Essay Online

Serious freelance writers know their income may come from other sources, not just writing articles for magazines or clients. Ultimately, their freelance writing leads to writing books or e-books for themselves or as ghostwrites. If you decide to ghostwrite e-books and trade paperbacks for clients, consider the following:

If a client hires you as a “work-for-hire” ghostwriter, then the client pays you for your work, and he owns all rights. Make sure: 1) You receive a 50% retainer before you begin the work; and 2) You receive the balance at or right before delivery. That’s it. If the book turns out to be a great success, great! That’s wonderful! You should be extremely proud — but from a distance! To be a successful ghostwriter, you must enjoy your glory as a ghostwriter in the shadows. Many ghostwriters prefer it that way.

I know a great speaker in the industry who commands $10,000 or more per speaking engagement. He is phenomenal to listen to and even more dynamite to read. However, he doesn’t write his books alone. He contributes to them but he never writes any of them himself. His ghostwriter, Shelly, is known only to a few writers in a close-knit writer’s group. Why does Shelly let this speaker take all the glory for her work? She is painfully shy and exceedingly talented as a writer. She once said, “I am where I need to be and he is where he should be.” If you are going to ghostwrite, stay where you belong (invisible) and accept payment for the job as payment enough.

TIP #1: As a ghostwriter, you should always try to meet the needs of the true “author” of the work. Cover the content they want and do your best to make the client happy.

TIP #2: As with writing any book, ghostwriting involves lot of revisions and changes as far out as two months, especially if the book needs to go through an editor or publisher. You should make changes as needed. However, don’t wait on final payment if your client hasn’t received final approval from his publisher.

TIP #3: Always write your ghostwrites as if they are your own. Write with quality and professionalism in mind.

TIP #4: Never sign a non-compete contract on the subject of the book. It is crazy for the client to ask but crazier for you to do it. If a client asks for one, walk away. You have your own work to protect as well as the client’s work. Remember the saying, “to thine own self be true”? Well, in writing, there’s no truer statement.

TIP #5: You owe the client exceptional work and the client you work for owes you money for a job well done.

TIP #6: If your client is dissatisfied with the end result, even after he’s paid you, make it right for the client. Satisfied clients usually become repeat clients; they will bring you steady work and referrals.

TIP #7: Consider using a pen name as a ghostwriter. Jeanine Anne, a freelance writer and ghostwriter, said she uses a pen name when she ghostwrites. She said, “I’ve written most of my ghostwrites and presented them to my clients under my pen name, Jeanine Anne. First, if someone decides to spam me, there’s no harm done to the name for which I write my own work under. Secondly, when I write for a client, I have no idea what the client will do to the work, after all it is his work once it leaves my hands. The client may add content which I may not like or he may write something that is not my style of writing.” This is something to remember if you write for clients as ghostwrites. The client hires you to do a job and the client owns the work after it leaves your hands.

You can find many ghostwriting gigs on .FreelanceWriting.com, Elance.com, Guru.com, GetAFreelancer.com, Indeed.com, .WritingCareer.com, and CraigsList.com. The other way is to create your own ghostwriting gigs by networking and marketing.

There are great rewards when writing a book for the first time. There is a great sense of accomplishment by the individual person once they have a complete manuscript in their hand.

The other reward is obviously money; if you write a good book that is marketed correctly you will receive a reward.

Depending on how well you market your book will depend on the size of the pay cheque.

The first step to writing a good book is…Writing the book.

Start on your computer or with a piece of paper and start writing; don’t go back to correct spelling mistakes, grammatical errors, sentences that don’t make sense. Just keep writing.

Set yourself a target each day, say you want to write 20 pages in a day, then stick to it and do it.

In a short amount of time, hopefully in less than two weeks you will have a rough manuscript.

The next step is to get your book proof read and copy edited. The copy editor will make any grammatical changes, correct spelling mistakes and get your book reading well.

You then need to design the layout of your book, this is important because the book must have sufficient gaps, payout in the correct paces so the readers don’t get tired.

You then need to design a cover for your book, you can do this yourself or you can find a cover designer on the Internet.

