can only tell the truth about what we know. And that is what has happened to us, our life story. This is what we share. This is not a pitch to write "what you know." This is not about writing stories about where you work or where you live. This is about writing about what you felt. You can imagine characters and worlds and actions and speech you've never personally experienced, but if you remember to infuse your choices with your emotional and spiritual struggles and victories as a human being, your screenplay will be different in the very best sense of the word. The question you have to answer is not what does Hollywood want today. The question is how honest of a writer do you want to be. I guarantee you can write a blockbuster, you can write a box office hit. This will happen when you find an audience. And the correct path to this crowd of people is listening to yourself. If you practice, you will develop an inner ear for who you are and what you know and you will become masterful in loading your work with your fingerprints. Writing is personal work. You are the guitar. You are the box of paint. Give of that and your audience will remember why life is good and they will talk of you. About the Author Winner of the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award at the Sundance Film Festival for LOVE LIZA, Gordy Hoffman has written and directed three digital shorts for Fox Searchlight. He made his feature directorial debut with his script, A COAT OF SNOW, which world premiered at the 2005 Locarno Intl Film Festival. A COAT OF SNOW made its North American Premiere at the Arclight in Hollywood, going on to screen at the Milan Film Festival and the historic George Eastman House. Recently, the movie won the 2006 Domani Vision Award at VisionFest, held at the Tribeca Cinemas in NY. A professor at the USC School of Cinematic Arts, Gordy is the founder and judge of BlueCat Screenplay Competition. Dedicated to develop and celebrate the undiscovered screenwriter, BlueCat provides written script analysis on every script entered. In addition, Gordy acts as a script consultant for screenwriters, offering personalized feedback on their scripts through his consultation service, www.screenplaynotes.com. For more articles by Gordy on screenwriting, visit http://www.bluecatscreenplay.com. Issue 103: January 31, 2007 ISSN 1545-5599 BOOK PROMOTION NEWSLETTER Issue 103: January 31, 2007 EDITOR: FRANCINE SILVERMAN http://www.bookpromotionnewsletter.com http://www.nystatetravel.com Issued every other Wednesday since 2003 INTRODUCTION My daughter, Amy, is a social worker in a NYC hospital, but her creative juices are aching to branch out. "After spending several hours creating a memorable scrapbook for a bridal shower with collaboration from all invitees and realizing that I enjoyed doing it so much, I decided to try out a business," she says. "I am looking to make scrapbooks for any memorable occasion and the cost of my service will include cost of supplies. Photo scrapbooks are a great gift that people cherish for years to come. It is also a way to have all people invited to a party contribute to a one gift in their own personal way. Memorable occasions are birthdays, graduations, bridal showers, baby showers, weddings, anniversaries, etc. The first client I get receives 50% off." Amy has demonstrated her creativity over the years with innovative calendars, scrapbooks and collages. But only the family knows about it. Since she's just starting out, her services will be very reasonable. Let me know if you have any interest. I'll be in S. Florida from Feb. 2 to Feb. 11th so if I don't respond to your emails right away as usual, you'll know why. I have started a new blog in conjunction with my forthcoming book, Talk Radio for Authors. It's called Book Talk Radio and is at http://booktalkradio.blogspot.com. The blog is for hosts and guests to report on their interviews. Whether or not I arranged your radio spot, I would love you to report on your talk radio experiences. I sent out a release on about three free distribution services, including one that Dorothy Thompson alerted me to - Power Home Biz. To my delight, the vice president of http://www.powerhomebiz.com, Isabel Isidro, saw the release and contacted me about interviewing me on how small and home-based enterpreneurs can use the talk radio to promote their businesses. She said the interview will appear on both PowerHomeBiz.com and WomenHomeBusiness.com and in their newsletter, which has about 26,000 subscribers. That's why it's important to send out media releases whenever you have something new to report. You just never know who will see it. 