Writing and Publishing News

I’m often asked, “What is the best way to promote a book?” My response is always the same, “It depends on the book and it depends on the author.” You see, beyond the topic and genre of the book—beyond the proposed audience—beyond the author’s limitations, capabilities and skills—book promotion is a rather variable concept. It [...]

You really can’t do it all. This hard lesson comes clearly into focus once you become the author of a book. With the added responsibility of promotion on top of everything else that’s going on in your life, something has to give, right? And this is one reason why so many books fail or why [...]

You have a book idea. It hounds you day and night. You discuss it with people and they think it is a valid concept. Maybe you ought to start writing it. People need the information you have and the perspective you can offer. “Yes!” you decide. “I will write it.” You put everything you have [...]

Do you typically seek help for the most important aspects of your book project? Editing, writing a book proposal and marketing? Nothing is as valuable to a new author who is seeking even minor success, as the assistance of a seasoned publishing professional who will guide you through the process. Your publishing success depends on [...]

Do you believe that exposure is important to a book? Do you take advantage of the promotional opportunities that come before you in order to get exposure? Do you seek out ways to get additional exposure for your book? I happen to know that some of you do and some of you don’t. I’m in [...]

I love it when something I believe and that I’ve been recommending to others proves to be valid. I often tell authors of nonfiction how important it is to promote their books through published articles in appropriate magazines. Just this week, I’ve received emails from 3 different individuals who read 3 different articles in 3 [...]

Do you want to be found? If you have a book to promote, the answer should be yes. Your website should come up immediately when your name is typed into any of the major search engines. As you may know, I am contacting authors to interview for my latest book on book promotion. And I [...]

Do you dissect your presentations—break them up in order to offer some variety for your audiences? How can you make your presentations more interesting/entertaining? Here are a few ideas: 1: Make sure that the program chairperson/MC has your bio so he or she can introduce you properly—generally, who you are and your credentials, accomplishments with [...]

There’s lots happening in the Matilija Press/Patricia Fry offices and at the Matilija Press and Patricia Fry websites. I’m offering a free ebook—a condensed version of my latest book, The Successful Author’s Handbook, for FREE at http://www.patriciafry.com I produced The Successful Writers Handbook in 2003 and it has been a popular book with many writers [...]

Yesterday, I asked for volunteers. But no one came forward to have me help them create interesting presentations from their book topics. This is not surprising. We just stay too busy to pay attention and we miss out on all sorts of book promotion opportunities. As another example of that, I think I told you [...]