#Publicity#KeepItBrief

I have noticed that when people send me their news releases for review, they ramble on and on.   It's verbal diarrhea - mostly about themselves. A news release is not the place for an author to talk about himself/herself. A news release is about NEWS.

We stress in our Ultimate Book Marketing Kit that a news release must be brief and very strong, using bulletted points to clearly state the benefits of the author's book. 

I don't know how to say it more clearly than in already states in the Kit: keep it simple. 

Make a list of the three most critical points in your book and let the media know how those points are important information for their audience. Show the media how you have a relevant story that will inform or solve a problem for the audience.

Our clients can send us their news releases for a critique - free.

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#CanadianPublishers#CanadianAuthors

If you are a Canadian publisher or author, you should contact Canada Books (see link below). The Canadian government supports the arts, including books, so check out what they have to offer. Keep in mind that they take books to the world's major book fairs, but you do not receive individual representation. All of the books are on display but the people staffing are not sales people.

If you want personal representation, contact us.

www.livrescanadabooks.com 

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#BooksForChristmas

"Tis the season to be shopping for gifts. Why not give books? In today's wonderful world of the internet, you can even order books online and have them shipped, gift-wrapped, to the recipient- for free!

Books can be such a personal gift. You have to get inside the head of the person to whom you are gifting a book because we all have our own personal tastes in reading. You don't want to give Harry Potter to someone who dislikes fantasy, or a gardening book to someone who lives in an apartment, and so on. 

Books are an opportunity to give a gift that touches the soul of your family member or friend. A great gift has special meaning - a book is perfect. You, the giver, have to think long and hard about your loved one. Pay attention to their conversations, to the tastes that they have in entertainment and movies, to their hobbies and interests, to their philosophy on life and you will find something fabulous to give.

Best of all, books are not expensive. 

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#ProfessionalEditors-Benefits

My computer was having brain seizures for several days. It's limping along at the moment but I can finally access my blog - for now, at least. Sigh....

Anyway, I want to share some information about professional editors with you.

To quote:

How do you benefit from using an objective, trained, professional editor?

• You ensure that your nonfiction is vigorous, clear, and marketable.
• You protect your reputation as an accurate information provider.
• You earn the respect of your reviewers and readers because of attention to detail.
• You prevent the embarrassment of grammatical errors, stylistic inconsistencies, and ambiguities.

From Lisa A. Smith at www.writing-at-work.com. 

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com

www.publishacookbook.com

#SellBookRemainders

Sometimes books just don't sell as well as the publisher expects. The garage or the basement is full of unsold, out of date books. What to do with them? It's a dilemma.

You could try a joint venture with a charity - they get the books at a good price, they sell them to raise funds and you share in the profits.

As a last resort, you could try selling them to a remaindering company, which is a company that buys books at a large discount from publishers and re-sells them at trade fairs, etc.

The dilemma of the publisher is in knowing what a fair selling price would be. Generally, the remaindering company will purchase for 5% to 10% of the retail value. They may or may not pay the shipping costs. Your job is to negotiate.

Contact several remaindering companies, ask for bids on the price they will pay to you and specify that shipping must be included in the price.

Accept the best bid (after you have checked their references).

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com

www.publishacookbook.com

#TooBusyToBlog?

Too busy to blog? Oh, yes. Seems that I am not the only one. Please see a newsletter from my friend Rosalind Gardner, a very successful affiliate marketer:

http://netprofitstoday.com/blog/too-busy-to-blog/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+affiliateblogs+%28Rosalind+Gardner%27s+IM+Tips%29

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#SellBooksToLibraries

 I am treating this as a Forward of an email. Credit to the writer is given.

Here are a few ways in which we connect with librarians:

I've been a semi-lurker on an acquisitions librarians list for several years. I post verrry rarely, and only after checking out my question with the list manager. But, I've learned a great deal and we've made some great connections with individual librarians, several of whom now subscribe to our quarterly newsletter.

We display at the PNBA show, which has a large group of librarians attending (and growing each year, thanks to the efforts of Thom Chambliss and his wonderful staff).

