Podcast appearances and mentions of joel friedlander

Joel Friedlander talks about how he came to focus on plaintiff-side work in the Delaware courts and the enjoyment he gets from writing about and teaching law as well as practicing it. 

Description: Co-hosts Ryan Piansky, a graduate student and patient advocate living with eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) and eosinophilic asthma, and Holly Knotowicz, a speech-language pathologist and feeding specialist living with EoE who serves on APFED's Health Sciences Advisory Council talk with guest Eliana, a child living with EoE, about her experiences with endoscopies and unsedated transnasal endoscopies (TNE). In this episode, Ryan and Holly discuss with Eliana her history with EoE, her experience with an elemental diet, and the foods she is able to eat. They also discuss her experiences with  endoscopies, including TNEs. You will enjoy her positive attitude and bravery.   Disclaimer: The information provided in this podcast is designed to support, not replace the relationship that exists between listeners and their healthcare providers. Opinions, information, and recommendations shared in this podcast are not a substitute for medical advice. Decisions related to medical care should be made with your healthcare provider. Opinions and views of guests and co-hosts are their own.   Key Takeaways: [0:57] Ryan welcomes co-host Holly Knotowicz. Holly introduces the topic: a follow-up to the recent episode with Dr. Joel Friedlander on unsedated or transnasal endoscopy. Today's episode features a child living with eosinophilic esophagitis who has undergone several unsedated endoscopies, several of them with Dr. Joel Friedlander.   [1:36] Holly introduces 10-year-old Eliana. During Holly's time at Children's Hospital Colorado, Holly had the opportunity to meet Eliana and her Mom.   [1:49] Eliana thanks Holly and Ryan for having her on the podcast.   [2:02] Eliana was diagnosed with EoE and food allergies at 18 months. She has a very restricted diet. Before her fourth birthday, she went on an elemental diet. This means she drinks a medical formula that provides nutrition.   [2:41] Elemental means you can't have foods, so you drink a specialized formula. Eliana can now tolerate approximately 12 foods in addition to the elemental formula.   [3:30] Eliana's safe foods include turkey, chicken, wheat, rice, corn, fish, flour, and natural flavors. Her favorite food is crispy-skin chicken. Her grandpa makes it extra-extra crispy for her! She has learned that one type of food can be five or six different foods if you get creative.   [4:29] Eliana likes pan-seared salmon with oil and salt. She also enjoys when her family roasts or smokes a turkey.   [4:44] Holly met Eliana when she was 18 months old. They didn't know then what foods were her triggers. Eliana wasn't interested in eating, which was a sign that something could be wrong. Now she eats foods with different textures. Her parents and brother help prepare food in different ways for her and her palate has expanded.   [5:25] Since COVID-19 happened, Eliana and her family stayed home and cooked a lot. Sometimes Eliana enjoys cooking, but usually her brother or her dad cooks.   [5:51] Because she was so young when she was diagnosed with EoE and food allergies, Eliana doesn't remember the foods she would eat before she was diagnosed.   [6:01] Eliana avoids the foods that she knows trigger symptoms.    [6:23] Eliana is always excited when she is able to add new foods.   [6:54] Ryan explains the endoscopy and transnasal endoscopy procedures and invites listeners to check out Episode 19 with Dr. Joel Friedlander.   [7:58] Eliana has had 25 endoscopies, including traditional sedated procedures and unsedated TNEs. Twelve or more were TNEs. Eliana thinks the TNEs are way easier. She says it's great to have a new way to do it.   [8:29] Eliana was five when she had her first TNE following the introduction of corn, which was one of her first foods. She is always excited to get a new food added back to her diet. Her first TNEs were with Dr. Joel Friedlander. Dr. Friedlander doesn't do them at Children's Hospital Colorado anymore so Eliana has a new doctor now.   [9:03] Eliana helped other doctors as they learned from Dr. Friedlander how to do the TNE procedure. She always got nervous when a new doctor would insert the tube. But she was brave and let them learn.   [9:44] Eliana tells about her experiences with TNEs versus traditional endoscopies. The TNE is much faster and you don't need anesthesia.    [10:47] Eliana tells more about the TNE procedure. It starts like a normal check-up where you weigh yourself and they check your vitals and talk with you. They give you a big virtual reality setup and test it. You get to pick a show to watch. Then you head over to the procedure room and sit in a chair. Then they give you a nasal spray to numb your nasal passages. Eliana says it tastes like iron.   [11:22] They send a tube up your nose and down your esophagus, which Eliana says feels big and you have to swallow it. It feels like choking. Then they take the biopsies and take the tube out. It takes about 10 minutes. She enjoys having hot tea or ice cream after the TNE.   [12:00] With the virtual reality goggles, squishies, and stress toys, Eliana says it goes by faster than you think.   [12:31] When the doctor takes the biopsies, Eliana says it's quick and it feels like a scraping in your throat, like eating a cracker that gets a little stuck. Eliana asks for extra water when the doctor flushes her throat with water. It feels cold and fresh.   [13:11] When she has a TNE, Eliana brings her own stress ball. They have stress balls but Eliana likes having hers. She also shares that it's OK to ask for water or to turn up the volume. And she says taking deep breaths is helpful.   [13:48] Eliana shares how watching a show on virtual reality goggles makes it fun. Eliana definitely prefers the TNEs to the sedated endoscopies.   [14:29] Holly thanks Eliana for sharing her experiences to help others.   [14:42] Eliana knows many people are nervous to get a TNE but says once you have your first one you'll see it is much better than getting the anesthesia and waking up grumpy or tired.   [15:05]  Ryan thanks Eliana for coming on the show.   [15:23] Ryan shares the APFED links shown below to find resources and specialists who treat eosinophilic esophagitis.   [15:48] Holly thanks Eliana for sharing with us and being an inspiration to others. Holly hopes that when other patients who have EoE hear Eliana talk about her experience that they'll be braver and more willing to try this out and that it can help them add more foods more quickly into their diet.   APFED says “Thank you” to all the patients, families, and team members who have helped make unsedated endoscopy and new technologies possible.   Mentioned in This Episode: American Partnership for Eosinophilic Disorders (APFED) APFED on YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram Joel Friedlander, DO EvoEndo Children's Hospital Colorado @Apfedorg on Instagram Apfed.org/eoe Apfed.org/specialists Real Talk: Eosinophilic Diseases Podcast Tweetables:   “I was diagnosed at 18 months and I have EoE and lots of food allergies, so I have a very limited diet, and before my fourth birthday, I went elemental. … I still do drink a formula.” — Eliana   “[Elemental] means you can't have foods so you're not eating any foods … only drinking the formula.” — Eliana   “It takes a really long time to add in new foods because most of the time it doesn't work out. … I have 12 foods or more now.” — Eliana   “I like pan-seared salmon with oil and salt. Then we roast turkey and my brother smokes turkey sometimes.” — Eliana   “[The first time I had a TNE] I was five and I was trying corn. Corn was one of my first foods.” — Eliana   “I know plenty of people who are nervous to do [the TNE], but once you do your first one, it's like, this is way better than the smelly anesthesia and waking up grumpy or tired!” — Eliana  

Description: Co-hosts Ryan Piansky, a graduate student and patient advocate living with eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) and eosinophilic asthma, and Holly Knotowicz, a speech-language pathologist and feeding specialist living with EoE who serves on APFED's Health Sciences Advisory Council talk with guest Joel Friedlander, DO, about the development and use of transnasal endoscopy (TNE), also known as unsedated endoscopy.   Dr. Joel Friedlander is a co-founder of EvoEndo and a pioneer of pediatric transnasal endoscopy. Previously, he was the Gastroenterology lead of the Aerodigestive Program at Children's Hospital Colorado and a bioethics consultant.   In this episode, Ryan and Holly discuss with Dr. Friedlander the background and history of unsedated endoscopy. Dr. Friedlander talks about the team at Children's Hospital Colorado who worked with him on the technology and the procedure. Dr. Friedlander first noticed a similar procedure being used by ENT physicians and speech and language pathologists and wanted to use it for pediatric eosinophilic esophagitis patients. He explains the research they did. Now Dr. Friedlander and some of his colleagues from the multidisciplinary team at Children's Hospital Colorado have co-founded a company to promote and spread the use of this technology around the country. Listen in for more information about the use of unsedated endoscopy for EoE.   Dr. Joel Friedlander would like to extend special thanks to the individuals and groups who contributed to the advancement of the unsedated transnasal endoscopy for eosinophilic esophagitis. This includes Dr. Jeremy Prager, Dr. Robin Deterding, Dr. Emily DeBoer, the GI and AeroDigestive teams at Children's Hospital Colorado, APFED, the Bunning Family, the Meister Family, CEGIR, CURED, the Cherry Family, the Friedlander Family, and the Smith Family. Disclaimer: The information provided in this podcast is designed to support, not replace the relationship that exists between listeners and their healthcare providers. Opinions, information, and recommendations shared in this podcast are not a substitute for medical advice. Decisions related to medical care should be made with your healthcare provider. Opinions and views of guests and co-hosts are their own.   Key Takeaways: [1:07] Ryan welcomes co-host Holly Knotowicz. Holly introduces the topic: a new diagnostic tool for EoE: transnasal endoscopy, also known as TNE. Holly introduces the episode guest, Dr. Joel Friedlander.   [1:50] During her time working at Children's Hospital Colorado, Holly enjoyed collaborating with Dr. Friedlander to support children living with eosinophilic esophagitis.   [2:22] At Children's Hospital Colorado, Dr. Friedlander was part of a multidisciplinary program of ENT physicians, pulmonary physicians, a gastroenterology physician, feeding and speech therapists, occupational therapists, and nutritionists, to work with children who had upper airway disorders, or eosinophilic disorders of the upper GI tract.   [2:44] Dr. Friedlander noticed that their ENT colleagues could look in individuals' throats every day, without anesthesia, using tiny scopes, and speech and language pathologists would use little cameras to look in the back of people's throats to watch swallowing.   [3:00] The multidisciplinary team at Children's Hospital Colorado wanted the same technology in gastroenterology. They put together some research, which led to a startup company. Dr. Friedlander is the Chief Medical Officer of the company, trying to bring unsedated endoscopic technology to patients around the world.   [3:26] Unsedated endoscopy is especially important to patients with eosinophilic disorders that require numerous endoscopies with anesthesia. Doctors don't want to have their patients go to sleep unless they have to. Although anesthesia is relatively safe, it's not without potential risks, it drives up the cost of care, and it is inefficient.   [3:57] Dr. Friedlander's research was how to bring the unsedated endoscopic technologies their colleagues had to gastroenterology patients, specifically for eosinophilic disorders. Holly Knotowicz, as a person who has EoE and as a medical provider, loves to hear about creative ways to take care of these patients.   [4:47] Holly knows that seeing doctors is scary, but she loved that Dr. Friedlander always had a joke for his pediatric patients. Holly asked Dr. Friedlander for a joke today and he provided a couple of his oldies but goodies.   [5:45] One of the most important parts of doing any awake procedure with patients is having a relationship. It is a medical procedure. With this technology, there are different styles. You develop a style as a physician; Dr. Friedlander tells jokes. You also have to know your patient. Every patient is different.   [7:35] Dr. Friedlander researched the use of unsedated endoscopic technology to remove sedation risks to pediatric patients, reduce their parents' fears, make faster and safer diagnoses, optimize the patient's experience, and lower the cost of care.   [8:32] As Dr. Friedlander's group was developing the technology for TNE, they learned that adult gastroenterologists had tried to introduce it over 20 years ago but it never took up much traction in the U.S. When they started doing it in pediatrics, initially they started using the smallest scopes available, but the little scopes were breaking.   [10:01] They went to the hospital asking for another scope to make the technique even better. Originally, an ENT physician would do the procedure through the nose and a gastroenterologist would go into the esophagus, requiring two physicians for a short procedure. So the ENT physician taught the gastroenterologist the nasal procedure.   [10:24] The other problem was how to keep a child calm for the four-minute procedure. They tried using video goggles and then moved to VR. After working through about 1,000 procedures in Colorado, they felt they had the right flow for the procedure and patient experience for the children, including Dr. Fiedlander's jokes.   [11:28] Some kids like jokes. Some kids like VR. The team had to choose which kids were the right fit for unsedated TNE. Unsedated TNE works for the vast majority of kids but it's not for everyone. About five to 10% think it's easy, about five to 10%  say it's not for them, and the rest can manage the few minutes it takes, vs. anesthesia.   [13:30] A typical endoscope used for sedated upper GI tract endoscopy is nine or 10 mm in diameter. An adult transnasal scope (a baby scope for sleeping babies), or noodle scope, is about 5‒6 mm. A transnasal scope for pediatric TNE is 3‒4 mm, like a piece of spaghetti. The different scopes have different features.   [14:54] The ENT physician of the group, Dr. Jeremy Prager, worked with Dr. Friedlander to teach him the TNE technique. Dr. Robin Deterding, Chief of Pulmonology at Children's Hospital Colorado fostered the development of the technology. Dr. Emily DeBoer also collaborated on the initial project.   [15:34] Dr. Friedlander, Dr. Prager, Dr. Deterding, and Dr. DeBoer are the co-founders of the company where Dr. Friedlander currently works. They all came together to figure out the best way to bring this unsedated technology to patients, through new scopes and constantly refining the techniques.   [15:49] Dr. DeBoer developed 3D models for training doctors who had never used a 3 mm scope or navigated a child's nasal passage. It takes time for a doctor to learn the technique and get comfortable with the smaller scopes.   [17:26] The typical procedure starts with the patient having a conversation with the doctor who is doing it. The doctor will also talk during the procedure. If VR is used, the doctor orients the patient on how to use it and picks a program. There is the orientation to the scope and the procedure and how the patient may feel during and after it.   [19:54] Then there is an orientation to the medication administration, including numbing spray in the nose. Dr. Friedlander asks patients ahead of time to practice nasal spray at home to see how it feels.   [21:13] Some kids do well with the procedure and others do not. Dr. Friedlander has patients practice slow, deep breaths to help them relax if they start to feel uncomfortable. He tells patients not to hold their breath or pant like a dog. If they take slow, deep breaths and watch the show, it will be over before they know it.   [22:21] After preparation, they go to the procedure room. They check who the patient is and their birthday. They use numbing spray on the nose (or throat), put on the VR goggles, have the parent sit behind if the child needs their handheld, turn on the show, turn down the lights, take the camera scope, lubricate it, and do the procedure.   [23:10] The scope goes in the nose and down the back of the throat. Dr. Friedlander may ask the patient to swallow it like spaghetti. With the scope down, the doctor takes a few biopsies and removes the scope. The patient may feel it a little bit, based on how sensitive they are.   [23:29] Afterward, Dr. Friedlander brings out an ice pop or a slushie to soothe the throat. He recommends the child takes little sips because their throat may still be a little numb. As it wakes up, they can drink more. He recommends eating slowly for the rest of the day.   [24:21] As the scope may look in the stomach, patients are to take no food or drink for four hours before the procedure. If the scope will only look at the esophagus, patients are to take no food or drink for two hours before the procedure. Because the scope goes down the back of the throat, there is a slight risk of throwing up. The time for the procedure varies per doctor and location.   [25:32] For EoE, usually distal and proximal biopsies are taken, between two and four biopsies each from the bottom and the top of the esophagus, depending on the physician. If going to the stomach or the small intestine, additional biopsies would be taken from those areas.   [26:18] Your physician determines how frequently to do this procedure. Based on current data, it shouldn't be done any sooner than six to eight weeks. With anesthesia involved, it wouldn't be done that frequently because of the cost. With unsedated technologies, six weeks is OK. Ongoing research may lead to shorter intervals.   [27:30] The usual biopsy frequency for patients with EoE is between three to six months depending on your physician, what diet you're on, and your therapy. If your eosinophilic disorders are stable, and you're doing well, it might be just once every two years. There is a lot of variation depending on the institution and the physician.   [27:48] Before undergoing unsedated TNE, the child or adult needs to go through COVID-19 testing as the scope is going through the nose and there would be a risk of spreading COVID-19 if infected. Some kids find the COVID-19 test to be worse than the TNE.   [28:51] TNE can also be done with sedation, so Dr. Friedlander refers to it as unsedated TNE. Dr. Friedlander discusses the benefits of unsedated TNE: 1.) no sedation, 2.) possible increased frequency of endoscopy, depending on your physician, 3.) increased efficiency with less downtime, and 4.) decreased cost, depending on your insurance.   [30:37] When the fear and cost of anesthesia are out of the equation, the question is, how often do you need an endoscopy? Doctors have to be thoughtful about this. Just because you can scope doesn't mean everybody needs a scope. But you can scope to see if your medication worked. It opens up opportunities for other diagnoses.   [32:00] A patient with trouble swallowing could have EoE or they could have reflux esophagitis, which is treated very differently from an eosinophilic disorder. An unsedated TNE could show which esophagitis the patient has.   [33:17] When a physician is getting started with unsedated TNE, older patients are the easiest because the anatomy is bigger and it's easier to talk an older patient through it if the procedure is not going well. Some patients have been to ENT doctors and had good experiences with nasal tubes, they make good patients for unsedated TNE.   [34:31] Older patients routinely calm down easily. A child (or adult) who screams for minutes after a blood draw is probably not the best patient for an unsedated TNE procedure. The ideal patient is someone the physician can talk to and calm down if they get upset, and patients that are used to nasal medications.   [35:06] Until patients try the procedure, it's not known how a patient will do. With kids under age five, it's hard to use VR or talk to them. Some kids under five can do it. It's about a 50-50 chance, compared to over 90% success with older kids.   [36:23] For physicians first starting to perform unsedated TNE, 5-to-8-year-olds are more challenging than 9-year-olds and up. Even so, some teenagers are not the right candidates for unsedated TNE. Dr. Friedlander always recommends they try it. Sedated endoscopy requires a whole day off work or school, and unsedated TNE can be done in minutes.   [37:38] Adult TNE has been around for years. Most adult centers have transnasal endoscopes but a lot of physicians haven't been trained in TNE. Some use TNE in the high-risk adult population with significant heart or lung disease and for adult patients who don't have a driver to take them home after sedation.   [38:38] More adult physicians working with eosinophilic disorders are asking how they can offer unsedated TNE to their patients. Adult transnasal endoscopes are thicker than pediatric scopes. Dr. Friedman's company has longer 3 mm transnasal endoscopes for more comfortable adult use.   [39:29] Risks with unsedated TNE may include a sore or swollen nose, sore throat, sore chest, and a little bleeding from the biopsy sites. One to two percent may have some spitting up or throwing up. It's a medical test. It may go well, it may not go well; probably it's somewhere in the middle. It's five to ten minutes and you're back to school or work.   [40:19] There are the same risks as other endoscopies. A scope can go where it's not supposed to. That seems to occur less than with a regular scope because you may not be going as far and the patient isn't asleep and can report if something hurts.   [41:00] Unsedated endoscopy is a very important tool for a gastroenterologist to have. It's not a replacement for all endoscopies. As of now, dilations are not routinely done unsedated. Transnasal endoscopes are not designed or sized for therapeutic use. They are for diagnosis and evaluation.   [43:27] Holly recalls a mutual patient that couldn't tolerate unsedated TNE but had a gastric tube and tolerated a trans-gastric endoscopy. Dr. Friedlander researched it and found that the TNE scope fits well through a gastric tube. It takes additional manipulation to use it in that manner.   [45:50] If you are interested in trans-gastric endoscopy, discuss it with your physician.   [46:40] Concerning insurance for unsedated TNE, the first step is to talk to your physician and care team. If they agree the procedure is appropriate, you can discuss the cost estimate with your insurance provider.   [48:41] More and more centers around the country are doing unsedated TNE. Some have websites about it. Google transnasal endoscopy in your region or city and you'll find websites. APFED is also working on adding information to its Specialist Finder to show these centers. Most importantly, ask your physician about it.   [49:40] Holly thanks Dr. Friedlander for sharing his expertise.   [49:50] Dr. Friedlander says he is passionate about getting this technology out to the right patients. It's a good option for a large majority but it's not for everybody. Know that this is an option. Ask your physicians about this option. Figure out if it's the best option for you and your treatment plan. Physicians take their cues from their patients.   [50:34] Dr. Friedlander thanks Ryan and Holly for allowing him to speak about unsedated TNE and everyone who allowed all this technology to get to where it is, from adult doctors working on it 20 years ago, pediatric doctors working on it now, the eosinophilic disorders community, and APFED. This is an important option for patients.   [50:53] Dr. Friedlander asks you to talk to people about it. Let people know about it. It's an important technology. It's not for everybody but it's for a lot of people.   [51:08] Ryan shares the APFED links shown below to find resources and specialists who treat eosinophilic esophagitis and to make connections with others impacted by eosinophilic diseases by joining APFED's online community.   APFED says “Thank you” to all the patients, families, and team members who have helped make unsedated endoscopy and new technologies possible.   Mentioned in This Episode: American Partnership for Eosinophilic Disorders (APFED) APFED on YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram Joel Friedlander, DO EvoEndo Children's Hospital Colorado Jeremy Prager, MD Aerodigestive Program Robin Deterding, MD Emily DeBoer, MD @Apfedorg on Instagram Apfed.org/eoe Apfed.org/specialists Apfed.org/connections Real Talk: Eosinophilic Diseases Podcast   This episode is brought to you thanks to the support of our Education Partners Bristol Myers Squibb, GlaxoSmithKline, Mead Johnson Nutrition, Sanofi, and Regeneron.   Tweetables:   “If our ENT colleagues could do [unsedated endoscopy] and if our pulmonology colleagues could do [unsedated endoscopy], we want to make sure that our gastroenterology colleagues have these same options for our patients.” — Dr. Joel Friedlander   “As much as [anesthesia] scare[s] our patients, it also scares us as providers and doctors, because we don't want to have our patients go to sleep unless we really need to because, although anesthesia is relatively safe, it's not without its potential risks.” — Dr. Joel Friedlander   “When a physician is first getting started [with unsedated TNE], usually an older patient is better because the anatomy is bigger. It's easier to talk a patient through it if they're not doing as well.” — Dr. Joel Friedlander “[Unsedated TNE] is an important option for our patients. … Talk to people about it. Let people know about it. It's a really important technology. Even if not for everybody, it's for a lot of people.” — Dr. Joel Friedlander

