October , 2006: Sharing with Writers:
March 10, 2008
Sharing with Writers
A newsletter that is also a community. Share your ideas. Learn from theirs!
From the Desks of
Carolyn Howard-Johnson
And Authors' Coalition Friends
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Sharing with Writers is the official newsletter of Authors' Coalition,
an organization of writers who help writers.
To read this letter in plain vanilla text, scroll down. To read this newsletter with a bit more pizzazz (not much, though!) at Authors Den go to:
In the spirit of the advice I give in the Frugal Editor -- that is to use an extra pair of eyes whenever possible -- this newsletter is voluntarily copyedited by Authors' Coalition member, Mindy Phillips Lawrence ~ mplcreative1@
mplcreative
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Note from Carolyn:
Dear Subscribers and Authors' Coalition Members:
Thursday March 13 will be a fun day for me. I usually get to talk about promotion and editing when I do a blog tour or am interviewed on radio. Thursday, I get to talk about memories. The blog is aimed at the sandwich generation and that sandwich keeps getting fatter all the time. We sandwichers must balance our kids, sometimes our grandkids, our parents and careers. Some of us struggled with gender discrimination in our early days and some of us still aren't immune to it. Ditto for other kinds of intolerance. Well, you get the idea. I get to talk about some of my favorite subjects.
And you don't have to carve out an hour to join me. You can drop by, leave questions or just say, "Hi." On Thursday, March 13 I'll be at NourishingRelationships. where bloggers Phyllis Goldberg, Ph.D. and Rosemary Lichtman, Ph.D. will interview me. They are co-authors of Sandwiched Boomers: How to Nourish Relationships without Starving Yourself, a book in progress, and -- sandwichers themselves -- have worked together as mentors to women at for years. Soooo, Thursday, come find out what it was like for women in the 50s and 60s, and how I changed directions in what these two women generously call "the second half of my life." Now's the time to ask me what you always wanted to ask me. (-:
Happy writing, promoting and, yes, editing, too!
Carolyn Howard-Johnson
Websites: (literary)
(all things about writing)
Authors' Coalition:
For the Frugal Editor, Amazon-direct:
Blogs: , a blog focused on book fairs
, a blog on all things publishing
, a blog focused on YOUR reviews
, a blog focused on editing, formatting and craft
And now blogging on War. Peace. Tolerance. And Our Soldiers at .
And now! Squidooing at
and
PS: Our catalog and LA Times Fair book signing deadlines are approaching. No producer is likely to see your book if it isn't out there shining its little cover in the right places. LA is the right place. Yay. Chances are slim but the slimmer in most other places than in LA. (-:
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Please pass this letter on to others. Unlike many, I do not mind if you use only portions of it as long as you credit the writers and include this subscribe information. "To subscribe to 'Sharing with Writers' send an e-mail to HoJoNews@ with 'Subscribe' in the subject line."
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Letters-to-the-Editor
**Hi,
I was thinking about you when I opened aol. And there you are! Well, sort of.
Saw the stuff on the contracts. That's why you hire your own lawyer...not let the agent tell you what a contract says. Have someone you're paying for legal advice tell you what it says for real. If someone says this is our standard contract, run right to your lawyer's office before you sign anything. The large print giveth and the small print taketh away. (SL says that, I don't talkth like that!)
Hi Carolyn,
I just read the items in your newsletter about contracts [with the movie industry], or actually the potential loss due to faulty contracts. I can tell you with certainty, lawyers do not serve two masters. They are not paid to be fair to all parties.
Here's the basics. They write a contract to be legal, binding, and provide the most benefit for their client they can. Their loyalty is to the person paying to have the contract written. There is a reason they use strange language. No, not to make it confusing, but to make it a legal document that meets certain standards and does certain things. A really good contract lawyer will insert or omit words deliberately, with an eye to future litigation, not to getting a Pulitzer. In the end, that end being litigation, it does not matter what the signing party thought the document meant or what their agent said it meant, it matters how the Judge interprets it according to the law.
There are experienced agents who probably will advise their clients correctly. They certainly can negotiate a good deal. But it makes no sense to have them give a (legal) opinion on a contract. What makes sense is to hire a contract lawyer to read the contract and advise specifically what you get and what you don't (terms of payout), mediation issues, the specified venue, and more.
It is worth spending a few hundred dollars to avoid losing thousands. (There's my 2c worth.)
Nadine Laman
NadineLaman@
Check out this: watch?v=Fu6f_4ab0uk
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Opportunities for Networking and Exposure From New York Center for Independent Publishing
Debra Williams with the New York Center for Independent Publishing () wants you to know about Small Press Month events. She says, "In a time when publishing houses are owned by larger corporations, Small Press Month continues to raise awareness for the pressing need for broader venues of literary expression. During the month of March, venues across the country, will showcase the work of writers and the independent presses that publish their work. As best-selling author Walter Mosley ”the face of this year's ™" Small Press Month poster states, "The life's blood of contemporary and modern literature is in the custodianship of so-called small publishers. Without them there is no future for literature."
