Writing and Publishing News

In the last two blog posts, we discussed publishing options and how to choose the right one for you and your project. I provided an enormous amount of information, gave you some valuable tools and shared many insights to help you make good decisions on behalf of your book. However, I know that some of you are still confused, unsure and downright scared to move forward. Others are focused in a certain direction—ready to make the plunge and unwilling to hear anything that might detract from that.

This blog is for authors on both sides of the fence.

I talk to and counsel many hopeful authors every year. Some of them succeed even beyond their highest expectations. But most of them, sooner or later, walk away from their publishing dreams. To give you some perspective, over the last 5 years, I’ve edited 30 books and only 13 of them have been published. And all 13 of these books are considered a success because they have all met the authors’ expectations. Three are personal memoirs produced for family members and friends; four are selling well in small niche markets (as planned); and six of them are doing quite well. Why? Because the authors are making it happen. They had knowledge, realistic expectations, a strong commitment to the success of their projects and a sense of follow-through. The authors of the other 17 books I edited dropped the ball. Some of them have wonderful books. And, even with my counseling, they just couldn’t get it together enough to follow their dreams through the publishing maze.

Why do some authors succeed and others fail? How do some manage to make the right decisions and others do not? Here are 15 things I’ve observed about those who succeed:

1: They begin to educate themselves about the publishing industry early on and keep on learning.
2: They open their minds. They really want to know more about the competition, the industry and how their books will fit in.
3: They look outside of themselves for guidance, and follow up with their own research.
4: They remain committed, but flexible.
5: They do not form unreasonable attachments to their projects.
6: They have reasonable expectations based on knowledge, not dreams.
7: They use their heads more often than their hearts.
8: They do not fear or resent having to make changes that could benefit their projects.
9: They face challenges rather than trying to skirt them.
10: They take responsibility for their projects instead of relying on others.
11: They write book proposals for their projects.
12: They take the marketing role seriously.
13: They start grooming themselves early for the promotional tasks.
14: They never stop researching and learning about publishing and marketing.
15: They make only educated decisions on behalf of their books, not emotional ones.

Does this describe you? Are you well acquainted with how the publishing industry works? Are you comfortable with the learning curve? Can you look at your book project objectively—as a product rather than a piece of your heart? Are you willing to do what it takes to produce and promote your book or are you attached to doing things your way?

If you are new to publishing or if you have a published book that isn’t doing well, maybe this blog post has opened up some thought processes that will help you to create the level of success you desire.

The one thing you MUST own is the fact that your book is your responsibility. No one else can make the decisions for you. It’s up to you to gather the information you need in order to succeed. You are the one responsible for creating a salable product. You are in charge of your destiny as a published author. Don’t short change your project by skimping on the necessities of publishing success.

If you need help getting started or getting free of the quagmire you’ve already created for yourself, contact me at PLFry620@yahoo.com. Read my book, The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book http://www.matilijapress.com/rightway.html

Also, consider joining SPAWN (Small Publishers, Artists and Writers Network) http://www.spawn.org. At SPAWN, we don’t tell you what to do or how to do it, but we provide you with everything you need in order to make the best decision on behalf of your particular project.

Yesterday, we explored your publishing options. Are you convinced about which one is right for you? Or are you still unsure about the option to choose?

It’s a difficult decision for any author. Yet, hopeful authors frequently ask me to make that choice for them.

When they ask me, “Which publishing option is best?” I respond, “It depends on your project and it depends on you (your goals and your ultimate purpose for your book).”

So they ask me, “Which one should I go with?” I remind them of their options. I suggest that they review the pros and cons of each option, reconsider their purpose for the book and their goals and then make their choice based on this. Of course, they must also be painfully realistic. It is unlikely that a narrow niche book will interest a major publisher. A memoir by an unknown is generally not going to be a New York Times bestseller, thus probably of no interest to Random House.

Likewise, if you have no intentions of or ability to promote your book once it’s produced, you might as well give up the idea of landing any size traditional royalty publisher. But why spend the money to have a book published at all if you aren’t going to promote it?

Let’s go at this topic from a different angle.

Who should approach the major traditional royalty publishers?

• Those who have studied the publishing industry and understand its competitive nature.