Next you need to get an ISBN number; you can usually find these on the Internet. You can buy these from a few sources; the best price I have seen them for is $55.00.

All books need printing, and you need to find a printing company, I would suggest Gardeners or Book Force. Upload your book to their websites; they will take care of all the printing and distribution for you.

The penultimate step is to deposit your books in the legal deposit library; this is a requirement that 6 copies of each book written need to be deposited to qualify as an actual book.

The final step is to register a book registration company; in the UK it’s Nielsons Book Data. You need to find out what it is in the USA. If you are a resident there.

You all done, your book will appear on Amazon and other online book shops, all you have to do is go out and promote your book.

Get out on the road, hire a PR agency, get on your local radio station, write to the newspapers.

Good Luck and Good Writing.

Self-publishing has become common practice for many writers who want accolades of having a book published, no matter who publishes it. Writers choose self-publishing for various reasons. Many writers desire the freedom and business aspects of publishing work independently. A self-published writer is one who is in control of every aspect of their published work. The publishing industry defines self-publishing as authors publishing their own books or other media, instead of with a third-party publisher. Today’s technology has increased the pool of self-publishers, but it still represents only a small percentage of the publishing industry in terms of sales. The proliferation of media channels, such as blogging, video, and audio content, has contributed to the increase in self-publishers.

THE BUSINESS OF SELF-PUBLISHING

The business of self-publishing books and other media is different from any other business. The absence of a traditional publisher makes self-publishing unique. The author of the content takes on the role of the traditional publisher. The author controls the editorial content, arranges for printing, markets the material, and distributes the material to consumers and retailers. Self-publishers publish their books in printed form, or choose print-on-demand with no inventory. Many self-published authors decide to subsidize their work rather than making money from it. Digital printing technology has evolved self-publishing into digital photo book printing. Self-publishers are able to get individually printed photo books from firms like Apple’s iPhoto, FotoInsight, Snapfish, and Printing-1.

THE MOTIVES OF SELF-PUBLISHING

Many writers have varied motives to self-publish. One common reason is the writer’s work is not of interest to the commercial publisher, and otherwise not marketable. Another common reason is the writer prefers to retain complete editorial control over content. Many writers are unwilling to compromise editing of their work, and some writers prefer to have their work presented “as is.” Literary agents and book agents may deny publishing a book because the author is unknown and does not have a substantial resume. Self-publishing may also be an alternative for writers who have written material on a popular topic but the topic is only interesting in a small geographic area. Literary agents and book agents may also deny publication because the book addresses an obscure topic in which few people are interested. Writers of controversial works may also choose to self-publish, as many traditional publishers refuse to work with controversial writings. Some authors choose self-publishing because they want a larger royalty from retail sales.

IS SELF-PUBLISHING A SHORTCUT TO SUCCESS?

Self-publishing is not a shortcut to having a printed book. Depending on what your goals are, it may or may not be a direction you would like to take. In the hard copy world, self-publishing is costly. Getting a book into print costs more money than many writers want to spend. This is why the Internet is a blessing — it’s free. You can either start up a free website of your own and post your novel, or pay a small monthly sum and sell your writing online. If you can write well enough to catch someone’s attention, your readers may be willing to pay for a download of your book. By self-publishing online, you avoid the normal book publishing costs and still get exposure. Who knows, you may be lucky and grab the attention of a publishing guru who thinks you could make a lot of money from your self-published book.

Whatever your reason is for self-publishing, you should know that self-publishing requires extensive work. Self-publishing involves a long list of tasks, which include prepublication and publication. Prepublication includes editing or obtaining editing for the manuscript, proofreading, establishing yourself as a legal retail business, and obtaining an ISBN “Cataloging in Publication” number.

The publication process involves formatting the manuscript, providing front matter and back matter, and providing cover art for the front and back covers and the spine of the book. Self-publishers must also obtain printing quotes, determine how to deliver the manuscript to the printer, and pay for printing and delivery of finished books.

Publishing a book online is easier than publishing in the world of hard copy. The result is not as glorified, but it is a step towards success in the published realm. The more experience you can get writing, the better writer you will be.

