Terry Cordingley, Associate Director of Marketing at Tate Publishing & Enterprises, with more wise advice for authors.

During the time I have worked in the publishing industry, I have heard a lot of different ideas and statements about how to market books. Some of them are pretty good. Others might seem like a good idea to someone new to the industry, but in actuality they don't work at all. Those are the ideas I'm going to address in this post, but only because they come up so often. I probably hear these ideas or comments on a weekly basis. So, here they are, in no particular order: The 10 Terrible Truths of Book Marketing, along with the marketing requests or comments which generally accompany them.

1. My book will sell itself.
No book sells itself. Selling books happens to be a lot of work, but it can also be a lot of fun. But no, books do not sell themselves. If they did, I wouldn't have a job.

2. Celebrities will help me sell my book.
I have had requests to send review copies to President Obama, Joel Osteen, Sean Hannity and Larry the Cable Guy, among other celebrities. I'm not sure what authors think these people are going to do with their books, and I think President Obama has his hands full without taking on a book marketing project (other than his own book). Besides, most celebrities are more concerned with selling THEIR books than that of another author.

3. I'm an author, not a book salesman (or salesperson).
Well, of course you're an author first, but along with that title comes a certain responsibility to help promote and sell your book. For some authors, this means doing book tours and making media appearances. For others, it means speaking to Rotary Clubs and eating rubber chicken dinners at speaking engagements. But make no mistake, authors must be involved in promoting their book, or it will collect dust on the shelf.

4. Let's sell my books through Scholastic Book Fairs. (from children's book authors)
They sell a lot of books. Yes, Scholastic Book Fairs do sell lots of children's books...millions of dollars worth each year, in fact...but only books that they publish. If your book isn't published or licensed by Scholastic, this isn't an option that's open to you.

5. If I could just get on Oprah (or some other national TV show) my book will be a bestseller.
I have worked with authors who have been on numerous national TV shows. There is no denying it is fantastic exposure, and it's the kind of exposure I work toward for my authors every day. However, making one appearance on a TV show does not guarantee bestseller status.

6. If we buy an ad on (Facebook, YouTube, Drudge Report or some other web site) my book will sell thousands of copies.
Millions of people use these sites. It is true that these are high-traffic sites, attracting millions and millions of users. But hits on a web site don't necessarily transfer into sales. Think about it: when is the last time you purchased something as a result of seeing an ad for it on one of these sites? If you're like most people, the answer is probably "never." If you do sell a few copies, it is unlikely you would make back the amount of money spent on the ad. Even after I tell people this, they still insist on spending the money, only to later call and tell me they shouldn't have done it.

7. I'm just going to set up a web site and sell all of my books online.
Having a web site should certainly be a part of any author's marketing strategy, but it's only one part of an overall strategy. Authors should also use other social media sites, do book signing events, niche marketing, media appearances, etc. One web site alone won't help an author sell a lot of books.

8. My book appeals to everybody.
Unfortunately, no book appeals to everybody. Take a look at the New York Times bestsellers list. I'll bet there are books on that list you have no interest in reading. This is why it is crucial to specifically target your book's niche market.

9. Once my book is released, I'll be able to quit my day job and work at writing full time.
This is every author's dream, but unfortunately few writers are able to make a full time living from doing nothing but writing. Many of them have day jobs, teach writing courses, teach book marketing courses, take freelance writing jobs, write for newspapers or magazines, etc. Most authors make $1 to $2 in royalties for every book that is sold. If they received an advance, they don't receive those royalties until the publishing company sells enough books to recoup the advance. In those cases, it could take years for an author to see their first actual royalty check, if they get one at all. If a book isn't a success, the advance may be the only cash an author receives for their book. If authors can't purchase books from their publisher at a steep discount for resale, they may be waiting a long time to see any real money from their book.

10. If my publisher believed in my book, they would spend a lot of money to market it.
The fact is, your publisher has already taken a chance on your book by agreeing to publish it. They have already paid for editing, layout, cover design, printing, distribution, shipping, and marketing. However, not every title gets a big ad budget. In fact, few books get ad budgets, period. These are usually reserved for authors who already have a reputation for producing books that sell. These are authors who have a platform, a fan base that wants to read the books that they write. Now more than ever, publishers are depending upon authors to deliver the fans that will buy their books.

In most of these instances, there is a belief or a misconception that if the author or publisher "just did this ONE thing, the book would REALLY take off!" What I'm trying to convey with this list is there is no magic bullet when it comes to book sales. There is no "one thing" that will deliver the sales the author wants. It takes a lot of things: hard work, persistence, patience, and of course, writing great books, to achieve success in the publishing industry. So tell everyone about your book, consistently promote it, work hard, don't give up, and great things CAN happen!

