Tag Archives: novel

B&N Closings Mean New Opportunities

2 Replies

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!

Query Letter/Book Giveaway

Leave a reply

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 Proposals

Leave a reply

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.

Book Reviews

Leave a reply

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!

Ebook Trends

Leave a reply

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

Leave a reply

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

Brainstorming

Leave a reply

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.

Trends: Publication figures

Leave a reply

This from a PR rep:

In 2011, the most recent numbers available, there were 347,178 printed books published in the United States. That was up 6 percent from the previous year, according to Bowker, which provides book industry statistics and trends.

For those of you in the book-planning phase, it may be helpful to know which categories saw an increase in publications. They were education, up 20 percent; music, and psychology and philosophy, both up 14 percent; religion, up 12 percent; juvenile, biographies, and business, all up 11 percent; and fiction, up 13 percent.

 

Those are just the numbers for printed books. E-books are harder to gauge, but they’re a large and growing share of the market. For those I could find only sales numbers.  For 2011 they were $1.1 billion to $1.97 billion, according to two different counts.

 

 

A Little Fun

Leave a reply

Just a little fun for those of us frustrated with the speed-of-light publishing of very low quality works these days.

Marketing: Blogs for Writers

Leave a reply

Here’s a round-up article on why it’s all right for individuals to blog about topics that are covered in other people’s blogs.

I want to point out the third point in this article. Authors of nonfiction know they should be recognized as experts in a specific area. But fiction authors often are never told that they, too, should present themselves as experts!

This can be a key component in your marketing. A mystery with a cat as the protagonist means the author can blog about everything cat related. The author of a medical thriller can write about how to avoid the next flu epidemic. Works set in exotic or unique locations allow the author to write travel articles for different sites.

And every time you write an article, blog, essay or service tip about that topic, your bio can mention that you cover the same topic in your book. Yes, it’s unconventional and yes, it works!

Next Big Thing

1 Reply

Had to share this post from another writer on her novel-in-progress.

Her working title is Perigee Moon, which is the technical term for when the moon is right on the horizon and appears gigantic. It’s a very evocative image.

Titles are so important in publishing. In nonfiction, authors have to get the topic and approach across with the title. In fiction, authors have to evoke some emotional response from readers…and Perigee Moon does that perfectly.

 

Writing Tip: Persist!

1 Reply

This is a great excerpt from James Scott Bell’s book on writing. The title? The Art of War for Writers.

That’s a perfect title to encapsulate the struggles we all go through every day. In the excerpt, he talks about taking the long view toward success.

This simple lesson is profound. Read it, remember it. Especially the next time doubt strikes.

Marketing with Multimedia

Leave a reply

To wrap up this week’s thread on marketing with different kinds of content, check out this article. It wraps everything together nicely.

Blogs for Writers

Leave a reply

Here’s a pretty good overview of how to approach blogging as an author. Of course, it’s equally valuable to anyone who blogs for any reason!

Effective Press Release

Leave a reply

A video can enhance your press release. Even if you’re a novelist, chat with your webcam about some topic or theme in the book. You don’t need more than a few minutes to have a big impact. More info available in this article.