The State of Publishing Today

In a recent panel I was on, I listened to comments by Jan B King, who is a publishing consultant and expert. Boy that was fascinating! Jan says 55% of all books sold today are not sold in bookstores but online. And that authors have become the primary marketers to the point where they’re doing online focus groups to test various marketing strategies before they launch them … all doable through means like www.surveymonkey.com or the form creation service, www.mycontactform.com

Jan also verified what I keep hounding away about – that your platform coming in is critical to getting not only a major book deal but to having successful sales as a self published author. Jan says you need a list of anywhere from 2K to 10K coming in – and to that I’d add, you need to be steadily improving and enlarging it all the time.

Using tools like social media pages helps, as do the ever popular blog bonus sign up. Just so you know .. platform is and always will be just what you need to launch your biz to the next level.

Report from a Writer Who’s Done it Hard Way

I’m happy to post this mini interview with Glenda Watson Hyatt who is an author with cerebral palsy. Her autobiography’s terrific (I got it for Christmas) and her story’s just as good. Read and enjoy….

1. Why is it important to you that others benefit from what you have experienced in your life?

By sharing my experiences and lessons learned from living with cerebral palsy, I hope it may make others' lives easier or it may ignite some spark in their life. I see my autobiography I’ll Do It Myself as part of my legacy, as my way of passing on the lessons I’ve learned in hopes of making someone else’s life easier, as my way of showing that having cerebral palsy is not a death sentence, but rather a life sentence. Sometimes simply reading how someone else handled a particular situation gives the reader the encouragement and ideas for handling a similar situation. Other times knowing others have had similar experiences – to know one is not alone – can be so comforting, and can offer strength and hope. Offering that strength and hope is important to me; I feel it is part of my life’s purpose.

2. Are there any central messages in your book? What were your personal challenges in writing this book?

By intimately sharing my life story, I show others that cerebral palsy is not a death sentence, but rather a life sentence. Although I can't walk and my speech is very difficult to understand, I still have a meaningful life. With determination and perseverance, I can accomplish so much, despite my limitations - or what others perceive to be my limitations. I am very much alive, leading a meaningful and fulfilled life.

I must confess that my biggest internal challenge when writing was that I'm so easily distracted. Checking my email or googling something on the internet was easier than writing seriously; writing is such a solitary and lonely activity at times. And new opportunities and ideas frequently popped up, as if testing my commitment to writing this book.

My other personal challenge was my typing speed (http://webaccessibility.biz/blog/?p=28). Plunking away on my keyboard with only my left thumb resulted in 500 words in an hour, which was a good, productive writing session for me.

3. What or who has given you encouragement to write your book?

First, my husband Darrell [www.enablingabilities.com] was, and continues to be, a wonderful source of support and encouragement. He enabled me to take the time necessary to write, which meant he often cooked dinner or did the grocery shopping. He always had an encouraging word when the task felt impossible and he gave me a well-intentioned kick in the butt when I became too distracted.

My family, particularly my Mom, and my close friends have also been supportive once they realized I was serious about making my dream reality.

Messages that I picked up from Oprah and Dr. Robert Schuller [from the Hour of Power, Crystal Cathedral] were the impetus in turning my thirty-old-year dream into reality by saying someday is now and by setting my fortieth birthday as the launch date, which forced me to get serious about writing my book I’ll Do It Myself.

I was also amazed by the support I received from the virtual world, particularly as I was soliciting votes for the Mega Marketing Makeover. People were so positive and encouraging, freely offering advice and suggestions, and assisting me in spreading the word. That support continued as I was finishing the manuscript, and I am feeling it now as I complete the first week of my eight-week virtual book tour “40 Blogs in 40 (Business) Days”

Suzanne, thanks so much for hosting this appearance along my virtual tour. I truly appreciate it.

I would like to invite your readers to join me for the rest of the virtual book tour by visiting www.doitmyselfblog.com and signing up to receive blog updates right in their email inbox. How cool is that!

