Archive for April, 2008

Which Hopeful Author Are You?

Wednesday, April 30th, 2008

I’m still aflutter with activity and events this week. After a good Los Angeles Times Book Festival event over the weekend, I dove right into a consultation with an author and landed a new long-term client. Last night, I helped teach a writers’ workshop. I spoke on the art of and the necessity of research for writers. I also sold a few books and have two more people interested in my services.

Tomorrow, I’ll be packing for a weekend in Baltimore where I’ll speak on writing a book proposal. That’s a long way to travel in order to present a one-hour talk. But there are hopeful authors everywhere who need to hear the facts along with the possibilities. Yes, I spew some truths that are sometimes hard to hear, but I also try to offer encouragement. After all, there is hope for authors who will take the right path.

I make it sound as though there is only one way leading to success—my way. Not so. There are many avenues. But I do believe that there is a best pathway for authors to take and my mission is to help them find it. I tell authors that what is right for one author and one project might not be the best choice for another author and his/her project. My job, then, is to encourage you (the hopeful author) to study the publishing industry—collect as much understanding and knowledge as you can with regard to how the publishing industry works, your options, the possible consequences of your choices and your responsibilities as a published author.

I wrote my book, The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book, in order to provide the information and knowledge you need. I explain your publishing options and even outline the pros and cons of each in an attempt to help you decide which one is best for your particular project and your personality/activity level/time allotment, etc. Of course this book covers volumes more than I can share in a one-hour talk. And much of it is material, facts, resources and information that you will refer to over and over again throughout your writing and publishing journey.

I get frustrated when I realize that my message isn’t reaching everyone who needs to hear it. Last night, for example, I met, yet, another author who didn’t know that the rule is now one space after all punctuation when typing a manuscript or even an email. Did I surprise any of you with that fact? If you want more information about this, contact me at PLF620@yahoo.com.

Several people I spoke with at the LA Times Festival of Books were shocked to learn that there are publishing options for authors. They stopped searching for publishers at the first hit on their Google search and were ready to exchange cash for a published book. When I mentioned self-publishing as in establishing your own publishing company, they were stunned. “I can publish my book myself?” When I told them about the hundreds of small and medium-sized publishers out there eager to invest in a good book project, they couldn’t believe their ears.

There are many types of hopeful authors. Which one are you?

1: James says, “I found someone who will publish my book and that’s all I need to know. It’s only going to cost me $2,000 and my book will be available in all bookstores—at least that’s what the nice lady told me. Now that I’ve finished my work on book number one, I’m busy writing my next one. Gosh, isn’t writing fun and pretty easy, too.”

Of course, this author is heading for a big disappointment. Why? He doesn’t realize that it is his job to promote his book. And he, obviously, didn’t get a literary attorney to read his contract—“available in all bookstores?” I don’t think so. What the nice lady (and maybe even the contract) probably said was, “We will make your book available to bookstores nationwide.” In other words, “If a bookseller comes to us asking for a book like yours, we will certainly tell them about yours.” And that ain’t going to happen.

James’ book will be one of the approximately 75 percent that sells fewer than 100 copies this year. In fact, unless he becomes educated about the publishing industry and becomes proactive, his book will die on the vine.

2: Linda says, “I’m looking for an agent to represent my book of poetry. My cousin knows a woman who just signed on at an agency near his home in Parachute, Colorado. He thinks he can get me in with her and she only charges $1,000 up front. Once she gets me a contract with Simon and Schuster or one of the other big publishers, I’ll quit my job and start my author tour.”

Oh dear! Hopefully, Linda will stop the madness and start studying the real world of publishing. First, she needs to understand something about how publishers work and what they will and won’t publish and why. And she needs a reality check with regard to choosing and working with an agent.

3: Ilene says, “I don’t type, but I have a wonderful manuscript handwritten with only a few inserts on each page and drawings to show my vision for this 500-page book. I didn’t have time to make any copies—anyway it would be too expensive. So I just sent it to my favorite major publisher in New York. When do you think he’ll be calling me about publishing it?”

Yes, people still do this!!! If Ilene sent the original copy of manuscript without a self-addressed-stamped envelope, her “dream” is probably on its way to the landfill in the back of a garbage truck by now.