We do IBPA library mailings (at least one of our flyers is used as an example on the IBPA site).

We occasionally do library mailings via Florida Academic Publishers, too, when the title is a good fit.

We display at the midwinter and summer American Library Association shows.

We occasionally display at the California Library Association and California School Library Association shows, as well as other state and specialty library conferences around the country.

We subscribe to various listserves, newsfeeds, newsletters about/for libraries.

We donate books on a regular basis to our local library and to various literary campaigns.

Best,
Cynthia

Cypress House, Lost Coast Press, QED Press
155 Cypress Street, Fort Bragg, CA 95437
707-964-9520 * www.cypresshouse.com
Publishers of award-winning books and ebooks


Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#WriteaBook

Today I finished reading one of the best books that I have read in some time. Thank you to the friend who loaned room to me (Author: Emma Donoghue).

If you are a writer or aspire to be a writer of fiction, please read room. Donoghue is a master at language and communication. In the voice of a five year old boy, she manages to take you into horrific circumstances, new worlds and a multitude of emotions with amazing skill.

The book is not a writing style that you would want to copy because it is unique to the story, but room can show you how to take the reader into the mind of a character and keep you riveted.

room is a book that I will always remember. Check it out for yourself.

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#SelfPublishingStatistics

Self-published? Considering it? Bowker just released a new report showing that the number of self-published titles leapt by 287%, almost tripling to more than 235,000 print and ebooks per year. Self-published authors are in good – but crowded – company. More competition means more emphasis needs to be put on marketing and publicity efforts.  

           - from Reporter Connection

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com

www.publishacookbook.com

#BooksAndMovies

They did it! The book that was declared impossible to transform into film is now in theatres. 

Life of Pi, a book that was published years ago has been made into a movie by director Ang Lee - and what a fabulous movie it is. Yesterday I played hookie, took the afternoon off, and went to the theatre. Rarely do I attend 3D movies, but this one was definitely worth the wearing of goofy glasses.

As an author, you should consider all possibilities for your book: to whom does it appeal, could it be of interest to corporations, what other special groups might find it appealing, could it be translated to film?

Nothing is impossible if you plan correctly.

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#ChatGroups-JoinSome

In this day of blogs, have you perhaps forgotten about chat groups? If chat groups are off of your radar, think about finding some to join.

The beauty of chat groups is that they are more focused than social media which is out there for the world.

When you join chat groups that are specific to your interests, you stand to gain unlimited free information and advice from experienced people. You can't buy that kind of knowledge and support.

You can find chat groups just by searching on the internet and then registering with the group/groups that you find interesting.

Good luck.

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#GiveaBook

So, I still have not created my ebook cover - too many time conflicts this past week.

What I did achieve in my off time was a bit of Christmas shopping. Books, of course, came to mind. In the past month or two, my ears perked when interesting new books were discussed in the media. One family member or another would be considered as a recipient. Eventually, a list of books matched by people who would like those books materialized.

On I went to my internet search for the books, but I stalled. The books were available on websites, but there was just not enough information. I needed to handle the books, flip through the books here and there to read a few pages, see the photos (if applicable) and generally get a feel for them. 

Off I went to a book store. It struck me that there will just never be a replacement for the experience of shopping in a book store. It's just simply magical. When you find a book that you think might interest you, but it doesn't, there are many more right at your finger tips. No searching through numerous web pages to find an alternative - just the opportunity to flip through as many other books as I need.

Still, some of the books I will order from the book store's website because the convenience of having them handle the shipping to people 4,000 miles away is just impossible to resist. But, before I have the books shipped, I have the satisfaction of knowing that they will for sure make excellent gifts. 

When I give a book, I like to feel quite certain that it will make someone happy.

Denise


www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#PublishEbook

The editing of our publishing course is proceeding well. I just need to design an ebook cover before we launch the new revised edition of our publishing course on our website.

It's amazing what can be found on the internet. I'm going to give the cover design a go on my own.

I hope it works!!

