Creating A Newsletter

The Perils And Pitfalls Of Publishing: Who Can An Author Trust?
One out of every eight people call themselves a writer, which means there are roughly 24 million people in the United States who carry that banner. Unfortunately there are charlatans and scam artists just waiting to ambush the unsuspecting author. How can a novice writer protect themselves?

Anyone can call themselves a publisher. Always remember money flows towards the author from the publisher, not the other way round.

What to look out for:

Charges the author a fee up front, to have their book accepted, considered or read. These fees are sometimes called a reading fee, intake fee or administrative fee.

Directs authors toward specific editing services or gives authors� names to these services, with the caveat that if the author hires the editing service, their book will be published. Every book needs editing. It is part of the publisher�s job to provide that editing at no cost.

Offers a contract where the author has to pay for part of the publishing costs. The acquisition editor will sometimes say that the publisher�s list is full for that season, but the author�s book has so much going for it, they would still like to publish it. However the publisher�s resources are fully committed and the author will have to share in the costs.

Some publishers offer contracts that are unfair, such as they obtain rights that should remain with the author of the work.

Some publishers� contracts contain a clause that if the author says anything negative about the publisher, there is a monetary fine.

There are also publishers who hold the rights for a lengthy time period, regardless of whether the book is still in print or selling.

The publisher doesn�t disclose they are a Publish on Demand (POD), or vanity/subsidy publisher. There is nothing wrong with an author using a subsidy/vanity publishing company as long as the author is well aware of the disadvantages. Publish on Demand books are not, as a rule, stocked by bookstores.

Some POD publishers will insist that their books are available in book stores, as a way to get around this issue. Available is not the same thing as stocked. Available only means the book can be ordered through the bookstore. Since the majority of books sold, are stocked and sold by bookstores, this situation puts a damper on sales.

What else can a writer do to check if a publisher is legitimate?

Go to the local bookstore and see if any of the publisher�s titles are stocked. Ask the manager if necessary.

Search the Internet using the publisher�s name plus the word �scam� or �complaint.�

A publisher�s website is targeted to its customers. If the website promotes the books they�ve published that�s a good sign.

If the website is focused on recruiting writers, that�s a bad sign.

Go to forums or bulletin boards that are for writers and see what the authors who have published with the publisher you�re considering have to say about their experience.

Dee Power and Brian Hill, <a href="http://www.BrianHillAndDeePower.com" title="http://www.BrianHillAndDeePower.com" target="_blank">http://www.BrianHillAndDeePower.com</a>, are the authors of "The Making of a Bestseller: Success Stories from Authors and the Editors, Agents, and Booksellers Behind Them." Their latest novel, "Over Time," is a financial thriller: A story of lost loves, found glory, and business treachery. <a href="http://www.OverTimeTheNovel.com" title="http://www.OverTimeTheNovel.com" target="_blank">http://www.OverTimeTheNovel.com</a>

Looking to Sell Your Book for a Good Price?
Looking to Sell Your Book for a Good Price?
Marshall Masters

Many self-publishing authors plan on eventually selling their
book to a large publisher at a good price. The fast track way to
achieve this goal is to push up the market value of a book with a
push v. pull strategy. This article shows you how to do exactly
that, using a simple Internet strategy that any self-publisher
can afford.

PUSH v. PULL EXPLAINED

Books with push like Harry Potter push customers through the
doors, and the registers go kachink, kachink. With self-
published titles, booksellers must pull customers through the
door and that costs money. Put yourself in their shoes. Giving
preference to books with built-in push makes sense.

Remember this formula: push stacks chips on your side of the
bargaining table and pull sweeps them away. With a transferable
Internet presence strategy, you can stack chips to the ceiling
just like the big boys do.

WHAT THE BIG BOYS ARE DOING

The push is on with major publishers to build market value for
their intellectual properties with the Digital Object Identifier
(DOI) system.

A DOI is a permanent Internet address for your book. No matter
how many times ownership of a book changes hands, the DOI
Internet address is permanently bound to the book, just as
tightly as the binding. This is why hundreds of big publishers
have registered over 16 million intellectual properties with the
DOI system with millions more on the way.

