Author Archives: Laine Cunningham

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About Laine Cunningham

Laine Cunningham is an award-winning author, ghostwriter, and publishing consultant who has been quoted on CNN Money, MSNBC.com, FoxNews.com, and other national and international media. Her work has won multiple national awards, including the Hackney Literary Award and the James Jones Literary Society fellowship. She has received dozens of fellowships and residency slots from programs like the Jerome Foundation, the Vermont Studio Center, the New York Mills Cultural Center, Wildacres Center for the Humanities, Arte Studio Ginestrelle in Assisi, Italy, the TAKT Kunstprojektraum in Berlin, Germany, Fusion Art in Turin, Italy and The Hambidge Center. She is also the author of the travel memoir "Woman Alone: A Six-Month Journey Through the Australian Outback" and a series of Zen and Wisdom books combining unique inspirational text with beautiful photos.

B&N Closings Mean New Opportunities

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B&N announced that it plans to close about 10 stores every year for the next ten years. Publisher’s Weekly provides a little more detail on the announcement.

Now, before everyone panics and thinks that bookstores are going to disappear entirely, think. Whenever there’s a gap in the market for something people want, others swoop in to fill it. In this case, small, locally owned bookstores are poised to profit from every closure of the megastore in their area.

This could mark a new Renaissance in reading. Some of my associates are already looking at buildings they can buy and convert into bookstores. I, for one, am glad to see this happening. Readers everywhere will reap the results!

Ebook vs. Print Trends

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In this article from Publisher’s Weekly, the growth of ebook sales is compared to print versions.

Ebook growth continues to be enormous just like it has in past years. But don’t let one important statistic slip away in the comparison. The 5% growth quoted for print exceeds the industry wide growth rate seen in recent years.

Also remember that these are Amazon’s statistics only. Be aware of what’s going on in the larger arena to get a real picture of what these numbers mean.

Marketing: Talk Radio

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Talk radio is a perfect medium for connecting with readers. The shows have loyal fans, hosts talk in-depth about topics related to your books (even fiction), and you don’t have the expenses involved in physically attending signings.

Consider these stats from the 2013 Talk Radio Research Project and compare them to your target readership:

    • 72 percent of listeners are ages 35 to 64.
    • 70 percent are college graduates or have attended college or graduate school.
    • Men comprise 58 percent; women 42 percent.
    • Almost three-fourths of listeners earn $30,000 to $79,000 a year.
    • 79 percent of those eligible to vote do.

Self-Publishing

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Here’s a rundown of points to consider when you’re thinking about whether to self-publish.

I would add one additional point: What are your book’s changes in the traditional market? That is, if you were to approach a traditional publishing house, what are your changes of being picked up by an established publisher?

Having a traditional publisher on your team means you don’t have to handle certain types of marketing, manage distribution, or fork over up-front investment costs for creating the book.

Self-publishing offers you much more control over artistic decisions and messaging, regional and niche marketing, and timeliness.

Compare and contrast the benefits and pitfalls of each before you decide.

And remember that you can also take BOTH paths at once!

Literary Agent

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Here’s an agent to consider:

Rachel Hecht serves as Foundry’s Foreign Rights Director for Children’s Books, and also develops her own list of authors. Before joining Foundry in 2011, Rachel served as the children’s book scout for Mary Anne Thompson Associates, where she provided exclusive insight into the US publishing world for a diverse roster of foreign publishers. A graduate of Kenyon College with a degree in English, she began her career in New York at Condé Nast before moving into book publishing.

Query Letter/Book Giveaway

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Very detailed post about one author’s journey. Click through the link in the post to leave a comment about her book and enter a giveaway for a free copy.

Two things to note in her entry:

1. She learned through failure how important the query letter is and what it should contain.

2. She was aware of publishing industry movements and decided not to submit for a time until things began to recover.

Take these lessons to heart and apply them to your own journey. You’ll find yourself further along that road to publication than ever.

Book Sales/Giveaway

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Here’s a blog post that offers a free book. It lists 11 ways to help other authors increase sales. This is a very important activity for all writers.

