Writing and Publishing News from

Good morning. I’m a little shook up this morning, but feeling mostly blessed. One of my grandsons, a pilot for several years, crash-landed his one-hour old plane in a field outside of Oklahoma City yesterday afternoon. Everyone is okay—but he said it was a mighty frightening ride. The engine quit over the city an hour after he bought the plane. Yes, he had inspectors go over it before purchasing it. No one knows what caused the engine to fail, yet. But the plane looked in good shape on the ground, so I’m sure the FAA will find out what went wrong.

This is actually the 3rd near tragedy among my grandchildren in recent years and in all 3 cases, they walked away unscathed—at least physically. I don’t think you ever get over a near-death experience.

Fast Food Publishers
I came across a paragraph I wrote in an article some months (or years) ago and thought I would share it with you. It is my attempt at using metaphors with regard to hiring a pay-to-publish publishing service.

“Sure there are fast food publishers who will take your money and promise you a nutritious meal. But, before you eat it, you really must dissect the ingredients, study the recipe and question others who have been served by this establishment.”

Do you like it? I thought it was rather clever and descriptive.

Is this the truth that you have discovered in publishing? Have your experiences or those of others convinced you how important it is to study the publishing industry—know something about the processes, your options, the possible consequences of your choices and your responsibility as a published author?

I’d like to hear your stories—both positive and negative—related to your publishing experiences.

Patricia Fry PLFry620@yahoo.com. Or leave your comment here.

I have a client who hasn’t followed all of the recommendations for successful publishing. He did not study the publishing industry. He does not subscribe to writing/publishing/book marketing publications. He hasn’t joined even one publishing organization. Yet, he is experiencing success with his book. How can this be? Perhaps because he has some other very important ducks all in a row.

Because he isn’t a writer, he hired one and then they hired an editor (me). He also hired a page designer/layout person and a cover designer. His staff studied printing options, asked a lot of questions and made good choices.

My client’s book has been out for four years and is in its 5th printing. Yet, it has not been reviewed through traditional channels. This author does not solicit reviews for his amazon.com page, he does not attend book festivals, doesn’t do typical signings, nor has he entered this book in contests or competitions. So how is it that this book is selling? This author has a following—he came into the publishing arena with a platform.

Before he even started writing the book, he was active in his own business. He was already traveling all over the world presenting programs, doing talk radio, working with clients. He was promoting his work through a website. He had spent years establishing himself as a public figure. Thousands of people know who he is and trust him. He has hundreds of clients. He has helped many. Yes, he has a following and these people are hungry for more of his wisdom in any form. Thus, when he talks about his book during his travels, on his radio and TV shows, during his live performances and at his website, he sells dozens or even hundreds of copies at a time.

You may not be as well-known as this author, but maybe you can see the importance of establishing a following before penning a book. Perhaps you have expertise in an area other than that which you want to write. Maybe it would behoove you to write a book related to your expertise as an accountant/money management professional, CEO of a large company, florist, landscape artist, architect, deli franchise owner, head of an animal rescue group, librarian, birdhouse builder or toy manufacturer, for example. Write something useful for your current following and see how you do through the process of publishing and book promotion.

If things go poorly, you may want to forget any high hopes of making it as a novelist. If you like the process and you do well with your project, write the book of your dreams and market it to your established customer list. Build from there.

If you really, really want to write and market a book on cycling vacations, French cuisine tips, family recipes, spear fishing, how to buy a used car, spirituality or basic art for the pre-schooler, start now establishing a following. How?

• Submit articles on your topic to a wide range of appropriate publications.

• Start a newsletter and work to build a readership.

• Go out and speak or conduct workshops on your topic. Yes, even before you write the book. You might create a booklet to sell or handout. Collect names of potential customers for your pending book. Always have a sign-up sheet.

• Build a website based on the theme of your book and start a blog.

• Respond to other blog posts on the subject.