About the Author
Terry Cordingley is Associate Director of Marketing at Tate Publishing & Enterprises, and has been with the company since 2006. Prior to working in publishing, he was a radio and television reporter for more than 20 years, and he puts that experience to use obtaining media opportunities for his authors. Terry is currently writing Your Book is Your Business, a guide to help authors market and promote their books. Get book marketing advice on the Terry Cordingley blog.


See original article here:
http://bookmarketingmaven.typepad.com/book_marketing_maven/2011/05/the-10-terrible-truths-of-book-marketing.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+BookMarketingMaven+(The+Savvy+Book+Marketer)

Great article by Jane Friedman that every beginning author needs to read.


It’s the most frequently asked question I receive: How do I get my book published?

Unfortunately, when I hear this question, I know I’m dealing with someone who is at such a beginning stage that it’s difficult to know where to begin.

With this post, I hope to offer the most critical information and address the most pressing questions, as well as provide a starting point for more fully exploring what it means for you to try and get meaningfully published.

Read the rest here:
http://janefriedman.com/2012/01/28/start-here-how-to-get-your-book-published/

We all love to contribute an article that will help you become a better writer. But every now and then we stumble upon a site that we will be revisiting time and time again. And the content in that site is better than any article we can provide for you. So, for you aspiring screenwriters out there, this is one of the best sites we found.

http://bestscreenwritingbooks.com/

From, The Mason Jar: The Reader’s Benefit
a conversation with James Russell Lingerfelt
©William & Keats Publishing/ November 2011


W&K: You lived in Africa for a while. Tell us about how you used your experiences to write the story.

JRL: When Clayton’s world falls apart, I knew he needed a mission he could never (in good conscience) refuse. But I had trouble creating that incentive for him. Clayton misses Africa, so he returns? That reason’s not good enough. We all miss places we once lived, once visited. But to create a situation where he must choose Africa over his life long goal to become like his grandfather and pursue his Ph.D. at Vanderbilt? Choose Africa over moving to London to be near Savannah? You see, Clayton could show Savannah how serious he is about her, how much he still cares for her. He could apply for an assistantship at Oxford or King’s College just to be near her in London, to fight for her heart.
      But that would have placed a human on a pedestal. One of my messages is, don’t do that. That sounds terrible, I know. But Savannah told Clayton no. After five years apart, she still said no. “Clayton, don’t be that guy.” I would have lost respect for him had he chosen to pursue her after she said no. Because doing so would mean turning his back on the cries from the Africans he grew to love. When people are in genuine need and ask for your help, you don’t instead chase a girl who said no to you. So you help the people. Plain and simple.
      So what is the incentive to drive Clayton back to Africa and turn his back on everything else? Now that deserves to be thought through. I needed an excuse that would be mind blowing. I needed to write something where the reader would say, “Yes Clayton! Go back! My heart exploded too!”
      And there’s only one way. The entire future of East Africa will be vanquished, obliterated, set back fifty years in progression if Clayton doesn’t take the mission. But he must be given a believable mission, he must be asked, must be summoned by an authority figure. Why? Because if in Clayton’s mind he believes he is their only hope, then we would attribute that to Clayton’s ego. “Clayton thinks too highly of himself!” we would say. So I needed an outside source, an authority figure who’s never met Clayton. I needed an expert, someone who would understand Africa’s condition.
      When I lived in Uganda and Kenya, Joseph Koney was all everyone talked about. And I watched the documentaries about his wars and massacres. I kept up with Koney in the news. I’ve been to most American embassies in third world countries. I’ve visited with their staff and security. So I know how they dress, how they talk and act. Also, it’s very true that Africans don’t trust other Africans in times of war because you never know who’s siding with who. It’s Civil War. Brother against brother. Neighboring tribes against each other.
      So, I created a situation where the government approaches Clayton because of his reputation and because they need someone to lead the U.N. into Congo. They must locate Koney’s hideout through establishing relationships with the natives, then call in the mercenaries to take Koney out. But no one qualified is available to lead this effort. Clayton understands the culture and he can speak their language. Clayton’s a missionary, so they don’t need to pay him a salary. He already has his funding. And with his military training and his five years of practical experience in the bush…The embassy would most definitely call on him.

W&K: They would call on him without him being trained?