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. In This Issue: 1) Feature Article 2) Feedback 3) Grist for your Mill 4) A Good Question 5) Progress Report 6) Subscriber Seminars 7) Kudos 1) FEATURE ARTICLE Seven Fatal Flaws Guaranteed to Kill Your PR Campaign By Jeff Crilley After more than two decades of beating the streets as a TV reporter, I've discovered that most public relations efforts fall short because of a combination of errors. And none of them have to do with funding. They are simple things that must be avoided if you want to impress the press. 7) Failure To Do Homework I'm sorry folks, if you're still relying on those expensive media lists that are woefully outdated, you're doing yourself a disservice. I saw one of those lists recently. They still have me as a "feature" reporter in Dallas. I haven't been on the "features beat" in almost a decade. With the Internet, there's no excuse not to know what a reporter does for a living. 6) Blindly Sending Out New Releases The newsrooms are getting so many these days, that simply writing some copy and pressing "send" on the fax machine or blasting out e-mails is a good way to get lost. My newsroom receives at least two thousand a day. Your news release is just another flake in the snow storm of news releases that bury our assignment desk. A targeted approach to PR is the only way to go. 5) Forgetting the Visuals All reporters, print and radio included, tell stories with pictures. Even if it's just a word picture or the "theatre of the mind" that is radio, you should spend time thinking about what the journalist will see when they arrive at your news event. And in television news, it's all important. As soon as someone starts pitching me a story on the phone, I'm instantly imagining the visual elements it will take to tell the story. 4) Ignoring the News You can't fight a feeding frenzy. It was amazing to me during the days after Katrina and Sept 11th how many story pitches were coming into our newsroom that had nothing to do with those events. I wanted to pick up the phone and call up the PR firms sending us those stories and ask them to turn on the news or pick up that morning's paper. When the news media is going crazy over one story, please don't try and pitch us something unrelated. 3) Sounding Like a Commercial Most news releases have this fatal flaw. The headline trumpets the "who" and not the "what." It's not about you, folks. The message should be the star of your news release, not the messenger. And even the largest companies with biggest PR staffs make this mistake. They're so eager for a free commercial, they end up sounding like one in the press release and it's a quick trip to the trash can. Don't worry, the media will tell people who is doing it. You'll get your plug. But only if you put the spotlight where it belongs. 2) Selling the Sizzle Instead of the Steak I know this is contrary to everything they teach salespeople. But news people are different. There has to be substance. I've seen people spend a lot of money on a flashy press kit or delivering food to the newsroom along with the news release in hopes that it will secure news coverage. We'll gladly gobble up that pizza without ever sending a crew to cover the opening of your new Italian restaurant. Spend more time thinking about the news value of the story you're trying to get covered and less time on gimmicks. 1) Being Ordinary But by far the most common fatal flaw is being boring. We live in an MTV world. Everything is fast-paced. Newsrooms don't have time to waste on news releases about ribbon cuttings. Take the ordinary and make it extraordinary. Dig a little deeper. Does the opening of that new business suggest an economic trend? Ask yourself if anyone other than your immediate family would care about your story. If the answer is "no," then you have more work to do. This list is by no means complete. There are countless things that can kill your PR efforts, but avoiding these seven fatal flaws is critical if the goal is to actually get news coverage. Jeff Crilley is an Emmy Award winning TV reporter based in Dallas. His book, Free Publicity, is the first PR book ever written by a working journalist. He speaks at no charge on the subject of media relations. Visit http://www.jeffcrilley.com for more information on his book or to book him to speak. 