Tag Archives: publishing

Become A Successful Author Reboot by Deatri King-Bey

I can’t believe that it’s been three years since Become A Successful Author was first release. What I believe even less is how much the publishing industry has changed since then.

Three years ago, Borders went out of business along with numerous other bookstores. Kindles and Nooks ate up so much of the book market that many said print books would soon be a thing of the past.

Well, print books are here to stay. Even Amazon is opening its first physical bookstore.

Back to Become A Successful Author. The publishing world is ever changing, so I had to update the book. Yep. The second edition is out. I’ve removed irrelevant sections, beefed up others and added a few articles. If you have an ecopy, be sure to check with your bookseller. Many of them give free updates when a title has changed considerably.

It’s October, so it’s time to close the Become A Successful Author blog until February 2015. While we’re on break, be sure to catch up on previous posts, and if you haven’t gotten your copy of Become a Successful Author, get your copy today. It’s full of GOOD STUFF.

Purchase the print ($9.99) or eBook ($4.99) Amazon, Barnes & Noble

Happy Holidays
Deatri King-Bey

Build Publishing Habits by W. Terry Whalin

If you are writing a novel or a nonfiction book, what are you doing each day to succeed with this writing project?

Yes, it is important to craft an excellent work with terrific storytelling and craft. We learn these skills through our own reading and continual practice. Writing should be a habit which you continually cultivate and practice on a regular basis.

Yet what about other areas of publishing where you need to develop habits?

Recently I heard from an unpublished author who was getting rejected or no response from literary agents. She was sending out a children’s book and couldn’t understand why she could not succeed. I wrote this author that she needed to do more to understand the marketplace. Only a few literary agents that I know represent children’s books for several reasons. First, the advances are very low for children’s books.

Also it’s hard to get a children’s book published and much of the writing work is Work Made for Hire or something an agent wouldn’t be involved in. Finally agents are looking for writers who demonstrate that they have been published. You have to show this skill through writing for print magazines or other recognized forms. This unpublished author was floundering because she had not done the basics to understand the market. As a daily habit, she needed to be reading published authors and how-to books as well as connecting with someone to help her.

Reading in the field is another publishing habit that every author or would-be author should be developing. There are free newsletters and many ways to learn from others. Are you tapping into these resources?

Another publishing habit is to constantly build your connections to others. It doesn’t require tons of time but it does require consistent effort. For example, posting on Twitter and Facebook in your area of expertise is a publishing habit. You can use tools like Hootsuite so it does not have to consume much time but the consistency will pay off.

I spend the majority of my days working with authors as an acquisitions editor at Morgan James. My personal goal is to help as many authors as I can to achieve their dreams of getting published. As a result of these goals, I’m on the phone with authors or literary agents. Or I’m answering emails or interacting with my Morgan James colleagues about book projects. I have a series of habits that I execute each day related to my work at Morgan James.

What goals do you have for your publishing life? Have you written them down and are you looking at them on a regular basis? What habits do you need to develop in order to achieve these goals?

As you are consistent, it will pay off for you in the marketplace. I have a great deal of free information in my ebook, Platform-Building Ideas for Every Author. If you haven’t read this Ebook, I suggest you get it and study it, then apply the lessons to your writing life.

What new publishing habits are you developing?

________________________________________

W. Terry Whalin, a writer and acquisitions editor lives in Irvine, California. A former magazine editor and former literary agent, Terry is an acquisitions editor at Morgan James Publishing. He has written more than 60 nonfiction books including Jumpstart Your Publishing Dreams. To help writers, he has created 12-lesson online course called Write A Book Proposal. His website is located at: www.terrywhalin.com.

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Don’t have a copy of Become A Successful Author? What are you waiting for?Become A Successful Author is used in the “How To Write That Novel” course at Chicago State because it covers everything from branding to writing to editing to formatting and uploading electronic and print books to marketing and so much more. Your time is money. Look at all the time, thus money, you’ll save by ending your search for answers: Purchase Become A Successful Author for only $4.99 (eBook) or $8.99 (print) from: Amazon (US), Amazon (UK), Barnes & Noble

Pitching Your Screenplays by Krystol Diggs

I know that many screenwriters hate this part of the process, but it is more necessary than you think. Writers, if you are interested in pitching your screenplay, there are many ways that you can do it. Now, I know that it maybe difficult to get the screenplay written, but you want to go from published to produced or sold right?

At least that is the idea. For the non-screenwriters, you may find someone who doesn’t want to produce your screenplay, but may want to buy it. Yes, I am talking, they give you money for your hard earned work! It rarely happens in Hollywood, but it does happen. How do we get to this point?

Well, once you have your completed screenplay, make sure that you not only register it with the Writer’s Guild, but also with Copyright.gov, this is protect anyone from stealing your work. If you are in the LA area, many writers go to what is a Pitch Fest. Pitch fest is where millions of executives, directors, producers, and investors go to hear about your movies. You have only 1-3 minutes to sell yourself to these great individuals. It’s more so set up like a panel. You have the big boys seats at a long table and TONS of people in line waiting to pitch. When it’s your turn you go to the microphone and pitch your work. If anyone liked the premise of your film, then they will give you their card and request your screenplay! Seems fairly easy, right? No! We writers are introverts; we don’t talk in public with tons of people! Warning alert! When pitching you are not able to be shy, you must strike while the iron is hot.

There are also pitch fests online as well. Yes, they are called Virtual Pitch Fests. This is where you pay about $40-50 dollars and you pitch to one of these great people online via Skype or through email. I know you must think it’s crazy to pay money to email a pitch, but hey, it works! These can be taken place with companies like Happy Writers, Stage32 (which is a GREAT networking site for film people), and Virtual Pitch. Myself personally, I have never went to any virtual pitch fests because I like to go on Stage32 and find the directors, executives, and producers, and I send them a query letter about my work. Yes, when you are trying to deliver unsolicited material, if you don’t know if they accept it or not, it’s ALWAYS best that you have them a query letter. If they are interested, they will follow up with a screenplay request.

Here is a copy of a query letter that I sent recently:

To: Company’s Name
From: Krystol Diggs

Dear Company,

I am an award-winning screenwriter who has completed a screenplay that I believe your agency would be interested in representing. This screenplay has won 2nd place in the Buffalo Niagara Film Festival in July of 2014. Please find a short pitch below for your review.

Title: If It Ain’t Broke, Don’t Fix It

Genre: Drama

Logline: A devious, manipulative woman hunts for evidence of her boyfriends ultimate betrayal while hiding her own mischievous deeds before saying “I do”

If this has piqued your interest, I’d be happy to send you a hardcopy of my screenplay for your consideration. I can be contacted via email or you can reach out to me at your earliest convenience.