Who fueled the creation of the DOI system? Computer experts?
No. From a market asset valuation standpoint, that makes as much
as sense as going to a Sushi Chef for a vasectomy. (Better idea
- get the Sushi afterwards!)

Rather, it was senior publishing executives and their financial
gurus who pushed for the creation of the DOI system. When you
sit down at the bargaining table with a DOI, you'll be talking
their language.

PLAYING WITH THE BIG BOYS

The Internet is like an elephant, it remembers everything and it
can remember a lot! You can always include your email address or
your web site address but these things point to a business
identity - not the work, itself.

Use the same DOI on every web page, ezine article, review, blog
post, etc. and it becomes a 24/7 market value builder that
follows the work. If something changes, like your email or web
site address, one simple update is all it takes. No more
annoying "page not found" or "no such e-mail recipient" errors.

Use your DOI the right way, and every little stitch of web
presence marketing you've done becomes one more chip on
bargaining table. Remember, the big guys speak DOI.

DOI BENEFITS ARE IMMEDIATE

Getting good book reviews is so miserably hard these days,
especially for self-published authors. What if your book finally
gets that fabulous review you've hoped for long after
publication? Will it be orphaned from the book marketing
information you've already published on the Internet? No.

One quick update of your DOI and everything that it references on
the Internet will immediately begin broadcasting your fabulous
review to the online world.

START ADDING MARKET VALUE TODAY

Each day, try to add more market value to your book. A blog post
here, an ezine article there. These things cost nothing, and yet
they can push huge amounts of sales-generating traffic at your
book.

As a self-published author, you've got to keep your eyes on what
the big guys are doing, and when you can emulate them on the
cheap, you do it!

WHEN TO GET YOUR DOI

The best time to register your DOI is after your books are
available for purchase on Amazon.com and other online bookseller
sites. This way, you can create menu options in your DOI that
link to online bookseller pages for immediate sales results.

Be sure to ask your publisher or vanity press if they offer a DOI
service. One that does is Your Own World Books (Yowbooks.com).
Their Author Advantage program includes a transferable DOI.

If your publisher does not offer a DOI service, that's OK. As
the copyright holder, you can register your DOI with an
independent DOI hosting service like DOIeasylink.NET. The annual
cost of a DOI is comparable to one-month web site hosting fee.
Plus, you get a 1-page Internet response page and descriptive
menus with multiple Internet links.

USE A DOI TO HIT CRITICAL MASS

If you remember only one thing from this article, let it be this.
Think like the big boys. Use this strategy to add more market
value by continually broadcasting information on the Internet
with your DOI. Eventually, you'll hit critical mass. People
will buy your book, and large publishers will see this and be
impressed!

DOIeasylink.NET: We Add Value to Your Book Learn More: http://doieasylink.net http://dx.doi.org/10.2122/doieasylink Marshall Masters, President http://dx.doi.org/10.1572/marshall.masters Marshall Masters is a publisher, self-published author, radio personality and Internet technologist. His published titles include Godschild Covenant: Return of Nibiru, Gold Fever, Indigo- E.T. Connection, and Orange Blossom. He founded DOIeasylink.NET to make the DOI system available to self-publishers and small presses. Drawing upon his decades of consulting experience with notable firms such as AT&T, Oracle, HP, Lockheed and Sun Microsystems, he created a simple, affordable DOI solution self- publishers and small presses.

Article Submission are more then just content and backlinks
The Internet is known as the "Information Super Highway" and for good reason. The Internet holds a huge amount of information. This information is growing and an extraordinary speed. It is being flood with new information some of it fiction and some non-fiction. Some content is valid and useful while other content is utterly useless.

