Doris-Maria Heilmann's Blog, page 64
December 25, 2013
Audio-Book: Rabbit in the Jungle
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.MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL OUR READERS – ENJOY THE HOLIDAYS
Rabbit in the Jungle tells a classically American story of second chances, hard work and hope. Sometimes raw and gritty, the book traces Anthony Alegrete’s rise from the streets of Los Angeles, through the penal system, to the halls of academia and the competitive business world of Las Vegas. Along the way he had a lot of fun, a little trouble and learned some lessons. This book shares his story in a way meant to be cautionary and inspiring.
With more tricks than Bugs Bunny and more charm than Roger Rabbit he navigated the street culture of Los Angeles during the heyday of West Coast hip hop; navigated safely through prison politics; built a reputation for himself at University of Nevada – Las Vegas and partnered up with local fitness experts to bring a trendy gym to the downtown area of Vegas.
Price: $14.95, or FREE with Audible.com 30-day free trial membership
Listen while you drive: “Rabbit in the Jungle”, now as an AUDIO-BOOK too!
http://www.audible.com/pd?asin=B00EDRW1OE
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From a Book Review:
“Alegrete describes in his book the rough neighborhoods of Los Angeles, interactions with gang violence, police chases, prison riots, drug dealing and repercussions of street snitches. He met rap artists, criminals, celebrities, CEO’s, academics, people dedicated to good causes in non-profit organizations and everyone in between. His book describes a life, no thriller author could have come up with. Most important of all, he shows that there is always a way out, how he learned to make better decisions, into a life with a cause and how important family and friends are. His book is meant to be motivation and encouragement.
He tells them that struggles are never excuses to be complacent and not to do anything about circumstances, not to sit idle, hoping for change. And that’s exactly what he did, he survived and in this book he gives a kind of road map how someone can turn negatives into a positive way of life.” Price: $14.95, or FREE with Audible.com 30-day free trial membership
Get a Sample of “Rabbit in the Jungle” audio-book here:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EEAVS4E
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Short excerpt from the audio-book:
“The first time I went to prison was in 2004. They charged me with conspiracy to commit access device fraud. I wasn’t creating the documents or using them for criminal purposes myself. My job was distribution. In the eyes of the law this is viewed as conspiracy because of the set-up required to produce and distribute the IDs and other items, which are then further used. Another participant in the scam got caught, and to protect himself he wore a wire and set me up.
My personal sense of honor prevented me from accepting a similar offer. I did it, I was caught, no point in taking anybody else down with me. Besides, I ain’t a snitch. Never have been, and never will be. It’s not worth it. Where I come from, a snitch is the lowest kind of maggot.
Guests of the federal prison system frequently get shuffled around, and I made stops in California, Oklahoma, and Texas. The constant moving sharpened my powers of observation and forced me to adapt. Boredom and loneliness were also constant challenges. The established routines for each day only fill so much time. The rest of the day feels very empty.
One of the main things I did was reading.
I remember reading is The 48 Laws of Power by Robert Green. Like Machiavelli and Sun-tsu before him, Green adopts a very ruthless, martial view of leadership and power. Over the course of 452 pages, he not only made history real he gave me the outline of a plan for my future. Prisons are essentially military systems. Just as Green used moments in history to illustrate the ways power is gained and manipulated, I used his work to negotiate my way through the minefield I had landed in. Green’s confrontational, militant, almost malicious style seemed tailor made for my surroundings. I couldn’t soak it in fast enough.
Up to that point my reading experience consisted of thumbing through magazines and completing school assignments. The idea that I could read something in a book and immediately apply it to improve my own position revolutionized my thinking. My encounter with that book was a defining moment.
It’s kind of a no-brainer that a majority of the gentlemen in the pen are not too fond of the government. As a result, conspiracy-theory books are fairly popular. The one I picked up was called Behold the Pale Horse by Bill Cooper. I decided that type of reading wasn’t really my thing. People connected with the anger and suspicion that goes into that kind of literature. I guess if you have trust issues it kind of plays into your mindset to read about things like the Roswell cover-up, secret societies and the new world order. If you travel too far down that road it’s hard to find your way back to a place in the real world. It’s not that I didn’t believe some of what was in those books, but that’s not a healthy, helpful way to think considering my circumstances at the time.
I looked at reading as a way to build myself up so I only read enough of that dark stuff to see what it was about and then moved on to things that helped me to move forward. I read nonfiction to fuel my ambition and shape my world view, but fiction had a place in my plan, too. Novels were a great way to escape and distract myself, but beyond that I could have vicarious experiences and get important insights into human nature. James Patterson, who wrote the Alex Cross series, and David Baldacci, who authored The Winner, tell compelling stories that held my interest. In prison you should read every single piece of writing that you can get your hands on. Beyond that though, you have to learn what to do with what you read.
