Archive for June, 2010

« Older Entries
Newer Entries »

Block Bloggers’ Block

Sunday, June 20th, 2010

So you’ve established a blog related to the theme of your book. Now what? As you understand it, you’re supposed to post something on a fairly regular basis. Yes, everything you read and hear indicates that the more often you post, the more attention you’ll attract to your blog—thus, your book.

But what do you write? How will you come up with interesting, useful material every day or even once a week? As you know, I post to this blog every day. I’ve developed a habit of writing a blog post first thing in the morning after I’ve checked and responded to my email. Here are some of the prompts I use:

1: Pick broad topics from your table of contents. For a book on cat care you can write about bringing a kitten home, items you need for a cat, veterinary care for cats, feeding a cat, cat behavior problems, etc.

2: Use your index to come up with more refined ideas. Should you feed wet or dry food, for example, which cat toys could present a danger, when is it okay to stop getting your cat inoculated, how to kitten-proof your home, which litter is best and why, should your cat go outside, grooming a cat, etc.

3: Cultivate each idea—breaking them into even smaller idea fragments. Cat food recalls, why do cats like feather toys, the 5 most dangerous items for cats that are found in most homes, why choose a natural litter, how to remove a tick from a cat, how to keep your cat off of the counter, which grooming tool is best for your particular cat’s fur and so forth.

4: Write from your research. Continue researching all aspects of cat care. Subscribe to appropriate magazines and newsletters, join cat-related organizations and frequent cat websites and other blogs. Report on breaking news (40 cats rescued from abandoned home), new research findings (cats found to have been domesticated as early as 130,000 years ago), your experiences (my cat survives horrendous accident), your thoughts (why some cats can’t jump) or pop culture (cats of the stars).

5: Share some of your writing/publishing knowledge. You might write about the challenge of promoting a book about cats, book promotion ideas for animal books or resources for animal writers.

In order to continue a blog for months and even years, you have to think pretty much like a freelance article writer. You have to train yourself to see ideas everywhere. Perhaps you see a cat sitting in the back window of a passing car. That ought to spark an idea for a post on traveling with your cat, moving with a cat or how to make your cat more car-friendly.

You’ll want to listen more intently. The story your neighbor tells about dressing her childhood cat and pushing her down the street in a buggy might make the beginnings of a charming blog post. You might overhear someone in the grocery store talking about feeding stray cats. This may prompt you to write a piece on how to start or manage a cat colony.

There really are ideas everywhere. It’s up to you to discover them, dissect them, spin them appropriately, conduct additional research where necessary and use them to entertain, inform and educate your blog followers.

Confession: After over 800 blog posts, I do sometimes stare at a blank screen for a few minutes on some mornings. I wonder what I will write about today. So how do I break through my bloggers’ block? I use these 5 tips, of course. But I might also get a spark of an idea from my daily Google Alerts (sign up at: http://www.google.com/alerts). I sometime scan through old posts for prompts. I think about recent conversations or experiences I’ve had with other authors. I refer to articles that caught my eye in newsletters I’ve received. Occasionally, I flesh out a topic I’ve been writing about for a book or an article. And sometimes, I just meditate for a few minutes and an idea pops into my mind.

What tricks and tools do you use to stay on top of your game and come up with ideas for your blog and for the articles you submit?

You have 10 more days to sign up for one of my six online courses at a discount. Read the May 24, 2010 blog post for more information. Visit this site to learn more about each course: http://www.matilijapress.com/courses.htm

Posted in Writing | No Comments »

Authors, Get Out of the House

Saturday, June 19th, 2010

Do you write at home? Has the Internet become your social life as well as your writing prompt and avenue for book marketing activities?

If you stay holed up in your house and office most of the time, you could be missing out on some important opportunities—opportunities to experience, learn and grow. Think about it, without life experiences, would you have come as far as you have with your writing? What do you think will happen if you cut these off at the pass—if you stop collecting experiences and perspective?

I believe that our writing suffers when we neglect our social life and our sense of adventure. When we are participating, we are experiencing life, thus we are gathering perspective, information, new thought and scads of ideas to bring back to our writing. Living and doing is what keeps our writing from becoming stale.

