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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://http://banyonsbookdoctor.com. 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 Sponsor... ADRdomainsPlus.com for Your Domain Names and Internet Products GREAT rates and EXCELLENT service.  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. 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 136: May 7, 2008 ISSN 1545-5599 BOOK PROMOTION NEWSLETTER Issue 136: May 7, 2008 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) Promotional Coups (4) Progress Report (5) Contest (6) Kudos (1) FEATURE ARTICLE Checking References By Arlene Uslander Before hiring someone to help you with your book -- unless it's someone you know personally, or who has been highly recommended to you by a friend -- make sure you carefully check his or her references. I know some people who have a paid a lot of money for an editor, copywriter, ghostwriter (many thousands in some cases), or even a proofreader, and ended up with inferior work, or in some ghastly cases, no work at all! Unfortunately, some of the people who advertise their professional writing services don't deliver what they promise, and, as in any other field, some even take the money and are not to be heard from again. Hiring people in the writing profession is one of the few areas in which people pay a good portion, and in many cases, the whole amount, upfront, before any services have been rendered. In most other fields, payment is made AFTER the work is completed or when one sees what one is buying. So, checking references is REALLY important. Ask for at least three references from anyone you are considering hiring to help you. Call these references and talk to them personally, asking what kind of job the person has done for them. Were they satisfied? Did they feel they got their money's worth? Was the work done in a timely manner - finished when it was supposed to be? Also, before hiring someone, ask for a sample of their writing, editing, or whatever it is that they are going to do for you. I have found that most writers are honest and good people and they assume that the people advertising services for writers are, too. Most are, but some are not! There are far too many scams to be found on the Internet that writers fall for. So again, ASK FOR AND CHECK THOSE REFERENCES! ==== Arlene Uslander is the co-editor of The Simple Touch of Fate http://www.thefatesite.com. She is also a freelance editor -- whose references appear on her website: http://www.uslander.net (2) GRIST FOR YOUR MILL From Florrie Binford Kichler, President, PMA, the Independent Book Publishers Association, which is presenting the annual Publishing University in Los Angeles, Ca, May 27-29, 2008. Subscribers to this newsletter are offered a discount. What if publishers could answer such questions as: Should the book’s cover be red or blue? Will my book sell from my web site? How can I get booked on more radio shows? Is direct mail effective for selling books? More than 200 seasoned industry professionals will share their knowledge, insight and tips with hundreds of individuals from self-published authors to publishing house executives. As a subscriber to Book Promotion Newsletter, you can use the special discount code BN08 when registering and save $50. For details on Publishing University, visit The Independent Book Publishers Association’s website http://www.pma-online.org/pmau/2008/template.aspx or contact Terry Nathan, Executive Director, The Independent Book Publishers Association at 310-372-2732. From Carol White, co-author with her husband, Phil, of Live Your Road Trip Dream (RLI Press 2004 - second edition 2008): A month ago I could hardly spell "social networking" - the latest buzz word in promotions on the internet and now, here I am, deep in the middle of the latest trend. I'm not so sure about all of this, but, hey, you've got to try new things, right? This coming Wednesday (5/7) at 9PM Eastern (6PM Pacific) and who knows what time in London or Beijing, I'll be hopping on my computer keyboard and "live chatting" with folks from all around the world who are interested in road trips, US Travel, writing books, travel writing and who knows what else - my contact said to be ready for anything, although she is going to "be there" to help me... whatever that means... she is in St. Paul. MN. If you are interested and available that evening go to http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.jsp?articleId=281474977338172&grpId=3659174697238802&nav=Groupspace for information on how to participate (or watch) this whole thing unfold. I don't know whether to expect one question or hundreds - it's all a mystery to me. Maybe you'll at least get some good laughs - it may be more entertaining than TV! Mark your calendars and hope that my fingers hold up! http://www.roadtripdream.com My newest subscriber, Brien Gilroy, is a publisher in The Netherlands who just started