Category Archives: Book Marketing

I’m Trying a Goodreads Giveaway

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In celebration of the check for $1,000 I received in the mail from Writer’s Digest for my recent win, I decided to offer a few free copies of The Reckoning in one of Goodread’s Giveaways. If you haven’t yet read it and want to, but can’t afford a copy, it won’t hurt to click on the entry in the widget in my right sidebar (under Awards).

And just to reiterate how important a cover is, particularly if you’re thinking of self-publishing, here were the Judge’s notes on my book and some of the reasons it won First Place in the Mainstream/Literary Fiction category of the 18th Annual Writer’s Digest International Self-Published Book Awards:

(On a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 meaning “poor” and 5 meaning “excellent”)

Plot: 4

Grammar: 5

Character development: 4

Production quality and cover design: 5

Judge’s commentary: Gorgeous cover – your artist is really gifted. Wow! What an opening. Your writing is direct and beautifully crafted. Your knowledge of the setting and cultures really shows in the writing.

I really did luck out with that cover in contacting the artist, Vian Sora, and obtaining her permission to use her painting entitled Nostalgia. As you can see, it pays for writers to get to know artists.

Originally posted 2011-01-22 17:30:16.

Publishing’s Paradigm Shift – Effect on Authors

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With all of this movement toward e-books, what can authors expect in the near future? Some of the coming changes may include the following:

•Funding for authors’ advances may begin to be provided by external investors (as they are with films and plays)

•Best-selling authors, who already have a name brand, may turn to self-publishing for higher royalties, making more room for midlist and debut authors

•Until then, the bar is higher and authors may want to consider self-publishing

•Some authors are already serializing their books online to build readership

•Publishers can’t hold on to rights indefinitely by making books available as POD or e-books, according to recent rulings (when such a book is out of print, rights will revert to author)

Average advances today are between $1,000 and $5,000 for debut literary fiction as opposed to the $50-100,000 advances of the past. For commercial fiction: $15,000 or less. And publishing houses are beginning to shrink their lists, so it’s becoming more and more difficult to get picked up as a debut author.

One option is to take your chances with self-publishing and try to find ways to grow your own fan base. One unpublished author is serializing his new book, chapter by chapter on his website where, over the next ten weeks, it will build like a part-work. In the words of a friend, he’s “doing a Dickens.” And he’s making it available for free, betting that many readers won’t want to wait and will go ahead and download the entire book for less than the cost of a paperback. After that, it will go to Amazon, with an iPod version later. A second, already published, author, John Gorman, is serializing his new thriller to a WordPress site. On the site, his Mission Statement encourages people to contribute to the story. He won’t publish their words, but he might run with their character ideas and plot twists, so there’s a collective element to this novel.

For those who decide to self-publish, Publishers Weekly now puts out a quarterly supplement, called PW Select, that announces self-published titles for $149 and reviews for free those they feel are most deserving of a critical assessment. For more information, check www.publishersweekly.com/diy.

Personally, I went the self-publishing route for my first book and it’s seen very few sales, despite the awards, simply because it’s not out there enough. I won’t go that route again. I’d rather hone my craft and keep writing and querying until I get an agent. An agent will lead me to a publisher who can get my name out there. I’m hoping that a lot of these top authors who no longer need a big publisher will go the self-publishing route, thereby making room on publishers’ lists for more midlist and debut authors.

In my next posting on this topic, I’ll share the thoughts and experiences of some of those who have.

Originally posted 2010-11-15 11:04:47.

Publishing’s Paradigm Shift – Effect on Booksellers

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Where do you buy most of your books now? Online at Amazon or other online bookstores? At big box stores like Costco? Barnes & Noble? Or are you a die-hard fan of the small, local independent bookstore where you’re on a first-name basis with the staff?

Bookstores have been a dying breed until now. So how will they be affected by the growing popularity of digitalized books? Here are some possible developments:

•Booksellers will begin adding Espresso Book Machines to stores

•Megastores may disappear and smaller, neighborhood stores could make a resurgence

•Booksellers will become more important as guides in book selection as newspapers continue to lose their book review sections

•There will be more and more niche bookstores

According to Publishers Weekly (April 16, 2010), “Lightning Source has launched an Espresso Book Machine pilot program, done in conjunction with On Demand Books, through which select publishers will be able to offer their customers the opportunity to print their titles on the Espresso machines located in bookstores…There are currently 37 EBMs in operation and 14 planned around the world. On Demand is releasing a new model of the machine which will print books faster—roughly four minutes for a 300-page book as opposed to eight minutes—and be offered at a lower price point.”

“The new bookstores may be book/coffee/tea shop hybrids, with a while-you-wait book printing facility, digital connections to facilitate e-book browsing and purchase, and staff who know and love the books they sell.” (Richard Day, publisher of Self-Councel press)

Check out the video below showing how the Espresso Book Machine works.