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#RevisedEditionBook

It's that time again - revise our book/ebook publishing guide. 

The publishing industry is undergoing a big upheaval caused by the proliferation of ebooks. Large publishing houses are struggling to keep up with the trend. How do they deal with balancing the market for physical books with the trend toward ebooks and still manage to survive financially?

It's a big challenge. Fortunately, our publishing guide (The Ultimate Book Marketing Kit soon to be called The Write StuffTM) has been in electronic format for years. 

Why do we need to revise? Our original version focused on the publishing and sales of physical books. Now we need to provide information on ebooks. 

It's good to make changes - keeps us sharp.

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#EbookReader-Notepad++\

There is some discussion in the news that the sales of ebook readers are on the decline. The talk is that a notepad (Ipad/tablet) is preferable.Well, that all depends.

In actual fact, ebook sales have merely plateaued. Buyers, it seems, are in assessment mode. Which to buy? One? both?

What are the pros and cons?

Ebook readers are just what they say. You read books on them. They are small and easy to use. The screens usually are readable in bright light.

Notepads also allow you to read books. They also allow you to surf the internet, store photos and videos, download a GPS, play games, watch TV, replace your computer and play music. Therein lies the problem. It is a huge distraction.

How do you just curl up with a good book without interruptions or distractions? How do you sit at the beach in bright light to relax with your latest novel?

It's all a matter of personal choice, but some people are opting to have both devices. Now that the price of ebook readers has become so affordable, they can be just a stand-alone device, like your ipod.

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#BookSales-UseCurrentEvents

Staying in touch with current events and tapping into news-worthy events is a good way to sell books. Check this link:

http://www.politico.com/blogs/media/2012/11/nate-silvers-book-sales-skyrocket-148893.html 

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#KidsBooks

Kids still love to curl up in someone's lap to read a book. In spite of the ebook craze, that has not changed.  Yesterday my little granddaughter came to visit. When I asked her if she would like to read a story with me, she was sitting beside me before I could finish the question. We read two wonderful stories that got her talking, wondering and speculating on the solution to the characters' problems. It was such a wonderful time for both of us.

I hope that people everywhere continue to engage children with books and to encourage them to love books. There is no experience like it. Movies and electronic devices just don't compare. It is far a completely different experience to create your own movie in your head during the reading process. Reading is an active experience while watching movies, television and other electronic media are passive activities - the viewer is just experiencing someone else's imaginings.

Go find a child and read with him or her. You will create memories together. 

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#GoogleTrends

Many of you have your own blog, which is a very good thing. Your blog keeps you in the mind of your followers and it serves to keep you in the know about your subject matter. You are forced into keeping up with the latest trends in your genre.

So, speaking of trends, Google has a useful tool to help you: http://www.google.com/trends/

Before you publish your next blog, look up the key words in googletrends. If the key words do not appear in the search or if they rate low on the list of what people are actually searching for, reconsider the title. Use words that people actually type into their internet searches so that your blog will pop up. 

Don't forget to use the key words in your labels for that blog as well. Anything that can bring your blog to the attention of the world is worth trying.

Best of all - it's free.

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#BookBlog-EngageYourReaders

I heard a funny description of blogs the other day: "a blog is a book with no publisher."

Funny and true. But, a blog is more than just rambling thoughts - it's a way to communicate with like-minded people. A blog provides opportunities to share your expertise with people, to help people, to make people aware of your services and even to entertain them.

It is an important part of your marketing plan - no, it has become an essential part of your marketing plan.

Anyway, I just wanted to share those few thoughts on blogs with you.

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#SalesEBooks

This is just a short note, but I want to draw your attention to the sales of ebooks. While more and more people are purchasing their books in electronic format, the paper version of books is still alive and well.

You do need to pay attention to ebooks, though. Their sales have the world's biggest publishing houses on the run. Random House and Penguin are talking about merging which will lead to the mergers of other major publishing houses as well. Why? They need to cut costs. Sales of ebooks are cutting into their profits. By joining forces they can maintain their cheaper printing and distribution costs. It's a simple business decision. 