to publish books in the main markets of the European Union. "I publish in three languages and have a mixture of American and European based authors, with one author in Turkey," he says. "I am primarily looking for a contact in the US to exchange information about promotion and marketing of books. I am a publisher, not a vanity publisher, although we work our website now, you may find a few books on http://www.interpublicity.eu - monthly, we add new titles. I have two translators: one English-French and one Dutch-English, to be extended by an English-German translator. "What I am looking for is a way to get in touch with book-reviewers that can make some impact. Particularly the US is a big country with an infrastructure that I do not know really good. If you have authors that would like to cross the Ocean, I might help to get them ahead. Not particularly to publish them but I am always prepared to give a helping hand." He explains: "I am not so eager to get 100 or more manuscripts to read, and to read carefully. I have an author from the US who was hopelessly looking for a publisher. I got the manuscript right away, a very special book, (Victoria Allman, Sea Fare for A Chef) and after one month, her book is almost 75% print ready. She gets my 100% attention. Her book will be published in English, French and German, simultaneously. The whole process, from typesetting to layout to printing, is in our own hands. Her agent, Sammie Justesen, said to me that not a single publisher in the US could work so fast and attend an author like we did. This is not an exaggeration. Authors who would like to publish abroad can always send (no hooks attached) a synopsis to our mail address. But, If they need some advice, they can get it as well." Brien's email is management@interpublicity.eu From Joe Carroccio, host of Author's Voice and publisher of Good Life News: If you have written a book or you know someone who has, please submit your story on why and how you wrote it for possible publication in the AuthorsRoost.com. Also, any book reviews you would like published. The Author's Roost is an Interactive Resource for Writers. Joe's email is joe@azgoodlife.com (3) PROMOTIONAL COUPS Gail Martin, who works for subscriber Randy Peyser as a freelance fiction editor, sent the email below to Randy: I just got back from making a guest appearance at Ravencon, a science fiction convention, and while I was there I started videoblogging with my new Flip camera. On the book marketing side, I thought you might want to see the results. A Flip camera costs less than $200 and is totally easy to use. I played around with it and came up with these videos, which are now on my site, my MySpace, my Amazon profile, and You Tube, and I've shared the links with the publisher and everyone featured on the vlog, so it will probably show up on those sites, too. Day 1: http://www.audioacrobat.com/playv/WZ1m0XG4 Day 2: http://www.audioacrobat.com/playv/WNTsBD64 Day 3: http://www.audioacrobat.com/playv/WB7Lmfh4 "It's a great new promotional strategy that is working well for her," says Randy. From Alycia Ripley: I write for a website called YourHub.com and it somehow is connected to a city's local paper. For example, I'm from Buffalo and was contacted by a group from the Buffalo News that was starting their online section at yourhub. I've been writing (blogging) for them for over a year and although they don't pay me in cash, they give me restaurant gift certificates. The best part: you can write about WHATEVER you wish! As a writer/author I've used this to my total advantage. I write humorous anecdotes, inspirational essays, reviews of restaurants and bars in the area that I like or sometimes just plug my own writing and appearances! Everything is ok in terms of length or subject matter. I've gotten a few fans from the site and sometimes what happens is that if you have fans of your novel and they Google you, these essays and writings will come up and they can see more of your work! I've written blogs entirely on writing, the new book I have coming out, anything along these lines and you can see how many people check out each blog once you set up a profile. It's truly a win-win situation - not only does it get your writing out to more people (and the circulation is surprisingly high) but it's also completely free publicity for you and your own work! In my circumstance I was asked to participate but you can certainly set up a profile on your own - just go to YourHub.com and see if the city you live in is on the list - I'm not sure of all the cities but new ones open up monthly! If your city or suburb is on the list it's a great win-win way for some free publicity and to make some new fans. In my case I am preparing an essay collection of humorous 'life absurdity' nonfiction pieces and I'm using the site as a place to 'store' my essays, see which ones I want to extend and enlarge for the collection and which ones get the most hits and comments