Getting out into the world can also enhance our book marketing efforts. The Internet is certainly a wonderful tool for promoting our books. There are many avenues we can pursue right at our fingertips. But I believe that we can bring more success to our projects when we also show up outside of our domains—when we mingle and participate. There are important things we can learn from others in social settings and from just being away from our comfort zones.

This weekend consider leaving the house or office with an open mind. Take in ideas, consider the opportunities that come before you. Try saying “yes” more often and see what happens—how your writing is enhanced and/or your book sale increase. Consider the possibilities.

• Take a walk or bike ride around the neighborhood.
• Attend a local event.
• Stop in at a coffee shop and sit for a while with a latte.
• Show up at a meeting of your old organization or club.
• Take a picnic lunch to the park, lakeside or beach.
• Go shopping.
• Volunteer.
• Take friends to lunch.
• Visit a retirement home.
• Join a writers’ group.
• Take a hike.
• Do a book signing.
• Interview someone for an article.
• Set up a speaking engagement.
• Do a little gardening.

The key is to involve yourself in these activities. Engage all of your senses. Experience every aspect of each of them.

• Observe.
• Engage.
• Study.
• Explore.
• Scrutinize.
• Question.
• Dissect.
• Analyze.

Do this and a couple of things will happen. You may actually enjoy yourself. Most likely, you will return to your home office/your writing room with some valuable gifts that can only be found when you get out of the house.

Posted in Writing | No Comments »

Your Book Promotion Personality

Friday, June 18th, 2010

This may seem like a strange concept, but think about it. If you’re promoting a book, don’t you seem to gravitate toward the same types of book promotion activities most of the time? Sure you do. There are hundreds of book promotion possibilities and only twenty-four hours in a day. Plus most of us have a life outside of our book projects—although, it doesn’t seem like it sometimes. We can’t be everywhere and do everything we want to or should do toward promoting our books. It’s simply impossible.

So which activities do you choose? What book promotion projects and programs do you find yourself pursuing most? Where is your level of comfort when it comes to promoting your book? Do you promote through your website, speak to local civic group members, use a signature with your emails and seek book reviews? Maybe you send press releases, carry your book with you everywhere you go, write a daily blog and submit articles or stories related to the theme or genre of your book regularly. Do you go out of your way to promote your book—travel to conferences and other events all over the US where you can speak to your audience?

I believe that most of us do what we can do and what we are willing to do. We push hard in the beginning—when we are still experiencing the excitement of a new book project. And then we find our comfort zone and pretty much stay there. Where we land within our individual comfort zones probably denotes our book promotion personality. Our choices indicate whether we are introverted, extroverted, assertive, aggressive, meek, self-conscious, ambitious, energetic, lazy, motivated, determined, shy, reserved or a real go getter. It’s the activities that we settle into after the big initial promotional push that indicates our promotion personality and, by the way, our potential for success.

Sure, it’s important to be true to oneself. But, when it comes to promoting your book, if you are seeking a level of success, it’s also necessary to stretch, experience growing pains, step outside of your self-imposed box and try new things.

Maybe I can put it in perspective this way: There are a whole lot of authors out there competing for their share of the readership. In order to compete, it’s imperative that you are on top of your book promotion game for as long as you want your book to sell.

I sometimes wonder how many people I have discouraged from publishing books. I do know that some people ignore what I say in my articles, blog, books and presentations or choose not to believe me. They go into publishing with no intentions of creating a business around their books. They don’t want to get involved in promotion at all. They comprise the 76 percent of authors who fail.

So do you know what kind of book promotion personality you have? Upon your evaluation, do you see that you could be doing more to promote your book or are you doing everything you know to do?

If your book is faltering and you are at a loss as to what to do next, let me make a suggestion. Purchase my little ebook, The Author’s Repair Kit, Heal Your Publishing Mistakes and Breathe New Life Into Your Book. It’s only 27 pages and $5.95—no shipping costs. And it is a great little book for authors who may have written the wrong book for the wrong audience and who could use some ideas for getting their book on track: http://www.matilijapress.com/author-repairkit.html

Posted in Book Promotion | No Comments »

For Writers–Change Does Not Have to Mean Failure

Thursday, June 17th, 2010

I had an email conversation with a writer friend this morning who has changed direction with her writing career—not an easy thing to do. She has been doing freelance work for years. But decided to leave it behind her and write a novel. She’s courageous, I say.

