Book Publishing: Everyone is a Publishing Professional

Everyone

is a Publishing Consultant/Professional … really?

Years ago, I was a financial planner … before financial planning was a profession. Starting as stock broker with EF Hutton, I learned that savvy investors did something besides buy and sell stocks and bonds. An early bird in the CFP arena (Certified Financial Planner), I eventually left Hutton to start my own company, where I specialized in overall financial planning. Then a national study was done on up-and-coming professions … and being a Financial Planner (now with caps!) was at the top of the list. In fact, the fellow who headed up the study was so impressed with the results that he quit his day job and became a Financial Planner.

Fast forward to today. I've been coaching and shepherding authors for almost 20 years now. But it wasn't until last year that I formally tossed in the day-job towel and embraced Book Shepherding full-time.

Ironically, I’m now hearing more and more people saying that they are publishing consultants. With the explosion in the self-publishing fields, it seems as though everyone and their distant cousin is laying claim to being an expert. But are they, really?

The answer is a resounding NO. Someone who wrote a book a year ago is not an expert—or even ten years ago if that’s their solo effort. Sure, lessons have been learned throughout the process. Usually, those lessons are one-dimensional, their own experiences. They haven’t walked the paths of others that, guaranteed, deliver a variety of twists and turns.

In financial planning, I always warned clients to never, never, never trust someone with their money unless that person had been in the “business” for a minimum of five years, be it stocks, annuities, insurance, real estate, commodities, fill-in-the-blank. Why? You want them to make their learning curve mistakes with others … and their money, not yours. Most people in the “advising” professions don’t survive—80 percent drop out the first year and another 10 percent the next. That’s why I've always recommended the five-year mark. There’s a reason they are still there.

The same principle holds true in publishing. You want to work only with someone who knows the path, has worked the journey, has survived through the maze of obstacles and detours that surface. This applies to a printer, publisher, designer, coach or consultant, or anyone else in the book business. Are there new entries into the field? Absolutely! Just think of the electronic publishing world. Even with that, eBooks are not new … they've been around for many years. It’s just now that the world is paying attention.

Don’t get suckered in to someone’s siren call to you. The odds are that they don’t have the depth and moxie to get you through the ups and downs that are sure to come your way. Never, never, never trust someone with your publishing issues unless they've been in the business for a minimum of five years.

Judith Briles is known as The Book Shepherd (www.TheBookShepherd.com), an author and book publishing expert and the Founder of Author U (www.AuthorU.org), a membership organization created for the author who wants to be seriously successful. She’s been writing about and conducting workshops on publishing since the 80s. Judith is the author of 30 books. Her latest, Author YOU: Creating and Building Your Author and Book Platforms is just out. Join Judith live on Thursdays at 6 p.m. EST for Your Guide to Book publishing on thewww.RockStarRadioNetwork.com. Follow @AuthorU and @MyBookShepherd on Twitter and do a “Like” at AuthorU and TheBookShepherd on Facebook.  If you want to create a book that has no regrets, contact her at Judith@Briles.com

Book Publishing — 4 Factors to ID Your Path

Which book path is for you–traditional … self … independent–which? Four words can get you focused: timing, control, quality and money. All are key factors when it comes to publishing.

Timing—if your manuscript is completed, you can have it edited, cover and interiors designed, printed and in your hands within four months or less. With traditional publishing, you can have your manuscript completed and it will most likely be in your hands in 18 months.

Control—if you get a group of authors together who have traditionally published, one of the most common grumblings you will hear is that they don’t like the way their book looks—covers and interiors and they really have been in a fog when it comes to book sales.

Quality—in 2009, a close friend had her 5th book published by the same NY publisher that did my second book in the mid-eighties. Over 20 years between our respective publications. The book she proudly gave me was a month old and a trade paper. The interior paper was thinner than mine when we took it off my book shelf to compare; my trade paper cover was still flat—hers was already curling up. Hers, of course, was twice the price of mine.