Some of you may have attempted other measures designed to create a following. We’d like to hear about them. Leave your comments here.

In the meantime, learn more about book promotion, self-publishing, memoir-writing, self-editing, article-writing or writing a book proposal through my online courses. http://www.matilijapress.com/courses.com

Check out my new website: http://www.patriciafry.com

Authorship is fashionable. When I started writing, I didn’t know another writer—let alone author. Now, practically everyone I know has produced a book or is working on one.

Thousands of ordinary people from many walks of life are penning their memoirs, novels, business or children’s books or some other type of book. And few of them understand what it takes to be an author. Are you writing a book? Do you know what will be required of you in order to succeed as an author?

1: First, you must have some writing skill. This may seem like a “duh” statement, but there are a whole lot of people writing without much grasp of the English language. The art of communicating through the written word simply escapes them. They don’t understand what it takes to tell a good story or to get their point across.

2: You need to know how to conduct research and it’s a real bonus if you actually enjoy the process. I’d say that an overwhelming percentage of writing projects require some research, even if it is reading children’s books in order to help you understand what goes into one or learning more about a certain city during a particular period in history for your novel. And every author must first research the publishing industry before getting involved.

3: You should have a business head to help you through the publishing process. Otherwise, you are at risk of making decisions that could be detrimental to your project and your pocketbook.

4: Authors must be schmoozers. Initially, you may be pitching your manuscript to publishers or agents. Later, you’ll need a knack for schmoozing booksellers, reviewers, librarians and individual customers.

5: The most difficult aspect for most authors to develop is that of promoter. Yet it could be the second most important (after good writing). You will be required to promote your own book and this takes creativity, determination, persistence and tons of energy. The alternative is to hire someone to market your book for you.

6: This brings us to another requirement that’s important to the success of a book project, at least for some authors. And that is money. You need money in order to hire an editor once you’ve put everything you have into your manuscript. You may decide to pay to have your book published—many authors do today. And some authors pay publicists and other marketing professionals to help them sell their books.

Other assets I like to see in an author include public speaking skills, the ability to multi-task, organizational skills, a sense of follow-through and a tendency toward a deep commitment to their project.

Does this describe you or are you lacking in some areas listed above? If you thought you could simply write a book and all of the pieces to the publishing puzzle would miraculously fall into place, you’re a dreamer of some magnitude. That’s exactly why so many professionals are writing blogs like this one, articles and books for you.

Yesterday, I listed some of the books I’ve reviewed this year for SPAWNews—the free newsletter from SPAWN (Small Publishers, Artists and Writers Network) http://www.spawn.org. If you can’t honestly check off all of the requirements on this list, you need to be reading some of these books. I recommend that you start with my basic, all-inclusive lesson in publishing savvy, The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book. http://www.matilijapress.com/rightway.html

This book has every aspect you need in your quest for writing and publishing success and it will guide you in honing the skills and acquiring the personal assets you need in order to succeed in the fiercely competitive world of publishing.

Publishing a book does not mean putting your thoughts down on paper, paying to have it produced into book form and then sitting back and collecting huge royalty checks forevermore. Publishing/authorship is a serious business for which you must appropriately prepare.

Sometimes I wonder how much money I would have in the bank if I’d been paid for every minute of the time I’ve spent over the years giving of my expertise.

The gratitude expressed by some of the people I’ve responded to, counseled or advised indicates that they believe what I’ve given them is of value. And I know there are authors out there who gleefully and successfully heeded my verbal or written suggestions, but who did not bother to say, “Thanks.”

I guesstimate that I’ve communicated personally with over 2,500 of authors and writers related to their editorial/publishing concerns or questions. I’ve received at least a thousand emails/calls during the last 30+ years from people who gleaned something from my articles or books. Some of them have additional questions—which I happily answer. (Whenever I hand-sell a book, I always invite the customer to contact me if, after they read it, they have specific questions.) I also get follow-up questions from individuals who attend some of my presentations.