0:00 Intro.1:37 Start of interview2:19 Joel's "origin story". He grew up in Stamford, Connecticut ("it was a land of many corporate headquarters"). He went to Wharton undergrad and U. Penn Law School. Later, he clerked at the Court of Chancery in Delaware and worked at Skadden's Wilmington office in Delaware "[the office] had been built around the hostile takeover litigation in the 1980s." In 1995, he joined a new litigation boutique with Stephen Lamb (later Vice-Chancellor of the DE Court of Chancery). Andre Bouchard (later Chancellor of the DE Court of Chancery) joined in 1996.5:35 The difference between plaintiff and corporate/defense firms, starting at law schools and law student recruitment.7:04 On the historical evolution of stockholder litigation. Joel teaches a course on stockholder litigation at Penn Law School and Michigan Law School. On how the hostile deals in the 1980s changed the stockholder litigation landscape: "Many of the largest and most sophisticated law firms were suing each other, and that's where most of the law was created."10:50 On the evolution of class action and derivative actions in stockholder litigation.13:01 On the concept of Fraud on the Board. "Commission of fraud on the board is an omnipresent temptation for self-interested controllers, activist stockholders, officers, financial advisors, and their legal counsel. Fraud can be used to put a company in play, steer a sale process toward a favored bidder, suppress the sale price to a controller, or make a favored bid look more attractive."15:56 "Not long ago, over 90% of deals over $100m were sued on, and in most of those cases the stockholders got nothing (prevalence of disclosure settlements)." He advocated for the elimination of disclosure settlements. "In about 2015, the litigation landscape changed." 23:40 On the evolution of Section 220 books and records stockholder demands.26:37 How director oversight duties have evolved ("Caremark claims"). The impact of the Delaware Supreme Court case of Marchand (2019) focused on food safety. 30:12 How Boeing's stockholders obtained approval from the Delaware Court of Chancery for a landmark US$237.5 million settlement of derivative claims targeting the company's board for safety failures that led to catastrophic crashes of two 737 MAX jetliners in 2018 and 2019. *The company disclosed that the two crashes caused US$20 billion in non-litigation costs and more than US$2.5 billion in litigation costs.35:16 On private venture-backed company deal-making and litigation, particularly in Silicon Valley. The Good Technology case, where director defendants and their affiliated VC funds settled for $17m and the financial advisor JP Morgan settled for $35 million for claims against  arising out of challenge to dual-track sale/IPO process that resulted in sale of company to BlackBerry Limited.40:24 "It's hard to find plaintiffs [in Silicon Valley], there are different obstacles and roadblocks to litigation."42:38 "In [private venture-backed companies] sometimes you don't have directors who have experience in certain situations, like selling a public company (sophistication of M&A in public settings)."43:48 "What is ubiquitous is financial advisor conflicts of interest, in Silicon Valley or in any other public company scenario." The example of the Good Technology case.45:35 On conflicts of legal counsel in deal-making (criticism of law firm behavior). Example: $690 million damages award based on controller's reliance on outside counsel's legal opinion.47:44 The 1-3 books that have greatly influenced his life (that he's re-read the most):The Great Gatsby,  by F. Scott Fitzgerald (1925)The Trial, by Franz Kafka (1925)Books by Professor Philip Reiff (sociologist from the U. of Pennsylvania), such as Fellow Teachers, the Triumph of the Therapeutic, Freud: the Mind of a Moralist.49:08 - Who were your mentors, and what did you learn from them? Philip Reiff, at U. of Pennsylvania.Chancellor William T. Allen.Stuart Shapiro (in litigation).53:04 - Are there any quotes you think of often? In a NYT review of the autobiography of Sammy the Bull Gravano he read a quote that said "At some point you've got to ask yourself, are you going to continue being a punk, or are you going to become a racketeer?"52:40- An unusual habit or an absurd thing that he loves: Twitter. 53:27 - The living person he most admires: Volodymyr Zelensky.Joel Friedlander is a partner at Friedlander & Gorris. He has over 25 years of experience litigating breach of fiduciary duty actions and contract disputes relating to the control of Delaware entities.__ You can follow Evan on social media at:Twitter: @evanepsteinLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/epsteinevan/ Substack: https://evanepstein.substack.com/__Music/Soundtrack (found via Free Music Archive): Seeing The Future by Dexter Britain is licensed under a Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License

Today's guest is Dr. Heather Underwood, CEO of EvoEndo. She talks about launching the first unsedated single-use endoscope to market.Heather joined EvoEndo in 2019 after completing the Stanford Biodesign Fellowship for medical device innovation. She completed her PhD at the University of Colorado (CU) - Boulder's ATLAS program, where she developed and implemented clinical decision support systems for midwives and nurses in Kenya, receiving the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Grant and Gates Grand Challenges Grant to support her research. Heather has spent the past 10 years founding and leading medical device startups, non-profit life science organizations, and innovative academic initiatives, including co-founding Inworks at CU Denver.EvoEndo was co-founded in 2017 by Dr. Joel Friedlander, a pediatric gastroenterologist, and the interdisciplinary aerodigestive medicine team at Children's Hospital of Colorado. EvoEndo's mission is to make endoscopies safer for patients by eliminating the need for general anesthesia while reducing the complexity and cost of endoscopy for physicians and hospitals. EvoEndo's system combines sterile, single-use, flexible endoscopes with virtual reality (VR) based patient distraction to allow the procedure to be performed safely in children and adults without anesthesia or sedation. Key Takeaways:How EvoEndo's products allow for more frequent monitoring and faster results for patients and healthcare providersTips for the journey on FDA submissionsHow to fundraise while building relationships and trust with your investors Show Notes: EvoEndo Website EvoEndo on LinkedIn Dr. Heather Underwood on LinkedIn EvoEndo Raises $10.1 Million to Make Unsedated Transnasal Endoscopy a Reality for Patients and Physicians FDA - 510(k) Submission ProcessApplication to be on the show: From Lab to LaunchQualioMusic by keldez

This week we have a great show in store for you. Make sure to leave a review on Apple Podcast and answer the Question of the Week! The winner this week is - Lisa M. Lilly. Top Tips of the week include how to choose a pen name, how to turn your work into multiple streams of income, and why you should clean up your social media. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include why it pays to engage with your readers, what is going to change with personalized ads segment, where is paperback printing going to be available, how we will remember author and indie publishing leader Joel Friedlander, and what to prepare for when you end a series. Question of the Week: Who is an established leader in this industry who’s inspired you, and what qualities of theirs do you admire the most?

Synopsis Writing in “plain English” is a great way to make a good impression on your audience. This means writing in a way that makes your message easy to read and understand. It doesn't matter who your audience is or what your subject matter is about. Every audience will benefit from writing that uses plain English. This will help you build a bigger audience and sell more books. Here are my 6 favorite tips to help you start. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn how to simplify your non-fiction writing to make it easier to understand and remember. 2. You will learn how and why writing in plain English can help you build and retain a broader readership and following. 3. You will learn how and why writing in plain English will make you look smarter and your writing more powerful. Introduction Writing in "plain English" is a great way to make a good impression on your audience. This means writing in a way that makes your message easy to read and understand. It doesn't matter who your audience is or what your subject matter is about. Every audience will benefit from writing that uses plain English. And it certainly doesn't mean talking down to your audience or using baby words. It means writing in a way that gets your message to your intended audience in a respectful and appropriate manner. Your readers will sense this and respect you for it. This is how you build an audience for your work. Thank you to Joel Friedlander of the BookDesigner.com for linking to this article from his website Carnival Of The Indies #121 Here are my 6 favorite tips to help you start writing in plain English: Tip # 1. Write For Your Audience, Not For You In other words, put your reader first. Always. Writing non-fiction is about providing value to the reader and helping them solve their problems. Their needs come first, not yours. You must speak directly to the reader. You do this by using only words and concepts that are appropriate for your audience. If you're writing to show off how smart you are, you'll lose them immediately – and they won't come back. Tip # 2. Avoid Big And Fancy Words This doesn't mean that you must use simple words. It means that you must use words that are appropriate for your audience. No matter who your audience is, or what the subject matter is, you'll look foolish and insecure if you use big, fancy, ornate words. Using these kinds of words is the fastest way to lose your readers. If you sincerely want to help people and be taken seriously as a writer, don't use them. Tip # 3. Avoid Slang, Jargon, Abbreviations, And Clichés These types of phrases typically don't help your reader. If for some reason, you need to use one, you must explain what the term means. Don't ever assume the reader will know what you're talking about. It would be unfair and disrespectful of your reader, and they'll sense that. And you'll have wasted their time. Tip # 4. Write Short And Clear Sentences Shorter sentences go a long way to making your writing more comfortable to read and understand. Long sentences tend to be confusing and tiring to read. Writing shorter sentences forces you to cut out all the unnecessary words. Try to keep your sentences under 20 words. “Writing in “plain English” is a simple but powerful technique that will help you retain more readers and sell more books. Here are 6 tips to help you get started.” (Tweet) Tip # 5. Use Contractions Yes, contractions. Such as: “can not” becomes “can't;” “will not” becomes “won't.” They help you sound natural, not like a robot. Not like an insecure “intellectual” that is trying to impress the reader. But as someone the reader can identify with and believe. Like you're talking to the reader face-to-face. This goes a long way to getting a reader to stay with you. Don't be afraid to use them. Your readers will appreciate this. Tip # 6. Read It Aloud Before Publishing This tip is essential if you ever hope your writing sound natural.

Synopsis If you like to help people improve their own lives, careers, businesses, and relationships - by teaching, inspiring, and sharing your own knowledge and experiences - then you should be writing non-fiction. Here is a shortlist of my favorite reasons why you should be writing and selling your own non-fiction books. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn why writing non-fiction is a great way to help satisfy your own needs and wants. 2. You will learn five amazing reasons you should want to start writing non-fiction books. 3. You will learn about some of the stumbling blocks that are no long-standing in your way. Introduction If you like to entertain people, then you would probably enjoy writing fiction. But, if you like to help people improve their own lives, careers, businesses, and relationships - by teaching, inspiring, and sharing your own knowledge and experiences - then you should be writing non-fiction. From my perspective, we all have an obligation to do this, especially if we like to communicate by writing. And, in the high-tech world we live in today, there are no more obstacles preventing us from doing this through self-publishing. Here is a short list of my favorite reasons why you should be writing and selling your own non-fiction books: Reason # 1. A Non-Fiction Book Can Boost Your Career and Business Even with the huge proliferation of self-publishing, having your name on a published book will still impress most people. One of the main reasons to write a non-fiction book is to boost your credibility in the eyes of your current clients, your prospective clients, your co-workers, and your peers. Handing a prospective client your signed book is infinitely more impressive than handing them a business card and a brochure. Credibility is one of the main ingredients to building a great career and business. A well-written non-fiction book will help you achieve that. Reason # 2. More People Buy Non-Fiction Books There will always be a demand for non-fiction books. Just walk into any big book store, look around, and you will immediately see that non-fiction takes up almost the entire store. Non-fiction sales numbers have been rising for many years and outpacing fiction. In addition, many book buyers don't mind paying a higher price for non-fiction books. Reason # 3. Non-Fiction Books Help Make The World A Better and More Productive Place You spend your life learning about certain topics. Topics that you have become an expert in. And you get paid for applying that knowledge to help others improve their own lives. A non-fiction book will enable you to help many thousands more than you could realistically help from your own office. Thank you to Joel Friedlander of the BookDesigner.com for linking to this article from his website Carnival Of The Indies #118 Reason # 4. Non-Fiction Books Are Easier To Market And Sell With non-fiction, it's much easier to find and understand your target audience. This is half the battle to building a successful marketing plan. And, it's essential if you have any hope for sales success. And, as an added bonus, non-fiction books generally have a very long shelf life. This means that your book if written properly, will keep making you money for a long time. Reason # 5. Non-Fiction Books Aren't Overly Difficult To Write Although there is nothing easy about writing, especially for publication, you're probably writing about topics that you already have knowledge, understanding, and expertise in. Or, at the very least, a topic that you have a great enthusiasm for and interest in. And, if you look at writing your non-fiction book not as one gigantic project, but as many little goals that you can achieve one at a time, you're more likely to finish writing it. So, with some planning, some research, an outline, and some perseverance, the process will actually be a great learning experience for you, and an enjoyable one.

Synopsis My main goal here is to share with you how I create my book promo videos so that you can see the basic steps involved. With a little bit of research, some patience, some practice, and persistence, you should be able to make your own book promo video without too much hassle. Now get ready, because here is a quick run-down of the 4 main steps I follow in order to make my basic 1-minute book promo videos. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn the 4 basic steps to create a simple book promo video for your own book. 2. You will learn exactly how I do it for the books that my wife and I self-publish. 3. You will learn which software I use, and where I post the completed video. Thank you to Joel Friedlander of the BookDesigner.com for linking to this article from his website Carnival Of The Indies #115 Introduction My main goal here is to share with you how I create my book promo videos so that you can see the basic steps involved. For my own sanity, I try to keep the process as simple as possible. My goal is always to take a complicated process, make it as simple as possible, and still produce a quality product. And, with patience and practice, each time I produce one of these little videos, I'll get a little bit better at it. And hopefully, sell a few more books in the process. Thank you to best-selling author Elizabeth Spann Craig for sharing and linking to my post. Here is a quick run-down of the 4 main steps I follow in order to make my basic 1-minute book promo videos: Step # 1. Create a PowerPoint deck Step # 2. Export deck to .jpeg Step # 3. Import .jpeg's to iMovie Step # 4. Convert iMovie to mp4 Done. Here is a list of the software programs that I utilize to produce my promo videos: 1. Microsoft PowerPoint for Mac, ver. 16 2. Apple iMovie, ver. 10 3. Adobe Illustrator 2020 4. Adobe Photoshop 2020 Google Alerts for Joel Friedlander's Carnival of the Indies #115 Software Notes: a. Microsoft PowerPoint I bought as a package of an entire suite of Microsoft products called Microsoft Office 365 Home, which has an annual fee to use. b. Apple iMovie is a free download from the Mac App Store. c. The Adobe programs are part of Adobe Creative Cloud which I pay a monthly fee to use. I upload my videos to the following websites: (For this book, it's to my wife's pages) Website # 1. My YouTube page Website # 2. My book's webpage (on the book's main page, and on the Media Kit page for that book) Website # 3. My Twitter page Website # 4. My Facebook page Here is a more detailed look at the steps that I follow to create my promo videos: Step # 1. Create slide presentation in PowerPoint The general rule for making PowerPoint slides is to keep them simple, short, and to the point. ACLS QA book PowerPoint screen shot Step # 2. Add a .jpeg picture of your book's cover, and your headshot Make sure they are clear, easy to see and read, high quality photos. Step # 3. Add text to each slide Again, don't overdo it. Keep is simple, with lots of white space. Step # 4. Save as a PowerPoint presentation .pptx This will complete step 1. Step # 5. Export slides as .jpeg Save them in the same folder as the PowerPoint deck/presentation that you just made. “A successful and profitable non-fiction book promo video must be honest, sincere, short, simple, clean, easy to understand, see, and read, and not pushy or aggressive – a wise strategy to use in all of your book marketing.” (Tweet) Step # 6. Import/drag/drop all of those .jpeg slides into new iMovie Create a new movie, and drag and drop all of those .jpeg slides you just made into the movie timeline. Step # 7. Drag/drop music/audio onto the timeline iMovie has a small library of music already included. You simple choose which one you like, and drag and drop it onto the movie timeline. And then adjust the length of the music to fit the length of the video.

This post was originally published on March 24, 2011, and updated on March 12, 2020. Synopsis Understanding the terminology, jargon, terms-of-art, lingo, and slang, of the book publishing industry as a whole, can only help us become better and more successful at self-publishing. Here is a discussion of the terms “strippable” and “non-strippable” as they relate to printed books, and their covers. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn the physical differences between a book that is considered strippable, and one that is not. 2. You will learn why a particular book is considered strippable, or it isn't. 3. You will learn who is concerned and affected by these designations. Thank you to Joel Friedlander of the BookDesigner.com for linking to this article from his website Carnival Of The Indies #114 Introduction Almost none of us that are involved with self-publishing will ever need to deal with books that are strippable or not. But, despite that fact, we still need to understand the book industry in its entirety. Understanding the terminology, jargon, terms-of-art, lingo, and slang, of the book publishing industry as a whole, can only help us become better and more successful at self-publishing. Here is a discussion of the terms “strippable” and “non-strippable” as they relate to printed books, and their covers. Strippable Defined “Strippable” simply means that a book's cover can be torn off, or stripped off, by the book retailer or distributor, and then sent back to the book publisher for a credit or refund. The publisher tells the book retailers and distributors which books that it will allow being stripped, and which books cannot be stripped. “Understanding the terminology, jargon, terms-of-art, lingo, and slang, of the book publishing industry as a whole, can only help us become better and more successful at self-publishing.” (Tweet) Each publisher has its own rules and guidelines about which books can be stripped. By stripping off the cover of a book, and sending the cover back to the publisher, without the body of the book, postage costs will be greatly reduced. Obviously, it's much less costly to send back a bunch of book covers than it is to send back a box of full books. After the cover is stripped off the book, the rest of the remaining book is supposed to be destroyed. Title page of a mass-market paperback book. The paragraph in the middle discusses the cover and what happens when a book is stripped. Non-Strippable Defined “Non-strippable” books are just the opposite of “strippable”. “Non-strippable” means that a book cannot be returned to the publisher for a credit or refund unless the book is complete, with the cover intact. Retail Returns Guidelines for Baker & Taylor Who Is Involved With, Concerned About, And Affected by, Stripping Books? Stripping books is something that self-publishers will probably never need to be involved with. Strippable and non-strippable books are something that large publishers, book distributors, and retail bookstores are involved with. Strippable BookThe large publishers are forced by the retailers and distributors to accept returns. Retailers feel that it's too risky for them to put a book in their stores without having the option of sending the book back for a credit or refund. Distributors feel that it's too risky for them to receive many thousands of copies of a book from a publisher without having the option of sending the books back for a credit or refund. The large publishers accept returns because they are dependent on the book retailers and distributors for their financial survival. As a small self-publisher, we generally don't want, or shouldn't want, our books in bookstores. Having your book displayed at a bookstore might be good for your ego, but not for your bank account. Once you get involved with self-publishing, you'll learn very quickly that bookstores are the worst place to display and sell ...

Your nice hosts finally get around to some classic topics in this week's episode. Mark explains why Widget Satchel takes longer to download than he'd have liked, Stephen is worried that you might learn the wrong lessons, and Martha disagrees.It took some sleuthing, but Mark found proof that Crunch, the mascot for the Minnesota Timberwolves, was named for the Nestle candy bar. Day-One Patches 0:02:48 Mark LaCroixProductionProgrammingWhy 'Day-One Patches' Are So Common - Rami Ismail, KotakuThe Switch patch for Widget Satchel that Mark mentioned working on just passed though Nintendo's lotcheck system and was released today. Pick up a copy it if you haven't already! Crunch 0:42:22 Stephen McGregorIRLProductionProgramming'Anthem' is proof that crunch can't save AAA games - Jessica Conditt, EngadgetVideo Game Delays Cause More Crunch - Jason Schreier, KotakuBook Review: If You Want to Write by Brenda Ueland - Joel Friedlander, The Book DesignerCrunch Time: How Indies Are Falling Victim To Launch Day Pressures - Kate Fanthorpe, The Indie Game WebsiteStudio MDHR delays Cuphead DLC to 2020, in bid to avoid development crunch - Aaron Mamiit, Digital TrendsMark referenced how Mr. Scott maintains his reputation as a miracle worker.

Your nice hosts finally get around to some classic topics in this week's episode. Mark explains why Widget Satchel takes longer to download than he'd have liked, Stephen is worried that you might learn the wrong lessons, and Martha disagrees. It took some sleuthing, but Mark found proof that Crunch, the mascot for the Minnesota Timberwolves, was named for the Nestle candy bar. Day-One Patches 0:02:48 Mark LaCroix Category Production Programming Why 'Day-One Patches' Are So Common - Rami Ismail , Kotaku The Switch patch for Widget Satchel that Mark mentioned working on just passed though Nintendo's lotcheck system and was released today. Pick up a copy it if you haven't already! Crunch 0:42:22 Stephen McGregor Category IRL Production Programming 'Anthem' is proof that crunch can't save AAA games - Jessica Conditt , Engadget Video Game Delays Cause More Crunch - Jason Schreier , Kotaku Book Review: If You Want to Write by Brenda Ueland - Joel Friedlander , The Book Designer Crunch Time: How Indies Are Falling Victim To Launch Day Pressures - Kate Fanthorpe , The Indie Game Website Studio MDHR delays Cuphead DLC to 2020, in bid to avoid development crunch - Aaron Mamiit , Digital Trends Mark referenced how Mr. Scott maintains his reputation as a miracle worker.