Everyone thinks it is so easy to write a book. With so many people writing books these days, it is amazing there are enough people still buying books. In today’s world, if you have any amazing life experience, suddenly publishers want you to write a book about it. If it sells, then your experience was interesting enough to stimulate interest from a large audience; and if not, no one really cared.

This is why poker books fly off the shelves. Many people have life experiences playing poker. Many people want to read about these poker-playing scenarios, including the players involved. There will come a time when the reading public will demand more from its poker writers than in past years. After all, there is only so many ways you can cover the same game repeatedly when you are analyzing your own poker hands and games. This is where you come in.

As a writer, you can keep things in perspective. There will come a time when the poker players who write will run out of things to say if they are only covering their own play and games. Writers who are writers first and players second will have the opportunity to shine.

If you have a lot of talent writing about poker and gaming, you can launch your own online e-book store. If you choose to build a website and place your e-books on the website for sale, you will be branching into a new area of business you may not want to explore yet. While it can be profitable to run your own online e-book store, you may prefer to write e-books for clients.

Clients often hire ghostwriters to pen e-books to sell at their websites. Poker players and poker hobbyists who want to read about everything about poker will purchase these books online for a fee. The ClickBank.com marketplace, which sells gambling and gaming e-books penned by ghostwriters, is a good example of this.

SELF-PUBLISHING FOR SUCCESS

Many writers who are not brand names in the poker industry choose to self-publish their books and can still easily get their books sold at major bookstores, online and offline, like Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble. Many writers choose to self-publish their books in digital format only because the process is quicker and less of a hassle.

Self-publishing has many advantages:

1. You don’t need a literary agent.

2. There is no submission or rejection process.

3. You own the rights to your material.

4. Whatever money you make, you keep.

5. Royalties are much higher if you choose a print-on-demand publisher.

6. The publishing and distribution process is a lot faster. For instance, if you use LuLu.com, you can make your book available in less than a day.

The disadvantage: you are responsible for marketing your book and generating sales. This may be a disadvantage or an advantage for you. For me, I enjoy self-publishing because it gives me control and creative freedom over every aspect of my book, including generating sales. I find self-publishing exciting.

If you are going to self-publish, decide if you will publish your book in digital format or in paperback (plus digital format). I recommend you first publish your book in digital format to test your book in the marketplace. Most writers use LuLu.com, a digital publisher, because of the low cost, quick turnaround, and your book will appear in its marketplace. When you feel it is time to publish your book in paperback, then go with a print-on-demand publisher. Many writers use BookSurge.com (owned by Amazon) so their books appear in Amazon as well as other major book stores.

Other self-publishing outlets include:

1) Clickbank.com. Many self-publishers use Clickbank.com as a sales outlet to generate a steady stream of sales for their book. Clickbank has one of the largest audiences of affiliates who are ready to sell your book for a commission. You will need to create your own website and sales page (also known as a “landing page”) for your book and then sign up with Clickbank to use their ordering system.

2) LightningSource.com can make your book in digital format and paperback format. Once you submit your book for publication, anyone can order your title, as a print-on-demand or as an ebook. Many popular online book stores (especially ebook stores) order from LightningSource.

3) AuthorHouse.com

4) BookSurge.com

If you decide not to self-publish yourself, try a reputable e-book publisher to handle everything for you, including marketing. Many e-book publishers will consider poker-related material. If the e-book publisher decides to publish your ebook, they may also offer to place the book in trade paperback. The publisher will offer more royalties and sometimes a higher advance.

BOOK WRITING SUCCESS

If you choose to write your own books and e-books, then follow these tips:

TIP # 1: Know your market and know where you can gain the most readership.

TIP # 2: Remember, non-fiction sells in poker. Don’t try to re-invent the wheel because it won’t work.

TIP # 3: Have your manuscript ready before you approach a publisher for electronic submissions or for trade submissions.

TIP # 4: As you are writing your manuscript, begin searching for markets where you will want to submit your work.

TIP # 5: Buy a Writer’s Market book so you can read over the markets and decide the best market for your manuscript.