How to Get Published by a Major Publisher

On February 13, 1PM Eastern, I’ll be speaking on ‘What You Need to Attract Publicity & Publishers – The Inside Scoop’ for the National Association of Women Writers (NAWW)’s 2007 Writer’s Telesummit. If you’ve got a book up your sleeve … or even if it’s a faint glimmer in your eye … I think this will be a helpful talk. The most critical thing you can have these days isn’t just a great idea and a decent writing style – it’s platform. The following you bring along with you, also known as your position in the market and your fan base. I’ll be sharing tips on how to get exactly that. You can register here for the Telesummit – it’s affordable, meaty, and best of all, you don’t have to leave home!

Writer’s Spa Soooo Cookin’…. What Can We Do for You?

I am writing this from a wildly happy place – the Writer’s Spa I lead in Taos NM every week. Why do I love the Spa? Because it brings together some extraordinary women, their creative muses, and a deep canyon of possibilities. That’s why!

Something about being here opens you up to new levels of creative dig-in, and so writing is easier, ideas flow faster, and one gets a helluva lot more courage to thrive. That’s just wonderful.

And why partner Jennifer Louden and I simply can’t stop doing this event – we’re on year five!

So here’s my question. Jennifer and I have this magical, alchemical, spontaneous combustion that happens when we get together. We’re perfect compliments to each other – she is all energy, process and urgent intention. I tend to be a little quieter, and find myself serving as the soul connector and calming influence. Together we manage to stir everyone up, unsticking and riling and generally taking them deeper into their writing.

So now we’re wondering if there’s some other offering we should put together for 2007. What do you need help with, specifically? It could be related to writing, building platform, coming out of hiding, creativity stoking, or even product development.

We like to work live, so it would probably some kind of three to six day event. (We live on opposite sides of the country so it really can’t be shorter than that.)

How Michael Port Moved Almost 3000 Books In One Day

His Amazon/Barnes & Noble bestseller campaign was the stuff that will get talked about in the bars of Net marketing for years to come and we've got the lowdown right here.

Since my broadcast service, 1shoppingcart, appears to be on the fritz today, we're posting the recording of the call here on my blog and on Michael's. Dig in and enjoy - this a great, meaty call with a truly inspired marketing genius!

You can listen to the call here:

Here's to your platform!

Suzanne

Why Books Make Such Great Web Traffic Builders

One of the unexpected percs of publishing that I discovered after I published How Much Joy Can You Stand? is how much relationship you build with readers..

A really powerful, honestly written book can move mountains when it comes to building a great ezine list and the basis for a business. If it gets into the hands of your people …. Which is why I always urge folks to start their publishing quest by going first to literary agents and attempting to get a book deal with a major publisher.

The reason is because the reader feels they know you by book's end; if they've connected to the book, they believe that you know just how they think. So then, if you've got a blog or website URL in the book, they drop in after finishing the book to 'keep the glow' going.

That's when a workbook, or a workshop, or a workshop licensing program, or coaching, or any kind of coaching group can really help. This simply helps you help them and live your purpose more fully. Make your workbook an ebook and sell it in an instantly downloadable workbook format. Or design a one day workshop that really summarizes what you do and lead it virtually, over the phone in teleclasses, or tour it live. The options are endless.

Now that How Much Joy Can You Stand? has gone out of print, I've gotten back the rights. And I intend in the next month to release a viral version of it for free in hopes that its fans will seize it and spread it around the web.

Why give it away? Because it can only come back to me in a million ways - greater reach to help my people, increases to my list, better sales, etc..

Tags: Publishing, e-commerce tips, more web traffic

Find out how Michael Port sold 2500 books in one day

Here is a great opportunity that just landed in my lap - so I thought I'd leap on it.

You may have heard that Michael Port, who is a master at helping people fill their practices, launched his new book last week on Amazon. Well, the launch basically made best seller history.

Using a really inventive, totally out-of-the-box promotion campaign, here are the results Michael got:

1. His book shot to number one OVERALL in 2 (yes, two) hours
2. He sold an estimated 2500 books in one day
3. His book is now 17 overall FIVE DAYS LATER (this is amazing)
4. A whopping 55% of the traffic that heard about his promotion opted in
5. Of that 55%, 38% went to amazon.com
6. An amazing 82% bought books
7. 7 people bought a total of 500 books
8. The book is still selling like hotcakes! It's currently ranked at 17 one week later … and
One of the biggest newspapers in the US is tracking its sales right now, asking for review copies, etc… (WOW!)