Synopsis Sincerity is extremely important to all of us because it helps to build trust with each other. And trust is one of the fundamental building blocks to developing a lasting and rewarding relationship. It's especially important for non-fiction writers to display sincerity with their words. Readers can sense this, and will reward writers that they trust by following them, reading their articles, and buying their books. Here is a short discussion on the importance of writing with sincerity. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You'll learn why sincerity is important to non-fiction writing. 2. You'll learn how to define and understand sincerity. 3. You'll learn about the important connection between sincerity and tone in your writing. Introduction Sincerity is extremely important to all of us because it helps to build trust with each other. And trust is one of the fundamental building blocks to developing a lasting and rewarding relationship. It's especially important for non-fiction writers to display sincerity with their words. Sincerity, honesty, and respect for the subject matter and for the reader are essential in order to build up a tribe of followers, readers, and buyers. Share This Image On Your SitePlease include attribution to TheBusinessOfSelfPublishing.com with this graphic. One of the main ways non-fiction writers display sincerity is by being transparent, straightforward, and honest with their readers. Readers can very quickly sense this and will reward writers that they trust by following them, reading their articles, and buying their books. Your writing voice, and the connection you make with your reader, is heavily influenced by your sincerity for the subject matter, your sincerity in your desire to help the reader, and the tone that you use when you write. Thank you to Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to my blog post from his blog Carnival Of The Indies #113 Here are three terms that you must understand in order to write with sincerity: Term # 1. Writing voice: this refers to when your writing reflects your personality - your individual characteristics - your readers start to understand and connect with you on an emotional level. The tone that you use in your writing helps to reveal to your readers how you feel about the topic you are writing about. Thank you to best-selling author Elizabeth Spann Craig for sharing and linking to my post. Term # 2. Sincerity: this means having no pretense, deceit, or hypocrisy. Being honest, genuine, truthful, open, transparent, and candid, for example. Sincerity should never be faked or feigned because, in order for your readers to believe what you're writing about, they must truly believe that you're being honest with them. “Sincerity is one of the fundamental building blocks to developing trust between you the writer, and your readers.” (Tweet) In order to write with sincerity, you must first have respect for yourself, then respect for the subject matter, and more importantly, the reader. Readers, especially today, can detect phony-baloney (aka hypocrisy – sorry I couldn't resist - I've never written that word in a sentence, and it's such a fun word) a mile away. Once you lose the reader's respect, they'll never come back to you to read your articles, or buy your books, ever again. Term # 3. Tone: this refers to your attitude, such as formal, informal, ironic, serious, sophisticated, comedic, sarcastic, sad, dark, or cheerful, for example. The tone reflects your attitude toward your subject matter, AND your attitude toward the reader, and will greatly influence how your readers interpret your message. Conclusion Sincerity is one of the fundamental building blocks to developing trust between you the writer, and your readers. One of the main ways non-fiction writers display sincerity is by being transparent, straightforward, and honest with their readers.

Synopsis Why isn't my non-fiction bookselling more copies? Why is my book a failure? Why don't I feel successful as a self-publisher? These common questions can sometimes be difficult to answer very quickly. And the answer isn't always as simple as it might seem at first glance. But there is hope for you and your book to achieve success. Here are 14 reasons your book might not be successful. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You'll learn what steps you can take to fix your book and improve its sales. 2. You'll learn how to start to define what success means for you and your book. 3. You'll learn how and why introspective thinking about your book is essential to its success. Introduction Why isn't my non-fiction bookselling more copies? Why is my book a failure? Why don't I feel successful as a self-publisher? These common questions can sometimes be difficult to answer very quickly. And the answer isn't always as simple as it might seem at first glance. But there is hope for you and your book to achieve success. Take A Hard Look At Yourself And Your Book If your book isn't selling any copies or selling very few in comparison to other books in its sales category, there are several powerful changes you can make to help improve your sales. But, they all involve some serious introspective thinking about your book and will involve some hard work on your part. The Fix Is Within Reach The list of reasons given here will help you to re-evaluate your book, and everything you are doing to sell it. This list covers the most common reasons a non-fiction book isn't selling or gaining any traction with an audience. Share This Image On Your SitePlease include attribution to Kunz On Publishing with this graphic. How Do I Define Success? We all have our own way to define success in general. Plus, we can have a personal definition of financial success, and one for personal success, and one for business success, etc. And each one will be a little different. But, I believe that most of us that write non-fiction books are trying to achieve two main, fundamental, overarching, basic goals: Goal # 1. Financial Return Some amount of financial return for the hard work we put into creating and publishing our books; and, Goal # 2. Critical Acclaim Critical acclaim for ourselves and for our books, from our peers, co-workers, readers, family, customers, clients, etc. Thank you to Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to my blog post from his blog Carnival Of The Indies #112 The Top Reasons Non-Fiction Books Do NOT Achieve Success Reason # 1: No market need: Is there an actual need for the information in your book? Is there an actual audience that can benefit from your book? If not, you will not sell any books. Reason # 2: Weak solutions/value: What special insights do you have that can help others find real solutions to their questions and problems? Standard cookie-cutter solutions won't help you sell more books. Reason # 3: Unattractive cover: A cover that looks unprofessional, amateurish, and unthoughtful, will turn-off book buyers. They will lose respect for you even before they open your book. For most books, and most people, the cover is the one thing that should not be skimped on. Reason # 4: Written for wrong audience: You must understand who your audience is before you write your book. If you don't, your book will be confusing to read, help no one in particular, and sales will suffer. “With some honest assessment of your book, and forcing yourself to make hard decisions about your book, you can fix its poor sales. By doing so, you will be creating a book that can help you achieve your personal and financial goals.” (Tweet) Reason # 5: Not enough marketing: Marketing is more about reaching out to a very particular audience, and showing them that you have the answers and solutions to their particular problems. It's less about the quantity of money that you spend on adve...

This post was originally published on July 3, 2017, and updated on December 12, 2019. Synopsis By adding an infographic to your blog, and giving your readers an easy way to share it, is a sure way to help build your network. We can make the infographic easy to share by adding a “share box” immediately below it. This gives other bloggers a fast and simple way to share your infographic. Here are the three simple steps that I follow in order to create and add a “share box” to my own infographics. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You'll learn an easy and fast way to add a “share box” to your infographic. 2. You'll learn why a “share box” is an excellent and painless way to get your readers to share your infographic. 3. You'll learn why an infographic with a share box below it will help you look more like a professional blogger. Introduction Infographics are a visually compelling way to grab a reader's attention. They can very quickly help you communicate information in an easy-to-digest format. And, by adding an infographic to your blog, and giving your readers an easy way to share it, is a sure way to help build your network. We can make the infographic easy to share by adding a “share box” immediately below it. This gives other bloggers a fast and simple way to share your infographic. This share box contains an “html embed code” that other bloggers can copy and paste into their own blog. This will make your infographic appear on their blog, and it also gives your blog a backlink. Thank you to Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to my blog post from his blog Carnival Of The Indies #111 Here are the three simple steps that I follow in order to create and add a “share box” to my own infographics: Share This Image On Your SitePlease include attribution to "KunzOnPublishing.com" with this graphic. STEP # 1. Create Your Infographic I typically create my blog post first. Then I design an infographic that can explain the information in my blog post in a simple, fun, and easy-to-understand format. I try to keep it visually appealing by using colors, fonts, and images that will catch the reader's eyes. I use Adobe Illustrator CC, and then convert the finished Illustrator file into a jpg. Then I simply upload that image to my WordPress media folder. STEP # 2. Place Infographic Into Your Blog Post I then find a place within my post to place the image, such as between major sections or between paragraphs. Then I click the “Add Media” button and then choose the appropriate image from my blog's media folder. You must do this from within the “text editing” page, NOT the “visual editing” page. “By adding an infographic to your blog, and giving your readers an easy way to share it, is a sure way to help build your network.” (Tweet) STEP # 3. Add A “Share This Image Box” Under The Infographic Start by using an “embed code generator” that will help you create your share box. The best one I've been able to find so far is by Siege Media. I didn't have much luck finding a WordPress plugin that I liked, or that would do what I wanted it to do for me. But this one by Siege Media fits my needs perfectly. All of the fill-in boxes are self-explanatory. Blank embed code generator form. Form provided by Siege Media. Filled-in embed code generator form. Form provided by Siege Media. Here is a sample of the html code that i use to create the share box. THE VIEW OF THE HTML ON MY BLOG: Here is what the final HTML code looks like on my blog post's text editing page: 1. The first section in the image below is the code for the actual jpg image of the infographic that will appear in my blog post. 2. This second section in the image below is the code for the share box that will appear just below my infographic. Screenshot of the html code that I have placed into my WordPress blog. THE VIEW FROM MY BLOG: Here is what the finished infographic and share box looks like on my blog...

Synopsis Repurposing your blog post is one of the smartest and easiest ways to spread your message to a wider and more varied audience. The more people that see it and read it, the more that will benefit from it, and you will sell more books. With these 5 steps, you can easily and quickly take that same written post, and change it into an audio podcast. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn the quickest and easiest way to repurpose your blog post into a podcast. 2. You will learn what equipment and software you will need to create your podcast. 3. You will learn how to reformat your blog post into a podcast script. Introduction Repurposing your blog post is one of the smartest and easiest ways to spread your message to a wider and more varied audience, and get your name and work in front of many more people. You worked really hard at creating a high-quality and informative blog post. It probably took you days or weeks to perfect it. After all that work, you want as many people as possible to see it, and become more familiar with your work. The more people that see it and read it, the more that will benefit from it, and you will sell more books. Thank you to Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to my blog post from his blog Carnival Of The Indies #108 Now, with these 5 steps, you can easily and quickly take that same written post, that is sitting on your blog, and change it into another format - an audio podcast – and share it with an entirely new audience. Here they are: Step 1. Choose Your Blog Post to Record Not every single blog post is going to be a perfect candidate for an audio podcast. A blog post that is simply a list of items, or simply a few thoughts that you're sharing with your readers, are probably not worthy of a podcast. You might also want to start with one of your better or more popular posts. A post that is truly representative of your blog's main subject matter is also a great place to start. Screen Shot Of My Podcast Recording Inside GarageBand (Infographic) Step 2. Reformat Your Blog Post Into A Script Since your blog posts were probably written for readers, not listeners, you will need to adjust your text to sound more natural when spoken out loud. Begin this process by simply reading your post out loud and listening to how the words flow. The trick is to make the text sound as natural and flowing as conversational speech. I have realized that writing my blog posts with the idea of using them as an audio podcast recording script, has forced me to write in a more natural-sounding way. This has made my posts easier for my readers to read and understand. My podcasting equipment set up in my home office. Step 3. Get A Microphone and Software A. Microphone You must purchase a good microphone. This doesn't mean an expansive mic. But, it should be a condenser mic with a small stand to hold it steady. Also, get a foam wind-screen / pop-screen for the mic. Start your search for these on Amazon. B. Software The best place to start is Apple GarageBand. It's very inexpensive, very easy to learn how to use, and comes with music that is free to use for your intro and outro. Apple sells this for Mac and Windows. “Repurposing your blog post is one of the smartest and easiest ways to spread your message to a wider and more varied audience.” (Tweet) Step 4. Record Your Podcast and Add Intro and Outro A. Record the Blog Post a. Start your recording in a nice quiet room. Make sure everything around you is turned off. The air-conditioner, the dehumidifier, the ceiling fan, the television in the next room. b. Speak in a relaxed, natural, and conversational fashion. The ends of your sentences should not be a rising or falling volume of your voice. c. Make sure you pause after the commas and periods. Thank you very much to Sadye Scott-Hainchek of TheFussyLibrarian.com, for sharing my blog post. B. Record Intro and Outro a.

Synopsis One of the biggest marketing mistakes we non-fiction authors can make is to confuse the benefits and features that a reader will get if they buy our book. And, if you the author don't understand how to explain the benefits and features of your own book, the reader/buyer will certainly be confused – which means that they won't buy your book. So, here is a quick explanation to help you understand the basic differences between a book's benefits, and a book's features. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn how to quickly define your book's benefits. 2. You will learn how to quickly define your book's features. 3. You will learn how and why benefits and features work together to help you sell more books. Introduction Why You Must Understand the Differences One of the biggest marketing mistakes we non-fiction authors can make is to confuse the benefits and features that a reader will get if they buy our book. At first glance, it might seem a little difficult to understand the differences – especially if you're writing a book for the first time. And, unfortunately, if you the author don't understand how to explain the benefits and features of your own book, the reader/buyer will certainly be confused – which means that they won't buy your book. Thank you to Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to my blog post from his blog Carnival Of The Indies #106 So, here is a quick explanation to help you understand the basic differences between a book's benefits, and a book's features. A. What Is a Benefit? Benefits are what the readers will get out of reading your non-fiction book – the end result from reading your book. Think in terms of a product (your book), that produces helpful results that promotes a person's (the reader's) well-being. Your book's benefits are the value that the readers will receive by applying your advice to their own problems. “Your non-fiction book MUST convey your information and advice in such a way that the reader can realistically apply it to their own situation and problems.” (Tweet) Your book MUST convey your information and advice in such a way that the reader can realistically apply it to their own situation and problems. If they can do this, they will view your book as a very great value. The price they paid for your book, and the time they invested into it, will then be viewed as irrelevant – as long as they benefited from reading it. Some common examples of a non-fiction book's benefits: 1. They will learn specific steps to solve a problem that they want to fix (the main reason that they bought your book in the first place) 2. They will learn how you, the author, fixed your own problems 3. They will learn how other people with the same problem fixed it and improved their own life, career, relationships, and business, etc. 4. Spend less time on problem-solving, and more time on making money 5. Learn how to lose 30 pounds in 30 days 6. Learn how to get 5 more clients in the next 30 days 7. Learn how to turn your hobby into a profitable business 8. How to fix your failing business, marriage, partnership, career, etc. 9. How to start a new business 10. How to help a family member that has Alzheimer's disease Obviously, this list could go on forever, but you get the idea, and can now easily define what your book's benefits are - or should be. Share This Image On Your SitePlease include attribution to Kunz On Publishing with this graphic. B. What Is a Feature? Features are the things that your non-fiction book has in it – the attributes, design, and appearance of your book. Think in terms of a product's (your book) structure and appearance, that a reader (buyer) can look at and compare to other books. “Your non-fiction book's features can, and should, if developed properly, give you a competitive advantage over other books covering the same subject matter.” (Tweet) Your book's features can and should if develope...

Has publishing changed much in the past decades? A lot, but in many ways not at all. Influential blogger and opinion leader Joel Friedlander tells us what’s still important for all publishers to know . . . and do. Topics include: First rule: authors still have to understand their market. Hard copy printing, despite what we hear about ebooks, is still the most popular way of manufacturing, and most of that is offset. Can author-publishers get into bookstores? (One thought: consignment is not the way to go except in one specific instance.) So who gets mainstream distribution? What ever happened to ebooks? Humans have an endless need for stories, which is why we’ll always have books. The future of publishing: interactivity, special editions, crowdfunding. Bottom line: quality is still the most important thing a publisher can bring to a book. Participants Joel Friedlander is an award-winning book designer, blogger (since 2009!), and writer. He speaks regularly at industry events and is the author of A Self-Publisher’s Companion and The Book Blueprint. The blogger behind TheBookDesigner, Joel is a columnist for Publishers Weekly, and was named by Writer's Digest as one of the 10 people to follow in book publishing. He also operates several websites that provide design, marketing, and project planning resources for indie publishers and authors. Joel Friedlander’s blog and websites The Book Designer: http://www.thebookdesigner.com/ BookDesignTemplates.com: https://www.bookdesigntemplates.com/ AuthorToolkits.com: http://authortoolkits.com/ BookPlanner.com: http://bookplanner.com/ Books by Joel Friedlander The Book Blueprint: https://www.amazon.com/Book-Blueprint-Expert-Creating-Industry-Standard-ebook/dp/B07D5NRYW3/ A Self-Publisher’s Companion: http://www.amazon.com/Self-Publishers-Companion-Joel-Friedlander/dp/0936385111/ IBPA Industry Standards Checklist: https://www.ibpa-online.org/general/custom.asp?page=standardschecklist Peter Goodman (host) is publisher of Stone Bridge Press in Berkeley, California. He began his publishing career in Tokyo, Japan, in 1976. A longtime member of IBPA, he has served on the IBPA board and as IBPA board chair.

Synopsis Even though empathy and sympathy both involve your “feelings” about your readers, they refer to two distinctly different emotions. As an author, and book marketer, (and as an emotionally mature adult that is trying to help people) you must genuinely understand the difference. Here is a short discussion about the importance of empathy, and how it relates to your book sales. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn the difference between empathy and sympathy. 2. You will learn why understanding the difference will help you sell more books. 3. You will learn how and why empathy for your readers will improve your book sales. Share This Image On Your SitePlease include attribution to https://kunzonpublishing.com/ with this graphic. Introduction Do you truly understand who you're writing for? And not in a superficial way. Knowing is the difference between building a devoted audience of followers, readers, and book buyers that you help, and your time, words, and efforts being wasted and helping no one. The difference here is that empathy is a major ingredient to your success as an author. Successful Non-Fiction Authors Don't Confuse “Empathy” With “Sympathy” Even though empathy and sympathy both involve your “feelings” about your readers, they refer to two distinctly different emotions. As an author, and book marketer, (and as an emotionally mature adult that is trying to help people) you must genuinely understand the difference. "Authors: If you learn how to “walk in your reader's shoes,” you WILL sell more books!" (Tweet) Therefore, here is a very quick definition of empathy and sympathy to get us started: Definition # 1. Empathy: refers to your ability to “walk in your reader's shoes.” You're trying to get into their heads and understand their reality, feelings, and motivations. The more intimate knowledge, or understanding, that you have about their motivations, their questions, their confusions, and their desires, the more you and your book will be truly able to help them find what they need and want. Deep down, you must know your audience – and you can't fake it. Definition # 2. Sympathy: refers to the compassion, sorrow, or pity, that you have for your readers. With sympathy, you might have compassion for your readers, but you don't know what it's like to honestly and sincerely “walk in your reader's shoes.” Empathy and sympathy typically go hand-in-hand. And, sympathy might have been an initial motivating factor to get you to write your book. But, simply having sympathy with your readers does nothing to help them find answers and solutions. And sympathy alone certainly won't help you sell more books. Thank you to Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to my blog post from his blog Carnival Of The Indies #99 Now, you might be asking yourself, “How Can Empathy For My Readers Really Improve My Book Sales?” Empathy can be shown for the readers, and can improve book sales at the same time, in two easily achievable ways: 1. Having Empathy Before You Write Developing empathy for your reading audience, before you write your book, also forces you to think about exactly who you are writing for. Who are you trying to help? Who can you relate to? Identifying your reading audience is imperative if you ever hope to build an audience that wants to listen to you, and read your books. Zeroing in on this specific group of people, and building an audience who knows what you write about, and what you are about personally, and what knowledge you have, and how generous you are with your knowledge, will help you to build an audience that will continue to grow over the long-term. This is how you build a continuous stream of income from your writing. "Successful Non-Fiction Authors Don't Confuse “Empathy” With “Sympathy.” (Tweet) 2. Having Empathy While You Write When writing non-fiction with the intention to share your knowledge and experiences with the...

In this episode, Chris interviews book cover design expert Joel Friedlander, founder of the The Book Designer. Joel schools us all in on the essential design and branding elements needed in a successful book cover and talks about the elephant in the room: how much will it cost? Show Notes & Links: -How Joel got into cover design. -Chris' monthly must-read: Learn to spot a good cover with Joel's monthly ebook awards blog feature (see link to the feature below (and maybe submit your cover for a critique). -Two considerations every great cover needs: create excitement and indicate the genre or category of the book -There are good options and not-so-good options for covers on a budget.  -Why a cover can make or break the marketing of a book. -What are some of the good alternatives for covers on a budget? -What is the difference between template covers and single-sell pre-made covers? -Why you need to see your cover in a thumbnail before you finalize it.  -Why nonfiction books need accurate sub-titles. -The one time you don't need a good book cover. -Don't miss Joel's smarty pants marketing tip! Links: click 'em, they're live! Joel's monthly ebook Cover Awards feature Joel's book cover design template website Submission form for the monthly ebook awards critique Joel's website (check out all his services)       

The host of this podcast is Dr. David Brumbaugh, pediatric gastroenterologist and Associate Chief Medical Officer at Children's Colorado. In this episode, Joel Friedlander, MD, pediatric gastroenterologist at Children's Colorado, addresses the management of constipation and the effects of leaving it untreated, especially in young children. In this episode, Dr. Friedlander discusses: Addressing constipation and uncomfortable stools early Potential long-term complications associated with constipation Two key components to focus on in the physical examination Miralax, a common used laxative for the treatment of constipation The use of lactulose for young children Categorizing medications for constipation Different medications with different adverse effects Steps to behavioral modification Constipation split between organic and functional Why medication to treat constipation won't work without a change in behavior

I've been writing in journals since I was 15. They have been my escape and my therapy, my creative expression and a record of my lowest times and my highest achievements. Journals are more than blank paper. They represent possibility. In today's show, I talk to Joel Friedlander about his new premium journal. In the […] The post How To Produce A Premium Journal With Joel Friedlander first appeared on The Creative Penn.

Synopsis Creating a huge platform with many thousands of followers might seem like the most obvious way to achieve success. But there's more to it than that. A huge email list, and huge Twitter and Facebook following, are all great, and are always an accomplishment to strive for. But the quality of those followers is what's really important. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn why a large author platform isn't always the best or most practical for most self-published authors. 2. You will learn why high-quality email addresses are more important than a large number of email addresses. 3. You will learn what you need to do to start building your author platform. Share This Image On Your SitePlease include attribution to https://kunzonpublishing.com/ with this graphic. Introduction Is a large platform critical for an author's success? The quick answer is “no.” But, it's imperative that the platform be well-established. In today's “new media” world, it's not necessarily about the numbers anymore. It's now about “engagement” with the readers. Whether it's for a large niche audience or a micro-niche audience, it doesn't matter anymore. Is the author seen as the “go-to person” to that audience? Is the author making an emotional connection with them? Is the author getting his audience rallied around a particular niche? Is the author selling books and ebooks to that audience? Is that audience commenting on the author's blog posts? Are they re-posting or re-tweeting those blog posts? All of these questions will help you start to understand what it means to have a strong and well-established platform. More Is Not Always Better Because Not All Traffic Is Created Equal Creating a huge platform with many thousands of followers might seem like the most obvious way to achieve success. But there's more to it than that. A huge email list, and huge Twitter and Facebook following, are all great, and are always an accomplishment to strive for. But the quality of those followers is what's really important. Especially for those of us (99% of all authors) who don't have the market power and name recognition of really big money authors and mass-media celebrities. Thank you to Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article from his blog Carnival Of The Indies #90 The Active Niche Vs. The Passive Mass For example, if your email list is mostly composed of those who simply downloaded your ebook because it was free if they gave you their email address, and then they never open your emails again, the quality of your email list will be very low. You need to know how to engage with those downloading your free ebook and try to convert them into true followers who are willing to visit your blog again and again. Give Them A Reason Not To Cut And Run The high-quality followers are the ones that won't “unsubscribe” after your first email to them. Those who remain on your list and continue to open your emails, will stay with you for the long-term, and be much more willing to share your blog posts and buy books from you. Your blog posts, and your emails, must give them a reason to keep reading and coming back for more. “A huge author platform might seem like the obvious way to achieve success. And a huge social media following is great and is always an accomplishment to strive for. But the quality of those followers is what's really important." (Tweet) It's Not About The Numbers Anymore You must never forget that in today's social-media-savvy world, it is more about how the author is interacting with the audience, AND how the audience is interacting with the author. It's not so much about the numbers anymore, but about the quality of the engagement between the author and his audience. Reach Out And Touch Someone Even if an author has a huge following, but doesn't know how to sell, or how to talk to his audience, or doesn't know how to really get that audience rallied around som...