Money—is an important thing to look at. Most traditional publishers are pushing for “net” royalty deals. If your book is $20 retail, the net for sales to wholesalers and distributors will be less than $10 per book—meaning that the royalty is based on the less than $10 amount. The last two years have been brutal to the “average” author—non-fiction sales are in the 4,000-5,000 area. That means $4,000 to $5,000 in royalties—those lovelies that are paid twice a year, with a deferral of three months after each closing period; and usually with a hefty percentage holdback for reserves—meaning books get turned back and the publisher wants to cover its tush and not overpay you (and come knocking on your door to now pay them). In other words, this isn’t going to seed your retirement—don’t quit the day job!

As a savvy self and independent publisher—when you create a Author and Book Platform to reach out to your crowd, your sales will not only be greater, the financial reward will be significantly greater. For me, I know that I can sell 3,000 copies of a book and net $40,000 to $50,000 higher than my traditional publishing contracts that I used to live with.

It’s your choice … but do the math always. Measure your time, investment and potential return.

Judith Briles is known as The Book Shepherd (www.TheBookShepherd.com), an author and book publishing expert and the Founder of Author U (www.AuthorU.org), a membership organization created for the author who wants to be seriously successful. She’s been writing about and conducting workshops on publishing since the 80s. Judith is the author of 30 books. Her latest, Author YOU: Creating and Building Your Author and Book Platforms is just out. Join Judith live on Thursdays at 6 p.m. EST for Your Guide to Book publishing on thewww.RockStarRadioNetwork.com. Follow @AuthorU and @MyBookShepherd on Twitter and do a “Like” at AuthorU and TheBookShepherd on Facebook.  If you want to create a book that has no regrets, contact her at Judith@Briles.com

Authors, Judgment and Publishing Predators

What do you do when you’ve been “had” in the publishing game/maze? Who’s the book-buster you call in?

• Do you moan and groan that you’ve been screwed?
• Do you spend countless hours in phone and email hell trying to get to someone who’s going to fix whatever needs fixing on your book?
• Do you cave in, with book tail between your heart and soul and just slink away
• Do you make a variety of excuses as to why you are in the mess you are?
• Do you ignore that you’ve been treated like a piece of yesterday’s trash?
• Do you …

How about: let's kick in "your better judgment" “Do you …” and get the heck out of dodge. Stop working with the people and group that have zapped you.  Just stop. Lick your wounds; you made a mistake that is costing you time, energy and money. I know, it’s the money thing that keeps people in the book and author abuse cycle.

If you don't, it will suck the passion out of your book and you. Tell everyone you know who they are, what exactly has been the pits and engage with someone who knows what they are doing. And listen to them; dump your ego, not your vision.

There is too, too much information out there available with a few clicks to weed the publishing predators out. Google the names; add "scams", "problems", "cons", "complaints" after their names—read every one of them. Predators & Editors should always be checked out. Ask, Ask, Ask. I had someone who called me last week who admitted after I asked him why he signed with Xlibris--he was sick of being hounded by all the phone calls and just wanted them to stop. He signed a contract, gave them money … because he wanted them to stop calling him!

Authors—the boiler room operations of Author House, Author Solutions, Xlibris, iUniverse, etc., have hundreds of people "hounding" naïve authors-to-be around the clock—it's their "job"—they are author hounders, lurking in the shadows, ready to root into your creative juices, and yes, your personal vanity, to get your wallet and book. 

And Amazon, with all its bucks, needs to kick up its quality control. The results are hit and miss on printing and layout quality for its CreateSpace program.  CreateSpace is a pay to publish method, let’s call it what it is. The choice for cover presentation—gloss or gloss—is dismal. Lightning Source is leap years ahead of it. Certainly OK for a "galley" and ARC strategy or to “test” the grounds for a book ... but to sell in physical quantity/quality—to compete what books that authors and publishers of any size are putting thought and money into—not so hot. If you don’t care what the physical presentation of your book is, then it doesn’t.

When I look at the finished results of the vanity, pay-to-publish, subsidy crowd, and hear the author tell me in writing or in person that they are OK/happy with the results ... just what are the results being comparing to? If he or she doesn't know better ... well ... is that really OK? Your choice, you choose … and look in the mirror when you do. I would choose to get out of dodge and start over. Yes, you are out some money and time. And yes, you will get your book and author life back. The book-buster is in the mirror. Your choice, you choose.

