Billy Franks's Blog: A Far Cry from Sunset, page 2

So You Want to Write? One Author’s Perspective

This is post 63 of 63 in the series “Writing Tips For Authors & Bloggers”

What does it take to get started as an author? Science fiction author David Brin explains.

 

7 Facts About Self-Publishing, Royalties and Print-On-Demand – What Every New Author Should Know

This is post 62 of 63 in the series “Writing Tips For Authors & Bloggers”

Recently, in one of my online discussion groups, a new author asked, “Does anybody have experience with self-publishing companies and the way they pay royalty fees?” I was surprised at the great many responses the author received, which didn’t really answer the question at all. I thought the answer to this question was something many new authors would like to know, so I thought I would share my response in an article so others could benefit. Below are some of the key points I gave in that response.

First, some definitions.

By “self-publishing companies,” the author is referring to “publishers” who set up your book to be distributed via print-on-demand (POD). These companies don’t actually print your book, but rather send them to a print-on-demand printer. There is one that most publishers use, which has two massive printing plants, one in the US and one in the UK.

Typically, these kinds of companies don’t get your books into shops, but rather focus on the big online book retailers (you know the ones I mean). For my first book, I steered away from the big companies, and chose a small family run company here in the UK who take good care of their clients. I needed that extra bit of attention when I was a new author.

The self-publishing publisher sets up your ISBN and arranges for your book to appear on all the major online retailers. Or at least, they SHOULD. Be SURE you read the fine print and ask lots of questions before you agree to hire a self-publishing company, no matter how big they are. I had a scenario not very long ago when one of my clients went with one of the biggest print-on-demand publishing companies in the world and they ONLY placed the book on the American retail sites, completely overlooking Canada and the UK. This seriously impaired my client’s sales. So before deciding on which company to choose, be sure you ask whether or not they GUARANTEE your title will be on all the English-speaking sites worldwide. And don’t overlook retailers selling to France, Germany, Japan, Italy, etc. If your book is only available in English and these audiences want it badly enough, they will buy it from these sites as well.

Ok, so here are 7 facts about self-publishing and how royalties typically work. I’ll use USD below, as it is the currency that most people will understand even if they are not in the US.

The online retailer buys your book for 45% of the retail price. That means, if you book retails for $10, the retailer pays your publisher $4.50 (NOT you, unless you actually START a publishing company and are selling the books directly to the retailer).
From that $4.50, your publisher subtracts their printing costs. Not sure of what they are in the US, but here in the UK, the costs are typically 1p (let’s say 2 cents) per page, plus 70p (let’s say $1.25) for the cover. So a 100 page book would cost $3.25 to print (don’t quote me on the exact figures; these were current as of 18 months ago in the UK. DO ask your publisher these questions).
If the book costs $3.25 to print, and you have received $4.50 from the retailer, it means your NET is $1.25.
Most self-publishers do a 50/50 split of the net, or in that ball park. That would mean your royalty per book sold is a whopping $0.67. Most payouts are quarterly, starting 4-6 months after publication.
Of course, you could also set the retail price higher to ensure you get a higher royalty. The best thing to do is to go online and check out similar books in the same niche, and check out their page count, and see how much their retail price is. Bear in mind, that online retailers will normally sell you book for LESS than retail, but you will still receive 45% of retail unless you tell them you are willing to take less in order to drive up sales (not recommended for first-time author, frankly!).
If you go FULLY self-published (i.e., set up your own ISBN, deal with Lightning Press, etc), then your royalty is 45% of retail. Subtract your printing costs from that, and that is your net profit per book. That is what I am doing with my next book.
Last option: getting the books printed in bulk (most do this overseas) can drive the cost per book WAY down, but you have a massive front-loaded investment at high risk because the minimum run is usually 1000 books or more to get a good price. PLUS you have the set-up costs, as it is not the same as digital POD. Any time I have seen new authors do this, they end up with a house full of hundreds of unsold books, and feel very discouraged. I don’t recommend it unless you have a solid promotional platform and good distribution set up. ALSO, bear in mind that if you go this route, book distributors tend to take the books on consignment and they don’t pay anything if the books don’t sell. And who do you think is responsible for the marketing? You guessed it – you. Furthermore, they might take 300 books from you when they first come out, but they can RETURN every book that hasn’t sold (or worse–been returned to the retail shops!) after a certain period of time.

