Archive for May, 2011

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How to Sell Books This Week

Tuesday, May 31st, 2011

Brian Jud, in his Marketing Matters newsletter this week has included number 14 in my 50 Reasons Why You Should Write That Book ebooklet. This one is about connections. Do you have important connections that will serve you in the task of book promotion? Order a free copy of this ebooklet here http://www.patriciafry.com

Freelance Writer’s Report published my piece, this month, on how to get more out of the articles you write—in other words, using reprints–recycling your articles.

I’ll be sitting on a panel on self-publishing at the Ojai Writer’s Conference this weekend in Ojai, CA.

I’ll spend my week preparing my speech for the Alaska Writer’s Guild Conference in Anchorage in the fall.

What are you doing toward the promotion of your book(s)? Here are some ideas to get you started:

1: Take your book to work (the doctor’s office, your children’s school, a meeting, traveling) or wherever you go this week. Talk about it to at least ten people (a waitress where you dine, a passenger on the bus to work, coworkers, someone you met at a forum online, a neighbor, the plumber who comes to your home for repairs and so forth. I’ve sold books to our stove repairman, dental assistant, grocery store clerk, receptionist at the water department, guests at a neighborhood birthday party, spectators at Little League games and even random tourists on the street.

2: For nonfiction, submit an article to half dozen (or more) appropriate newsletters. Locate newsletters here:
http:/www.newsletteraccess.com
http:/www.ezinehub.com

3: For fiction, submit stories in your genre to websites and/or literary magazines. Here’s a directory. Locate several others by doing an Internet search using keywords, “Literary Magazine Directory.” http://www.newpages.com/literary-magazines

4: Set up a speaking engagement at an appropriate venue. This might be a civic organization meeting, PTA or other school program, conference related to your topic/genre, your local church or businessmans/womans’ club, etc.

Report back to me as to the progress of your outreach and the results of your efforts.

PLFry620@yahoo.com. Or leave your comment here.

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

Posted in Book Promotion | No Comments »

Memoir

Monday, May 30th, 2011

Are you writing a memoir? Many, many people are.

Did you know that there are different types of memoirs? There are the family legacy, personal struggle, military, spiritual, nostalgia, coming of age, travel, occupational, healing/recovery, self actualization, self help, tell-all and near-death memoirs. While some memoirs are meant simply to share a story, others become somewhat interactive, such as memoirs written in the self-help or how-to style.

Is your memoir designed to teach, inform, lead, help or just entertain? Often the memoir is more for the author—a way of remembering, purging or healing. In some cases, the author isn’t interested in anything other than telling his or her story and they believe others might be interested in reading it.

I wrote a memoir once. It’s called Quest for Truth and it is what I call a situational spiritual memoir. It is a story occurring during a period of my life—something impactful that happened in my life. In fact, it was rather life-changing.

It all started when I agreed to write a book about the work a local hypnotherapist, Don Clark, was doing in past-life regression therapy. He chose me for this assignment because I was
a local writer of note and because I had no previous experience within the realm of metaphysics. He said he wanted a fresh, unbiased approach to the way the material would be presented in this book.

I began my research by observing Clark’s hypnotized clients work through emotional and physical crises via past-life regression therapy. I interviewed these clients later to determine the true effectiveness of their sessions. I researched some of their supposed past lives to discover whether these people actually existed. And I reluctantly succumbed to hypnosis myself in an attempt to better understand the process.

More amazing to me than the supposed past lives I experienced—a hooker in San Francisco, a monk in Scotland, a teacher on the lost continent of Atlantis, an outcast transvestite Indian… and the research I did to prove the existence of these lives—was the personal transformation taking place as a result of my using hypnosis.

It was the calming effect hypnosis had on my usually high-speed system that motivated me to learn self-hypnosis. And I began to use it in ways that ultimately changed my life.