Note also the names of some of the small presses, a nice list for you to explore. (-:
Here is the listing of some of March events:
March 20 Powell's City of Books() (Portland, OR)
Tom Blood (Marriage Records), Geronimo Tagatac (Ooligan Press), Mary Rechner (Cloverfield), Keith Rosson (Microcosm), Kristopher Young (Another Sky Press), Kimberly Warner-Cohen (Ig Publishing), Kate Lopresti (Microcosm), Alex Wrekk (Brainscan zine), Erica Schreiner (zinester), Lidia Yuknavitch (Chiasmus, FC2), Steve Katz (FC2), Jeremy Robert Johnson (Swallowdown Press), Mykle Hansen (Eraserhead), Carlton Mellick III (Eraserhead)
March 26 :Symphony Space () (New York City, NY) 7:30 p.m.
A night of stories mined from the anthologies of The Pushcart Prize, the honored series that has featured the best stories, poems, essays and literary whatnot from hundreds of small presses for over 32 years. Introduced by series founder and Editor Bill Henderson.
March 28, Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center (Los Angeles, CA), Featuring:
Sarah Maclay (University of Tampa, Beyond Baroque), Stephen Kessler (Littoral), Ralph Angel (Sarabande)
March 28, The Poetry Center of Chicago (Chicago, IL)
Small Press Showcase featuring the best in independent literary publishing from the Chicagoland area.
March 29, Virginia Festival of the Book ( )(Charlottesville, VA)
Featuring:
Mike Farrell of M*A*S*H (Akashic Books)
March 30,Virginia Festival of the Book() (Charlottesville, VA). Featuring: Walter Mosley
March 30, WordTheatre () (Los Angeles, CA). WordTheatre celebrates Small Press Month at Canal Club in Venice with short story and poetry readings by:
Tess Harper (No Country for Old Men, Academy Award for Tender Mercies), Rae Dawn Chong (Wild Card, Mysterious Ways), Christopher McDonald (Requiem for a Dream, American Pie Presents)
Here are sponsors of this program. If there are any you, as an author, don't know, it's best to use these links to do your homework:
Sponsors:
Book Sense
PMA: the Independent Book Publishers Association
pma-
CLMP (Council of Literary Magazines and Presses)
ForeWord Magazine
Small Press Distribution (SPD)
Reed Exposition Services (BookExpo America)
Association of American Publishers (AAP)
Ingram Publisher Services
The General Society of Mechanics and Tradesmen
============================= New members will help Authors' Coalition serve all its members better! Ask your writing friends to join at . Paid members get a favorite review posted, consideration for an interview or review in Yarnspinners and Wordweavers, ditto for The Fiction Flyer and Betty Dobson's Inkspotter. Membership is reasonable, too.
Tell friends to visit our blog. There they'll learn how to spark generally insipid book fairs by using value-added promotions. authorscoalition..
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Tip: Correction on the URL for A Cappela Newsletter for Writers, a long-time source for everything you want to know to write better and get published. It is
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My blog, War, Peace, Tolerance and Our Soldiers is where I get to nag and rag to try to make things better for our troops and maybe for the world. It's only been active a few weeks and is gathering an amazing following. I'd love to have you leave a comment. warpeacetolerance.
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Thank Yous
(There are leads here, just as you'll find in all the most innocent-looking areas of this newsletter. You never know when you'll find a name or a site that will help you network or write better!)
To Dessa Reed for including my links on her new Resources page
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To Courtney Mroch.for the interview on her blog about authors and pets. It is something quite different from my usual interviews. It will give you a chance to meet Malibu, my new Great Dane.
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To Elizabeth Lucas Taylor for reprinting my article/letter on how to avoid getting shafted by the movie industry if they take an interest in your novel or other property. If you missed it find it here: . Click on "blog" when you get there. She is also including the list of helpful information with a freelance blog she does, .
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To Michelle Ailene True for running my article on ways to make book fairs successful in her Write On newsletter. Here is the URL for a Yahoo group -- when people join it, they get the monthly newsletter f r e ^ each month. They can also access the Files section, which contains all the archived issues as well as a file containing links to dozens of helpful websites for writers.
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To Annette Fix, editor at WOW-Women On Writing and author of The Break-Up Diet and one of the authors who will be signing her book at the Authors' Coalition booth at the LA Times Festival of Books for including the event on her site's blog at . This cross-promotion thing can get tons of people to a booth and totally eliminate my objection to taking fair booths without the advantage of cross-promotion. (-:
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No part of this newsletter is paid advertising. If you would like to advertise to subscribers, display ads are available at at less per year than most sites charge for a single month (see the advertising tab at the top of the page). Authors' Coalition is also accepting ads. So is Yarnspinners and Wordweavers. Contact katieseyes@.
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Comment: The English Language
(Subscriber Mindy Philips Laurence, co-author of The Complete Writer ,and SWW subscriber and copy editor of this newsletter, is sharing a bit on the English language.)