4: Jake says, “I just did the final edit on my manuscript and it’s ready to go. Oh, I’m not very good with grammar and punctuation, but I know that the publisher will have it edited before publishing it. So I’m sending it to Random House today.”

Always, always hire a qualified, credible editor before showing your manuscript around to any publisher and before self-publishing. And make sure it is someone who is involved in and knowledgeable about today’s publishing industry and preferably someone who is familiar with your genre and/or topic. A publisher wants to receive only edited manuscripts. Sure, if he accepts it, he will probably have his editorial staff go over it again—but never, never send out a manuscript without having it professionally edited.

Lessons in Article-Writing

Tuesday, April 29th, 2008

Today, I sent out the second lecture and assignment for my online article-writing course. It’s not too late to sign on and catch up. http://www.matilijapress.com/course_magarticles.htm I also teach online courses on demand (sign up when you’re ready to take the course) on writing a book proposal, book promotion and setting up your own publishing company. http://www.matilijapress.com/courses.htm

Here’s an excerpt from the lecture I sent out today.

Come Up With New Article Ideas
What happens when you run out of ideas related to your original topic? Hopefully, you will tire of your subject before that happens. It’s time to get creative and tap into all of your senses. The fact is that if you can’t come up with an article idea, you aren’t paying attention. I tell people to look everywhere for article ideas. My friends laugh at me because I’m always interrupting a conversation to say, “Hey, that’s a good idea for an article!”

Keep your eyes and ears open and you will find ideas. They’re everywhere just waiting to be noticed by an aware writer. Find article ideas at the local coffee shop, airport, grocery store, shoe repair shop, post office, Little League Baseball field, while traveling, at the barber shop, the mall, while fishing, at an animal shelter—absolutely anywhere. I’ve written several articles and, in fact, a book on how to be an effective grandparent even at a distance. The idea stemmed from a conversation I overheard while waiting in line at the grocery store. I met a woman at the post office one day who was working in her retirement as a handywoman. Of course, I wrote an article about her for a senior magazine. Once, while watching my grandson play baseball, I sat next to a Little League dad who earned his living using storytelling as therapy in prisons and other venues. This article idea earned me around $1,500 total as I sold versions of the story to a couple of different magazines.

It pays to pay attention—literally!! And it pays to reach out to others. As writers, we tend to hole up in our comfy cubicles allowing only our family pets into our space. But if you want to earn a living writing articles for magazines (or supplement your income), you really must get out and mingle once in a while. Being a writer, you probably are already observant—hone this skill to the max. And if you aren’t naturally social—if you generally stay to yourself when in public, I’d suggest changing that. You might be surprised at the gifts and opportunities you will glean when you reach out to others.

Do you remember Art Linkletter’s show (and book), Kid’s Say the Darndest Things? Well so do adults, teens, seniors, the mailman, the clerk at the ice cream parlor, your pastor and your neighbor. Heck, you can even find stories in the junk mail you receive if you open your eyes and your mind.

Just today, for example, I received my 4th or 5th letter from a major investment company that is changing the way they operate. With each letter, they attempt to clarify the scope of the changes and who will be in charge of my account from now on. Each letter refers to the letter before and states that it may have contained some erroneous information. Upon reading each of these letters, you feel as though the Marx brothers are now running the company. Use your imagination and you can visualize employees in cubicles holding a small slice of information that they don’t dare tell to anyone else. So each letter coming from each of these people tells a different part of the story. Can’t you just envision creating a humorous essay from this scenario? Or maybe I could write a piece featuring ten tips for better communication within the workplace.

Here are 8 of the 15 things I suggest you consider when trying to come up with new article ideas: (Of course, in my lecture, I flesh each of these points out with examples and instruction.)

1: Write about what you know.
2: Write about what you’re interested in.
3: Write about what you want to know.
4: Write about what’s hot.
5: Write from your own experiences.
6: Write from the experiences of others.
7: Create articles from conversations you have or overhear.
8: Extract ideas from the media.

As many of you know, article-writing is close to my heart. It is through articles that I entered the world of writing for publication. It is article-writing that supported me for many years. Articles help to promote my books. Writing this blog is like writing an article, so it is my way of communicating, of expressing myself and it’s a good vehicle for spreading information. If you have tried to sell articles and failed, if you have a book to promote, if you want to shift from factory or cubicle worker to writer, this course could hold the key to your dreams.