Warm regards,
Krystol Diggs

See how simple it is! For a query letter, you are basically just teasing them a little. It’s all about the loglines! A logline is more like a synopsis in the book world, except it is only one sentence. Let’s quickly look at the most important components of a log line. Ultimately, you need to get across the following information: The protagonist (don’t use their names, just description — for example ‘An alcoholic surgeon…’) The goal of the protagonist (this is usually in line with your 2nd act turning point — ‘An alcoholic surgeon must fight for his job…’) The antagonist (and the obstacle of the antagonist — ‘An alcoholic surgeon must fight for his job after a disgruntled patient accuses him of malpractice…’) We also need to recognize how these components fit into the structure. As I said before, there are numerous formats you can use, and you should always adjust this to suit your particular story. But this structural formula is a great starting point:

When [INCITING INCIDENT OCCURS], a [SPECIFIC PROTAGONIST] must [OBJECTIVE], or else [STAKES].
My boss for an internship that I am doing says, “ The logline is what makes it.” When at a pitch fest, your pitch is your logline. You say that, if people like it, they will give you their card and say, send me your screenplay. But, there are also others on the Internet who may post in groups, websites, etc and tell you what kind of script they are looking for. You will usually find these on websites like “ Ink Tip and International Screenwriters Association.” They are good sites also, but Ink Tip costs money. Here is an example of a pitch that I emailed to someone. ( Some pitches, they require you to add more than just a logline)
Krystol Diggs

Feature Film: I’ll Never Tell

Genre: Thriller

Contact: (Add phone number and Email address)

Logline: Honesty Cummings keeps a terrible secret from her family while her
mother also hides a skeleton in her closet.

Synopsis: Just like any other high school girl, Honesty has a crush on her
teacher. While batting her eyes at Mr. Henrey, there is someone who has an
obsession with her. Afraid to tell anyone, she keeps her secret to herself only to
find out that her mother has a skeleton in her closet, too. But her mother’s
secret is one that will shock everyone, even Honesty
This is pitch that I emailed to a company who was looking for thriller scripts. They requested the screenplay, but then they passed on it. That is okay. You will get a lot of rejection on this business. Just remember to NOT take it personal. After all, this is a business and everyone will not like what you write. You now have your screenplay, logline written (there are always hard), and you ready to pitch! Best of luck to you and I hope to see your work on screen!

Bio: Krystol Diggs has been writing since the age of 15. Her debut novel Through Her Eyes was the jump-start of more to come from this author, and now screenwriter, and publisher. Krystol has received her Masters degree at Full Sail University with an MFA in Creative Writing. She has written four screenplays, two short films and a host of other books in the various genres of fiction, thrillers, erotica, young adult and drama which can be found on amazon.com. She has also written for magazines such as Raw Talent Magazine and Bougie Magazine, interned at IFashion Network as a writer and now is a reporter/journalist for CNN’s Ireport section. Krystol is currently attending Walden University where she is studying for her PhD in Psychology

Reach out:
Blog: www.writingsbykrystol.com

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Advice for Aspiring Authors by Deatri King-Bey

• Listen and verify: You’ll want several mentors with a mix and match of strengths such as writing, editing, business, marketing and networking… Realize that the publishing world is ever changing, so take lessons from others to use as a base for your own research. I’m not saying finding mentors is easy, but you must try. Attend conferences, workshops, join local groups, take online courses, network…. There are many affordable options out there. Get to know the publishing community.

• Learn the craft: Great storytellers are not always great authors or even halfway decent authors. Never stop learning the craft and improving. The moment you think you know it all and there is no room for improvement is the moment you start to lose your edge. I’ve seen many seasoned authors fall prey to losing their edge because they didn’t see room for improvement in their writing.

• Don’t abuse your muse: There are those who say you must write every day. I do not believe in that philosophy. Writing fiction is creative. If you force your creative side to write daily, you can cause writer’s block—or what I affectionately call your muse going on strike. I think you should do something related to your writing most days of the week. Besides writing, you may read, take courses, attend workshops, read articles, teach others…

• One genre at a time: Know what genre you write. I’m dumbfounded how many authors say their books don’t fit a genre. That their books have something for everyone. That all readers will love their books. Sorry, but no. Am I saying your books must fit 100% into a single genre? Nope. There are cross-genre hybrids, but you should understand the rules of the genres to know how you are creating a hybrid. Once you lock in your genre (even if it’s a cross-genre hybrid) start mastering it and building your audience. After you have a nice sized audience, then branch out to include other genres in your portfolio if you’d like.

• Get an editor: The other day, a debut author told me she didn’t need an editor because she was confident in her work. Confidence is a good thing. It’s also not the editor’s job to give you confidence. Editors help you make your manuscript the best it can be. Stop making excuses. All authors need editors. Even NYT best selling authors have editors. Is it expensive? Yes. It’s an investment in your writing career and business that you can carry into future works. With each developmental edit, you should learn more about the craft.

• Know the business: Whether you go the self and/or traditional route, you need to understand the business side of things.

• Avoid the promotion trap: Promotion and marketing are important, but the best way to grow your audience is releasing outstanding books. Be smart when promoting and marketing. Know your genre, then promote to large groups of that genre. Cross promote with other authors in the genre. Stop trying to convert romance lovers to horror. Stop wasting time running after readers. You’re an author. Writing should always be your main focus.

Deatri King-Bey

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The Submission Process by J’son M. Lee

For the last few years, I’ve focused on the careers of other authors. I co-authored a project that went on to garner a few awards, and as president and owner of Sweet Georgia Press, I am an editor with a growing client list. During this time, I wrote a few short stories here and there, but never took the time to focus on another novel. I wrote a few chapters, titled the projects, and even created covers for them for my book vision board. But, there never seemed to be enough time to focus on a full-length project. As I reflected on this reality, I came to the conclusion that I needed to invest more in myself. To this end, I picked up Become A Successful Author by Deatri King-Bey. While there were many takeaways from this book, the one that registered most with me was her belief that “…all authors should pursue traditional and self-publishing.”

Aside from a short story that was published in an anthology (1998) by Painted Leaf Press, I’d never submitted for traditional publishing. I realized there was no time like the present. So, for almost a month, I worked with my gal pal, Michelle “Big Body” Cuttino, on my submission package (query, synopsis, and sample chapters). I also connected with an outside consultant who had a database of agents and publishers who agreed to receive e-query proposals. The desired format was very specific. My package was assembled and sent to me for final review. I had my mentor look it over, and she gave great advice. I made more changes, and my query was finally ready for submission…

The consultant advised that many of the responses would be form emails saying the query was not right for their office. He cautioned me to not to get discouraged by these emails as they likely hadn’t read the query, but said no based simply on the genre or word count. He went on to say that I would not receive responses from all the agents as most did not have the ability to respond to every e-query, not even with a form email. Lastly, he advised I would likely receive the bulk of my responses the first week, with others coming in for up to two months. The goal was to have about half a dozen agents who wanted to learn more about my book.

As he predicted, responses began rolling in immediately:

“Not for me-thanks anyway.”

“Thanks, but I’m not the right agent for this.”

“Thanks for the query. I’m sorry but I’m overwhelmed with submissions and this didn’t pique my interest enough to add to my stack of manuscripts. Good luck to you.”

“Thank you for your query, but I’m afraid this project just isn’t right for my list at this time. I’m sorry to disappoint you, but others will surely feel differently and I certainly wish you every success in finding the right agent and publisher for your work.”

“Thank you for your letter. From your description, I don’t believe I’d be the right agent for this project. I’m sorry to have to pass on the opportunity to read your work, and wish you the best of luck. Sincere apologies for not being able to answer more personally; given the volume of queries, it is simply not possible.”

“Thank you so much for querying me and giving me the opportunity to consider your material. I’m afraid, though, that after reading your letter, I just didn’t feel strongly enough to ask for more, and I firmly believe every writer needs an agent who is passionate about his or her work.

Much of this boils down to personal preference, so please bear in mind that what isn’t right for me might be right for another agent. I encourage you to continue querying and working on your next book. I wish you the best of luck and much success with your writing career.”