Here's the REALLY cool part … Michael's (who is one of the nicest guys in the world) has agreed to let me and a few other net marketing folk pick his brain for an hour on how he made this happen. And you can join us!

Call will be Tuesday, May 16, 4PM Eastern/1PM Pacific. You'll be able to email questions during the call as well. (We'll give the email address on the call.)

And yep, it will be recorded. We'll send you the link in a follow up email when it's over.

Here's what you'll want to do to get really ready, however. Get Michaels book today, and check out the first four chapters before the call. If you can't, that's OK … but this extra step will lay down some good foundation so you can really maximize this call.

Sign up at http://getknownnow.com/port.html

And snag his book, Book Yourself Solid, while you're at it. Want to see a fun, funny video about it? http://www.entrepreneuridol.com/

See you on the call. This is going to be hot!

Best,

Suzanne Falter-Barns

PS. Important reminder: hear weight loss expert Robert Temes PhD talk about her excellent techniques for weight loss using hypnosis. Call is Thursday night (tomorrow) at 8PM Eastern. She'll be spilling all to help you get ready for swim suit season … tomorrow. Register here. http://howmuchjoy.com/temes.html

Some Scary Facts About Getting a Book Deal

Here are some eye opening statistics about just how hard it is to get published, from a recent panel I attended featuring several New York literary agents and major publishers.

The average literary agent sees 30-35 query letters per day

The average fiction editor with a major publishing house vets 6 - 12 manuscripts per week

The average literary agent has an active pool of 40 - 65 projects circulating at any time

The average editor has about 6-8 books in process

In two years, one editor at Random House had received 860 proposals from agents; she published 19 - slightly more than 2%

If this is less than encouraging, don't fret. Just remember that getting published is all about the right book being in the right place at the right time - and it happens all the time. Somewhere between 60K and 100K books get published every year (in all genres.) So someone, somewhere is making some deals.

If you want more serious juice and inspiration for your own writing efforts check out our Taos Writer's Spa. We've got the goods - and we'll help you get into lift off so you can overcome the odds and make your own book a reality. Registration ends May 15 for our 2006 spa - and it's filling fast. Only five spots left!

Tags: Getting published, writer's tips, publishing a book, getting a book deal

Platform Analysis of Some Really Good Websites

So I’m really not so mean, alright? In fact, I’m an old softie. AND I really want you to understand how to package yourself so you come across as the credible expert that you are. Here are some sites that do exactly that … and by the way, some of them are blogs.

Go to http://debbieweil.com/ Debbie packs a lot into a little space, and her blog has a fresh, lively feel with lots of useful info. Now, Debbie’s not posting a lot right now because she’s writing some books – but I LOVE the feel of this blog. One no-no: no media room in the tabs at the top.

1.Friendly, welcoming feel that’s different. She went the designer route and got help here. And it shows. (Blog design work is much cheaper than site design.)

2.Great, lively picture of author. Really shows a lot of personality.

3.Lots of categories with key phrases in them.

4.Tabs to other blogs. The whole package is right here, led off by her abundant personality.

Go to http://www.forgetperfect.com/press.htm Here is an elaborate, expensive site that really does the job – and the media room (called ‘Press Room’ here) has all the ciritcal pieces. All of this appears ‘above the fold’ – in the first screen you see on the site.

1.Tight response info up front.

2.Awesome pictures.

3.Lots of media mentions featured quickly. (This can be almost as effectively done with small venues like regional newspapers or cable TV.)

4.Story angles. A nice link for Show and Story Ideas right up front.

This page genuinely helps the media. That works!

Finally, a favorite because this is my client’s site which we worked on together: www.couragelender.com Don’t you just want to get to know this woman?

1.Awesome brand. (She got it in a meditation!) Full of benefit and unique, too.

2.Friendly, upbeat colors and feel.