Are you a freelance writer who is suffering from burnout? Are you fed up with the stress of book promotion? I have experienced temporary bouts with burn out often over the years. Usually, I can cure it by taking time away from whatever project I’m working on at the time—spending more time gardening, doing needlework projects, walking on the beach or writing in a different vein. Soon I am eager to resume my work.

Additionally, every year or so for many years, I have reevaluated my career path and that’s when I decide to make slight adjustments (or not). It doesn’t matter what I decide—but the evaluation process is important because it forces/allows me to make a decision. Once the decision is made, whether it is to continue along the same path or make a detour, I can easily commit to it.

Finally, however, after many years of freelancing, like my friend, I suffered burnout one last time and, when I did my annual evaluation, I made new decisions and made new commitments. I’m not courageous enough to turn to novel-writing—not yet, anyway. I stayed more within my comfort zone. I turned my attention to the needs of other writers and authors by taking on more editing and consulting work, by offering online courses as a sort of mentorship program, by spending more time and energy writing books, by speaking personally to writers through conferences, etc. and, of course, running SPAWN (Small Publishers, Artists and Writers Network).

It is difficult to decide to change your lifestyle in order to accommodate a writing career. And the shifts and transitions that occur amidst a writing career—sometimes naturally and sometimes through choices—can be tough. But, if you’ve been in this field for any length of time, you’ve probably learned that change is inevitable and usually, if we don’t fight it, a good thing.

I’d like to hear about your writing/publishing career shifts—were they by choice or circumstance? Did you allow them and navigate them gracefully or did you go kicking and screaming all the way? What were the results of your actions/decisions?

Don’t forget, I’m offering all of my online, on-demand courses—even my two new ones—at a discount during the month of June—my birthday month. Check them out at: http://www.matilijapress.com/courses.htm Contact Patricia Fry with your questions. PLFry620@yahoo.com

Posted in Writing | No Comments »

Succeed by Participating

Wednesday, June 16th, 2010

Are you planning to attend a book festival this summer with your book(s)? Scott Lorenz has an article in Fran Silverman’s most recent Book Promotion Newsletter in which he features the best book festivals to attend this year. I’m already scheduled to attend two of them. Subscribe to Book Promotion Newsletter (an enewsletter) at: http://www.bookpromotionnewsletter.com There is a small fee to offset costs.

How many newsletters and enewsletters do you subscribe to each month? You are probably receiving newsletters and other material related to the topic/genre of your book or, if you are a freelance writer—related to this field. And if you are writing, publishing or promoting a book, you should be subscribing to newsletters and enewsletters on these subjects. And you should be reading them.

If I were to ask for a show of hands out there indicating how many of you actually read those newsletters and enewsletters you subscribe to each month, there would be only a few hands waving at me. The faces belonging to the hands that are in your laps, have a sheepish look on them. But you know what? It is okay with me if you don’t read the newsletters that come to you regularly in good faith, unless you’re one of those who say about the organization producing those newsletters, “That organization has done nothing for me. I don’t think I’ll renew my membership.”

No newsletter, book, blog or article is useful to those who ignore it—who decide not to read it.

We’re all busy and, if your life is like mine, you get busier by the year. It’s hard to find the time to study everything that comes across our desks. But this is no reason to give up altogether on newsletters. At least look at the headlines. Note articles that sound like they might have information you can use and, either read it on the spot or set it in a priority box of items that you will read that evening or first thing in the morning before turning your computer on, for example.

There are a lot of knowledgeable people creating valid and valuable text designed to help you keep up with your industry (and the writing/publishing industry). By not perusing this information, you could be sabotaging the very thing you’re working so hard to attain—your success.

Sure, there’s a lot of insignificant material coming at you all the time. There’s stuff you don’t need to know, but also stuff you only think you don’t need to know. There are those of us who think we know it all. And then there are folks who read everything and end up confused. How do we create a happy medium?