Michael La Ronn is the author of over 30 science fiction & fantasy books including the Android X series, Modern Necromancy series, and the Galaxy Mavericks series. He writes from the great plains of Iowa and has perfected the art of balancing writing with a full-time job and family, writing 5-7 books per year.MENTIONS:Pick up a copy of Kevin Tumlinson's newest Dan Kotler archaeological thriller The Girl in the Mayan Tomb - https://books2read.com/mayan-tombCONNECT ONLINE:Website(s): www.michaellaronn.com Twitter handle(s): @michaellaronn Facebook: www.facebook.com/michael.laronn Amazon Author page: amazon.com/author/michaellaronnTHIS WEEK’S INDIE PUBLISHING NEWS:Offset printing for indie authors? — Indies have risen to success thanks to a handful of technologies that make their work more accessible to readers, from ebooks to publishing on demand. Now, writer Joel Friedlander thinks that the future for Indies will include access to a technology that has traditionally been more … well … traditional. Is offset printing the future of indie authors? Friedlander thinks so. The tech is becoming increasingly available and accessible, which means some adventurous indie publishers are reaching out to use it, more and more. Of course, 99% of people, to completely make up a number, can’t tell the difference between offset and laser printing without studying both very closely, side by side. So is it worth the extra cost? Or will the cost come down to something affordable for everyone? https://www.thebookdesigner.com/2018/02/offset-printing-future-indie-authors/Washington Post is Evolving the Bestseller List — It’s been a complaint for Indies since day one: Bestseller lists often refuse to include sales results from sources such as Amazon.com, where ebook sales could skyrocket some lesser known and unknown authors well past traditionally published giants. The Washington Post is the first to recognize this for the error that it is. They’re revamping their bestseller list to include data not just from Bookscan, but from Amazon as well. What will this mean for indie authors? Are lists still relevant? https://lunch.publishersmarketplace.com/2018/02/washington-post-revamps-bestsellers-becomes-amazoned/Book Marks could be the Rotten Tomatoes for literature — Literary Hub is launching a new section for their site, called Book Marks, that is aimed at helping readers “find books they will love by giving them access to the critical discourse that is an essential part of our ecosystem.” That from John Freeman, LitHub’s executive editor. In other words, Book Marks will aggregate reviews from all over the web, and crowdsource readers to improve on recommendations. Will this help new and unknown authors reach a new audience? Or will it just end in tears and gnashing of teeth for everyone? http://www.independentpublisher.com/article.php?page=2075&urltitle=Literary%20Hub%20Launches%20a%20New%20Book%20Review%20Aggregator%20Site%20BOOK%20MARKSTHIS EPISODE OF THE WORDSLINGER PODCAST IS SPONSORED BY:Draft2Digital—Convert, publish, and distribute your book worldwide, with support the whole way. https://draft2digital.com/wordslingerKDP Rocket—Take control, get more readers, increase your Kindle rankings. https://bit.ly/kdpslinger Support this show: Subscribe and share!Support us on Patreon: https://patreon.com/wordslingerpodcastPick something up to read that will be tough to put down—Archeological Thrillers, Science Fiction, YA Fantasy and more, at https://kevintumlinson.com/books ___GOT A QUESTION FOR KEVIN AND HIS GUESTS?CALL 281-809-WORD (9673)

What does an author need to think about when they think about book cover design? Find info and resources for inspiration in this chat with the expert Joel Friedlander.Find Joel at www.thebookdesigner.com.As always, for more book marketing and book publicity tips, please visit www.smithpublicity.com, Smith Publicity on Facebook, and @smithpublicity on Twitter and Instagram.Host/Producer: Andrea Kiliany Thatcher

What does an author need to think about when they think about book cover design? Find info and resources for inspiration in this chat with the expert Joel Friedlander.Find Joel at www.thebookdesigner.com.As always, for more book marketing and book publicity tips, please visit www.smithpublicity.com, Smith Publicity on Facebook, and @smithpublicity on Twitter and Instagram.Host/Producer: Andrea Kiliany Thatcher

Synopsis Do we write books for profit alone, or to gain favorable approval from others? Or is it a combination of both? Is money more important than fame? Does fame guarantee a stream of income? These questions are a good place to start to understand why we do what we do, and how we can, or should, be defining our own success as self-publishers. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn to look at how you define what success means to you as a self-publisher. 2. You will learn what the difference is between “financial success” and “critical acclaim”. 3. You will learn how and why you can have both at the same time. Share This Image On Your SitePlease include attribution to "KunzOnPublishing.com" with this graphic. Introduction Do we write books for profit alone, or to gain favorable approval from others? Or is it a combination of both? Is money more important than fame? Does fame guarantee a stream of income? These questions are a good place to start to understand why we do what we do, and how we can, or should, be defining our own success as self-publishers. How Do I Define Success As A Self-Publisher? I believe that most of us that write and publish books are after two main things. These two can probably be shortened, or simplified, down to “money” and “fame”. I'm sure that you think that there must be countless ways to define success. And, I'm confident there is. We all have our own personal definition of what success means. But, I believe that most of those can be boiled down to the two main categories, or blanket terms, of “money” and “fame. So, here is a very brief definition of each of them: Success Ingredient # 1: Money/Financial Success: Some amount of financial return (money) for the hard work we put into creating and publishing our books; and, Success Ingredient # 2: Fame/Critical Acclaim: Critical-acclaim for ourselves and for our books (fame), from our peers, co-workers, readers, family, etc. Thank you to Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article from his blog Carnival Of The Indies #86 Here are my personal definitions of these two terms, from my perspective as a self-publisher: Definition # 1. Financial Success: We all want or need more money. And it would be really nice to be able to develop a steady stream of never-ending income from our books. But, unfortunately, the overwhelming majority of self-publishers make little or no money from self-publishing. And only a few make a decent part-time living doing it. Even fewer make a full-time living at it. But, you must also realize that for most people, making money directly from the book alone is only one of many reasons to get involved with self-publishing. It is not uncommon for a non-fiction book that we have written to help us achieve financial success in other indirect ways. For example, some of us want to self-publish as a way to promote our own business. Some want to advance their career by gaining credibility in their chosen field – and credibility certainly helps bring and hold onto new business. Some might want to build a nice little side-business to supplement their current career or do during retirement. Many of these reasons might be much more important to a self-publisher than making money directly from the sales of their book on Amazon. Nowadays, having a book published is an amazing and powerful way to separate you from the crowd. Despite the fact that it's much easier and less expensive now, more than ever before, most people still don't make the effort to publish a book. Doing so can give you a nice competitive advantage. Definition # 2. Critical-Acclaim: We all want or need a certain amount of fame. Here I'm using the term “fame” as a blanket term for all types of positive approval, or praise, or good reputation for our professional work, our book, and our ability to help others. As authors, we greatly desire to be seen as highly credible in our book...

In this episode Chris and guest co-host Kate Tilton discuss how to produce and promote your own audio books. Show Notes & Links: -How ACX University helps authors navigate the audio book process. -Some of the initial questions authors need to ask before considering audio books. -Pros and cons of releasing an audio book at the same time as your ebook. -What is the process of finding a narrator for your book? -What kind of investment should you expect to make when producing an ebook? -What is the difference between royalty shares and charging perhour of finished product? -Tips for launching an ebook. -How to find audio book reviewers. Links (just click 'em) -ACX University -Kate's post on 25 ways to market your audio book -Joel Friedlander interview with Kate and Hannah -Kate Tilton's website -Kate's Facebook page -Info on Chris' online course, How To Set Up A Facebook Page That Sells More Books  

Synopsis In order for a book foreword to give a book a substantial strategic advantage over all the other books competing for the same audience, it must be written by someone with a high level of believable credibility. And this credibility must be backed-up by a combination of objective and subjective characteristics at the same time. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn how and why objective and subjective characteristics help a person's credibility. 2. You will learn about some of these characteristics. 3. You will learn some of the most important traits of a good foreword author. Thank you to Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article from his blog Carnival Of The Indies #84 Introduction In order for a book foreword to give a book a substantial strategic advantage over all the other books competing for the same audience, it must be written by someone with a high level of believable credibility. And this credibility must be backed up by a combination of objective and subjective attributes at the same time. These elements work together, hand-in-hand, to build a person's credibility persona. We all size up a person by analyzing and weighing all of these characteristics. Share This Image On Your SitePlease include attribution to https://kunzonpublishing.com/ with this graphic. What Characteristics Help Build Credibility? 1. Objective characteristics (provable facts) such as college degrees, job title, books written, achievements and awards, and membership in specific organizations, and so on. 2. Subjective characteristics (gut feelings) such as emotional character and intelligence, how someone dresses and speaks, how likable they are, their optimism, confidence, and how they relate to an audience, and so on. What Makes A Good Foreword Author? Credibility. A good foreword author is someone who is considered a known, credible expert in the general topic a book is written about. This can be a well-established author in the same genre, a well-established and well-known expert, a professor or speaker teaching the same topic, or someone with significant achievements in their work or private life. And they must understand the important role a book foreword can and must play in the overall success of a book. “A book foreword written by the right person can give you a strategic advantage over all other authors.” (Tweet) Established Experts Are In Great Demand Well-established, highly accomplished, and very credible people are in great demand – by the media, other businesses, and by authors like you and me, that need a book foreword. They're also very busy with their own books, businesses, and projects. In fact, the more established a person or expert is in a field, the more likely they are getting bombarded by requests to write someone's book foreword or provide a testimonial. As a result, most of the requests will get turned down. For these reasons, getting one of these credible experts to write your book's foreword will immediately make you and your book stand out from the crowd. Conclusion You must never forget that a book foreword is essentially a marketing tool for your non-fiction book. Even if the book is well written, and has an amazingly attractive cover, without credibility, the book will not achieve the critical success or financial success that you're seeking. Therefore, it's critical that the right person be found and convinced to write the book foreword. Then, both the book's foreword author, and the book's author, will benefit in many positive ways. Questions For Us To Think About And Discuss 1. How were you able to find and convince a “highly credible person” to write your book's foreword? 2. What advice can you give us about finding a person like this for our book? • This article also appears in Joel Friedlander's online publication Carnival of the Indies – Issue #84 The Strategic Advantage Of A Credible Book Foreword...

In this episode, Joel Friedlander, MD, pediatric gastroenterologist at Children's Colorado, addresses the management of constipation and the effects of leaving it untreated, especially in young children. In this episode, Dr. Friedlander discusses: Addressing constipation and uncomfortable stools early Potential long-term complications associated with constipation Two key components to focus on in the physical examination Miralax, a common used laxative for the treatment of constipation The use of lactulose for young children Categorizing medications for constipation Different medications with different adverse effects Steps to behavioral modification Constipation split between organic and functional Why medication to treat constipation won't work without a change in behavior

Synopsis Testimonials are a very effective way to get more clients and customers, and sell more books. As a business person, self-publisher, and author, you must understand what characteristics make up a great testimonial. So here I give you a list of five ingredients, and six examples, that can help you make a great testimonial, which will help get you more clients and customers, and sell more books. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn about the five essential ingredients that go into making a great testimonial. 2. You will learn what these ingredients might look like when used in an actual testimonial. 3. You will learn that you don't need a lot of testimonials in order to get new business. Thank you to Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article from his blog Carnival Of The Indies #83 Introduction Testimonials are a very effective way to get more clients and customers and sell more books. Most people don't even bother to get testimonials from their clients and customers. And many that do only get mediocre testimonials. As a business person, self-publisher, and author, you must understand what characteristics make up a great testimonial. Here I give you a list of five ingredients, and six examples, that can help you make a great testimonial, which will help get you more clients and customers, and sell more books: Share This Image On Your SitePlease include attribution to https://kunzonpublishing.com/ with this graphic. Item # 1. It should explain to your buying audience about how they will benefit from reading your book. Item # 2. It should speak directly and specifically to your audience's needs (the reasons that they are thinking about buying your book). Item # 3. They are short and get directly to the point in just a few sentences. Item # 4. They are signed with a customer's name, title, employer, city, and state. Item # 5. The ultimate testimonial will also have the customer's headshot attached to it. Here are six examples, with all made-up names and companies, to give you an idea of what a great customer testimonial statement should look like: Great Customer Testimonials Must Contain The Following Items: Customer Testimonial #1: “Michele's book helped me finally understand ACLS. Her book made it so clear and easy to understand. Reading Michele's book and watching her YouTube videos made studying for the exam fun and easy. It was almost as if I had Michele right next to me helping me study. Because of her book, I was no longer falling behind in my studies, and was finally able to pass the AHA certification exam on my first attempt.” Sandy Squire, RN, ANP, Palm University Hospital, Bikini Bottom, FL, SuperAmazingNurse.com “Testimonials are a very effective way to get more clients and customers, and sell more books.” Tweet) Customer Testimonial #2: “Michele's book is very well done. The minute I started reading it, I knew it was exactly what I was looking for. I have studied for and taken the ACLS and BLS certification exam in the past – but I always had trouble memorizing all the essential information – even after the exam is over. This book is clear and concise and offers much more information than I expected. Thank you and I am looking forward to using your PALS book." Heidi Miller, Meteorite Springs University Memorial Hospital, Meteorite Springs, CO Customer Testimonial #3: "Michele and Joe - you have no idea how much you have helped me and how much time you have saved me. The question and answer with explanation format is the best way to study and remember the information. Your book made studying for the AHA certification exams a breeze. Thank you very much." Jose MacMillan, RN, Director of Nursing Staff, Perth Surgi-Center, Los Angeles, California Linkedin - Great Customer Testimonial Statements Customer Testimonial #4: “I would actually like to take the time to thank you both.

Synopsis Whether your book's dedication is only a few sentences or an entire paragraph, you shouldn't miss this opportunity to give the reader a small look into your life's story. Here are a variety of book dedications that will help you to start to formulate your own. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn that a book dedication can become a marketing opportunity when written properly. 2. You will learn that the dedication has the ability to reach out and make an emotional connection with the reader. 3. You will learn that a powerful dedication is not difficult to formulate, and if written with some forethought, can very quickly set you and your book apart from many others. Thank you to Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article from his blog Carnival Of The Indies #83 Introduction I have always been fascinated by book dedications. Unfortunately, most books don't have them. And many of the books that do have one, the dedication is usually too simple and cryptic to understand. Some lame examples are: “To my wife;” or “To Betty.” But luckily, some dedications will give you a peek into the life of the author. They will give us a slight hint at a personal story or relationship that we will probably never get to learn more about. Despite that, I always enjoyed finding a book dedication that made an effort to honor someone that had an impact on the author's life. But, at the same time, it is especially nice to find a dedication that can also reach out to me and make an emotional connection. Here are a variety of book dedications that will help you to start to formulate your own powerful, insightful, and interesting dedication: 1. Dedication (appreciation, hope) We dedicate this book to healthcare professionals everywhere who have dedicated their lives to helping those in need; and, To healthcare students who do not yet realize the potential and importance of the career they have chosen; and, To our students all over Long Island and New York City (and those that have spread out over the 50 states), and our readers all over the world, that work every day at making their career a success and our world a much better place in which to live; and, Finally, we dedicate this book to you all with our love, appreciation, and thanks for allowing us to be a part of your lives. Linkedin - Book Dedications To Spur Your Imagination 2. Dedication (honor, reverence) We dedicate this book to those who lost their life on 9/11/01; and also to those who have given their life in the Global War Against Terrorism. 3. Publisher's Dedication (hope, encouragement) This book is dedicated to every person, young and old, employed and unemployed, educated and uneducated, that dreams of becoming financially independent and building a happy, successful, and rewarding life, but is too intimidated to take that first step. It is the hope and dream of the Dickson Keanaghan family that this book might be that first step. The Dickson Keanaghan Family Long Island, New York, 2010 4. Dedication (predictable, sentimental) I dedicate this book to my wife, Michele, who has been my partner in life and business, since 1984. 5. Dedication (sentimental) To my wife Michele – it's a privilege to share my business, life, and love with you. To my children Eric and Erin – your growth provides a constant source of joy and pride. “Don't underestimate the power of the dedication to help you make a connection with your readers.” (Tweet) 6. Dedication (explanation, friendship) To Mom, who pushed me to “do”; To Dad, who loved me even when I didn't; And to Mary, who after 35 years has given me unconditional friendship and love. 7. Dedication (general, simple) This book is dedicated to the mentors, friends, and family of Dickson Keanaghan: John Doe, Jane Smith, Bob Squarepants, Jennifer Johnson, and Peter Pickles. 8. Dedication (hope) To my children Eric and Erin,

Click here to download this PDF ebook               Synopsis Here is a list of important questions that you should think about to help you make sure that you have written a full and complete foreword. Not all questions here will apply to your foreword. But, these 26 questions should help you to take a critical look at what you have written, and help you fine-tune your foreword. “This article will act as a review for seasoned writers. For those writing their first foreword, it is a must. I plan to give this (article) to any expert I ask to write a foreword in the future.” Carolyn Howard-Johnson, award-winning author HowToDoItFrugally.com What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn what questions you should be asking yourself before writing a book's foreword. 2. You will learn that the reader's wants and needs come first - before your need for self-promotion. 3. You will learn what the basic format of a book's foreword should look like. Introduction Here is a list of important questions that you should think about to help you make sure that you have written a full and complete foreword. Not all questions here will apply to your foreword. But, these 26 questions should help you to take a critical look at what you have written, and help you fine-tune your foreword. When answering these questions, you must keep in mind that a book's foreword is essential for a book's critical and financial success. The foreword will play an essential role in the marketing of the book. And, as the foreword author, you will also be using this foreword for your own marketing and promotion. A. The Initial Questions 1. Did you read the book? 2. And understand it? B. The First Section 3. Does the first section of your foreword explain how you know the author of the book? 4. Do you explain your connection to the book's author? 5. Do you know the author personally? How and why? 6. Do you introduce yourself to the reader in the first section? 7. Did you tell readers why you are qualified to be writing the foreword? 8. Do you tell the readers what you are famous for? Thank you to Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article from his blog Carnival Of The Indies #82 C. The Second Section 9. Does the second section show why the author is a credible person to have written this book? 10. Do you explain the contents of the book to the reader? 11. Do you explain the benefits of reading this book? 12. Did you explain why this book should be relevant to the reader? 13. Do you connect the book's content to experiences or feelings that the reader can identify with? 14. Do you mention some of the good points of the book? 15. Do you give a very brief synopsis of the book? 16. Did you use any anecdotes about the book and the author? 17. Did you use a real-world example that illustrates the theme of the book? “The foreword will play an essential role in the marketing of your book.” (Tweet) D. The Conclusion 18. Does the conclusion remind the reader why you are writing the foreword? 19. And why it matters? 20. Do you bring the foreword full circle by referencing something from the first section? E. Signing Your Name 21. Did you put your name, title, and location at the end of the foreword? 22. Did you include your own book's title? Linkedin - How To Write A Book Foreword: A Checklist F. Additional Questions 23. Throughout the foreword did you keep the tone simple and personal, but keep your writing tight? 24. Did you make sure your foreword has a beginning, middle, and end? 25. Did you make sure that each section has a beginning, middle, and end? 26. Did you spell check several times? Conclusion At first glance, these questions might appear too simple. And, maybe for a very experienced writer or someone that has written many forewords, they are too obvious. But 99 percent of writers have never written a book's foreword. And,

Synopsis Understanding how online and offline marketing channels can work together is essential for your book's financial success. These channels, if consistently used together, can help you as an author achieve a sustainable competitive advantage. It will also help your book build a continuous stream of income. Here is a short discussion and explanation about book marketing channels, and how they can help you become a more successful author. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn the differences between marketing channels and sales channels. 2. You will learn the differences and similarities between marketing channels that you control, and the ones that you don't completely control. 3. You will learn how and why utilizing online and offline marketing channels at the same time is essential in order to build a powerful and profitable marketing plan. Introduction Understanding how online and offline marketing channels can work together is essential for your book's financial success. These channels, if consistently used together, can help you as an author achieve a sustainable competitive advantage. It will also help your book build a continuous stream of income. Here is a short discussion and explanation about book marketing channels, and how they can help you become a more successful author: Thank you to Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article from his blog Carnival Of The Indies #82 What Is A “Marketing Channel”? Here is the quick explanation: A marketing channel simply refers to the places where you can interact with your audience. Each of these places, or channels, allows you to show your audience that you have a love for, and expertise in, your particular micro-niche. These channels also give you and your audience a direct way to listen to each other and share information. This listening and sharing process is how meaningful, long-lasting, and profitable relationships are built between you and your audience. How Is A “Marketing Channel” Different From A “Sales Channel”? Here is the quick explanation: A sales channel simply refers to the way your books are brought to, and sold to, the book buyers, or the end consumers. These channels include online bookstores, brick-and-mortar book stores, book distributors, wholesalers, and so on. These are typically called indirect sales channels. But, if you are selling your book directly from your home or office, you are also part of the sales channel. This would be called a direct sales channel. There are two major ways to look at the different categories of marketing channels available to book marketers. These are 1. online marketing channels, and 2. offline marketing channels. Share This Image On Your SitePlease include attribution to "KunzOnPublishing.com" with this graphic. 1. Online Marketing Channels 1.a. The Online Marketing Channels You Control What online methods, or outlets, are you going to use to talk to your audience? And show them you have something to say? This could, and should, involve your blog, article marketing, guest posting, podcasting, making videos, using Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc. All of these channels would become part of your social media marketing efforts, also known as your author platform. 1.b. The Online Marketing Channels You Don't Control Other online marketing channels include those that you don't have direct control over. Such as blogs and websites that share or repost your blog posts. This also includes reviews of your book that are written and posted on other blogs. Or other bloggers that quote you or your book in their own blog posts. Or they share your infographics, or SlideShare decks, or videos, etc. “Using online/offline marketing channels together creates a powerful/profitable way to market your books.” (Tweet) 2. Offline Marketing Channels Offline channels can also directly affect your online marketing and sales.