Just be sure that you make smart business decisions. Know your target market well before you decide on the best way to publish your book: ebook, paper book or both.

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#TheBookReview

The book review is a vital part of any publisher's marketing campaign. A book review tells thousands people about your book, and who doesn't want thousands of people to hear about their "baby"? 

Book reviews are third party, unbiased endorsements - and they're free. There is no advertising that can be bought that is as effective as a good book review. Which brings up the subject of bad book reviews. They are not what you want to hear but sometimes they work in your favor by piquing the curiosity of readers. There is a saying about no publicity being bad publicity. 

That may be but you do want a book review to be good, so it is up to you to provide a good media kit, otherwise known as a press kit,  to interested members of the media. You might as well stack the odds in your favor. 

Here is a funny quote from Will Ferguson, author of his latest book 419,  when asked if he reads reviews of his book:

"Of course I read reviews. Everyone does. The raves I take to heart (naturally); the nasty ones are clearly misguided."

I love his attitude.

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#MaximizingKeywords

Predicting Keyword Events

A keyword event can be loosely described as a spike in a particular keyword search. This is largely due to seasons, holidays, current events, or evolving trends.

Predicting a keyword event means you choose the keywords before they become popular to get ahead of your competition and get a running start in search engine rankings.

By carefully selecting keywords before they become popular and organically integrating those keywords into your articles, you can rank higher because there is little or no competition. After the trend hits the mainstream, those keywords will become popular and your ranking will stay high because you've established yourself as the leading authority - a trailblazer. Your article has been out there for weeks or months before your competitors even get started.

From: EzineArticles.com

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com

www.publishacookbook.com

#TagYourBlog

Just a quick note about blogs. You want as many people as possible to find your blog when you post it. 

Search engines are always looking for new information.

Just be sure to tag your blog or label it - whatever the term is that is being used by your blog host before you publish the blog at each new posting.

Cheers,

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#LibraryDistributorsForE-Books

Have you completed your marketing plan? Do you have a library distributor? 

Even for e-books, libraries should not be overlooked. With about 125,000 libraries of all types in the United States, libraries are not a market to be overlooked. Do the math. If each library takes one copy...

Also, think about the free publicity that you generate as people read your book and talk about it to their friends and families. Think about that math equation.

There is no way that you can single handedly contact each library so having a distributor is an important partner in your marketing plan. Distributors have sales reps who present their catalogs to the book buyers in the library system.

There are distributors such as OverDrive, and Kindle also distributes to libraries. Check them out and do some searching of your own. Make sure that you understand their terms.

Get your book out there.

Best of luck.

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#WriteABookin90Days

Lately I have seen several companies offering to teach you how to write your book (some fiction, some non-fiction) in 90 days. 

You have heard the saying, "If it sounds too good to be true, it is."

That being said, there likely are some very good strategies to be learned in the speedy authoring courses, but please, be realistic. Ask best selling authors how long it takes them to write a book. The answer is that it often takes years. Why do you think that they don't pump out a book every 90 days?

Great writing, excellent writing, takes time. Your subconscious needs time to process your thoughts, organize them, revise them and rewrite them many times before they are crystal clear to you. After all that, your writing needs to be edited for accuracy and for flow. If your thoughts are not absolutely clear to you they will definitely be very muddy to your readers. If your book is not a great reading experience will the reader look for future works from you?

I wouldn't.

Denise


www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#EditBook-Don'tDoIt

As I said, don't edit your own work - you won't see the mistakes.

Denise


www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#EditBook-Don'tDiIt

Yesterday I received a phone call from a person who is writing and planning to self publish a book. Good for her.

But -- she is very intellectual. Good for her. But -- she stated that she does not need to have her book edited because she can do a better job herself. Yikes!!

OK. She says that she purchased some software to help. OK. But -- software can help only with the mechanics of grammar and spelling. Good. But that is not all there is to editing.