Content on the Internet has become a way to promotes ones business or services. People are creating content in hopes of building an image and creating more sales. Which is fine. If you can offer some useful information or insight on a particular subject then then benefits to the reader are great. In turn the knowledge you have shared will create a buzz about you and your business. You will be on the road to branding your name and business. Which is why the quality is so important. I have been writing content on an off the Internet since 1998. I trying my very best to put together a masterpiece every time. I tend to fall short of that from time to time but I am only human. The reason for the content is not only to share my knowledge with the reader. It is also to show that I do know my stuff. To keep my name in front of people as much as possible in hopes the see that I am capable of helping them. It also builds trust with the reader. People will get to know me through my writing. It is building a bond with them. It is this bond that will build lasting readership and sales. This brings me to my next point.

Content is now a way from people to build backlinks to their site. Using programs that generate content. These types of software hold no value. Why would you want to associates your product or service with poorly written articles. You give people who read your content a bad perception of you. They may come to your site to see what type of site you have just so they know in the future to stay away from it. Even if you were into spamming and offering those Viagra pills or other bogus get rich programs on the net, these articles will just show people how much of a fraud you really are. If people thought your service or product was bogus you could try to plead your case with well written articles.

What if you can not write well. There are plenty of services out there that can help you with content and write outstanding articles about your business. If done write articles will accomplish three major things.
1)Brand your company or name as a lead in your field and separate you from the competition.
2)Drive quality traffic to your site. Someone reading your article and the going to your site increase your chances of a sale by 55%.
3)You will also build quality one way back links to your site. Which will help increase your Google Page rank.
So the next time you think about where you should spend your advertising dollars on remember this article. A well written article will not only drive in high quality traffic but I well written article can spread like wild fire on the Internet. The life expectancy on an article of this quality can last for years on the Internet. Longer then any paid advertising you will ever do.

To submit an article visit http://www.articleuniversity.com There you can also try our article writing, submission and editing services. To get a free seo evaluation, purchase SEO services, listen to a podcast on SEO or read articles on SEO visit http://www.Mr-seo.com

8 Super Selling Things to Do Before You Write Your Book Sales Letter
Every marketing campaign should begin with a plan. Sales letters are no different. No plan and you may miss the mark of High Sales you are aiming for. Set a roadmap that you can follow to explosive sales every time with every ebook. Focus and aim your sales letter with these 8 preparation tips. Then get ready to sell more than you dreamed:

1. Write a list of frequently asked questions for your ebook.

You want to make sure you pin point what your prospects and visitors are looking for and then give it to them. Find out what their burning questions are and then answer them in your sales copy and product. Before you write the benefits of your products you need to know the problems that audience face.

2. Develop a list to help your prospect visualize using your product.

Answer the questions: "When will your prospect use your product?", "How will they use it," "Why will they use it?" For example, if your new product was an ebook: will they read it on their desktop, laptop or will they print it out. Will they relax on the couch and read your insightful tips. Perhaps they will print them and read on the way to work or during lunch break

3. Write down what your up sell offers or possibilities are.

This is where a lot of small business professionals miss out. They fail to create up sell offers. Create your up sell offers and opportunities before you even write your sales letter so that they can be woven into your back end pages and sales messages.

4. Write a list of Benefit Bullets.

What do they get will they experience upon purchasing this product, what will this product give them.

5. Make a list of bonus gifts.

Select bonus gifts before you write the sales letter. This way you can include the benefits in your sales message as a part of your product.

6. Develop your guarantee.

Think about it? A lot of businesses shake in their shoes when it comes to developing a guarantee. But think about it; most small businesses have a built in guarantee. If someone ask for their money back, most small business professionals will just give their money back. They don't haggle over whether they should or shouldn't.

7. Gather your testimonials into one file.

If you don't have any yet for a new product, use famous quotes about your field until you get some. Sprinkle throughout your copy.

8. Go look at your competitor's sales page.

Examine their FAQs (see if you missed any), what are their bonus gifts, what is their guarantee, what is their up sell, if any? I made this step last so you wouldn't be tempted to just be a copy cat. But you can use your competitor's sales pitch as a measuring stick. How did you measure up? Did you whiz past; leaving them in a cloud of dust? Or did you miss a few things that you will now add after examining their pages?