TIP # 6: Avoid work-for-hire contracts from publishers. Sure, what publisher wouldn’t prefer to pay an up-front fee to a writer in lieu of royalties? Go for the royalties and take a chance on your own talents.

TIP # 7: Know your poker.

If you want to attract your poker-reading audience, writing books about strategies and systems can sell if it is based on a mathematical advantage or a tried and tested theory. If you aren’t able to do this, no one is going to read about going on your “gut” feelings or how poker players win more when the stars line up in their favor. Fact-based theories and strategies will sell, and nothing else will in this corner of the market.

An excellent way to generate book ideas is to attend poker events and tournaments and get close to the action. Go to these events armed and ready to learn all you can. At the end of the day you will have dozens of book ideas buzzing in your head. Spend some time in casino poker rooms to find other topics. Talk and network with poker players and try to find out if they desire to write a book with the assistance of a ghostwriter or with you as a co-author. As a ghostwriter or co-author, an excellent way to gain business is to hand out your business cards at writing conventions, casinos, poker events and poker tournaments.

Authors in their quest to get published can fall victim to scams. Here’s a few tips to help you avoid the traps.

Online Matching Services and Email Blast Programs

These services, for a fee, put your query letter, synopsis and first chapter online. Acquisition editors and literary agents then have the opportunity to peruse the offerings. You have to ask yourself if you truly believe that the average literary agent, who receives 1100 unsolicited queries a year, has the time to look at these websites.

The reverse, or maybe it’s the inverse, are services that have databases of agents and publishers. You specify the genre of your book and up pops agents/publishers who have said they are interested in your genre. Sometimes the agents/publishers have provided their acquisition specs and sometimes the owner of the database has just input the information from other sources.

Finally there are services who will email blast your query letter to agents/publishers. If the participants have agreed to receive the query letters there is a higher probability you will be successful. But, again you have to wonder, with all the unpublished manuscripts out there looking for a publishing home, why would an agent/publisher feel it necessary to sign up for these types of services.

Book Doctors…but are they quacks?

The beginning author wonders: 1) Do I really have talent? 2) Is my book ready to be marketed, or does it need additional work?

One option is to hire an editing service, sometimes called a book doctor. This is not simply a copy editor who checks for grammar, sentence structure, and spelling. A book doctor looks at the plot, characters, dialogue, continuity and flow.

It almost seems like more people making a living selling editing services&ndashbook doctors, script doctors&ndashthan writers earning a living. In screenwriting, it has become an epidemic. Producers who run out of money have even taken up the script doctoring profession to pay the rent while they are “between films.”

Asking another person to re-write your work is problematic. Who knows your story better than you do? It is extremely difficult to evaluate how talented these editors are, to determine if they are really going to improve your work.

Fees for these services can range from several hundred dollars to five or ten thousand dollars.

Remember that all manuscripts need editing. And that one of the publisher’s jobs is to work with the writer on getting the manuscript ready to publish.

Another option is a critique service; this is usually less expensive. They provide a report of their view of what is good and bad about the work, and perhaps its market potential. They are, at best, just one person’s opinion. If the critique service isn’t a publisher, how do they know what will sell and what won’t.

Marketing Services

There are many companies who provide legitimate services to authors in marketing and promoting their titles. Just because a company requires a fee doesn’t mean it’s a scam.

Having said that, if your book is not offered with industry standard terms, bookstores are highly unlikely to stock it, no matter what the marketing efforts are. Your book must be returnable to the publisher through the major wholesalers. It must be offered with 90 days for payment. It must be offered with at least a 40% discount from the retail price. These terms must be offered from the publisher not the author &ndash unless of course the author is the publisher. Keep in mind that the author must own the ISBN, International Standard Book Number to be considered the publisher.

When a marketing company is unconcerned that the terms are not industry standard you should be concerned.

Nine Characteristics That May Surprise You.

In writing “The Making of a Bestseller: Success Stories From Authors and the Editors, Agents and Behind Them,” (Dearborn Trade, 2005), we wanted to find out what separates the publishing industry elite, the bestselling authors, from all the thousands and thousands of writers who aspire to someday make the bestseller lists. We interviewed 24 of today’s most popular authors, some of whom have endured on the bestseller lists for decades. As a group, these authors have sold more than half a billion books. It turns out that writing talent is not the only separating factor; in fact it may not even be the most important factor.

