Writing and Publishing News

I’m often asked which of my most current publishing/marketing books I would recommend to authors. To refresh your memory, they are Publish Your Book, Promote Your Book and Talk Up Your Book. It might be a good idea to order all three as they sort of play off of one another—one picks up where the other leaves off, but they do overlap a bit, too. Here’s my general rule of thumb:

• Read and study Publish Your Book if you are new to publishing—just starting to write your first book or even thinking about writing one. If you have written your book and have not taken any time out to learn something about how the publishing industry works, what book promotion is all about, etc., start by studying Publish Your Book. It explains today’s publishing industry, it lays out your publishing options and helps you to determine which is the best one for you. One of the most popular aspects of this book is where I give you the pros and cons of each publishing option. I give you a time-line if you want to publish your book yourself. And this book includes an entire section on book promotion.

• Promote Your Book focuses totally on book promotion, offering over 250 ideas, tips, techniques provided by me (from my 40-years experience and study) as well as from other professionals and successful authors. If you plan to produce a book for publication, you MUST read Promote Your Book. It will help you to write a better book for a more well-defined audience. It will give you the tools and understanding to create a reasonable marketing plan. Keep it at your elbow throughout the writing and marketing process as a guide and reference into the highly competitive, intense world of book promotion.

• Talk Up Your Book is for the author who needs a more beefed up marketing plan that involves a lot of public speaking, radio interviews and so forth. It is also for the author who is too meek to go out and speak—who has noodle knees. This is your complete lesson plan for using your personality to sell books and it’s brought to you by around 2-dozen professionals and successful authors.

All of these books are in print, digital and audio at Amazon.com and most other online and downtown bookstores. You can also order them here: http://www.matilijapress.com

Do you remember Publishers Marketing Association? It’s now the Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA). And SPAN (Small Publishing Association of North America) is now the Association of Publishers for Special Sales (APSS). And there are new writing groups and publishing organizations forming all over the US.

There are also some old organizations that have kept the same names and who continue to provide a steady stream of resources and information for authors. SPAWN (Small Publishers, Artists and Writers Network) is one of those.

Are you involved? If you are an author or you’re aspiring to be, you should consider joining and participating in a group or organization where you can learn from others, receive pertinent and up-to-date information and glean resources that will be meaningful along your writing/publishing journey. The world of publishing is changing as we speak. There is a lot going on within this industry—thousands more people writing and publishing books and hundreds more starting services and reaching out to get a slice of the pie.

What you need throughout the process of writing, publishing and marketing your book is not a bunch of hype from an overzealous, money-hungry hawker of services or products. Instead, you should put yourself in a position where you can learn about the industry and work with those who have real experience and knowledge within the writing/publishing world. And the way to determine what steps to take and which company or individual to sign with or which promotional activities to pursue and which materials to read may well come from other authors you meet through forums and group meetings and the information you glean from the association.

SPAWN (Small Publishers, Artists and Writers Network) http://www.spawn.org
IBPA (Independent Book Publishers Association) http://www.ibpa-online.org
APSS (Association of Publishers for Special Sales) http://www.spannet.org

It will also behoove you to join up with a local group of writers/authors and network in person. Attend the lectures they provide. If you’re new to writing, sign up for a critique group. Attend a writers’ conference. And don’t just join—participate.

For tons more information about publishing and book marketing, check out my books here: http://www.matilijapress.com
For editing help: http://www.patriciafry.com (Sign up for my FREE enewsletter.)

Yesterday, I shared a few resources for those who want to get their poetry and music published. I suggested referring to Writer’s Market. I was reminded by an astute follower of this blog, colleague and friend that Writer’s Market has directories specific to the poetry market. They also have a directory representing the children’s market and there is a separate directory for song-writers. If you’re seeking representation for your project, they have a directory of agents.

If you want to get published, Writer’s Digest has you covered.

These volumes are most useful. But don’t forget about the access you have to the world of publishing tools and helps at your fingertips. It’s called the Internet.