I discovered that through self-hypnosis, I could change my attitude at the snap of two fingers, turning failure into success both in business and socially. I found I could heal my relationships through karmic release—forgiveness—and let go of those relationships that no longer belonged in my life. I’ve also performed some amazing physical healings on myself, others and animals.

Through the use of self-hypnosis, I’ve exchanged a lifelong tendency to blame for newfound trust and forgiveness. I love more than I fear. I no longer harbor anger until it starts eating away at me, but I experience it and then release it. I more easily recognize when I’m receiving a nudge from God (intuition) rather than from my ego.

Well, after working with Don for eight months, he suddenly died. With no reason now to write his book, I stored all of my notes away, but I continued to use the techniques he taught me. About eight months later, when I realized how profoundly my life had changed because of what Don Clark had taught me, I decided to write my own book.

Most fascinating are the incredible hypnotic accounts of past lives and my telling research to verify that these individuals lived.

Quest for Truth is available at my website as well as Amazon.com and through many other sources. http://www.matilijapress.com/questpage.html

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What Does “Word Count” Mean to You?

Sunday, May 29th, 2011

When a magazine or newsletter editor tells you they want a 500-word article, what does that mean to you? When a website owner asks for a book review of 300 words, how do you interpret this? When your publisher asks for another ten pages or 2,500 words, how do you respond?

The correct and most reasonable answer would be, “I follow the editor’s/publisher’s request.” But not everyone does.

Many would-be freelance article writers hear the editor and they read the writers’ guidelines, but they submit a piece that is 250 to 1,000 over the requested word count. Why? Oh they have many excuses: “I cut it down as much as I could.” “I just didn’t want to leave anything out.” “It is a better article than it would be as a 500-word piece.” “If it’s too long, the editor can either cut it or run it as a two-part serial.”

No, no, no. In this time of extreme competition for freelance article writers, most likely the editor will take one look at your over-zealous attempt and stamp REJECT all over it!

Recently, we, here at SPAWN, asked for a 300-word article explaining how to write for a particular market. The writer submitted a 650-word informational piece with no how-to aspect at all.

Sometimes writers will be asked to write something in the 1,000-word range, but they can only come up with enough material for a 400-word piece. Again, this article will probably be quickly rejected and the editor will move on to a more professional writer who can and will follow directions.

Another problem I see, and I’m sure a lot of magazine and newsletter editors do as well, is the wrong article for the wrong publication. Recently, a client was asked to write a how-to piece for an online publication. She brought it to me for a final check. Of course, I asked to see the editor’s request email. What I discovered was that the article just did not match the request.

My client had not bothered to study the publication. Well, she said she did, but she missed the point of it. The publication used only strong self-help and how-to information on a particular topic. Each piece contained around 800 words. This writer wrote a 1,200-word essay sprinkled with personal experiences.

Do you know the difference between an essay, a profile piece, a personal experience account, a self-help article, a how-to, etc? If you plan to earn a living, pick up some extra spending money or gain exposure through article-writing, you’d better learn. Can you create a 2,000-word article on request? Can you produce a 250-word piece or expand it to 600 words on demand? If you want to enter into the hugely competitive world of freelance article-writing, you’d better train yourself to do so.

You’re not a writer until you can engage your readers AND please your editors/publishers.

Learn more about Patricia Fry, her writing path, her services and her books:

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

Posted in Article-Writing, Writing | No Comments »

What Kind of Writer Are You?

Saturday, May 28th, 2011

“I have an idea and I’m going to write a book. I’ve never written anything before. But I think my idea is valid and I want to share it with the world. The best way to get my idea out there is to put it in book form.”

“I would like to build my credibility and my business by writing a book related to my profession.”

“I have this urge to tell my story and I want to tell it to as many people as I can reach. How better to reach them than through a book. I’ll write my story and present it as a book for the whole world to read.”

“I want to teach what I’ve learned about life. There are a lot of people suffering as I did for years and maybe my story will make a difference in the lives of many others.”