Reading kept my mind occupied, it kept me out of trouble, and it provided peace in the midst of chaos. Everyone in prison reads, but not everyone is reading the right stuff and not everyone is taking the knowledge and using it.”
TV-Interview: Anthony Alegrete, author of “Rabbit in the Jungle” talks about his book – From Bars to Books – http://youtu.be/sypbPoE7lRs
Rabbit in the Jungle by Anthony Alegrete is certainly available as paperback and as an e-book
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If you would like to get more support in all things publishing, have your book intensively promoted and learn how to navigate social media sites – or to learn how you can make yourself a name as an author through content writing: We offer all this and more for only $159 for three months! Learn more about this individual book marketing help: http://www.111Publishing.com/Seminars
Or visit http://www.e-book-pr.com/book-promo/ to advertise your new book, specials, your KDP Select Free Days or the new Kindle Countdown Deals.
Please check out all previous posts of this blog (there are more than 970 of them : ) if you haven’t already. Why not sign up to receive them regularly by email? Just click on “Follow” in the upper line on each page – and then on “LIKE” next to it. There is also the “SHARE” button underneath each article where you can submit the article to Pinterest, Google+, Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr and StumpleUpon.
Thanks a lot for following:
@111publishing
http://www.international-ebooks.com/
http://bit.ly/VmtVAS 111Publishing @ Google+
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Tagged: Anthony Alegrete, Audible.com 30-day free trial membership, audio-book by Anthony Alegrete, justice system, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Rabbit in the Jungle
December 24, 2013
Merry Christmas
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Merry Christmas to All Our Readers
and Online Seminar Students
… and Happy Holidays to you.
Enjoy this time of the year with family and friends!
your 111Publishing – Crew
Holiday Cheers, Doris
Tagged: Merry Christmas
December 23, 2013
Mixed Stocking of Publishing News
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MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL MY READERS – ENJOY THE HOLIDAYS
Inspire!: Toronto Launches New Book Fair in 2014
Inspire!, a four-day Toronto International Book Fair, will make its debut next November at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. News of the fair’s launch comes just three months after the release of a feasibility study, funded by the Ontario Media Development Corp., which raised the tantalizing prospect of a reimagined Toronto book fair after six years without one.”
Steven Levy, a “master of big consumer trade shows, has partnered in the venture with Rita Davies, former executive director of culture for the city of Toronto, and publisher John Calabro of Quattro Books, according to the Star. Levy noted that while the show partially fills a gap left by the demise of BookExpo Canada, Inspire! will be 80% public and about 20% for publishing industry insiders.
“In Toronto we have a large audience with a serious interest in both print and digital subjects,” he said. “And we have a highly diversified society, with many different languages and cultures. Our challenge is to create a number of unique events that will be entertaining and educational, and engage this audience.”
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PAINTER OF THE HEAVENS Amazon Kindle Countdown Deal
“A Novel of Crime and the Heart” by Bart Stewart http://bit.ly/18YaHqY
Starts Dec ember 26, at 08:00 am, @ 99cents
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Kobo to Raise Revenues for Authors
e-Book retailer Kobo is raising the minimum price for an e-book to qualify for 70% royalties from $1.99 to $2.99 and has dropped the upper range limit of $9.99, this way DOUBLING the revenue offered by Amazon’s Kindle on higher-priced e-books. The change represents a 50% increase as, previously, to qualify for 70% payments, an e-book on Kobo Writing Life had to be priced between $1.99-$12.99, with the royalty dropping to 45% for e-books outside that range. In comparison: Amazon pays 70% royalties on e-books priced between $2.99 and $9.99 and 35% outside that range. It looks like a move that could attract a new wave of authors to Kobo, especially those with high-end e-books, such as text books and “coffee-table” books or those with lots of images.
The minimum prices internationally to qualify for 70% e-book royalties from Kobo are:
£2.99 in the UK (previously £1.99-£7.99)
$2.99 CAD in Canada (previously $1.99-$12.99)
$2.99 AUD in Australia (previously $1.99-$11.99)
€2.99 in the European Union (previously €1.99-€12.99)
$2.99 NZD in New Zealand (previously $1.99-$12.99)
Certain conditions apply: See the Kobo website
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From Kobo’s News Release:
Kobo expanded its distribution channel in France with the addition of top France retailers Pixmania, Cora, Casino, Auchan, and Boulanger.