JRL: Oh, absolutely! They would get him the training and legal requirements he needs. Things aren’t the same out there. Once you’re outside the States, especially in third world countries, many US officials are very informal. You have to be raw and flexible to live there. You have to be willing to sleep on dirt floors, take bucket baths in dingy water, eat roasted goat and fried grasshoppers cooked on the roadside by people who haven’t washed their hands. I can imagine Africans reading this and laughing.
      If you worry about that kind of stuff, you won’t survive. Take your shots. Don’t drink their water. Wash your hands. Never replace soap with hand sanitizer- never. And if you follow those rules, for the most part, you’ll be fine.
      So I created the dialogue between the sergeant and Clayton, which provided the incentive for Clayton to return. “Clayton, only you can fulfill this mission. And by doing so you could save East Africa from possible annihilation.”
      Stopping guerrilla warfare doesn’t just save people from being killed or tortured. When there are wars, an African country can be set back economically ten to fifty years. How? Because all the educated and smart people get out. They can afford to get out. They have the money to buy and drive a car. They have money for the gas. They can even rent a bus for their entire family to flee. They might even fly out in a helicopter. They’re not going to stick around and get gunned down or have their hands chopped off by some loony tune with a team of bazooka carrying kids who now believe that they’re men because they have a gun and some cocaine and have the freedom to steal and rape any girl they want.
      Would you stick around if there were no police and all the schools were deserted because all the kids had pistols and grenade launchers and were told they can do all they want as long as the opposing fighting squad is killed? The kids would just come in your home, kill you, take your car, smash your furniture. They would even eat the sandwich on your kitchen table and drink your soda, just for kicks. They would kill you right in front of your family to inflict shock and fear so that the women in the family won’t resist as the boys rape them.
      So what are you going to do? Some of these people, all they have to defend themselves with are garden hoes and machetes. They can’t afford a gun. So what would you do? You’d leave, if you could. And if someone got in your way, there’s only one reason: They want something from you. Your answer? Probably kill them before they kill you and your family. There’s no police anymore, remember. There’s no one to enforce the law.
      On top of that, factory buildings are destroyed, power lines are cut down, and company buildings are bombed. Technology is destroyed. Yes, African countries can be set back fifty years because of rebels. Look at Liberia. Some people have never even heard of that place. Why? Because their wars have set them back. Never mind our common history with them: That’s where most African American slaves returned after they were freed. Look at Liberia’s flag. It’s identical to the American flag except they only have one star. Their first president was a freed American slave. But can you tell me one fact about Liberia that I haven’t already mentioned? Probably not. Why? Because there’s no progression there that will win the attention of the West. Firestone knows about Liberia because that’s where they get their rubber from. The rubber trees. Money. Firestone knows about Liberia because of money.
      So the conversation that happens between Clayton and the sergeant is exactly what Clayton needs. Does Clayton believe that at the time? Of course not. He still believes there’s hope to be reunited with Savannah. His grandfather’s still alive. He has a life awaiting him. The green fields and beautiful lands of Tennessee call out to him. Hope and peace. Home. He gets to go home! Finally!
      So he thinks the request to stay in Africa is a burden he shouldn’t be asked to carry. He’s been there five years. He’s done his duty. The mission with the ministry is finished and other missionaries have taken over. Now the government needs him to stay and work for them? The mission is no longer helping street orphans in school. Now, it’s about saving entire villages from being slaughtered and burned by rebels.
      But in the end, when his life falls apart, we see that the invitation becomes a blessing. Clayton has something to fight for, to live for. He has a purpose. His mission matters, therefore his life matters. Isn’t that what we all wish for? To live a life that matters?
      So one of the themes I wanted to convey is, no matter how bad life gets, no matter how hopeless or empty it seems, even if your entire world crumbles and your dreams are shattered, and you just want to roll over and die, there is someone, somewhere who needs you. Unfortunately, a lot of people don’t believe this. Look at the abuse and suicide rate. If we all truly believed we had a good mission, something worth living and dying for, something meaningful where our action would change the world for the better, would we really seek out drugs, abuse people, or commit suicide?
      So, I wanted that mission for Clayton. When you spend your entire life pursuing a dream -for Clayton, this was Vanderbilt- believing that you’re entitled to a perfect wife and marriage because you’ve obeyed all of God’s and humanity’s rules; when you’ve sacrificed years of your life for the sheer betterment of humanity, and you are repaid by everything you know and love to be taken from you; what do you do? Your faith, your family, your entire foundation is wiped out. What now?
      That is when your character is not just put into fire. You’re dipped into a lava pit. Your muscles and bones disintegrate. Where do you seek relief? Will you sit in a corner, wrap yourself in a blanket, and rock back and forth, saying poor me, poor me? Or will you ask, “Okay, this has happened, but what can I do now? What good can I strive to pull out of this experience? How can I contribute to the world while I am still here?”
      Suicide? That’s the easy way out. That’s the selfish, cowardly way. You want to be someone with balls? You want to be a hero? Well, then rise and go save the world! Literally. What are you waiting for? Go! There’s plenty to do!
      The message is, when the world antagonizes you, you protagonize the world by finding a way to change it for the better. You love someone, you love people one person at a time, you go to the coast and work to protect endangered sea turtles, or you read up on global warming and create a website about it. You begin a non-profit and travel and give talks about it. You call up an old friend and go spend time with them, go have a drink, go have a laugh. Find pieces of your life that you love and are grateful for and dwell on those blessings rather than your loss.
      That’s why I couldn’t delete the last letter from the grandfather, even when I knew it interrupted the story flow. I took it out of the main book, yes, but I placed it under Additional Writings. Because I knew that some readers would need to read it, want to read it. I couldn’t just delete it. There’s good stuff in that letter.
      What the letter really boils down to, is us understanding that this belief that we are entitled to all we want and think we deserve, is false. We entered the world with nothing, we will leave with nothing, so what gives us this sense of entitlement? The letter teaches us not to place lovers or soul mates on pedestals. The grandfather teaches us to dwell on what we love, the blessings in our life, and the people we care about.
      Easter Sunday does come for people living in tombs. The sun will shine again. It just takes time. So love God and each other and take care of the earth. That’s the advice the grandfather gives Clayton. And that’s really where the story should end.