from readers! I'm both able to promote my novel "Traveling With An Eggplant" as well as my upcoming short story collection "Alice In Absurdity" and anything else I'm working on as well! Just a tip for your readers - it definitely helps me a lot! I'm in CA now and I'm still writing for them! (4) PROGRESS REPORT Judith Colombo was a guest on the Adirondack Book House Show with Pete Klein on April 26, 2008 at 6:30 pm. http://www.blogtalkradio.com/The-Dancing-Valkyrie Judith is author of The Fablesinger, a fantasy set among the myth and magic of the Caribbean, published by The Crossing Press in 1989 and republished as an Authors Guild Backinprint.Com Edition in June 2001. Her second novel is Night Crimes (2001), a mystery/suspense tale. In 2003 the foreign rights to the book was sold to Yacom Publishers of Seoul, South Korea. http://odin.prohosting.com/night01 (5) CONTEST Dotsie Bregel is running another writing contest at http://www.boomerwomenspeak.com and http://www.nabbw. "This one we are offering with Grand Magazine - http://www.grandmagazine.com - so the pot and prizes are better, " she says. "Winner will receive $250.00 in cash, publication in Grand magazine and at http://www.boomerwomenspeak.com, plus get an annual membership to the National Association of Baby Boomer Women." You have 500 words to tell us your favorite grandparent memory. Knock yourself out. Take us back. Who was there, what were you doing, how old were you, why was the event so special? Submissions should be written in a Word document and sent as an attachment to contest@nabbw.com with FAVORITE GRANDPARENT MEMORY in the subject line. The deadline is July 1, 2008. The prize money is $250.00 and F-R-E-E membership or renewal in the National Association of Baby Boomer Women. Plus your story will be published in the Our Voices http://www.boomerwomenspeak.com/stories.php section at http://www.boomerwomenspeak.com, and in the September-October issue of GRAND magazine. Please make sure to include your name, email address, and short (no more than 75 words) bio at the top of your entry. Men may also submit! (Should a man win, he can keep the $250.00 and give the free membership to http://www.nabbw.com or to a boomer woman.) (6) KUDOS Beverly Mahone was quoted in the Philadelphia Daily News regarding Star Jones. Beverly is host of Whatever on Talk2BevPodcast and author of WHATEVER! A Baby Boomer's Journey Into Middle Age (Benoham Publishing 2006). http://www.philly.com/dailynews/features/18099194.html http://www.boomerdivanation.com http://www.enjoyyourmenopause.com/retreat08.htm Betty Jo Tucker was quoted extensively about movie musicals in the Sunday, April 27, 2008 issue of the Pueblo Chieftain in a feature article by Amy Matthew titled "New Classics." http://www.chieftain.com/life/1209276000/1 In another burst of good luck, her Susan Sarandon book was listed on May 1, 2008 on Amazon.com's NUMBER 10 in its list of Most Popular Books about Actors and Actresses. http://209.85.173.104/search?q=cache:s7XY0TsvwHMJ:www.amazon.ca/gp/bestsellers/books/934990+Betty+Jo+Tucker&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=204&gl=us Betty Jo lives in Pueblo, Colorado and her film-related books are Confessions of a Movie Addict (Hats Off Books 2001), and Susan Sarandon: A True Maverick (Hats Off Books 2004). Her radio show is on Blog Talk Radio. http://blogtalkradio.com/movieaddictheadquarters Francine Silverman, P.O. Box 1333, Riverdale, New York 10471, is author of: BOOK MARKETING FROM A-Z (Infinity Publishing 2005) written by 325 paid subscribers to Book Promotion Newsletter. http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw/102-0106967-2029708?initialSearch=1&url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=Book+Marketing+from+A-Z&x=22&y=24 TALK RADIO FOR AUTHORS - Getting Interviews Across the U.S. and Canada (Infinity Publishing 2007) an intimate look into 230 talk radio shows that welcome guests. Both books are available at Amazon.com and at http://www.buybooksontheweb.com (Category: Marketing). http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw/102-0106967-2029708?initialSearch=1&url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=Talk+Radio+for+Authors&x=0&y=0http://www.amazon.com Subscribers are entitled to a 20% discount on either book. 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 books 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. Issue 137: May 21, 2008 ISSN 1545-5599 BOOK PROMOTION NEWSLETTER Issue 137: May 21, 2008 EDITOR: FRANCINE SILVERMAN http://www.bookpromotionnewsletter.com http://www.nystatetravel.com Issued every other Wednesday since 2003 http://www.FiveStarPublications.com - Your partner in publishing since 1985 http://www.AuthorsandExperts.com - Your economical path to publicity and more. http://www.SchoolBookings.com - Connecting authors and illustrators to schools. http://www.KidsCanPublish.com - Where the writers & illustrators of tomorrow get published today. Call Five Star Publications for a free consultation. 