Find out what you as a writer may have in common with bestselling authors like Nicholas Sparks, Catherine Coulter and Susan Elizabeth Phillips and what you can learn from them.

1. Perseverance Is Key

Nearly all bestselling authors faced the same struggles early in their careers that less successful, even unpublished authors, face. Immediate success is rare. One distinction of bestselling authors is that they do not get as discouraged by lack of early success. They persevere. Their desire to succeed is enormous. Bestselling authors often have to demonstrate the patience and stamina to write a number of books before achieving notable success.

2. They Write, And Write And Write

The productivity, the writing output, of bestselling authors is much greater than the average writer’s. They have the discipline to get up each day and produce high quality work. They don’t wait for the muse to tap them on the shoulder. Some authors’ literary production is phenomenal, such as Catherine Coulter, who wrote “Point Blank,” she has produced over fifty bestsellers so far in her career.

3. They Like To Write And Write And Write

They would rather write than do anything else. It’s not just that successful authors are more disciplined, though that is part of it; they simply enjoy writing more than other writers do. Many aspiring authors enjoy the idea of writing, not the hard work itself. Bestselling authors seem to thrive on the hard work, and they work much harder than we might suppose. Iris Johansen, author of “Countdown,” writes two books a year, not because she has to but because she couldn’t not do it. Writing is her passion.

4. Promotion Is Constant

Bestselling authors never stop promoting their books, no matter how successful they get. Many still market at the grass roots level, not just through national TV or radio interviews. They take the time to visit and meet individual bookstore managers at both chain stores and independents. They never relax and believe they have “made it.” After ten bestsellers, including “The Notebook,” Nicholas Sparks still tours with every new book.

5. Marketing Is Critical

Even if they have never taken a business course in college, they have an innate sense of marketing concepts such as brand building and product differentiation. They closely watch trends in the literary marketplace. They understand what it is about their books that readers respond favorably to. They take a strategic approach to their careers and they realize that much more goes into being a successful author than the writing itself. Carly Phillips big break came when Kelly Ripa recommended “The Bachelor” on The Kelly & Regis show. It wasn’t just luck that landed her the recommendation, but a concerted effort on her part and her publicist’s part.

6. Fans Are An Important Asset

Bestselling authors listen closely to what their readers say, and try very hard to meet or exceed their fans’ expectations, but they do not necessarily pay close attention to what reviewers or book critics say. They don’t even necessarily expect good reviews. Word of mouth support from readers and booksellers is more important to them than reviews. Linda Fairstein, the author of “Entombed” and the Alexandra Cooper series, loves book signings. At her level of success she doesn’t have to do them but she loves talking to her readers.

7. The More Success The More Pressure

Bestselling authors face more pressure as they get more successful. As they rise to the top, there are increasing demands on their time. Top authors lead three very different lives. First, the quiet, solitary scholarly life of being a writer. Then participating in the team effort within the publishing house to make the book the best book it can be. This involves learning how to take advice from and collaborate with the professionals within the publishing house. Finally, the author must participate in the very public life of trying to sell books to the mass audience. They have to master all three lives if they intend to continue to achieve bestseller status. Susan Elizabeth Phillips worked for a month without a day off when “Ain’t She Sweet” was released.

8. They’re Grateful

Bestselling authors are keenly aware how fortunate they are to have arrived at the top of their profession. They sincerely appreciate their loyal readers. They recognize that they have been chosen to receive a strikingly rare, special distinction by a bustling, competitive marketplace. The success, fame and financial rewards that have come to them are often beyond the most extravagant dreams they had when they first sat down to write a book. Christopher Paolini credits the support of the teachers, librarians, booksellers and fans, for the success of his first book, “Eragon”.