Learn more about article-writing for book promotion in my book The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book http://www.matilijapress.com/rightway.html Contact me with questions: PLFry620@yahoo.com I also work one-on-one with authors and freelance writers. Check out my credentials and fees at my website: http://www.matilijapress.com/consulting.html

Promote Your Book at Book Festivals

Monday, April 28th, 2008

I’m back from the big Los Angeles Times Festival of Books. SPAWN had a large booth where some of our members displayed and sold their books to a crowd of around 150,000. (SPAWN is Small Publishers, Artists and Writers Network) http://www.spawn.org

People came out to the festival, which was held at UCLA, despite the fact that temps were in the 90s. They came to buy books and to meet their favorite authors and other celebs such as Valerie Bertinelli, Mary Higgins Clark, Michael Connolley, Sandra Dijkstra (literary agent), Maxine Hong Kingston, Dr. Laura Schlesinger, Jonathon Kirsch and Tommy Lasorda.

Is a book festival a good place for an author to sell books? Well, yes and no—sometimes and sometimes not so much. Some books sell and others just sit there. Your book will do better at some festivals than at others. Some festivals attract serious readers/book buyers and some draw lookiloos with nothing else to do on a sunny Sunday afternoon; and many of whom left their wallets at home.

I attend several book festivals each year and I’m always experimenting with booth design and sales approach. I observe other authors and I attempt to discover their secrets to bookselling success. Here’s what I’ve learned:

• You really must have an appealing and/or interesting cover. This weekend, the favored book was one that pictured dolphins swimming in vivid blue ocean water.
• A title can be a draw for some people. The book most picked up in our booth without solicitation was one containing the word “Halloween” in the title.
• Your booth should have a theme. I sell many more copies of my books on writing and publishing from the SPAWN booth than I do if I join others in a generic, no-theme booth. People come to the SPAWN booth looking for help, advice, information, etc. about writing and publishing.
• People will gravitate toward an attractively designed booth. Large interesting posters, a generous bouquet of flowers and tasteful decorations related to the theme of your book, etc. will definitely catch people’s eyes.
• Personality plays an important part in book festival success. Genuinely likable authors who reach out to people sell more books than those who just sit back and wait for the sale.
• Freebies and samples can raise your sales quota. Authors who offer something for free or who serve food treats, for example, can attract a crowd and sometimes sell more books.

If you’re an author with one or more books to sell, try setting up a booth (or share a booth) at a local book festival or flea market. Watch the calendar section in the county newspaper to find such events. Contact the Chamber of Commerce in other cities to see if they have book festivals scheduled during the year. Go to the Directory of Book Fairs at http://www.lights.com/publisher/bookfairs.html

Check out my article on “How to Work a Book Festival so it Works for You,” at http://www.matilijapress.com/articles/promo_bookFestival.htm

If you have a stalled or failing book and you feel like giving up the whole authorship thing, stop—read my new ebook, first. Let The Author’s Repair Kit breathe new life into your book.
http://www.matilijapress.com/author_repairkit.html

Promote Your Book at Book Festivals

Monday, April 28th, 2008

I’m back from the big Los Angeles Times Festival of Books. SPAWN had a large booth where some of our members displayed and sold their books to a crowd of around 150,000. (SPAWN is Small Publishers, Artists and Writers Network) http://www.spawn.org

People came out to the festival, which was held at UCLA, despite the fact that temps were in the 90s. They came to buy books and to meet their favorite authors and other celebs such as Valerie Bertinelli, Mary Higgins Clark, Michael Connolley, Sandra Dijkstra (literary agent), Maxine Hong Kingston, Dr. Laura Schlesinger, Jonathon Kirsch and Tommy Lasorda.

Is a book festival a good place for an author to sell books? Well, yes and no—sometimes and sometimes not so much. Some books sell and others just sit there. Your book will do better at some festivals than at others. Some festivals attract serious readers/book buyers and some draw lookiloos with nothing else to do on a sunny Sunday afternoon; and many of whom left their wallets at home.