2) FEEDBACK Referring to Patricia Fry's lead article in the 1/3/07 issue, Janice Law writes: "Patricia Fry discussed websites listing book festivals. The premier website for that is Library of Congress, then click on The Center for the Book, then click on Book Fairs and Other Literary events. It is GREAT! And you can select listing by month, alphabetical, etc." http://www.judgejanicelaw.com 3) GRIST FOR YOUR MILL Jan Yager welcomes input for a new book (third) on time management that she's finishing up. To get a confidential questionnaire and/or to set up a phone interview, e-mail Jan at: jyager@aol.com For more on her background, go to: http://www.drjanyager.com Shirley Cheng submitted the following: I am looking for articles (unbiased, factual), personal experience stories, case studies, from medical personnel (doctors, psychologists, etc.), lawyers, reporters, journalists, writers, parents, survivors (children), and anyone who has involved in this issue or has written about this issue, about the injustice system that strips the rights from parents and that takes the child away from their parents over medical disputes. I am especially interested in the cases of Abraham Cherrix (Virginia, 2006), Edward and Michele Wernecke concerning their daughter Katie (Texas, 2005), Corissa Mueller (2002), Pam Anderson concerning her son, Anthony Mitchell (2000), Miguel Regino and Adela Martinez concerning their daughter Anamarie Martinez-Regino (New Mexico, 2000), Sherry and Paul Lipscomb (Ohio, 2000), Valerie Emerson (Maine, 1998), and Tina Phifer concerning her daughter Amkia (1997); and I'd also be very interested in any articles anyone has written concerning my own mother Juliet Cheng's custody case in 1990 that made international headlines. I will need permission to reprint any contribution in my new book and will give full credits to the contributors at the back of the book. No monetary rewards will be given, but every contributor will receive a free copy of the book and can buy the books at a discount. Please e-mail me via http://www.shirleycheng.com before submitting anything. Shirley's two latest books are DARING QUESTS OF MYSTICS and THE REVELATION OF A STAR'S ENDLESS SHINE: A Young Woman's Autobiography of a 20-Year Tale of Trials and Tribulations, both published by Lulu Press in 2005. She also co-authored with highly acclaimed experts like Dr. Wayne Dyer, Tony Robbins, and Brian Tracy, WAKE UP...Live the Life You Love: Finding Your Life's Passion, Second Edition (2007), and 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life, Volume 2 (Self Improvement Online Inc. 2006), along with leading experts Jack Canfield, John Gray, Richard Carlson, Alan Cohen, Bob Proctor, et al. Marilyn Haight responded to Mary Emma Allen's comments about setting up a Google Alert for your name. "I'd like to add that if you put your name in quotes when you set up the Alert, you will filter out the partial-name reports and receive only the information that relates to you (or anyone else who has your exact name)," she says. "Also, Yahoo provides an Alert service, too. I find that Yahoo often reports the results sooner than Google." Marilyn is president of the Metro-Phoenix chapter of the Society of Southwestern Authors. http://www.ssa-az.org Shirley Mitchell appears to have an exceptional agent/promoter. I can attest to that since "Cruiser" (aka Mr. Small) has written me several times about Shirley and made suggestions how to improve my visiability. What's more, he always responds immediately to my emails and not a day goes by when he doesn't email me. When Shirley began writing she was in a family retail business and knew little about marketing and promotions, but soon realized she needed help. "I went thru and talked to about 20 Agents, all who did not impress me much at all, and whom I did not feel very comfortable with," she says. "I met my current Agent, Mr. Small, while in Hollywood at a Writing Symposium, where we both won awards for our poetry writings. I had asked Mr. Small to help me get my book into the retail market because of his expertise in that area. He did so with two phone calls and one E-mail, getting my book, "Fabulous after 50", into the retail locations of Barnes and Noble, Waldenbooks, Borders and Books-a-Million within a one-week period. It had taken my Publisher two months to get the book in just one store. I was so impressed with Mr. Small's abilities that I asked him that next week to be my Agent. And I am so glad that he accepted! To this day, he continues to amaze me with his accomplishments." Thanks to Cruiser, Shirley has numerous websites, with two websites for each book. "While you don't need a lot of Websites to have a presence, it has certainly helped me in getting my works out into the Internet, and the books into the hundreds of On-Line Stores they are listed