Synopsis Helping book shoppers through the 3 stages of the buying cycle can dramatically improve your chances of making more book sales. If you understand what these 3 stages are about, and where the book shoppers are within that cycle, you will be able to fine-tune your marketing efforts and make them more effective and improve your book sales. Here is a quick explanation of the 3 stages of the buying cycle. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn about the 3 stages of the book-buying cycle. 2. You will learn why you must understand this cycle, and how it can help you sell more books. 3. You will learn ways to help the book buyer to move smoothly through the cycle. Introduction Helping book shoppers, and your current followers, through the 3 stages of the buying cycle can dramatically improve your chances of making more book sales. If you understand what these 3 stages are about, and where the book shoppers are within that cycle, you will be able to fine-tune your marketing efforts, make them more effective, and improve your book sales. Thank you to Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article from his blog Carnival Of The Indies #80 What Is The Buying Cycle? The buying cycle is simply the thought process, or stages, that shoppers travel through before making a final decision about what they will purchase, who they will purchase it from, and how much they will pay for it. Every shopper goes through these stages. These purchase decisions can take a few minutes, to many months, depending on what is being purchased. For example, a 99-cent ebook might take a book buyer one minute to make the decision to purchase. But a $25 book might take a few days. But as the author, you can provide information to your readers that will help them through the buying cycle, which will help persuade them that you are the best one to help them with their needs and wants. Share This Image On Your SitePlease include attribution to https://kunzonpublishing.com with this graphic. A Buying Cycle Analogy Look at the three stages like the dating process. Think of the book-buyer as someone that you are interested in dating. First, you want them to notice you, and realize that you are looking for a relationship. Secondly, while they are shopping around for a relationship, and checking out other potential people to date, you are doing your best to show that person that you are a trustworthy and likable person to date. The buyer keeps shopping around, but you keep giving them more proof that you are the best one to choose. You even go so far as to get your friends to give them a review of you and tell them what you are really all about. You try to impress them even more by cooking them fancy dinners, taking them to fancy restaurants, and so on. And finally, they eventually choose you over all the others that they dated because they realize that you are so much more of a good catch. That you tried harder to impress them and gain their friendship more than anyone else did. They now make the final commitment to you because they believe that you know and understand what they are looking for in a relationship better than anyone else does. Share This Image On Your SitePlease include attribution to https://kunzonpublishing.com with this graphic. Here Is An Overview Of The 3-Stages Of The Buying Cycle: Stage # 1. Brand And Problem Awareness In this initial stage, the consumer might or might not even know about you or your book. They also might, or might not, be aware of a need or problem that they have. But in this stage, they are starting to realize that they have a need that they might want to fulfill or get help with a problem. They might have even come across your website by chance, and now realize that they have an interest in what you are saying because you and your words have stirred something inside them. Thank you very much to author Al Galasso, of NABE,

Synopsis Sell sheets have a simple mission. To Sell More Books. They're really just a way to showcase the benefits of your book in a concise and impelling way. And if your sell sheet is created and utilized skillfully, it can become a powerful marketing tool – especially when it's included as part of your media kit. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn the three most important steps to creating an effective sell sheet. 2. You will learn how important it is to your own financial success to study the sell sheets of other books and authors that are successful. 3.You will learn how imperative it is for you to ALWAYS keep the reader in mind. Introduction Sell sheets have a simple mission. To Sell More Books. They're really just a way to showcase the benefits of your book in a concise and impelling way. And if your sell sheet is created and utilized skillfully, it can become a powerful marketing tool – especially when it's included as part of your media kit. But in spite of the fact that it has a simple mission, is only 8.5” x 11”, and not overly difficult to create, many sell sheets that I see are still not very good. So, here's how to start creating a winning sell sheet for your book: Step # 1. Look At The Sell Sheets Of Other Books It's easy to search Google Images to find sell sheets to look at. If your book is non-fiction, for example, find the sell sheets of non-fiction books. Try to find books that are similar to yours. See what images, and colors, and copy are being used. How are they communicating their message about the book they are selling? How many images are they using? How big are those images on the page? How much white space is on the page? What are the hot points about their book that they are spending the most time on? Thank you to Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article from his blog Carnival Of The Indies #79 Are they using bullet points? How are they displaying the information? Is the author's head-shot included? Are there any testimonials? Are they using a one-line benefit statement on the top of the page? How is their contact information displayed? If you answer these questions, you will start to learn the differences between an ineffective sell sheet, and one that has the ability to capture the attention of the reader and sell more books. Step # 2. Keep The Reader In Mind Identifying and addressing the reader's needs is the most fundamental concept in book marketing. Your sell sheet will be a complete failure if their needs are not discussed in a convincing way. The reader must truly believe that you have the answers they are looking for. You will not sell books without accomplishing this. Your sell sheet must address these needs quickly and directly. Readers don't have the time or patience for long-winded and flowery sentences. “Identifying and addressing the reader's needs is the most fundamental concept in book marketing.” (Tweet) And they don't have any tolerance for ambiguous or deceptive language. Readers are way too sophisticated for this. They want to quickly understand how your book will benefit them. If you genuinely did the research for your book, and indeed understand your topic, you will certainly understand who the readers are for your book. Therefore, you should easily be able to write copy that shows the readers that you understand them and that you are the one that can help them solve their problems. This will unequivocally help you make an emotional connection with the reader, which will help you sell more books. Springtime in NYC. Taken from the Manhattan Bridge, showing the Brooklyn Bridge and lower Manhattan, by Eric J. Kunz Step # 3. Include A Great Cover Image Having an eye-catching and pleasant-looking book cover is important for many different reasons. Most of the marketing reasons are probably apparent to you already. But, including an image of your book's cover can also help to m...

Ep#50: Orna Ross and Joel Friedlander answer members' questions on writing, publishing and promoting books. Each month, Orna Ross, ALLi Director, invites a special guest into the indie author hot seat to answer ALLi Members’ self-publishing questions. This month’s special guest was self-publishing pioneer Joel Friedlander. “Self-publishing gives you an opportunity to change the world, one reader at a time, but you have to treat your work with the respect it deserves.” “Keep learning and don’t give up, book publishing is a marathon, not a sprint.” Our monthly Ask ALLi broadcasts are an ideal way to keep learning about being an indie author and the skills you need to acquire to become a successful self-publisher. Here are the topics we covered: Author Collaboration. FREE Writing Technique. How important is it that non-fiction copy editors have familiarity with the topic they’re editing? Will the new Amazon KDP Paperback service replace Createspace? How do we find a publicist we can trust? What is your experience with Bookbaby? Good, bad, or indifferent? The strategy of using Amazon and IngramSpark together, and what direction to take on my ISBNs. Our weekly Self-Publishing Advice broadcast is brought to you by ALLi, the Alliance of Independent Authors. This ALLi Member Q&A podcast is one of four regular shows, which include an an Advanced Salon, a beginners' salon and a special guest highlight presentation from the Indie Author Fringe, ALLi’s free online author conference. Find more author advice, tips and tools at our self-publishing advice center, www.selfpublishingadvice.org. And, if you haven’t already, we invite you to join our organization and become a self-publishing ally. You can do that at www.allianceindependentauthors.org. Now, go write and publish. Orna Ross launched the Alliance of Independent Authors at the London Book Fair in 2012. Her work for ALLi has seen her named as one of The Bookseller’s “100 top people in publishing”. She also publishes poetry, fiction and nonfiction, and is greatly excited by the democratising, empowering potential of author-publishing. Connect with Orna on Twitter @OrnaRoss  

In this episode, we were joined by bestselling author and pro book designer, Joel Friedlander. He shared some awesome insights for authors needing to market their books. He also talked about how to have a successful book launch. The post Ep 132: “Book Marketing & Book Launches” first appeared on Book Marketing Tools Blog.

Synopsis Protecting your computer's data files is something every self-publisher must know about and deal with before it's too late. Therefore, it's essential that you keep the backup process simple and automatic. It's also imperative to create multiple copies, on-site, and off-site. Here's a run-down of how we do this in our office. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn how create a simple and inexpensive way to back-up your computer data. 2. You will learn how make the entire process automatic. 3. You will learn why it is imperative to use multiple methods of back-up. Introduction Protecting your computer's data files is something every self-publisher must know about and deal with before it's too late. And it's not a complicated or expensive process. It can be as simple as having an external hard drive and using cloud storage. No special knowledge or fancy equipment is needed. And, the process is very easy to automate. But it's essential that you keep the backup process simple and automatic. It's also imperative to create multiple copies, on-site, and off-site. Here is a run-down of how we manage our data storage in our office: A. Using An External Hard Drive For Data Backup We started out using one external hard drive in our office. This is the most basic and easiest way to protect your data that's located on your internal hard drive. We currently use several brand-name 2TB external hard drives. Make sure that you purchase a hard drive that can store 50 to 100% more data than is currently on your computer's internal hard drive. Purchase only the correct size that you need now, and then upgrade with a newer and larger unit when you need it. We purchased an external USB hard drive that is physically very small in size - about 3" x 4" x 0.5". This gives us an easy way to put the hard drive into our fire-proof safe, or safety deposit box, or take it with us on a working vacation. B. Using Multiple External Hard Drives For Data Backup We now use multiple external USB hard drives. This way even if one drive fails, we would still have several others still working. All hard drives will eventually fail – and fail when you least expect it. Multiple hard drives help reduce our risk of this type of exposure. “A small-business data backup-strategy is really about mitigating the risk of losing data, and not a guarantee of total protection.” (Tweet) C. Using Cloud Storage For Data Backup Storing your data online is called “cloud storage”. You should consider using cloud storage because it's a safe and simple way to store your files away from your office – where they can't be stolen from your office, lost or mistakenly deleted by you, or burned up in a fire. And you can access these files that are stored “in the cloud,” whether you are in your home, office, or on vacation. There are many cloud storage companies, and all are easy to find on the internet. Many offer some basic storage for free. There are also many reviews and comparisons of the different services on the internet. Some companies will even automatically backup your data to an external hard drive and, at the same time, also to the cloud. Play it safe and pick one of the big-name cloud storage companies to deal with for your business. Thank you to Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article from his blog Carnival Of The Indies #77D. Isn't Backing Up To The Cloud Risky? Your data will be stored in an encrypted format when it's backed up to the cloud at the storage company, which should prevent most hackers from accessing your data. If you require a greater level of security, you can use your own private encryption key to further reduce possible exposure to data intrusion. The likelihood of a server like Apple's, or Amazon's, or Google's going down is far less than the possibility that your own hard drive or local backup will fail. E. Working Away From Home Or Office

Synopsis In order to become a successful self-publisher, you will need to devote a large part of your life to marketing. This will encompass marketing yourself, as well as your book. Understanding these five ingredients will ensure that your book marketing efforts will be a success, and lead to more book sales, more fans, more followers, and more clients. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn about the five fundamental ingredients of successful book marketing. 2. You will learn why credibility is the most fundamental ingredient for building an audience and selling books. 3. You will learn that all five ingredients working together will help your audience start to trust you. Introduction In order to become a successful self-publisher, you will need to devote a large part of your life to marketing. This will encompass marketing yourself, as well as your book. Like most self-publishers, you the author, and your brand, go hand-in-hand with that of your book. You will quickly learn that writing your book was only the beginning of a long and interesting journey. So, with that in mind, always keep these five basic ingredients in your thoughts when you're marketing and promoting your book. Understanding them will ensure that your book marketing efforts will be a success, and lead to more book sales, more fans, more followers, and more clients. Thank you to Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article from his blog Carnival Of The Indies #76Ingredient # 1. Credibility Credibility is everything for a successful author. You, the author, are the product as much as the book is, so never claim to be what you are not or promise what you can't deliver. A clever marketing pitch may initially get their attention, but ultimately you must deliver on your promises. Your failure to deliver can alienate your audience. “In order to become a successful self-publisher, you will need to devote a large part of your life to marketing.” (Tweet) Ingredient # 2. Emotional Connection Making an emotional connection with the reader is imperative. People want to buy from those that they feel a connection to. All of your marketing materials, media kit, blog, website, videos, articles, etc. will all contribute to helping you make an emotional connection with your audience. Ingredient # 3. Look Professional Every piece of your marketing material must look like it was designed by a professional. If you want to be taken seriously by your audience and peers, you must look the part. If you look professional, and all of your marketing materials look professional, and your book looks professionally produced, your audience will start to trust you and believe your message. Looking the part is an easy first step to help you build credibility. Thank you very much to Lynnette Phillips for posting and linking to my article Ingredient # 4. Understand Audience A successful author must understand the needs and problems of his/her audience. Your audience must believe that you understand their problems and needs, and have the solutions for them. The more that they believe this, the more books you will sell. This goes hand-in-hand with making an emotional connection with your audience. Linkedin - The 5 Basic Ingredients Of Book MarketingIngredient # 5. Repetition All of your marketing materials must be used to their fullest extent, over and over again. Most prospects don't respond immediately to a single marketing communication, or perhaps even several of them. Repetition helps build familiarity, which in turn helps build credibility. “A successful author must understand the needs and problems of his/her audience.” (Tweet) Some prospects will start to recognize you and your book only after they've seen you over and over again. Gradually they come to recognize that you are stable, not just another fly-by-night operation, and will eventually start to develop enough trust to start doing business with...

Synopsis A sell sheet is a one-sheet flyer that gives some detailed information about a book and its author. Here is a short discussion of what a sell sheet is and is not, how to use it, and what information it should include. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. Learn how a sell sheet is defined, and how it compares to a press release. 2. Learn what the basic items are that must be included in a proper sell sheet. 3. Learn how to market your book with a sell sheet. Introduction What Is A Sell Sheet? A sell sheet (sometimes called a “one-sheet” or a “tip-sheet”) is a one-sheet flyer that gives some detailed information about a book and its author. The major point of a sell sheet is to convey your book's benefits in a short and concise manner. It's used to help you market your book directly to book buyers. It's typically used to promote and sell your book to retailers, wholesalers, and even consumers. The sell sheet should always be included in your book's media kit so that news outlets, book reviewers, and bookstores can have quick access to specific details about your book and your marketing plans. Thank you to Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article from his blog Carnival Of The Indies #76How Does A Press Release Compare To A Sell Sheet? A press release and a sell sheet are two different marketing tools. A press release focuses on the news that you or your book is making. The press release is a way to share news-worthy information and is saying, “Hey, look at me, I have some news-worthy information to share with you.” Conversely, a sell sheet is more of an announcement that your book is out and available. The sell sheet is saying, “Hey, look at me, I have published a new book and I want you to buy it. Here is all the information that you need to know before buying my book.” Thank you to Elizabeth Spann Craig for sharing and linking to my post "Sell Sheets: A Guide For New Self-Publishers."What Must A Sell Sheet Include? • Picture/Image: A high-resolution picture or image of your book • Description: A short, but enticing, description about your book • Title: The full title, including the sub-title • Author Name: Your name here, as it appears on your cover, or website • Author Photograph: If you have enough room, include a photo • Co-Author Name: You guessed it, the co-author's name • Foreword Author: This person typically has a name bigger than your own, so if this is true, include it Sell Sheet Example• Category: List the shelving category (BISG category heading), or subject of your book • ISBN 13: The standard book number assigned to your book • Format: Trade paperback, hardcover, pdf, mobi • Publication Date: The date your book will be available for purchase • Pages: The number of pages of your book • Price: The cover price • Trim: The dimensions of your book (5.5”x8.5”, 8.5”x11”, 6”x9”) • Available from: Ingram, B&T, Amazon, for example • Marketing Plans: Targeted internet advertising; direct mail and email marketing; co-operative catalogs and trade show exhibits; social media marketing; video marketing • Quotes/Testimonials/Blurbs: This is important, especially if you have great ones to use • Call-To-Action: A statement such as “Visit MyBooksWebsiteDotCom for more info.” Thank you very much to book publishing expert and author Dr. Judith Briles, of TheBookShepherd.com, for sharing my blog post. Conclusion How Do You Market Your Book Using A Sell Sheet? When designed properly, the sell sheet will be like having a shortened version of your book's webpage. You must use your sell sheet to communicate as many useful and informative details as you can about your book – but without overdoing it. “Sell sheets should communicate as much useful and informative detail as possible – without overdoing it.” (Tweet) Be sure to put a call-to-action that asks the book buyer to call a phone number, or visit your website,

Synopsis Trying to get bookstores to accept your book and give it shelf space is very time-consuming, difficult to achieve, and can become very costly for the self-publisher. Here are ten good reasons that a new self-publisher should AVOID spending valuable time and money trying to get their book into brick-and-mortar bookstores. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn the main reasons that you should avoid selling your books to bookstores. 2. You will learn why most self-publishers will not make money selling through bookstores. 3. You will learn the two biggest reasons that bookstores don't want to sell self-published books. Introduction Trying to get bookstores to accept your book and give it shelf space is very time-consuming, difficult to achieve, and can become very costly for the self-publisher. Most bookstores are not anxious to get your book. And to make matters worse, as a small independent publisher, or self-publisher, you would be at the complete mercy of the bookstores. They set all of the terms, whether you like them or not. Thank you to Joel Friedlander for linking to this article from his website Carnival Of The Indies #28But even if you do everything they want, and spend lots of time and money in the process to get a bookstore to accept your book, and give it some self-space, there is no guarantee that they will sell your book. Here are ten practical good reasons that a new self-publisher should avoid spending valuable time and money trying to get their book into brick-and-mortar bookstores: Reason # 1. Bookstores Only Take Books That They Deem Will Sell More Than A Few Copies They will almost never believe that a self-published book will sell more than a few copies. They know that small publishers don't have the power, connections, budget, or time to execute a large and sophisticated marketing plan. Reason # 2. Bookstores Will Typically Order Less Than 10 Copies Even if they accept your book and agree to give it a few inches of shelf space, most bookstores will order less than ten copies at a time. Limited space in the stockroom is one reason. A second reason is that your book will only be given a short time to prove to the bookstore that the book will sell. If it doesn't sell, they will remove it from their shelf. “Avoid all of the hassles when you are starting as a self-publisher, and stay away from the bookstores.” (Tweet) Reason # 3. Bookstores Only Accept Books That Can Be Returned And they might return all of your books to you – and you must pay to get them back. Some big bookstore chains know that small publishers cannot afford to buy back the books. They will then offer to buy your books back for almost nothing, and then put your book on their discount table. Reason # 4. Bookstores Expect The Publisher To Pay For Shipping Both Ways This is a fact of life for the self-publisher that self-distributes. It's also time-consuming to package your books for shipping, and postage is expensive. Linkedin - 10 Reasons Self-Publishers Should Avoid Selling To BookstoresReason # 5. Bookstores Sell Very Few Books Compared To The Online Retailers This is especially true for self-publishers. Big-name well-established authors, and the biggest publishers, are the ones that get the best displays and locations in the bookstore. Reason # 6. Bookstores Physically Do Not Have Enough Room To Stock All Titles The small bookstores might stock 5,000 titles. The huge bookstores might stock 140,000 titles. Amazon stocks a few million titles. You will end up spending lots of time and money trying to get your book into bookstores, most of which simply do not have the physical space to store your book. Reason # 7. Bookstores Will Force You To Take Back All Of The Damaged Copies Your book will sit on the bookstore's shelf, get handled, bent, banged-up, etc., and then the bookstore will force you to take them back, and expect you pay for the return shipping.

Welcome to this episode of the Real Fast Results podcast!  Today’s special guest is Joel Friedlander, who is an award-winning book designer, blogger, and writer who speaks regularly at industry events.  He is also the author of A Self-Publisher’s Companion and the co-author of The Self-Publisher’s Ultimate Resource Guide.  Furthermore, he’s the owner of the immensely popular blog, The Book Designer, and he was named by Writer’s Digest as one of the 10 top people to follow in book publishing. In addition to all of that, Joel runs a site called BookDesignTemplates.com, and he’s done a really good job of creating templates that help people.  Not only does he provide valuable book templates through this site, he is the webmaster at AuthorToolKits.com, where authors can find digital products to help with their marketing and business activities, and he is the webmaster at BookPlanner.com, which is the only project planning tool that’s specifically designed for indie authors.  Welcome to the show Joel… Download the Complete PDF Show Notes Free for this Episode Developing Template-Based Products Today, I’m promising to deliver a method for monetizing your work and re-purposing material that you may have developed as well as making use of the community that you are trying to gather around yourself – with templates. [bctt tweet="The benefit of developing template-based products is being able to monetize on the work you’ve already created." via="no"] Or it’s creating another product very quickly.  It’s also the advantage of being able to quickly create a product that could be massively helpful to a lot of people. Templates and checklists.  I love them.  I love using them and I love making them for people because they love them.  This is my process, which I have developed with my partner Tracy Atkins. Download the Complete PDF Show Notes Free for this Episode Learn: Identify the problem Have a system in place for feedback Use your blog to identify problems Attend webianrs Q&A's Join Facebook Groups Fill the Need Analyze Plan Promote and Publish your Product Links Books by Joel: A Self-Publisher’s Companion The Self-Publisher’s Ultimate Resource Guide AuthorToolKits.com TheBookDesigner.com BookDesignTemplates.com BookPlanner.com Real Fast Results Community If you are diggin’ on this stuff and really love what we’re doing here at Real Fast Results, would you please do me a favor? Head on over to iTunes, and make sure that you subscribe to this show, download it, and rate & review it. That would be an awesome thing. Of course, we also want to know your results. Please share those results with us at http://www.realfastresults.com/results. As always, go make results happen!