W&K: Wow. Anything else?

JRL: (He throws his head back and laughs.)

From, The Mason Jar: The Reader’s Benefit
a conversation with James Russell Lingerfelt
©William & Keats Publishing/ November 2011


W&K: Why did you write The Mason Jar? What inspired it?

JRL: The main statement is this: When life (our goals, dreams, visions, expectations) doesn’t unfold like we wish, we can still find happiness and joy through loving the people we have in our lives. This is manifested in a number of ways. Though I chose a specific route for Clayton Fincannon, the underlying themes apply to everyone.
     When the world is heavy, whether it’s because of a relationship or life circumstance, when we want to quit life, we don’t hide in a corner and dwell on fear and brokenness. Instead, we protagonize the world through love. We can even ask, “What is my passion? And how can I take what I’m passionate about and help the world?” The next step is developing a plan and brainstorming ideas on how to implement our visions.

W&K: Let’s talk about some of the major themes in the book. Can you begin with the theme of Reconciliation?

JRL: Reconciliation, I believe, is the major theme of the book. What I’ve found with people, is that what we wish for isn’t always to be reunited with people from our pasts where there has been hurt, but our desire is to be at peace- to find closure. I’ve wanted to write a love story ever since I was a little boy. I know that sounds cheesy, but it’s the truth.
(He laughs)
     But I never had the guts to write it because I was afraid of what family and friends would say. They can give me a hard time.
(He laughs again)
     I do enjoy a good love story. I don’t mean romance novels. I mean love stories. There’s a difference. Guys, according to most other guys, aren’t supposed to like love stories. We’re supposed to like stuff about war, fast cars, and sports. I do like those things, but I don’t love them. What I enjoy are novels, books, stories.

W&K: Tell us more about men enjoying love stories.

JRL: Band of Brothers. The HBO series that Spielberg and Hanks collaborated on. What’s it about? Love between brothers. They’re not blood brothers, but they fight together, which slowly makes them brothers. Men loved that series. They ate it up. Why? Because of love. Men may use the words Loyalty and Honor. But the soldiers were loyal to each other because they loved each other. They were honorable because they loved their country and were willing to fight and sacrifice their own lives to keep it safe.
     Field of Dreams. Another man’s favorite movie. The son grows up ashamed of the last words he spoke to his father and wishes he could take them back. All the men come together to play baseball because they love the game. This brings them together to work on common goals: Think. Strategize. Plan what’s next. And by doing so, win the game. Then in the end, during the climax of the film, the son reunites with the spirit of his deceased father and they play baseball together.
     Watch Legends of the Fall and A River Runs Through It. These are men’s favorite films too. Love between fathers and sons and brothers. They fight and are in each other’s faces and you think they might kill each other. But at the end of the day, they’re loyal because they love each other. John Wayne movies. Saving the town from the bandits because he loves his people. Or he stands up for the weak and the underdogs. He might not win the girl in the end, but she always thanks him, praises him for saving her parents, for saving her weak, young, inexperienced, naïve husband. Thanks him for saving her family or her town. He is willing to sacrifice his life for the people. Love, love, love. It’s there in all the manly films and stories. You just have to see it.
     Watch this: A man leaves home to conquer evil or to complete a quest. He journeys and battles alongside other men to finish the task, complete the goal, they’re working together. He asks questions, receives answers, and consults many wise men along the way. He faces barriers and challenges that make you wonder how in the world he will overcome that feat, but he does. And at the end of the story, he ends up saving the world, whether that world is a state, country, or town. He wins or he finds the answers he sought years for. Then the people praise him for his courage and he earns the respect of all. Fame is not what matters to him. It’s the respect. Notice that. Respect. It’s the affirmation that, “Yes, I have what it takes despite what people said to me along the way.” Look at every man’s favorite story. The storyline isn’t far from that model. Experience has taught me that at the end of the day, what a man really wants is to be respected. And what women want is to be loved.