in," she says. "Mr. Small places a great deal of importance in Websites and the building of marketing and promotions into them. As he puts it - "With 70 Billion Websites staring you in the face on the Internet, tis better to have a presence backing you up. It's easier to promote several than just one. Not everybody uses the same search engines nationwide - and with almost 3,000 of those, one site would just get lost." "We were recently congratulated by a Major Publishing Company in regards to our Marketing and Promotions of the Websites in our System, and the fact that the books are listed in hundreds of places throughout the Internet," Shirley says. http://www.lighthousecoastalliterary.com [Author's Note: Cruiser is a Literary Promotion Agent as opposed to a Literary Agent so his job is not to get authors a publisher. What he does well is design websites, sends press releases and promotes his clients]. Nancy Yanes Hoffman is a member of the National Book Critics Circle (NBCC), and needs books to review for her blog that are pre-pub. She reviews both fiction and non-fiction. You can send your pre-publication manucripts to: Nancy Yanes Hoffman The Writing Doctor Who Doctors Your Writing NYHealthCare Communications Group 16 San Rafael Dr. Rochester NY 14618 nywriter@rochester.rr.com http://www.nyhwriter.com 585-385-1515-tel (preferred) 585-317-3594-cell 585-385-3858-FAX Yvonne Perry is writing a book titled Right to Recover: Winning the Political and Religious Wars over Stem Cell Research in America, to be published by Nightengale Press in mid-summer 2007. "I'd like to include a chapter containing people's current opinions about stem cell research," she says. "If you are willing to give your anonymous opinion about blastocyst (also called embryonic) stem cell research, (regardless of which side of the issue you are on) please go to http://FreeOnlineSurveys.com/rendersurvey.asp?sid=6f5gednb6ft0j4p259084 and answer five questions. It will only take a moment, but the help you will provide is invaluable. 4) A GOOD QUESTION Sandy Fox asks this question. "In a search on Google, I found, not only my book, but about 50 pages of it printed online," she wrote. "Do you think it's a good idea to have it like that or is it a hinderance? I talked to my publisher, iUniverse.com, and they apparently have an agreement with Google. They said I could cancel that agreement, but I'm afraid of what else that would cancel. What is your opinion about having so much of your book online?" Sandy is author of I HAVE NO INTENTION OF SAYING GOODBYE (iUniverse, 2001 with a new edition in 2005). http://www.sandyfoxauthor.com 5) PROGRESS REPORT Both Dotsie Bregel and Prill Boyle were on the Loving Life Radio Show with Jane Carroll - at different times. Although I had sent bios of these baby boomers to producer Edie Galley, Dotsie has known Edie for years and she is a member of Dotsie's NABBW (National Association of Baby Boomer Women). http://www.boomerwomenspeak.com Prill did an hour-long radio show that aired January 30, 2007 and reports that "Jane is a great interviewer. I really enjoyed the segment." http://www.byforandaboutwomen.com/lovinglife.htm Prill is author of DEFYING GRAVITY: A CELEBRATION OF LATE-BLOOMING WOMEN (Emmis Books, hardcover 2004, softcover 2005). http://www.prillboyle.com Judith Sherven and Jim Sniechowski will be the guests of Dr Laurie on "Passion with Laurie Betito" on CJAD 800, Montreal, Quebec on February 15, 2007 to talk about their wedding book, THE SMART COUPLE'S GUIDE TO THE WEDDING OF YOUR DREAMS (New World Library 2005) the day after Valentine's Day - speaking to all the couples who got engaged the day before. The show is also heard on CFRB 1010 in Toronto. http://www.drlaurie.com http://www.smartweddingcouples.com Sopranos fans - The fellow who played Vito (Joseph Gannascoli) has a new radio show called Chewin the Fat on FM 98.5 WBZB, Business Talk NY, about diets and low-fat foods. When I saw this, I immediately emailed Anne Fletcher's bio and - bingo - the producer, Sean Pomper, responded. Anne's latest book is WEIGHT LOSS CONFIDENTIAL: How Teens Lost Weight and Kept it Off-And What They Wish Parents Knew (Houghton Mifflin 2007). Anne wrote to him and suggested that she and her 23-year-old son who inspired her book and has kept off 65 pounds for five years, take part in the interview as well, noting that "We're both big Sopranos fans!" Sean wrote back: "Consider you and your son on the show!...Your interview will be perfect for our show. We are two guys battling the buldge and looking for help and advice. We talk each week about new foods, new diets, and books..... Please send some books for us to look over and send out to our listeners." Anne and her son will be on the show March 6th, 10:25 pm, EST. This I cannot take credit for - On January 4, 2007 USA Today did nearly a full page on Weight Loss Confidential; on January 8, Anne appeared on the CBS Early Show; and on January 10, she and her son appeared on the Today Show to promote the book. http://www.annemfletcher.com Lillian Bjorseth is the guest of Elaine Swann on The Elaine! Show, AM 1000, KCEO, Carlsbad, Ca. on February 19, 2007 at approx. 