I attend several book festivals each year and I’m always experimenting with booth design and sales approach. I observe other authors and I attempt to discover their secrets to bookselling success. Here’s what I’ve learned:

• You really must have an appealing and/or interesting cover. This weekend, the favored book was one that pictured dolphins swimming in vivid blue ocean water.
• A title can be a draw for some people. The book most picked up in our booth without solicitation was one containing the word “Halloween” in the title.
• Your booth should have a theme. I sell many more copies of my books on writing and publishing from the SPAWN booth than I do if I join others in a generic, no-theme booth. People come to the SPAWN booth looking for help, advice, information, etc. about writing and publishing.
• People will gravitate toward an attractively designed booth. Large interesting posters, a generous bouquet of flowers and tasteful decorations related to the theme of your book, etc. will definitely catch people’s eyes.
• Personality plays an important part in book festival success. Genuinely likable authors who reach out to people sell more books than those who just sit back and wait for the sale.
• Freebies and samples can raise your sales quota. Authors who offer something for free or who serve food treats, for example, can attract a crowd and sometimes sell more books.

If you’re an author with one or more books to sell, try setting up a booth (or share a booth) at a local book festival or flea market. Watch the calendar section in the county newspaper to find such events. Contact the Chamber of Commerce in other cities to see if they have book festivals scheduled during the year. Go to the Directory of Book Fairs at http://www.lights.com/publisher/bookfairs.html

Check out my article on “How to Work a Book Festival so it Works for You,” at http://www.matilijapress.com/articles/promo_bookFestival.htm

If you have a stalled or failing book and you feel like giving up the whole authorship thing, stop—read my new ebook, first. Let The Author’s Repair Kit breathe new life into your book.
http://www.matilijapress.com/author_repairkit.html

The Publishing Expert is Still Learning

Friday, April 25th, 2008

I’m a little late getting the blog up this morning because I’ve been on the air. Yes, I recorded a podcast for Philip Harris over at the author promotion site, Author’s On the Net http://www.authorsonthenet.com
I’ll let you know when it goes live. How does this work? I just chatted with Philip and answered some questions by phone—in my robe and slippers.

Being interviewed is quite an interesting process. My goal, in doing these things, is to teach and inform the listener, but I always end up learning something along the way. Some of what I learn comes from what I say or what thoughts occur to me during the process of speaking. I think this is something we all experience. That’s why talking your concerns, worries, fears out with someone else or writing them down can be so valuable. When you hear those words or see them in black and white (or purple and yellow, if you choose), you are more apt to own them and you can see the situation in a slightly different light.

So what did I learn from my interview today? I learned that Puss and Boots (Sophie and Max) will actually respect a closed door, although they are no longer speaking to me since I locked them out of my office. I think they have a little nose-bent-out-of-shape-itis. I learned that people who drive loud trucks know when a neighbor (me) is on a business call. I discovered that the finches at the feeder outside my office window do the cutest things when I’m trying to concentrate.

But I also learned that I have truly gathered a treasure-trove of information and perspective that can greatly help hopeful and struggling authors over these 35 years. Yes, there, I said it—I have been writing for publication, not for “over 30 years,” but for exactly 35 years. You read articles and books on writing and publishing by authors who claim they’ve been writing for 10 years or 4 years. You visit websites where the hosts say they’ve been involved in publishing for 6 years or even 15 years. I guess this makes me a relic. But I can tell you, I am a working relic in this world and I have been writing/publishing consecutively for a whopping 35 years—since I was a uh-hem…a teenager… Yeah, right!

Sometimes it amazes me to realize how much I have experienced within the writing/publishing realm over the years. One question Philip asked me was, “How do you find the time to write so many books?” I responded, “It’s what I do.” My life is and always has been about writing and publishing. It’s how I earn my living. It’s my passion. And an aspect of that passion is to help others enter into and manage the world of publishing and to succeed unscathed.

How do I help others? Through my books, articles, online courses and lectures. If you know someone who is thinking about entering into the world of publishing—they writing a book or talking about writing a book—tell them about my book. I wrote it specifically for them: The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book. http://www.matilijapress.com/rightway.html

Do you know someone with a book that isn’t selling very well. Point them in my direction. Tell them about this blog. And certainly suggest that they order my newest ebook, The Author’s Repair Kit. http://www.matilijapress.com/author_repairkit.html

I thank you and he or she will thank you.

In the meantime, here’s a blog you might find interesting. J.T. Ellison wrote this eye-opening (for some) blog entry this morning called, How to Avoid Scams. It’s directed to the author. http://murderati.typepad.com April 25, 2008 entry.