3.Freebie offer prominently featured to collect names.

4.Audio that’s warm, personal and doesn’t blast you the minute you arrive.

To see more sites and blogs that work, go to my own gallery of ‘Get Known Now’ Success stories

Platform Analysis of Some Really Bad Websites

In my Get Known Now Blast Off group coaching program the other day, I did something really mean. I showed my clients some lousy websites. They were sites that simply didn’t work from a marketing point of view because they were too cluttered, too hard to read, unfocussed, or simply way too general.

I chose these sites not to be nasty, but because they provide great learning tools. The owners are clearly competent people who simply aren’t packaging themselves correctly – and it really impacts the overall impression they make, (If you happen to own one of these sites, be in touch. I have ideas for you!)

Take a look at what I mean. Go to www.proactive-coach.com . This is a fairly attractive, minimalist site BUT it’s missing a lot, too.

1.No particular focus or niche – ‘Proactive Coach’ is like saying ‘Effective Doctor’. We don’t know specialty, focus or even who the audience is

2.No bonus. No reason to get involved or sign up for the ezine. No freebies in general.

3.No photo. Who is Serge, anyway?
4.No media room or even easy way to contact Serge.

Now look at www.smalltownmarketing.com/Author.html This guy is an established speaker with a catchy brand that’s meaningful BUT … if you’re the media, trying to find out more, his ‘About’ page is a mess.

1.Too long and windy. There’s nothing fast about this page – no immediate contact info, story ideas, additional head shots … nothin’!

2.Site is un-navigable. It’s folksy, in a small town way, but there’s no easy selection of buttons to get around the site. Instead you have to go through the entire 300 page site. Yikes!
3.No media room. Again.

4.Brand isn’t specific. It’s catchy – but what’s the benefit. With John Jantsch’s ‘Duct Tape Marketing’ you get it immediately – effective, flexible, always there to patch problems up. While memorable, this brand isn’t quite as fast.

Go to http://www.authenticintention.com/ It’s one of those sites that conveys a really good message, but visually is so heavy and difficult to read you just can’t stay there.

1.Black is the basic color. A psychological no-no, folks. First of all, it’s much harder to read type against black. Secondly, it’s just heavy – in feeling, look, everything. I don’t want to stay there. It’s too somber.

2.Brand is too generic. No focus. Who’s the market? I have to click on ‘What is True Living’ to find out, and if I’m like most visitors, I won’t bother.

3.USP is too difficult. ‘Enabling authentic living through intentional guidance.’ What does this mean? Only the coach knows.

4.No photo of the author. No relationship or trust established easily here.

By the way, this is the kind of learning we do in my Get Known Now Blast Off Program. So I can help you establish your brand, package your look and feel, and set you apart from the crowd … so you, too, can attract national media. Next class starts on April 20.

Why Books are the Ultimate Marketing Tool

Well, OK … maybe speaking is really the ‘ultimate’ marketing tool. But books run a close second – especially if they’re well done.

I learned this when I published my first non-fiction book, How Much Joy Can You Stand?, and threw up a website to go along with it. Because my book was launched  in bookstores at just about that time, I immediately got a ton of traffic. And every one of those people had already read my book … so they were ‘pre-qualified’ to use a marketing term. They were just the folks I wanted to reach.

They joined my list (25,000 of them!), became Joy Workshop facilitators, attended my teleclasses, and bought my ebooks. And they were delighted to find that once the book ended, a whole Joy cottage industry was there to serve them.

This is why getting your book up and rolling is so very important. And why Andy Wibbels and I will be leading a joint teleclass series together called Blog Your Way to a Bestseller. You’ll learn all about how to harness the power of blogging to go big time with your book, or book-to-be.

So yeah … dig right in and get rolling with that book. Your blog and your site will thank you.

More Famous Publishing Myths

Today I’m launching a hot new class with blog authority Andy Wibbels, Blog Your Way to a Bestseller and I’m beyond excited. I’ve known for some time that blogs really are the engine that drives the Web these days, but Andy’s numbers – and wisdom – are really impressive.

Are you ready for this? He gets 70,000 unique visitors … per week. On his blog.