Editors check for organization, flow, consistency, accuracy and much more. Editors also must have a good understanding of your message. Software can't do that. Editors must ensure that the book remains in your "voice". Software can't do that. Editors must consult with you frequently to make sure that your message is being projected as you want it to. Software can't do that.

What can the author do? The author can mess it all up unless an unbiased party edits the manuscript. Why? The author's brain fills in any gaps or any unclear projections of ideas. 

There is no way that you can edit your own work. Your brain will gloss over errors because it knows the subject matter inside-out, so it just skims over mistakes without even being aware of doing so.

Don't edit your own work.

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#SelfPublishing-MoreImportantThanEver

Another large publishing house has declared bankruptcy. Yet another large publishing house has laid off executive editorial staff. These are signs of the times. The world of publishing houses is shrinking.

When life closes one door, another door opens. So it is for self publishers. Opportunities for individuals to enter the publishing world abound. 

You can now certainly be a publisher, but you must be smart. Just because you can, doesn't mean you should. As with any other business, publishing requires business smarts. There are opportunities for people to self publish really, really good books. There are opportunities to publish crap as well. Which do you think will succeed?

More than ever, the buying public can "let their fingers do the walking". Instead of browsing a book store, buyers browse the internet. They can even more easily than ever access reviews of your books. You can't hide the truth.

More than ever, you must strive for excellence and you absolutely need to have a business plan. Not only do you need to publish a superior book, you have to know who will buy your book and how you will find those potential buyers.

We can help.

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#GoodWriting - WhatMakesExcellentWriting?

The more books that I read, the more quickly the writing style compels me to either continue reading with great enjoyment or compels me to discard the book after a very brief time. Life is too short to waste time reading inferior drivel.

As in anything else in life, writing can be graded on a curve: a small percentage of writing is great, most writing is somewhere in the center of the curve (varying from good to better to excellent) and another small percentage is awful. I cannot waste more than a few minutes on awful but the search for excellent is a lot of fun. 

It's so hard to tell what impresses me as excellent writing. Apart from good grammar and good sentence structure, the impression of excellent writing is a feeling. Either a book draws me in or it does not. It's quite simple. Excellent writing is absorbing. It blocks out the world as I forget about time and just keep reading and turning pages. I can't wait to read more.

Amazingly, not all excellent writers are just born that way. Writing is a craft that can be honed and perfected with practice and with a willingness to accept criticism. Arrogance has no place here. No one can be an excellent surgeon, or an excellent lawyer, or an excellent electrician or an excellent anything else without training and practice.

Very rarely, of course, does one encounter great writing (or a great surgeon) but excellent writing (and any other amazing profession) does happen and it's such a joy to find that special one. 

I'm always on the hunt for fabulous books.

Maybe one day you will be that next amazing author.

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#SnowySaturdayNight-ReadABook

It's a cold, wet, snowy Saturday evening.

I'm going to cozy up with a good book.

Is there a better way to wait for good weather?

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#BookAwards

Our next newsletter will be about entering the competition for book awards. Here is what we have to say on the subject:

“Should I enter my book?

By the end of this course you’ll have such an amazing book that you’ll be a shoe-in – RIGHT? Yes!

Many publishers wonder whether applying for awards is worthwhile. It is. Absolutely. There is frequently little financial gain from the award itself, but an award obtained is worth its weight in gold for status, credibility and media attention. In the long term, awards do translate into sales, which is the true reward.

Check the application criteria, and make sure that you are applying for an award in your genre. For instance, don’t apply for a literary award if you are writing a cookbook or a self-help book, or for an award that requires specific citizenship or residency. Some awards require you to submit your manuscript or a galley copy, while others want to see the finished book.

When you win, add a medallion to the front cover of your next printing, or purchase stickers that you can place on the cover of existing books. The stickers attract attention from book reviewers when you send out media kits, and they draw buyers to your book in the book stores."

If you believe in your book and if you have a book that has been professionally designed and edited, apply. What do you have to lose when you have much to gain?

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com

www.publishacookbook.com

#PublishABook10

Publishing a book is a huge job, but a very rewarding job. There is so very much work to do and much more work than what meets the eye. You, the author, must be the creative genius and the manufacturing executive at the same time. It's no small task. 