I hope this short summary of how self-publishing options and royalties was helpful to you. Just so you know, I help self-published mind-body-spirit authors via my online courses, and offer modules on writing your book, self-publishing and self-promotion. I also off full-service book launches when you’re ready to set your book free into the world.

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A Far Cry from Sunset – Sample Billy Franks


Here is your 3 full chapters sample. I am pretty sure you will want to read on. If not, I hope you enjoyed sharing a small part of our great adventure.

 

Warm regards,

Billy
B-Spot! (We know where it’s at…)






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Five Star Reviews From Goodreads

Five Star Reviews From Goodreads

Steve Pitt added it

This is a rare gem of a book, in that it is the true story of a songwriter who has flirted only very briefly with fame, despite devoting his life to writing and performing his music. The book has two strands, being both an autobiography and also the story of a small group of friends making a music documentary called ‘Tribute This’

The basic premise of this film is that established rock performers are approached about recording one song each, written by the author himself, for an album. During this quest the group of friends travel throughout the USA and into Europe.

The most enjoyable aspect for me were the authors chapters about his early days in the music industry back in the early 1980’s, when his band did achieve a degree of success in the UK charts.

Charmingly written throughout, with searing honesty and plenty of moments of humour I highly recommend this book

FREE LENGTHY SAMPLE

 

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A Far Cry from Sunset – Sample Billy Franks


Here is your 3 full chapters sample. I am pretty sure you will want to read on. If not, I hope you enjoyed sharing a small part of our great adventure.

 

Warm regards,

Billy
B-Spot! (We know where it’s at…)






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How To Sell More Books As A Self-Published Author – Olli Hille Interview

50th Five Star Review for A Far Cry from Sunset!

From Amazon USA

5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely fantastic book

ByJersey Devilon 15 February 2016

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

This is quite simply a brilliant book! The music of Billy Franks had, until very recently passed me by and I was drawn to this book by the concept and the mention of it involving Bruce Springsteen. As the story unfolds, you get an insight into Billy’s extraordinary background and the bonds of friendship that gave birth to the idea of getting major artists to cover his songs. In the end, the story says much about the inadequacies and shortcomings of the music industry and an immense amount about the character and principles of Billy Franks. In some respects, it adds up to a depressing tale but in others it is hugely uplifting. It’s a must read!


Free Extract below:









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A Far Cry from Sunset – Sample Billy Franks


Here is your 3 full chapters sample. I am pretty sure you will want to read on. If not, I hope you enjoyed sharing a small part of our great adventure.

 

Warm regards,

Billy
B-Spot! (We know where it’s at…)






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Even First Time Authors Can Harvest the Rewards of Self-Publishing Their Book

This is post 61 of 61 in the series “Writing Tips For Authors & Bloggers”

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A Far Cry from Sunset – Sample Billy Franks


Here is your 3 full chapters sample. I am pretty sure you will want to read on. If not, I hope you enjoyed sharing a small part of our great adventure.

 

Warm regards,

Billy
B-Spot! (We know where it’s at…)






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No one ever told you it was an easy job. But the rewards in income and in self esteem far outweigh any negatives.

Self-publishing is fraught with myriad chores that steal time away from writing and promoting. The nitty gritty of pre-publication seems to grow, not diminish, with every challenge you overcome. For a first-timer it can be a bit daunting. I know. I’ve been there. Yet I recommend it highly to any author and to my peers who are beginning to write in their retirement.