That’s right. And THAT’s why we’re offering a class that helps you totally reinvent your approach to building platform and getting your book out there. Drop by and see what the fuss is all about

Here are the last of my ‘Famous Publishing Tips’.

5. Selling books is all about who you know. (These days, it’s actually mostly about great positioning, good writing, and a clever harnessing of technology)

6. I will be ‘discovered’ as an author and become rich beyond my wildest dreams. Actually, bestsellers are made, not ‘discovered’. Whether you do it yourself with a Print on Demand printer, or sign with a major house, best-sellers must be constructed with a careful plan of promotion, selling, and much media stroking.

7. Once I publish, I can get on Oprah! Not. Well, actually … maybe you can, but chances are slim. However, Oprah may not be the very best vehicle for your work. You could find some fantastic niche audiences through on-line marketing, article distribution and simply working your blog promotion tactics. Please note, mainstream media is slow to respond – and sometimes downright hostile – to self publishing authors. They look to major publishers to vet titles so they don’t have to. (A limited view, but still true.)

Famous Publishing Myths

It seems not a day goes by when I don’t get into a chat about publishing books … hence my upcoming class with Andy Wibbels, Blog Your Way to a Bestseller. (We’re launching it tomorrow.)

Those who’ve followed my work know that I teach some about writing and self-help publication – and that I’ve published several books with ‘the big boys’. Hence, my lengthy list of publishing myths. Here’s the first half of  the list.

Famous Publishing Myths:

1. Your book will make you famous (Actually, YOU make you famous … if you know what to do … especially if you harness the power of blogs.)

2. Your publisher will promote your book like crazy (Maybe if you’re Tom Clancy or Danielle Steele, but not if you’re like the rest of us)

3. Your self-published book is so needed, it’s just going to take off like wildfire (Sure, but only if you know how to promote it)

4. A book will give you instant credibility (Possibly not, now that anyone can self publish. But you can use your book to build audience, create rapport, and connect with the media.)

Should you sign your book with an unknown publisher?

This question was asked recently on my Get Known Now coaching group’s Yahoo Group – and I rushed to reply. No! Stop! Don’t be tempted too fast!

It’s pretty irresistible when a ‘publisher’ scoops up a net beginner, and starts making promises about getting published. Especially when the publisher in question has any kind of a track record at all. Yet, I’m here to say be wary.

This is exactly when we should all take a major step back and breathe calmly for a while, saying ‘Let me get back to you on that.’

Here’s why: No one can match the hard cover book distribution network and systems of a major publisher. And no publisher has a better chance of getting those books reviewed in the major media. In fact, most book publicists won’t even handle small press or self-published books because it’s so hard to get press on them. Small presses, or unknown Net publishers shouldn’t even be considered until you’ve exhausted all the possible big publishing possibilities.

Now, I know self publishing pundits like Dan Poynter disagree – but here’s why I feel so adamant about this. You should always begin your search for publication not with the first guy who approaches you, but with great representation – i.e. go find a literary agent who’s known in the business. Then, make your way via that person to the major publishers. Or at least attempt to.

This approach guarantees you’ll get the top dollar possible for your work if you can land such a deal. And you won’t commit to big chunks of work for little money (like one established coaching buddy of mine), or worse, heinous multi-book deals that are hard to get out of. And yes, folks there are known publishers out there, like Wiley, who are signing unwitting authors with no representation and sizable platform … for inadequate (in my opinion) amounts of money.

Agents protect you from scams and other unprofitable deals. Proof: I’ve done three books with major publishers (Random House and Ballantine) and one with a small press. All of my deals were agented, except the small press deal. I got paid for all of them, except the small press deal. I got media on all of them, except the small press deal. So I got burned only once … when I didn’t have an agent.

Even if you can’t attract an agent or publisher with the project you’ve got on the table, you’ll learn a lot about what you need to make that connection. (Platform has a lot to do with it, by the way.) And you’ll learn how to market your book if you do decided eventually to self publish.

So you can’t really lose … unless you’re hasty and take to leaping too soon. Check it all out. Take your time. And remember the value of what you’re selling.