Lisa Tener's Blog: Lisa Tener's Writing/Publishing Blog, page 43

Publicity and Author Platform on a Shoestring: A Frugal Tip for for Free PR

Publicity–or–PR can be incredibly expensive–and sometimes you hit the jackpot, but other times clients can be left holding the bag wondering just where all that money they invested went and what they accomplished. So, I’m always looking for new ideas for free or frugal PR. Here’s one I came up with for the cost of a poster board and the wear and tear on a magic marker: I was speaking to a literary agent colleague about the book proposal of an author I’m working with and the agent asked if we can send a sample chapter and mini proposal before[...]

A Brilliant Book Launch: A Case Study and Interview with Amy O’Brien

Bring Your Book to Life Graduate Amy O’Brien recently sent me a terrific invitation to join her creatively done book launch for her second book, Star in Your Own Life Story. Of course, my immediate reaction was to ask her if I could share it with my blog community. I invite you to read this post, but also watch her launch invitation video. And, of course, if you really want to experience a powerful book launch personally, join the launch as an affiliate partner and get a real feel for it. As usual, feel free to ask any questions of Amy[...]

Are You Enough of An Expert to Write a Book?

On April 25,  I was quoted in the Women’s Advantage Calendar  as saying, “To be seen as an expert, write a book. To write a book, become an expert.” Are you an expert? Or are you becoming an expert? Sometimes people stop themselves from writing their book because they question their own expertise.  This theme came up for several people in my book writing classes this week. Sure, there may be reasons to wait to write your book, but maybe there are other ways to establish your expertise: If you’re serving clients, or even friends, with the model or wisdom[...]

Book Covers on Websites: Should I Create a Book Cover for My Website Before I Find a Publisher?

A client recently sent me a nice looking book cover for her website and asked my opinion of it.  I liked it, but had she decided to self publish? No, she said. A seasoned publicist had recommended she post the book cover to gain interest in the subject of her book and help grow her following, perhaps even gain some interviews. I know the publicist had good reasons for the book cover, but I was concerned that agents and potential publishers would assume she’d self published the book. It could be confusing to them. Was I over-reacting? I asked my[...]

No Book Clarity? No Audience? No Platform? Do Not Overlook Your Gifts!

A strong theme this week has been clients bemoaning their lack of… * Platform * A catchy title * Clarity on tone or direction …only to realize the incredible potential that lay beneath the surface—and in each case, the amazing foundation they had in place to build upon: *  The client who bemoaned she had no platform and sent me a mock up for a website unlikely to draw many fans due to a lack of focus: I discovered that she had a 20,000 person mailing list for her “other business” and pointed out a way to merge an event[...]

Do You Include Backstory in Your Memoir?

In a book consultation a few days ago, I suggested that a client could make her story more compelling by cutting the backstory (her first chapter was actually called “backstory”–cute in theory but ho-hum-ish in reality). Rather than make the backstory the appetizer of her book, I suggested the author envision it as a spice to sprinkle judiciously. In general–and there can be exceptions–when you start with the agonizing details of your drawn out illness on page 1, you lose us. We want to hear about the day it all started to change when you joined a group of strangers[...]

Get Unstuckified: An Interview with Samantha Bennett

I first met Samantha Bennett when she interviewed me for a MaestroPath seminar. What struck me about Sam is how darn fun and funny she is, and her brilliant insights into getting things done–including completing a book. Time spent with Sam–whether reading an e-mail or listening to a call–is guaranteed to make you laugh, bring you joy, give you super-useful tools and tips, and inspire you to action from your toes to your tippy top! Lisa: As an expert in getting unstuckified, what do you see as the main reasons people get stuck in writing their books or any other artistic[...]

Do I Have a Book?

This morning another e-mail came in with the subject line, all in caps, “DO I HAVE A STORY?” I get one of these a few times a month so I thought it’s time to share my response more globally: The question isn’t necessarily, “Do I have a story?” Of course you do. Ask yourself these questions, though, to determine whether it’s worth writing that book: *   What are your goals? *   What’s your vision for what the book would do in your life? *   Would you like to be a speaker? *   Would you like to teach teleseminars or workshops?[...]

Finding Yoga in Writing and Writing in Yoga

Guest Post by Stephanie Hrehirchuk I was struggling to write the story of my year in yoga and how it transformed me, when Lisa crossed my path. Her Bring Your Book to Life program offered me the structure and guidance to finally pull my manuscript together. Thinking I had a good handle on yoga and my daily practice, I had no idea how much Lisa’s program would challenge me to employ all that I’d learned. Completing the 1st draft of my manuscript was like completing a challenge pose in yoga, a particularly daunting, advanced, intimidating, uncomfortable pose. Like a challenge pose,[...]

The Future of Print Books: New Data on Ebooks vs. Print

This morning, book designer, Mark Gelotte,  sent me a link to a recent Wall Street Journal article reporting that the trend toward ebooks is leveling out and that non-fiction book readers tend to favor print. According to the Pew Research Center, nearly 90% of e-book readers continue to read physical volumes. What does this mean for you as a nonfiction author? If you’re planning to self publish, you may want to offer both print and ebook versions. On a panel at the Harvard Medical School CME publishing course last week, Literary Agent and author of You Should Really Write a[...]