9. There Is No Single Profile For A Bestselling Author

Bestselling authors are seldom the top graduates from prestigious university writing programs. Writing may have been a second or third career for them, and the publishing industry values authors who bring life experience to their work, in fiction or nonfiction. Bestselling authors span all age groups, many different professions and varied educational backgrounds. There is no single profile for what a bestselling author looks like.

People never change. Nor do their basic desires. They’ve existed for thousands of years and will continue to exist for thousands more.

Names of people will change. Technology will change. People’s desires won’t &ndash their desires are hard-wired into our DNA.

That’s good for you &ndash as an author. By knowing what people want, you can profit from their desires. And since their desires are predictable, your ability to make money from your book ideas just got a lot more profitable, as well.

So, you must be wondering what do people want to read.

The top three general desires revolve around: Food, Love, and Money.

There will ALWAYS be a market for new cookbooks, new books on love, and new books on ways to make money. Guaranteed!

This will never change. Ever.

So if you have an idea that fits in one of those categories - you are well on your way to celebrity status. It doesn’t have to be an original thought on the subject. It can just be a new spin on an existing topic.

NOTE: People do not buy books because they are bargains. They buy them because they have some hope that they will find something &ndash not matter how small &ndash that will positively add value to their lives.

What else are people interested in reading about…

* Security

* Sex

* Power

* Immortality

* Happiness

* Safety

* Health

* Recognition

Some more generalized topics would be things like:

To attract the opposite sex.

To keep their possessions.

To have more fun.

To satisfy curiosity.

To protect their family.

To be in style.

To have beautiful possessions.

To quench their appetite.

To emulate others.

To avoid trouble.

To avoid criticism.

To be an individual.

To protect their reputation.

To grab opportunities.

To make work easier.

When you brainstorm ideas for your book, keep these customer desires in mind.

NOTE: Although it is good to focus your topic, you should try to keep it in a general category that will be wanted by a larger section of the population.

For example: You don’t want to write a book just about “Love” because it’s far TOO general of a topic. But you also don’t want to focus your topic so much it becomes something like “Love between 20 &ndash 24 year olds in Northwest California.”

Yes, I know that was an exaggerated example and you’d never go that targeted but you get my meaning.

Maybe you could write something like “How to be a 20-something in Love.” More targeted than just LOVE but still part of a large group of people who would be interested.

NOTE: Go with a subject you’re already passionate about.

Don’t make this process harder than it has to be. If you’re already passionate about gardening, cooking, investing, pet health, etc. then look in that area for the subject of your book.

#1) You will WANT to become a recognized expert in the field. Nothing worse than finding a topic that will make you money but you’re embarrassed to be associate with.

I did some research and found a hot topic that could have made me thousands literally overnight… but then I realized I didn’t really want my name associated with that topic. Money is important but if you write your book about a topic you’re excited about and you become a recognized expert &ndash achieving celebrity status &ndash you will have SO much more than just money in the bank.

#2) Working on your project will seem like anything but work. When I chose a subject specifically because I think it will make money &ndash I’m less than happy to do the writing. When it’s about something I enjoy then I can’t wait to write and don’t want to stop. I’ve worked until the early hours of the morning because I just lost track of time.

Find something that really gets you excited!

The publishing company is the backbone of the writing world. The publishing company provides a great service to society by publishing and displaying the work of authors. The global existence of publishers is obvious, but the inner workings of a publishing company is unknown by many authors. Many book publishers consider the publishing industry as an apprenticeship industry — most book publishing professionals gain knowledge and skills in this field with hands-on job experience. Generally, what an apprentice learns in one department is useful throughout the publishing house, which gives professionals the opportunity to move between departments. A typical publishing company has many levels to it, each with different functions.

THE ADMINISTRATIVE DEPARTMENT

The Administrative Department is the first level of any book publishing company. It has many responsibilities to help the publishing company function properly. The Administrative Department manages daily operations for publishing executives and management. This responsibility involves interaction with all employees from all departments, as well as interaction with authors and agents. The administrative employees manage the calendar, maintain organized files, screen/prioritize mail, draft correspondence, make travel arrangements and prepare itineraries, process expense reports, take minutes at meetings, and prepare reports. A position as an administrative employee allows a person to have a high-level of understanding of a publishing company, while being visible to executives.