I will not post a blog for the next two days as I’ll be in Los Angeles. Yup, this is the weekend we’ve all been waiting for: The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books. I’ll be in SPAWN booth both Saturday and Sunday talking to authors and hopeful authors. If you’re in the neighborhood of UCLA, stop by our booth: #142.

Freelance Writers’ Job Sites

Thursday, April 24th, 2008

My Freelance Article Writing Course is in full swing. The first lecture and lesson was presented yesterday. It’s not too late to join in. http://www.matilijapress.com/course_magarticles.htm

One student asked about finding online writing work, so I did some research and came up with a few resources for online writing as well as print magazine writing. They are listed below. I also suggested that she locate additional opportunities by doing a Google search. (I always like to empower my students and clients by giving them the tools to do their own research, editing, etc.)

In order to pursue a successful Google search for writing opportunities on the web, use keywords such as, “web writing jobs” “writing for the web” “paying web jobs” “directory of freelance web writing jobs,” and so forth.

In the meantime, here are some sites that list jobs for freelance writers. Most of them include web and other online writing work as well as jobs for print publications.

http://www.sunoasis.com/freelance.html
(I reported this in the May edition of the SPAWN Market Update. When I visited their site 2 weeks ago, they listed 120 jobs for writers. It’s FREE.

Wooden Horse Publications has a database of paying markets for print magazines. You can take a peek at the database for $1.99 (for 24 hours). They also offer entry for 7 days, 30 days, 6 months and a year. The annual fee is $149.00. Wooden Horse does something few sites do, they provide editorial calendars for many of their listings.
http://www.woodenhorsepub.com

Writer’s Market has a similar print magazine database and it runs $29.95/year. http://www.writersmarket.com

Here are a few additional sites where you can find writing job opportunities. Most of them also include web gigs and most of them are FREE.

http://www.freelancewritinggigs.com/category/writing-gigs
http://www.poewar.com/web-jobs
http://www.getafreelancer.com
http://www.craigslist.org

Angela Booth has a site about writing for magazines and the web. She has a free ezine that you might find useful.
http://fabfreelancewriting.com/ezine/fab-freelance-writing-ezine.html

Angela Booth has a book about writing for the web. It’s $47.00.
http://www.abmagic.com/Web_Write/Web_write.html

Remember, too, that the SPAWN Market Update (posted in the member area of the SPAWN website each month along with archives from about 6 years), carries job opportunities both print and online for freelance writers in every issue. Join SPAWN by going to http://www.spawn.org and clicking on Join SPAWN Now. It’s $45/year.

By the way, SPAWN is offering affiliate discounts. If you belong to a regional publishing organization, talk to your leaders about affiliating with SPAWN so that you can get a discount when you join SPAWN. We’ll announce our latest affiliates May 15. But let me give you an advance preview. Does PWDS sound familiar—yes, it’s the Publishers and Writers of San Diego. Starting May 15, members of PWSD can join SPAWN for $35 AND get their choice of free books/ebooks.

Barbara Florio Graham of Simon Teakettle, just completed a workshop in Canada on
“How to Promote Your Book or Your Business.” She said it was a huge success.
She said that 30 of the 34 participants rated the workshop excellent (or the equivalent, such as “super,” “fascinating,” “superb.”) Others used terms like “worthwhile” or “informative.”

Bobbi, a long-time SPAWN member, reported that, “One of the people I quoted was our own Patricia Fry, and her brochures and business cards were in the kits.”

Bobbie is selling a 30-pages notes package at her website, in case you’re interested: http://www.simonteakettle.com

If you are a freelance article writer or would like to be, sign up for my article-writing course today. I will guide you in jump-starting your career or show you how to supplement your income through article-writing. http://www.matilijapress.com/course-magarticles.htm

And order your copy of A Writer’s Guide to Magazine Articles TODAY. http://www.matilijapress.com/writingpage.html It’s only $6.50 and could help you earn thousands by the end of 2008.

Something For Every Writer and Author

Wednesday, April 23rd, 2008

Peter Bowerman, of Well Fed Writer-fame, has a new blog and it’s getting a lot of attention. He allows comments and he gets a lot of them. Check it out at http://www.wellfedwriter.com/blog

I would like to allow comments here. I did for quite a while, but I was so busy deleting spam all the time, and no one was commenting, anyway, so I asked my webmaster to have the comments option turned off. I do, however, provide my website address in practically every blog entry (through which you can easily contact me) and I frequently give you my email address. I do welcome and invite legitimate comments.