• Those who have researched dozens of books similar to theirs so they know what’s out there and what’s selling.

• Those who have read those dozens of books so they recognize good writing.

• Those with extraordinarily good novels that have passed an evaluation by a publishing professional and have been professionally edited.

• Those with a well-written, professionally edited nonfiction book on a cutting edge subject or with a new, interesting, useful twist on an evergreen topic. Something that is needed/desired by a large audience and that has not been overdone.

• Those who are committed to marketing their books and who have the ideas, connections, time and energy to promote, promote, promote.

Who should seek out some of the hundreds of smaller publishing houses?

• Those encompassing the criteria above, but who have been turned down by the majors.

• Those with excellent books that, perhaps, have a smaller audience.

• Niche books. Approach a publisher who specializes for your books related to academics, history, art, biography, travel, business, astrology, religion or hiking, for example.

Who should self-publish (establish their own publishing company)?

• Those who will take the time to study the publishing industry before getting involved.

• Those with excellent nonfiction books on marketable topics in areas of their expertise.

• Those who understand their niche and the audience.

• Those who are committed to the huge task of producing and marketing their books.

• Those with connections, ideas, energy, money and time to promote their books.
Who should go with a fee-based, “self-publishing” (vanity) company?

• Those who study the publishing industry before getting involved.

• Those who will learn everything they can about this branch of the industry and who will understand the various offerings and contracts.

• Those who have realistic expectations.

• Those with books fitting into a narrow niche.

• Those with books of interest to friends and family only.

• Those who, if they want to sell a lot of books, are willing and able to promote their books.

• Those who don’t have the willingness or ability to promote their books and who have only the most realistic expectations with regard to book sales. (Your book won’t sell if you aren’t promoting it.)

Who should produce an ebook?

• Those who have studied the publishing industry.
• Those who want to test the waters with their books.
• Those who want to offer the ebook option for their customers.
• Those with the willingness to promote their ebooks.

I hope this puts things in perspective for you and helps you to make that huge decision you’ve been contemplating. If only you can look at your project realistically—from the publisher’s point of view (he’s in the BUSINESS of selling book) and the reader’s (know what people are reading). And, before making any choice (even before you write that book), honestly answer these two questions:

• What is the purpose of this book?
• Why am I writing it?

Your next assignment is to read The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book. The earlier in the process, the better. Order it here:
http://www.matilijapress.com/rightway.html

This book is designed to educate hopeful authors about the publishing industry, their publishing options, the possible consequences of their choices and their responsibilities as published authors. It will help you to make the hard decisions and to adopt realistic expectations and perspectives. And if you are already published and you have questions about distribution, wholesalers, working with booksellers, getting book reviews, writing a press release, bookkeeping for authors, how to work with Amazon.com, the steps to self-publishing and book promotion ideas, for example, this book addresses it all.

Need an editor? Want a manuscript evaluation? Contact me at PLFry620@yahoo.com.

You’ve been working diligently for months on your amazing manuscript. Finally, you’re nearing the finish line. The book is almost completed. Now what? How will you go about getting it published?

I make sure that my editing clients know their options early on. You should, too. They are:

1: You can approach a traditional royalty publisher. There are more than the famous big 6 publishers and their subsidiaries. There are actually hundreds of smaller traditional royalty publishers seeking good projects. And many of them prefer to work without the involvement of an agent.

The traditional publisher chooses book projects and authors that he wants to invest in. His bottom line goes beyond whether or not your book is well-written. He is interested in making a profit and he needs to know that you can and will participate in making that happen.

You do not pay the traditional publisher. He puts up the money to produce your book and he pays you usually 7 to 15 percent royalties on books sold. When you contract with a publisher, you become part of a team. He will do some promotion, but it is your responsibility to use whatever celebrity, credibility, creativity, contacts and/or skills you have to promote and market your book.

2: You can self-publish. Self-publishing means that you set up your own publishing company. You design the book and cover (or hire someone to do it). You choose a printing company and pay for printing, the ISBN, the bar code, etc. You make all of the decisions, pay all the bills and reap all of the profits. You are also totally responsible for promoting your book. It could cost anywhere from $3,000 to $25,000 to produce a book.