Preparation for your super sales maker will give you the competitive edge you have been looking for. Put these steps into place before you even write your sales letter and sell more. Enjoy the journey and life is made easier.
======================================

Earma Brown, Author, Web Developer. Helps small business owners and writers write their best book now. Send any email to iscribe@writetowin.org for FREE 7 lesson mini-course to jumpstart writing your book

7 Tips for Book Promotion Media Events
Media events and public appearances can fall into any number of categories and include any number of venues (book stores, radio interviews, television interviews, writing group speeches, presentations, chat room interviews, online book tours, public forums, and more). 1. A good place to identify possible media event locations is through local bookstore. Most bookstores carry event calendars or maintain a list of contact people who hold that information. 2. Browse the calendar listings of your local bookstores and see if a certain book promotion fits with their plans. Sometimes it might be necessary to tailor a planned event for a particular occasion or holiday. If there is contact information available, make a note of it so you can pitch the appropriate person about your event. Depending upon the size of the store, that person is either the regional marketing manager, or the book buyer, or the owner of the store. 3. Follow-up with prospective contacts who have not confirmed dates. Selling yourself and your book is a numbers game, and as any salesperson will tell you, the amount of contact is directly proportional to the amount of sales. 4. Be persistent without being annoying. If, after three or four attempts with a particular media contact, you are still unsuccessful move on to another prospect. But keep those "maybe's" on file... and follow-up again over a holiday with an excuse to send them an email card. 5. Once you secure an event, prepare it thoroughly in advance. People who attend or listen to your events are participating because the advertisement or announcement struck a chord with them. So be sure to deliver what they came to see or hear. Don't be shy about letting them know how to order your book. After all, that's the reason you're holding the event in the first place. 6. Promote your media event aggressively. Invite your friends and family, and if it's within the scope of your marketing budget, advertise in the local paper. Neighborhood papers may even promote your event for free within their "Events" pages. You may even be able to tie it into a book review. 7. The store is sponsoring the event to attract more customers; the station is sponsoring the event to attract more listeners or viewers. Whatever the venue, it is your responsibility to attract the crowd. The venue is just that -- a venue. About the Author:

Learn more about publishing your own book with a free e-book at <a href="http://www.outskirtspress.com.">www.outskirtspress.com</a>. Brent Sampson is the President & CEO of Outskirts Press at <a href="http://outskirtspress.com">OutskirtsPress.com</a> and the award-winning author of "Self-Publishing Simplified". A free ebook edition is available at <a href="http://outskirtspress.com/publishing">outskirtspress.com/publishing</a>.