Just about every topic you can imagine is covered and any topic with very many options generally comes in directory form. There are online directories of everything imaginable, including publishers of romance, literary agents, poetry markets, organizations for authors and so forth.

Before you start asking professionals for help in finding the right publisher, a printer for your book, magazine outlets for your articles or stories, etc., do an Internet search for directories and see what comes up.

One way to become informed about the publishing industry and to keep up on industry news, the best promotional activities, resources for authors and so forth is to subscribe to and READ/STUDY some of the many industry newsletters. Here are those that I recommend for authors.

Publishing Basic
Free
http://www.publishingbasics.com

Book Marketing Matters
Free
http://www.bookmarketing.com

Book Promotion Newsletter
Small fee
http://www.bookpromotionnewsletter.com

SPAWNews
Free
http://www.spawn.org

SPAWN Market Update
Membership in SPAWN required
Join SPAWN at: http://www.spawn.org

Publishers Weekly daily
Free
http://www.publishersweekly.com

Tomorrow I will talk about organizations for authors.

Look for my article this week in Fran Silverman’s Book Promotion Newsletter: “Sell More Books by Listening to Your Readers.” To subscribe to this almost free enewsletter, go to: http://www.mailermailer.com/x?oid=12216r. It’s $9.95/year for a subscription.

Here are a few other enewsletters I recommend for authors—all FREE:

Brian Jud’s Book Marketing Matters
http://www.bookmarketing.com

Publishing Basics
http://www.publishingbasics.com

SPAWNews
http://www.spawn.org

For a good education on the publishing industry and how to successfully navigate it, read:
Publish Your Book by Patricia Fry

If you have a book to promote, be sure to order a copy of: Promote Your Book by Patricia Fry

Get help learning how to present workshops, give live presentations, participate more successfully in an interview for radio/TV, etc., and sell more books through book signings and festivals by reading Talk Up Your Book by Patricia Fry

All available at http://www.matilijapress.com as well as Amazon.com and most other online and downtown bookstore.

I have another very satisfied editorial client this week. If you have a book ready to go or a book proposal that you’re working on, contact me—Patricia Fry—to give you a sample edit and estimate. If you are just starting a book, begin saving now to pay a good book editor to fine tune it for you before it goes to print.

Learn more about my services here: http://www.patriciafry.com

What have you shared with a colleague, friend or acquaintance, lately? When you read that an editor is looking for good mysteries, do you immediately let members of the mystery branch of your writers’ group know? If you see a chest of drawers at the curb with a FREE sign on it, do you call your neighbor who has been looking for one? If your hairdresser tells you that her mother has to find a home for her elderly cat, do you let her know about your friend who would like to adopt a senior cat companion?

This is called networking and it is something most of us do, when it is convenient. Sometimes successful networking—I mean the kind that can truly benefit another person (or two other persons)—can require more energy and time than you want to devote. And that’s a shame when the end result might be important to someone.

This morning, I received an email from a director at a local college. She is looking for someone to participate in a mentor activity during career night. She has a student who is interested in creative writing. I immediately thought of two writers I know—one a young and highly enthusiastic, talented writer who works with children in her own writing program. The other one is a bestselling novelist with several novels to her credit. I contacted the novelist (I would have contacted both of them except that the young author is attending school out of state). I received a response from the novelist within minutes (before 5:30 a.m.—I guess she is up early working on her latest book manuscript). She said she would be delighted to mentor the young girl.

Networking isn’t always this successful, this quickly and not everyone you network with will let you know if they will follow through or how the activity or bit of information served them or others. Despite the fact that some networking attempts fall flat, networking is still a great way to help others and to receive help, resources, leads and so forth.

Communication is a vital part of networking. Before we can network in a meaningful way, we must communicate. We need to communicate to others what we are seeking and we must listen to what others require or desire.

This week, why don’t you try your hand at networking. If you hear or read about something that another person might want to know, call or email them. It will feel good when they respond with a great big thank you. If you need something, start spreading the word. You might be surprised at how quickly your wish is fulfilled.

http://www.matilijapress.com
http://www.patriciafry.com