Occasionally I wondered why I chose to self-publish a book instead of coasting lazily through my retirement. Or I could have selected a different approach, POD or traditional publishing, and have the publisher handle all of the pre-publication chores. But every time I felt overwhelmed, I reminded myself that this was my book and I had total control over its production and distribution, and that doesn’t happen with the other alternatives.

You’re in Business

You’re now a publisher, not just a writer. The process may begin with your writing, but it goes on to pre-pub preparations, printing, distributing, marketing, promoting, and they are all your responsibility. While you may not perform each of those tasks, you still control how they are done because the people you hire are responsible directly to you.

Before we look at the challenges you’ll face, I urge you to read some of the outstanding literature available on self-publishing. Start with Dan Poynter’s classic Self-Publishing Manual. Study Peter Bowerman’s Well-Fed Self-Publisher. Perhaps you’ll be inspired by John Kremer’s Self-Publishing Hall of Fame. The most recent of the breed is Patricia Fry’s fine book The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book. Use that knowledge to create a solid business plan and timeline for action, and you’ll find the challenges can be overcome with relative ease.

Easy But Time Consuming

Well before you go to press, you must tackle a host of small, but essential, tasks. Securing your book’s ISBN, obtaining barcodes, copyrighting and cataloguing it with the Library of Congress. All of these are easy, but they do take time and effort.

The aesthetics of your book are critical considerations . The cover must be dramatic and magnetic to make it stand out from competitors on the book shelf. Each portion has its own special function: the spine motivates the customer to reach for the book because that is what he/she first sees. It then becomes the job of the front cover to convince the customer the book is worth skimming, and that has to happen in about two seconds. The average person then turns to the back cover for information about the book and the author and any impressive endorsements.

Next in the reader’s decision-making process is a strong, well-designed table of contents that allows the potential buyer to gain a true sense of what the book is about. Lastly, he/she will flip through some pages to get a feel for your writing. At that point, the design and formatting of the text, done tastefully, will probably send the looker to the cash register to close the sale.

Although going to press is the last stage in the production cycle, you better find time to interview printers and make your choice early on. You’ll need to know the specs required to print your book so your cover and text designers can meet the printer’s needs.

Gaining Awareness

It is critical that you try and capture as many reviews and endorsements as you possibly can. They are the most effective selling tools. That means preparing Advance Review Copies (ARCs) to send to key reviewers, particularly those who in essence review for the trade like Publisher’s Weekly, Foreword, Library Journal, Kirkus and other highly respected publications. The best of the endorsements will go on the back cover when you actually print the book. The others will be placed on the inside pages near the front, along with excerpts from early reviews.

While all of this is going on, you, the publisher (and promoter), must juggle the other elements of your promotional plan. You need a web site, and that requires some careful thought to make it effective. It also demands a good deal of writing as you keep adding fresh content to your site. Actually, you must do these same things regardless of the publishing method you use.

You must start writing articles to send to other web sites as well as both print and digital publications. And you have to reach out to establish links from other web sites to bring readers to your own.

The Nuts and Bolts

As though all of that isn’t enough to make your head swim and keep you tossing and turning throughout the night, it’s time to develop a program of distribution for your book. You require a distributor to promote and sell your book to the marketplace and possibly a wholesaler to be available to fill bulk orders swiftly.

It’s time to decide on fulfillment. Will you accept orders on your web site? If you do, you must have a shopping cart and a merchant program to accept payments of cash and credit cards. And you must have provision to package and ship books that are ordered. You might prefer to avoid all of that by contracting with the distributor you picked to do the packing and shipping. Or, if you feel overburdened, you may want the distributor, if able, to accept individual phone orders in your name and process them. All of those decisions impact both your own schedule and the bottom line of the company. Remember, you’re now in a business and the bottom line is a major consideration.