Powerful Book Pricing Tips for Authors
First let's provide definitions for the 4 terms covered in this article: Retail margin is the difference between your book’s wholesale price and your book’s retail price. For example, a book with a cover price of $10 and a wholesale price of $5 has a 50% retail margin. This is the profit enjoyed by the retailer. Wholesale price is the cost of your book to a retailer. To use the same rudimentary example, a book with a cover price of $10 and a retail margin of 50% will be sold to a retailer for $5 wholesale price. Retail price is the same as cover price or selling price or list price. This is the cost of the book to the end consumer (the reader). The retail price is typically printed on the cover of the book and also “embedded� within the barcode on the back. For example, a book with a wholesale price of $5 and a retail margin of 50% will have a retail price of $10. Trade discount is the percentage off the retail price that a wholesaler (not a retailer) pays for your book. Since the retail margin is always a portion of the trade discount, the trade discount always exceeds the retail margin. Distributors typically expect between 50% - 70% in order to provide an acceptable margin to the retailer. A book with a retail price of $10 and a retail margin of 50% might have a trade discount of 60%, and therefore the wholesale price is $5 and the trade discounted price is $4. Confused yet? Don't be. Understanding book math is what separates successful authors from unsuccessful ones. As you can see, retail margin, wholesale price, the trade discount, and retail price are interconnected. MAKING DISTRIBUTION WORK FOR YOU The higher your trade discount, the greater your level of distribution. Think about it - distributors want to make money, too. While your book's trade discount is but a piece of your pie (albeit a big piece), it is the entire cake for distributors and retailers, who together must split the take. The greater the trade discount, the larger their piece of the pie, and the greater incentive they have to distribute your book, sell your book, and market your book, etc. The proper trade discount depends upon the author's goals, and can vary from author to author just as readily as from book to book. Typically, the higher the retail margin, the higher the cover price, so authors interested in maintaining the lowest cover price possible will often opt for a lower retail margin. This may be okay, and even preferred, if the book's largest market is through on-line sales. Conversely, those authors who long for the best distribution possible will elect a higher trade discount, even though their cover price will increase accordingly (or their profit will decrease accordingly). Non-fiction or niche-markets are less affected by higher retail prices. Additionally, greater distribution is often advantageous in finding those niche markets. Suffice it to say, a non-fiction book can almost always sustain a higher trade discount than a fiction book. Trade discounts can be as low as 20% to successfully get listed on Internet retailers like Amazon.com, who manage to make a profit with such low margins through EDI (electronic data interface) with distributors like Ingram and on-demand publishers like Outskirts Press. By comparison, trade discounts can be as high as 75% - 80% when dealing with a niche wholesaler, or when attempting distribution for a book that does not have a proven market. In these cases, the distributor may be padding the coffers a bit in anticipation for a "harder sell" and perhaps, also, in preparation for offering an increased retail margin to close the deal. INDUSTRY STANDARDS Industry standards for retail margins are difficult to define because, ultimately, it comes down to negotiation between all parties involved. Publishers have the power to negotiate with distributors, who have the power to negotiate with retailers, who have the ability to negotiate with the reader, but the typical trade discount is around 55%, which allows for a typical retail margin of 40%. Publishing-on-demand is removing some of the participants in this little dance, and as a result, the same piece of pie is being divided among fewer people, resulting in more money for the remaining players (especially the author). This is particularly true if the author is going after online sales exclusively, which allows the author to set a much lower trade discount with little to no repercussions when publishing via a flexible on-demand publisher such as Outskirts Press, who lets authors set their own pricing. Now you have the flexibility to do it and the knowledge to do it right.

Brent Sampson is the President & CEO of Outskirts Press at <a href="http://www.outskirtspress.com">www.outskirtspress.com</a>, where the future of publishing is here, today. He is the award-winning author of "Publishing Gems: Insider Information for the Self-Publishing Writer" and "Self-Publishing Simplified" which is available on Amazon for an unbelievably low $5.95 or for free in e-book form at <a href="http://outskirtspress.com/publishing">outskirtspress.com/publishing</a>

The importance of writing articles
If you want inbound links to your site one way to do this without paying is writing articles and post them in different sites that allow you to submit articles. Writing articles is one of the best ways to promote your web site. It is one of the best ways to build the relations, credibility and to help get people to know more about you and your area of expertise is to write articles. One advantage that you can get with writing articles is that if your article get submitted it is an automatic inbound link to your site without having to add a link on your site to them. People are always looking for good articles for their websites, blogs and newsletters. By submitting your articles and allowing others to publish them free of charge you begin to develop credentials in your field and essentially "brand" yourself through your name. Make sure you submit your article on the right category and also make sure you write the articles according to their terms. If you don't follow the terms then you won't have your article publish. It is through well written articles and keeping your visitor wanting to learn more that you will see more traffic on your Web site. More traffic means more profit for you. By having lots of articles on lots of web sites around the world, you automatically rank above average on search engines because of your link popularity. All those links in the resource box back to your site can make a big difference in search engine ranking. Need traffic? Write an article. Need sales? Write an article. Need Your Name branded? Write an article. Writing newsletter articles can do all of these and more. So start writing articles Now!

Ngullen Rivera ownes an <a href="http://thearticleoutlet.com">Article Directory</a> where you can submit articles and find more than 25,000 articles for your content site: http://www.thearticleoutlet.com

Immortalize The Voice Of A Loved One. Hire A Ghostwriter.
Free the story trapped in a format indecipherable by most. Have the script rewritten into a manuscript, ready for self-publishing and self-promoting.

Imagine you’ve inherited the rights to a screenplay. You wouldn’t be alone. In fact, it’s trending -- understandable since forty thousand plus screenplays were written per year for the last twenty-five years. It was only a matter of time before they were resuscitated as last bequeaths.

