Phyllis Moorman's Blog
January 26, 2018
POD News
Much has been in the news lately about CreateSpace leaving customers stranded. According to their latest e-mail to customers, they will continue to publish books but will be eliminating their services component of the business: editing, formatting, design and other services. They have stated any updates or changes needed to products where these services were used be requested by March 15 and completed by April 20, 2018.
Barnes and Noble Press
Barnes and Noble has revamped their NookPress, and it looks promising for anyone wanting to publish e-books or print books. They are boasting a 65% royalty on their e-books and closer to 35-45% (after printing costs) on print books. For instance, if you have a 100-page book that you retail for $10, your royalties would look like this:
This is a screenshot of the online calculator where you can determine exactly what you can expect in royalties. https://press.barnesandnoble.com/. Be aware, print book royalties may vary if you choose to buy the books and sell them to local retailers based on the percentage or discount the store requires.
pm
January 9, 2018
Print-on-Demand
Are you interested in publishing your book but don’t have money or space for storing 500 or more books? Print-on-Demand (POD) is the best way for authors to get their books printed without a huge outlay of cash.
Print-on-Demand is a process whereby a book is printed when ordered, with as few as one at a time being produced. How can that be cost-effective? A large machine has been developed that can print the inner pages, print the full cover, then trim and put the book together from your digital file.
Cost varies based on the trim size of the book, color or black and white interior, the number of pages, among other factors, and can be printed for as low as $2.75 for a 100-page book.
Both CreateSpace and IngramSpark are POD providers and serve the self-publishing industry well. They both offer calculators online that allow you to find the cost and royalties available through their company. Check them out:
CreateSpace: https://www.createspace.com/Products/Book/
IngramSpark: https://myaccount.ingramspark.com/Portal/Tools/ShippingCalculator
February 13, 2017
Increase Visibility for Your Book, Parts IV
Contests
During 2016, I decided to look into ways to increase visibility for our books. I looked at different marketing options and chose four to explore further: presentations, Facebook ads, e-mail lists, and contests. So far we’ve talked about presentations, Facebook ads, and e-mail lists. This week we finish up the series with Contests.
Contests. Almost all contests where you are judged and prizes are awarded involve some sort of fee. Fees can vary from as low as $10 to over $100. Is it worth it?
If you select your contest based on factors that can help you as an author or increase the sales of the book, the answer is yes.
Make sure to choose a contest sponsored by a reliable organization or company.
The first contest I tried was submitting a couple of novels by one of our authors to the Colorado Independent Publishers Association annual awards. Their judging follows standard writing and publishing guidelines, and each book is judged on its ability to meet those guidelines. There are times when there are no first-place winners, or perhaps two third-place winners. If the criteria are not met, books are not elevated in the ranking process just to fill a spot. This ensures the utmost integrity to the judging process and that the award is truly earned. I was pleased to bring back a third-place award for our book “Whatever Happened to Will,” by Jerry Moorman.
This book now has a bronze seal indicating it is a prize winner; a great eye-catcher to pull readers in.
The author’s alma mater featured an article about his book on the front page of their website; great free publicity.
The second contest I tried was an e-book contest sponsored by Writer’s Digest. A hefty goal, perhaps; but the contest also provided a return commentary on every book submitted to the contest. I entered the book that accompanies this website, “Self-Publishing: Sharing the Secrets,” by Phyllis Moorman. Although I did not receive one of the top prizes, I found the commentary to be invaluable. After giving some favorable comments of the book with some valuable advice, the judge summarized the book as, “This book provides a necessary and helpful reality check and belongs on the shelf of any aspiring self-publisher…” excerpt, Judge, 4th Annual Self-Published e-Book Awards, Writer’s Digest. What a boost to my website (and my ego!).
Conclusion: Contests can be effective if chosen based on the organization sponsoring the contest and its value to you as an author.
Visibility for your book can be found in places other than the newspaper or ads. Give it a try!
February 6, 2017
Increase Visibility for Your Book, Part III
E-Mail Lists
During 2016, I decided to look into ways to increase visibility for our books. I looked at different marketing options and chose four to explore further: presentations, Facebook ads, e-mail lists, and contests. Last week we discussed presentation and Facebook ads. This week we will talk about e-mail lists.
E-mail Lists. Publicity experts say e-mail lists are the best way to stay in contact with your reader. You don’t need to send a newsletter or e-mail out weekly, but some sort of regularity is expected. So, I am currently in the process of building an e-mail list.
Creating a following is the most difficult part of the e-mail process. Getting people to sign up for your e-mail list takes time and work on your part. The authors who have the largest e-mail lists tend to be well-known names in their genre or provide some “gimmick” or give-away on their website in order to get you to sign up.
One “gimmick” is the sign-up box that pops up and prevents you from seeing the information on their site without completing the e-mail form.