But, just when you think the job is done, you discover that it's really just beginning. There is not much point in writing and publishing a fabulous book only to see it sit on the shelf of to trip over the stacks of boxes in your garage.

For a book to be a success, it must sell. Many publishers naively think that as long as their book makes it to the book store shelves it's a sure seller. Not so. If that book sits too long on the book store shelves the book store will return it to you - sometimes in less than mint condition.

Who is going to convince buyers to go to the book store and choose your book from the thousands of titles available? You! Even if you have your book published by someone else, you, yes you, must convince the world to buy your book. 

But it doesn't end there. You have to find non-book store buyers for your book. It's a rarity to have a book sell in the many thousands just from book store sales. Therefore, you must put your sales hat on and sell that book to as many outlets as you possible can.

That's where the real work begins. Don't feel overwhelmed, though. We can help.

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#PublishABook9

It was a relief to have the book's contents under control and the design of the pages and of the cover in order. The type of paper was decided upon, the hidden coil binding was a certainty, the page design was looking great, we had our copyright and book publishing data organized, the price was set and we were ready to go.

The next big step was to decide upon a printer. Again, research was necessary. Who? Where? When? How many copies? ... and so on.

We were very lucky to find a great printer with a wonderful sales rep, Andy, who babied us along, because we really were babes-in-the-woods. It was obvious but we were not afraid to ask questions, even if they sounded silly to Andy. 

Andy taught us all of the printing terms and Sherry, our graphic designer, babysat us as well.

It is very important to have people whom you trust implicitly because a great deal of money is at stake. 

Our file went to the printer and we were there to check the blue lines as they rolled off the press. It was like having another child - exciting and terrifying all at once.

And it was worth it.

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#PublishABook8

So, we researched the criteria for putting the physical book together, but what about other necessary components of the book? 

I had never paid attention to the Cataloging in Publication page in my entire life!! What did it all mean? More research to do - or, if you are our client, we will tell you how. We can make your life so much easier. I now say, "I wish that I had me to help me when I was learning about publishing." The process would have been so much easier.

We also had to learn about pricing and bar codes. Help! We can help you there, also. 

Publishing a book means that you are producing a "product" that you plan to sell to many people. Just like any other product, your book must have all of the components that buyers require. If you want your book to sell, it must look professional.

During our publishing process, we saw many books that just screamed "amateur" and we knew that such a product would not sell. People look for value before they hand over money for something, so make sure that the perceived value of your book is excellent.

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#PublishABook7

I have not been able to access this blog for a while as the writer. I was locked out, but just by fluke I happened upon the solution. Whew!

However, publishing a book cannot happen by fluke or happenstance. Planning is of the essence in publishing. 

So far, we have talked about the steps that I discovered are crucial in the publishing process, but we are not finished. Your book needs to be printed.

Now you encounter a whole bunch of new things to know: 

• kind of paper to use
• type of binding
• amount of colour
• number of scans that are affordable
• hard cover, soft cover, digital
• type of font
• price to charge
• digital print or offset
• reliable printer

Now you have some serious research to do.

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com

www.publishacookbook.com

#PublishABook6-BookTitles

We talked about the importance of the cover in the last blog, and important it is. You want hands to reach out for your book on the shelf. 

The title is so very important. So many authors think that the title should spell out the message like the thesis for a doctorial degree. Boring!

Think of some good book titles:

One Smart Cookie
The Wealthy Barber
Rich Dad, Poor Dad
Gone with the Wind
The Secret
Fit to Cook
Fire 'n Ice


Good titles suggest the book's contents but use intrigue to pique curiosity. You don't have to do a synopsis of the book on the front cover. Give a good clue to the book's contents but don't use the cover to give the entire message. 

The title catches the reader's interest - the subtitle provides a bit more into. Go to book stores and do your research. Find attractive book covers, search for good titles and read subtitles. You don't have to re-invent the wheel. Just make your book cover better.