Kobo takes e-Reading to a New Continent
World-Class Platform Now Available to South African Consumers :
Kobo brings eReading to South Africa through its partnership with Pick n Pay, one of the largest and most successful retailers in the country. Not even a month after partnering with the New Zealand Booksellers Association and Paper Plus, Kobo brings its world-class e-Reading experience to people in South Africa, with the award-winning Kobo Touch e-Reader and a localized online customer experience. Local content is also available in both English and Afrikaans, including works from authors such as Deon Meyer, Leon van Nierop and Tess Gerritsen.
More Languages
Kobo’s self-publishing platform is now available in German, French, Italian, Spanish and Dutch, in addition to English.
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If you would like to get more support in all things publishing, have your book intensively promoted and learn how to navigate social media sites – or to learn how you can make yourself a name as an author through content writing: We offer all this and more for only $159 for three months! Learn more about this individual book marketing help: http://www.111Publishing.com/Seminars
Or visit http://www.e-book-pr.com/book-promo/
to advertise your new book, specials, your KDP Select Free Days or the new Kindle Countdown Deals.
Please check out all previous posts of this blog (there are more than 960 of them : ) if you haven’t already. Why not sign up to receive them regularly by email? Just click on “Follow” in the upper line on each page – and then on “LIKE” next to it. There is also the “SHARE” button underneath each article where you can submit the article to Pinterest, Google+, Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr and StumpleUpon.
Thanks a lot for following:
@111publishing
http://www.international-ebooks.com/
http://bit.ly/VmtVAS 111Publishing @ Google+
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Tagged: Kobo brings eReading to South Africa, Kobo in South Africa, Kobo publisher news, Kobo to raise revenues for authors, Ontario Media Development Corp, Toronto Book Fair "Inspire"
December 22, 2013
Why Books Need Editing and Proofreading
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Recently I read a fantastic book, that really hooked me, wanting to read more from this author. It had not a single typo or grammar error. However, the protagonist, a young girl, was using an ipod, later in the story she was getting tickets to a concert that actually happened in the late 60′s and when she got missing, her mother gave the girls birth date as in 1948 to the police. This really great book lacked a good editor to point out these errors.
Before you hire an editor, you need to know what kind of help you’re looking for. Some editors work only on the structural and line level. Others also copy edit, or specialize in copy editing alone.
Editors Will Perform Services Such As:
suggesting cutting out characters
changing or omitting dialogue
changing the narrative arc of the novel
moving chapters around
give various other suggestions that will improve the book
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Developmental Edit
“Big-picture” feedback about structure, style, pacing and voice? A developmental edit for a work of nonfiction may include feedback about the book’s organizational structure, as well as both stylistic and informational strengths and weaknesses. For fiction manuscripts, developmental editing also includes notes on plot, point of view and characterization. Often, a developmental edit is given in the form of a detailed report or letter rather than as notes made directly on the manuscript.
Line Edit
In a line edit, your editor will point out specific things such as certain lines of dialogue that don’t sound convincing, or pacing problems in a given section.
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Copy Editing and Proofreading
These are about fixing errors in grammar, punctuation, spelling, word choice and sentence structure, as well as catching continuity issues.
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Hiring a freelance editor is a significant financial investment—one that can range from several hundred dollars to several thousand, depending upon the kinds of editing you require, the editor’s rate (which may be either an hourly rate or a flat fee, usually charged per page), and the number of revisions/rounds of editing.
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Before you Hire an Editor or Proofreader:
Avoid the temptation to hire someone to edit your first draft. Put it away for a while and then re-read, making notes on its strengths and weaknesses, asking yourself what’s missing, and flagging places where you find yourself skimming. Then rewrite the manuscript at least once, twice is even better. Don’t bring in a professional until you have made the book the best you possibly can on your own.
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Prepared for Feedback?
You need to prepare yourself for feedback, criticism and direction. Ideally, the feedback you receive won’t hurt your feelings. After all, your editor only wants to help you see your manuscript with new eyes by providing suggestions for how to capitalize on its strengths and address its weaknesses.
This kind of feedback can be hard to hear, so try to go into the process willing to consider changes. You might, for instance, agree with the editor about a problem in the manuscript, yet disagree with his suggestions about how to fix it. By talking this through with him, rather than just dismissing it, you can brainstorm a different solution.
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Revision Takes Time
After investing significant time writing a book, it’s easy to start feeling desperate to finally have it “done”—so much so that you risk shortchanging the editing process. But the truth is you cannot respond to a round of thorough developmental editing in a week. It’s a waste of time and money to hire someone to copy edit your book before you’ve addressed all developmental and line edits.
Consider paying to have your first chapter copy edited to serve as an example. Otherwise, hold off until the manuscript needs nothing but that final polish.
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What Do You Want?