Your imaginary benefactor’s eulogy glorified the dedication, the passion and the sacrifice with which words were capture to the page. Words, which in a unique style, voiced muses, meanderings and observations on life. Words which were this aspiring playwright’s most valued possession. Words which, for whatever reason, you now own!

Every writer has experienced the curse of an untold story. Haunted by one’s own ideas is aggravating enough. But to be reminded of a legacy-in-waiting at every family function is insufferable. What were once whispers of time ill-spent, have gossiped into a responsibility to the family name. ‘It’s a shame to think that the only credits her work earned were in her will’ will shadow you when all you want is more potato salad.

Whichever befits your character, a stoic answer to the call of duty or a dramatic capitulation with arms in the air, be prepared for the onset of reality. Your pen has just written promises it can’t keep. If you’re a writer, time is already rationed amongst personal projects. On the other hand, if you’re ‘narrative challenged’ (as she was) the task is a bit more foreboding.

So . . . who ‘ya gonna call? Ghostwriters!

Don’t dismiss the idea too fast. Appreciate that ghostwriting has been a guiltless yet respectable option for centuries. For as long as there have been speeches, memoirs or sequels, writing has been outsourced. The cultural handiwork of ghosts has not been limited to literature. Music and painting have a history of contributions by ghosts as well.

Does it honestly matter that ‘co-authored by’ or ‘as told to’ appears on the jacket, as long as the story is engaging? Odds are the book is better on account of it.

At the next visit to your favorite online bookstore, make a point to browse the memoirs. Much of the work has been penned on the condition of anonymity. Ask yourself these questions: ‘Do you really think as many were self-written as claimed?’ ‘Is it reasonable to assume that celebrities and sports figures whose success resulted from a lifetime of practice, were suddenly as equally adept at being proficient authors?’ Picking up a scalpel would be beyond belief, so why isn’t a pen?

In the publishing and film industries, ghostwriting is ubiquitous. The Development Editor identifies extensive revisions necessary to make a manuscript marketable. On a larger scale, teams of unnamed professional writers do the same to major Hollywood releases. A script reversed from the finished production would rarely resemble the original.

Don’t let partial notions prevent further consideration of ghostwriting when you cannot do it yourself. If a qualified writer can be found at an acceptable price, is it not worth it to break the curse and free the story?

Assuming the decision to proceed, the next step is to find one. Rather than searching ‘ghostwriter’, post the writing project on a freelance database. The first approach will list services charging $10K to $30K and the project will have to fit into their schedule. The second will return multiple bids ranging from $500 to $1000 from an international wealth of eager writers.

At these rates, your scribe will be scrambling. Consequently, even the most efficient writing can hide serious problems between the lines. It may be bland without inspiration. Characters may be stereotypical or weakly drawn. Backstory and exposition may be information dumps disrupting story flow. The style may be rift with distractions causing the reader to disengage. The potential for flaws is considerable. Therefore, expect to dedicate some time for editorial review. Lean on friends and family to critique it as if it were your own. Use a standardized critique from writing sites or an editorial filtering service.

Before posting a project description, understand the differences between a screenplay and a manuscript. Any screenplay, even one nominated by the Academy is not publishable as a novel. Few people would purchase a copy of a screenplay for a good read.

Other than the directing instructions, the story content of a screenplay is essentially a subset of a manuscript. Both have a hook, characters, dialogue, a problem, a goal, conflicts, a climax, character growth and an ending. In addition to this, the manuscript has narratives which elaborate on the setting, the backstory, the characterization, the action and the emotional depth. Without these, a screenplay is mostly dialogue. In a manuscript, dialogue typically comprises 40% to 60% of content.

Therefore, the project is basically to approach the dialogue of the screenplay like the plotting or the skeleton of the story. To this, narratives consisting of the missing elements are fleshed or layered in.

The project description also has evaluation and promotional components. It is appropriate to request a sample chapter on spec, as well as, a pitch, a synopsis, and a logline.