Synopsis Anecdotes are an amazing literary device for writers, as well as marketers. They are a deceptively powerful writing and marketing tool. Here is a short discussion about anecdotes, and how to use them in a book's foreword to help make an emotional connection with the reader, and sell more books. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn what an anecdote is about, and how it can help you sell more books. 2. You will learn how to use anecdotes and how they can turn your book's foreword into a powerful marketing tool. 3. You will learn why I continually emphasize the fact that each part of your book, including the foreword, if planned out properly, can help you sell more books and get more clients. Introduction Anecdotes are an amazing literary device for writers, as well as marketers. They are a deceptively powerful writing and marketing tool. Using anecdotes in the foreword will immediately make your book stand out from the crowd. When written properly, they can be very engaging, and grab and hold onto the reader's attention. This is what the foreword is all about. Hooking the reader with an interesting story, and then reeling them in to make an emotional connection with the author of the foreword. Then hopefully the reader will want to continue reading the entire book. Thank you to Joel Friedlander for linking to this article from his website Carnival Of The Indies #58A. What Is An Anecdote? An anecdote is a very short and interesting personal story from a person's past experiences - that is used to illustrate a point. It can be an experience from the writer, or from someone they know or have heard about. The anecdote, or mini-story, immediately puts the reader directly into the middle of the action. It usually describes one dramatic moment in time. It's written as a way to show, or illustrate, a particular point (show, don't tell). It typically involves something that happened such as a business or personal problem, or challenge that had to be overcome, or mistake that had to get fixed, or misunderstanding, etc. Linkedin - Personalize Your Foreword With Anecdotes To Make It More PowerfulB. How To Use Anecdotes In A Foreword Here is one paragraph from a book foreword that I wrote entirely as a personal essay. I utilize personal anecdotes to show how the book had an effect on me – how I relate the information in the book to my life. I reveal my real-life story to show the reader how I connect with the book. I use my personal story to illustrate a larger point about the content of the book. My job as the foreword author is to show the reader that I made an emotional connection with the book, and thereby the hope is that the reader will make an emotional connection with me – and then develop the desire to read the entire book. Wallace Wattles wrote the book. You can read the entire foreword on my blog. “Anecdotes are a deceptively powerful marketing tool that can help you sell more books.” (Tweet) a. An Example Of An Anecdotal Story Used In A Foreword “But now, looking back at my family life, I have since come to realize that my mother, with almost no formal education, no career skills, no money, and three small children to feed, inherently understood many of the basic concepts in this book. My mother was not as eloquent as Wattles, and she didn't have much of an opportunity to put Wattles' principles into practice." "But me and my brothers were inadvertently living and learning Wattles' concepts every day – through the actions of our mother. She taught us that even in the worst of times, that by sticking to our single-minded vision to grow and thrive, that we will survive; and acting every day with the purpose to achieve our goals, that our faith in each other and in our dream of creating a successful life will help us succeed; and our gratitude to God for keeping us healthy so that we could keep working and studying, we would eventually be successful.

Synopsis In order to become a financially successful author, you must learn how to differentiate and position yourself and your book as the go-to person and book that will help the readers solve their problems. This is not a difficult or overly sophisticated thing to accomplish. But it's something that most other authors do not bother to achieve. Here is a short discussion about differentiation and positioning, and how they relate to each other. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn the definition of “differentiation”. 2. You will learn about “positioning". 3. You will learn how the two work together to help you develop a strategic advantage over other authors. Introduction The never-ending quest to get more readers, and their hard-earned money, is more competitive now than it has ever been before. And as you might have already surmised from your efforts to sell your own books, in order to become a financially successful author, you must learn how to differentiate and position yourself and your book as the go-to person and book that will help the readers solve their problems. And fortunately for you and me, this is not a difficult or overly sophisticated thing to accomplish. And luckily for us, it is something that most other authors do not bother to achieve. Here is a short discussion about differentiation and positioning, and how they relate to each other: Thank you to Sabrina Ricci of DigitalPubbing.com for featuring my blog post "Differentiation And Positioning For Authors" on her blog.A. What Is “Differentiation”? The definition of “differentiation” is as simple and straightforward as it sounds. What attributes do you and your book have that the readers will see as different and desirable? How are you and your book different from other authors and their books? What makes you a better expert in your subject matter? Why should the reader believe that you and your book can do a better job of helping them solve their problems? Why should the reader listen to you over the thousands of other authors? You need to take a hard introspective look at yourself and answer these questions as honestly as possible. If there is any hint of dishonesty in your answers, the reader will see right through it, and NEVER trust you again. “To become a successful author, you must learn how to differentiate yourself and your book from others.” (Tweet) This is not a time to be slick or boastful – just speak from your heart. Readers will immediately feel and appreciate the sincerity. For example, if you write about nursing, perhaps your unique value is that you have been a nursing instructor and director of nursing education for nurses and nursing students for over thirty-five years. And you have extensive experience in critical care, informatics, and policy-and-procedures. You have also won several awards for your teaching from different hospitals and nursing organizations. You have been a medical consultant and advisor to a popular video game and movie. You have been teaching nurses about several different aspects of nursing, as well as teaching other nurses how to become nursing teachers. All of this helps differentiate you from the other nursing authors. It shows that you have achieved career and financial success to a level where most in the nursing profession will never reach. Thank you to Joel Friedlander for linking to this article from his website Carnival Of The Indies #62B. What Is “Positioning”? The definition of “positioning” is also as simple and straightforward as it sounds. Where are you and your book positioned within your niche? For example, your general subject matter might be nursing, but your particular niche might be “critical-care nursing”. Then you might also have a “micro-niche” of an even more specific topic within critical care. You might also position yourself as, for example, the author who speaks at those big critical-care nursing conferences,

Synopsis Testimonials from a wide variety of people are a great way to bring credibility, exposure (eyeballs), and higher sales for your book. Here are eleven sources to find free testimonials that you can use to help promote your book on your website, and in all of your marketing materials. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn where to get free and powerful testimonials for your book. 2. You will learn about the power of a testimonial to bring credibility, exposure, and higher sales for your book. 3. You will learn that getting a variety of testimonials from many different types of people will greatly enhance your credibility, and your book sales. Introduction Testimonials are a great way to bring credibility, wider exposure, and higher sales for your book. Nothing helps to give your book greater and faster attention than a positive quote from a prominent figure or celebrity who is knowledgeable in the field of your book's subject matter. Thank you to Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article from his blog Carnival Of The Indies #75 But regular people can also be a great source of honest, credible, and powerful testimonials. Using a variety of testimonials from many different types of people, celebrities and non-celebrities, in different professions and industries, will greatly enhance your credibility, and your book sales. Here are eleven sources to find free testimonials that you can use to help promote your book on your website, and in all of your marketing materials: Source # 1. Teachers, professors, educators: Think about some of your favorite educators that you had in school, especially the ones that taught a subject similar to your book's subject. Make sure that you also consider the educators with impressive titles, like “Dean”, and “Chairman”, etc. Many in this group will also have been published, so make sure that their most famous, or most successful, or most recent book title is attached to their name. Source # 2. Authors, bloggers: If you have already written your non-fiction book, you will already know who these people are. Email them at their publisher or at their blog and very nicely ask for a testimonial. Source # 3. Industry insiders: Big shots within your industry can be difficult to get testimonials from, but you should try anyway. These will be much easier to get if you are socially active within your industry. But anyone else within your industry that has good accomplishments, or many years on the job, or authored a book, will be just as good for your needs. Source # 4. Professional organization leaders: This group is worth pursuing. Small local celebrities such as those on local TV news, or successful business owners, newspaper reporters, and anyone with a fancy title. Larger celebrities that appear regularly on national TV shows can be very difficult to get – and sometimes want to get paid for their testimonial. Never pay for a testimonial. “Testimonials from a wide variety of people are a great way to bring credibility, exposure, and higher book sales.” (Tweet) Source # 5. Local celebrities: This group is worth pursuing. Small local celebrities such as those on local TV news, or successful business owners, newspaper reporters, and anyone with a fancy title. Larger celebrities that appear regularly on national TV shows can be very difficult to get. Source # 6. Suppliers, manufacturers: Talk to some of the suppliers or manufacturers that you and your company deal with. The best testimonials will be from anyone at these companies with a professional title. But don't forget, those without a fancy title can also be good, especially if they have direct knowledge of you and your work. Source # 7. Charitable organizations: Any charity or religious organization that you belong to, especially if you are actively involved with the group, is a good source of testimonials. Again, try to get someone with a title or impressive ...

Synopsis Amazon provides two very powerful and easy-to-use tools to get our books in front of millions of potential readers and buyers. Together these two tools help form the basic foundation of an author's marketing plan. So, to help get you to start taking advantage of Amazon's benefits, here is a quick look at the two best marketing and selling tools on Amazon that can help make your book a financial success. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn about the two most important Amazon marketing tools that are available to authors. 2. You will learn how to use these tools, in conjunction with your blog and social media accounts, to create a powerful and profitable marketing program. 3. You will learn some of the different aspects of each tool, and how they can work together to make you more money from your books. Introduction As an author and self-publisher, it's absolutely essential that you have a presence on Amazon. And luckily for us, Amazon provides a very powerful and easy way to get our books in front of millions of potential readers and buyers. Even if you use a traditional book-publishing company to publish your book, you still need to have a presence on Amazon. Especially if you expect to sell any books. It's by far the largest book retailer in the world. Amazon has more market presence, more marketing power, a better website, faster delivery speed, and better customer service than any other big company in America. So, to help get you to start taking advantage of Amazon's benefits, here is a quick look at the two best marketing and selling tools on Amazon that can help make your book a financial success: AMAZON BOOK MARKETING TOOL # 1. Amazon Author Central This is the main page for authors in which Amazon allows you to provide your profile, add a video and photos, and link to your blog's feed. This powerful feature is like having an extra webpage devoted to you and your book. Here you'll also be able to track your book sales and see all of your customer reviews. Using Author Central, in conjunction with your blog, will create a very powerful way to market yourself and your book. Having a blog, and an Author Central account, are the very least that you should have for a basic marketing plan for your book. Here Are Some Of The Best Features Of This Tool: Thank you to Joel Friedlander of the BookDesigner.com for linking to this article from his website Carnival Of The Indies #30A. Look-Inside-The-Book This feature allows shoppers to read parts of your book – such as 10%, or 20%, and so on. The reader can see your cover, table of contents, index, foreword, introduction, and parts of different chapters. By applying this feature to your book, a buyer can feel more comfortable when choosing to buy your book over another. If you don't use this Amazon feature, you'll dramatically hurt your book sales. B. Connect Your Blog Feed As an author, it's absolutely essential that you have a blog. This is where you can discuss your book, and anything related to your particular topic. On your Author Central Page simply type in your blog's feed (RSS or Atom). Amazon will display a short portion of your most recent blog postings, which will appear on your Author Page that shoppers can view. By doing this, shoppers will be able to quickly visit your blog and see who you are, and what you care about. Thank you very much to Washington Romance Writers of DC for posting and linking to my article.C. Customer Reviews It's imperative that you get reviews posted on Amazon. The more the better. But for the biggest impact, try to get as many positive reviews as possible posted on Amazon during the first few weeks your book initially appears on Amazon. These first weeks can be crucial to help give your book the higher ranking it needs to help attract more buyers early on. Never stop asking for book reviews from as wide a variety of people as possible. From different demographics,

Synopsis How a carefully written book foreword can boost the career and book sales of both the author of the book, AND the author of the foreword. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn how a carefully written book foreword can boost the career and book sales of both the author of the book AND the author of the foreword. 2. You will learn how and why a foreword helps both authors gain credibility, trust, and respect from the readers. 3. You will learn that a book foreword can give a strategic advantage over other authors who don't understand how to utilize the marketing power of the foreword. Introduction A credible book foreword can and should be, a powerful marketing tool for the author of the book, as well as for the author of the foreword. Both of these authors must not underestimate the power of a credible and authentic foreword, and how it can, if done correctly, forever enhance the career, and book sales, of both authors. Thank you to Joel Friedlander for linking to this article from his website Carnival Of The Indies #65 1. Advantages For The Author Of The Book a. Credibility The book's foreword, especially if written by someone who has already developed a stellar reputation, can certainly help the book's author in countless ways. Not the least of which will be selling more books, helping to bring in new clients, and help build the book author's credibility within his own market. "Never underestimate the marketing power of a great book foreword to boost your credibility and book sales." (Tweet) b. Leverage Basically, the book's author is hoping that the foreword author's well-earned and well-known reputation will rub off onto the book's author. For this reason, the book's author needs to choose someone very carefully. The hope is that the book's author can leverage the foreword author's reputation into boosting his own reputation and gain additional renown for himself. All of this can translate into a following of more readers and more connections on social media, and eventually more sales. Thank you very much to best-selling author and podcaster Kim Smith for sharing and linking to my post. 2. Advantages For The Author Of The Foreword a. Gain Trust And Respect The author of the foreword can also benefit in countless ways, especially IF the book is well-written and very credible. No one should write a book foreword for an author that is not very serious about the topic and has not taken the time to create a well-written, well-thought-out, and professional-looking book. You must understand that as a prominent person in your field, readers and followers are looking to you for guidance, and trust your advice, about a particular subject matter. And by writing the foreword to a book, you are giving your blessing to the book's author. You are essentially telling your own audience, and the book author's audience, that the book is worth reading and trusting. This relationship with the audience is not to be taken lightly or toyed with in the slightest. But if you write an honest and informative foreword, the audience will continue to give you their trust and respect. How A Book Foreword Can Help An #Author's Career https://t.co/zGtOo44uvU @jckunzjr #selfpub— Carla Douglas (@CarlaJDouglas) February 12, 2016 How A Book Foreword Can Help An Author's Career: https://t.co/KJpL7urrHq @jckunzjr— Elizabeth S Craig (@elizabethscraig) June 24, 2016 EzineArticles.com - How A Book Foreword Can Help An Author's Career b. Solidify Reputation But, once the prominent person decides to write the foreword, writing a believable, unbiased, and honest foreword that can make an emotional connection with the reader, can help further solidify the foreword author's reputation. It can help solidify or enhance a reputation because all readers understand that the book foreword is always reserved for a person that plays a prominent role in the book author's life or withi...

Synopsis An effective call-to-action is the linchpin of a successful sell sheet. If it's done right it can help generate greater book sales. The sell sheet's call-to-action will play a pivotal role in making this happen. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn four ways to create a better call-to-action that will improve your response rate. 2. You will learn how to strategically place your CTA for a better response rate. 3. You will learn how and why being aggressive and overselling can hurt your response rate. Introduction Any sell sheet without an effective call-to-action (CTAs) is missing out on a huge marketing opportunity. These simple yet targeted instructions to the reader are directly responsible for encouraging your audience to take the next step toward becoming a buyer of your book. Without an effective call-to-action, your sell sheet will amount to little more than an unprofitable writing exercise. Here are some tips that I have developed from my self-publishing experiences that will help you improve the response rate of your sell sheet: Thank you to Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article from his blog Carnival Of The Indies #74 Tip #1: Place it strategically Put your call-to-action statement in the appropriate place on your sell sheet. On a book's sell sheet, the CTA will typically be included within the section of the publisher's company information, and near the physical details of the book. It might be included in a list of items, or in a separate text box, or simply lined-up on the bottom of the page. It could be a short statement, or a button, or a graphic. Thank you to best-selling author Elizabeth Spann Craig for sharing and linking to my post. Tip #2: Keep it short, simple, and actionable It doesn't need to be long or complicated. And keep it as simple as possible. Your readers don't have time to be wasting trying to figure out what to do to get more information about your book. On the printed version of your sell sheet, make sure that the links are short and easy to follow, and not long or complicated. On the PDF version of your sell sheet, make sure that all of the links are live and clickable. Linkedin - 4 Tips To Writing Better Calls-To-Action Tip #3: Don't just send them to your webpage On my sell sheets, I simply tell them that my books are available from “B&T” and “Ingram”. Every book buyer at every library, university bookstore, and library, and every bookstore retailer knows exactly what this means, and within minutes can order my books. I also list “Amazon” so that the general public can get more information and buy my books within a few minutes. I also offer an email address for more information, as well as my publisher's website address. All very direct, simple, and effective. Meltwater.com - 4 Tips To Writing A Better Call To Action. Thank you to the team at Meltwater.com for posting and sharing my article. Tip #4: Don't oversell Don't appear too aggressive about asking for the sale. You don't want to scare them away. They already know you want to sell your book to them. Instead, your sell sheet should be trying to convince the book buyer that you have a great product that they can benefit from. “A sell sheet without an effective 'call-to-action' is missing out on a huge marketing opportunity.” (Tweet) You can accomplish this by making your sell sheet professional looking and polished, have a great book description, include specific details about your book, show a connection to major book distributors, and give an easy and simple way to get more information and buy your book. Thank you to best-selling author Elizabeth Spann Craig for sharing and linking to my post. Conclusion An effective call-to-action is the linchpin of a successful sell sheet. If it's done right it can help generate greater book sales. Getting the reader interested enough in your book,

Synopsis If your book's description does not grab the reader by the collar, and quickly convince them that you have the answers that they are looking for, you are going to lose them. This short list of tips can improve how you write your book's description - and increase your sales. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn nine ways to write a better book description that will improve your sales. 2. You will learn how important it is for your book's success to grab the reader and hold on. 3. You will learn how addressing the reader's needs, and making an emotional connection, and sincerity, all work together to make your book's description a powerful marketing tool. Introduction If your book's description doesn't grab the reader by the collar and quickly convince them that you have the answers that they're looking for, you're going to lose them. In a matter of seconds, they'll move on to the next book and continue searching for answers. I discovered this very early on in my quest to become a successful self-publisher. So, to deal with this, I have developed a shortlist of tips that can improve how you write your book's description - and hopefully help increase your sales: Thank you to Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article from his blog Carnival Of The Indies #73Tip #1. Develop an introduction that will grab the reader's attention You wrote your entire book for a particular audience in mind. You should already know exactly what you need to say to grab their attention. Try to grab them in the first sentence. This introduction is the hook. And once you hook them, they will be more willing to keep reading. Tip #2. Keep it on the short side If your book description is too long, you risk losing the reader. Get right to the point. As a general rule, you should easily be able to write a very good book description within 100 to 150 words. Linkedin - 9 Tips On Writing A Great Book DescriptionTip #3. Make an emotional connection Making an emotional connection with the reader is essential if you expect the reader to like you and want to read more of what you have to say. Tip #4. Don't oversell by using insincere superlatives All hyperbole that you use must be backed up with real proof. Without believable proof, your reader will very quickly lose all trust in you and your book. Readers can spot insincerity a mile away, and won't tolerate it. “If your BOOK'S DESCRIPTION doesn't quickly grab and hold the reader, you are going to lose them.” (Tweet) Tip #5. Write it in the third person, present tense Whether you are the book's author or publisher, you should write the book's description in the third person and in the present tense. This will make the book description much more believable. Tip #6. Use a quote or testimonial from a third party Testimonials are a very powerful marketing tool, especially if it's from a well-known or very accomplished person. Tip #7. Explain how the reader will benefit from your book What are the most important things the reader will learn from your book? How will the reader personally benefit from reading your book? They want specific and realistic details here. Thank you to Elizabeth Spann Craig for sharing and linking to two of my posts "4 Tips To Writing Better Calls-To-Action;" and "9 Tips On Writing A Great Description For A Non-Fiction Book"Tip #8. How will your book help them solve their problems? The answer to this question is crucial to getting the reader to buy your book. This answer is the main reason that the book buyer is looking at your book in the first place. You must explain in detail how your book will help them with their problems. Tip #9. Add a short call-to-action Subtly ask readers to buy your book, in a non-aggressive way. Ask them to visit your blog to download some free information, or ebook, or free chapter, for example, or your Amazon Author page for more information.