Of course, I am always here for my clients and students, as well. Most of them get bits and pieces of time that I do not charge for. But if I had—if I was on the clock every time I provided sage advice, valuable resources, worthwhile information, etc.—I would be in a higher tax bracket.

Do you feel that way sometimes? Does it seem that you are giving more away than is reasonable, through your articles, your presentations, your blog, etc?

I wonder if the concept of giving something in order to get something is a bit askew. Look at the whole publishing dynamic, for example. There are so many people edging into this profession because they see the changes and growth and they want a piece of the pie. And, how do we gain the trust of our potential customers/clients? We offer something for nothing in hopes that the consumer will see the value and sign up for our services/products. Right?

It seems to me that so many professionals, in order to compete with the newbies coming into the publishing arena, are providing for free what they used to charge for. While it is a difficult situation for those of us with the knowledge and expertise, it is a win-win situation for those authors and hopeful authors who are savvy enough to sort through the rubble and recognize the jewels.

I heard someone say this week that the publishing industry will get back to normal one day. I don’t believe it. Things will never be quite the same—we’ve come (gone?) too far. But one thing I am quite sure of, when the dust settles, you will find that the wannabes and Johnny-come-latelys will have left the room. Still eager to serve you as your teacher, editor, publishing consultant, etc. will be those professionals who never left you—who have always been here with the knowledge and counsel you need in order to fulfill your publishing goals.

I count myself among those professionals. Check out my credentials at http://www.patriciafry.com

I’d like to hear from those of you who have followed a false editorial/publishing guru in this crazy publishing climate. I’ve heard story after story of editorial exploitation by less than experienced/qualified/scrupulous editors. There are many tales of woe coming from authors who chose the wrong publishing option for their projects and who may never recover from the experience.

Heck, there may even be support groups for such authors. Is that what your writers’ group has become? A support group for authors who have taken the wrong path and who can’t afford (financially or emotionally) to take another chance with their projects?

Maybe your story will help others. Let me hear yours: PLFry620@yahoo.com.

http://www.patriciafry.com.

I attended a presentation for authors last night here in my hometown. Someone I don’t know from out of town was able to attract around 50 authors who obviously wanted to learn more about publishing. I didn’t stay for the whole presentation. But what I heard was pretty basic stuff that authors need to know.

Before I left, I handed the presenter a copy of my book, “The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book,” in hopes that she would recommend it to members of her audiences. It appears that she has no books of her own on the topic or any other topic.

I know others who travel around promoting their own books. They get so many questions related to publishing that they buy my books at a discount to sell to members of their audiences who are interested in knowing more about the world of publishing. I’ll let you know if this presenter is interested or not.

You might ask why I wasn’t the one giving the presentation last night, instead of a freelance writer from out of town. It’s because I was sleeping on the job. I actually sent my resume to the librarian a year or so ago with my suggestion that I give such a presentation. I certainly have the credentials. I guess that the timing was off and my proposal was lost in the shuffle. And then I dropped the ball. I should have pursued the idea and I got busy and didn’t.

Let this be a lesson to you all.

• Look for speaking opportunities where you can promote your book in all of the logical and obscure places locally and outside your area.

• Contact the appropriate individual with your presentation idea.

• When invited to do so, send your program proposal.

• Follow up and follow through.

And, for those of you who are not yet published, but who hope to be, attend presentations such as I attended last night. Trust me, you will not learn everything you want/need to know in one presentation, from one expert/professional, from one book or from one website. But you will learn something of value to your project every single time you reach out.

Assignment
I love giving assignments. Here’s one for you. This summer, I want those of you with books to promote to create a program, approach the program chair for a local civic club organization, group or organization and set up a presentation.

Those who have yet to publish, read a new book on publishing or attend a writers’ group meeting, writers’ conference or other presentation for authors.