Tell your editor what you want your book to accomplish. Do you want to publish this book or do you want to learn how to write better? Is it a once-in-a-lifetime project, such as a memoir? If want to write additional books, aim for an editor who will explain her rationale for the edits, so you can learn from the process and truly make the most of your investment in services.
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The Best it Can Be
It means making it something you feel truly represents what you wanted to do and say. Achieving this for you is important, your editor has to tell you things about your manuscript that your friends, relatives or even critique group members might be afraid to say.
The editors or proofreaders job is to partner with you on a journey to make your vision of your book working – with the way your prospective readers will see it.
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Proofreading
This should take place as the final stage before your work is ready for publication. All editing and all the rewrites should be done before proofreading. The only stages that come after proofreading are e-book formatting or book layout for print, and cover design.
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Proofreaders Correct Your Manuscript and Will:
Find spelling errors & typos,
Catch punctuation errors
They will correct grammatical errors
Dedect missing or duplicated words
Point out mis-applied or inconsistent tenses
Catch wrongly-assigned dependent clauses
Proofreader Julia answers Frequent Asked Questions in her blog:
“How about authors proofreading their own work?
If you’ve written a word that is spelled correctly, spell check will let it get through, even if you have written ‘alone’ when you meant to write ‘along’. Even prolific and very well educated writers don’t find these errors, no matter how often they have read their book …
My friend will proofread my novel for me, she has a degree in English, and it won’t cost me anything.
I would say, by all means ask a friend or two to look through your work for typos. They will probably spot quite a few. But your friend has a different mind-set to me; I don’t know you, I don’t know anything about your work, it’s all completely new to me. I don’t know what to expect – but I will find those pesky typos, it’s a whole different ball game when proofreading is your job!
Readers don’t mind a few typos, it’s the story that counts. They can see that I’m a good writer.
A few typos may look like a little matter – but they can cost you big business.”
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If you would like to get more support in all things publishing, have your book intensively promoted and learn how to navigate social media sites – or to learn how you can make yourself a name as an author through content writing: We offer all this and more for only $159 for three months! Learn more about this individual book marketing help: http://www.111Publishing.com/Seminars
Or visit http://www.e-book-pr.com/book-promo/ to advertise your new book, specials, your KDP Select Free Days or the new Kindle Countdown Deals.
Please check out all previous posts of this blog (there are more than 960 of them : ) if you haven’t already. Why not sign up to receive them regularly by email? Just click on “Follow” in the upper line on each page – and then on “LIKE” next to it. There is also the “SHARE” button underneath each article where you can submit the article to Pinterest, Google+, Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr and StumpleUpon.
Thanks a lot for following:
@111publishing
http://www.111publishing.com
http://www.e-Book-PR.com/
http://www.international-ebooks.com/
http://bit.ly/VmtVAS 111Publishing @ Google+
http://pinterest.com/111publishing/
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Tagged: book production, developmental edit, editing, find an editor, line edit, Manuscript, proofreader Julia, Proofreading, proofreading before printing
December 21, 2013
Book Cover: You Never Get a Second Chance …
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… for a first good impression! Always remember :
Your books’ title and its appearance is the first, and perhaps only impression you make on a prospective reader. A great image on your book cover will undoubtedly catch your reader’s imagination, wondering what lies beyond it. A fantastic opportunity to draw readers in.
Not that an appealing cover means automatically a great book, but a book that is accurately and even interestingly represented by its cover, is more likely to catch the eye of someone who is going to enjoy reading it. Interesting covers are going to get more time on shelf-displays, online and off-line. We are a visual culture; naturally that is going to influence our book-buying habits.
A stunning book cover is one of the best marketing tools for any writer!
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Bali Rai wrote in one of his blogs: ”In 2002, as one of the judges on the Guardian’s Teenage prize, I remember a book called Thursday’s Child by Sonya Hartnett. It’s a simple yet wonderful story of 1930′s Depression-era Australia, and it went on to win the award. However, it was not my choice for winner, simply because I thought the cover illustration would deter people from reading it. It was drab and old-fashioned in my opinion and had I not been reading and judging the book, it would have put me off completely.”
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Here are some points you should discuss with your designer.
Use bold or complementary colors
Use light on dark for dramatic effects (if it fits to your book content)
Test the cover in thumbnail size to make sure it looks good at Amazon’s website
Use not more than different two fonts in total
Use not too wide vertical spaces between lines of text
Use few shadow, bevel, gradient or glow – keep it subtle
Align the cover text – centre, left or right
Place text on plain background to stand out
Use the same fonts for all your books and readers will be able to identify them easily
People read left to right, top to bottom. Position your elements in appropriate levels of importance.