W&K: You said earlier that Nicholas Sparks inspired you in writing The Mason Jar. Can you share a bit about that?

JRL: During my graduate years at Pepperdine, this was back in 2005, girls were going crazy over this film, The Notebook. Everywhere I looked, I saw girls with the DVD sticking out of their purses, or they were always talking about it with their friends. So, I sat down and watched it. I was twenty-five years old, it was my last semester in graduate school, and I watched that film. And I cried like a little kid.
(He leans back and laughs)
     The only movie I had ever cried in was at the end of Braveheart, when William Wallace is killed. I was fifteen at the time. It’s funny because I know Randall Wallace now, the man who wrote and directed that film. He’s an adjunct professor at Pepperdine.
     Then ten years later, I watched The Notebook. And I didn’t cry where most people cry. Every girl you talk to (I rarely hear guys discussing Sparks’ books), they cry at the end when the elderly couple passes away. But that part didn’t affect me. I was like, “Well of course they pass away. They’re old and it’s the end of the movie. One doesn’t have to leave the other behind for an entire lifetime without their soul mate. They left this world together. That’s a good thing. What, you think we’re immortal or something?”
     The ending was sad, don’t get me wrong. But I didn’t cry. The part that affected me was Noah’s last letter to Allie. It’s excellent writing and it’s poetry without being set up as poetry. (Lingerfelt quotes from memory),
     My dearest Allie, I couldn’t sleep last night because I know that it’s over between us. I’m not bitter anymore because I know that what we had was real. And if in some distant place in the future, we see each other in our new lives, I will smile at you with joy and remember how we spent a summer beneath the trees; learning from each other and growing in love. The best love is the kind that awakens the soul and makes us reach for more, that plants a fire in our hearts and brings peace to our minds. And that’s what you’ve given me. That’s what I had hoped to give to you, forever.
     Let me tell you. Years from now, our grandchildren and great-grandchildren will be reading The Notebook. Today, in our schools, we read Pride and Prejudice. In the future, The Notebook will be read too. Just wait. There will be authors who will try to top The Notebook. It won’t happen. Watch all the war movies. Every screenwriter wants to write a speech that beats William Wallace’s in Braveheart. Sorry. Isn’t going to happen. And it’s the same with The Notebook. There will be future love stories in books and films. But they won’t top The Notebook.
      I enjoyed Dear John by Sparks. Sparks wrote the book, but Jamie Linden wrote the screenplay. And he did a good job too. The endings are different, and bits of the story are different, but they’re both great.
     But what I liked about the film is, the couple finds closure. At the end, they hug each other in a coffee shop in Charleston. Great. Will they end up back together? Who knows? But we at least know they’re friends now. The story was realistic. You didn’t have the guy or the girl pining for the other. They didn’t ride off in the sunset together. They met for coffee.
     Dear John is really the story that inspired me to end The Mason Jar the way I did. I wanted that closure for Clayton and Savannah. I wanted it to be real. Seven years have passed. They’re different people. Different lives have been lived, different dreams have been pursued. Some of those dreams came to fruition, others didn’t. Yet here they are, seven years later, still alive and healthy- but different. Savannah has read Clayton’s book, and they have a conversation. Why? Because deep down, they still care about each other, even if it’s not romantically. Most people aren’t allowed that. How many hundreds, thousands of relationships are there throughout time where there never is closure, never reconciliation? So I wanted that for them.
     Will they fall in love again? It doesn’t matter. Life is not about romantic love, but simply love. That’s the message of the book.
I can’t tell you how many of my editors wanted the ending to be different. I have a friend who’s involved in film in San Diego. He wanted Savannah to go after Clayton at the end of the story. He wanted her to pine for him, and then for Clayton to turn her down. And really, the only way to make that kind of ending explosive is to have Clayton be a bit mean to Savannah. You know, have Savannah repeat over and over, “Say something, please!” Clayton replies, “I don’t love you anymore,” and walks away. Then Savannah bursts into tears.
     But Clayton wouldn’t have done that, and I believe it would have ruined the story.
     Another editor wanted the ending to be more open. “There’s still a chance that they will fall in love!” she wrote to me. “Can we not have them get back together?” she asked. My answer: No. Reuniting as lovers is the ending to most fiction. It’s not reality. Love can still exist, but not always as romantic partners. (Lingerfelt leans back in his chair and then shoots back to its edge, pointing his finger toward me.) Life may not unfold as we had hoped, but life can still be beautiful.
     Don’t get me wrong. Those endings they suggested would have made great Hollywood endings. But I didn’t want a Hollywood ending. I wanted something real, something that would give people hope. “Yes, there is still time. I can still connect with this person and apologize. Or I can let them know they’re forgiven. I can reach out to them and see if they wouldn’t mind talking over the phone or meeting for coffee.”
     I wanted Clayton and Savannah to see the value in friendship, in loyalty as humans living this life together, working together to make the earth better. Be contributors to society, not takers. And the way to do this is to underscore that no matter what happens to us in life, we still have a choice in how to respond. We are on the same team here as humans living on the planet. So let’s be there for each other and help each other out through this journey. Isn’t life tough enough already? Why do we have to make it tougher for each other? We would act more loving if we saw each other as members of the same team.