As the bids trickle in, the evaluation process resembles the role of an H.R. dept. Desirable skill-sets include the abilities to:

- make the author’s words jump off the page in their original voice and style rather than what they personally publish;
- experience and interest in the subject matter;
- package the concept so that an agent can sell it;
- proofread and polish their own work;
- collaborate;
- research;
and of course,
- write.

The ability to negotiate will depend totally on the number of the bids. Concerning quality, there are no guarantees at any price. One tactic, however, can hedge your investment. Try to negotiate a progressive payment agreement. Request to have performance advances released upon remittance of predetermined chapters/pages. If the writing does not meet expectations at pre-established milestones, no commitment to continue will exist.

A second tactic to enhance the caliber of writing is to fully disclose collaboration with the term ‘co-author’. With the ghost’s name on the jacket, more effort will probably be invested. The glory or celebrity given up in exchange is fleeting anyway.

Finally, offer splitting any proceeds 50/50. Few experienced writers will accept projects on spec. If a talented novice does, it may motivate writing as if it were for a bestseller.

The services of a ghostwriter is worth considering whenever a story is trapped in a screenplay and either time or ability is scarce. If the screenplay is your own, don’t leave it until the reading of your own will. Forget about naming beneficiaries because of interest once expressed in your writing. They’re family. They were just being polite. Do it yourself while you’re alive. Let them enjoy the potato salad!

Matthew Evans hosts www.changingmediums.com, a resource for playwrights interested in developing their screenplay further into a manuscript for the purposes of self publishing as a novel. Ghostwriting and freelance databases are examples of the topics discussed in more detail. Matthew reads for the editorial filtering service www.4gatekeepers.com. Copyright 2006

Self-Publish Your Book With National Distribution
Many writers struggle with constant rejection from the publishing world. A rejection, though a part of the industry, is difficult for writers at any stage in their career. You pour your heart and soul into a book, along with hours of work, only to hear a publisher indicate that it isn?t what they are looking for at this particular time. Many books that were otherwise snubbed by traditional publishing houses have gone on to be very popular. How? It?s simple. Self-publishing is an avenue that many new, or rejected, writers pursue.

When you hear self-publishing, perhaps you think about writing a book and taking it to a printer, paying for copies and doing all of the footwork to get your new work listed with major bookstores. But, thanks to the internet and an innovative new approach to publishing, that?s no longer the case. Sure, you still have to pen the book yourself but leave the printing up to someone else. A growing number of POD (print on demand) publishers are stepping up in search of the next bestseller. Print on demand is a term used to describe a publisher who handles all of the printing aspects, but on an as-needed basis.

The best self-publishing companies offer a variety of programs with the majority of them handling the issuance of an ISBN number and getting your book cataloged with all of the major online bookstores, including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million, etc. In addition, when a book is issued an ISBN number, it can be ordered at any bookstore. Your book may or may not be physically stocked at your local shopping mall, but the bookstore inside will have the capability to order it as requested. As your new title is listed nationally with every major bookstore?s catalog, it will steadily surface globally as well. A year after your book is released; don?t be surprised if search engine results show that it is listed with major online bookstores across the world, including Japan, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Germany, etc.

With print on demand publishing, or self-publishing, you will have to pay a fee to get your book in print. Longtime publisher iUniverse (http://www.iUniverse.com) offers publishing packages starting at $499.00 and up. In exchange for the startup fee, the company issues a printed version of the book while the author retains all electronic rights to the work and a 3-year contract with a 1-year automatic renewal. A generous 20% royalty is offered on the sale of every book with quarterly statements mailed to the author.

If you have been turned away by traditional publishers, or simply want to retain full control over your book, it?s cover design and content, self-publishing may be the way to go. If you have never been published, it is difficult to find a traditional publisher. With self-publishing, you will have documentation of your previously published work and royalty statements to show its success. Once your book is published, get out there and promote your work. It?s the best way to take your career from new to permanent status.