“Thank you for thinking of me, but I am not a good fit for this.”

“It’s a pass for all of us here, but we do appreciate being included.”

“Not for our market, sorry.”

“Thank you for your query. Having considered it carefully, we have decided that your project is not the right fit for [us], and so we are going to pass at this time. Tastes and specializations vary widely from agent to agent, and another agency may well feel differently. Thank you for thinking of our agency, and we wish you the best of luck in your search for representation.”

“Thank you for letting me review your query. Unfortunately, I don’t believe that we are the appropriate agents to represent this material. In this very competitive market, we are simply not enthusiastic enough about our ability to sell this work to offer you representation. We wish you the best of luck placing this successfully. Thank you, once again, for letting us consider it.”

“Thank you for thinking of me with your query for JUST TRYIN’ TO BE LOVED. While this sounds like a strong project, I’m afraid it doesn’t strike me as a likely fit with me and my particular editorial contacts. I wish you well in finding the right agent for your work.”

Despite all the rejections, I remained positive. It’s important to have thick skin as an author. Always ask yourself if a criticism came from someone to whom you should listen. Whether you agree or disagree, look for ways to learn from what they said. If there’s nothing to learn, discard it. Move on!

Just as quickly as the rejections came in, there came a glimmer of hope:

“Thank you for your interest in our agency. Per [our] guidelines, please send the first ten pages of your manuscript, along with the original query, to this email address with both embedded in the body of the message. Please note that we do not open attachments.”

“Thanks for your recent query, which Jane passed along to me. I’d be happy to take a look at your manuscript. Kindly send it along for my prompt review. A Word attachment is most preferable if possible.”

“We would be happy to read something if you would like to email it to submissions@…… for my attention. Many thanks.”

I didn’t know how to respond. I wanted to make sure I put my best foot forward and not ruin my chances. The consultant said, “Just respond politely with whatever they ask for. They are regular people, only extremely busy. So try and give them exactly what they ask for, exactly the way they ask for it. Do not respond to the nos, you don’t have to worry about them.” Easy enough, right?

So…I responded…I think I’ll read Characters Make Your Story by Maren Elwood while I wait. I’ll keep you posted!

J’son M. Lee (Editor)

See you at www.sweetgeorgiapress.com

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Don’t have a copy of Become A Successful Author? What are you waiting for?Become A Successful Author is used in the “How To Write That Novel” course at Chicago State because it covers everything from branding to writing to editing to formatting and uploading electronic and print books to marketing and so much more. Your time is money. Look at all the time, thus money, you’ll save by ending your search for answers: Purchase Become A Successful Author for only $4.99 (eBook) or $8.99(print) from: Amazon (US), Amazon (UK), Barnes & Noble

Look Before You Send, Stop The Multiple Submissions By W. Terry Whalin

In the magazine world, it is common to simultaneously submit your query to a number of different magazines. Each publication is different and sometimes an editor will want a 500 word article while others will request a 1500 word article. As the writer, you can create two distinct articles to meet these needs.

In the world of books, simultaneous or multiple submissions are also common. Literary agents and editors are notoriously slow to respond to submissions because of the high volume. I often tell people that being an acquisitions editor is like trying to drink water from a fire hose. I read a high volume of material every day yet I’m actively looking for great writing to publish. The practice of multiple submissions is accepted throughout the publishing world.

So what multiple submissions do I want you to stop?

An author sent me his manuscript last week and then almost immediately sent another email saying to delete that one and he was sending the right manuscript. A few hours later, this same author sent another email saying that he wasn’t going to get it done today but it was coming tomorrow. Then that day, he wrote saying it would be the next day. Yes the chain went on until he sent and resent his submission several times. I want you to stop these types of multiple submissions. In fact, an author should never send such a submission in the first place. It makes a poor impression on the editor and you have no regard for how that submission comes across to the editor or agent.

Here’s the reality: we receive hundreds of emails in a single day. The back and forth actions—send and withdraw from an author do not help you feel good about the submission in the first place.

Another type of multiple submission that I receive are half-baked ideas from authors. They write asking me to look over their proposal or idea to see if they are on the right track. Maybe these authors have corresponded with me or met me at a writers conference and feel like I’m approachable (something I want and encourage). Yet I do not run a critique service or editing service. I’m actively looking for great manuscripts to publish. I want to get so excited about your material that I promote it to my colleagues and get you a book contract from a New York publishing house. I can’t do this authentically if you have sent your material on multiple occasions.

A third type of multiple submission is what I call the “multiple download.” Rather than send a query, this author put all of his files to submit into PDF, which end up being larger than document files. Then he “zipped” them into three different emails and submitted them 1 of 3, 2 of 3, 3 of 3. Talk about a time suck to simply download and read them! Guess what type of impression this author made about his submission?

Remember the key saying when it comes to submissions and approaching literary agents or acquisitions editors: you only have one chance to make a good first impression. Yes I underlined one chance in that last sentence.

Many authors presume they will be the exception to the rule (choose whatever rule you want to choose). I’ve learned that most of us will need to carefully follow the different rules before we ever get a chance to be one of the few exceptions.

Instead of assuming your submission will be the exception, I encourage you to polish your proposal with a critique group or a professional editor—before you send it to an agent or editor. You want your submission to have the best possible chance of acceptance. At Morgan James Publishing, we receive over 5,000 submissions a year and only publish about 150 books (less than three percent of the submissions).

I want to encourage you to submit your material. Many authors fail because they do not persist to find the right editor or the right agent or the right publishing house. They get rejected or have self-doubts so they never submit their material.

Opportunity is all around us and as a proactive writer, you have to be on the move to locate the right connection. Just take a slight pause before you fire off that multiple submission to the same editor. It will make a lasting impression—and not the type of impression you want to make on a publishing professional.

________________________________________

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Don’t have a copy of Become A Successful Author? What are you waiting for?Become A Successful Author is used in the “How To Write That Novel” course at Chicago State because it covers everything from branding to writing to editing to formatting and uploading electronic and print books to marketing and so much more. Your time is money. Look at all the time, thus money, you’ll save by ending your search for answers: Purchase Become A Successful Author for only $4.99 (eBook) or $9.99 (print) from: Amazon (US), Amazon (UK), Barnes & Noble

Authors Beware. Misinformation Abounds! by Deatri King-Bey

Last month I attended two writer/reader events that had workshops and panel discussions pertaining to the publishing industry. When I go to these type of events, I’m usually very selective on which discussions I attend, but this time I decided to give others a try. Many of the presenters were very good, but others… All I can say is: Authors beware. Misinformation abounds!

I literally wanted to jump out of my seat numerous times, but I was good. I remained calm and kept my mouth shut. Below are just a few of the things I wanted to set the record straight on.

Copyright Misinformation: You have to copyright your book the moment you start writing it for protection.

Copyright Correction: Let’s think this through. You haven’t even written it yet and you can’t copyright a concept, so that doesn’t make sense. The moment you write/type your book, you have copyright protection. You file the work with the copyright office so that if someone infringes on your copyright, you can sue them. NOTE: Whoever files first DOES NOT necessarily get the copyright of the piece of work. Remember, the moment you’ve written your piece, YOU own the copyright. So if someone else gets your manuscript and submits the copyright, then you can still file a copyright and take them to court. So make your life easier and file your copyright. Visit the official copyright office website for information.