W&K: Why do you think Sparks has done so well in writing romance?

JRL: First, Nicholas Sparks is an excellent storyteller. Second, pay attention to all his stories. The male protagonist will love that woman until he dies. He loves her so much that even after he dies, if it is possible for his spirit to revisit her, he will fight with all his might to do so. Undying Love. Remember what I said earlier. Men want respect. A woman wants to be loved. Notice the Twilight series by Meyer. You think it’s about vampires and werewolves? That’s what everyone thought. Novels about vampires and werewolves flooded the bookstores. That concept is cool and original, but that wasn’t what girls loved. Notice the plot. The strongest, most brave, and most handsome of all the vampires and werewolves, Edward and Jacob, they are fighting for Bella’s heart. They are both willing to place their lives at risk because they love her. Don’t miss that. That’s why girls go crazy over those stories. After The Notebook, I can’t tell you how many of my friends know girls who said to them, “Oh if only I could find love like that!”

W&K: Let’s talk about your theme of choosing God and love over ambition. Can you unravel that a bit?

JRL: Our ambitions change over time. Our desires change. What we’re passionate about today isn’t what we’re passionate about five years from now. But what we can always exercise, no matter where our passions lay at the time, is love toward God, humanity, and being good stewards of the earth. That’s really the call in the New Testament. Be Christ’s representative on the earth. Be different. Do things right and do the right things. We often miss that.
      When I was writing the Africa piece, I needed a pinnacle. Something where Clayton experiences an intense, inner conflict that will set the stage for his reason to abandon his ambitions and return to Africa.
     One of my editors wished that I didn’t take such an omniscient approach to Clayton’s life in Africa. She wanted me to maintain the same style of Story through Dialogue. “Too many facts and not enough dialogue,” she said. But I couldn’t. The book would have been three times its size if I followed her advice. Because Clayton spends five years there. Dialogue throughout the entire Africa story so you can get to know the Africans he encounters? Not if I wanted to keep Africa as a subplot. I couldn’t linger there long. I had to explain what Clayton did in Africa, why those experiences meant so much to him, and help the reader understand Clayton’s future decision about Savannah.
     The point of the Africa story is not Africa or Savannah. The point was realizing that there are other things larger in life than romantic love. The reason people have a difficult time digesting that in this story is because most books and films and all of our childhood stories are about the guy who rescues the damsel in distress. Or about the guy whose love never dies for the woman he has pledged himself to. So when I write a love story with its conclusion centered around platonic and unconditional love, rather than eros or romantic love, a lot of my editor’s were frustrated. We’re more programmed than we like to believe, I guess.