Report back to me with the results of your efforts.

Visit both of my websites this weekend and see what value you can find there:
http://www.matiljiapress.com
http://www.patriciafry.com

What do statistics mean to you? If I told you that more people are buying books and that fewer people are producing them, would you quickly publish a book?

What if I tell you that the opposite is true—that fewer people are buying books and that way more books are being published? Would this dissuade you from producing yours?

Well, check this out:

• In 2007, traditional publisher produced 284,370 books and there were 127,052 self-published books produced. (411,422 total)

• In 2008, traditional publisher produced 275,232 books and there were 285,394 self-published books produced. (560,626 total)

• In 2009, the number of traditionally published books reached 288,355 and we published a whopping 764,448 self-published books. (1,052,803)

Do you still doubt it when we tell you that publishing is a highly competitive business? And reports are that people are reading fewer books—they are, reportedly, spending their time at social media sites instead.

I wonder how many authors will be swayed not to write that book upon seeing these daunting figures. I’m guessing, not many. Those who were iffy to start with—who had little confidence in their ideas in the first place—may make the right decision and stop production on their books. But most of us will find ways to justify publishing our amazing books despite the odds against us. And we each have our reasons.

My concern is that way too many authors go into publishing ill-prepared and naïve. Anyone can arrange to get a book produced. There are numbers of individuals and companies eager to take your money in exchange for editorial, design and publishing services and goods. But your focus should not be on finding someone who will participate in producing your book in the physical. Instead, you should concentrate on educating yourself about the industry and establishing your platform. That’s precisely why I wrote The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book.
http://www.matilijapress.com/rightway.html

Once you understand more about the publishing industry and you start writing your book’s business plan (book proposal), you will begin to see beyond your desire to be a published author. You’ll become aware of the serious contributions you will need to make in order to realize your publishing goals. Successful authorship takes more than what you perceive as a great book idea. You must test the idea and examine it from all angles—in particular from your target audience’s point of view. Is this truly something they want or do you view it as something they need? Will they likely trust you enough to read your book? Have you taken the time and initiative to position yourself as an expert in your field? If you are writing fiction, have you created a following by submitting stories to the publications your audience reads, for example? What is going to cause anyone to purchase a book written by you? And how do you plan to get word out about your book? Remember, yours isn’t the only book to choose from. It will be one of many that is vying for your readers’ attention. What’s going to make them buy your book? And how will they even know about your book?

As you can see, there is a whole lot more to think about when considering a book project than “How am I going to look with a book in my hands?” or “Wait until my former classmates see me on Facebook with my book.”

You learned it in grammar school and it still applies to many things you wish to attempt today—especially book publishing in this fiercely competitive publishing climate: Stop, Look and Listen! Stop what you are doing now. Look at what you are facing. Listen to the experts. And proceed with caution.

For more insight into publishing, for a rundown on all of your options and to learn exactly what your responsibility is as a published author, read my book, The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book. http://www.matilijapress.com/rightway.html.

Sign up for one or more of my on-line, on-demand courses for authors. http://www.matilijapress.com/courses.htm

If you’re wondering who in the heck is Patricia Fry and what does she know about publishing, be sure to visit my new website, http://www.patriciafry.com

It happened again yesterday. Someone said to me, “I self-published my book.” The old-school side of my brain responded with an image of him having established his own publishing company. But no. When he handed me a copy of his book, I could see that it had been produced by one of the many pay-to-publish services. He paid to have his book published, all right, but he doesn’t own the ISBN, so he doesn’t have the freedom to approach booksellers or distributors and he would be hard-pressed to come out ahead when participating in a book festival. Heck, he can’t even afford to send out very many review copies.

The truth is, it is darn hard and can get quite expensive to promote books produced by a pay-to-publish company. First, you have the initial cost for their editorial services, page layout and cover design (if you so choose) and the production of the book. Then, in many cases, you have to buy the copies you want to sell. It can take a while to recoup your investment. Many countless authors never do. If you buy into any of the company’s marketing programs, that’s more money out of pocket.