Another trick is to offer a give-away item, but it is not always clear until you get to their website that the give-away is not available unless you sign up for their e-mail list.
Both of these methods can be successful if done right. Pop-up boxes are appropriate if there is a way to opt out. Give-aways are great for attracting readers. It should be clear ahead of time that the give-away is a gift for signing up for the e-mail list.
Creating a sign-up form on your website or blog is the easiest way to have readers added to your list. There are free and unexpensive e-mail services. MailChimp is among the most popular. It is free up to a particular number of recipients and reasonably priced beyond that. Make sure to send a Welcome e-mail once your reader signs up for your list.
Creating a “call-to-action” at the end of your book asking people to sign up for your e-mail list is another good strategy. It stands to reason that if someone finished your book, they like your style enough to want to read more of your work. Keeping them abreast of what you are working on keeps your name in front of them and creates interest in your next book.
Conclusion: E-mail lists are important, and there are several methods from which to choose. Periodic e-mails or newsletters are an easy way to stay in touch with your readers.
January 30, 2017
Increase Visibility for Your Book, Part I & II
During 2016, I decided to explore ways to increase visibility for our books. I looked at different marketing options and chose four to try: presentations, Facebook ads, e-mail lists, and contests. I’d like to address these options in more than one post as there is so much to share!
Presentations. First, I did presentations in a local store and at a writer’s group. I spoke about self-publishing (the topic of my book), and had books available for purchase at both venues.
At the local store, publicity included a small article in the newspaper and an appearance on the early morning news hour. I gave a half-hour presentation on the basic steps of self-publishing. Unfortunately, the presentation was the week before the Fourth of July weekend and attendance was lower than desired. However, books were purchased and the store ordered more copies.
At the writer’s group, publicity was targeted to their e-mail list and included details about the book and my credentials. I gave a two-hour presentation on self-publishing expanding each of the basic 13 steps of self-publishing. As a result, in spite of the poor winter weather, a large group gathered and many books were sold.
Conclusion: Presentations are a great way to engage with an interested audience and let them see your expertise and personality first-hand. Most writers will agree that if readers can meet the author, they are more likely to buy the book than if it’s just sitting on a shelf.
Facebook Ads. I tried Facebook ads for books in two different genres. I took the time to broaden the audience scope to include both readers specific to the genres and those in the periphery of the topics.
I experimented with placing the ads on different days of the week, and found during the work week to be slow in views or responses; Friday night through Sunday are more active Facebook times for someone likely to read a book.
I used a basic photo of the book with a brief comment and a link to the book’s website.
I did not use testimonials or reviews.
I did not spend more than $25 per ad campaign, and found the results less than rewarding.
Conclusion: After viewing and clicking through on several Facebook ads, I found the ads that ran for at least 7 days and repeated after a couple of weeks were more successful. The current consensus from publishing experts about Facebook ads is mixed.
Next week’s post will talk about E-mail Lists followed by Contests the following week. See you then!
♥pm
December 5, 2016
Book Sale!
Looking for the last minute gift? From now until the end of the year, Raven Books is offering their entire selection of books at 20% off. You will need to submit the following code in order to receive the discount: F75UC9. Feel free to share this code with your friends and family.
Raven Books has award-winning books, novels, poetry, and self-publishing selections. Also, by ordering directly, you will receive an autographed copy. Don’t miss the sale; it ends December 31, 2016.
http://shop.ravenbooks.net/.
Included in the sale is my book, Self-Publishing: Sharing the Secrets. One of the most comprehensive books on self-publishing, this book provides the up-to-date information necessary to publish a professional-looking book, whether it’s an e-book or print book. Text provides you the information you need with step-by-step instructions to guide you through the process.
Press Releases
Wanting to share your good news? Perhaps you won an award for your writing; or maybe you have a presentation coming up. You could always contact your local newspaper and pay for an ad. However, a broader audience can often be found with a press release. A press release is basic information about your news or event you send to newspapers and interested groups or organizations. There is no cost involved in submitting a press release.
Sounds like a good deal, but there are caveats. Press releases are not always read by the recipients; and just because they read it, doesn’t mean they will print it. If they choose to publish your information, you have no control over how your information will be shared. They will likely, though, place it as a small article alongside similar articles.
To increase your chances of placement, take the time to find the name of the editor of the newspaper or the appropriate section editor of the newspaper. Send a separate e-mail to each outlet in which you would like your article placed and address it directly to the editor. Editors receive countless requests, so take the extra minute or two to briefly suggest how your press release will benefit their readers.
If you have a past association with the organization, mention that in the e-mail. For instance, colleges are interested in the success of their alumnae and will often share that information in an Alumni Newsletter or publication. We’ve even had press releases appear on the front page of a college’s website.