Here is an excellent article written by award winning novelist, Randy Ingermanson.

http://www.advancedfictionwriting.com/art/snowflake.php

Detach from Results
by Kelley and Hall Book Publicity and Promotion:


When it comes to writing, there is a beauty in the unselfconscious mind. We allow our words to flow freely onto the page, we explore worlds and we try to disconnect from the audience. We are fully immersed in the writing process and business is a word we don’t even comprehend…during the writing process. Then we finish our books, our works of art, and have to begin to explore the business side. I have often heard from writers about the terror this stage of the game produces. Fixations on things like book sales, Amazon rankings and media coverage can suck all of the joy and energy out of that which you once dreamed about: being a writer.

I read an interesting piece on a blog the other day, ironically it was on a blog about acting! In the essay he writes that essentially you have to let go of the end result in order to succeed.

We need to have a direction we want to move in. But we must detach from the results. If we don’t detach from the results we will be locked in misery and thought. Also, detaching from the results opens us up to a possibility much grander than what our minds can imagine. We need to plant seeds and let them do their magic under the soil.

We often use the planting seed analogy when talking about publicity. We reach far and wide, send out messages and information to all appropriate outlets and often times the results far exceed our expectations. But these seeds also take time to come to fruition. You can’t send someone a book and have them read it, react the way you want and then cover it in a short period of time.

However, often these seeds bloom in ways we never even dreamed. One person reads a book that we have sent them and it registers in an impossibly enlightening way. The right book at the right time. But if you, as the writer, spend your time obsessing over Amazon rankings or trying to beat the competition, you lose sight of that goal.

To find readers and have them connect with your work, to open up a world inside the pages of a novel or memoir or non-fiction guide and have people understand and appreciate what you have created. In order to change lives and leave an impact, to honor your work as a writer, you have to detach from the results because it will only leave you self-conscious and stalled when completing future work. As Deepak Chopra (bestselling author and guru) says,

You do not want to dig up the seeds of your desires to see if they are growing, or get rigidly attached to the way in which they will unfold. You simply want to release them.

     All of us use our family and friends to read the first or last draft of our literary work. And the response we usually receive is, "It was good" or "I liked it" or "Mmm, it needs work." And we wait for them to elaborate. And we keep waiting. Sometimes we think to ourselves, "Uhh, did you actually read it?" They definitely didn't keep a notepad and write down their ideas, suggestions, and criticisms, even if they were asked to do so. So, here are some questions to present to your family and friends when they agree to read your work.

- If you were to recommend this book to a friend, what would you change about the book or within the book? (You see, here, you are not suggesting they be critics. You are actually inviting them into the process of creation.)

- Take this red pen (supply it to them, for they will not go out and purchase one) and mark through paragraphs or sentences that you felt were boring or slowed the book down or was unnecessary.

-  What did you like about this scene? What did you not like? 

- If you lived inside this story, what would you wish the character(s) would do differently?

- Was there ever a moment where you had an emotional response, where you were immensely involved in the narrative? Can you explain why?

- Did you feel any anxiety or dread at any parts?

- Where was a place in the book where you couldn't put it down? Are there places where you felt it was slow? How can I spice it up, turn it into a piece that keeps the narrative flowing and makes you want to keep reading?

- Did you feel like I gave the descriptions of the characters all they deserved? How can I make them stronger, make they jump out at you? Did you like or not like them and why?

- What is X character like? If you had to describe this person's character to a friend, what would you say? (This helps you see if your character or idea is represented the way you intended.)

     In closing, remember that all feedback will vary. If you don't like someone's feedback, that's okay, it's your book. But if two or three people are offering feedback on the same area of the book, that it needs changing or altering or elaborating, then listen to them. Of all the things I've shared in this blog, in my experience, that really is the best advice in regards to the feedback process.

The Veneer of Media: How hungry authors are manipulating the publishing industry
by Chris Ferebee (from qideas.org)

     The world I work in is a double-edged sword. One edge of the publishing industry is the romanticized notion of what the life of an author is like. The second is nowhere near as romantic as one hoped it would be.
     There are introverted folks who never fit in, but publishing gives them a voice. Once successful, however, they’re no longer allowed to be the introvert because the world loves its celebrities. There are behind the scenes kind of folks who have great ideas, but mourn that those ideas aren’t voiced in public, so they publish in hopes of starting an important conversation. Of course, once that idea takes hold they can no longer be behind the scenes because every idea needs a public figure to champion it.
     Then there’s another group that's driven to get their message to the masses and have no problem being a public figure. This group wants notoriety and often has the resources to achieve it. Their starting place is, “How do I reach the New York Times Bestseller's List?” An entire industry has emerged to help this group. Unfortunately, this group often finds that after they’ve spent tens of thousands of dollars to reach the bestseller list, it didn’t really deliver. They thought it would bring them a certain level of success or validation in their field. They thought it would mean every book thereafter would be a bestseller. It didn’t. The second edge of any double-edged sword delivers painful cuts.