Some authors hand over everything they have saved for their book projects and then have nothing left to purchase copies of their own books in order to send out review copies, take them to book festivals, etc. It can take many months of aggressive promotion to finally dig out of the financial hole. Some authors just don’t consider the fact that, once the final payment is made toward the production of their books, that’s not the end of their financial responsibility. Now they need money to purchase books so they can sell them. And don’t forget to factor in shipping expenses for those books going out to reviewers, etc. Can you see how these authors are actually going deeper into debt rather than recouping their expenses.

Mark Levine, in his book, The Fine Print of Self-Publishing, provides some interesting facts and figures related to 45 specific “self-publishing companies.” I strongly suggest reading this book before going that route. And I’m not saying it is the wrong route. I just want you to have a clear understanding of the pros and cons—make your publishing decisions from your head, not your emotions.

For many projects and their authors, I recommend true self-publishing. You establish your own publishing company. You make all of the decisions. And you reap all of the profits. If you are a bit intimidated by this idea, sign up for my Self-Publishing Course. I’m offering a discount through June 2010. See my May 24, 2010 blog for details. Learn more about this and my other five courses here:
http://www.matilijapress.com/courses.htm

I’m starting a new project today and it involves you. Find the editorial error in my blog this morning and I’ll send you my ebook of your choice.

Choices are:
The Authors Repair Kit
The Successful Author’s Handbook
The Successful Writer’s Handbook
How to Write a Successful Book Proposal in 8 Days or Less

Leave your comment here or email me at PLFry620@yahoo.com.

Irene Watson offers an excellent article for hopeful authors in her June 21, 2010 newsletter, Reader Views. I recommend that you read it BEFORE writing your book—or, at least before you choose your publishing option. Her title is, “Why I Wouldn’t Read Your Book.” Read it here and learn:
http://www.readerviews.com/newsletters/2010.06/21.html

Are you sometimes confused as to who, in the world of publishing, you should listen to? Once you enter into this domain, you begin to read books and articles on book publishing, attend writers’ group meetings and conferences, talk to other authors you meet in various settings and so forth. My hope is that you will begin this study BEFORE you start the writing. But most of you don’t. I should say that most of “us” don’t. For the majority of people, the writing comes first. We feel a strong urge to get the idea and the material on paper as a first step.

Whatever avenue you take, you will eventually be gathering information about publishing. The problem is, the more you gather, the more conflicted and confused you become. I can see many of you nodding your heads as you read this. You wonder, “Who should I listen to?” “Where can I get reliable information?”

Here’s my criteria:

• Pay attention to the published author who has been in the business for at least 10 years and who, preferably, works successfully with other authors.

• Listen to the author who has had multiple and varied experiences in publishing.

• Consider the variety of the author’s publishing experiences—has he/she self-published only? Or have they only been published through traditional publishers?

• Study the articles, books, etc. by several different well-known publishing experts and find the common threads. If Poynter, Jud, Fry and Sansevieri all say the same thing, perhaps it is something you should consider.

Sure, pay attention to every tidbit that comes your way, but also:

• Double and triple check everything.
• Use your common sense in the decision-making process.
• Follow your head instead of your heart.
• Consider that shortcuts often lead to disaster.

There are recommendations that hopeful authors would rather disregard. When they do, they often seriously jeopardize their projects. Here are some of the best bits of advice that many authors ignore, which is the reason why such a high percentage of books fail.

• Study the publishing industry before getting involved.

• Write a book proposal first.

• Hire a good book editor.

• Follow your good sense rather than your emotions when choosing a publishing option.