Originally posted 2010-11-04 13:59:14.

My Interview on “The Good Word” With Nick Galieti is Live

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Last weekend I drove all the way down to Utah to be interviewed in person by Nick Galieti for his podcast series, “The Good Word.” He’s trying to feature a different LDS writer each week (something like what I’m doing here, only he works live…either in the studio or over the phone), and I must say I was impressed by his preparation and his questions.

cropped-Nick-Galieti-Promo-Photo1

Have a listen to my interview and judge for yourself here.

I talked about both of my books, with a little more emphasis on the more recent publication. If you’re a fan of A NIGHT ON MOON HILL, you’ll want to give this interview a listen. And please feel free to leave a comment.

I encourage all of my writer friends to contact Nick and sign up for an interview at their convenience. And thanks to Trina Boice for bringing his podcast to my attention in the first place!

Originally posted 2013-03-05 13:58:08.

Successful Launch at the Library

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I don’t live in the biggest city, so when it came to selecting a venue for my book launch for A NIGHT ON MOON HILL, I only had a few options. I knew my book wouldn’t be in Barnes & Noble (yet) and, besides, that just seemed to go against one of my protagonist’s rules–encouraging the independent bookstore. Well, there were only three from which to choose and none of them quite fit what I had in mind.

Then I recalled that my main character, Daphne, and Eric, the boy with Asperger’s, spent a lot of time together in their local library. Fortunately, our local library had moved into a brand new building last year and they had a large room called the Gallery that was perfect for special events. So I called, told them I was counting on about 50 guests, and they offered to co-host the launch with me.

They had a sound system all set up, complete with a hands-free lavalier microphone, (and, if I’d needed it, a projection system), and plenty of tables and chairs–all in a lovely, glassed in setting. My friend, Billie Grimmett, a professional photographer, was kind enough to be on hand to take lots of wonderful pictures.

We began at 6:30 with about 15 or so having already arrived (including my sister, who had driven two and a half hours to surprise me . . . and Terry Deighton from my writer’s group, who, along with her husband, had driven six hours to help me out).

Me and my sister, Leslie

With classical music playing in the background (mostly Adagios by Albinoni and others–Daphne would have approved), I did my best to explain how I had come to write this particular story and then read an excerpt from the beginning, trying hard not to give anything away plot-wise.

By that point, more had arrived and we were ready for the first prize drawing. I had carefully selected prizes that somehow fit with my novel and divided them into three different drawings, with three in each group. In the first group, there was a simple pocket watch, a Kindle gift card (after all Daphne is a writer), and a home digital weather station. (Daphne also has a thing about weather . . . or, at least, she used to.)

But I didn’t want to simply draw a name and hand over a prize. Instead, I had my son, Jason, draw three names and then we had the three fish against each other for the prize they wanted. Using these little toy fishing poles (you see, in my novel, one of Eric’s obsessions is fishing), they tried to magnetically pick up as many fish as they could. The person who got the biggest catch got first pick among the three prizes. It made for some fun, competitive fishing!

Sharon won the weather station

Then while I began to sign books, those in attendance (and more were coming and going throughout the evening) either waited in line or helped themselves to some wonderful treats in back, including an “angelic” chocolate cake made by my good friend, Rebecca Elsberry, and lemon bars and cookies made by another good friend, Christy Berrett.

Rebecca slicing up her “angel” cake

After another prize drawing (for a wooden carved angel, a surprise wrapped book, and an Extra-Small Classic Ruled Moleskine notebook), I did another reading and then signed more books for those who had come later.

Terry signing in my friend, Mara

Finally, as night fell and 8:30 drew nigh, we had the final drawing, which included the biggest prize–a Nook Color gift basket–or a Moleskine Writer’s Gift Set, or a silver double dust-cover pocket watch. Afterward, I answered final questions before thanking everyone for coming.

Julie won the Nook!

And even if you didn’t win a prize, you could walk away with a bag of M&Ms (Daphne’s favorite) and a snack cup of Pringles (Eric’s favorite) . . . not to mention my book :D

I had invited 100 and slightly more than 50 came. I sold 36 books, gave 2 free copies to the library, and one each to my sister and Jason. I’m not sure what usually happens at book launches, but I felt like this was a real success. I can’t wait to do it again!

Oh, and for those of you who couldn’t make it, I’m doing a signing for “Ladies Night Out” at Far West Books in Kennewick this Saturday from 5 to 7 pm. Hope to see you there!

Originally posted 2012-10-01 06:00:02.

It’s Available!

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A NIGHT ON MOON HILL is now available for sale at the Kindle Store! Here’s the link. What a wonderful early birthday present! It would be amazing if it became available on Amazon ON my birthday, which is tomorrow. Not likely, but amazing!