I just went shopping for REAL food....vegetables and fruits mostly. On my trip, I came by a bottle of extra virgin olive oil, which Wikipedia defines as:
• Extra-virgin olive oil comes from cold pressing of the olives, contains no more than 0.8% acidity, and is judged to have a superior taste. There can be no refined oil in extra-virgin olive oil.
Still the term throws me. How can you be "extra virgin?" You either are or you aren't. I'd assume that the Virgin Mary might qualify but that's the only possibility I can come up with.
Ah, the joys of the English language.
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On Promotion
Are You Cross Promoting and Utilizing Holidays Effectively?
Here is an example of a St. Patty's day promo from Janet Elaine Smith:
Is it the luck of the Irish, or does an Irishman make their own luck? Author Janet Elaine Smith has been preaching for a long time that one of the surest ways to get books into a prominent spot in bookstores is to draw on little-popularized holidays. Her first Patrick and Grace Mystery, In St. Patrick's Custody, is a perfect example. It revolves around two senior citizen Irish sleuths and happens around St. Patrick's Day. When she calls bookstores about it, many managers respond with the lament that usually all they have to put up are books of Irish limericks.
To see more how-to's to capitalize on off-beat holidays for your books, check out Janet's Promo Paks: Nearly Free Marketing Tips for Authors. published by Star Publish at Amazon.
And while you are at Amazon to look for the Promo Paks, you will find a perfect example of cross-promotion. You will find a direct link to Carolyn Howard-Johnson's Frugal Book Promoter: How to do What Your Publisher Won't on the same page as a recommended companion book for the Promo Paks. And they are both on sale! Can it get any better than that? It has to be more than just the luck of the Irish!
So, what do you do with a piece like this?
Send it to the promo groups at and
Expand it a bit and put it on your blog.
Ask your cross-promotion partner to spread it around. (It worked for Janet, didn't it?)
Put it on your website using some holidayish art.
Tailor it to fit your newsletter.
Print some out and tuck them into your holiday cards or notes before you seal the envelope. Use holiday art for that, too!
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Subscribers who have websites or newsletters of their own may be interested in the Free Articles 4 Readers and Writers on my site, . I try to add new articles to it each week. If you don't see what you need for your blog, or newsletter, just ask. HoJoNews@.
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Big Video News!
Best Selling Author TV To Be at LA Times Festival of Books
Rey Ybarra, the interviewer for the video many of you have seen and commented on is fantastic. So is his cameraman, Randy Detroit, and so is the equipment they use! And so is their knowledge about getting that video out to places that most authors know little about.
They will be filming at the Authors' Coalition booth at the LA Times Fair April 26 and 27th with a special introductory price for videos. I'm hoping lots of authors drop by to see what this team can do for them besides film a really nice video. Learn more at bestsellingauthortv. . Explore the videos they have done there. Check out his amazing past in radio and TV.
There will be more in this newsletter later. You will be able to make advance appointments. Contact me with questions at hojonews@.
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Fun and F r * *: If you purchased the Frugal Book Promoter or the Frugal Editor, I'd love for you to review it on Amazon or . Make it simple; just tell what part of it you found most valuable. If you do, send me the review link (URL) and I will send you a handout from one of my UCLA classes. As a thank you, of course. HoJoNews@
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On Poetry
This is a new running feature for the poets among us and those who would like to try writing poetry but feel, well . . . inadequate. Please send in your poetry tips and resources for this section.
If rhyming seems like a chore, don't! Try using your skill for imagery with not rhyme. F r e ^ verse is just as much poetry (some think more so!) than rhymed poems.
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Don't suffer with book proposals. You can be a pro with and investment of only 20 minutes and 49 cents with my Great First Impression Book Proposal Short.
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Tip: I like BookPlace for social networking with book lovers and authors. I'll tell you why I'm partial to it. It lets you reach your networking pals all at once (and easily!). No limits of ten or twenty. What's the point of that anyway? Become my friend. Leave comments. And there is a central collection spot for videos. Find my new one here:
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Tip: Both of my Frugal books and all Amazon Shorts (including The Great First Impression Book Proposal: Everything You Need To Know To Sell Your Book in 20 Minutes or Less) are available for Amazon's Kindle so naturally I was interested in this great review of the product from a consumer-who-also-happens-to-be-a-writer.
Even if your book isn't available on Kindle yet, you know my mantra about knowing as much about the publishing industry as possible. (-:
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A general marketing rule is that a product must be seen seven times before it is purchased. That is just as true for books (because they are products, like it or not!). Let people see that book cover image! To do that, you are invited to advertise as a site sponsor at for only $25 to $30 a year. Yep, the frugal way! Click on the Advertising tab at the top of the page or contact me personally at hojonews@.
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Author Successes
(If you read about others' successes you'll not only be inspired, you'll glean resources for future successes of your own. You are invited to send me news about your successes. Please use "AUTHOR SUCCESSES" as a subject lines.)