Irene Watson’s article provides an excellent heads-up for authors who are headstrong and hell-bent on heading down the publishing path without using their heads.
A good place to start studying the complex and competitive publishing industry or a good addition to the mix of study material is my book, The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book:
http://www.matilijapress.com/rightway.html

It bothers me when authors produce one book and then sign up to become a book shepherd or an editorial or publishing consultant.

I used to be involved with horses. When my daughters were young, we bought a horse and then another… Soon, we each had our own steed and we were involved in local horseshows. We spent weekends trail riding and many of our family vacations were enjoyed on horseback.

There’s a lot one needs to know about horses in order to properly care for them and to keep from getting hurt. When you go from knowing nothing about horses to suddenly owning several, you really get a crash course in horsemanship. Within a couple of months of riding, feeding, saddling, grooming and getting to know our horses, I had learned so much that I thought I knew practically everything I needed to know. I was even trying to teach others about horses, by then. But it wasn’t until we’d owned horses for a couple of years that I discovered how little I actually knew about them.

Today, even after years of owning horses, I realize that I probably didn’t know one-tenth of what is possible to know about horses.

Like horses, each book project is different. Authors don’t truly appreciate the scope of publishing knowledge out there until they produce book number two and book number three. That’s when they begin to realize how much they don’t know about the industry.

That said, I also believe strongly in the value of networking with authors at all stages of publishing. Why? Because we have each had different experiences. We’ve all followed slightly different paths in order to reach our goals and we can learn from the first-time author as well as the seasoned professional. I’ve produced 31 books and I still learn important lessons and useful tips from first-time authors.

I am against the first-time author hanging out his/her shingle with the idea of shepherding others through the process of publishing. There are too many variables, too much that they still haven’t experienced.

If you are seeking assistance with your publishing project, consider hiring someone who has had many varying experiences.

Contact me for a FREE editorial evaluation of your manuscript. PLFry620@yahoo.com.

You’ve heard and read it many times—writing is a craft, and publishing is a business. Once you become a published author, you must shift from a creative being to a businesswo/man. What does this mean? Will you need to rent shop space downtown, start watching the stock market, establish a corporation, hire employees? Not necessarily. But there certainly are authors who do build their writing/publishing businesses to this point and beyond.

The two biggest areas of transformation most successful authors experience are: adopting a business head—beginning to think like a businessman or woman—and establishing a business model within the context of his/her project.

For example, at the point you decide to publish, instead of continuing to enmesh yourself into the joyful process of writing, you’ll be required to go out and arrange for publishing and begin a marketing and distribution program. Yikes, that sounds like it would involve activities way different from writing and researching. And it does!

What are some of the differences?

• While a writer may think only about what she wants to write, an author must strive to please a large audience.

• An author needs a business head when it comes to getting his book edited, packaging it for his market and so forth.

• An author must study to learn what his publishing options are and choose the one that’s best for his project. (This may involve self-publishing or, perhaps, landing an agent or signing with a traditional publisher on your own.)

• An author has to consider her target audience (her customers) and figure out how to approach them.

• An author is required to understand promotion and advertising where it involves his book. This might mean getting reviews, working with wholesalers, signing up with online bookstores such as Amazon.com, negotiating with booksellers, building a showcase website, getting involved with a publicist, doing book festivals and so much more

• An author must become a negotiator, promoter, distributor, shipping clerk, bookkeeper or hire someone for these positions.

• An author really should be okay with speaking in public, being interviewed, being critiqued and aggressively promoting his or her book.

Do you see anything here that resembles the duties and mindset of someone who writes for pleasure? Nope! Authorship is a whole different animal and those of you who have experienced both, know exactly what I mean. Some of you even know firsthand how easy it is to fail as an author.

Let my book, The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book, help you to navigate the fiercely competitive, larger than life world of publishing. I wrote it after decades in the business expressly for the new and struggling author. If this describes you, please order this book today.
http://www.matilijapress.com/rightway.html

Be sure to check out my discount offerings and freeby offerings in my May 24, 2010 and May 30, 2010 blog posts.