ISBN Misinformation: When you purchase an ISBN from a vendor such as Lightning Source or Create Space, it’s like those companies owning your social security number. They are listed as the real publisher of the piece. Therefore, they own the copyright to your book and can do whatever with it they please.

ISBN Correction: Not all vendors work the same, but many of them give options on assigning ISBN. With the “FREE” option, the ISBN assigned usually belongs to the vendor, for example Create Space, and thus Create Space would be listed as the publisher. BUT they do not own your copyright or get additional royalties.

Personally, I do not like this option because I want to brand my company. It’s the same as getting those free websites with WordPress or Wix, then their name is part your website address. I don’t want someone else listed as publisher of a book I published.

Another option some of the vendors offer is you purchase an ISBN from them that list your company as the publisher. This is usually cheaper than buying ISBNs directly from Bowker. This is the option that people think gives your rights away and removes you as publisher. No, you are not giving them your social security number to do what they want. A more accurate analogy would be renting the ISBN. Your company is listed as the publisher as long as you fulfill the obligations of the rental agreement. The vendors have brokered deals with Bowker to make this possible.

The obligation is usually you must create/sell the book using the vendor’s business. So if you purchased the $10 ISBN from CreateSpace, you are listed as the publisher and must use CreateSpace to publish and sell your book. You can also sell from other vendors, but the creation must be in CreateSpace. Let’s say you don’t like CreateSpace for whatever reason. You can stop using CreateSpace, but that is also the end of your rental agreement for that ISBN. You can not take the ISBN with you to Lightning Source and publish the book using the ISBN you rented from CreateSpace. You’ll need a new ISBN.

The final option vendors offer is a high priced ISBN that you can purchase from them that you can take with your if you leave their company. DO NOT DO THIS. They are just selling you an ISBN from Bowker. Go to Bowker yourself and purchase your ISBNs. If you purchase in bulk, they are cheaper.

Traditional Publishing Misinformation: You’ll make more money from self-publishing, so there is no need to even try to go the traditional publishing route.

Traditional Publishing Correction: This one drove me CRAZY. I make a lot more self-publishing than traditionally publishing, but I still tell authors who don’t already have a nice sized reader base to try to find a traditional publisher also. Why? Because traditional publishing gets your book to a sizable amount of readers in your target audience who wouldn’t have tried your titles otherwise. This is the FASTEST way to grow your loyal reader base.

Let’s say you write romance and Harlequin offers you a book deal for one of their lines. Each of their lines has thousands of readers who purchase every book within the line they enjoy. Play it smart. Write a few novels for the traditional publisher. Use them to build your reader base (while you’re still self-publishing). Once you are happy with the size of your reader base, don’t continue with the traditional publisher.

I think this one annoyed me so much because it was an author who traditionally published first, then self-published. She also gave examples of other authors who traditionally published first, then self-published. All the while, saying, people shouldn’t go the traditional route. Don’t get me wrong, there are authors out there who do great with only self-publishing, but in general, the fastest way to grow your large loyal reader base is through traditional publishing.

Lesson Learned: Do your research. I’m not saying ignore information people tell you, but you must also do your own research on whatever the topic is. Even if it’s me saying it. Believe it or not, I’ve been wrong a time or two. Break out those critical thinking skills and think through what they are telling you. Is the logic they are using making sense or just sounding good.

Deatri King-Bey

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Don’t have a copy of Become A Successful Author? What are you waiting for?Become A Successful Author is used in the “How To Write That Novel” course at Chicago State because it covers everything from branding to writing to editing to formatting and uploading electronic and print books to marketing and so much more. Your time is money. Look at all the time, thus money, you’ll save by ending your search for answers: Purchase Become A Successful Author for only $4.99 (eBook) or$9.99(print) from: Amazon (US), Amazon (UK), Barnes & Noble

Simple Summer Tips by Kisha Green

Summer is a great time of the year because as an author there are a lot of events that take place and depending on your budget you can make it to all of them.

I know someone reading is like “Yeah right, Kisha, I don’t have a Stephen King budget” and duh silly rabbit- I know that too.

This is where you become clever and make your book’s presence known even if you cannot physically be there. Meaning the only budget you need is for your promotional materials instead of travel and hotel accommodations.

This is when social media comes in and is indeed a blessing since you can utilize those Facebook friends. Talk and engage in conversations with your fellow author friends to see what events are happening in other states.

Build a rapport with other authors that will not mind having your promo items at their table/display. This is a win/win for both parties and most importantly this is great exposure.

Promotional materials are just not limited to bookmarks and post cards. In this day and age anything can be a promo item. These are some of the popular ones but not limited to.

Mints
Pens
Key chains
Post It’s
Water Bottles
Lip Balm

These items can be sent to your author friend and they can place your items on their table and you are there without having to physically be there, because let’s face everybody likes freebies.

Here are some sites that are great for getting cool items.

www.orientaltrading.com
www.vistaprint.com
www.cafepress.com
www.clubflyers.com
www.24hourflyers.com

Here are some literary events taking place this Summer.

June

Book Expo America
Manhattan,NY
www.bookexpoamerica.com

Nantucket Book Festival
Nantucket, MA
http://nantucketbookfestival.org/events

American Library Association Book Conference
Chicago, IL
http://ala13.ala.org/

July
3rd Trenton Festival
Trenton, NJ
http://3rdtrentonbookfestival.blogspot.com/

Harlem Book Fair
Harlem, NY
www.qbr.com

Romance Writer’s of America Conference
Atlanta, GA
http://www.rwa.org/conference

August

Dragon-Con
Atlanta, GA
http://www.dragoncon.org/

National Book Club Conference
Atlanta,GA
http://www.nationalbookclubconference.com/index1.html

New England Independent Booksellers Association Conference
Providence, RI
http://www.newenglandbooks.org/

September
Baltimore Book Festival
Baltimore, MD
http://www.baltimorebookfestival.com/

Best of luck and Happy Summer!

Kisha Green is a author who has a passion for writing and sharing her witty personality with many through social media. For more info about Kisha, visit her website www.divabooksinconline.com and you can also follow her on Twitter @KishaGreen

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Don’t have a copy of Become A Successful Author? What are you waiting for?Become A Successful Author is used in the “How To Write That Novel” course at Chicago State because it covers everything from branding to writing to editing to formatting and uploading electronic and print books to marketing and so much more. Your time is money. Look at all the time, thus money, you’ll save by ending your search for answers: Purchase Become A Successful Author for only $4.99 (eBook) or$9.99(print) from: Amazon (US), Amazon (UK), Barnes & Noble

Why Your Butt Should Be Writing a Series by Stacy-Deanne

Many things have changed since ebooks took over. Types of writing that had become obsolete in print publishing have been reborn. I think we can agree that nothing has seen resurgence like short stories, series, and serials. I’m not gonna BS you. Look I think every writer should just break out and write a series. I think in genre fiction standalones are dying. I didn’t think that way at first but as the years go by, I’m beginning to see this happening.

Now I’m not saying standalones don’t have their place. Every book is not meant to be a series, but standalones these days do better in literary fiction. The genre world has been completely taken over with series, trilogies, sagas, and series. There is no denying that. If you wonder why this is happening, it’s commonsense. Series writing is a win-win for authors and readers. Readers get more stories with the characters they’ve grown to love, and writers get to spend more time with the characters they loved creating.