Sue Chehrenegar is contributing to a major blog about the Marine Corps. It can be found at blogs
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Available: Audios from Audio Divas on many aspects of building a writing career are published by Double Dragon Press. Here is the page where you'll find the full list ( ) including one on "Do It Yourself Indexing." The first audio, "Promoting Easy and Cheap!" is a F R ^ ^ sample you can download. Each comes with a resource guide. Here is an example of a guide for the audio-lesson Your Divas did on "Contests":
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Q&A a la Ann Landers
Over-Marketing Ticking You Off?
Carolyn,
You think you have a problem remembering things done or not, my problem is trying to figure out what will work for me and what won't. I have tried so many things in the way of marketing and getting no results from any of them. I am starting to hate and yes, I really mean hate the whole concept of marketing. I don't wish to be an annoying individual like so many I see. I get so many e-mails from people who call what they do marketing but I call it annoying so I have blocked them out. I could possibly miss something I need to see but way too many e-mails come to me over and over, again and again, so I just don't look at them anymore. I don't wish to be like that. The saying is, send it out seven times before people pay attention but it only takes one time for me. I know I am not alone in this train of thought. Duh?
So if you come up with something that is not annoying I most likely will go for it. If is easy to do, I will most likely go for it too. But if it takes a lot of my time to implement, the odds are is a no go for me. I have a life, unlike what looks like others have nothing more to do than sit at computers and send out e-mails. Not me. I live, not exist.
Sylvia McClain
Author and editor of the Scribal News
sylmclain@
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Sylvia
You make a valid point. Sometimes really good marketing will do something very repetitive (:ook again and the repetition behind what Coca-Cola does!). But I believe even better marketing is stuff that is both varied AND offers some benefit to the receiver. How-tos, tips, inspirational edssays, a way to participate (like blogs or an event calendar like yours). They all work well.
Whether its same-ish or different, It all does add up after time. Do you think your mistake is that you lose momentum and the fun of it because you really do expect to see some difference with any one thing you do? I can think of about two things I've done in marketing in my life that produced quantifiable results. At one point in my retailing life I gave away little lighted village houses valued $150. They were overstock I couldn't return. I had 125 to give away. I was only able to give away 4 after getting a huge about of f r e ^ coverage in the local newspapers. Amazing, huh? But I looked at it like I look at promotion in general. All that newspaper coverage? That was worth something, certainly. So all was not lost.
CHJ
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Authors' Coalition members! For credibility, use the AC logo on your promotional materials. Ask for it by sending an e-mail to HoJoNews@ or download it with a click from the AC site .
You know you want it on your website! Be sure to link it to the AC site, too! And there is a cross-promotional slide show there that will add movement and color to your site or blog, even if you aren't featured on it. It's all about Karma. (-:
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Opportunities:
Screenwriting Contest Sue Chehrenegar who blogs at journals.suecheh/a-century-of-thoughts sends us this about writing contests. Learn more at
Welcome to the AAA Contest--
Access, Acclaim, Achievement
You've written the script, now let us help you get it through the door.
Welcome to Creative Screenwriting's Access, Acclaim,Achievement screenplay competition. The AAA Contest is looking for the best and most talented writers from around the world. If you have written a great screenplay, please allow us to bring your work to the attention of the industry and to help you bring it to the attention of the industry.
Our Grand Prize winner will receive $5,000 and multiple avenues of access:
● Agency/production company consideration -- winning scripts and finalist loglines/synopses sent to 300+ companies;
●Access to producers, agents, managers, and other writers with a full-year subscription to Hollywoodbyphone;
●Access to producers, agents, and managers via FREE pitches at the Screenwriting Expo.
The two runners-up will receive $1,000 apiece plus agency/production company consideration and access through Hollywoodbyphone and Expo pitches as well.
We'll also send loglines and synopses for the top ten scripts to more than 300 agents, managers, and development executives who have requested them. Submit your best work in any genre.
PS: The easiest way (if not the best) way to get noticed in Hollywood is with one of these contests--especially if you don't know anyone with clout.
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We have three more spaces available for the Authors' Coalition catalog to be delivered by mail to booksellers and press. It's a great way to get in touch with booksellers at bookstores and have your book associated with a professional organization and with the LA Times Festival of Books, even if you live in North Dakota! (-: Contact me for information but first, please go to the website and read up on how it works cross-promotionally. . Scroll down a bit to where it says CATALOG.