Be open, but discerning. Be ever willing to learn. And give yourself the best opportunity to succeed by exposing yourself to the information you need and actually taking it in.

Of course, you will outgrow newsletters. Some of them will change into something that doesn’t relate to your project. It’s okay to unsubscribe. But give newsletters and other material a good opportunity to work for you—to bring you the information and options you need in order to make the best decisions on behalf of your project or business.

When I get a chance to talk to former SPAWN members, I always learn that the reason they didn’t renew was one of two things. They either lost interest in their book project—decided not to pursue it—or they admit that they just didn’t participate in the way that they should have. They often regret that they didn’t take part in SPAWNDiscuss so they would meet other authors and publishers and learn more about the day-to-day world of publishing and book promotion. They confess that they didn’t read the SPAWN Market Update every month—in fact, they rarely got around to it. These former members joined with high hopes, but just couldn’t get it together enough to even use the benefits available to them. Others joined expecting SPAWN to “do it for them.” They somehow misunderstood the premise we so openly promote. They didn’t understand that SPAWN (Small Publishers, Artists and Writers Network) is a networking organization designed to provide members with resources, information and opportunities to help them make the best choices for their projects.

Don’t be a drop out. In order to succeed as a published author, freelance writer or in any other field or business, you must take the reins. Study the map. Know your options. Be clear as to the opportunities available because it is up to you to chart your own course.

Check out both of my websites: http://www.matilijapress.com and http://www.patriciafry.com

Check out SPAWN (Small Publishers, Artists and Writers Network): http://www.spawn.org

Posted in Book Promotion | No Comments »

Potluck for Authors

Tuesday, June 15th, 2010

BIG Announcement
I am thrilled with my brand new website, built by Virginia Lawrence of Cognitext Web Design. http://www.cognitext.com

Visit http://www.patriciafry.com and see what you think.

Challenging Morning
I was faced with a challenge this morning. Late yesterday afternoon, I learned that we needed more copy for our upcoming SPAWN Catalog of Members’ Books and Services. Lily (kitty) must have known that I had to add a project to my already jammed agenda today, and she woke me up at 4. Thankfully, I have completed the task and I’m on schedule writing this blog post.

New Article on Book Marketing
I received my copy of Writer’s Journal yesterday with my article, “Promote Your Book Through Alternative Venues.”

Are you a creative marketer on behalf of your book? Do you go beyond the obvious in search of promotional opportunities? Here are some of the suggestions I made in the article:

1: Get involved in community events.
2: Spend time at senior centers
3: Go to church.
4: Join in with Elderhostel Groups (now known as Exploritas).
5: Visit schools and colleges.
6: Sit in at writing group meetings.
7: Enter the corporate environment.
8: Attend shows, fairs and festivals.
9: Join online discussions, bulletin boards and blogs
10: Throw home parties.
11: Go on the radio
12: Talk about your book everywhere you go.

I would add today—get involved in social media networking. I’ll have more on the opportunities within this realm soon as this is the subject I am researching and writing about in my latest book, which a New York publisher is eager to produce.

What About YOU?
Are you already involved in most of these activities? Which ones are working for you? Which ones would you like more detailed information/instructions/resources for? Let me know and that will be the topic of upcoming blogs.

Discount on Online, On-Demand Courses for Authors
We’re halfway through the month. You have two weeks left to get in on the discount offer—20% off all of my courses through the month of June. See the May 24, 2010 blog post for details. My courses are online and on-demand, which means that you can sign up at anytime and schedule your course to start when you are ready. I only ask that once we start, we continue through the course every week without interruption. More here: http://www.matilijapress.com/courses.htm

Contact me with questions: PLFry620@yahoo.com.

Visit my NEW website: http://www.patriciafry.com

Posted in Announcements, Book Promotion | 1 Comment »

Discover the Value in Book Review Sites

Monday, June 14th, 2010

I generally warn authors against soliciting reviews at book review sites because of the volume of books being reviewed. It is difficult, if not impossible, to have your book showcased effectively at most of these sites. There’s just too much competition. On the other hand, you can never get too much exposure for your book. While I don’t believe that a review on a major book review site will generate many (or any) customers, it does provide exposure. The more times a reader sees your title or hears about it, the more apt he or she is to purchase it. But there is an even more important reason to pursue book review sites.