“People should stop eating so much junk food. If they knew the truth about the dangers of a steady diet of junk food, they would change their ways and maybe even lose weight. I’m going to write what I know about healthy eating and try to change the habits of millions of junk food junkies.”

“If he and she can produce a novel and sell a few copies, I should be able to write and sell my novel. My story is better than many I see on TV or in the movies and a lot better than those I’ve read, lately. I want to get people’s reaction to the amazing story that’s rolling around in my head, so I’m going to write a novel.”

“I’d like to earn a little money for my retirement years. I have the time now and I might as well spend it writing. I know I have a good idea for a book. All I need to do is write it. A publisher will do the rest. I should be able to collect thousands of dollars each year from royalties. Writing could be a lucrative pastime.”

“I’m told I have writing talent. I do love to write. Maybe I should put some of my stories in book form and see if I can get a publisher interested.”

Do you see yourself in any of these scenarios? I’ve known people in each of them. Is your story missing from this list? We’d like to have you share it with us.

No matter which of these stories resembles your own, there are two things you really should do before writing that book (or at least before seeking publication).

1: Study the publishing industry
2: Write a book proposal.

And there is one thing you need to do upon completion of your book: Hire a good book editor.

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

Posted in Publishing, Writing | No Comments »

Storytellers Are Not Necessarily Writers—and it Shows

Friday, May 27th, 2011

I’ve decided that there are writers and then there are storytellers. Storytellers can spin a good yarn, as they say. But when it comes to writing, some of them have trouble penning a piece that their audience can follow. Many of them seem to have trouble grasping the concepts related to good, clear and concise writing.

I find that I can demonstrate and attempt to teach storytelling authors the difference between a muddy and a clear sentence, for example, while editing for them, and they continue to write muddy (complicated, awkward, run-on) sentences. I can point out the rules of good writing to my clients, and they still stick to their old writing habits. I can explain why something doesn’t work in their story or the dangers of inconsistencies in a story and they persist in using their same old approach.

Writers, on the other hand, tend to apply the techniques and rules I (as their editor) share with them. Someone with writing skills and a love for the process of writing is eager to learn more about it. They want to know how to improve their story or their nonfiction manuscript. A storyteller, who is more comfortable with how the words appear in their heads than on paper (or on the computer screen), aren’t as open to grasping the concept of readability. Some storyteller types expect the reader to imagine the story as they do. They don’t understand that, once the story is reduced to words on a page—without benefit of gestures and facial expressions—it must be presented in a form that makes sense to the reader. And the written word is a very different animal than the spoken (or imagined) word.

I’m sure that most of you (in particular, other book editors) have seen manuscripts/completed books that didn’t quite sell the story. As a reader, you sometimes got lost, were turned off by inconsistencies, couldn’t decipher some of the points or follow some of the scenarios. It’s a shame when an author, without excellent writing skill, ruins a perfectly good story.

Folks, whether you are a writer at heart or you simply have a story to tell. Please turn your manuscript over to a qualified book editor before you present it to your readers.

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

Posted in Writing | No Comments »

7 Tips for Writing a More Publishable Book

Thursday, May 26th, 2011

Today’s blog has two purposes. First, it offers you–my readers–valid tips for writing a more publishable book. Second, it is a good example of a “tip sheet.” You could be getting similar tip sheets related to the topic of your nonfiction book published in magazines and newsletters as well as ezines that publish articles related to the theme of your book. You see tip sheets on many topics–gardening, child-rearing, caring for animals or the elderly, choosing a college, fixing quick meals, taking care of your skin, burglar-proofing your home, taking photos, buying a camera, finding good fishing spots, birdwatching and so forth.

Here’s my example of a tip sheet.

1: Study the publishing industry so you understand your options, the possible ramifications of your choices and your responsibilities as a published author.

2: Define your purpose for writing this book. Make sure it is valid, not frivolous.

3: Determine your target audience. Who is most likely to read this book and how many people does this comprise?

4: Ascertain whether this book is needed/desired. Is there a market for it?