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Authors' Coalition: No Hum-Drum Book Fair Promotion Allowed is a blog where you can watch how Authors' Coalition members make book fairs successful with cross-promotion, value-added promotions and a good assessment process. Find it at authorscoalition.. It's time to sign up for 2008's LA Times/UCLA Festival of Books. =============================================
SWW Subscriber Shares On Barnes and Noble, Your Book's Mark-Up and Why You Should Care
From Christopher Meeks,
Carolyn--
I learned a lot yesterday more about the workings of Barnes and Noble in relation to my signing on June 13th that's sponsored by Barnes and Noble. At one point, I had an executive in the B&N Small Press Department, Diane Simowski, call me, and between her and others, here are a few points I learned that impact POD publishers:
o POD titles are rarely on the shelves of a Barnes & Noble unless two conditions are met: they are returnable, and there's at least a 40% discount.
o B&N's computers show that a book's title is either a short discount or retail. A short discount means it's less than a 40% discount, which means a customer who wants it has to prepay it before it can be ordered. Individual stores are not supposed to order books for their shelves that have less than a 40% discount.
o The Small Press Department really won't help POD publishers because the department is basically meant for old-fashioned publishers who are small (under 4' 11"... kidding). That is, if one self-published a book and has boxes of books in the garage, an author can send his/her book to the Small Press department if it'll match various critieria, as follows:
- B&N will get at least a 40% discount
- Books can be returnable
- There is a marketing campaign, which you have to give details on
- You have a copy of the book (no manuscripts accepted)
- Trade reviews are a plus
- You have a note explaining what makes the book unique
- Your book can be purchased from one of B&N's approved wholesalers; B&N will not purchase directly to a publisher or author; therefore, an author/publisher has to make a distribution deal with one of these wholesalers and still leave a 40% margin for B&N
If you can meet these criteria, then send your book and all the details about it to:
Small Press Dept.
Barnes & Noble, Inc.
122 Fifth Ave.
New York, NY 10011
Once the book is evaluated and the criteria are met, the Small Press Department will show the book to their buyers, and the buyers decide whether or not to order any books. Diane said each buyer might decide on ordering one or two books to try it out at a store first.
Originally, I was told that for my event, B&N wanted to order my books a month in advance, which meant my book had to be available at that point. That meant if B&N could order it, so could anyone, and it would be available on . Diane underscored what you said, Carolyn, which is publication dates are not all that holy. JK Rowling's books might be strict, but many others are not. Hence, my book with a June 13th publication date might be available in May.
I also learned that my first book, "The Middle-Aged Man and the Sea," listed at $12.95--which originally had a 40% discount to bookstores--now has only a 15% discount from Ingram to bookstores. That means there's not a lot of incentive for a bookstore to want it, and at B&N, anyone who wants it has to prepay. That kind of kills the book completely at bookstores. If Barnes and Noble can get at least a 40% discount, their computers will show the book as retail, and thus they won't make the customer prepay. Individual stores who like the book--if it gets good press thanks to a good frugal book promoter--can order it more easily for their store. Less than that discount, managers are not supposed to order it at all.
I now need to find out if Lulu can bump up the list price and if so, how much will it cost me? If it costs me $100 to change the price as I think it will, and I bump up the list price to $14.95, which will be the price of my new book, I might make only 32 cents more per book (at a 16% royalty), which means I will have to sell 625 books to pay for the increase, which is unlikely in the next year.
So as I go into the marketing of my new book, these are things on my mind. There's no point in my sending my book to the Small Press Department at Barnes and Noble because my book won't meet the criteria. Some POD publishers now will offer returnability, but that means authors won't be getting as much royalty because money will be held to pay for returns. Then again, if you get more sales in bookstores, it's something to consider. I don't know if Lulu offers that, but I'll investigate.
As for my opening, I'm now told I should bring all the copies of the books, which B&N will sell. They will then order that many books from Ingram and give those books back to me to replace the ones they sold. Why give B$N so much profit?
For the answer to this question and valuable contact information, go to sharingwithwriters..
========================================================Learn more about tips booklets and how to make them work for you. Paulette Ensign was one of the first master promoters I came in contact with. She'll teach you to make promotional booklets work for you with a variety of programs. =====================================
TIP: VS Grenier, editor Stories for Children Magazine and Newsletter, () sends fellow subscribers this tip for Query Tracker, a searchable database of literary agents: Of this f r ^ ^ site she says, "Keep logs of your query and manuscript submissions, view and share statistics about literary agent. .net. She tells us that she's been using it and Preditors & Editors lists them on their site.
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"AC is the current that powers your writing career."
Carolyn Howard-Johnson, Authors' Coalition Founder
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From Elizabeth Lucas-Taylor
(Elizabeth contributes at least one valuable paying resource per SWW issue--either a great place to sell material or find writing craft or promotional idea--and sometimes throws in a resource for you.)
SEARCH ENGINE REGISTRY Submit your site to 148 major search engines in one click and get instant access to search engine ranking, metatags, website analyzer, link checker, keyword generator, pay per click tracker, popularity checker tools. .
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Find Elizabeth at or her new blog at or at MySpace
where you will find a writers' community.
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Reciprocal Links: Many subscribers are in a position to cross-promote. Let me know if you would like to trade some recommendation or promotion for any of my books -- from the HowToDoItFrugally series to my chapbook of poetry -- for a place on my Resources for Writers or Resources for Readers pages on .