6:15 p.m. PST. http://www.elaineswann.com Lillian is author of BREAKTHROUGH NETWORKING: Building Relationships That Last (Duoforce Enterprises 2003); 52 WAYS TO BREAK THE ICE & TARGET YOUR MARKET, an interactive learning system; and the NOTHING HAPPENS UNTIL WE COMMUNICATE CD/workbook series. http://www.duoforce.com 6) SUBSCRIBER SEMINARS Cynthia Brian is an instructor at the Arts for the Soul Retreat in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, August 19-26. The retreat is designed for aspiring writers, musicians, and authors. For more information and to register, visit http://www.artsforthesoul.net. Two of Cynthia's four books are THE BUSINESS OF SHOW BUSINESS (Starstyle Productions 2002), and MIRACLE MOMENTS ®,” originally published in 1986 and now in its ninth printing. http://www.starstyleproductions.com http://www.cynthiabrian.com Lisa Lenard-Cook's online class, The Mind of Your Story, will be offered through UIU Vermont College's Lifelong Learning program, for eight weeks beginning February 5th. For more information, or to enroll, please use this link: http://www.tui.edu/programs/LL_vpal.asp Lisa is an award-winning novelist. http://www.lisalenardcook.com 7) KUDOS Betty Jo Tucker interviewed Henry Thomas on Reel Talk Reviews. He was the wide-eyed little boy in "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial." As an adult actor, Thomas has appeared in such important films as "Gangs of New York," "All the Pretty Horses," and "Legends of the Fall." Betty Jo is lead critic for ReelTalk Movie Reviews http://www.reeltalkreviews.com The link for listening is http://www.ReelTalkRadio.com. Her latest book is SUSAN SARANDON: A True Maverick (Hats Off Books 2004). http://www.authorsden.com/bettyjotucker 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 104: February 14, 2007 ISSN 1545-5599 BOOK PROMOTION NEWSLETTER Issue 104: February 14, 2007 EDITOR: FRANCINE SILVERMAN http://www.bookpromotionnewsletter.com http://www.nystatetravel.com Issued every other Wednesday since 2003 In This Issue: 1) Feature Article 2) Promotional Coups 3) Grist for Your Mill 4) A Good Question 5) Progress Report 6) Kudos 1) FEATURE ARTICLE 15 Ways to Successfully Promote Your Book Through the Web By Patricia L. Fry Are you promoting your book through the Web? I mean are you really using the Web to gain exposure and sales? Sure, your book is listed at Amazon.com and maybe you have a Web site, but what else are you doing online to attract an audience? There is more to generating sales via the Web than just sitting back and waiting. I challenge you to become proactive. Express your adventurous side. Go where you have not gone before. You may just discover ways to minimize that stack of books in storage and maximize your bank account. Make Your Web Site a Valuable Marketing Tool Let's start by examining your Web site: Is it all that it can be? Do your site statistics indicate that people are visiting? Or is traffic sparse? Does your site appear on the first few pages of a Google search when you use your strongest keywords? There are ways to attract your audience in larger numbers. All you have to do is make it easy and enjoyable for people to find and use your site. For example, are you set up to sell your book from your site? Invest in a Merchant Account I drug my feet for a long time before finally signing up for a merchant account that enables me to sell books through my Web site. This proved to be an extremely worthwhile expense. I have had the merchant account for exactly three years now and I've never had to take money out of pocket to pay the monthly fee. Every month, for 36 months, sales have far exceeded the fee. Without the merchant account, my Web sales of anywhere from $100 to $500 per month would have been lost. As an added bonus, I no longer must turn away credit card sales at book festivals and conferences. That's probably another $4,000 or so in sales I've gained over the three-year period. Cater to the Customer Identify the purpose of your site - to sell books - and make it easy for