On first reading, this may sound overwhelming. Not to worry. It is a great deal of work, but it produces not only satisfaction but far more dollars for the bottom line. The entire profit from every sale is yours to keep. The publisher you share it with is YOU.

Self-publishing done properly can be a lucrative business. Today, more and more authors have begun to realize this, and are following this path. Once you dig in and see how rewarding this can be, you’ll be delighted that you decided to join them.

3 Secrets for Selling More Amazon Kindle Ebooks

This is post 60 of 61 in the series “Writing Tips For Authors & Bloggers”

Since launching the Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) platform, Amazon has created an amazing tool for authors to take control of their book publishing process. There is no more need to endlessly submit books to dozens of publishers hoping that somebody will read it, like it, and find a place for it in their catalog. But, the new self-publishing frontier is not without its problems.

Self-publishing means you (as the author) are responsible for everything. Once you get your book ready for publication, you are responsible for promoting it too. The marking process does not come naturally for many authors. I am going to share 3 secrets for getting the best results for your self-publishing work.

Here are 3 secrets to selling more Kindle ebooks:

Keep Writing
Internal Linking
Craft Your Amazon Sales Page

Secret #1 – Keep Writing

The biggest mistake first time self-publishers make is thinking they can create one book and strike it rich. The truth is, the more you publish, the better your chances of building an audience for your work. Even better is to create a book series. Tom Clancy had the ‘Jack Ryan’ series, Sir Arthur Conan Dolye had ‘Sherlock Holmes’, and Sue Grafton has her ‘alphabet series’. But, it’s not just fiction writers who benefit from this approach. Think how many ‘Chicken Soup’ books have been written over the years.

Once people read one book in a series, they are more likely to read more. That leads us to secret number two.

Secret #2 – Internal Linking

For decades traditional publishers have used this promotional tactic. Inside every book they publish is a list of ‘Other Books By This Author.’ The more books you have published, the more chances you have to connect with a new reader. If you keep a list of your other books inside everything you publish, satisfied readers will find their way to your other books.

One of the great things about publishing books on the Kindle Direct Publishing platform is that you can update a book after it has been published. This means that every time you publish a new book, you can go back through your older books and update your list of other books available.

Secret #3 – Craft Your Amazon Sales Page

The primary sales tool you have when promoting your books as a self-published Kindle author is the Amazon listing for your book. Too many authors treat the content of this page as an after thought, but it is your single best marketing tool. Your listing must be carefully crafted to entice readers to take a chance and order your book.

The Amazon website is a marketing machine. The key to getting it to work for you is to get you book onto the various bestseller lists. Following the 3 secrets outlined in this article will greatly improve your changes of getting your Kindle ebook onto the bestellers list.

 

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A Far Cry from Sunset – Sample Billy Franks


Here is your 3 full chapters sample. I am pretty sure you will want to read on. If not, I hope you enjoyed sharing a small part of our great adventure.

 

Warm regards,

Billy
B-Spot! (We know where it’s at…)






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Cheap And Easy Book Marketing And Promotion Tips For Self Publishers

This is post 59 of 59 in the series “Writing Tips For Authors & Bloggers”

 

It’s one thing to write a book, but an entirely different thing to write one that’s saleable, viable, and marketable. With careful planning you can market, promote, and get (free) publicity (publicity is always free) on a limited budget; you can take the cheap and easy way. Assuming you’re a self publisher or book publisher and you’ve already published your book, you need to immediately implement a strong, no-holds barred, book marketing and promotion strategy to sell your books fast.

Don’t underestimate the value of a good press release for making book sales. Press releases can generate thousands of dollars in sales when picked up by national trade or print media. Invest in press release submitting software and set aside time every week to send out a press release online to the press directories.

Make sure your press release spells out the ‘who, what, where, when, and why.’ Send out at least 10 press releases to the print and broadcast media in your area every month. Using press releases can be a very effective marketing tool if used properly.