I get random questions from random people every week. Yesterday, a “virtual assistant” contacted me with a question about locating sites where her author could list her books and tapes. Here’s what I told her:

“Hopefully, your author wrote a book proposal before coming out with her book. Or at least, hopefully, she researched her competition. If she is familiar with competing books, she can find out how those authors are marketing their books—where they are showcasing them, where they are getting reviews and so forth.

Do a Google search using the titles of competing books and tapes as the keywords and see where they pop up in blogs, at review sites, in magazines, etc. This will give your author an idea about where to begin promoting hers.

Where did she go for information when researching her book/tapes? Revisit these sites, magazines, newsletters and see if she can get interviewed there, have her book reviewed, get her book listed for sale at these sites…

Talk to others with books on these topics and ask what their best promotional ploys are. Most authors are happy to develop a mutually advantageous network.

Look at the calendar and press sections at other author’s sites to see where they are speaking, where their books are for sale, where they are getting interviewed…”

Hopefully, this gave the virtual assistant some ideas about where to start and will lead to some good exposure for her author.

I’ve also recently been asked how to find paying work on the web. Does anyone out there have any ideas? Those local to Ventura County may have seen the article in the Ventura County Star this week about getting web writing gigs. Let me know if you have additional information that I can pass on to my clients, blog followers, students and others. PLFry620@yahoo.com.

In the meantime, what are you working on these days? Are you focused on writing a book? Seeking freelance article work? Trying to place stories in magazines? Doing corporate or client writing? Trying to land a newspaper or magazine column? Promoting a book? How’s it going?

If you need help in any of these areas—some ideas, encouragement, solid resources, instruction, information—be sure to check out my array of books at http://www.matilijapress.com

Here are my best sellers: The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book (enormously, incredibly rich in information, instruction and resources), The Successful Writer’s Handbook, (a great choice for someone getting his/her feet wet in the writing business), How to Write a Successful Book Proposal in 8 Days or Less (a stand-alone book on writing a book proposal), The Author’s Repair Kit (featuring the post-publication book proposal—for authors with books that are faltering in the marketplace), Over 75 Good Ideas for Promoting Your Book (my all-time best seller at Amazon), A Writer’s Guide to Magazine Articles (for the freelance writer who wants to earn a living or supplement his income through article-writing).

Note: You can get The Successful Writer’s Handbook or How to Write a Successful Book Proposal in 8 Days or Less in print or digital form FREE with a SPAWN membership or renewal. http://www.spawn.org At least sign up for the FREE enewsletter, SPAWNews.

And don’t forget, yesterday I started a 6-week online (email) article-writing course. It’s not too late to join in. http://www.matilijapress.com/course_magarticles.htm Contact me with questions: PLFry620@yahoo.com

Learn How to Get Your Articles Published

Tuesday, April 22nd, 2008

My online article-writing course starts today. I’m excited. I enjoy working with budding freelance writers who are seeking direction, guidance, discipline, tools and skills toward a career as a freelance article writer or to supplement their income or promote their books.

The 6-week course starts today (April 22, 2008). If you’re reading this even during the week of the 28th, however, and want to participate, it isn’t too late. Sign up at http://www.matilijapress.com/course_magarticles.htm

It’s $125 for the six weeks. You will receive a lecture and an assignment each Tuesday morning and you can contact me for comments on your work and/or guidance. Learn more about how my online courses work at http://www.matilijapress.com/course_howwork.htm

I offer additional courses on demand, as well. This means that you can sign up for any consecutive 6 or 8 week period. Learn how to set up your own publishing company (Self-Publishing Course), write a successful book proposal, or enroll in the book promotion workshop. Wherever you are in your publishing or writing process, I have a course for you. http://matilijapress.com/courses.htm

During this 6 week period I’ll be concentrating on article-writing with students—some of them new to the world of article-writing and some of them familiar, only maybe stuck or stalled. While some of them want to create a business writing articles for a living, others hope to simply supplement their incomes. I had hoped to entice folks who want to promote their books through article-writing because this is an excellent way to gain exposure for your book, build your credibility among your audience and earn a little (or a lot of) money along the way.