Some professionals believe that publishers scour book review sites in search of the next bestseller. Some say that multiple reviews at the review sites impress librarians and they’ll be inclined to order your book.

So go ahead and solicit book reviews at some of the online book review sites. It might be worth your while in the long run.

Tip: create your book in ebook form as well as print. Many reviewers will accept the ebook version, thus saving you money on the cost of the book as well as shipping.

Online book review directories:
http://acqweb.org/bookrev.html lists over 100 review opportunities in most genres.
http://dir.yahoo.com/arts/humanities/literature/reviews lists some of the most popular book review sites.

For more about book review sites, how to get book reviews and other book promotion ideas and resources read my book, The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book.
http://www.matilijapress.com/rightway.html

Sign up for my book promotion course—I’m offering a discount through the month of June. See the May 24 blog. Check out the course description here:
http://www.matilijapress.com/course_bookpromotion.htm

Posted in Book Promotion | No Comments »

What Makes a Blog Successful?

Sunday, June 13th, 2010

I decided that I wanted to interview prolific and effective bloggers for the August edition of the SPAWN Market Update. These bloggers must also write about aspects of writing/authorship. I just spent an hour in research mode and came up with scant few who fit my criteria—they blog regularly, stick to issues of writing/publishing/book promotion and they offer information and resources their audience craves.

Maybe you can recommend some of your favorites. I’d appreciate that. Contact me with your recommendations here at this blog—leave a comment—or email me at PLFry620@yahoo.com.

In the meantime do you blog as a way to reach your audience? Some bloggers claim to have landed book deals because of their meaningful blogs. Others have been asked to submit articles or stories for publishing consideration. None of these things has happened to me, but that isn’t the reason why I write. These aren’t my goals for this blog. My aim is to communicate with other authors and writers—to share what I have learned over three decades of freelance writing and publishing.

If you are promoting a book and are considering or attempting to establish a blog, here are some tips that might help. If you can’t follow these guidelines, you might as well forget the blog.

1: Post regularly. Your audience needs to be able to count on you. This means every single day or, at least every few days—regularly.

2: Stay focused on your topic. Make sure that you are providing the information your audience wants in a way that makes it palatable. Stay on track when adding to your blog so that you are always addressing your target audience.

3: Use appropriate keywords often. If your audience is seeking information about gardening in the northwest, continually use words in your blog entries that your potential audience would use in an internet search.

4: Keep selling to a minimum. Yes, you can promote your own book and services, but the way to do that within the blog culture is to demonstrate your expertise, be helpful, give and share. Then let blog visitors know that they can get more help, advice, information or entertainment if they purchase your book, attend your workshop, visit your website—whatever.

Blogging is one tool to use in promoting your fiction or nonfiction book. Learn about others through my online book promotion course. All six of my online courses are discounted during the month of June. Contact me at PLFry620@yahoo.com or read my May 24, 2010 entry for more details. Check out my array of useful and entertaining books here: http://www.matilijapress.com

Posted in Book Promotion | No Comments »

One Book Project Does Not An Expert Make

Saturday, June 12th, 2010

It bothers me when authors produce one book and then sign up to become a book shepherd or an editorial or publishing consultant.

I used to be involved with horses. When my daughters were young, we bought a horse and then another… Soon, we each had our own steed and we were involved in local horseshows. We spent weekends trail riding and many of our family vacations were enjoyed on horseback.

There’s a lot one needs to know about horses in order to properly care for them and to keep from getting hurt. When you go from knowing nothing about horses to suddenly owning several, you really get a crash course in horsemanship. Within a couple of months of riding, feeding, saddling, grooming and getting to know our horses, I had learned so much that I thought I knew practically everything I needed to know. I was even trying to teach others about horses, by then. But it wasn’t until we’d owned horses for a couple of years that I discovered how little I actually knew about them.

Today, even after years of owning horses, I realize that I probably didn’t know one-tenth of what is possible to know about horses.