3: You can create an ebook. An ebook or even a comb bound or saddle stitched hard copy produced at a business center might be a good way to test the waters with your amazing book. If you get a lot of positive feedback from reviewers, booksellers and other strangers, it might be worthwhile to go ahead and approach publishers or to invest in your project and self-publish.

4: You can go with a fee-based, POD, “self-publishing” company, such as AuthorHouse, iUniverse, BookPros, Infinity, etc. You pay their fees and get any variety of services. Most authors today use these companies to produce their books and more and more of them are walking away extremely disappointed, disillusioned and broke. This is not necessarily because the company ran a scam. It is because the author did not take the time to truly learn about the publishing industry, his options, the possible consequences of his choices and his responsibilities as a published author.

Secondly, few authors actually understand the contract they signed. They read, for example, “We will make your book available to booksellers nationwide.” And they interpret it to mean that their book will be in major bookstores nationwide. No! This simply means that if a bookseller comes along and asks for a book like this one, the “self-publishing” company will tell them about yours. Believe me, this is NOT going to happen.

Where the big problem comes in, even with the most reputable “self-publishing” company, is that the book costs so much to produce that the author goes in the hole if he wants to make an agreement with a bookseller. With shipping charges on top of the purchase price for his books, he can’t even afford to sell books at book fairs, for example. There is a fee for a booth, you know.

Sign with a “self-publishing” company only after studying the publishing industry so you understand how things work and after having a copyright or intellectual properties attorney explain the contract to you. And then work with YOUR editor and publishing consultant to make sure that your manuscript is in perfect publishing shape before signing any contract.

Whether your manuscript is horribly flawed or professionally edited, the publisher will recommend that their editorial staff edit your manuscript. Most authors say that the “editing” service amounts to nothing more than a quick proofreading.

Read more about your publishing options and the pros and cons of each in The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book. http://www.matilijapress.com/rightway.html You’ll also learn more about the publishing industry and how it works. And we all know how important education is.

Contact me for a free editorial evaluation of the first 25 pages of your book. PLFry620@yahoo.com.

Yesterday, I wrote about how authors sometimes join organizations and they don’t fully participate. They miss the point of the organization and neglect to become involved in (or even aware of) all of the offerings that could possibly benefit them and their publishing projects. I want to continue with that theme today.

Of course, this occurs within every club, association and group. There are people who join without truly understanding the premise of and the offerings of the organization. Some of them want a specific benefit: to get feedback for their manuscripts, to land a publisher, to sell more books… When they don’t get what they want from the group, they typically blame the organizers for failing them.

In reality, some have joined the wrong organization. This may be an organization that does not offer what they want/need. Others join the right one, only they don’t know how to tap into the information and resources they need. They expect their questions to be succinctly addressed in some automatic fashion just because they are members. Some don’t even know the right questions to ask in order to get the answers they need. And, unfortunately, even when they are presented with the answers they need, they don’t recognize them, so they reject them.

Here’s an example: Jonathan joins ABC organization because he wants to know how to go about getting his manuscript published. He is presented with newsletter articles and he is encouraged to visit the archives to locate earlier articles and resources related to publishing. He has the opportunity to communicate with other authors and publishers through an online forum and he is told about books featuring the basics of publishing, but he doesn’t have (or take) the time to pursue any of these things to any degree. Finally, one day he sends an email to the executive director of the organization asking how to get a book published.

She explains that becoming published is generally a process that takes some understanding of the publishing industry, enormous specific preparation and plenty of involvement. Then she points him in the direction of some excellent resources, recommends that he write a book proposal and, when he is ready, suggests that he attends a writers’ conference where agents and publishers are present. She puts the ball in his court, where it belongs and he fumbles.

If he writes back at all, he might say, “Thank you for your time, but all I want to know is how to find a publisher for my book.” He wants to transition from the craft of writing to the business of publishing without a proper introduction. He doesn’t understand what I tell you periodically, that publishing is not an automatic extension of your writing. You can’t move from writer to published author easily, uniformly and without a major shift in your perspective and your activities.

So you can see how an organization may not benefit someone with preconceived ideas about what he or she needs and a tightly slammed shut mind.