Never, ever, use a white background for your book! White on white is barely visible and on websites your book will not stick out, as the sites’ background are almost always white.
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E-books are bought online, usually displayed on a page with many other books. Therefore clarity, simplicity, brightness and information must jump off the screen. A simple and arresting graphic element and bold clear text for the title and the authors’ name must be easy to read on the tiny online image.
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A book that is brilliantly written, but lacks a good quality cover design will remain unnoticed and undiscovered. It is absolutely crucial to have a book cover that grabs the attention of readers and book buyers and shows the heart and the soul of the book in one single image
Read more:
Lousy Book Covers
http://lousybookcovers.tumblr.com/
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“23 Creative Book Cover Designs and their Story” is a showcase of creative book cover designs, indicating the typefaces used for the title or text:
http://www.1stwebdesigner.com/inspiration/creative-book-cover-story
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Joel Friedlander wrote a great blog about brilliant book titles in one of his blogs:
http://www.thebookdesigner.com/2010/06/how-to-write-book-titles-for-people-robotsJoel
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“40 Extraordinary Photoshop Text Effects” shows detailed tutorials, how to create amazing book title effects, step by step and using lots of screen shots.
http://www.problogdesign.com/resources/40-extraordinary-photoshop-text-effects
Fonts for book titles:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Typeface
http://www.dafont.com/themes.php
http://www.1001freefonts.com
http://www.identifont.com
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If you would like to get more support in all things publishing, have your book intensively promoted and learn how to navigate social media sites – or to learn how you can make yourself a name as an author through content writing: We offer all this and more for only $159 for three months! Learn more about this individual book marketing help: http://www.111Publishing.com/Seminars
Or visit http://www.e-book-pr.com/book-promo/ to advertise your new book, specials, your KDP Select Free Days or the new Kindle Countdown Deals.
Please check out all previous posts of this blog (there are more than 960 of them : ) if you haven’t already. Why not sign up to receive them regularly by email? Just click on “Follow” in the upper line on each page – and then on “LIKE” next to it. There is also the “SHARE” button underneath each article where you can submit the article to Pinterest, Google+, Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr and StumpleUpon.
Thanks a lot for following:
@111publishing
http://www.111publishing.com
http://www.e-Book-PR.com/
http://www.international-ebooks.com/
http://bit.ly/VmtVAS 111Publishing @ Google+
http://pinterest.com/111publishing/
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Tagged: book cover as marketing tool, book cover design, Book Layout, book shelves, Cover art, e-book cover, font for book cover, front cover, People read left to right, top to bottom, You never get a second chance, Your title and its appearance
December 20, 2013
Enter to Win a Goodreads Giveaway: TILT
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A practical parenting guide brims with real life suggestions, tips, and advice for career mothers. It encourages them, as they help their children reach for their goals and dreams, to continue to reach for their own. It is filled with over 70 quotes from the author’s children, over 100 practical guilt-free tips and the wisdom of over 80 other amazing mothers.
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ENTER TO WIN! Goodreads Book Giveaway “TILT-7 Solutions To Be A Guilt-free
Working Mom” by Marci Fair, who is a very successful business women. http://bit.ly/1cHsMtW
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Please check out all previous posts of this blog (there are more than 960 of them : ) if you haven’t already. Why not sign up to receive them regularly by email? Just click on “Follow” in the upper line on each page – and then on “LIKE” next to it. There is also the “SHARE” button underneath each article where you can submit the article to Pinterest, Google+, Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr and StumpleUpon.
Thanks a lot for following:
@111publishing
http://www.international-ebooks.com/
http://bit.ly/VmtVAS 111Publishing @ Google+
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Tagged: career moms, Goodreads giveaway, Marci Fair, new book launch, TILT: -7 Solutions To Be A Guilt-free Working Mom, working moms
December 19, 2013
Like to Get FREE Samples?
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Almost everyone likes to get free samples. I love to try out new foods at grocery promotions, and most of the time, I buy the products after sampling. Same with books: Readers do “search inside” to find out if they like the story or the tips given in a non-fiction guidebook, before they hit the “Buy” button. Even more alluring is it, when they find an article from you on your blog, on your website or a magazine, online or print, such as Salon.com, Huffington Post, Squidoo.com, Hubpages.com, or The Atlantic, who have millions of readers.
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Give Readers a Sample of Your Craft
Your novel or your non-fiction book is full of keywords and ideas for blogs, guest blogs and newspaper or magazines. While it takes a long time until you can make money with your books, while you might be paid for your writing within a few weeks or months , and it might turn into a long-term business relation with the editors. Not all of the newspapers or magazines pay for guest bloggers, yet only the exposure you get through these publications is priceless – and it also improves your author brand and your recognition as a writer. An author, who can write a whole book, or several for that matter, can also write short articles! Just learn how to write for the Internet.