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TIP: Rey Ybara offers you his seminar on promoting with live (and video) TV including tons of resources at:
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I use Vista Print for lots of my promotional materials. Be aware that shipping prices may fluctuate, depending on the deal of the moment. Please use this link:
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Q&A a la Ann Landers
Like the Phoenix, a Book from the Ashes
CAROLYN – Hi! Today’s posting at AuthorsDen by Elizabeth Lucas-Taylor, promoting your valued expertise led me to your site. BOOKMARKED for future reading and reference. Needless to say, I am impressed.
At age 67, having only published one book (STUPIDLY through Publish America, and CANCELLED by them a year later), my little bubble was burst. As a hardheaded Irishman, I still think my memoirs present a good little book, and would like to re-publish it.
BUT – my original manuscript was LOST in a crashed computer, was thinking of having my one and only first copy of bound book (paperback, 109 pages) get ripped apart, scanned, and re-formatted as an e-book – any suggestions?
Assuming this is just an auto-reply site, probably you will never read this, but Thank You, anyway!
Tom Hyland, author BAWLMER, MERLYN – Home of the HONS
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Dear Tom,
Oh, no. I like to keep things personal when I can. It's also fun to see my newsletter list grow. (-:
I think ripping apart and scanning is a good idea. Why not? And, of course, by now you know that you'll have to do all the promotion yourself--whether it's with PA or any other publisher, right?
Even with these travails behind you (read that word "travails" as "experience!"), you'll still benefit from The Frugal Editor and The Frugal Book Promoter. You might as well make this situation into something positive and be sure this time around, you utilize all your hard-won knowledge. Along that line, you might want to check out Lulu or Lightning Source and publish completely on your own. You might also want to change the title for a whole host of reasons not least of which is that you don't want there to be a confusing mess with royalties, promotion, Amazon sales and more once the book is republished. :
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The New Book Review is a service of this newsletter and Authors' Coalition. It allows authors to get more exposure from their favorite review and reviewers a chance to have more readers see their reviews--with links, of course. Please check the guidelines on the blog site at TheNewBookReview..
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Tip: Allyn Evans, allynevans., submits this from SitePro News (The Net's most widely read Webmaster newsletter):
"Using videos as marketing tools has now become commonplace on the web. If you're not promoting with videos, you are losing a large portion of the online traffic or surfers currently on the web.
"Even using videos to explain your site or product will increase your conversions and sign-ups. Viral videos embedded with your links or site url can produce results when placed on YouTube or Google Videos . . . "
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In the News: An LA author has admitted to telling a fiction story as if it were a memoir (LA Times, Tues. March 3, reported by Bob Pool and Rebecca Trounson). So what else is new? This kind of thing has happened several times in the last couple of years. This particular writerly, mmmmm, fib, is a doozer. One must know where one grew up.
Speaking for her, her mother says, "[My daughter has] always been an activist and she tried to draw on the immediacy of the situation and became caught up in the person of the narrator. She's very sorry and very upset."
The thing is, we hear time and again how fiction writers' characters become real for them. There is a danger here. I never throw stones (notice I didn't pass the name of the author on?) because I know that bad things can happen accidentally. Recently a nonfiction author blamed her plagiarism on the research process. We are human. I wasn't there. Sometimes we all get something wrong, pick up a wrong file or whatever.
I'm not excusing either plagiarism or lying. And I am saying, but I think we should consider what it would be like to walk in another author's shoes. I am passing this along as a reminder to be careful. If we start living in our wor -- especially with the genre called creative nonfiction available to us—we could get ourselves in hot water.
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Endorsement:
" , by Carolyn Howard-Johnson [is] a top website for writers . . . I'd say my ROI is over 1,000%. The advice is particularly strong in addressing the new author where they are in learning the publishing/selling process. Very practical. The site is excellent."
~ Hill Kemp, author of Capitol Offense, and contributor to Secrets, Fact or Fiction? I, ISBN 0-9737282-5-6 and Secrets, Fact or Fiction? II, ISBN 1-59594-062-6, LOC 2006904627,
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TIP: Rey Ybara offers you his seminar on promoting with live (and video) TV including tons of resources at:
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Carolyn's Appearances and Teaching:
( Phyllis Goldberg, Ph.D. and Rosemary Lichtman, Ph.D. will interview Carolyn Howard-Johnson on their blog at NourishingRelationships., on Thursday, March 13. The two women are authors of:Sandwiched Boomers: How to Nourish Relationships without Starving Yourself and have worked together as mentors to women at for years. Soooo, Thursday, come find out what it was like for women in the 50s and 60s, and how I changed directions in what they generously call "the second half of my life."
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( Advanced Toastmasters Platinum has asked me to speak to them Friday, March 14, at Camille’s Sidewalk Cafe, 43901 15th Street W., Lancaster, CA. Subject? "Don’t Tick off the Gatekeepers: Your First Marketing Offense or Great Editing Counts." Dinner is at 6:00 P.M. (not provided). The meeting runs from 6:30 to 8:30 P.M. Please RVSP to Advanced Toastmasters Platinum President Dana LaMon at dana@ or call (661) 949-7423. Toastmaster Sandy Aubin, ACB/CL is coordinator for the event.