As many of you know, I’ve been writing articles for magazines for over 30 years. I started my writing career by writing magazine articles. I supported myself solely through article-writing for many years. And I can tell you that there are some misconceptions about this field.

Fallacy: Many writers believe there are only the major magazines and that’s what these writers focus on when they consider submitting an article or story.

Truth: There are thousands of magazines, newsletters and websites that pay for freelance work and some, seemingly, insignificant, small niche magazines pay pretty well. I did not make my living writing for Reader’s Digest, Ladies Home Journal or Woman’s Day. I earned my way through magazines that many of you may have never heard of: The World and I, Columbia, Communications Briefings, The Toastmaster, The Walking Magazine, ASPCA Animal Watch, Technology and Learning and American Health for Women, for example.

Fallacy: Freelance writers think they must get really creative or know someone in the editorial offices in order to land writing work.

Truth: All they have to do is to make a professional presentation offering something the editor can use within the correct word length, format, style, time-frame. Always read each magazine’s Submission Guidelines and adhere to them.

Fallacy: Magazine editors are difficult to work with, they don’t pay for the articles they’ve accepted and they never return your emails or phone calls.

Truth: Well, actually, this is true for some editors, but very few. If you behave as a professional, from your demeanor when contacting them to pure excellence in your submission, you will, for the most part, be treated with respect. Always read each magazine’s Submission Guidelines and adhere to them. (Are you noticing a theme here?)

I hope a few more of you will join us for the article-writing course. In the meantime, keep writing. Questions? Contact me at: PLFry620@yahoo.com

How Do You Sell Books Through a Spam Filter?

Monday, April 21st, 2008

Those Annoying Spam Filters
Don’t spam filters drive you batty? I think I dislike spam filters more than I dislike spam—and that’s a lot. No, I’m not a spammer. The reason why I hate the filter programs is because they interfere with the transmission of legitimate email. Because you don’t want to bother with deleting unwanted email, I must take the time to jump through your hoops in order to communicate with you EVEN WHEN YOU INITIATED THE CONNECTION.

It happened again this morning, a customer placed an order for my ebook, The Author’s Repair Kit at Matilija Press (thank you very much). When I attempted to send the ebook, however, I immediately received a response stating that I had to click on a link, sign up and copy some silly letters and numbers before this person would agree to accept my email—which included the PDF file for the ebook that he ordered!!!

Folks, even when you expect a message, it sometimes comes from an email address that your system is not familiar with.

When I see an author or hopeful author use this sort of system, I cringe. Why? Because the chances are that they will miss some great opportunities. For example,

• Someone reads about your book and wants to review it.
• An events organizer wants to invite you to speak about your book.
• A bookseller wants to order books.
• A potential customer has a question.
• An editor or blogger wants to interview you.

How many of these people might decide not to click on that link and go through the extra trouble to reach you?

What’s the alternative? Allow spam to collect in your spam box and delete those that you can identify as spam.

When to and When Not to Delete
Some authors delete everything that lands in their spam box. This is not a good idea either. Sometimes I find a real gem among the stones of spam—a treasured new client, a friend or colleague I often communicate with via email (how they land in the spam box, I’ll never know), an author seeking information or a potential customer with a question.

Because of this, I look at the name and subject line of each of the 150 or 200 emails I receive in my spam box every day before deleting them. And every day, I find something of value there. This is where Angela Hoy’s Writer’s Weekly Newsletter lands, for some reason. This is where I’ve found some of my favorite clients. This is where I’ve discovered some marvelous opportunities related to my career.

So my message today is, if you want your book to be noticed or if you are trying to establish a business,

• Don’t chase away a percentage of your potential customers/clients through an unfriendly spam filter. Make it easy for these people to get to you.

• Don’t indiscriminately delete, delete, delete that spam.

The All Important Subject Line
And, while we’re on the subject, pay attention to the subject line. Keeping in mind that everyone receives a lot of spam every day, when you contact someone who doesn’t know you, make sure that your subject line message is crystal clear—or it just flat might be deleted.

Let’s say that you are emailing me for the first time (I don’t know who you are) with a question about getting your book reviewed. If you type the following in your subject line, it is likely that I will overlook it: “Question.” “Please Help me.” “Review?” or, heaven forbid, you leave the subject line blank.