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Benefits of Article Writing
Clever Marketing and reaching millions of people can be done totally free (other than your time). Just use your creativity and imagination!
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Be self-assured and don’t hesitate to pitch international newspapers / blogs. It takes as much time as to pitch your local neighborhood paper.
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Write something of value for readers – which is “by chance” part of your book, such as travel tips to the location of your books plot, museums, festivals or public transportation that are mentioned in your book.
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You have to do your research anyway, why not use the material you gather and write several articles that you can offer – always mentioning your book.
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As a writer you know how to write, just learn how to write online content by reading lots of online articles and how they are set-up
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2014 Will Likely See Many More Books Published!
And more competition … On the other hand, author-publishers will have more opportunities to engage more deeply with their audiences, expanding efforts to build online communities of interest for their readers. More authors, meanwhile, will hopefully recognize the value of true fans, and the importance of forging meaningful connections with the right people to rise above the competition. Readers want to know more and interact with the author who’s book they are buying – not only see ads with the message: Buy my book, buy my book, buy my book … They want to see samples of your writing.
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If you would like to get more support in all things publishing, have your book intensively promoted and learn how to navigate social media sites – or to learn how you can make yourself a name as an author through content writing: We offer all this and more for only $159 for three months! Learn more about this individual book marketing help: http://www.111Publishing.com/Seminars
Or visit http://www.e-book-pr.com/book-promo/
to advertise your new book, specials, your KDP Select Free Days or the new Kindle Countdown Deals.
Please check out all previous posts of this blog (there are more than 960 of them : ) if you haven’t already. Why not sign up to receive them regularly by email? Just click on “Follow” in the upper line on each page – and then on “LIKE” next to it. There is also the “SHARE” button underneath each article where you can submit the article to Pinterest, Google+, Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr and StumpleUpon.
Thanks a lot for following:
@111publishing
http://www.international-ebooks.com/
http://bit.ly/VmtVAS 111Publishing @ Google+
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Tagged: Benefits of Article-Writing, Give Readers a Sample of Your Writing, Hubpages.com, Huffington Post, Salon.com, Squidoo.com, The Atlantic, write for magazines, writing samples
December 18, 2013
Don’t Give Up! It Just Takes Time!
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Bestseller authors often need years and years to build up their audience, so it is surprising, that authors dream of their first book as a potential bestseller, and don’t realize that it takes a long time and hard work to get an audience, one reader at a time – especially if they did not do the ground work to build a huge following at Social Media, in reader forums or in real-life before they start publishing.
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Author-Publishing is Like a New Profession
And professions need to be learned! It takes years to become an excellent writer and it also takes years to become an excellent publisher. It involves lots of skills and knowledge business-wise, marketing skills, not to mention, learning constantly new internet techniques and get to know the latest changes in publishing. Many authors have unrealistic expectations when it comes to the time required for effective book promotion and to make meaningful connections with readers. They expect wonders from a single sales campaign.
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Take Advantage of their Knowledge
A book marketing professional has to learn years and years. Why, as an author, not take advantage of their knowledge to keep your head free for writing and interacting with readers? No one would start an accounting business without learning the ropes, and knowing how to create a revenue / expenses sheet or fill out income tax forms. Writing a book does not make for a publisher, no matter how clever businesses want you to imagine. Take the time to build your author platform and establish a brand, it will eventually give you an advantage in the market.
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Who are Your Readers?
Authors often do very little research to really understand their audience. Asking: “Who is your audience and who is your competition?” one might receive only vague answers … Topics, that are not only very important for self-publishers, but also for authors who want to go with a traditional publisher. They need to proof to the agent or publisher that they have done their homework.
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How Can You Research Your Competition?
First of all make a long list with possible keywords that readers might use to find a similar book.
Check out the complete categories / genres at Amazon, Barnes&Noble, Kobo, Apple, Sony, Google Books, Waterstones etc. and study all the books, that could be akin to your future work. Visit several public libraries to learn about your competition. Borrow the most interesting ones, not only to read them, but also to study the book layout and design. Read the online reviews of their books carefully!
How many books of this topic / with the same keywords have been published already?
Where are these books sold and for which price?
In which format are they offered: e-book, print, audio-book?
Who are the customers of these competing books?
How are these books received and which ones are bestselling?
Which categories did they choose, and which keywords?
In which categories / genres are these competitive books listed?
What cover designs have been chosen for these books?
Which author represent him/herself and their book the best – via their Amazon and Goodreads author page, and on their website or blog?