Synopsis A foreword is an essential marketing tool for your non-fiction book. If it's written properly, and with some understanding and forethought about its role in your book's success, it can have a substantial impact on your book sales. In order to create this impact, there are two main ingredients that should be part of a great foreword. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn the two main ingredients needed to create a powerful book foreword. 2. You will learn that a book foreword if planned out properly, can become a powerful marketing tool for your book. 3. You will learn that the foreword has two main goals: to establish your credibility, and to motivate readers to buy your book. Share This Image On Your SitePlease include attribution to "KunzOnPublishing.com" with this graphic. Introduction A foreword is an essential marketing tool for your non-fiction book. If it's written properly, and with some understanding and forethought about its role in your book's success, it can have a substantial impact on your book sales. In order to create this impact, there are two main ingredients that should be part of a great foreword. The first is establishing your credibility for the subject. The second is motivating people to buy your book. These two essential ingredients will give you a very tasty foreword. Thank you to Joel Friedlander for linking to this article from his website Carnival Of The Indies #57Ingredient # 1. Establish Your Credibility Here is a quick overview of what it takes to establish your credibility with readers: The person that is writing your book's foreword must understand what needs to be said in order to show the reader why you have the proper credibility to be writing the book. By using anecdotes, stories, and facts, the foreword's author will show the reader your commitment to the subject, your reputation within the industry, your competence, integrity, values, likeability, and so on. All of this will showcase your credibility for this subject. This ‘third-party' endorsement of you is extremely powerful and can become very profitable for you. All of this discussion about you will also help the reader make an emotional connection with you. The deeper this connection becomes, the greater chances you have of selling them a book. “The foreword has two main goals: to establish your credibility, and to motivate readers to buy your book.” (Tweet) Ingredient # 2. Motivate People To Read Your Book Here is a quick overview of what it takes to motivate readers to buy your book: The person that's writing your book's foreword must also understand what needs to be said about your book in order to motivate the reader to buy your book. This can be accomplished once it's understood that all people are basically motivated by (1) the need to avoid a loss, and (2) the desire to gain a reward. These motivations can be used to your advantage. You do this by showing how your book will give the reader what he needs, or how to solve his problem (both avoiding a loss). Or, show her how she can make more money, or get what she wants (both gaining a reward). Many readers already know that they have a need or a problem. But some don't. Therefore, the foreword must explain the need or problem and show how your book will help get them what they need or fix their problem (both motivations). Linkedin - 2 Ingredients That Make A Book Foreword GreatConclusion Here is what you must take away from this article: 1. As your credibility increases, the reader begins to trust you more, which also increases the emotional connection the reader makes with you. 2. The more you can satisfy the reader's desire to get what they need, or fix their problem, or show them how to make more money, or get more of what they want, the more they'll be motivated to buy your book. If you understand nothing else about book marketing, but intimately understand these two ingredients,

Synopsis Niche marketing and micro-niche marketing are essential and powerful ingredients in the success of your book and your self-publishing business. Here's an introduction to some of the terms and ingredients needed to develop and grow your specific niche and make your book and self-publishing business a financial and critical success. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn what the word “niche” means, and how it relates to self-publishing. 2. You will learn what you need to do to become an expert in a particular niche. 3. You will learn why you will become a more successful self-publisher by devoting yourself to your micro-niche. Introduction Niche marketing and micro-niche marketing (sounds like nitche, not neech) are essential and powerful ingredients in the success of your book and your self-publishing business. With niche and micro-niche marketing, you'll be primarily concerned with who your tightly defined audience is, what specific problems do they need help with, and where exactly are they to be found. Here's an introduction to some of the terms and ingredients needed to develop and grow your specific niche and make your book and self-publishing business a financial and critical success: 1. Niche Publishing Defined Niche publishing means publishing to a very specific, tightly defined, focused audience. If, for example, you've been living in New York City's Manhattan for many years, and have become an expert in ‘roof-top gardening in the city', this would be your niche. Your niche would not be ‘gardening in North America'. It also wouldn't be ‘gardening in the North East'. Share This Image On Your SitePlease include attribution to https://kunzonpublishing.com/ with this graphic. 2. Micro-Niche For Super-Expert Status But, if you didn't want to ever write about gardening in any other city, and wanted to be considered the foremost expert only on New York City roof-top gardening, you could further refine your niche to be ‘roof-top gardening only in New York City'. Nowadays, this very small specific niche would be called a ‘micro-niche'. Thank you very much to marketing expert and author Neil Patel for sharing my infographic on his blog NeilPatel.com By focusing only on your micro-niche of New York City roof-top gardening, you don't waste your time, effort, and money on chasing after the audiences in other cities. You would be devoting all of your efforts to building your personal brand as a passionate expert in this one very narrowly defined micro-niche. “Niche and micro-niche marketing are essential and powerful ingredients in the success of your book.” (Tweet) 3. Become An Expert To promote your books, and give yourself credibility with your readers, you would need to write articles, and a blog, and a website, etc., devoted to ‘roof-top gardening in New York City' – which is where you live and maintain your roof-top garden. You might expand on this niche to cover all gardening within New York City. You could then become well known as an expert in this specific subject. Therefore, your readers, and potential customers, would trust that you have very extensive knowledge about this subject or niche, and happily buy the roof-top gardening books that you write. Thank you to Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article from his blog Carnival Of The Indies #664. Publishing With A Mission After you successfully publish your book on your niche, you might decide to grow your self-publishing business into a niche publishing company. To do this you might go out and find other authors to publish, that are experts in city gardening, in each of the other big cities in the U.S. Your company would become known as the publisher that specializes in helping city-dwellers build and maintain a successful garden. This would become your company's mission. 5. The Best Way To Grow Your Self-Publishing Business This expertise,

Click here to download this PDF ebook               Synopsis Your book's Introduction is a crucial first step for readers. It prepares them for what's to come AND ignites their interest to read on. This makes your book's Introduction an important marketing tool for your book. Here is a short list of questions that you must think about AND answer BEFORE writing your book's Introduction. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn the five main sections that a great book Introduction must include. 2. You will learn what questions you must ask yourself BEFORE writing your Introduction. 3. You will learn how these questions will help you write a better book, that will help more people, and make you more money. Introduction Before writing your book's Introduction, you must put yourself into your reader's shoes. How will they view your book? What might be their first impression? What's in it for them? Your readers will only buy your book if they believe that your book is going to help them resolve a problem or need that they are trying to find answers for. Prospective readers scan the Introduction before making a buying decision. Serious readers are sure to devour it. And with the Introduction positioned at the beginning, it's logical that most people who pick up your book will start reading there. Remember, your Introduction is a crucial first step for readers. It prepares them for what's to come AND ignites their interest to read on. This makes your book's Introduction an important marketing tool for your book. So, to help you get started, and get your creative and marketing juices flowing, I have created this short list of questions that you must think about AND answer before writing your book's Introduction: Thank you to Joel Friedlander for linking to this article from his website Carnival Of The Indies #27Part 1. The Hook a. Why should the reader buy your book? b. What is the most telling sentence or paragraph in your book that is about your book? c. What statement in your book has the ability to grab your reader's attention? d. Would that statement grab your attention if you were the reader? e. What facts and statistics can you use to grab the reader's attention? f. What shocking or amazing news headline can you use to grab your reader's attention? g. What are the biggest concerns and challenges of the audience for your book? h. Is your book's hook big enough to grab the reader? Publetariat - April Hamilton's website for people who publish Part 2. The Connection a. What can you say to make an emotional connection with your reader? b. What problems, concerns, and issues, can your book help the reader solve? c. Why is your audience having these issues? d. Why haven't they been able to solve them? e. Why are these issues so hard to fix or solve? f. How will you explain to your audience why and how you know about these questions? g. How will you convince them that you are the one with the answers and that you want to share this information with them? h. Are your credentials on this topic relevant enough to tell the reader about them? i. Will the reader care about your credentials? j. How else can you relate to the reader? Linkedin - Questions To Ask BEFORE Writing Your Book's IntroductionPart 3. The Benefits a. How will your book help the reader? b. Will your book be useful to the reader? c. Will it inspire or help the reader with a problem? d. What are the benefits to the reader, if they read your book? e. What are some of the general benefits? f. What are some of the specific benefits? g. What are your book's most important benefits? h. Why would your reader buy your book? i. What kind of results have other readers of your book achieved? “Your book's Introduction is a crucial first step for readers. And written properly, can help you sell more.” (Tweet) Part 4. The Format a.

Synopsis Testimonials need to be one of the key ingredients of your book's marketing plan. If they're created and utilized properly, they can have a very positive impact on your sales. This list gives you a quick run-down of a variety of testimonials. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn about the seven most common types of testimonials. 2. You will learn the essential ingredients that enable a testimonial to help your book sales. 3. You will learn why you must get an assortment of testimonials. Introduction Testimonials need to be one of the key ingredients of your book's marketing plan. If they're created and utilized properly, they can have a very positive impact on your sales. This list gives you a quick run-down of a variety of testimonials. Thank you to Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article from his blog Carnival Of The Indies #73 By reading this list you will get a good idea of what makes an effective testimonial, a mediocre one, and a useless one. Once you understand the differences, you'll be better prepared to explain to your readers and fans how to create a testimonial that will help you improve your book sales. Here is my list of the 7 types of testimonials that you should know about and recognize: Type # 1. Faked Testimonial I strongly advise against using a fake testimonial. Readers, who are also your customers, are very sophisticated, and very tuned-in to what is real or fake. If there's even the slightest hint of being contrived, you'll lose your audience – and they won't come back. Don't forget, it's extremely easy to get legitimate testimonials. So, there's no practical reason to create fakes. You must be very careful not to do things like this because it'll cause you and your book to lose credibility with your audience. And, as a self-publisher, credibility with your audience is absolutely essential if you expect to have any kind of success – financial or critical. Building credibility with your audience can take years to build. Don't ruin all of your hard work by being too lazy to get legitimate testimonials. Thank you very much to Heather Woods for posting my article.Type # 2. Real Testimonial, without person's name, title, and company For example: “Jones' book was really good.” Zachary S. This testimonial is a total waste of time, and insulting to your audience. Your audience will automatically assume that these are fake – even if they're real. And, if by remote chance they're not perceived as fake, your audience will question why none of your readers would give their full name and title. You'll lose sales either way. There are plenty of people out there that are willing to use their full name and title – and your buying audience knows this. Your job as a self-publisher and book marketer is to find them. Type # 3. Real Testimonial, with person's name, title, and company, talking about your book in generalities For example: “Jones' book was really fun to read.” Dr. Zachary Smith, associate physics professor, MIB University. This one is also way too vague to be of much value to your buying audience. But at least this one has a real person with a fancy title attached to it. You'll need to get back to this person and ask them for a more specific testimonial. Mention to them a few things in your book that they might have noticed or been interested in. Tell them more about what you were trying to accomplish with your book. Linkedin - 7 Types Of TestimonialsType # 4. Real Testimonial, with person's name, title, and company, talking about you the author For example: “Jones is an amazing author and teacher. His writing is so clear and concise.” Dr. Zachary Smith, associate professor in physics, MIB University. This is a nice statement about you, the author, but doesn't say anything about the book itself. Some of your buying audience might be swayed to purchase your book because it says nice things about you.

My guest on today’s episode is Joel Freidlander of Marin Bookworks. Joel is a blogger and book designer who was named by Writer’s Digest as one of the 10 people to follow in book publishing. On today’s program we discuss the power of self publishing a book including: • The most important things you need to know about self publishing • The main differences between self publishing and traditional publishing • On demand print publishing • Major mistakes people who self publish make • What happens after a book is self published

How To Write A Preface That Will Make You Look Like A Pro, AND Get You More Book Sales Synopsis The preface is one of the important places for you to make an emotional connection with the reader. The more that the reader understands you, and can identify with you, and has formed some emotional connection with you, the more they will enjoy and learn from reading your book. This will translate into more sales, and help give your book a longer life span. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn what a book preface is, and why it's included in a book. 2. You will learn the basic structure of a preface. 3. You will learn why you must use the preface to help you develop an emotional connection with the reader. Introduction There's considerable confusion among some new authors, and some of the reading public, about what the preface is for, and why it's included in a book. But, once a writer and reader understand the how, what, when, where, and why about the function of the preface, they will quickly come to understand its pivotal role in making the book a complete finished project. Here are some questions that will help you better understand this important section of the book, and thereby enable you to write a preface that will help the reader have a better reading experience with your book: Thank you to Joel Friedlander of the BookDesigner.com for linking to this article from his website Carnival Of The Indies #27Question #1: What Is The Preface? And What's Its Purpose? The book preface (PREF-iss, not PRE-face) is a short explanation about why you wrote your book. The book introduction, on the other hand, is all about the benefits the reader will get from reading your book. The preface is about you, and the introduction is about the reader. But never forget, both should be written by the book's author, and that both must show your passion and thereby make an emotional connection with the reader. In contrast to the preface and introduction, the book's foreword is not written by the book's author. It's written by a guest author, generally, a person that is well known within a certain industry, that can bring third-party credibility to you, the book's author. Publetariat - April Hamilton's website for people who publishQuestion #2: What Is The Structure Of The Preface? The preface discusses the story of how your book came into being, or how the idea for your book was developed by you, the author. In order to be a successful marketing tool, it must be written to show your passion for the subject matter, and your inspiration for writing the book. Here's your chance to infect the reader with your passion for the topic you've written about. Show the reader that you're a kindred spirit and have a passion in common. Here your aim is to make the reader empathize with you and identify your genuineness in writing the book. Here You Should Answer Questions Such As: 1. How was the concept of the book born? 2. How did you think of writing the book? 3. Why are you writing about this topic? 4. What are you trying to achieve by writing this book? 5. What are your qualifications to write this book? 6. What other books have you written? 7. Why are you writing this book now? 8. What was your main source of inspiration? 9. Why did you re-write this book? So What's The Bottom Line? The explanation to these questions can be autobiographical. You can tell the background, the context, and the circumstances that brought you to write this book. The bottom line must be, “Why did you write this book?” Be very clear and honest about this. No exaggeration or puffery. And always write in the first person, and in a friendly manner. Also, use your own voice when writing this way, and speak directly to your audience. Linkedin - The Preface: Share Your Inner Passion For Better Book SalesQuestion #3: How Do I Close The Preface? The main body of the preface is followed by a statement of thanks and ...

Ep#44: Indie Author Fringe Highlight with Joel Friedlander and Nick Stephenson. As authors, we all know the role that social media plays in our ability to connect with readers, but the most beneficial ways of establishing a 1:1 relationship with your potential customers is via your email list. Start your list building early: Between them, Joel and Nick have lots of indie author and self-publishing knowledge and expertise, and although their email marketing approaches may differ, they both agree authors need to establish their email list as soon as they start their indie author journey. This is the most crucial factor in your long term success as an author. Not only is it the ideal way to establish a direct line of communication with your readers, but it provides an opportunity to cultivate relationships, it extends your reach and exposure, and helps you raise awareness for your books (or other products). Size doesn’t matter!: When it comes to lists, size doesn’t matter. What’s important is the quality of your list, and how responsive your email contacts are to your communications. Your goal is to compel your list to act, even if it’s in their self-interest (e.g. downloading a free book). The concept of permafree is a well known way of using your book as a promotional tool, but you don’t have to give a book away to have it working on your behalf. Nick includes a large graphic at the front and back of each of his books, offering a free download to anyone who joins his list. Other topics covered: How to attract traffic to your website. Engage with your Audience. Use your Writing Skills to build your email List. Our weekly Self-Publishing Advicebroadcast is brought to you by ALLi, the Alliance of Independent Authors. This Indie Author Fringe Highlight  is one of four regular shows, which include an ALLi Member Q&A, a beginners' salon and an advanced self-publishing salon. Find more author advice, tips and tools at our self-publishing advice center, www.selfpublishingadvice.org. And, if you haven’t already, we invite you to join our organization and become a self-publishing ally. You can do that at www.allianceindependentauthors.org.   If you're not familiar with our Fringe event, it's three-times a year, online conference for self-publishing authors, brought to you by the Alliance of Independent Authors (ALLi), and fringe to the major global publishing fairs; London Book Fair, BookExp, and Frankfurt Book Fair. ALLi brings together the most up-to-date self-publishing education and information available and broadcasts it to authors everywhere. Running 24 sessions over 24 continuous hours allows our members, and other authors round the globe, to attend sessions, no matter where they’re located. For more information, visit our Conference Home Page.   Now, go write and publish.

Synopsis If you have any hope of having your book achieve financial and critical success, you must understand how your readers, view your book when they first see it. Once you fully understand how your readers will perceive your book when they first see it, you can adjust your book accordingly. It's not a difficult process, but one you must devote some serious quality time to exploring. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn how to improve your book's sales by fully understanding how your readers perceive you and your book. 2. You will learn what specific questions you must ask yourself in order to improve the reader's perception of you and your book. 3. You will learn what things readers notice first about your book, and how those things can affect their perceptions. Introduction If you have any hope of having your book achieve financial and critical success, you must understand how your readers (your customers), view your book (your product) when they first see it (online or on a shelf). Once you fully understand how your readers will perceive your book when they first see it, you can adjust your book accordingly. Share This Image On Your SitePlease include attribution to https://kunzonpublishing.com/ with this graphic. Put Yourself In The Shoes Of The Buyer In order to accomplish this, you must separate yourself from your personal feelings about your book, and think as the objective buyer would think. Think about who the audience is for your book, and try to step into their shoes, and then look at your book objectively, and subjectively – through their eyes. Thank you to Iryna Spica of Spica Book Design for featuring this article on her website.Important Questions To Ask Yourself Question # 1. What would attract you to a book like yours? Question # 2. What would attract people in your audience to a book like yours? Question # 3. Would you as a buyer be more attracted to a handsome cover, or to the cover blurbs? Question # 4. Would you buy a book based on its cover art, or because of the well-known names that are quoted on the cover? Question # 5. Does the book's page count seem too long, or too short, to cover the topic adequately? Question # 6. Does the subtitle seem to be promising too much for such a topic? Question # 7. How does your book's attributes compare to other books within your subject category? Here is a quick look at the first things that readers notice when they first view your book: Thank you to Nancy and Merritt Barnes of StoriesToTellBooks.com for quoting and linking to my article "7 Things Readers Notice When Picking Up A Book". Also quoted in this article are Chip Kidd, Michael Hyatt, Mark Coker, and Kristen Eckstein. 1. Cover Art Having the appropriate graphics, images, photos, illustrations, colors, fonts, etc., are essential if you expect to get noticed by book buyers. Books with a great-looking cover almost always sell better on Amazon than those that have a lame, confusing, or unprofessional-looking cover. What needs to be on your book's cover that will draw in, or attract, a reader and a buyer? Are the graphics, colors, and fonts appropriate to the book's subject matter? Make sure that you design several covers. And don't be afraid to hire professional help. Thank you to author Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article.2. Title And Subtitle Your title must grab your buyer as quickly as possible. Generally, it must let the reader know what your book is about in as few words as possible. You can give more specific details in the subtitle. The subtitle is where the author lets the buyer really know what the book is about. When deciding which book to purchase, the buyer will usually give more weight to the subtitle than to the main title. Thank you very much to author and blogger Kristi Bernard, of KristiBernard.WordPress.com, for sharing my post "7 Things Readers Notice When Picking Up A Book."

Synopsis If you want to share your book with the world, and thereby help as many people as possible, and make some money doing that, you'll need to treat your book like a product that your business sells. And that means learning about marketing, especially online marketing. But don't stress out over this. It's actually an interesting process that can also become a very enlightening learning experience. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn about the fundamental elements of a successful marketing plan. 2. You will learn how these elements are defined, and how they can help you sell more books. 3. You will learn how and why you must treat your book like a product that your business sells. How To Build A Better Marketing Plan, And Sell More Books Introduction If you have any hopes of making money with your self-published book, you'll need to become familiar with online marketing. But, if you self-published your book simply for the sake of seeing your name in print, that's fine too. But, if you want to share your book with the world, and thereby help as many people as possible, and make some money doing that, you will need to treat your book like a product that your business sells. And that means learning about marketing, especially online marketing. But don't stress out over this. It's actually an interesting process. Thank you to author Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article. So, to get you started, here is an explanation of the five basic elements of a successful online marketing plan: Element # 1. Credibility Credibility refers to the impression we make on our readers. Credibility is by far the most important part of marketing. Without this trait, our marketing efforts will not work well. With this trait, your readers, your followers, your buyers, and your customers, will listen to your message – and hopefully, look to you for even more information. Your credibility, and your believability, will keep readers hooked. They will then be more likely to take a chance and buy from you. Element # 2. Usability Usability refers to how well people can use and understand your online marketing. All of your online marketing efforts need to be as user-friendly as possible. This means that your website and blog need to be easy to understand and use. Its navigation buttons need to be easy to see and follow. Your contact information needs to be easy to find. APSS-SPAN - The Five Elements Of Successful Online Marketing Element # 3. Visibility Visibility refers to your ability to get noticed. The whole point of marketing is to get you and your book noticed. We do this by utilizing social media such as Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, etc. We can also get interviewed on the radio, or in a magazine, or write a guest blog post, or get our book reviewed, or create a podcast. The number of ways to get noticed by a specific audience are limitless. Of course, your own website will have links to all of the places that you get mentioned, as well as to all of your social media pages. “If you want to share your book with the world, and thereby help as many people as possible, and make some money doing that, you will need to treat your book like a product that your business sells.” (Tweet) Element # 4. Sellability Sellability refers to how well you can show and tell your audience about yourself and your book. People need to understand why your book is worth buying from you. We can help with this process with press releases, videos, and testimonials. Having credibility, usability, and visibility all together makes you and your book much more sellable. WritersCafe.org - The Five Elements Of Successful Online Marketing Element # 5. Scalability Scalability refers to the increasing momentum that your marketing efforts will achieve over time. This momentum will happen when you continue to improve your credibility, usability, visibility,

Synopsis Here is a beginner's list of effective, popular, proven-to-work, and low-cost ways to market your book. The steps to marketing your book, and deciding which avenues are good for you to utilize for this, might take you a few months to figure out. But all of the tips on this list are very easy to set up, are generally very low maintenance, and most of them are low or no cost to you. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn about several low-cost and low-maintenance marketing outlets for your book. 2. You will learn how you can develop a strong and easy-to-maintain book marketing plan. 3. You will learn how and why book sales are dependent on using several different marketing avenues at the same time. Introduction Here is a beginner's list of effective, popular, proven-to-work, and low-cost ways to market your book. I personally use every one of them, so I know for a fact that they are an effective way to build up your audience and sell more books. Thank you to the amazing author Maureen Crisp for linking to my blog post. The steps to marketing your book, and deciding which avenues are good for you to utilize for this, might take you a few months to figure out. But all of the tips on this list are very easy to set up, are generally very low maintenance, and most of them are low or no cost to you. Thank you to author Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article. Tip # 1. Blog Your Book: Post articles from your book, as well as articles on related topics, on your blog. This is a great way to prove to your audience that you know what you are talking about. Writing on your blog is also a practical way to create content that eventually might go into your current book or next book. The best website for this tip is WordPress. Tip # 2. Write Guest Posts On Popular Blogs: This is a very effective way to get your name in front of the readers on other blogs that also cover topics similar to yours. You should only post useful content on other blogs that let you include a link back to your blog. If they don't allow this, don't waste your time and effort on them. Linkedin - 10 Amazing Low-Cost Ways To Market Your Book Tip # 3. Get Published On A Big-Name Media Website: Try to get an article or two published on the website of a big-media magazine or a newspaper. This will get you a lot of credibility with your audience – and this credibility will eventually help you sell more books. The very big mass-media publications are very difficult to get published in – especially for beginners. So it might be easier to start with industry-specific publications. These smaller publications are always in need of high-quality content from someone that they can trust. 10 Low-Cost Ways To Market Your Book: https://t.co/J1wfDrLoqL @jckunzjr— Elizabeth S Craig (@elizabethscraig) August 14, 2016 Tip # 4. Post Your Profile: Post your profile and picture on the most popular social media websites. This is a great no-cost way of getting very wide exposure on the internet – and, most importantly, in Google searches. At the very least, make sure that your profile is on the most important sites such as LinkedIn, Google+, Twitter, Amazon, and most importantly, your own blog. Make sure your profile is always up-to-date and accurate. Tip # 5. Connect Your Blog: Websites, such as Amazon and GoodReads, will connect your blog to your profile page on their website. This means that every time you post to your own blog, it'll also show up on their website - automatically. “Successful book marketing happens because of the cumulative effect of using many different marketing efforts over the long-term.” (Tweet) Tip # 6. Create A Google+ And Pinterest Account: Both of these are very important, popular, and a free way to connect with others. It takes a while to figure out how to use all of their features. Google+ is losing some of its importance and power as a social media tool,

Synopsis Getting a “big-name” to write the foreword for your book is a great way to jump-start bigger sales and get positive publicity for your book. If you're an unknown author, getting a notable leader in your field to write your foreword is essential if you want to get readers to take a chance on you and buy your book. Having your name associated with a VIP will greatly enhance your credibility within your industry and with your readers. Here's a quick introduction to get you started. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn how and why getting a VIP to write your book's foreword will jump-start your sales. 2. You will learn how to explain to the VIP that writing your foreword is a win-win for you and the VIP. 3. You will learn how and why a foreword is similar to a recommendation about you and your book. A Quick Introduction To Getting A VIP To Write Your Foreword Introduction Getting a notable VIP, industry guru, or celebrity to write the foreword for your book is a great way to jump-start bigger sales and get positive publicity for your book. If you're an unknown author, getting a notable leader in your field to write your foreword is essential if you want to get readers to take a chance on you and buy your book. Having your name associated with a VIP will greatly enhance your credibility within your industry and with your readers. Thank you to author Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article. It's A Win-Win Forewords give the VIP another place to demonstrate their skills and knowledge and an opportunity to connect with your audience in a deeper way - a great selling point to consider when you ask someone to write your foreword. You get a foreword for your book that will help improve your sales, and the foreword author gets additional exposure and credibility for their own name. It's a win-win situation for the book's author and the foreword's author. In addition, you should discuss who the market is that your book is addressing so that the VIP that you have chosen to write your foreword can readily see that you are marketing your book to a similar audience that they serve. Doing this allows them to see the advantages of having their name visible to your network of readers. Also, your network, and your demographic, might not have had any previous exposure to this VIP. This could be a chance for them to pick up a new group of readers for them too. Thank you to Rochelle Stone for posting this article on her blog BarefootBasics.com/. It's A Glorified Recommendation The process of getting a foreword written is about the same as with endorsements, but instead of a few sentences like in a short endorsement or blurb, the VIP writes what amounts to a glorified recommendation letter to the reader – which becomes the foreword. It can be as short as several paragraphs or as long as a few pages, and gives, in greater detail, the reasons why the VIP recommends you and your book. Thank you to Elizabeth Spann Craig for sharing and linking to my two posts "10 Low-Cost Ways To Market Your Book"; and, "Getting A Big-Name To Write Your Book's Foreword." What's In It For Them? One thing to remember is that you should not be selling the VIP on the greatness of your book. You need to sell them on their own value as a potential endorser of your book. In other words, don't start off by saying how great your book is, start by saying why you admire their opinion and why it's important for you to have it. “Getting a “big-name” to write the foreword for your book is a great way to jump-start bigger sales and get positive publicity for your book.”(Tweet) Also share your reasons for writing the book, why you chose this topic, and who the market your book is benefiting from. And then they can readily see that you are marketing to a similar audience that they already serve, or want to serve. Doing this allows them to see the advantages of having their name visible ...