5: Consider your platform—your following, your connections, your way of attracting readers. Why are you the person to write this book and who is going to care about reading it?

6: Create a marketing plan. How will you get word out about your book?

7: Find ways to build promotion into your book while you’re writing it.

A well-researched, complete book proposal will assist you in answering each of these questions accurately. A book proposal is a business plan for your book. Don’t neglect this very important step to becoming a successful author.

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

Posted in Article-Writing, Book Promotion | No Comments »

The Emotions of Writing

Wednesday, May 25th, 2011

I don’t spend a lot of time talking about the process of writing or even thinking about it. I just write. But occasionally I notice a feeling of giddiness as I sit in front of the computer and begin stringing words together. And it reminds me how much a love what I do. Do you ever feel that way?

Does the act of writing give you a thrill? Are you in love with the very activity?

I’ve told people for years that I can’t not write. Some of my darkest days came about when life circumstances had changed for me and I had to leave my writing room and get a regular job. It appeared that working full-time would be my future. While the job I had was a nice one—actually rather pleasant—and it did involve writing, I became despondent. I missed my days of sitting at my typewriter creating articles for magazines.

Then, one day while I was doing my early morning meditation walk, it occurred to me that I had to find a way to write no matter what else was going on in my life. So I started getting up at 4 every morning and writing for two hours before taking my walk and getting ready for work. I also wrote some on weekends. I completed an entire book (a situational memoir) on that time schedule. What a gift to know that I could write under practically any circumstances.

I decided to start using those few hours every morning to resume my article-writing business. During those wee hours, I began researching article ideas, sending out query letters to appropriate magazines and writing articles that had been requested. Even though, the world was still in slow motion then—personal computers and the Internet were still on the horizon—during the next eight months, I managed to build my article writing business to the point where I could quit my job. And I have been happily writing ever since.

Do you have a “can do” writing story? Have you overcome obstacles in order to pursue your love for writing? Or would you like to share how the process of writing makes you feel? We would enjoy hearing/reading it. Leave your comment here.

One thing I never thought I would enjoy doing is involving myself in the writing of others. I had my own agenda—wanted to do my own writing—had plenty of my own projects going. I often turned away writers and authors who wanted me to work with them. Sure I would answer their questions and give them resources. But I didn’t want to go beyond that barrier.

During the last twenty or so years, however, I’ve been working with other authors on their book projects—editing and consulting. And I am enjoying helping others to shape their projects as much as I’ve enjoyed creating my own.

For more about me and my work, visit http://www.patriciafry.com

To view some of my 34 books, go to http://www.matilijapress.com

I’m happy to announce that book sales are up, lately. Our shipping department has been a-bustle. And just about 8 weeks from today, I will be announcing a new book for authors. This will be an important addition to your collection of books on book promotion and marketing. Allworth Press will bring out my completely revised and much expanded book, Promote Your Book: Over 250 Proven, Low-Cost Tips and Techniques for the Enterprising Author in July. You can see the book posted at Amazon.com already. Check it out!

Posted in Authorship | No Comments »

How to Attract Readers for Your Book

Tuesday, May 24th, 2011

Are you alienating your readers? Does your message or your way of presenting it turn off the very people you hope to attract? How do you know and what can you do about it?
Maybe it’s time to review your presentation.

• Are you writing with clarity?
• Is your topic popular with one or more groups of people?
• Are you promoting to the right audience?
• Are you coming on too strong with your opinions?
• Does your material come across as weak/unconvincing?

If you are not getting the response you desire or expect, maybe it is time to reevaluate your writing, your style, even your mindset.

More and more authors today produce books primarily to help others—to teach, to share, to make a difference. And for some, it becomes a crusade to change minds. How else are they going to help the uninspired, overeater, alcoholic, grieving, hate-filled, abused, abusing or ill reader?

How else can a writer change people and change the world?