Daphne is a Writer, Business Owner, Motivator and Self-Starter and full-time Mom. She started Passion Parties by Daphne in the Summer of 2005 as a hobby while working full time. It has since become a full time passion for her and hope to quit her full time job soon. She enjoys writing articles about small businesses and family and tries to motivate other women with the same desire. She can be reached at 1-877-TOY-DIVA <a href="http://www.daphnespassion.com" title="http://www.daphnespassion.com" target="_blank">http://www.daphnespassion.com</a>

Successful Self-Publishing
Successful Self-Publishing Terence Tam Issue 1: January 2007 Inside this issue: Developing a marketing plan for your book. Discover how a carefully structured marketing plan can make the world of difference to the commercial viability and success of your book project. Read more. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Developing a Marketing Plan for your Book A marketing plan is a business development document designed to help you identify and plan out the actual activities that will promote and sell a product or service. It is a crucial planning tool that provides focus and check-list type clarity. Marketing programmes attempted without the backup of a proper plan, often fall victim to an unstructured, ad-hoc approach and money down the drain. Why should you develop a marketing plan for your book? A book may not seem like the kind of item relevant for the development of a marketing plan. This is definitely wrong. Your book is ultimately a product. It is a commercial item that must be promoted and distributed to a pre- targeted marketplace. Approaching the sale of your book in this professional and business-like manner is the best platform to realise any kind of commercial success. Core components of your marketing plan The marketing plan for your book does not need to be an elaborate, 20+ page document full of graphs and market research analysis. This will be your marketing plan, for your book. It does need to be a clearly written and sharply presented professional document, suitable for bookstore buyers/managers, publishers and distributors to review. However, it only needs to reflect the fundamental essentials that will influence the potential commercial success of your ‘product.’ Goals and Objectives Establishing clear goals and objectives for the commercial success that you would like to achieve from your book is the first step in the development of the overall marketing plan. Think of these goals in terms of numbers. How many units of the book do you aim to sell and over what period of time? Taking into account your estimated retail price per book, how much revenue (money made before costs and tax) and profit (money left after costs and tax) do you anticipate from your unit target? Target Audience: Who exactly are the people most likely to be interested in reading your book? Create a picture of this person in your minds eye, and describe this profile within the plan. Are they male or female readers? What age? What kind of social or economic background do they come from? What level of education are they likely to have? Unique selling proposition (USP): You now have a profile picture of the type of person most likely to read your book. Now, clearly define this next essential question â€" why would this person want to read your book? Does the book address important social issues such as politics, economy, health, war or religion? Is it going to evoke strong emotive response? Will it capture the minds and hearts of the audience? How? In what way will it strive to achieve this? The qualities that will entice your target audience are the qualities that make your book unique. These unique characteristics form the foundation of your USP. They are the core messages that should be openly and clearly emphasised in all your promotional and selling activity for the book. Study the back covers of books in your local store. How does the text describe the book? What unique statements does it emphasise to capture and hook your attention? These back covers may appear to be simple synopses, but they use the essential principles of a USP. Promotional Activities: What promotional activities will you implement to generate publicity and public awareness of your book â€" especially among your selected target audience? Will you use media, through public relations or press advertisements? Will you look for speaking or networking events relevant to your book topic? How much of a role will the internet play? Do you plan to host a book launch event? Developing a marketing plan is your opportunity to think precisely about what strategies and activities you will engage in, and structure them in a tangible form. A marketing plan also gives you the best forum to plan out the specific details for each individual activity - such as timeframes and dates, costs, essential contacts and suppliers. In summary, a marketing plan is not a ‘quick and easy’ document. It requires thought, research and planning. Developing one really should be approached as a project in its own right. I guarantee however, that the time spent will be a worthwhile investment in the commercial success of your book. It will represent all your hard work in a professional fashion, and create a strong business impression. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Terence Tam is the CEO of Book Pal and is a self publisher himself. His vision is to help both experienced and budding authors self publish their books. Book Pal also prints print on demand books to help the author print the number of books they require. Please visit www.bookpal.com.au ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Terence Tam is CEO of Book Pal, a company specialising in self publishing and book printing Australia wide. He is a self publisher himself. His company also excels in printing print on demand books.