Remember, if you buy it, read it, and like it, I would LOVE for you to post a review there on its Kindle page…as well as on Goodreads. (Later, it would be great if you would copy your review to the Amazon page once it’s finally up there.)

If you REALLY want to help guide people to my book, hit the “Like” button near my name and then scroll halfway down the Kindle page to the part that reads: “Tags Customers Associate With This Product” and click on “Agree with these tags.” The more agreements I get, the more likely those tags will pull in readers interested in those things.

Thanks for all your support!

Originally posted 2012-09-08 17:36:14.

Another Road Trip

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Present word count of WIP:  56,674

Unlike most mothers, I never really had to do a lot of chauffeuring when my kids were younger (except for the three years they were involved with Riverside Children’s Theatre). After one year of girls softball, Allison gave it up, and Jason was NEVER interested in sports.

Then my daughter entered high school and gave one more sport a try: Cross Country. She did quite well (even competing at State), and more importantly, found a life long pursuit. In the process, I put a lot of mileage on the van and then the SUV.

In California, I drove to schools in the Inland Empire, the famous Mt. SAC competition, and even up to the well-known Clovis Invitational, all to watch her run and cheer their team on. Once we moved up here to Washington after her sophomore year, the driving continued to points east and west of the Cascades and even into Oregon. Fortunately, the state championship was held in our own backyard–Pasco.

I thought most of my driving days were pretty much over when Allison went off to college. And sure enough, I only averaged 1-2 trips down to Utah during most of her years at BYU (and one of those annual trips each year was for my benefit–a writing conference).

Allison's Graduation Picture

Then this past April hit. With our daughter preparing to graduate and go off to serve a mission, we decided we should attend General Conference as a family. One trip. A niece in South Jordan got married. Another trip. Allison graduated and went through the SLC temple in preparation for her mission. A third trip. The LDStorymaker’s Writer’s Conference. A fourth trip.

Tomorrow morning I’m heading down again, this time to help her pack up and bring everything home so she can attend her brother’s graduation. But do you think she’s staying put once she’s home? Nope. You see, there’s this half marathon she wants to run back in . . . you guessed it. Provo.

I think that’s one race I can miss, particularly because we’ll be taking yet another trip down that way in mid-July to drop her off at the MTC.

Have all these trips been worth it? Of course! Spending time with her, seeing her graduate after working so hard, seeing her so beautiful in white in the temple. Socializing with, and learning from, all my writing friends. Every single trip was worth it. And this one will be no different.

Besides, it’s helped me train for long-distance travel. Something I hope will come in handy when The Boy in the Pool comes out at the end of summer and I have to drive around for signings in bookstores and Costcos here in the Northwest and in Utah (and wherever else my publisher recommends).

But this time around I’ll be chauffeuring myself.

Originally posted 2012-05-28 17:31:54.

Reading, Reading, and More Reading

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Present word count of WIP:  54,620

Sorry for slacking off here. I know I missed posting last Friday and this past Monday, but I was in the middle of a terrific writer’s conference (LDS Storymakers)…and then I was still recovering from it.

(A ten-hour drive in one day is not easy, despite M&Ms and other caffeinated products, particularly after you’re coming off of five nights of only 3-5 hours of sleep on average. But an audio book leant to me by my writing/conference buddy, Liz Adair, certainly helped!)

Anyway, it was a great conference. The best thing was that I had another excuse to see my daughter. I won’t have too many more opportunities like that before she leaves on her mission. And she even came to the Whitney Awards Banquet with me (that’s become a custom…I’ll definitely miss her next year).

Liz and I were roommates again and we also kept each other company during the massive book signing (and I got to pick up a lot of tips on how to do a signing by watching our neighbor, Janette Rallison, respond to the lines and lines of fans queued up for her signature or picture).

Liz and I at the Book Signing

Me with Janette Rallison and Rachelle Christensen

I took part in one of the critique sessions held during the Publication Primer the day before the conference and met some terrific writers there, including David King, Rebekah Wells, and Becky Tueller and her sister, Cheryl. Our group was led by Natalie Hickman, almost due to have her baby and just out of the hospital that morning. Talk about dedication to your craft!

Me with David and Rebekah

I pitched my WIP to Holly Root of the Waxman Literary Agency and she wants to see the first three chapters when it’s ready. YAY!!! She also said she’d have no problem taking on a client that wanted to write both Women’s Fiction and Middle Grade…all under my own name. Hmmm. Maybe I won’t need a pen name after all.

Also, I met with my editor, Linda Mullineaux, and they’re now looking at sending my book (which will be called something other than Laps) to press in August! I gave them a new suggestion for the title and I think they may go with it. But I’m not announcing it here until it’s finally approved. Anyway, I’m firmly a part of the Walnut Springs Press family, as shown by this picture of several of their authors taken after the Whitney Awards Banquet.