Using press releases for marketing or promoting your book or book’s website has become increasingly popular as publishers discover the powerful benefits of using press releases. Send out the same press release to the editor of your local daily newspaper every week until you are called for an interview or are written up.

I’ve not found that book signings sell many books for publishers and are often a waste of time; better to spend it elsewhere. Find a non-exclusive distributor with a good reputation to carry your book for the book store trade, as well as for other retailers. Women buy more books then men; see how you can fit your book into the womens’ market.

I’ve seen publishers lose a lot of money paying for expensive display ads, so beware if you do this; I don’t advise it in the beginning — get your feet wet first so you know what you’re doing. Print and online publications provide longevity to your marketing campaign in terms of having something tangible for people to reference ongoing. Make sure not to overlook the Internet; get yourself interviewed or profiled for sites both about writing, publishing and about the topics covered in your book.

It’s important to publish a website that focuses on your title; you’ll be able to refer editors and customers and all interested parties to your book information with the click of a mouse. Create an online contest and list it in online contest directories to drive traffic to your website. Contact any companies, corporations or organizations that might use your book for promotions; offer significant discounts for volume orders or for thousands of copies offer a specified amount above book production costs.

Local radio shows and television appearances are good but are often forgotten within hours of the broadcast; make sure to make or get a copy of any television broadcast for future promotions. You can give away your book in a raffle at a local function to get more book recognition. Get as many testimonials about your book, as possible, from experts in the field relating to your title, not customers; use on your fliers and back of books.

If your book fits a specialty market, find a store that fits the genre and offer to leave books on consignment; many publishers have sold thousands of books this way. Your sales letter or flier should include an eye-grabbing headline, the benefits to the buyer, the book features, book sales information and testimonials.

Every day it’s important to focus on a variety of marketing approaches. When you get a nice write up or feature about you and/or your book, have it laminated and set it up on an easel at trade shows.

Make sure to test, test, and test some more before you lay out large sums of money. Use your book promotion and book marketing dollars wisely; go after the free and cheap resources daily. One of the biggest problems self publishers and book publishers tell me about is the hundreds of books they have in inventory they haven’t set up a marketing plan for; don’t let this happen to you — get prepared now.

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A Far Cry from Sunset – Sample Billy Franks


Here is your 3 full chapters sample. I am pretty sure you will want to read on. If not, I hope you enjoyed sharing a small part of our great adventure.

 

Warm regards,

Billy
B-Spot! (We know where it’s at…)






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}

New Gig On Friday 19th February Alongside DJ Paul Dimmock

In the summer of 2012, I spent the first 12 days of every month putting on a show in a 5 star resort in Malta with my good friend Paul Dimmock. I would sing and he would DJ in alternate sets. We had one of the great summers of our lives. We are reuniting to put the show on here called “On Broadway” at The Broadway Bar & Grill on Fulham Broadway. It’s a great night out and starts next Friday, 19th February. Pass this around and we’ll see if we can’t get this off to a flying start. Cheers, Billy……. Broadway Bar and Grill, 474-476 Fulham Road, London SW6 1BY, United Kingdom

5 Things To Look For When Self-Publishing A Book

This is post 58 of 58 in the series “Writing Tips For Authors & Bloggers”

 

Today with all of the amazing technology, self publishing a book has become a more attractive option. Gone are the days of someone’s dreams and visions being placed on hold or forced to wait because they are in search of a publisher to accept their book. I remember hearing so many stories of how many attempts, how many companies, and how many rejections it would take before an author could get published. I don’t know about you but I always had this image in my mind of traditional publishers sitting on a throne deciding the fate of the literary world. To me it was like a secret society that allowed a select few to enter and those that did had very little control.