480-940-8182 In This Issue: (1) Feature Article (2) Grist for Your Mill (3) Progress Report (4) From the Pen Of....... (5) Kudos (1) FEATURE ARTICLE A Title is a Promise Tell Your Reader What's In It for Them! by Peter Bowerman Some time back, I got an email from an ebook author who wanted a blurb for his upcoming writing title. I couldn't help but notice that his title seemed a bit weak. The book was about getting past the obstacles that most fiction writers encounter on the way to finishing their books. The original title was: Writing Your Novel: A Quick and Easy Guide to Getting It Done It needed to be more dynamic. Here's what I came up with: UNSTUCK! Kick Down Those Roadblocks and Finish Your Novel Now! Now, someone can look at the title and know instantly what the book is about and the benefits they'll get from reading it. If you're writing non-fiction, your title and subtitle are as crucially important as your great-looking cover. And in many respects, a title is similar to a corporate tagline, something I have a good bit of experience through my commercial writing career. Let's look at some famous taglines: GE. We bring good things to life. Delta. We're ready when you are. Avis. We try harder. Microsoft. Where do you want to go today? Virginia is for lovers. What do they all have in common? They're promises. They tell you what you can count on. Same with a brand. Think Dove soap. Tiffany's. Mercedes-Benz. IBM. Any doubt as to the promise in those brands? Keep this in mind as you create your book title. Promise, Then Elaborate When I created my title, I kept in mind the promise, and I say I could have done a lot worse than The Well-Fed Writer (a detailed how-to guide on starting a "commercial" writing business - writing for corporations, where the income potential money was FAR greater than typical "freelance writing"). I then used the subtitle to reinforce, clarify, elaborate on the promise of the title. I went with: Financial Self-Sufficiency as a Freelance Writer in Six Months or Less - an additional promise in its own right. Don't make readers wonder what your book is about; have them "get it" right away from the title and subtitle. A good rule of thumb on titles vs. subtitles? If the title you come up with sounds more explanatory than catchy (and is more than 4-5 words, max), it's probably a better subtitle. It all comes down to benefits. Good title/subtitle combos tell readers what's in it for them, why they should bother picking up the book in the first place. Another Case Study In another case, I was hired to mentor a new self-publishing author, an ad industry veteran who'd written book on creativity. While he wanted to tap my expertise on a variety of nuts and bolts issues, in his mind, his cover artwork was nailed down, and title was set: The Field Guide to Creativity: One Path And 101 Pointers For Discovering Fresh Ideas Well, when I told him his title needed work, he wasn't exactly overjoyed. I must confess, I felt a bit like the parent telling his daughter that, despite the fact that the wedding is two weeks away, invitations sent, and caterer, florist, photographer and band paid for, I thought her intended betrothed is a loser and it's not too late to call it off. Here was a book - a really good, interesting, valuable and yes, creative book - purporting to help people be more creative, and its title simply wasn't. He took my advice, revisited the idea, he and I and a bunch of his friends (via email) brainstormed a bunch of jazzier titles, and here's what he ended up with: ZING! Five Steps & 101 Tips for Creativity on Command Know what the #1 best-selling trade paperback of 2002 was, according to Publishers Weekly? A cookbook! And one that sold 1.8 million copies. Title: The Fix-It and Forget-Itä Cookbook: Feasting With Your Slow Cooker. (Authors: Dawn J. Ranck and Phyllis Pellman Good). Now is that a promise or what? PMA member Peter Bowerman, a veteran commercial freelancer and self-publishing coach in Atlanta, is the author of the award-winning Ben Franklin finalists, The Well Fed Writer (Book-of-the-Month Club selection), and its companion volume, The Well-Fed Writer: Back For Seconds, both commercial freelancing "standards." The above is an adapted excerpt from The Well-Fed Self-Publisher: How to Turn One Book Into a Full-Time Living (2006). http://www.wellfedwriter.com (2) GRIST FOR YOUR MILL Attention children's book authors of picture books or anyone who has a favorite picture book - I interviewed Mark Blevis, host of Just One More Book, http://www.JustOneMoreBook.com, which features a reading from listeners of their favorite children's picture books. You can send your review via MP3 file, or in text form to justonemorebook@gmail.com or by phoning it into 206-350-6487 and it will be read on the air. If you email the review, his wife, Andrea, will read it on the air. Also, if you do this before June 30, you may win a