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(Carolyn Howard-Johnson will speak to a networking group at the Small Business Association (SBA) Women's Business Center on Friday, March 14 at Mama's Hot Tamales Café, 2122 West 7th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90057. Mama's is an urban renewal project that has revitalized the Mac Arthur Park area in LA and now seeks to do the same for a depressed area in Pasadena. Mama (Sandy Romero) is host beginning at 8:30 am. Those with questions may contact SBA director Jackie Jones at 213 989 3153 or jjones at .
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(Carolyn Howard-Johnson will be Valerie Connelly's guest on her teleseminar March 19th, 2008 at 8PM Eastern, 7PM Central, and 5 PM Pacific Time. The subject is: "It's Your Call: Frugal Book Promotion with Carolyn Howard-Johnson." A downloadable MP3 recording of the teleseminar is available to registered attendees after the event. Please sign up by March 18th. Space is limited. Let Valerie tell you more about it: info at .
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(Please listen to Sound Authors on March 28th at 10:00 am Pacific, 1:00 pm Eastern, 15 minute interview. wp-content/themes/revolution/images/log.gif. Learn more about the interview and how to query the producers at: . The site is easy to navigate and, you can see, a great one to be listening to or appearing on.
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( Carolyn Howard-Johnson will share with the nation's humor writers again in April 3-5 of 2008 at Dayton University's Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop. She'll speak twice at the Kennedy Union on campus. Go to 2008SpeakerBios.html. Tapes will be available even though this conference sold out 77 hours after opening registration. It is not too early to be thinking about 2010.
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New! ( Carolyn Howard-Johnson will share her secrets for taking a book fair signing out of the realm of hum-drum to make it a sizzling success at the Thursday, April 17 meeting of Book Publicists of Southern California at the Sportsmen's Lodge in Studio City.
BPSC is a resource for publicists, authors and others associated with the publishing industry. The organizations publishes a member directory and newsletter (pages/newsletter.asp) ., sponsors events (pages/events.asp) and gives out the IRWIN (pages/irwin_award.asp) awards to help foster industry excellence.
The event includes dinner. Sportsmen*s Lodge is at 12825 Ventura Blvd., Studio City. A mixer at 5:30 is the epitome of promotion in action. Dinner at 6:30 is $35 and the program only is $10. Reservations may be made at irwinzuckerpr@. If you tell Irwin I sent you, he will extend the membership rate for dinner. $27.
(Carolyn will teach a new seminar on the UCLA campus on March 22, 2008, Room 1323 Public Service Building. It's called "The Business of Writing: Carve Your Career with Great Queries and Covers." Here's the class description: "You've written your story, your poem, your book. What now? You've tackled your craft like a professional but when it comes to introducing yourself to the decision makers—the marketing and editing part of your work—you may show a lack of expertise with seemingly innocuous departures from accepted procedures - like using a cover letter when you need a query. In this one-day seminar, the students will use basics taught in the class to critique drafts of letters they have brought with them. In the process you'll get grammar, punctuation, and even computer editing tricks you may apply to your other writing as well as your queries. You'll receive a handout of the do’s and don'ts for approaching gatekeepers straight from the mouths of agents who contributed ideas on the subject for the instructor's book on editing and samples of letters that have produced results. Participants will not only walk away with two letters they can be proud to send out, but will also have a low-cost plan for using them effectively in a variety of ways." So, are you all planning to come to spend a weekend in the sunshine in LA and make it a business expense? (-:
To enroll call Marcus Hennessey, 310-267-4888, or go to uclaextension.edu and enroll for 735.18, Registration # T6393.
Because it is a one-day seminar, it is less than $100.
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( On April 26 & 27, Carolyn Howard-Johnson will sign her new USA Award-winning book the Frugal Editor ( as well as her others) at the LA Times/UCLA Festival of Books on the beautiful UCLA Campus in the Authors Coalition booth, #610 and 611. () Other authors signing there include Barbara Crandall, MD; David H. Jones, Joyce Faulkner, Pam Kelly, DanaLee Buhler, Annette Fix and poets Christine Alexanians and Sona Ovasapyan. To learn more about opportunities for your book go to: . Some promotions authors have to be present for, others not. Visitors at this booth will receive free books with their purchase.
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(Nancy Mills, founder of Spirited Woman, will be interviewing Carolyn Howard-Johnson in her 2008 Spirited Woman tele-chat series. Sign up now to be part of this exciting series, whether you want to listen to Carolyn or to the likes of Jacqueline Mitchard, author of the Deep End of the Ocean and Catherine Ryan Hyde, author of Pay It Forward. Find the entire series at: spirited_woman_circle
To listen live, circle Tuesday, June 3, 2008, 10 am (PST), 1 pm (EST) on your calendar. Advance registration needed.