As far as sales, nothing guarantees sales but it’s a proven fact that concerning today’s genre fiction, series are the hottest sellers. A series gives the author the best chance to connect with loyal readers. If a reader reads a book in a series, they are more inclined to check out the others. Even if readers sometimes did not care for the installment they read, they might still check out others in the series. The number one reason series sell so well is because readers enjoy the characters and they wanna follow them from book to book.

I’ve been writing a series since 2011 and I’m fully enjoying it. I find that people are more open to your work when it’s a series. I love writing series and aside from maybe two more standalones that I plan to release, I don’t think I will ever wanna write another standalone. It’s gotten to where I am bored when I try to write a standalone. I feel like if I am not gonna commit to these characters for a series, then why bother? That’s just how I personally feel. I no longer have joy in writing standalones. They don’t hold me and I think that’s what’s going on with many readers. Readers have come to expect a series. Now a day when a reader reads a book, the first thing they ask is, “Is there a part two coming? I hope this is going to be a series!” Readers want series so we need to give them what they want.

A series also helps an author build up their backlist quicker because when you’re familiar with characters and setting, you don’t have to go through all the beginning steps for the next book. That allows you to write a bit faster on those next stories. The faster you finish, the more books you have out. You don’t have to try to get to know the characters or set the stage because you’re already comfortable and familiar with what you’re writing. Another great thing about series is that the world is the author’s oyster. There is so much you can try within a series. Also a series can be done in any genre but they do particularly well in romance, mystery, crime fiction, and fantasy.

It’s not rocket science and I’m sure I’m not telling some of you something you don’t already know, but this is for those on the fence when it comes to writing a series. I’m telling you to write one! If you write in a genre where series do extremely well, why not? If you love those characters, spend time with them! Let them have many adventures and let your readers come along for the ride.

There are different types of series and you should decide which you wanna write. You can write a novel series, short story series, novel serials, short story serials, etc. Write all different kinds if you want! Play around and explore!

So if you want some advice from me then I’d definitely invest in a series, point blank. I think that it’s the best option for a writer to gain a loyal audience in the digital age.

Stacy-Deanne

http://www.stacy-deanne.net

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Don’t have a copy of Become A Successful Author? What are you waiting for?Become A Successful Author is used in the “How To Write That Novel” course at Chicago State because it covers everything from branding to writing to editing to formatting and uploading electronic and print books to marketing and so much more. Your time is money. Look at all the time, thus money, you’ll save by ending your search for answers: Purchase Become A Successful Author for only $4.99 (eBook) or$9.99(print) from: Amazon (US), Amazon (UK), Barnes & Noble

How To Overcome Rejection: One Author’s Journey by Trice Hickman

I’ll never forget the day I started writing my first novel. It was a chilly morning in March 2004, and after many years of suffering from writer’s block, I had a breakthrough! I sat in front of my computer and smiled in amazement as words began to pour out of me like sweet water. I wrote all day and all night and by the next morning, 30 pages later, the beginnings of my debut novel, Unexpected Interruptions, was born.

I was energized with a feeling I’d never had before. I continued to write nearly every day, and a little over four months later my novel was complete. What a great feeling that was! But little did I know that as difficult as I’d thought it was at the time, writing my book turned out to be the easy part. I soon discovered that the hard part was getting my book published. And harder still…selling it!

I conducted diligent research and then submitted my manuscript to every agent, publisher, and editor whom I thought might be interested in my well-written, wonderfully engaging story. Who could turn down my masterpiece, right? Well, imagine my dismay when the rejection letters started trickling in. Everyone I’d submitted my manuscript to turned it down. EVERYONE!

“Did they really read my story?” I’d questioned, “because if they had, how could they turn me down?” I’d asked, over and over, month after month.

Let me tell you, rejection is a hard pill to swallow, but it can also serve as a wake up call. There’s a saying, you haven’t loved until you’ve had your heart broken. Well, you’re not a writer until you get your first rejection letter. But I had some great things on my side that beats rejection every time: Belief, Determination, Perseverance, and Faith.

I believed in the story I’d written and the characters I’d created. I was determined to persevere and do what it took to get my book published, and I had faith that I could do it! Again, I did my research. I made it my mission to learn everything I could about how to publish a book. I attended literary conferences and networked with other authors. I developed a plan, created a timeline, and then I formed my own company, Platinum Books, and published Unexpected Interruptions myself.

The book that everyone rejected went on to win two literary awards, receive high praise from readers, and top a national book club’s bestsellers list. I went on to publish two additional novels that were equally well received. After the success of my books, a traditional publisher offered me a contract to re-release all three of my originally self- published books. The rest, as they say, is history! Oh, and did I mention that upon it’s re-release, Unexpected Interruptions, the little book that everyone initially rejected, received a starred review from Publishers Weekly!

As great as I think my personal triumph is, my story is not uncommon. There are many people just like me who’ve had a dream and didn’t give up until they achieved it. Every successful person I know has had to overcome some sort of obstacle or rejection. And like me, the thing we’ve all learned is that behind every no, there is a yes waiting for you, as long as you’re willing to put in the work!

Trice Hickman

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Don’t have a copy of Become A Successful Author? What are you waiting for?Become A Successful Author is used in the “How To Write That Novel” course at Chicago State because it covers everything from branding to writing to editing to formatting and uploading electronic and print books to marketing and so much more. Your time is money. Look at all the time, thus money, you’ll save by ending your search for answers: Purchase Become A Successful Author for only $4.99 (eBook) or $9.99(print) from: Amazon (US), Amazon (UK), Barnes & Noble

Query – Quick Tips vby Shelia M. Goss

A query letter is a one or two page pitch letter. Keep it short and simple. Your query letter is the first thing an agent or editor reads. An effective query letter is meant to intrigue the reader so they will want more.

Things your query letter should include:

1. Introduction: The first paragraph of your query letter should include:

your name
name of your novel
the length of your novel and
genre

2. Short Synopsis: You should be able to summarize your book in at least one to two paragraphs. Aim for one paragraph.

3. Bio: Don’t be shy. Brag on yourself in this section. Keep it book related. Although it might seem odd, be sure to write your bio in the third person.

4. Closing: Don’t forget to thank and tell the agent/editor how they can reach you.

Other things to remember when writing your query:

It’s important to address your query letter to a specific person. If you do not know the name of the agent or editor at the publishing company, call or check their website.
If you met the agent/editor at a conference or somewhere, be sure to mention it in the first paragraph.
Make sure you have a title for your work (even if you decide to change the title later).
If you mention a website/email address/phone number in your query letter, make sure it’s active.

Shelia M. Goss is a national best-selling author and a 2012 Emma Award Finalist. She has over fifteen books in print and numerous of ebooks available. She writes in multiple genres. With unique story lines, her goal is to create “stories with a twist.” For more information, visit her website at http://www.sheliagoss.com/

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Don’t have a copy of Become A Successful Author? What are you waiting for?Become A Successful Author will be used in the “How To Write That Novel” course at Chicago State because it covers everything from branding to writing to editing to formatting and uploading electronic and print books to marketing and so much more. Your time is money. Look at all the time, thus money, you’ll save by ending your search for answers: Purchase Become A Successful Author for only $4.99 (eBook) or $9.99(print) from: Amazon (US), Amazon (UK), Barnes & Noble

Let’s Talk Ganxy by Bettye Griffin

I first heard about Ganxy from a post on one of the blogs I read regularly, The Writer’s Guide to ePublishing. I found the idea of selling to readers from my website, blog, and/or Facebook page with 90% of the cover price going into my pocket intriguing, to say the least. (Note: Some refer to this as a “royalty,” a term I don’t really agree with in this context; the arrangement seems more like a commission to me since these are retailers, not actual publishers.) I decided to give it a try by setting up a test showcase (as they call product pages) at Ganxy.