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#PublishABook5

So, we learned about the components of a good book. We knew what should go into every book and how a professional book should look.

The next step was to find someone who could design such a book and who would get into our heads with us. It's interesting, isn't it? Some people say that there is an energy in the universe that responds to the energy that you put out and what you need will come to you. It did!

By "coincidence", if you believe in coincidence, or by design if you believe in the energy of the universe, a most wonderful designer named Sherry came into our lives. To use a common phrase, what a god-send she was. 

We worked for a year with Sherry to get the pages designed just right, to get the graphics just right, to create our logo, to put together a fabulous cover and to get the manuscript perfectly print ready. And it was. There was not a glitch when the file went to the printer. 

I say it over and over: do not try to design your own book, or edit it yourself either. It just will not be what it could be if you have good professionals on your team. After all, you want people to like the appearance of your book. Do people judge a book by its cover? Yes. Yes. Yes.

Fit to Cook won an international award.

That says it all.

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#PublishABook4

Where does the time go when you are babysitting little grandchildren for a week? Preschool, grade one, dance class, play dates, park, meals, baths, stories .....   Whew! It's so  much fun but blogging time goes out the window. Anyway....

So, we were talking about knowing the components of a book - essential information if you want to publish a professional looking edition. 

Equally important is a clear understanding of why you are writing the book at all. If you just want to blow hot air, or you just want to make yourself feel better, or you think it would be cool to be a published author, stop now. Just write a journal and keep it to yourself.

However, if your goal is to sell lots and lots of books, identify who will buy the book. Your writing has to be meaningful to the audience. Entertain them, educate them, solve a problem for them, enlighten them. A good book grabs the readers, either to entertain them or to improve their lives in some practical way. 

A book with a purpose is much easier to sell than a vague rambling that is written for "everyone". Nothing is for everyone, not even the Bible, the Koran, you or anyone else.

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#PublishABook3

To continue: what attracts buyers to particular books? You must know the answer, because what you write, who you write for, how you design your book and from there targeting who will buy your book are crucial to the success of the book. 

Our job would have been so much easier if we had known to have a clear idea of the answers to the above questions before we were writing and while we were writing. 

When we wrote our book, we would constantly go two steps forward and one step back. We spent a lot of time undoing mistakes because we missed steps along the way. What a learning experience!

During an interview by a business writer, after we had sold many thousands of books, the interviewer told me that I had learned sto much about the publishing business just from doing it, and researching the process, that I had acquired a "Street M.B.A.". In other words, I had taught the entire publishing process to myself from a background of zero knowledge. 

So, we learned what the components of a good book are, how to put the book together and how to sell the book. It was far more work than it needs to be but there was no one like us at Ink Tree to ask.

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#WriteACookBook2

Busy weekend. No time to blog. Whew. Back to normal routine.

So to continue:

We began our research program, writing the book at the same time. It's important to write while you are in the book development phase. As you learn more about the writing/publishing process you can make amendments to the manuscript. A book is a work in progress until it goes to the printer.

There were so many things to learn about publishing that our heads were spinning but gradually, gradually the mist began to clear. Joining a publishers' group was great support. Having other publishers to watch and to listen to gave us clues about what we even needed to know. I had been a reader all of my life but had never paid attention to important issues like ISBN numbers, Cataloging in Publication data, bar codes, pricing, book design, graphics and photo placement, cover styles, types of bindings, types of paper, the importance of colors, graphic designers, kinds of printers, distribution, publicity, markets other than book stores and on and on.

There are also some publishers' chat groups that offer loads of advice. There you can ask questions and actually receive the benefit of the experience of live publishers.

Because there were very few other resources for publishers, we had no idea where to begin to widen our search for information. We found that libraries and book stores can tell you much more than you would suspect. Just learning about our competition in the cook book world was eye opening.

Another great source of help was the buyers at book stores. What attracts book buyers to certain books?

More later.

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com 

#WriteACookbook

I am going to do a series about cook books, since that is where I have the most expertise and many of the people on our mailing list sign up through our www.publishacookbook.com website. 