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(Carolyn Howard-Johnson will appear on Write On Four Corners with host Connie Gotsch on KSJE FM Public Radio broadcast from San Juan College. Access the program at: 10:30 am Wed. 2:30 pm Fri. Mountain Time. Click on the website to listen live in your appropriate time zone. Connie is the author of the mystery suspense novel Snap Me a Future as well as host of Roving with the Arts on KSJE and regular contributor to The Four Corners Free Press --
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(The Catholic Writer’s Guild () and Canticle Magazine () are pleased to announce the first Catholic Writer’s Conference Online May 2-9, 2008. Conducted entirely via Internet, the conference will feature online seminars and chat rooms hosted by editors, agents, published writers, and other media professionals in book and magazine publishing. F r ^ ^ to writers of all levels, advance registration is required. To register go to conference.. At 10 am, Pacific time, on Monday, May 5, Carolyn will present Your First Marketing Offense: Query Letters and Great Editing or Ten Ways to Let an Agent Know You Are an Amateur. Karina Fabian will moderate. Then Carolyn will co-present a seminar with Karina on book promotion at 11 am Pacific Time the same day.
New! ( Carolyn Howard-Johnson will be guest speaker for Pamela Kelly's UCLA Extension course, "Public Speaking for Professionals" on Monday, May 19th at the Public Affairs Bldg, Room 2238, 7-10pm. Those interested in learning the steps to exciting and effective speaking, may enroll by going to uclaextension.edu and enrolling for Reg# T7594B. Pam Kelly is the author of Speak with Passion, Speak with Power!, a book on speaking that I strongly recommend for authors who want their books to succeed.
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(Carolyn Howard-Johnson will be one of the featured winners of the USA Book News' booth at BEA on Friday, May 29, at the nation's premier book event, Book Expo America. She will sign her USA Book News Award-Winning book, The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success in the USA Book News booths, #835 & #837 in the PMA Pavilion. Make BEA reservations and get info about the event here:
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(Carolyn Howard-Johnson will read from her chapbook of poetry, Tracings, Monday evening, Aug. 11, at 7:30 pm at the Village Bookstore 1049 Swarthmore Ave, Pacific Palisades, CA. Poets Alice Pero and Lois P. Jones sponsor ongoing featured readings called Moonday. Learn more at home.~pero/moonday.html.
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(The f r e ^ Muse Online Writers' Conference, sponsored by Lea Schizas and Carolyn Howard-Johnson, is accepting early registration. Nearly 2,000 attended last year and openings are limited. Learn more about this year's conference, October 13 to 19th, and how you can assure your spot in 2008. We will present an all-new program soon. Go to: themuseonlinewritersconference/presentersregistration.htm
To see the growing list of presenters go to:
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Sign up to receive a copy of my Sharing with Writers blog in your e-mail box. It is a focused blog on all things related to writing and publishing. Go to sharingwithwriters.. Sign up in the left hand column. Find related resources by scrolling to the bottom of the blog.
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TIP:May Lattanzio sends us the URL for a really exquisite little literary journal that sponsors several contests.
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Wordstuff ™
Something to Make Writers Smile
(Definitions in the next few newsletters are from .You might have some favorite neologisms metaphors or similes that make you smile. If so, please contribute.)
"BARIUM: What we do to most people when they die."
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Essential Book and Record Keeping:
This letter is an entity of Authors' Coalition
Edited and distributed by Carolyn Howard-Johnson,
Author of This Is the Place, Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered, Tracings, and the How To Do It Frugally series of books for writers,
.
Tracings, a chapbook of poetry, published by Finishing Line Press may be ordered at
gp/product/1599240173/qid=1139084827/sr=1-1/
This is a place to share with others and learn from others.
Though I do attempt to verify information used within this newsletter's pages, Sharing with Writers does not guarantee entities or information. Subscribers should research resources.
To submit information articles, tips or other information, e-mail Carolyn at HoJoNews@. Please put "Submission: Sharing with Writers" in the subject line.
If you do not care to receive this newsletter, send an e-mail to HoJoNews@ with "Unsubscribe” in the subject line, but please, please don't tell me you've given up writing or promoting!
To subscribe to Sharing with Writers send an e-mail with "Subscribe" in the subject line to: HoJoNews@.
Please pass this newsletter on to friends or e-groups. It needn't be pasted in its complete form, but please credit this newsletter, Authors' Coalition and the individual contributors with anything you snip and paste.
Order the Frugal Book Promoter: How to Do What Your Publisher Won't at stores like UCLA, Dayton University and San Diego State University's bookstores. Order it as an e-book at
or paperback at Amazon where it is discounted:
gp/product/193299310X/qid=1149015406/sr=2-1/
The second in the How To Do It Frugally series of books, The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success, is available at this link to Amazon:
The Great First Impression Book Proposal: Everything You Need To Know About Selling Your Book in 20 Minutes or Less, is available on Amazon as a Short for 49 cents.
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