visitors to purchase them in the way they prefer. Besides having your book available for credit card purchase, offer a link to your Amazon page and provide your mailing address for those people who prefer to pay by check. Create a Web Site That's Useful to Potential Customers Offer articles, information, resources and links that are pertinent to your particular customer. And add to your site often. The more aspects you have at your site, the more there is for the search engines to register. And the more you have going on at your site, the more your customers will want to visit. Add to Your Site and Add to Your Credibility Use your site as a way to validate your level of expertise - your credibility. Add clips and links anytime an interview, article or review about you or your book is published. Post any awards you receive and upcoming speaking engagements. Shout About Your Site From The Highest Mountain Top Promote your Web site through business cards and other handouts. Include it in your “signature.” List some of the features and benefits of visiting your site. Promote your site through appropriate newsletters and forums by announcing when you have added something new or when you are running a special, a contest or a series of online classes. Provide a Free E-newsletter Whether your genre is historical fiction, young adult novels or fantasy or you write nonfiction books on a specific subject, you can extend your reach by producing an e-newsletter. This is your opportunity to communicate with customers and potential customers on a regular basis. It's like taking all of the marvelous aspects of your Web site straight to the customer rather than waiting for them to visit your site. Use your e-newsletter to entertain and inform, to make announcements and to make friends. Promote Your Book Through Other Web Sites Study other sites related to the theme and/or genre of your book. If you haven't done this already, shame on you. If you have visited other sites, just to see what others are doing, that's a start. But now I want you to see what you can glean from these sites. Get involved. Find ways to participate. After all, your customers and potential customers are visiting these sites, too. How can you participate? Let me count the ways: Get Hooked Up With the Right People Ask Webmasters from popular like sites to link to your site. This might be tricky because they may want a reciprocal link. Make sure that you believe in what the other site offers before agreeing to reciprocate. If you think this is a good match and they provide appropriate services and information, list them in the resource list or recommended sites section at your site. If this is a high profile site, you'll certainly want to do what it takes to be listed at their site. Ask For a Review or Recommendation Locate sites where they recommend and/or review books in your genre or on your topic. This will be an ongoing project to locate appropriate sites. I suggest spending a few hours every week seeking out new sites and requesting reviews/recommendations. For a book of fiction, look for general review sites, literary sites and sites related to the theme of your book and the setting. For example, maybe your book is a romance novel set in Atlanta and your main character has diabetes, flies small planes, owns an Abyssinian cat and runs a rescue center for elephants. Consider sites focusing on the state of Georgia, diabetes, aviation, elephants, Abyssinian cats and wild animal rescue. Check the site to see if they review books or have a “recommended book” section. If appropriate, contact the site owner, describe your book and ask for a review or recommendation. Of course, once you've landed a review or your book is listed on another site, add this information to your site along with a link to the review or recommendation page. Go For an Interview While you're studying Web sites related to your genre and/or topic, check to see if they post interviews with authors or experts. I've been interviewed numerous times for writing/publishing-related sites over the years. It's excellent exposure. Let's say that you wrote a book featuring your World War II experiences or one on raised bulb gardens, vintage clothes-collecting or how to decorate a nursery. Visit appropriate sites, search for a section called, “interviews” and determine if you would be a good candidate to be interviewed here. Contact the appropriate person and dazzle em with your qualifications and expertise. Get Involved With Their Visitors Many sites have forums and chat rooms where like-minded people can discuss issues related to the