If you are on the brink of joining a club or organization, please do so with your eyes wide open. Know what your ultimate goal is, of course (developing a salable manuscript, getting your book published, selling more books, establishing a career as a freelance writer…), but take some time to understand what you need in order to achieve this. Once you know what your responsibilities are in the process and what the steps toward success entail, you will be more well-prepared to choose the right organization.

One way to make the right choice is to know who its members are. Are they mainly authors—at what stage or level? Are they freelance writers? Are they hopeful authors still working on their manuscripts? An organization with members who have aspirations and accomplishments similar to yours will most likely address your specific concerns in their materials.

Study the website and/or the material coming from this organization. Does it include plenty of information and resources related to your situation? Without having done some preliminary research, you might not actually know what you need. So I strongly urge you to attend a course related to your interest (publishing, freelance writing, etc.). Read at least one good book on the subject. Join a local writers’ club and listen to what the guest speakers and members are talking about.

And for goodness sakes, once you decide to join, partake of the benefits. They will do you no good unless you do.

An organization rarely fails its members. It’s the members who fail themselves by not preparing themselves properly for the field of their choice and then entering into a membership agreement without doing the appropriate research.

In order to learn more about what is involved in publishing, please read my book, The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book.
http://www.matilijapress.com/rightway.html

If you are interested in knowing more about freelance article-writing, order my $6.50 book, A Writer’s Guide to Magazine Articles
http://www.matilijapress.com/writingpage.html

If you are (or aspire to be) a freelance writer or published author, consider joining SPAWN (Small Publishers, Artists and Writers Network) http://www.spawn.org

And if you have any questions about resources to help you learn more about your field or if you want counsel with regard to which organization is right for you, contact me at PLFry620@yahoo.com.

We all have first impressions. We judge situations, people and organizations and we form opinions based on these judgments and impressions. Sometimes, however, we are wrong. And that’s the focus of my blog post today.

I often question SPAWN members who have decided not to renew. I ask them why they have made this decision. And quite often it is because of their misperceptions about what we offer and who we cater to. “Your members are freelance writers who write for a living,” one woman told me. “I’m an author and I need information about marketing my book.”

Oh my gosh, how could she possibly miss the point that the majority of our members are authors and a huge focus for SPAWN is book marketing. Every newsletter we produce and those in our archives have information and resources related to book promotion. Most of the articles posted at our site are for authors who are facing or involved in marketing a book. How could anyone miss this fact?

Several members have told me that they wanted to find a publisher and that SPAWN wasn’t helpful in this endeavor. Some of them were upset because they had made some poor decisions on behalf of their books. We, here at SPAWN, are fully aware of the multitude of decisions an author must make and we know what authors need most in order to do the right thing by their projects: Education, information and resources. And we provide all of these things in many forms in hopes that our members will recognize it as useful and pursue it. Unfortunately, some authors don’t understand that they must be alert to the sources available, participate, get involved and actively pursue the offerings.

Maybe they see the recommendations and warnings, for example, but choose to ignore them. They believe that these are for meant for others—not them. Some authors hope for explicit guidance directing them to their personal pot of gold. They don’t want to sort through the maze of possibilities. They want someone to show them the quick and easy route to publishing success. Their heads are turned by the folks at the first “self-publishing” company (or fulfillment company or agency) who issue them a contract. And, not only do they read what they want to read into the contract, they believe the verbal promises. When things go bad, they figure that SPAWN failed them.

In reality, they failed themselves. If these authors were to backtrack, they may realize that everything—EVERYTHING—they needed in order to experience publishing success, was in-their-face available through SPAWN. Let’s examine what opportunities these members might have missed—in fact, dissed:

• They didn’t even read the free gift book they received when they joined SPAWN.

• They didn’t read some of the books we’ve reviewed for SPAWNews even though they contained information that might have helped them avoid several mistakes.

• They didn’t take the time to read the SPAWN Market Update each month (for members only), nor did they use the nifty search function to seek information in our massive archives.

• When they did read or scan the Market Update, they neglected to heed the warnings and recommendations or to pursue the information we offer.

• They didn’t take seriously the wisdom in any of the articles they happened to read at the website, in SPAWNews or in the SPAWN Market Update.

• When they were uncertain about a company, agency, publisher or distributor, for example, they didn’t bother to check them out using the warning sites we provide.