What we sometimes forget or don’t comprehend is that many of these people do not want to change, won’t go in search of help, don’t trust unknown authors, aren’t ready to accept assistance, don’t want to do what it takes to change or can’t or won’t read. Sometimes it isn’t the message itself, but the way it is presented that turns off readers. Everyone has his comfort zone and most people are content to stay within it rather than venture out into unknown territory on an off chance that their life will actually change.

Sure books that promise wealth, health and a great figure/physique, are popular. Can you guess which ones are read? Not the book by an unknown author designed to transform the hardcore junk food junkie into a lean vegetarian. Probably not the one that teaches good eating habits for the anorexic. Probably not the one about money-saving techniques by the author who collects state aid/welfare.

If you are writing on behalf of a cause—you’ve launched a personal crusade through your writing—stop to think about your audience.

• Who are they?
• Where are they?
• What do they want—not what do they need—what do they want?
• How do they want to see it presented?

How can you best accommodate this audience? This is the attitude that will sell your articles and your books.

But you might say, “I have a meaningful message—something of value to teach and to share. If I give them what they want, they won’t learn anything new—they won’t improve and or grow.”

My entire career has been devoted to nonfiction writing. This includes informational articles and books, self-help, how-tos, reference books, etc. I, too, have what I believe are important messages to share and valid perspectives to teach—the value in writing a book proposal, for example. How do I make this point with an audience who may not be ready to hear it? I embed it in the stuff they can accept and that they want to know about. Sneaky, huh? And you might be surprised at the number of readers who come back to me months or years after reading one of my books and say, “I just re-read your book, The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book, and notice that you recommend writing a book proposal as a first step to writing a book. I never thought of doing that. What a good idea. I wish I’d done that with my first book. I would have saved a lot of time and steps in getting it published.”

Sometimes a long-time client will come to me with a question, “How can I get my book reviewed?” I will refer them to the section in my book on getting book reviews—something they paid no attention to the first time they read it.

These people may have purchased the book primarily for the information about book promotion or to use the section on how to self-publish your book (establish your own publishing company) and they completely disregarded or overlooked the parts of the book that rested outside their self-imposed, current comfort zone.

If you are working on a book, make sure that you are writing the right book for the right audience. If you have a published book that isn’t doing well, maybe it’s time to rethink your marketing campaign. If your audience isn’t listening to your sage advice, try giving them more of what they want—what they can handle—and then sprinkle it with the things they really need to know.

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

Posted in Publishing, Writing | No Comments »

Be Consistent in Your Writing

Monday, May 23rd, 2011

Have you noticed how professionals always hound authors to have their books edited? Anything you read about writing and publishing includes this advice. Some of you decide that you don’t need or want an editor because you know your way around punctuation and spelling. You have a handle on the fine points of grammar.

But there is another service editors can provide that you may not realize you need. She can make sure that you have been consistent throughout your story or your nonfiction book.

For example, did you inadvertently use the wrong name in an important quote—you meant to attribute it to Joe and you accidentally typed Marsha’s name. Or maybe you changed a character’s name from Harry to Hank in midstream. But you neglected to change all instances of Harry. Oops. Did you maintain the same spelling for a character or place name? This can get real touchy when you are writing a fantasy or otherwise making up place names, for example. Is it Crimia or Crimea? Did you mean for it to be Plaggerly or Plegarly?

Some authors change the way their character’s look—she starts out with curly brown hair and, without explanation, she suddenly she’s a blond. Or he is tall and lanky in one scene and burley in another. I’ve seen this happen. If she changes her hair color or he becomes buff, tell your readers. Otherwise, make sure that you stay true to your characters.

It’s easy to use different arrangements of some words. If you use heartwarming, stick with this throughout. Don’t use heart-warming in some places and heart warming in others. Is the word hyphenated or not? Two words or not? Find out and be consistent.

During research, you might discover that there are conflicting facts or stats with regard to something you want to use in your book. Sometimes you have to choose one. Once you do, make sure that you don’t waver. You’ll lose credibility with your readers if you report one statistic in one place and a different one in another.