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According to a new report from Bowker, the number of self-published titles in 2012 jumped to more than 391,000, up 59 percent over 2011. The 2012 numbers will be published soon, but they might be even much higher – which means: more and more competition for authors.
Bowker explains: “The most successful self-publishers don’t view themselves as writers only, but as business owners. They invest in their businesses, hiring experts to fill skill gaps and to gain more time for writing.”
Conclusion:
Becoming an author-publisher is a long-term commitment and requires hundreds of small steps on the path to success! Before you start writing, create yourself a road map. Take your time, see your writing & publishing as a long-term project and don’t have unrealistic expectations. First create a professional looking book, do the ground work to build up your author platform, and then have fun, winning one reader at a time. Becoming an author-publisher is a marathon, not a sprint, and it will require hundreds of small steps on the path to success! Before you start writing, create yourself a road map.
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If you would like to get more support in all things publishing, have your book intensively promoted and learn how to navigate social media sites – or to learn how you can make yourself a name as an author through content writing: We offer all this and more for only $159 for three months! Learn more about this individual book marketing help: http://www.111Publishing.com/Seminars
Or visit http://www.e-book-pr.com/book-promo/
to advertise your new book, specials, your KDP Select Free Days or the new Kindle Countdown Deals.
Please check out all previous posts of this blog (there are more than 970 of them : ) if you haven’t already. Why not sign up to receive them regularly by email? Just click on “Follow” in the upper line on each page – and then on “LIKE” next to it. There is also the “SHARE” button underneath each article where you can submit the article to Pinterest, Google+, Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr and StumpleUpon.
Thanks a lot for following:
@111publishing
http://www.international-ebooks.com/
http://bit.ly/VmtVAS 111Publishing @ Google+
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Tagged: Author-Publishing is Like a New Profession, how to prepare for changes in publishing, It needs years to become a bestseller author, learn all about publishing, Publishers Consolidate
December 17, 2013
Why Sell Your Books From Your Own Website?
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In a former blog post: Successful Book Selling – the Non-Traditional Way we mentioned that authors could sell books from their own website – which resulted in lots of questions how this could be installed and successful managed.
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Great Benefits for Authors
Take advantage of these three fantastic benefits of selling your books from your own webpage:
You will have higher Revenues
You get paid faster
You will know your readers
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Higher Revenues
Directly selling means you earn around 85% from your retail price, way more than the maximum 70% you receive from Amazon, and on a 99 cent book or one above 9.99 you get nearly double the amount you would receive from Amazon. It also helps your readers who live in areas where Amazon requests a surcharge, e.g. in parts of Asia, Africa and Middle East – and sometimes even when customers want to order books from countries. A while ago I ordered a 99-cent book from Germany that was not available on Amazon.com, only through Amazon.de and at the end I paid almost $4.00. I certainly was not happy about this surcharge.
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Faster Payments
You get paid before your customers downloads your books. Unlike with online book retailers, you don’t have to wait until you receive a statement months after your book was sold. The money for your books is right away in your account.
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Who are Your Readers?
Having your book solely on Amazon, Barns & Noble, Apple etc., you will never know who orders and reads your book,s no matter how many are sold. These are not your customers anymore, but the retailers’ and they won’t let you know any details about your customers.
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A very important tip: ALWAYS include your website, blog and social media information in your book, no matter if e-book (where readers can have a direct link to your sites) or print book.
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How to Set up an Online Bookstore
There are dozens of ready-to-go online stores available, called “e-commerce” which can be installed in your existing website or blog – relatively easy and quick. You have to have your own (hosted) website or blog, the paid versions – not a free website.
The e-commerce shops take a small fee every month. Some like Ecwid for example are free if you have less than 10 books to offer. E-Junkie provides shopping cart and buy now buttons to let you sell book downloads. They offer one week trials and their fees start with $5/month for less than 10 downloads. They also offer lots of features, such as tax and shipping calculators, discount management, affiliate management etc. Almost all e-commerce shops work with PayPal systems for secure and easy payments.
Another option, if you are an IT / software professional or have one (can be virtual) on hand, to help with the technical aspect, is to install your own custom-made online store. However, it has to be monitored and you have to choose a very reliable hosting company, as every down-time on their servers means lost sales for you.
You can even sell “by hand” over your computer: Customers pay with PayPal and you deliver your files for your e-book via email, or shop your print book via regular mail. This is the most labor-intensive and you are required to deliver almost around the clock, as customers expect to receive your book immediately after their payment goes through.
The very best option however, is Gumroad, a company who charges just 5% + 25¢ per transaction. Working with them means: there are no hosting fees, no monthly fees, no bandwidth fees, no refund fee. You just give a link on your website to potential customers and all the transaction go through their website – but you will get and keep all your customers data.