Although press releases are not guaranteed publication, spending a few extra minutes customizing your request can bring positive results.
♥pm
September 22, 2016
Pressing It
Just wanted to take a minute to share some publicity our company, Raven Books, received this week. Currently, we have six books, two of them award-winners. What a great boost for our self-publishing business. Look for my next post, where I will be discussing press releases and how to optimize your coverage.
Book smarts: Retired couple bring skills to publishing venture
Article date: Sep 20 2016 by Phil Castle
Phyllis and Jerry Moorman operate Raven Books, an independent firm that’s published their award-winning novels, instructional books and poetry. The retired couple runs the business out of their Grand Junction home. (for full story, follow link below)
http://thebusinesstimes.com/book-smarts-retired-couple-bring-skills-to-publishing-venture/
(Business Times photo by Phil Castle)
September 9, 2016
Why Self-Publish?
Authors often wonder if there are advantages to self-publishing other than the obvious agent/publisher issues. You’ve probably heard that publishers don’t accept books directly from an author, and the agents necessary to make connections with publishers are taking fewer authors unless they have a proven track record.
But there are many advantages to self-publishing and building your own success story. Here are ten reasons you may want to consider publishing your own works.
Control. The foremost reason people choose to self-publish is control of content. Writing is subjective, and everyone has his view of what good writing is. Sometimes the viewpoint comes down to word choices. Other times, it is a total plot change. To Kill a Mockingbird is a good example of the original story ( Go Set a Watchman ) given a total refocus under the direction of an editor.
Design. As your own publisher, you will be able to control the look of your cover design, even if you hire a graphic designer. You know what image represents the story or topic better than a third party. Traditionally published authors have little input into their cover and are often surprised when they learn someone will be creating the cover and they’ll won’t see it until after it’s done.
Contracts. With self-publishing, you don’t need to sign lengthy contracts that restrict who can print or sell your books.You also are not held to a time frame where you cannot change your content, printer, or the distribution.
Inventory. As your own publisher, you are able to choose the quantity of books you want to keep on hand, and there is no lengthy wait to get more copies. If you use print-on-demand, there is no longer any need to maintain a large inventory, either. You (or your customers) may order just one book or as many as desired. The individual cost is typically the same although the cost of shipping may be less per book when ordering more than one.
Sales. Where you offer your book for sale is your choice. You may offer the book on a website of your own, list it with Amazon, have specialty stores in your area carry it, or offer book signings of your choosing. The profits are greater if you eliminate a middle layer of fingers in the pot, so to speak.
Marketing. You may choose any number of marketing ideas or specialty items you like. Local newspapers are often interested in local authors and may agree to write an article about your book or your writing adventures. Bookmarks, book cards, and sales flyers are other inexpensive ways to promote your book.
Costs. Compared to some publishing services, your can expect your costs to be minimal. In fact, if you use Amazon’s CreateSpace for print copies or Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) for your e-book, it is possible to publish at no cost.
Time. Your time will be greatly reduced if you choose to self-publish. Major publishers can take up to two years from the time they receive your book until it is available for sale. If you self-publish, it is available almost instantaneously once you click the submit button.
Profit. You will likely make more money if you self-publish. Major publishers generally offer 10-25% royalties, even for experienced authors. Depending upon the printer and distribution method you use, your profit as a self-publisher can range from 30% all the way up to 80%. You get to keep more profit since no fees are going to an agent or sales representative.
Quicker Profit Returns. With printers such as CreateSpace or IngramSparks or e-book provider KDP, your royalties will generally be transferred directly to your bank account within 60 days of sales. With major publishing houses, it may take 6-12 months to receive your royalties.
Self-publishing is not for everyone, but these ten reasons may help you think through how you want to publish your book.
♥pm
August 12, 2016
Self-Publishing is Not a Stigma
How would you like to join the likes of Mark Twain, Rudyard Kipling,or Beatrix Potter? Or maybe you are a little more contemporary in your style, like E.L. James (50 Shades of Gray), Lisa Genova (Still Alice), or Andy Weir (The Martian). These are just a small sampling of famous authors who began their writing careers by publishing their own works.
If you have self-published even one book, you are among a growing community likely to create its own history. Although the authors listed above chose to accept contracts from traditional publishers when the opportunity arose, there are others who have left large publishers. Barbara Freethy, a #1 New York Times Best-selling romance and romance mystery author, chose to leave her traditional publisher. Her success continues, with over 52 novels to her credit. Then there are some, like Ferro Family Saga author H.M. Ward (romance author), who has always self-published. It is reported that Ms. Ward has sold over 13 million books and is honored as a New York Times #1 Best-selling Author!
It’s true that there are no guarantees in life, but had these authors not taken the chance on self-publishing, their successes very likely would not have happened.
♥pm
P.S. Join my e-mail list on the home page and learn even more about self-publishing.