Judith Briles is known as The Book Shepherd (www.TheBookShepherd.com), an author and book publishing expert and the Founder of Author U (www.AuthorU.org), a membership organization created for the author who wants to be seriously successful. She’s been writing about and conducting workshops on publishing since the 80s. Judith is the author of 30 books. Her latest, Author YOU: Creating and Building Your Author and Book Platforms is just out. Join Judith live on Thursdays at 6 p.m. EST for Your Guide to Book publishing on thewww.RockStarRadioNetwork.com. Follow @AuthorU and @MyBookShepherd on Twitter and do a “Like” at AuthorU and TheBookShepherd on Facebook.  If you want to create a book that has no regrets, contact her at Judith@Briles.com

Creating Author and Book Promo Alerts

 Author Headlines: Be Smart … or Be Square

How many times have you noodled your lead or headline to trash it, over and over? It could be for a blog, an article, a speech … and gulp, your book. Don’t you wish the headline gods would drop in, give you your zinger, so you can write or finish what you are working on?

Or, have you gone blank and you just can’t get the promo piece together? Or, how about trying to come up with something that can tie into an event, happening, or even newsy type of item that you think would be a hook for your community?

For the annual Author U Extravaganza, One of Author U’s Premier Partners Dave Raymond and Thomson Shore created an email that was sent to his lists:

The entire ad isn't included, just the ... Be there ... or be square

Using the cityscape that is recognized as Denver (the other, of course, being the Rocky Mountains), it’s different, catchy and will get the attention of his email list. It includes all his, and Thomson Shore’s contact info along with all the key services that Thomson Shore provides. It advises his clients to meet him in Denver — clever one, that Dave!

The point? Ideas are everywhere, whatever your location is. Everywhere. Take advantage of them to promote yourself, your book, your everything. Draw your crowd to you; to an event that you are appearing at; your amazing book; anything! And Dave and Thomson Shore are right …

Be there ...or be square!

The Extravaganza is awaiting you. 

Judith Briles is known as The Book Shepherd (www.TheBookShepherd.com), an author and book publishing expert and the Founder of Author U (www.AuthorU.org), a membership organization created for the author who wants to be seriously successful. She’s been writing about and conducting workshops on publishing since the 80s. Judith is the author of 30 books. Her latest, Author YOU: Creating and Building Your Author and Book Platforms is just out. Join Judith live on Thursdays at 6 p.m. EST for Your Guide to Book publishing on the www.RockStarRadioNetwork.com. Follow @AuthorU and @MyBookShepherd on Twitter and do a “Like” at AuthorU and TheBookShepherd on Facebook.  If you want to create a book that has no regrets, contact her at Judith@Briles.com

Book Publishing ... Is This Your Year?

You like 80 percent of the population? Is there a book in you? Something that will establish your expertise, your credibility? Have you being gathering amazing stories during your years in nursing? In Management? As an executive? Have you thought about publishing “something” that would get your foot in the door as the “go to” person? What about a reposition within the industry or a transitional leap? Have you just finished a Masters or Doctorate that your thesis or dissertation just might be the genesis for a book?
Starting a book is a major event. Continuing the journey deserves a tap dance or two. Launching it is a firework celebration.
As The Book Shepherd to many, the author of 30 books myself, my goal is always for the author to create a book that she or he doesn’t regret. The cover, the insides, the content, the editing, the time spent creating it, the ____.
One of the most important things that an author—new or old—must keep at the forefront is the voice—is it his or hers? Or, has it been so morphed by others in the process that it has gotten lost ... not to be found. This is the year that your voice is heard above the noise—the noise of millions of other books that are out there.