I co-authored Fit to Cook - Why 'Waist' Time in the Kitchen? with Chantal Jakel and Cynthia Kereluk. The book sold over 250,000 copies. Chantal and I were inspired to write the healthy recipe section by our experiences as nurses at a cancer clinic. Cynthia was an exercise guru with her own television show. It was a great collaboration.

None of us had experience with book publishing, so we thought that the book could be put together in about two months. Ignorance is bliss - sometimes. It took us over two years to get the book to the ready-to-print stage. There were very few resources for self publishers in the 1990's, so we stumbled along, discovering all of the things that we didn't know - and boy, were there ever many things to learn!!

Because Chantal and I have to get everything just right, we began our own extensive research program. Oh, my, the things we didn't know!

Stay tuned.

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#BlogsForBooks

There are many avenues to promote your books: blogs included. There are blogs for everything, now, so don't overlook them. As a matter of fact, start your own.

Everything from soup to nuts has a blog, even romance novels. You can find like-minded people on any subject so look up your genre and get involved. 

Every person with whom you connect has something to teach you, so get connected. Learn from others and they will learn from you. In the process, people will learn about your book. 

You simply cannot have too much publicity and funny enough, free publicity is far more effective than paid ads. People view book reviews as credible references whereas anyone can take out a paid ad to say anything that they want to say.

Consider a blog if you don't have one and ask people for reviews.

Denise


www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#BuyingBookReviews

It seems that some people offer services to write book reviews for authors and post those reviews on popular websites such as Amazon.

Don't do it! Amazon, and other sites, are catching on to this tactic and are shutting down the book sellers.

Everyone wants book reviews, even the bad ones, but those reviews must be honest and spontaneous.

Do your home work. Get your book reviewed every place that you can, but do so honestly and you can sell your books with pride.

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com

#FollowUpOnNewsRelease

Today I was asked this question: "My publicist sent out my news release to 7,000 media sources. How do I follow up?

Answer: "How do you find a needle in a haystack?"

The danger of sending out masses of news releases without having specific names and email address is like trying to catch snowflakes. You use a net but the snowflakes melt as soon as you catch them. 

When you are contacting the media, or even corporate buyers, you need to be contacting SOMEONE - one person at one address or phone number. If you contacting ANYONE, NO ONE will respond because NO ONE is responsible for reading your news release and people are too busy to read through your information and direct it to the correct person.

So, spend a small sum of money, purchase a media list with the contact information of the specific editors and producers you are targeting and focus on them. Follow up is very, very important. 

Sending a news release out once without follow up is a waste of time.

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com

www.publishacookbook.com

#BestsellerLists

Everyone wants to write a bestseller. Of course. You want your book to be so popular that it becomes a household word - such as Fifty Shades of Grey by British author by E.L. James, the current "hot" book. I'm sure that the author is more than happy with the sales of the book. Who wouldn't be?

But do you have to get onto the bestseller list to have a book that sells a makes your wildest dreams come true? Absolutely not. My book sold over 250,000 copies but it was never on anyone's list but mine. Why not? Only 15% of the sales occurred in book stores. It takes only 35,000 copies to make it to bestseller status in the United States (5,000 copies in Canada), which might or might not be exciting, depending on your goals. 

Never was I unhappy with my sales numbers. Most of the copies sold to the corporate market, which is even better than book store sales because they are guaranteed sales. When book stores order books any unsold copies are returned to you - the book market is strange indeed. The bottom line, however, is that books moved out of my warehouse. End of story (no pun intended).

Bestseller lists are arbitrary, anyway. The New York Times, for example, communicates with a select group of book stores and reports sales of their most popular books. What if you sold 50,000 copies of your book on Amazon, or you sold 100,000 copies to XYZ corporation? The New York Times would be none the wiser but how happy would you be? 

Your efforts must be focused on sales - wherever you can achieve them, whether in book stores, to the gift market, in catalog sales, via your website, to charities as fund raisers or wherever you can get them. 

Denise

www.inktreemarketing.com
www.publishacookbook.com