topic or genre. Sometimes involvement is free and other times there's a fee. Sign up at those of your choice and participate with others. This is a good opportunity to express your knowledge, teach and promote your book. I would also recommend opening up to what others can teach you. You may want to write a sequel to your book. I often participate in forums with writers and authors. I enjoy responding to questions, offering encouragement and trying to guide hopeful authors and writers in the right direction. I also learn from others and glean article and blog ideas from them. Of course, I mention my book when appropriate. When not appropriate, I at least use my signature, “Patricia Fry is the author of 24 books, including, “The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book,” http://www.matilijapress.com Submit Articles to the Site If you notice articles posted at the site, ask the site owner or director if you can submit an article for consideration. Sometimes you will find submission guidelines posted at the site. Study the guidelines and the other articles and come up with a useful article designed to inform, educate and/or entertain. Tack your bio, including the name of your book and ordering information, at the end of your article. Take Advantage of Newsletters Generated From the Site Many site owners publish print or electronic newsletters. Newsletter editors are usually hungry for material. They appreciate good, worthwhile, informative submissions. Read back issues of the newsletter, create an appropriate article idea and follow their submission guidelines. Also use newsletters to announce your activities. If you're going to lead a workshop on a cruise ship in June, send this information to all pertinent newsletters far enough ahead of time to be included. Maybe you're donating a portion of sales to a charity during the month of May. Get more coverage by sending this announcement to every newsletter on your list. Subscribe to these publications and read them. You may come up with reasons to write letters to the editor from time to time. Do whatever it takes to get exposure. Always Be in Research Mode Use the Internet and Web sites related to your topic or genre to locate new ideas for articles or companion books for your audience. Through your diligence and observational skills, you may also discover ideas for improving your Web site, for example. Visit Online Bookstores Sell your books through other sites. My books are for sale at my site and the usual major online bookstore sites (Amazon, B&N, Borders, etc.). But they are also offered for sale through several smaller bookstore sites related to the topic of the books. Search out general bookstores and also specialty bookstores where your books may fit in. Locate Conferences, Shows and Expos If you like to travel and participate in book festivals and trade shows or if you can present workshops in your genre or topic, use a search engine to locate venues throughout the world. I use http://www.lights.com/publisher/bookfairs.html to locate a directory of book fairs and http://www.writing.shawguides.com to find writers' conferences nationwide. To find shows and conferences in your field, type in keywords: “conference exotic cats” or “aviation shows directory” or “convention novel authors.” Whether your subject is gardening, beauty tips, dieting, nutrition, how to invest in real estate, how to successfully negotiate a contract in your favor, aging, pet care or bird-watching, there are anywhere from 100 to many thousands of related sites. Many of them will welcome information about your book. Think about it. The World Wide Web is literally at our fingertips. You don't have to get dressed up to surf the Web. You don't have to drive anywhere or wait for doors to open. Like Las Vegas, the Web is always open for business. Use the World Wide Web in the ways described here and you will sell more books. Patricia Fry is the President of SPAWN (Small Publishers, Artists and Writers Network) http://www.spawn.org. She is also the author of 25 books, including, “The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book.” http://www.matilijapress.com/rightway.html. Visit her blog at http://www.matilijapress.com/publishingblog 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. 