It seemed daunting for someone like me, who knows squat about ePUB and MOBI files, both of which Ganxy recommends be uploaded. About all I could handle was a PDF, which is the third and last format Ganxy recommends. These three formats pretty much cover any eReader device. I read the instructions thoroughly, then did a search for a site that converts documents to ePUB and MOBI formats. I found Online Convert, which does it for free (they do accept donations). I followed Ganxy’s suggestion and named each new file with the book title, my name, and the format.

Once that was done, I was able to go back and finish my showcase. I decided to take advantage of the function that allows me to list other retailers, because some folks will always want to purchase from Amazon or BN, and there’s no denying that the reviews on those sites still stand for something (The folks at Ganxy are reportedly working on incorporating reviews into Showcases, but I haven’t heard from where). Since I am an Amazon Associate, I made sure to include my personal ID in my links so I get credit for any orders from those who prefer to buy from Amazon.

I then embed the code on the main page of my newly re-designed website for an easy purchase link. The showcase is pretty big, and since there’s no way to fit seven of them (and counting!) on one page, I also set up an eStore on a single page that lists my other titles by linking each cover to its corresponding showcase. I also set up showcases for my traditionally published titles that are still available, although with links only rather than files for direct sales, since I do not own the rights to sell these directly. Take a look and tell me what you think!

These are the pluses of hooking up with Ganxy that I’ve identified to date:

The purchaser’s choice of format, which between them cover all devices: MOBI, ePUB, or PDF. One disadvantage: Readers will have to load the book onto their eReader themselves, which might be a turnoff for Kindle owners; I believe their books are loaded automatically on their readers when purchased thru Amazon. I try to head this off by discounting the prices at my eStore for new releases…nothing like offering readers an incentive!
A 90% cut of the cover price of all eBooks sold, rather than the 65% and 70% offered by BN and Amazon for books priced at $2.99 and above).
The 10% cut Ganxy takes is effective even if your book or story costs less than $2.99. In that situation Amazon increases its take to 65%, with just 35% going to the author; BN increases theirs to 60% with the author getting just 40%. You can sell a 99-cent short story and pocket 90 cents, not 35 or 40 cents! (Note that authors, not the customers, pay the credit card processing costs, which are a few cents per transaction…just the way J.C. Penney or Red Lobster pays this fee when you use your credit card at their locations. It’s true that a law recently became effective that allow merchants to legally pass on processing fees to their customers, but generally the only type of merchant who charges service fees on top of the price of the product are those selling concert or event tickets.)
The ability to offer free eBooks to readers, choosing an end time by whichever is reached first: A maximum number of free downloads or an end date. Doing this on Amazon and BN is very difficult and involves lots of patient waiting, sometimes in vain. Note that Ganxy may be charging authors to offer free downloads in the future; I won’t know what the fee will be until they initiate it.
The ability to offer sale priced eBooks to readers, with automatic end dates/criteria set (i.e., “The first 150 people to download this eBook will get $1.50 off the cover price”). The possibilities for this are endless…introductory price sales…12-hour sales…5-hour sales…Valentine’s Day sales…Cyber Monday sales…Black Friday sales, to name a few. My current sales are listed at the top of my eStore page. I’ve already started the practice of offering introductory prices for new products to entice readers to buy from my eStore rather than Amazon or BN. Another plus is that price changes go into effect immediately, the second you hit the Enter key. There’s no waiting for the retailer to adjust the prices, the way the other guys make you do.
Smooth and prompt payment processing. If you’ve earned the minimum (I don’t remember what it is, but I’m thinking $10), you can request payment at any time. My funds were deposited in my Paypal account within two days of my request. You don’t even have to wait 60 days…you only have to wait until you make the minimum.
Gift options are available.
Offering bundles are super-simple…instead of having to assemble one file of two or three books into a single linked file, which can be unwieldy and be difficult for readers to download, authors can choose which of their books they want to include in the bundle and the reader will receive a separate file for each! So if you want to offer a bundle of a series (Ganxy recommends including two to six books in a single bundle), just set up a showcase, set a price, and choose which files you want to include. No special formatting to do.
Your customers have the option of signing up for email notifications from you about future releases or sales. I’m surprised at how many customers took advantage of this. Whenever I offer a sale, they’re the first ones to know about it.
Superb and prompt customer service. I had many questions along the way, and they got back to me very quickly…even on Sunday.

Another plus, albeit an indirect one: Since I’ve learned how to create MOBI and ePUB files, I can now offer free downloads of short stories direct from my website, bypassing retailers altogether, if I choose to take that route.

Another important factor is your own aspirations, since everyone’s are different. If Amazon rankings are important to you, you might want to skip Ganxy altogether and continue selling only through ranked channels. My own career has taken an unorthodox path in that I began by being traditionally published but am not pursuing that path now, so a higher earnings potential holds the most appeal for me. I must admit that I’m not comfortable with Amazon wielding so much power, and I like having an alternate option. But it’s understandable for those pursuing a traditional publishing contract and/or those who like to announce their book’s sales rankings or placement in the Top 100 Bestsellers of its genre may prefer to get as many sales as they can through Amazon…editors are certain to check your rankings, and while no one really knows if repeatedly declaring yourself to be a bestselling author translates into sales, it’s not going to hurt anything, either.

Finally, this is an overview of my experience, not an endorsement. The decision to Ganxy or not to Ganxy has to be made by each individual writer, just like everything else in the business. I strongly suggest reading their Terms of Service thoroughly. But if you do decide to set up one or more Author Showcases, it’s always nice for them to know the source of the new business. For that reason, if you do decide to set up one or more showcases, I’d appreciate it if you would drop an email to Lonnie Rosenbaum at Ganxy at lonnie @ ganxy.com (please remove the spaces) and let him know I referred you!

For more information about Ganxy, you might want to check out this recent article in Forbes magazine.

Bettye Griffin

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Ten Ways for Writers to kick off a Fantastic New Year by Stacy-Deanne

So we’ve all made it to another year! Isn’t that wonderful? Let’s be grateful to not only still be on this wonderful earth but a new year means new horizons and goals for your writing! The first thing I want you to do is throw away all that negativity. Just throw it away and don’t think of it again. Take a deep breath and let all those worries slip away. Negativity leads to destruction and you want your new writing year to start right. Because of this, I want to inspire you by providing ten rules, well not rules but more like helpful tips of motivation and positivity to keep you going.

I hope they help!

1. Be positive

Leave the negativity in 2012. It won’t follow you unless you let it.

2. Set goals you can control

It’s important for all writers to have goals but make them goals that you can control. Don’t have your mind set on getting a six figure advance or making the bestseller list. You cannot control those things but you can control how much you’re going to write and work on your craft. Making goals that you can’t deliver sets you up for disappointment.

3. Be open to learning from your fellow writers

Have an open heart and mind this year. Sometimes we are too busy thinking we know everything that we can’t learn from others. Your fellow writers are a sea of information and you owe it to yourself to appreciate that and take advantage.