Walnut Springs Authors (Me, Angie Lofthouse, Liz Adair, Jenni James, Betsy Love, Theresa Sneed, and the injured Tristi Pinkston)

Besides the fact that I desperately need a makeover, I learned lots of great things at the LDS Storymakers Conference, as usual (particularly loved Jennifer Nielsen’s class on Middle Grade Fiction and Jeff Savage’s on Podcasts), though I didn’t get to attend nearly as many workshops or classes. That was because:

1) My body crashed after my Friday afternoon pitch . . . it’s a little too old now for these midnight film premieres (but “The Avengers” was terrific!)

and . . .

2) I volunteered to help do timekeeping for pitch sessions on Saturday morning. I can’t tell you how nice it was to be the one watching the clock rather than the one racing through my pitch over and over in my mind while waiting for the signal to go in and face the agent.

While I didn’t spend much in the bookstore, I came away with two more books to review this month. I was already set to review Jolene Perry’s Night Sky on May 14th (I just finished reading it today and have the review all written), but now I’m due to read Heather Moore’s Daughters of Jared and Tristi Pinkston’s Women of Strength, as well, before the end of the month.

Not to mention all the Whitney Award finalists and winners I’ve got downloaded. As I put in my title, it looks like all I’ll be doing the rest of this month is reading, reading, and more reading!

Originally posted 2012-05-11 13:23:28.

Book Blast for Rachelle Christensen’s “Caller ID”

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Present word count of WIP:  48, 579

If you want a great read and a chance to win one of over 20 free gifts, head on over to Rachelle’s Writing Spot and use her special link to purchase her latest, CALLER ID, on Amazon. It’s good for today only!

Among other things, she’s offering books, ebooks, podcasts, tutorials, recipes, website design help, and a Flip Video Camcorder.

Remember, this offer is only good for Thursday, March 22, 2012.

Originally posted 2012-03-22 16:02:03.

The Book Business

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Present word count in WIP:  47,161

(That doesn’t count the fact that I did write today…I wrote a 999-word personal essay to be posted on Danyelle Fergusen’s blog some time in April–Autism Awareness Month. I’ll let you know when it’s up and link to it. She asked for those who’ve dealt with autistic spectrum disorders up close and personal to share some positive, uplifting stories, so I complied.)

And now for Seth Godin’s last three pieces of Advice for Authors:

17. Publishing a book is not the same as printing a book. Publishing is about marketing and sales and distribution and risk. If you don’t want to be in that business, don’t! Printing a book is trivially easy. Don’t let anyone tell you it’s not. You’ll find plenty of printers who can match the look and feel of the bestselling book of your choice for just a few dollars a copy. That’s not the hard part.

18. Bookstores, in general, are run by absolutely terrific people. Bookstores, in general, are really lousy businesses. They are often where books go to die. While some readers will discover your book in a store, it’s way more likely they will discover the book before they get to the store, and the store is just there hoping to have the right book for the right person at the time she wants it. If the match isn’t made, no sale.

19. Writing a book is a tremendous experience. It pays off intellectually. It clarifies your thinking. It builds credibility. It is a living engine of marketing and idea spreading, working every day to deliver your message with authority. You should write one.

I love how he covers all three aspects of the business in these last three tips–publishing, marketing, and writing.

Publishing isn’t easy and that’s why it’s so difficult for writers to break into it. They have to build up their writing muscles over time so that the content they offer is worth the publishers’ risk. They have to build up their fan base over time so that, again, the publisher will be tempted to take a chance on them. And then, once they’re in, from all I can observe it becomes like a long-distance race. Either they’re in it for the long haul–all the signings, appearances, marketing, and, most importantly, more writing–or they get left by the wayside.

Bookstores are becoming more and more obsolete because now the reader can go directly to their chosen writer via Amazon.com or another online bookstore. And with the advent of the ebook, who needs shelves? Of course, this is not news. But more and more, I foresee bookstores using their personal touch to compete online with the big elephant. Check out Just the Right Book, for example. Here is a bookseller who got smart, moved her bookstore online and is offering the kind of service Amazon is too big and impersonal to give. If you doubt me, check out the Just the Right Book Facebook page. This is one bookstore, in my opinion, that is not a lousy business. They have vision.

As for his last tip, I readily agree. I always learn more about a topic (and myself) when I have to write about it. Once I can encapsulate my thoughts or the pictures in my head in a well-described scene, complete with realistic dialogue (both inner and outer), I am enriched…and, if I’ve done my job right as a writer, my words will likewise enrich the reader. The most fascinating thing about the writing process, besides the splashes of insight and inspiration, is that no two readers will read the same words with exactly the same result. Why? Because the reader brings his/her own life experience to meld with the author’s. That’s why the author-reader relationship is so valuable.

If you’ve ever been tempted to write your own book, do it!

 

 

Originally posted 2012-03-12 21:22:00.