On the other hand, if you type, “Question about getting my book reviewed,” “How can I get book reviews,” “Author with a question,” or “Book review question,” for example, I will open your email, and I’ll respond to your question.

I’d love to hear your opinion on email spam blockers. Do you use them? Why? Do you avoid the process of getting approved by someone else’s spam blocker? I’m taking a poll. Talk to me. PLFry620@yahoo.com. (No spam blocker here.)

And if you like this blog, you will definitely LOVE my book, The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book. Order your copy now at http://www.matilijapress.com/rightway.html

Successful Book Launch

Sunday, April 20th, 2008

Well, I witnessed it with my own eyes—what appears, from every angle, to have been a successful book launch.

Virginia Lawrence, Executive Director of SPAWN, and I attended Diana Zimmerman’s book launch event at Storyopolis, yesterday. Storyopolis is a magnificent store filled with books and art projects for kids. If you live in Southern California and have children or a book for the young set, you must check this place out.

And if you want to have a successful book launch, you really ought to do what Diana Zimmerman did. First, she wrote an amazing fantasy book, Kandide and the Secret of the Mists; The Calabiyau Chronicles. Maxine Gadd of Australia did the beautiful artwork and Lance Burton, Internationally acclaimed magician, along with S. Earl Statler, critic correspondent for The Los Angeles Newspaper Group wrote glowing testimonials. Burton says, “Kandide is pure magic” and, according to Statler, “Kandide gives its readers one captivating, enthralling adventure after another.” Sigfried, Las Vegas Magic Superstar says, “Kandide is a magical journey into a world full of wonder, suspense and hope.” Learn more about the book at http://www.noesispublishing.com or http://www.kandide.com

Diana made another good move by hiring a book editor. Guess who? That’s right, I had the privilege of editing this wonderful juvenile fantasy. And then Diana hired a public relations company, Bruce Merrin Public Relations, http://www.celebrityspeakersentertainment.com

I venture to guess that between Merrin’s promotional efforts and Diana’s connections, creativity and hard work, they drew around 50 people to the debut of Kandide and the Secret of the Mists. And since many people were purchasing multiple copies, they could have conceivably sold 50 books or more. Our group of four went home with 7 copies of Kandide.

So how did Diana and her PR company pull off such a successful book launch? First, I’m certain that they issued invitations to everyone in Diana’s email list, Rolodex, personal address book and Christmas card list. And their invitation was quite intriguing. Here’s what they promised: Meet the author for a lively presentation and book signing, be mystified by Magic Castle Magicians, win Brunch for 4 at the Magic Castle, participate with actors in live performance, join composer/singer, Jeannie Cunningham in a rollicking great song performing the national anthem for the story’s imaginary city, view a screening of the Kandide book trailer, Play Kandide’s “Attack of the Garglans” video game, see Kandide’s original illustrations by Maxine Gadd, take home a “Vanishing Garglan” magic trick.

Now does that sound like fun for kids and adults or what? And it was!! Magicians were wandering through the store performing some of the most amazing tricks. We watched a super creative trailer (video) depicting the story. We enjoyed a reading by 3 entertaining actors, including one of the book’s junior editors. We were tapping our toes and clapping our hands as Jeannie belted out the Calabiyau National Anthem, which she also wrote. And Diana made each person, especially the children, feel special, indeed, as she chatted with them while signing their copies of her book.

Hopefully, this will give you some ideas for your book launch. Here are my suggestions in a nutshell:

• Hire the best PR company or book publicist you can afford.

• Create the atmosphere and bring in entertainment that relate to the theme of your book.

• Hold your event where there is plenty of room and parking.

• Solicit the help of several friends, colleagues, family, etc. Assign them tasks such as, MC for the evening, entertainment, refreshments and valet parking (if the event is held in someone’s home, for example).

• Hold a raffle and/or promise give-aways.

And don’t stop with just one book launch or book signing. Move from city to city and county to county spreading the word about your magnificent book and inviting the community to come celebrate with you.

For more on book signings, including a timeline, as well as many other book promotion ideas, order your copy of The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book. http://www.matilijapress.com/rightway.html

And be sure to sign up NOW for my online Article-Writing course which starts Tuesday, April 22, 2008. http://www.matilijapress.com/courses.htm