4. Don’t get discouraged

Not everything works out how we expect it to. Some books don’t sell well and some authors can’t get their books published in the first place. So what? You can’t control it so don’t let it steal your joy. Aren’t you here because you love to write? Well then, nothing else matters. Be faithful to your priorities. Remember why you want to be a writer and you’ll be satisfied with whatever comes your way.

5. Stop worrying about other writers and just do you

Stay in your own lane. Revisit my successful author post on writer jealousy if you don’t remember why you should mind your own business. It’s best for everyone.

6. Make this the year of no excuses

If you’re gonna be a writer, write. If you’re gonna start that editing business, start it. If you’re gonna self-publish and your book is in professional shape, do it. If you got revisions that you’ve been fighting off since last year, get to it. This is the year of no excuses and like Nike says, “Just Do It”.

7. Challenge yourself and continue to learn

A closed mind is a waste of time. Part of the writing life is learning. You will never stop having to learn in this business so you need to embrace it. You also need to continue to challenge yourself. Once writing has gotten too easy then there is a problem. You want to be the best you can be and you do that by learning.

8. Share your knowledge with the peers of your industry

Don’t be greedy with what you’ve learned. Help your fellow writer out sometimes and lend them a hand. You never know what you might end up with in return.

9. Be open to new ideas

Don’t limit your writing. Venture out and don’t be afraid to try new things. Just make sure you do it because you want to and not for book sales.

10. Believe in yourself

If you don’t, who will?

Stacy-Deanne

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Proper Planning Testimony: A Key To Publishing Success by Deatri King-Bey

I began working in the publishing industry over a decade ago in editing and marketing departments of various publishers where I learned the business from the inside out. Whether you choose to go the traditional, small publishing and/or the self-publishing route, one of the keys to building a successful career is planning. I know you’ve heard a million times that publishing is a business and you should plan, but what does that mean?

To give you a better idea of how planning plays a key role in the success of your writing career, I’ll show you an example using myself. Don’t worry, I won’t tell you every detail of my plan, but I’ll give you enough so you can see the benefits of planning.

Full disclosure: I write under several names. The only names associated to Deatri King-Bey are Deatri (romance and women’s fiction) and L. L. Reaper (suspense). As Deatri my debut novel was released early 2006. A little over a year later, I left the author side of publishing as Deatri with four titles released. I was just getting a following as Deatri but decided to be a reader. Thus Deatri the author went into early retirement.

In 2009 I decided I wanted to learn about eBooks and ePublishing. So I signed onto a small ePublishing company as an editor and author to learn ePublishing. I didn’t like it there. That company turned out to be a rip off, but I learned about the eBook process. My books were out a few months there. Needless to say, I got my rights back quickly (which isn’t always easy) and took the knowledge I gained about eBook publishing with me.

Why did I give I give you so much background information, because it all went into my preparation to self-publish. So there I was. I had knowledge about ePublishing, traditional, independent and small press publishing and marketing. I had a stock of books that were submission and publish ready. My pen name L. L. Reaper didn’t come into existence until mid-2011 so that was a non-issue.

When I went on what I thought was early retirement but turned into a three year hiatus back in 2007, MySpace was popular. When I decided I’d step back into the game in 2009, Facebook was quickly becoming king of social media. So there you have it.

I hadn’t had a real release since 2007 and I didn’t have a web presence. I was starting over. I’m sure there were readers who remembered me, but they weren’t looking for my titles any longer. They were probably like, “Where did that girl with the odd name go?” LOL.

The first order of business was to plot out a five year plan for my brand and individual books and set realistic goals. I took into account marketing, production costs (ie: editing, distribution, ISBN, copyright, cover design, printing…), timelines, schedules (including a writing schedule)… everything that goes into advancing my publishing career.

Again, even if you are going the non-self-publishing route, you should still plan. If you don’t self-publish, the production costs are in the hands of the publisher, but you are the main one responsible for every other facet of your writing career.

Notice I said I was plotting a five year plan for my brand (Deatri King-Bey), not my publishing company or my imprint. Though imprints and publishing names are important to authors, in general, readers don’t care. They don’t care who the publishers of Nora Roberts, Beverly Jenkins, James Patterson or Steven King’s books are. They buy the books because they enjoy the author’s writing. Now don’t get me wrong. Companies such as Harlequin have done an excellent job at training their reading base to pick up just about anything with the Harlequin brand on it. Good for them, but I encourage authors to self-publish and publish through legitimate publishing houses. You want readers to look for you by the author name (your brand), not by who produced the title because the producer can change several times over your career.

Let’s talk about costs. Why is it important to know costs and include them in your plans?

Needing additional funds is one surprise we can all do without.
If you are self-publishing, you need to know how much money it will take to release your titles. This will help you set the price of the final product and help you gauge how many titles you can afford to release (eBook/print) in the coming year. So if you can afford three titles in the next twelve months, then you can plan your production, marketing, writing, editing schedule and cost and for three books.
Your plan will have estimates on costs. I choose to overestimate by 10% for each step. You will need to record actual costs of everything you spend on your titles so you can calculate your return on investment. For example, let’s say your production, distribution and marketing costs for one of your titles was $1,000. A positive return on investment is everything you make after the $1,000 investment in your title has been earned. Now how long it takes you to make a positive return on your investment is a topic in itself.
- Once you have actual costs, be sure to go back into your plans and make adjustments.
- When I calculated the various costs, I did not estimate how much I’d take in for the first two years. Instead, I pretended that I’d make nothing. So if I didn’t sell one book, I’d still be able to afford to release titles for two years. There was method to my madness. Stick with me and you’ll understand in a bit. Please note. What works for me will not work for others. Make a plan that works for you.

So I’d done my research and knew which professionals I’d hire for what, and I got on their schedules and/or made note of how far in advance I’d need to contact them for each project.

I had a marketing plan for each title I would release and also one for my brand. In less than a year, I planned on releasing my first title, and I had no web presence and the small following I’d had from previous years had no idea I’d be coming back more terrifying than before.

The first phase of my plan was online presence. I set up a Facebook account, re-launched my website as a blog, attended reader events for my genre, started building an opt-in mailing list and networked with readers through my book club. By the way. I am an avid reader and always will be. I read an average of a novel a week. As a “reader” who also happens to be an author, I participate in a few groups on Facebook.

I have very limited time, so I chose Facebook as my main online hangout. Join as many networks that work for you, but I encourage you not to spread yourself too thin. You should spend more time writing than anything else.

Whatever spots you hang out in, be sure to actually participate. You’ll get much more bang for your “time” buck than if you hop from place to place and the readers don’t connect to you, thus ignore your posts.

So let’s fast forward to Oct. 2010, when my first release was to come out. Along with always releasing a high quality product, I encourage authors to self-publish and publish through a legitimate publisher (traditional, independent, small press…) This is the fastest way to reach pockets of your target audience you may not have otherwise. Once you are happy with the size of your loyal reader base, you may decide to only self-publish.

I chose to only self-publish as Deatri. Do what works for you. Nothing is set in stone and you can always submit to publishing houses while you grow your base through self-publishing. I often tell authors that self-publishing has become the new “agent” of the industry.

Back to my brand and novel plans. I set measurable goals such as:

Number of titles released
Size of opt-in mailing list
Number of guest post on my blog
Number of guest appearances (online and in person)
Number of Facebook followers
- On followers in general. I am not a big hound on quantity. I want quality. That is why I do not request friendships. That is why I do not add people to my mailing lists or groups.