Like horses, each book project is different. Authors don’t truly appreciate the scope of publishing knowledge out there until they produce book number two and book number three. That’s when they begin to realize how much they don’t know about the industry.

That said, I also believe strongly in the value of networking with authors at all stages of publishing. Why? Because we have each had different experiences. We’ve all followed slightly different paths in order to reach our goals and we can learn from the first-time author as well as the seasoned professional. I’ve produced 31 books and I still learn important lessons and useful tips from first-time authors.

I am against the first-time author hanging out his/her shingle with the idea of shepherding others through the process of publishing. There are too many variables, too much that they still haven’t experienced.

If you are seeking assistance with your publishing project, consider hiring someone who has had many varying experiences.

Contact me for a FREE editorial evaluation of your manuscript. PLFry620@yahoo.com.

Posted in Publishing | No Comments »

Make More Money Writing Magazine Articles

Friday, June 11th, 2010

I listened to SPAWN’s most recent teleseminar yesterday on how to make more money writing. Hope Clark of Funds for Writers was our guest speaker. What another good presentation this was! Have you ever listened to a telephone-seminar? It’s done by conference call. It’s as easy as picking up your phone and listening. Sometimes there is a Q and A opportunity.

SPAWN presents a teleseminar by a publishing/writing/book promotion professional pretty much every month. And they are FREE to SPAWN members. If you miss a presentation, you can go to the SPAWN website and download the recording. All of the teleseminars we’ve presented are recorded there for SPAWN members. Membership, by the way, is $65.00 per year. Sign up here: http://www.spawn.org.

I wanted to share something that Hope talked about yesterday. It has to do with article-writing—something I have been involved in for over three decades. In fact, I made my living through article-writing for many years. She talked about writing for trade magazines—also something I’ve done.

I want to echo her sentiments. Most of us, when we decide to break into magazine article-writing, we head straight for the high-paying slick mags—Good Housekeeping, Better Homes and Gardens, Woman’s Day, Family Circle and even Reader’s Digest. But there is more opportunity, thus, perhaps, more money in trade magazines and, perhaps, even in some of the more obscure magazines.

When people used to ask me what magazines I wrote for, I’d be hard-pressed to come up with one they had heard of. There were some obscure ones, such as: The Phoenix, Hope, North Georgia Journal, Home Cooking, The Quilter, National Barbecue News, Transformational Times, Sisters Today, Coastal Woman, Herb Quarterly, Young Athlete and Minority Engineering

And some of the less-known magazines pay quite well. I earned between $400 and over $1,000 for articles sold to each of these magazines: Pages, Business Start-Ups, St. Anthony Messenger, Walking Magazine, Motorhome, Becoming Family, Mature Outlook, Sam’s Club Magazine, Cats Magazine, Technology and Learning, ASPCA Animal Watch, Personal Journaling, Woman’s Life and even Writer’s Digest.

And then there was the relatively steady work with magazines such as The Toastmaster, Signs of the Times, Columbia, The World and I, Lifestyles Plus, Catholic Digest, Silicon 2.0, Entrepreneur, Executive Update and others.

If you’d like to write for magazines and you just keep getting one rejection after another—or worse yet, you are being ignored—step away from the majors for a while and focus on some of the hundreds of freelance opportunities with magazines you may have never heard of. Some of them pay quite well. Are you familiar with Wealth Manager, New Holland News and Acres, Railway Track and Structures, Teaching Tolerance, World Trade, Professional Pilot, Print, HOW, Promo, Skiing, Boat International, Outreach, Milwaukee Magazine and Organic Gardening? The average pay per article among these magazines is over $1,500. That’s the average!

Maybe this is the time—perhaps today is the day that you start earning more as a freelance article-writer. All you need to do is raise your awareness of the opportunities that abound.

For more about how to establish your successful article-writing business, sign up for my online article-writing course. http://www.matilijapress.com/course_magarticles.htm. This 6-week course is regularly $125.00 There is a 20% discount during the month of June, 2010. PLFry620@yahoo.com.

Posted in Article-Writing, Writing | No Comments »

« Older Entries
Newer Entries »