THE ADVERTISING DEPARTMENT

All large and small publishing companies have an Advertising Department. Most publishing companies have in-house advertising agencies that purchase media space and create and design advertisements. In a publishing company, the Advertising Department works closely with the marketing directors, editors, and publishers of titles to create an advertising plan that promotes sales of an author’s book. An advertising plan requires research and negotiation to provide the best venues and the most cost-effective methods of advertisement. These employees also work closely with graphic designers, commercial sales representatives, printing presses, and internal staff to facilitate the run of advertisements.

THE EDITORIAL DEPARTMENT

The Editorial Department of a publishing company is one of the most important departments. The Editorial Department acquires, negotiates, develops, and edits book projects for publication. The daily activities of editorial employees include preparing acquisitions for transmittal to the production department; developing and maintaining relationships with authors, booksellers, and agents; performing general administrative duties; participating in editorial, design and marketing meetings; and reading and evaluating submissions by writing reader’s reports. The editorial department must work closely with all departments.

THE MARKETING DEPARTMENT

Another division of a publishing company is the Marketing Department. The Marketing Department creates, prepares, and establishes marketing strategies and policies for each book title by coordinating the efforts of publicity, promotion, advertising, and sales departments. The Marketing Department prepares all sales presentation materials, audio recordings, fact sheet collation, and promotions; creates and produces additional account-specific presentation materials; researches and establishes relations with new markets; and plans and maintains sales and marketing schedules.

THE PUBLISHER’S OFFICE

The Publisher’s Office is also an important department for many publishing companies. The publishers oversee the life cycle of a book title from acquisition to production, and onto the sales force. Publishers make executive decisions for all book titles within assigned imprints while staying within any cost restraints. This department is also responsible for sponsoring book projects, strategies, and initiatives for the publishing company.

BOOK RIGHTS DEPARTMENT

The Subsidiary Rights and Permissions Department is one of the most important divisions of a book publishing company. This department finds additional sources of profit for a given title, including serials, book clubs, and paperback, audio and e-book rights.

The daily activities for the subsidiary department include writing submission letters; sending manuscripts, proposals, and books to foreign publishers and agents; coordinating co-productions with other publishers; working with book clubs and sales for special editions; and maintaining relationships with other publishing companies.

ENJOY THE JOURNEY

The road to getting a book published is a long one, but well worth the effort. Trust yourself, and trust the publisher to create a beautiful masterpiece. Don’t be discouraged if several publishers are not interested in your book. You may have to self-publish your first book, and then again, a large or small publishing company may accept your book based on marketability. Good luck and enjoy the process.

The most valuable thing you can collect if you are selling your book from a website when a visitor comes to your book’s sales site is not their money… it’s their email address and/or other contact information.

If you have no clue how to create a website, do not worry about feeling intimidated. It is actually a lot easier than you think. There is a simple site that teaches people all about creating websites for free at .LissaExplains.com

You can also learn a lot by doing a search for a phrase at Google.com like “how to make a website” and “free html tutorial.” You will find tons of very good free training that way and can learn how in no time. Anyone can learn the basics of creating a website in just one day.

Ok, back to collecting your website visitors contact information.

I know, I know you’re probably saying… “I’m an author. I want to write my book, sell my book and become a recognized expert. WHY do I need to get their contact information?”

The simplest answer is: Because you will NOT become wealthy from the sale of your book. You will become wealthy and achieve celebrity status through the ongoing relationship you build with your readers.

If you don’t know who they are, how can you continue to keep in touch with them &ndash and they with you.

If you’re an expert on the subject and they already have your book, don’t you think they’ll want MORE information and MORE books from you?

ABSOLUTELY!

Your book makes you an expert on the subject, your interactions and relationships will propel you to a recognized expert and position you for long-term success &ndash not just a one-hit wonder.

The service you need to collect email and contact information and automatically respond to the person is called an Autoresponder.

There are paid autoresponders and free autoresponders. Normally the free autoresponders paste their own marketing message at the bottom of the emails you send out.