Today that image has changed for me. When I set out to publish my first book, going the traditional route was not a consideration. “Why?” you might ask. As I alluded to earlier technology has revolutionized the publishing world. The internet along with the social media platforms have empowered and given a voice to so many talented authors; many of whom would never have received even a rejection letter from a traditional publisher. Traditional publishers, like so many industries because of technology, have been forced to develop new business models. Major publishers are faced with downsizing and cut backs making it even more difficult for a new kid on the block. Most of the traditional publishers today want authors who have a celebrity size following or a distribution list that equates to immediate ROI.

There are a lot of opportunities in self publishing a book. You can do it completely yourself. When you publish your work yourself you are responsible for the editing, formatting, securing distribution, communicating with the printer, and copyrighting it to name a few. The other option is selecting a publisher that will handle all the previously mentioned items, but allows you to remain in control. If you are a writer and perhaps run another business, the latter option would more than likely be the most beneficial for you. Here are top 5 things you should consider when looking for a self-publishing publisher:

1. Is it a good fit?

Believe it or not personality means everything. Your book is your baby. It’s a project and not a drive-thru menu experience. Ask yourself, “Are you comfortable with their style of communication?” I know its cliché, but communication is the key to everything. Does the publisher make you feel like you are valued and not just a number? Is there a real interest in your project? What’s your publisher’s background? Many times I have seen authors when self publishing their book forfeit the importance of literary and business experience of their publisher. Make sure when selecting a publisher they have literary experience and business acumen.

2. Make sure you maintain all your rights.

In the traditional world of publishing you generally give up a large portion, if not all of the rights to your book. This means all of the control on editing, characters, book cover design, etc, are determined by the publisher. This is primarily because you have received an advance for your book. When you are self publishing a book there are publishers who cater to authors who desire to self publish. In this case if you are not receiving an advance you should maintain all the rights to your book. All of the decisions from editing to the book cover design as mentioned before should be your final say. You should also have the option of taking your book with you if you decided to leave that publisher.

3. Royalties

When self publishing a book it is my opinion that you as the author should receive the higher percentage of royalties. In the traditional world it can be viewed slightly different because they have a larger distribution, they have provided you with an advance, and there is more at stake. There are some self publishers who will do a 90/10, 75/25, or 60/40 split, with you receiving the lower percentage. In this case I would make sure you get the higher, because there is no upfront investment in you from the self publishing publisher.

4. What type of services do they offer?

Do they offer various editing services from rewrite to copywriting? Editing is extremely important when self publishing a book. Be mindful of a company that will publish your book that doesn’t offer or require editing. In most cases if they don’t offer editing, your publisher should have a list of editors they can refer. It is true today with technology and a fast paced society the standard grammar has become more relaxed. However, you still want a quality product that will stand the test of time. Other services you should look for are marketing that includes social media, graphic and website design.

When self publishing a book often authors assume the publisher is automatically going to promote your book. This is not the case. You as the author should have an option of acquiring those additional services.

5. Time

Yes, I know everything is done at the speed of light today. We no longer have to wait on the 6 o’clock news to find out what’s happening around the world. We can email a document that used to have to travel by what we now have labeled “snail mail”. Although this has made our lives easier, when self publishing a book, we still want to value the time it takes to create a quality product. Again, self publishing should not mean you should compromise and produce an inferior product. That’s what the big guys and critics expect and/or automatically assume. I have seen companies that promote one to two week turn-rounds. That might be the case. However, please allow yourself the time for editing, correct formatting, the right cover design, to receive a proof (an actual copy of your book), etc. A reasonable amount of time should be 60 to 90 days, but this is determined by so many variables. How long it takes you to submit your work, and to sign off. You may realize that an entire chapter needs to be deleted. Allow for creativity which is often something that shouldn’t be rushed. Remember experts say today a book is the new business card. What do you want yours to say?

 

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A Far Cry from Sunset – Sample Billy Franks


Here is your 3 full chapters sample. I am pretty sure you will want to read on. If not, I hope you enjoyed sharing a small part of our great adventure.

 

Warm regards,

Billy
B-Spot! (We know where it’s at…)






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