• Let this be your year that you are not lost; that you are found in the present and the future.
• Let this be the year that you will seek and find the answers to every question you have ... and ones that you didn’t know were circling, just waiting for you to ask.
• Let this be the year that you invest in both your work and yourself to get it grounded and launched.
• Let this be the year that your Author and Book Platforms rock and roll!
• Let this be the year that you build on your crowd—or as Seth Godin says: the tribe.
• Let this be the year that your crowd—your readers—find you.
• Let this be the year that you, and your book, are truly findable across the Internet.
• Let this be the year that no one looks at you with a glaze in their eyes as you share that you are publishing your book with your own imprint.
• Let this be the year that you say, “I can do that. I can be a bestseller.”

It’s an exciting time to be an author; it’s an awesome time to be a publisher. The typical author, especially the author that views his path aligned with a traditional publisher, wants the details to be taken care by others—to in some ways, be taken care of. The independent author/publisher knows that “if it is going to happen,” he needs to be intricately involved in the process. He must continue his education; keep updated on marketing strategies and tools; and stay connected with others in the authoring/publishing community.

That’s because you want to educate yourself, you want to find out what’s happening in indie publishing, you want to learn about book construction, or you want to find out the cool new ways people are marketing their books. No longer does an author write a book, get it published and wait. Wait for success or wait for the end, meaning sales have dwindled to zilch and the ride is other. Today’s savvy author knows that his book can have a never-ending life—with marketing smarts, vision, passion, commitment and the tribe.

Welcome to my world ... the world of publishing that I embraced in 2000 when a client said, “We would like to buy 1,000 copies of your book that you will be speaking about in the spring ... and do you think you could arrange a discount with the publisher.” Of course I said, “Yes,” knowing that I had just taken the rights back from the traditional publisher and to the best of my knowledge, only 60 copies existed. I jumped in; started to learn the insider’s world of publishing; the dollars and sense of publishing; and how to find people to create the book that I committed to deliver on my promise. I was an already an author of 18 published books; now I was to become a publisher. Heady stuff.

What I’m thankful for is that I did come from the traditional publishing side. My visual model. My books were edited and professionally designed on the interior and exterior. When I created my own imprint, it never dawned on me to do it half-assed ... I expected that my first book would be of quality—that’s what I grew up with as a beginning author in 1981. The vanity press/publishing model? Never an option—not even in my sights.

The growth of quality independent publishing is phenomenal and will only continue to escalate; the “e” world has become a pearl for many authors who would have never had a chance; and the separation of the vanities and publishing predators from true independents is comparable to buying a cheap 50 cent toy that breaks when it is picked up versus one that is designed to last.

Indeed, here’s to you and the book that is within you … just waiting to come out.

PS—my latest book, Author YOU: Creating and Building the Author and Book Platforms is perfect for anyone who is interested in authoring and publishing. 

Judith Briles is known as The Book Shepherd (www.TheBookShepherd.com), a book publishing coach and the Founder Chief Visionary Officer of Author U (niversity (www.AuthorU.org), a membership organization created for the author who wants to be seriously successful. She’s been writing about and conducting workshops on publishing since the 80s. Judith is the author of 30 books including Author YOU: Creating and Building Your Author and Book Platforms has just been published.

Join Judith live on Thursdays at 6 p.m. EST for Your Guide to Book Publishing on www.RockStarRadioNetwork.com. Follow @AuthorU and @MyBookShepherd on Twitter and do a “Like” at AuthorU and TheBookShepherd on Facebook. If you want to create a book that has no regrets, contact her at Judith@Briles.com.

Nonsense … or Creativity Starter? … That, Dear Author/Watson, Is the Question!

When is nonsense "nonsense" and when is it the perfect kick start to get you, the author, out of a writing rut, book marketing rut or just see something from a different perspective? 

Recently, I posted a video on several of my social media sites that contained a video of 10,000 iPhones doing the domino dance. First thoughts when I viewed it: Who has time to do this? Who even thought it up? When and where in the heck did they gather up 10,000 iPhones (Apple headquarters)? How much time did this take? How many misfires were there? Etc.

After viewing, it left me with a smile and an "OK, it's a long day ahead, I need to do some final re-writes on the For the Love of Paprika cookbook that I’m working on for/with a client; get two handouts done for speeches I’m giving in the next two weeks; get … you get the picture.  This is a fun way to start it ...." and who knows what creative things are going to pop. And let’s face it—we all need a mental break during our days … even when in the depths of a project. Any project.