copy of Kendra Kandlestar. Judith Sherven, PhD and Jim Sniechowski, PhD, best selling authors of five relationship books, have created a copywriting course dedicated to the specific needs of authors and other soft sell marketers. Take advantage of their special launch price after you've checked out their exemplary sales page at: http://www.softtopiccopywritingsecrets.com Politically oriented? Walter Brasch has started "a semi-newsletter every 2 weeks (give or take)," that includes a column and random comments. "The column goes to newspapers, so now it will also go to a mail list," he says. The newsletter will focus on politics and/or the media. If you wish to subscribe, go to: https://www.mailermailer.com/x?oid=1007177b Walter's latest book is Sinking the Ship of State: The Presidency of George W. Bush (BookSurge Publishing 2007). http://www.walterbrasch.com Ginny Stibolt (who has helped me with my website tirelessly for little or no pay) has been invited to the Harriette Austin Writers Conference again. It will be held July 18 & 19, 2008 in Athens, Georgia. http://www.harrietteaustin.org This year her sessions will be: Websites for Unpublished Writers: Present yourself as a credible writer with a writer's website. Be your own cheerleader. Everyone is on the Internet. Isn't it time for you to create a professional website? It's not expensive and it's not too difficult, even for the technically challenged. Maximize Marketing with a Writer's Website: Set up your website to monitor its effectiveness. Learn to track landing pages, enhance search engine results, find new promoters, support media coverage, and more. Internet marketing is a process, not an event. Tell Ginny that you're a Book Promotion Newsletter reader and she'll provide a free website analysis at the conference. http://www.websiteideas4writers.com (3) PROGRESS REPORT These are the spots I found for my clients: Ilene Dillon and Melissa Zollo will be guests of Brad Richard on Alivewiredu Talk Radio Show on Blog Talk Radio http://www.blogtalkradio.com/alivewiredu, Ilene on June 11, 2008 and Melissa on June 25, 2008, at 8pm (CST) on http://www.blogtalkradio.com/alivewiredu Ilene is host of Full Power Living on http://www.worldtalkradio.com and author of 14 books on emotions http://www.emotionalpro.com and Melissa is author of two audio programs: Discover the Power of Imagination and How to Unleash the Power Within and Attract Money. http://www.presentmemory.com (4) FROM THE PEN OF......... To turn the publication of a book into a newsworthy item, you need a hook on which you can hang a story - something that people will want to talk about, hear about, and read about. Before approaching a radio producer or a newspaper editor, you, as publicist, publisher, or author, need to distill the "story" from the book. In other words you need to find or invent the angle that turns a static book into a dynamic topic for discussion... You can personalize your topic through an illustrative anecdote, you can focus on one especially dramatic example from the book, or you can simply emphasize a thread from the book that connects to a topic of current concern. The critical issue is to look beyond the book you're promoting to the needs and interests of media people, and give them a story they can use. from The Complete Guide to Book Marketing by David Cole (Allworth Press 1999). (5) KUDOS Judy Davids was a guest on Michael Feldman's What'd Ya Know radio program on May 10, 2008 talking about her book Rock Star Mommy: My Life as a Rocker Mom (Citadel Press 2008), aired nationally on NPR affliates. http://www.notmuch.com http://www.judydavids.com Shirley Cheng's new book, Embrace Ultra-Ability! Wisdom, Insight & Motivation from the Blind Who Sees Far and Wide, has been placed as a finalist in the 2008 Next Generation Indie Book Awards. http://www.shirleycheng.com Francine Silverman, P.O. Box 1333, Riverdale, New York 10471, is author of: BOOK MARKETING FROM A-Z (Infinity Publishing 2005) written by 325 paid subscribers to Book Promotion Newsletter. http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw/102-0106967-2029708?initialSearch=1&url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=Book+Marketing+from+A-Z&x=22&y=24 TALK RADIO FOR AUTHORS - Getting Interviews Across the U.S. and Canada (Infinity Publishing 2007) an intimate look into 230 talk radio shows that welcome guests. Both books are available at Amazon.com and at http://www.buybooksontheweb.com (Category: Marketing). http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw/102-0106967-2029708?initialSearch=1&url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=Talk+Radio+for+Authors&x=0&y=0http://www.amazon.com Subscribers are entitled to a 20% discount on either book. 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 books 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. 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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