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So, with all these options, you have plenty of reasons to sell your book directly from your website – additionally to your sales via online retailers. Put your eggs in several baskets! You never know! And it is good to know who is buying and reading your books, in order to notify them for your next works.
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If you would like to get more support in all things publishing, have your book intensively promoted and learn how to navigate social media sites: We offer all this and more for only $159 for three months! Learn more about this individual book marketing help:
http://www.111Publishing.com/Seminars
Or visit http://www.e-book-pr.com/book-promo/
to advertise your new book, specials, your KDP Select Free Days or the new Kindle Countdown Deals.
Please check out all previous posts of this blog (there are more than 960 of them : ) if you haven’t already. Why not sign up to receive them regularly by email? Just click on “Follow” in the upper line on each page – and then on “LIKE” next to it. There is also the “SHARE” button underneath each article where you can submit the article to Pinterest, Google+, Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr and StumpleUpon.
Thanks a lot for following:
@111publishing
http://www.international-ebooks.com/
http://bit.ly/VmtVAS 111Publishing @ Google+
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Tagged: direct sales of e-books, e-book download from your website, e-commerce for authors, how to start an online shop for your books, Sell from your website
December 16, 2013
How to Get Your Author Page on Google’s Page 1
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Why being on top of Google search rankings is important for you as an author?
Remember what’s critical in buying property: location, location, location … in web terms it means ranking, ranking, ranking. So, if someone is searching for key phrases that are contained in your blog or in your website, they will find you on Google’s top rankings. And as more potential readers find your websites, as more they learn about you as an author and about your books.
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According to studies: No. 1 Position in Google Gets 33% of Search Traffic
To boost your website’s ranking it is very important to know and use SEO, which stands for “search engine optimization.” Basics you should know, how to benefit from regarding SEO:
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What a Google Algorithm is
Your website is crawled by Google robots, which is essentially just an algorithm that goes through different aspects of a website (keywords, quality of content, links ets) to help bring users the most relevant results. Google has hundreds of algorithms, all of which take different things into account and which they update often.
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Keywords That Affects the Google Algorithm
Keywords is one of the factors Google uses to analyze a website. Keywords that people search for and the keywords used in titles and throughout your website are all things Google takes into consideration. Watch this YouTube video for samples of finding keywords, one of many on this site.
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Why Linking Matters for Users and Search Engines
If you have different quality websites linking to your website from all over the web, Google will stop and think “this must be a great site.” You earn a higher ranking if you earn a lot of these links. You also want to link within your website so that users can get around easier, which is important not only for users, but for the Google bots who are ranking your site, based on good navigation.
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Why Google+ Matters
Google is moving toward a more social approach to ranking websites as opposed to keyword-based. Google+ is going to be the main social network Google considers. Google+ is how Google finds an author, connections, location, and interactions amongst users. It then takes this information to help create a more personalized Search Engine results for a user. For example, if you and I both typed in the same search query, we would get a slightly different set of results.
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TIPS:
Posting on your Google+ site helps tremendously with SEO and how easy your website can be found.
Always have your own domain name and domain hosting. Free websites, such as Weebly for example will never bring your websites – and your books – to Google’s first page! Free websites that save you less than $10 a month, will cost you actually: in lost readers and lost business.
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Learn more at these Sources:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hF515-0Tduk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=421aTJI2Nxc
http://www.y2m.ae/blog/the-importance-of-seo-an-infographic/
http://www.searchenginejournal.com
http://www.hubspot.com
http://www.resolutionmedia.comragan.com
http://www.ragan.com
http://bit.ly/19qmd0b
http://www.y2m.ae
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If you would like to get more support in all things publishing, have your book intensively promoted and learn how to navigate social media sites: We offer all this and more for only $159 for three months! Learn more about this individual book marketing help: http://www.111Publishing.com/Seminars
Or visit http://www.e-book-pr.com/book-promo/
to advertise your new book, specials, your KDP Select Free Days or the new Kindle Countdown Deals.
Please check out all previous posts of this blog (there are more than 960 of them : ) if you haven’t already. Why not sign up to receive them regularly by email? Just click on “Follow” in the upper line on each page – and then on “LIKE” next to it. There is also the “SHARE” button underneath each article where you can submit the article to Pinterest, Google+, Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr and StumpleUpon.
Thanks a lot for following:
@111publishing
http://www.international-ebooks.com/
http://bit.ly/VmtVAS 111Publishing @ Google+
.
Tagged: Google algorithm, Google Ranking, increase your web presence, manipulating algorithms, Search Engine Optimization, Top Reasons to Be on Google's Page 1