Here's the video: http://ow.ly/kbmak

Take less than two minutes to watch and then ask yourself, “What goofy, nonsense thing has opened up paths for me?” Hey, it sparked the idea to write this short blog … an idea that I didn’t have when I opened my laptop at 5 am that popped when I thought and asked, “Who has the time to do this?”

Now, back to the other work …

Judith Briles is known as The Book Shepherd (www.TheBookShepherd.com), an author and book publishing expert and the Founder of Author U (www.AuthorU.org), a membership organization created for the author who wants to be seriously successful. She’s been writing about and conducting workshops on publishing since the 80s. Judith is the author of 30 books. Her latest, Author YOU: Creating and Building Your Author and Book Platforms is just out. Join Judith live on Thursdays at 6 p.m. EST for Your Guide to Book publishing on the www.RockStarRadioNetwork.com. Follow @AuthorU and @MyBookShepherd on Twitter and do a “Like” at AuthorU and TheBookShepherd on Facebook.  If you want to create a book that has no regrets, contact her at Judith@Briles.com. 

Three Cheers for the Library!

This week celebrates National Library Week. For authors, libraries can be your best friend. With over 100,000 throughout the country, their budgets still purchase approximately $2,000,000,000 in books each year—two billion dollars! That’s what the American Library Association and the Book Industry Study Group report.

So … the question is … are you getting your share?

• Befriend your local library and librarian. Let them know about your book.
• Offer to do a program—especially if you are a children’s author. Many libraries have author programs and are enthusiastic in working and featuring authors—stick your neck out. And if you get invited, make sure you encourage others to come. Bodies count!
• Ask for testimonials and endorsements.
• Make sure you share reviews and any media clippings with your librarian … the one you befriended!
• Donate a book to the library—it just may be the thing that generates a purchase order.
• Encourage your followers to contact their libraries to request your book and tell them tell their friends to check it out as well as them.
• Librarians pay attention to reviews. The Library Journal is a key one—usually requires a four month lead before official publication date.
• The read the Library Journal thoroughly—depending on your marketing budget, you might want to consider an ad in one.
• Libraries buy from distributors—key ones are Quality Books, Unique Books and Baker & Taylor. Make sure you have representation with at least one of them.
• Make sure you have a media release/flyer about your book (include a cover picture on it. Include the price of the book and your ISBN as well as who distributes your book. Send it directly to libraries or participate in a coop mailing, such as the one that IBPA does to both academic and public libraries each year.
• Get online and/or make phone calls and determine who the Collection Development Librarian is (make sure you spell the name correctly. Send them your flyer.
• Consider making a collage of reviews that you received and creating a flyer as an attached to anything that you send out.
• If you have the opportunity to attend of exhibit at a Library trade show, do it. There may be a signing you participate in (that means you give books away (make sure there is a flyer in each for additional ordering information).
• If your book has won any awards, make sure you include them within your flyer. If the honor comes to you and your book after your initial contact, it becomes an excellent opportunity to follow up.
• Don’t forget to let your librarian know that you have an ebook or an audio book.

When libraries order a book, they pay for it promptly. It good thing for the author. Yes, celebrate your library … it, they, do lots for you and your book … not to mention the community.

Judith Briles is known as The Book Shepherd (www.TheBookShepherd.com), a book publishing coach and the Founder Chief Visionary Officer of Author U (www.AuthorU.org), a membership organization created for the author who wants to be seriously successful. She’s been writing about and conducting workshops on publishing since the 80s. Judith is the author of 30 books including Author YOU: Creating and Building Your Author and Book Platforms has just been published. 

Join Judith live on Thursdays at 6 p.m. EST for Your Guide to Book Publishing on www.RockStarRadioNetwork.com. Follow @AuthorU and @MyBookShepherd on Twitter and do a “Like” at AuthorU and TheBookShepherd on Facebook. If you want to create a book that has no regrets, contact her at Judith@Briles.com.