Success Does Not Equal Bestseller
     I was speaking recently with an editor at a major New York publishing house. I had a client make several bestsellers lists. Not just the New York Times, but USA Today, Publisher’s Weekly, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, ABA, Indiebound, even some regional ones like the Denver Post and the Los Angeles Times. By all accounts, this client’s book was a serious success, and not because of money spent making it so. The ideas presented actually gained traction. Conversation was stirred; “word of mouth” (that “musthave” and impossible to fake phenomenon) had actually taken root. If you wanted to be part of the conversation, you had to read this book.
     Its success ultimately could be measured by its impact and influence on the audience it reached, not by its rank on various, and more subjective than you really want to know, lists.
     I wanted to know what the publisher was doing to tell this incredible success story so that the “word of mouth” would spread. His answer? “We don’t really pay attention to bestsellers lists anymore. They don’t really mean much.” Ouch. If “bestseller” doesn’t mean anything then how are we to define success in publishing?
     Veneer authors Jason Locy and Tim Willard write about Julia Allison who leveraged blogs, Twitter, Facebook, and homemade videos to successfully make herself a "celebrity." Reality television is built on the desire of some to be famous for no good reason, and our collective desire to watch them try. We live in a world of media-generated, or worse, self-generated, celebrity. People are famous, for being famous. It’s not the substance of their being, it’s not the profound nature of their views on life; it’s their willingness, or their will, to simply be famous.
     We are all guilty of perpetuating this. But then we bemoan that the real celebrities, the ones that earned it, the ones we could look up to, aren’t around anymore. Where is the next Audrey Hepburn anyway?

Ideas Matter, Not Platforms
     In the world of books, you can manufacture the lie that you've "arrived" by buying your way onto the New York Times Bestseller's List. But it doesn’t mean what it used to, precisely because you can buy your way on. More and more books hit the New York Times Bestseller's List every year, but fewer and fewer books actually stay there. The former standard for importance has become nothing more than a way for some clever people to make money off other people.
     Our social media fascination isn’t helping in this area either. Authors have been told they must have a “platform,” and for many the ease and free nature of social media tools has turned "platform" into a clever quip or profound string of 140 characters. A platform used to mean that you had earned the right to speak to a large number of people about a particular area of expertise. Today, in the social media world, it simply means you’ve cajoled enough people to “follow” you, “like” you, “friend” you, or otherwise express a momentary weakness on your behalf that simply does not translate into anything of real importance.
     In my world--the publishing world--you do not need to make a bestsellers list to succeed. You do not need to have a platform, though a real one certainly does help. You do not need to have a million friends or followers. You need to create really great content. You need to contribute something new to the conversation; or better yet, start a new one. That’s a tall order, but it’s true.

[READ: Author Margaret Feinberg names the "Ten Most Beautiful Books I Read During The Last Decade."]

     Shakespeare is still read today, but not because he had a platform. Mark Twain had a bestselling autobiography one hundred years after his death, but not because he had a lot of Internet friends. You won’t be a publishing success by friending a slew of strangers or buying your way onto a bestseller's list.
     Do you want to break into publishing? Say something important, but more importantly, say it well. We don’t need more voices, and we certainly don’t need more celebrities. We need transcendent ideas. We need people that challenge us to see how the world ought to be, and inspire us to make it so. We need people who show us the best of ourselves, and call us to be that version, rather than the veneered version that seems so much easier to sell to our “friends.” Inspire someone, and you just may make a bestsellers list the old-fashioned way. Inspire important conversations and you may just stay there. But if you fake it, if you buy your way on, if you take the shortcut to significance, we’ll know, and we’ll ignore you. And that second cut will hurt.

     Have you ever considered, after you've published your book, to advertise yourself as a copy editor? You might actually enjoy this role more than writing books. Some editors charge $10.00 a page, but that's those who've been in the business for a while and have a wide clientele. You'll correct spelling, punctuation, grammar and style, while allowing the reader to maintain their identity. 
     You'll proofread to ensure story flow, and to make sure there are no unanswered questions, or roads the writer created which never actually led anywhere. Research editors are different. They research topics for the author. Say the author wants to describe lion hunting in ancient Assyria. Well, if you want to be a research editor, guess what you have to do? Lots of library time. So you better love it. But you can find those positions as well.
     Any of this sound interesting? Check out mediabistro.com and journaliststoolbox.org for job boards and then theslot.com to hang out online with other copy editors and talk about...you'll find out.