Years ago, I was a member of a very active writer’s group. Monthly meetings often packed 25 to 35 people into a very small home. There were perhaps 150 people in the group, and at least half a dozen critique groups run by different members.

One very talented poet had released a chapbook and asked everyone to attend the book launch. When I arrived, I and my boyfriend counted for two in the crowd of four.

I was embarrassed for the poet professionally. I was more embarrassed for the other members of that writer’s group.

Yes, it’s tough to make time in our schedules to attend book signings. And yes, it’s important to our community that we take the time to do it.

Make a commitment right now to attend one signing for a local artist every quarter. That’s once every three months. You might be surprised by who you meet, what you hear, and how it affects your own writing. At the very least, you’ll feel good about having supported a fellow author.

Contest Deadlines

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A list of upcoming contest deadlines.

Book Proposals

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Book proposals aren’t just for nonfiction authors.

I know, shocking. It’s not a tip you’ll read in most writer’s magazines or books. But here’s why:

Fiction authors need to present themselves as professional, capable individuals. Writing fiction is as much a career choice as writing nonfiction. Show agents and publishers that you’re serious about your work. They will respond with respect!

Every time one of my fiction clients goes out with a book proposal, they hear very positive feedback about their efforts. Since most agents and publishers will gather the exact same information that’s in a proposal from their fiction authors at some point, having everything already prepared means you rise to the top of the stack.

In this business, every little bit helps!

Here’s a look at Book Baby’s take on the same topic.

Lit Mag Submissions

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Here’s a very interesting guide to submitting to literary magazines and contests free for download or online viewing.

Book Reviews

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Just to prove that no reviews are bad reviews and bad reviews can be good, check out this article. 

I can’t tell you how many of my clients have called right after reading a bad review of their books. Some are mildly bad while others rip through every word as if the reviewer was bullied too much in high school. In every case, I say:
–Take a deep breath.

–Cut out the review.

–Add it to your file.

–Forget about it…or think only about how ANY coverage is good coverage.

If people never see the title of your book, they won’t remember it. Marketing studies tell us that people have to see something 15 times before they pay attention to it. They do NOT remember a bad review here or there…they only remember the book title or your name.

And that’s GREAT news!

Trend: Self-publishing

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Great advice, thoughts and comments on self-publishing.

The best is the new trend toward artisanal publishing: controlling every aspect from creation to publication for the highest quality.

I did this with my sole nonfiction book Seven Sisters: Spiritual Messages from Aboriginal Australia. The interior has full color on every page with graphics designed to reflect Aboriginal symbols, themes and meanings.

More of my clients, even those who are in the stables of traditional publishing houses, are taking the same steps with single titles. The end results are about the love of books…and that is its own reward.

Ebook Trends

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Here’s a literary magazine that has become a publisher of ebooks.

In the past few years, I’ve noticed several kinds of organizations entering the ebook arena. Most notable are the handful of book agents who have opened publishing companies.

This is one of those indicators of how large the shift is in traditional publishing these days. When agents, and some of the nation’s top agents at that, are shifting where they spend their time, nearly anything can happen.

Keep this in mind as you consider whether to approach traditional publishers, self-publish through print and/or ebooks, or do both at once. These days, it pays to play your cards across a wide spectrum.

Trend: Self-publishing

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More on how self-publishing is no longer relegated to the bitter, desperate or unskilled.

Brainstorming

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Writers know that they have to help readers suspend their disbelief. It’s also critical that viewers watching a film do the same. This interview comes from the corporate world but if you read it with your author’s eye, you’ll find some great advice.

–Present your story in their context. That is, connect with readers where they are, not from your lofty position as all-seeing author. Use concrete details to evoke emotions, paint images and usher  readers into the fictional world.

–Be curious. Ask questions. What if the plot twists here? Why does this character act that way? Where does this one plot point happen? When in his life does the major turning point come? How can the character grow, change, develop?

–Weaknesses are irrelevant. Focus more on your strengths. That doesn’t mean ignore the weaknesses; just don’t get so hung up on them you forget your strengths.