Not the best scenario, obviously, but if you want to do this will limited or no upfront investment then a free autoresponder service will work just fine until you start to see profits coming from your book.

The service I use is a paid service called Aweber. It is located at .aweber.com

Do your own research and find a company that meets your needs. I recommend this service because it’s been around for a long time and many of my high quality marketing friends recommend this to their clients and wouldn’t continue to do so if it was a shoddy service.

What should you do with your autoresponder service when you get it?

1) You should place at least 1 or 2 “sign up” boxes on your book’s sales page. You can offer an ongoing “newsletter” or “ezine” (as it’s called online). Or you can create a “special report” related to the subject of your book and offer it free to anyone who signs up.

The purpose of this sign up is to capture “visitor” information. This way even if the visitor doesn’t order your book, you still have their contact information and can keep in touch to promote your book and yourself to them on an ongoing basis.

Maybe they won’t buy your book, but because of your newsletter or special report, they might recommend your book to family and friends.

2) After PayPal.com and before your download page.

When looking at PayPal.com, we saw that after they took the person’s payment for your book, they would send them back to your website.

The first page the person &ndash now a client &ndash should see is a “register” page. This page can simply ask for their name and email or you can have optional fields like address, phone number etc. Obviously the more information they are willing to provide the better for future contact with them.

This is a different list than those in #1. #1 is a list of people who visited your book’s website who may or may not have purchased your book. These people are registered buyers.

History proves that it’s far easier to get current clients to order more from you than trying to get someone who hasn’t already ordered. Both lists are valuable &ndash but this one is the most valuable to you for ongoing success.

So you’re published! Congratulations! Now if you’re like most authors you may be asking yourself, now what? There are so many ways to market yourself, so many in fact it’s sometimes tough to know which one you should chose. Now without getting into all your choices, let’s look at some basic things you can do to surround yourself with enough education and experts so you never have to wonder: I’m published, now what?

1) Find some good books to bury yourself in.

2) There are a lot of marketing choices and if you’re not sure which one to chose here’s a tip: if it seems to good to be true it probably is. Stay away from hype because hype rarely pays off. Ask for references, talk to other authors.

3) You can find a lot of information online if you’re willing to do some research. Whether you’re looking for promotional ideas or people to help you promote your book you should definitely Google them first and see what you can find.

4) Find someone you trust to talk you through the process. Whether you hire someone or met someone in your writing group, find someone you can bounce ideas off of who knows the industry and understands current book marketing trends.

5) Don’t live in a vacuum. Get out and meet other published authors. Go to writers conferences, check out your local PMA listings (Publisher’s Marketing Association) and consider joining them on a national level. Also SPAN (Small Press Association of North America) is another fantastic organization to join. Both of these places offer a monthly newsletter with tips, articles, and advice columns.

6) Do some online networking via publishing and book marketing forums, here are a few for you to get started with:

Pub-forum &ndash .pub-forum.net

Publish-L &ndash .publish-l.com

Smallpub-civil finance.groups.yahoo.com/group/smallpub-civil

Ind-E-Pubs &ndash covers ebooks .ind-e-pubs.com

POD publishers finance.groups.yahoo.com/group/pod_publishers

7) Subscribe to some great publishing newsletters, there’s a lot of information out there and a lot of it is packed in some of the best newsletters you’ll ever read:

Dan Poynter’s Parapublishing Tips: .parapublishing.com

Readers and Writers .writersreaders.com/

John Kremer: .bookmarket.com

Brian Jud: .bookmarketing.com

Book Marketing Expert: .amarketingexpert.com

Get your book reviewed: maybe this sounds like a no-brainer but you’d be amazed how many authors forget this step but it’s important and here’s why: people like what other people like. What someone else says about your book is a thousand times more effective than anything you could say. Do reviews sell books? Well, yes I believe they do and here’s why: if your book is up on Amazon or some other online portal and no one’s talking about it a potential new reader might not be motivated to buy. Readers rarely buy “naked” books.

9) Outline a few goals and hit the promotional “road”: keep it simple and keep it realistic. Long, complicated, and involved marketing plans are not only tough to stick to, they’re probably gonna cost you a bundle.