As an editor, I can tell you that inconsistency is a common problem among authors. There is something about an author’s eye that seems to prevent them from seeing the discrepancies in their work. That’s one more excellent reason why you really should hire an editor.

Another habit many authors have in common is the fact that they repeat words. Rather than coming up with a different word to make their sentences more interesting, they will use the same word twice or three times. Here’s an example, “He sat next to the babbling brook, enjoying the splashing water as a dog swam nearby, splashing in the water.” Or “Dora came in from outside still feeling the cool outside air chill in her bones.”

Today, why don’t you spend time going through your book in progress and determine whether or not you are committing some of these author’s sins. Get a head start on preparing your manuscript for the editor. The cleaner your manuscript, the less time it will take a good editor to get through it and the less you will have to pay.

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

Posted in Editing | No Comments »

5 Secrets to Getting Your Book Reviewed

Sunday, May 22nd, 2011

Every author has heard the term Book Review. Many of them consider a book review to be an honor bestowed only on famous and lucky authors.

Some authors believe that you can get your book reviewed, but you’ll have to pay for it. No, no, no! Well, let me say that there are certainly a lot of review sites cropping up that require payment for reviews. But I have to tell you, they are not the only reviewers in town!

There are hundreds of FREE book review opportunities for books in all genres and topics. Here are my suggestions for getting your book reviewed many times over:

1: Write a book that reviewers will want to review. Now this sounds like a big fat no-brainer, doesn’t it? But think about it. What more could you do to make your book in progress more appealing to reviewers—more appropriate for a larger number of reviewers?

I advise authors to build promotion into their books—in other words, to add wider dimensions to attract a larger audience. This practice will also attract a greater array of reviewers.

2: Make the most of what you have. Okay, your book is a done deal. How can you maximize your book review options? Get personal with your book. Dissect it and jot down what you find. For example, what city is the story set in? Pursue reviews in regional magazines in that area. Do you have a section in your budgeting book for teaching children money-awareness? Parenting magazines might be a good secondary review option for this book. Is your book clean and honorable? Consider reviews in religious magazines. Maybe your novel has a séance scene. This may provide an opportunity for a review in a metaphysical or New Age publication.

3: Seek out magazine book reviewers. Not every magazine runs book reviews, but many of them do. Editors of some literary magazines and others that publish fiction, review books. Some genre fiction magazine editors publish book reviews—this might include science fiction, romance, horror, young adult and children’s.

Likewise there are hundreds of consumer and association/trade magazines that run book reviews on appropriate books. My book on presenting a Hawaiian luau on the mainland was reviewed in dozens and dozens of cooking and foods magazines. My writing/publishing-related books have been reviewed in numerous writing and publishing magazines and newsletters. There are magazines in every category imaginable—business, child-rearing, pets and animals, public speaking, finance, fitness and health, education, sports, hobby and craft and on and on and on.

Again, the more aspects you have skillfully worked into your novel or nonfiction book, the more potential you have for getting your book reviewed.

4: Locate appropriate publications. You probably have magazines in your genre or topic on your own book shelves. Start there. Scan magazines at your local library and bookstores. Study Writer’s Market to find additional magazines related to your book’s theme. Do a Google search to locate even more magazines and newsletters. Here are a few newsletter directories.
http://www.newsletteraccess.com
http://www.ezinehub.com

You can pay for lists of newsletters: http://www.mediafinder.com

5: Contact general online book review sites. While these sites are plentiful and it seems that a book could get lost among the multitude of others, most experts recommend that you try to get your book added to their list of reviewed books. The more exposure you get, after all, the better. I often list some of the book review sites in the SPAWN Market Update for members of SPAWN (Small Publishers, Artists and Writers Network) http://www.spawn.org

Book review site directory: http://www.acqweb.org/bookrev.html

You can do an Internet search to locate those in your genre/topic.

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

Posted in Book Promotion | 1 Comment »

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