Do you see anything missing? How about sells numbers? I barely promoted any of my releases for my first ten months and did not have sells goals for the first two years. Sounds crazy, but again, there was method to my madness.

Sells numbers go back to return on investment and the knowledge I have about readers’ buying habits. If a reader picks up a book by an author that is new to them and they love the book, the reader has a tendency to go back and look for the author’s previous titles.

As a new author, you don’t have a back list (previous titles). Now what works for me, will not work for everyone. My five year brand plan has phases and my second phase was to become a master of self-publishing, to put what I had learned into practice and fix any holes in my system. This went for print and electronic titles. I released quality work and knew readers would go back and purchase the back list eventually.

Sounds crazy, but again, there was method to my madness. I’m in this for the long haul. Unlike many authors, I had a reserve of titles. Some had been released, others not. So I could take the ten months to get the lay of the land, experiment with different marketing techniques and make adjustments to my novel and brand plans as needed. I released high quality titles and allowed minimal promotion and word of mouth to make sells.

So did I have a sells goal? Yes.

By Oct. 2012, I wanted my royalty checks for eBook sells to be up to $2000 total per month. I went in knowing my first year of sells would be low, and I was okay with that. Again, there was method to my madness. Though I was wading through the self-publishing side of the world, I still released high quality products. With little promotion, I slowly built a reader base and a buzz started about this author named Deatri. About my brand.

July 2011 I planned to release the first book of a four part series. This would begin my next phase where I stepped up marketing a little. By stepping up marketing, I don’t mean I joined a million social media groups and posted “buy my book” type post numerous times in the groups. Did I do some promotion in social media? Yes. I participate in a few groups and I have Facebook and Twitter accounts.

I had connected with readers before I started talking about my books. With the series, I literally allowed the readers to decide what order I wrote the series in. I also increased blog appearances (for various titles). Organized “Sale” events with other authors and used cross promotion. I continued increasing my opt-in mailing list and meeting with readers. Sounds like a lot, but it doesn’t take a lot of time when planned properly. And yes, you do need to keep track of how much time you spend on promoting/marketing/ non-writing activities and make adjustments where needed.

Part of my promotion budget is free reads. I know many of you think giving away titles is a sin, but publishing companies have been giving away books for years because it’s one of those promotion tools that work. Before eBooks, many authors kept free reads on their websites. This is nothing new.

I’m not saying give away full length novels. But consider writing a few short stories and/or a novella to give away. Ensure they are properly edited and have great covers. Something your brand can be proud of give them away on your website and in any online store you can get them in to.

I use Smashwords for my free titles. I upload there and allow them to distribute. It took months, but Amazon and Barnes & Noble eventually matched the free price on the titles I’d submitted through Smashwords. Note that Amazon goes back and forth with having the titles free at times and .99 at others, but that’s out of my control. I have three free reads (well, free most of the time. Dang blasted Amazon) that are a short story, compilation of short stories and a novella. In December 2011, my titles became free on Barnes & Noble. It took until May 2012 (almost a year) before they showed free on Amazon. I didn’t think it would take that long. Lesson learned.

So let’s look at the numbers. Do you think I’ll be paid $2000 in Oct. 2012 for my eBook titles? I published my first eBook Oct. 3, 2010, so received my first royalty December 2010. Did minimal marketing until Jul. 2011, then stepped it up a little.

I’m rounding down to dollar amount. Rows in bold are the months I released a title (new, re-release of back list, and/or a free read). FYI: Currently, I sell my titles at Amazon and Barnes & Noble. I have other options, but did not want to pursue them in the first two years.

	Amazon	Barnes & Noble
Oct. 2010
Nov.
Dec.	$34	$1
Jan. 2011	$40	$9
Feb.	$31	$20
Mar.	$39	$11
Apr.	$17	$32
May	$503	$33
Jun.	$396	$33
Jul.	$213	$30
Aug.	$154	$28
Sept.	$145	$58
Oct.	$108	$42
Nov.	$89	$12
Dec.	$88	$15
Jan. 2012	$85	$72
Feb.	$128	$298
Mar.	$686	$269
Apr.	$966	$241
May	$562	$239
Jun.	$715	$275
Jul.	$1245	$284
Aug.	$1059	$238
Sept.	$2944	$414
Oct.	$2735	$408

As you see, I met my two year ebook royalty goal. I love the saying: Work smarter, not harder. I created a plan of action and followed through with adjustments here and there as needed. I don’t do a lot of promotion, but I do promote. My main focus is releasing a high quality product.

Wrap Up

I won’t tell you how your brand and novel plans should look or how many titles are the key to success. Here are a few items to remember when you write your plans.

Do your research and learn the publishing business. Besides being a downright excellent author, you need to become an expert in production, marketing and distribution. Especially where it pertains to your company so you can incorporate these elements into your plans. I chose to only release my ebooks on Amazon and Barnes & Noble because I wanted to learn the ins and outs of the two largest eBook sellers first then expand.
We all may have madness, but have method to your madness.
Do not cut corners. Always release high quality products (books) and indicate the cost into your plans. This method will cost you more up front, but in the end, it usually pays out nicely when accompanied with a good marketing plan.
Return on investment (ROI) is extremely important. You are in the publishing game for the long haul. Use all three types of marketing: those that show results short, mid, and long term. ROI also counts for your time. How much time are you spending on your various marketing campaigns? Are you getting your bang for your buck (ROI)? What about your editors? Are they qualified? Covers anyone…?
Know your product and your target audience.
Formats of your title(s), print run and distribution
Set sells and marketing goals
What markets will you sell in?
Create action plans to reach your sells and marketing goals.
How many titles will you release and when?
Where are the pockets of your target audience and how will you find/reach them?
How will you market yourself?
What makes your title(s) different than others in the genre? What sets your brand apart?
Will you write under one name or numerous? For example, many readers who enjoy traditional romance do not enjoy horror. So if you write both genres, you may want to have pen names by genre.
What are your expansion plans? How will you reach new markets and when should you begin expansion?
How will you maintain contact with your loyal reader base?
How will you grow your reader base?
What is your continuing education plan?

Do an Internet search on “book marketing plan” and I’m sure you’ll find lots of examples. Initially, planning is time consuming, but in the long run it is time well spent.

Good luck

Deatri King-Bey

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Kisha’s Literary Jewel by Kisha Green

Self Publishing can be a truly rewarding experience but only if you take the NECESSARY and PROPER steps to fully understand all of the responsibilities a author takes on when deciding to self publish instead of seeking publishing with a traditional publishing houses.

RESEARCH is so vital because without this you will always be at an disadvantage, with the popularity of social media, authors can now access a lot of information that at one time they would have to pay for.

All information is not good information so you must research who is giving you that said advice in publishing. Everyone does not understand it or even implement it in their own business practice.

Asking a bunch of people from various sources is not effective especially when the sources don’t know much more than you do. This is a potential train wreck waiting to happen with the blind leading the blind. Conducting your own extensive research will be more beneficial and rewarding to you in the long run.

By asking many questions does show your eagerness to learn but also shows your peers your aren’t willing to take on the simple task of basic research yourself but instead accustomed to relying on others for source of information.

As a publisher your are not looking independent and this might make a potential author seek publishing elsewhere. Remember GOOGLE is your friend.

Kisha Green

www.divabooksinconline.com

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