Beth Jusino's Blog, page 5

A Marketing Tip from Ben Franklin

It’s Moving Week…and Print Book Proofing Week…and Edit a Favorite Client’s Novel Week…and teach at Book Publishers Northwest’s Monthly Meeting Week…

So I don’t have many blogging words of wisdom for you this week. However, Ben Franklin’s got something worth thinking about:

Pretty nice image there, huh? It grabbed your attention much more than if I’d just written: “Either write things worth reading or do things worth the writing.” And it took me about two minutes to format on Quozio.com

So here’s...

6 Things I Learned From Crowdfunding My Book Launch

“Crowdfundingis the collection of finance from backers—the ‘crowd’—to fund an initiative and usually occurs on Internet platforms.” (so says Wikipedia, the ultimate reference for all things)

I’ve been a crowdfunding backer for years, supporting everything from a goat farm to a map of post-apocalyptic Seattle. Not to mention all of the books.

At a time when writers find themselves footing more and more of the bills of publishing, what’s not to love about this idea? You add your name and project...

Don’t Believe the Hype: What the Amazon / Hachette Tiff Really Means (or Doesn’t) for Normal Authors

“Should I worry about this Amazon-Hachette stuff?”

I’m surprised how many times I’ve heard this question from writing clients who aren’t published by Hachette, and sometimes aren’t even published at all. But the sound bites sound ominous.

“The book industry is being held hostage by a company far more interested in selling flat screen TV’s, diapers, and groceries…. they are prepared to sacrifice a diverse publishing ecosystem to achieve retail dominance.” –American Booksellers Association CEO Or...

Why a Facebook Page Won’t Be Part of My Marketing Plan

Last weekend, I stopped in a store where I rarely shop to pick up some beer to take to a friend’s party. I was surprised—and happy—to find that a local microbrew I’ve enjoyed at tastings and in pubs (shout out to Odin Brewing) was now available in six-packs.

And I wondered: How did I not know that this new product was available?

After all, I “like” them on Facebook, a site I check more often than I’d like to admit. Yet now that I thought about it, I hadn’t seen any news from them in a long time...

Launching a Book? Why Wait for Sales? Why I’m Using Crowdfunding to Build the Buzz

My marketing plans were getting long.

http://theauthorsguidetomarketing.pub...

One of my favorite things to do as a consultant is to sit down with an author who’s on the edge of launching their first book, and to help them navigate the tricky roads of marketing: what should they do? What should they pay someone else to do?

What does it really take to make a book successful?

There’s no formula to it. There’s no guarantee that if a writer sets their price here and pays for an ad there, peopl...

Is It Time to Let the Manuscript Go? A Self Editing Checklist

How do you know when a manuscript is ready to publish? That’s a question I’ve been asking a lot lately as I edit and tweak and rearrange paragraphs one last time in The Book (now safely in the hands of the copy editor, on track for a mid-June release). Judging my own work is hard—and I judge books for a living.

Time to self-edit

When you’re deciding if it’s time to step back and let go, the first set of questions should be developmental. Does the work hold together as a single piece? Is it miss...

Did you write a book? Did you write a GOOD book?

Earlier this week I had a tough call with a client, a man who’s passionate about sharing a message. He wanted me to write a query letter that would attract a publisher. After reading his manuscript, I had to tell him the bad news: his subject was interesting and probably marketable, but his writing was “undeveloped for professional publication.” Yes, those are the stilted, business-ese words I used. I’m not proud of it. But it was the nicest way I could think of to say, “This is so disorganiz...

Why doesn’t my publisher handle all of my book marketing?

Isn’t all of this marketing stuff my publisher’s job?

Some authors feel like they’re all alone in marketing

This is a lament I hear from a lot of writers, both new and established. They came to publishing expecting that once they wrote a book, their work was done. And maybe at one time, before the Internet, it was. But now writing the book is just the beginning. The success of a new title, even one that comes from a Great Big Publishing House, rests heavily on the author’s shoulders. It’s their...

I Showed Up: Thoughts on my first AWP (Association of Writers and Writing Programs) Conference

Some of the fantastic books at AWP that you’ve probably never heard of. (Photo Credit: Jeremy Bushnell)

I’ve been to my share of writers conferences and book conventions. From the Christian weekend retreat where the organizer regularly broke into spontaneous prayer, to the frenzied gluttony of ARC distribution at New York City’s Book Expo, I’ve been there. I’ve sat on panels, eaten bad chicken in hotel ballrooms, navigated the cavernous convention centers of most major American cities, talked...