2) PROMOTIONAL COUPS Here's a tip from Cindy La Ferle about recycling your essays in popular anthologies: If you're a personal essayist, newspaper columnist, or short story author, you know it's essential to retain the rights to your work so that you can re-market your pieces later. It's extremely rewarding to get extra mileage from short pieces with a longer "shelf life" -- and twice as nice to get another check in the mail. With that in mind, keep your eye on the popular anthology market. I've found that getting published in anthologies or essay collections is also another way to promote my own book and career, since these collections typically include a contributors page or at least a tag-line for every contributing author. Last year, I was able to sell several of my previously published essays, including one about the two hip-replacement surgeries I had in my mid-forties. That essay was published in the new Chicken Soup for the Soul "Healthy Living Series" on Arthritis, which is available on Amazon and in bookstores. Opening my new copy of this book, I was delighted to discover that my essay was the opening piece. It is included with a dozen other inspirational essays, followed by expert medical advice to help arthritis sufferers lead better lives. I've also published a personal essay on adjusting to life in the empty nest in the new Literary Mama anthology http://www.literarymama.com, as well as in several other national collections. The anthology market isn't terribly difficult to crack -- if you do your homework ahead of time. Read Writer's Digest http://www.writersdigest.com and other writers' magazines for information on submitting to popular anthologies. Authors of new anthologies often advertise their need for new material in these publications, in print and online. This winter, spend some time browsing at local bookstores and libraries to locate anthologies that might be a good match for your subject matter and writing style. If you write pieces on camping with kids, for example, you'll want to narrow your search to anthologies focusing on parenting or wilderness adventures. Check out the Web sites of anthology publishers, and look for their submission guidelines. Chicken Soup for the Soul is only one example of an anthology with its own Web site containing a list of upcoming titles and detailed writers' guidelines: http://www.chickensoup.com Cindy also found a very informative article on writers and rights on the American Society of Journalists and Authors site at http://www.asja.org/pubtips Cindy is a newspaper columnist, essayist and author of WRITING HOME (Hearth Stone Books 2005) a collection of her award-winning weekly newspaper columns on motherhood and the domestic artists. http://www.laferle.com 3) GRIST FOR YOUR MILL Book reviewer Norm Goldman recommends www.myspace.com. "I have been experimenting with them for the past several days and I notice that many authors use the site as one way to network and promote themselves," he says. His site is: myspace.com/bookpleasures 4) A GOOD QUESTION Janice Law would like to know if anyone knows "even one celebrity well enough to have email or mailing address contact for them? For my Book #3, I'm seeking to interview two celebrities in each of several fields, art, science, sports, politics, etc. I lack celebrities in art and in science. I seek 'old line' celebs with long-established careers. Not new arrivals." http://www.judgejanicelaw.com Arlene Uslander would like to hear from any subscribers who have been published by iUniverse and feel they've gotten their money's worth out of coop advertising. (which is quite costly). "In other words, is it worth doing it from a financial aspect?" she says. Arlene wants to know for her own book, and also for an article she and Brenda Warneker are working on about POD publishing. Arlene can be reached at auslander@theramp.net 5) PROGRESS REPORT Saul Fathi was the guest of Sam Litzinger on Washington Post Radio on February 5, 2007. He was disappointed that it lasted less than 15 minutes and wrote to the person who arranged the spot. "The interview was great!" she responded. "Our news format unfortunately does not allow for segments longer than about 9 minutes at the most. I know Sam would very much like to talk to authors for much longer, but unfortunately we cannot." http://www.washingtonpostradio.com Saul is author of FULL CIRCLE: Escape from Baghdad and the return (Xlibris 2006). ). http://www.saulsilasfathi.com 6) KUDOS Be the Star You Are! charity was saluted by ABC TV with a TV special about the charity, it's founder, Cynthia Brian, and it's stellar teen volunteer Jennifer Tao. View the segment at: http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=abc7_salutes&id=4952990 or read the blog by charity partner, The Reading Tub: http://thereadingtub.blogspot.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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