• They signed contracts based on verbal promises instead of seeking legal advice as we recommend. (We also list low and no cost sites offering legal advice for authors.)

• They didn’t use SPAWNDiscuss (to communicate with other members), nor did they contact the professionals at SPAWN when they had a question or concern about a pending decision. And when they did—and they didn’t like the answer (too much work), they disregarded it and chose to make mistakes, instead.

The fact is, there are no magic potions or wands that will help you to succeed as a published author, a candy maker, a boot repairman, an investor or anything else. In all cases, it takes knowledge in order to make the right decisions and choices. And that’s the piece of the puzzle that is missing for many authors who fail. They just didn’t educate themselves about the industry and their responsibilities within it. They didn’t acknowledge the variety of options or learn the possible consequences of their choices. They joined SPAWN hoping for a quick and sure entrance to publishing success and experienced, instead, heartbreak.

If you have a book in the works or you’re promoting one and you are ready to take advantage of an enormous resource in SPAWN, join now at http://spawn.org Click on “Join SPAWN Now.” If you are a renewing member, click on “Renew Now.” If you’d like to start out slowly and just subscribe to our free monthly SPAWNews (which is separate from the SPAWN Market Update), click on “Free Newsletter.”

Did you attend my Open House for Writers and Authors, yet? Did you visit my updated website? What do you think? If you’re a writer and/or author, you’ll especially discover value at my “For Writers” pages. There, you will find “Words for Writers” with 13 tidbits of information such as, “The Art of Shipping Books,” “Clean Up Your Muddy Writing,” “The Anatomy of an Online Class,” “Don’t Write that Book…,” “Surefire Ways to Get Your Book Proposal Rejected,” “Watch Out For Burnout,” etc. http://www.matilijapress.com/forwriters/wordsforwriters.html

Note: Words for Writers has evolved into this Publishing Blog. I post to this blog site almost every day—so tune in often for fresh advice, perspective, resources, ideas, leads, recommendations and news you can use.

The Resource List at my website now includes around 200 freshly updated entries and links for writers and authors of all genres, disciplines, interests and needs.
http://www.matilijapress.com/forwriters/resources.html

On the articles pages at my website, I have posted over 100 of my articles. Study the 75 or so articles related to writing, publishing and book promotion. But also read some of my articles on business topics, public speaking, health/fitness, children/parenting, animals and more. This will give you an idea of the type of work I’ve been doing for magazines over the years. And it may give you some ideas for approaching some of your favorite topics.
http://www.matilijapress.com/articles.htm

Talented Author, Sandra Cropsey, Writes in Favor of Standardizing Self-Publishing
Congratulations go out to my friend, SPAWN member and talented writer, Sandra J. Cropsey whose article appears in the May 7 edition of Jerry Simmons newsletter, Tips for Writers from the Publishing Insider. The title of her piece is “The State of Publishing: Who You Gonna Call?”

If you have ever questioned the state of self-publishing today and wondered when someone was going to establish some sort of standards for this sub-industry, you’ll find a sense of camaraderie within Sandra’s article. I can’t find a link to this issue at Simmons’ website, so if you want to see this article, contact me and I’ll send it to you. For more articles like this, sign up for Jerry’s free enewsletter at http://www.writersreaders.com

Contact me at PLFry620@yahoo.com for a copy of Sandra’s article. Learn more about this talented writer of children’s books and hilarious novels at http://www.sandracropsey.com Maybe some of you will want to team up with Sandra and other professionals to devise a plan for standardizing self-publishing, somehow. Be sure to include Mark Levine, author of The Fine Print of Self Publishing. He has actually taken a step in that direction with this book. If you are thinking about getting involved with a “self-publishing” company or you are struggling within the boundaries of a contract with one, you MUST read this book. Levine rates, ranks and analyzes 48 “self-publishing” companies—helping authors to set some of their own standards.

Are you a hopeful, new or seasoned author? Are you seeking information and resources to use in accomplishing your publishing goals? You’ve just been given a huge gift and many opportunities in the form of hundreds of resources, perspective and information. Don’t walk away without sampling the offerings.

Patricia Fry is the author of 29 published books, including The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book. Order your copy today and start your journey toward publishing success. http://www.matilijapress.com/rightway.html