Synopsis There's a learning curve to successful blogging. And it'll take several months to fully learn most aspects of blogging and how to do it successfully. But the benefits that you and your business might gain can be enormous. Here are ten essential basic steps that you must heed in order to properly set up your blog. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn the most important and essential steps to setting up your blog. 2. You will learn very specific tips to make your blog look professional. 3. You will learn how and why these steps can help get your readers to appreciate and trust your blog. Introduction It's absolutely essential that you get your blog up and running as quickly as possible. As soon as you realize what specific topic, or niche, that you want to write about - start writing. This will help you build up a body of work that shows the world that you are an expert in your niche. But if you already have expertise in a particular topic, and have built up a body of work that you have previously written, you need to break that work down into a format that is blog-friendly. Here are ten essential basic steps that you must follow in order to properly set-up your blog and quickly get it running smoothly: Thank you to author Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article. Step # 1. Open A WordPress Blog As a beginner, you should go directly to WordPress. Do not waste your time on any of the other blogging websites. This one is by far considered the best and most user-friendly one that is available. It's very simple to use, and has many free add-ons, called widgets, are available. Most bloggers use this site, so there is plenty of help and advice available on the internet. But basically, WordPress.org gives you total control of your blog. WordPress.com is hosted by WordPress and you have less control. But do a search to learn more about the differences and the costs involved. Step # 2. Write Your Profile And Add A Headshot You must put a lot of thought into creating your profile. Start by using your LinkedIn profile to help you write this. Give some specific information about yourself, but DO NOT exaggerate. And DO NOT oversell yourself by being boastful or arrogant. Write several sentences giving the essential, but relevant, information that a reader might need to determine that you have the relevant experience to be writing about your blog's topic. Include a nice photograph of your face. B2C - Business 2 Community Website - 10 Basic Steps To Setting Up Your Blog Step # 3. Write Your Blog Posts Your blog posts can be written about anything that you want to write about. Some will be written like a formal essay. Some will be a one-paragraph quick tip. But always remember, that each post must support your niche. Any information that you post on your blog must benefit your readers and your followers. Write your posts in an appropriate and respectful style. Do not exaggerate, or talk down to the readers, or talk over their heads. Write to them in a way that shows you have respect for the subject matter, and for the readers. I don't care if you're a big-university intellectual or a wealthy big-shot celebrity. Your job as a blogger is to help the readers by sharing your expertise and experiences in a particular topic. They won't mind you tooting your own horn once in a while. But helping the readers should be the main reason you have a blog in the first place. Your personal need to show the world that you're an expert should come second. Remembering this is the key to producing a great blog. Thank you to Elizabeth Spann Craig for sharing and linking to my post "10 Basic Steps To Setting-Up Your Blog." Step # 4. Keep Your Posts Short A typical everyday post should generally be at least 400 words, and typically not more than 2,000 words. Each post should be about one specific topic. If your article is longer than this,

Marketplace Or Heart: Where Do The Best Book Ideas Originate? Synopsis This is one of the initial big questions would-be authors ask when they finally decide that they want to write their first book. The answer isn't as elusive as many might believe. And dealing with this question early in the writing process will help ensure your book will achieve some measure of success. Here's a short discussion to help you figure out where to find the answer. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn why and where the best book ideas originate from. 2. You will learn the difference between what the market wants, and what you want. 3. You will learn where and how to find and develop your book ideas that have a good chance of becoming a success. Introduction This is one of the initial big questions would-be authors ask when they finally decide that they want to write their first book. The answer isn't as elusive as many might believe. The best book ideas can be developed by looking at what is currently selling well on Amazon, AND matching that with what your heart desires to write about. Choosing your book idea based completely on one way or the other is certain to make your book a failure. But choosing your book's subject matter based on a combination of both (marketplace needs and your heart's needs) is certain to make your book a success. Thank you to author Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article. A. Marketplace Or Heart? 1. Marketplace: When it comes to picking an idea for a new book, some authors will base their entire decision on what they think will be popular in the marketplace. Maybe they believe that this will be the easiest way to make a quick buck. But, if their choice of topics is based solely on what other people are buying on Amazon, then there won't be enough personal conviction and authority behind the book – and you and the book will lose credibility with readers. This will almost certainly guarantee that the book will be a dud. Share This Image On Your SitePlease include attribution to https://kunzonpublishing.com with this graphic. 2. Heart: Alternatively, some will completely ignore what books the marketplace is buying and solely base their decision to write their book about a topic of interest to themselves only. This is unfortunate because they will miss out on the most rewarding part of authoring a book, which is the sharing of information with readers that might benefit from your experiences. But, this will also guarantee that the book will be a financial loser, and read by almost no one. Ezine Articles - Do The Best Book Ideas Originate In The Marketplace Or In The Heart Of The Author? B. What Is The Answer? In the middle: As you might have already surmised, the answer is somewhere in the middle. This intersection, somewhere in the middle, is the place where the readers' needs and what your heart desires meet each other. This is an important spot because this is where financially successful books are made - where your expertise, and the need in the marketplace, meet each other. So, if you are really passionate about an idea, but no one else cares about it, then your book will not be a financial success. To become a financial success, AND to make sure that as many people as possible read your book, your idea (subject matter) for your book must line up with what the readers need to solve their problems. Up until this point, it is all hoping and guessing, and a lot of wasted conviction on your part. Linkedin - Marketplace Or Heart: Where Do The Best Book ideas Originate? C. Where To Start? Blog: Your blog is the first place to start. This is where you have been writing about your subject for the last year or two. This is also where you have been developing your writing voice, and showing your audience that you have a passion for your subject matter. As the writer of your blog,

Synopsis Many self-publishers have probably forgotten the power of this marketing strategy – or don't believe that this method can work for a tech-savvy self-publisher. But, for the authors of non-fiction, especially those that own a business, a book's marketing plan isn't complete without some use of direct mail. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn why direct marketing can be a good marketing tool for the self-publisher. 2. You will learn why direct marketing is still relevant in today's fast-paced and high-tech world. 3. You will learn exactly how I continue to build my list of names and addresses. Introduction When it comes to marketing your self-published book, there are a number of options open to you. But one of the most ignored marketing methods at your disposal is direct mail marketing. For a small cost, you can physically reach your sales prospects in a short space of time. Many self-publishers have probably forgotten the power of this marketing strategy – or don't believe that this method can work for a tech-savvy self-publisher. And, online and social media marketing strategies have, for the most part, replaced what was once viewed as the most effective marketing strategy. But, for the authors of non-fiction, especially those that also own a business, a book's marketing plan isn't complete without some use of direct mail. Thank you to author Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article. Isn't Direct Mail Marketing Dead? Direct mail marketing might be considered ‘old-school' by many of today's high-tech marketing people, but it can still be a powerful marketing tool. And because of this, a self-publisher that wants to sell more books needs to be using direct mail marketing as one part of their overall marketing plan. And don't forget, not all people have an email account. But everyone has a physical mailbox – that they visit every day – without exception. In contrast to this, most emails do not get opened. This is because it's no longer easy to impress us with a few slick words in the message line. Regular mail has a better chance of getting opened. It might sit around in a person's home or office, waiting to be dealt with. But eventually, it will be looked at. You, as a self-publisher and marketer, have an opportunity to design your mail piece to wow the recipient and try to get them to open it. “A book's marketing plan is not complete without some use of direct mail.” (Tweet) What Is Direct Mail Marketing? Direct mail marketing is, as its name implies, a way for you to get your marketing materials directly into the hands of your prospects, by using the mail system. Postcards, flyers, and brochures are the most common marketing materials to be sent. Of course, direct mail has its advantages and disadvantages. But when used properly, and with proper planning, it can be a powerful and cost-effective way for you to make a direct and personal connection with your prospects. The direct-mail marketing plans that have the most impact are only sent to specific people, at specific addresses, at specific times of the year. EzineAricles.com - Direct Mail For The Self-Publisher How Do I Build A Prospect-List Of Names And Addresses? There are four main ways for a self-publisher to build a list of names and addresses: 1. Ask Your Followers: Ask your followers on social media to voluntarily sign-up for your mail list; 2. Current And Past Customers: If you already have an existing business and self-publish your book as a way to promote your business's services, and the book's subject matter is appropriate for your customers, you already have their home or office address, so add them to your mailing list; 3. Find New Names: Develop your own mail list, by using the internet, for example, to find names and addresses. An example of this would be searching for the names and addresses of all the libraries and independent bookstores and ...

Synopsis Citing your sources is a well-respected form of professional courtesy, and also your duty as an author and publisher. You must give credit where credit is due. Therefore, when using another person's words or ideas, citing that person's work is essential. Here's a short discussion of a few different citation styles. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn about some of the major citation styles that you must understand and know which one to use. 2. You will learn exactly why citing your sources is so imperative to your book's success. 3. You will learn about the relationship between citations, plagiarism, and credibility. Introduction: Why Is Citing Our Sources So Important? Citing your sources is a well-respected form of professional courtesy, and also your duty as an author and publisher. You must give credit where credit is due. Therefore, when using another person's words or ideas, citing that person's work is essential. If your sources are not cited correctly, you could potentially be accused of plagiarism. And plagiarism is a serious offense that can result in a career-ending loss of credibility from your peers and your readers. A loss of credibility would also dampen your current and future book sales. Here is a short discussion of a few different citation styles: Thank you to author Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article. A. MLA Vs. APA: Not Such A Difficult Decision After All These are the two main professional organizations that have developed referencing and citation guidelines to be used within their respective audiences. There are other organizations that do this, but these two are the most well-known. For example, the MLA guidelines are typically used by professionals in the humanities. And the APA guidelines are typically used by professionals in the sciences. “Citing sources is a well-respected form of professional courtesy and your duty as an author and publisher.” (Tweet) Whichever profession that you are in, you will already know which format to use. But for our discussion here, if you are writing non-fiction for a general audience, the default citation format for you to apply will be the formatting rules of the MLA. Below I give you the definitions of the most common terms used for citation. But don't forget, there are subtle differences between them as far as the MLA or APA guidelines are concerned. B. Works Cited and Works Consulted (MLA) Vs. References and Bibliography (APA) Here are the MLA and APA differences in their simplest terms. Works Cited (MLA), and References (APA), is a bibliographic list of all the works that were cited in your book. This means that every sentence or idea that you quote or use in your book must be put in this section. Works Consulted (MLA), and Bibliography (APA), is a bibliographic list of all the works that you used, but did not cite in your text. This means that every book, article, and website that you read to prepare yourself to write your book, should be cited in this section. EzineArticles.com - Citation Styles C. Additional Reading And Additional Sources This is simply a section that would list sources that you believe that your readers might find interesting. This could include a list of other publications or websites that your readers might want to look into for further research. D. Annotated Works Cited And Annotated Bibliography Annotated means that it's not only a list of sources, as in a typical work cited or bibliography, but also a summary, evaluation, and discussion of each source's content and purpose for being used in your book. This is a very popular format with readers. E. Selected Bibliography And Full Bibliography Some books distinguish between ‘selected' bibliographies and ‘full' bibliographies. Selected bibliographies only list a few of the most important works cited. Full bibliographies list every work cited,

How To Create Great Content For Your Blog Synopsis In order to attract readers to your blog, and actually get them to read your writing, you must create compelling content. This means that your content must quickly get the reader's attention – and hold on to it. But, at the same time, you must make an emotional connection with the reader. Compelling content will help the reader start to believe you and trust you, and will in turn help build an emotional connection with the reader. This is what will make your blog a success. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn the most important ingredients necessary in order to create compelling content on your blog. 2. You will learn why compelling content is so important to your blog's success. 3. You will learn how and why these ingredients work together to help you build a long-lasting and profitable relationship with your readers. Introduction In order to attract readers to your blog, and actually get them to read your writing, you must create compelling content. This means that your content must quickly get the reader's attention – and hold on to it. But, at the same time, you must make an emotional connection with the reader. Compelling content will help the reader start to believe you and trust you, and will in turn help build an emotional connection with the reader. This is what will make your blog a success. Thank you to author Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article.Here is a list of the most essential ingredients needed to achieve this success: Key Ingredient # 1. Your Title Must Grab The Reader Generally, you want your title to include the essential keywords of the subject that your article discusses. Titles that try to be too cute or too hip will simply confuse the search engines and certainly confuse your audience. Keep the title simple, and right on point. Your article title is the first thing that will grab your reader's attention. Make it count – but don't trick them. Key Ingredient # 2. Use Your Own Voice It is imperative to speak directly to your reader using your own voice, using informal, but appropriate, language. Doing this will allow your personality to show through to the reader. It'll show you to be honest and open. A reader will appreciate this and because of your honesty start to build trust with you. Consistently using the same writing voice will also help the reader start to build an emotional connection with you. Thank you to author Katherine Lowry Logan for linking to my articles from her blog KatherineLowryLogan.com Key Ingredient # 3. Keep It Short Blog posts should generally be between 400 and 800 words. Readers want you to give them the information they need as quickly as possible. If your article is any longer, try to break it up into two or three separate postings. Don't name them using ‘Part 1', ‘Part 2', etc. Give each article its own name. Keeping each blog post short will force you to keep your writing very tight and stay on point. Readers will appreciate this, and start to trust you more. Key Ingredient # 4. Make It Informative And Inspiring Practical, useful, insightful, inspiring, honest, and helpful content, that provides the information that your audience is looking for, is by far the best way to build an audience that will come back for more. Your article's title initially grabbed the reader's attention and got them to start reading your blog post. Now you must present the information that the title promised to deliver. Delivering what you promised will give you credibility with the reader, and help the reader trust and respect you more. Business2Community.com - 7 Key Ingredients Needed To Create Compelling Blog ContentKey Ingredient # 5. Show Your Passion You should allow your passion for the subject matter to show through to the reader in your writing. If you're not truly passionate about your topic and passionate about sharing your information,

10 Steps To Self-Publishing Your First Book Synopsis These ten steps will help you painlessly jump-start your new self-publishing business. Although most of these steps are not difficult to accomplish, I believe that they'll help you quickly lay the foundation for a successful first book. I wrote this as a simple way to show how to overcome the most common objections I hear from would-be authors who fear taking that first step. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn how to overcome your fears and objections about self-publishing a book. 2. You will learn how and why self-publishing must be treated like a business. 3. You will learn how and why building a strong business foundation will help you sell many more books. Introduction These ten steps will help you painlessly jump-start your new self-publishing business. Although most of these steps aren't difficult to accomplish, I believe that they'll help you quickly lay the foundation for a successful first book. Step 1. Realize that this is a business Self-publishing is a business. It can be your side-business, main business, used to help find new clients for your current business, or even be your hobby. But you still must run it like a business. That means you will need to learn the basics of management, marketing, sales, public relations, accounting, negotiation, etc. You can look at your new book like it's a product that you market and sell. You can also look at your new book simply as part of your current business's overall marketing plan. Step 2. Start your due-diligence You must research what will be involved in self-publishing. Buy several of the most popular books about self-publishing, such as those by Dan Pointer. Visit the most popular self-publishing blogs, such as Joel Friedlander's TheBookDesigner.com. Visit the biggest websites that can sell your books, such as Amazon, SmashWords, and Scribd. Thank you to author Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article. Step 3. Keep your current job Don't be so quick to believe all of the hype about self-publishing as a way to make a lot of quick easy money. The reality is that 99% of self-publishers don't make a full-time living from self-publishing alone. So, with that said, keeping your job will ensure that you will have a regular paycheck and insurance. It's also very important to keep building your resume. A good resume will help build your credentials and be proof of your accomplishments. This will give you more credibility with your readers. APSS - Jump-Start Your Self-Publishing Adventure in 10 Steps Step 4. Discover your niche In today's terms, this means “micro-niche”. As a self-publisher, you'll most likely find the biggest success by narrowly defining your market niche. It's much easier to become an expert in a very specific market where it's much less crowded with big well-established writers and publishers. If you're already self-employed, your book's subject matter should be aligned with the niche that your business is already involved with. Jump-Start Your Self-Publishing Business In 10 Steps https://t.co/9dnA19FCs7 via @jckunzjr— Chris Well (@BuildYourBrandA) August 13, 2016 Step 5. Start with an ebook This is the smartest way to get started. It's fast and inexpensive. It's the perfect way to dip your toes into the water and see how comfortable it is for you. Starting with an ebook allows you to feel out your market. It also allows you to quickly and easily make any changes or corrections well before sending your book to a print-on-demand printer and distributor – such as Lightning Source Step 6. Set-up your blog Once you figure out what your niche is, start your free WordPress blog right away. This will get your creative juices flowing. It will also establish an internet home for you where you'll show the world your expertise in your niche. B2C - Jump-Start Your Self-Publishing Adventure in 10 Steps...

Synopsis Buyers of your book don't care why you wrote your book. They just want to know how your book can help them improve their life. Your book's Introduction gives you an opportunity to convince the buyers that your book is the best one out there that can help them. Here are the five essential parts of a powerful Introduction that'll help you achieve that. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn about the 5 essential parts needed to create a complete and powerful book Introduction. 2. You will learn about how each of those parts will work together to make the Introduction an important marketing tool. 3. You will learn about what information each part must include helping you make an emotional connection with the reader. Introduction Your book's Introduction is a quick way for you, the author, to explain how your book is going to help the reader. This explanation is what will make your book's Introduction a powerful sales tool for you to use to hook the reader into buying your book and reading it. Buyers of your book don't care why you wrote this book. Share This Image On Your SitePlease include attribution to https://kunzonpublishing.com/ with this graphic. They just want to know how your book can help them improve their life. Your book's Introduction gives you an opportunity to convince the buyers that your book is the best one out there that can help them. To do this you should include the following five parts in your book's Introduction: Thank you to author Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article. Part # 1. The Hook – Why Should They Buy Your Book? Answer this question properly, and you will sell more books. Here you must compel your potential buyer to read your book, so they will want to buy it. To do this you must grab the reader's attention. Grab them with a telling snippet from your book, or a shocking news headline, or dramatic facts and statistics, or a famous quote. What are their concerns or challenges that your book will help them solve? Put yourself into their shoes, and explain why they should buy your book. SPAN - The 5 Essentials Part # 2. The Connection – Describe Your Reader's Problem Here you must make an emotional connection with your reader. You wrote the book, so you must show that you really understand the challenges, problems, and risks, etc., that have caused your audience to seek out your book in the first place. Why is your audience having these issues? Why haven't they been able to solve them? Why are these issues so hard to fix or solve? Explain to your audience why and how you know about these questions. Convince them that you are the one with the answers and that you want to share this information with them. Publetariat - April Hamilton's website for people who publish Part # 3. The Benefits – How Will Your Book Help The Reader? The benefits to the reader are what will sell your book, so include several of your most important benefits. The reader is only considering buying your book and reading it because of the benefits that the reader believes that they will gain. Include some general benefits, and several specific benefits to reading your book. Keep explaining why they should buy your book. For example, “You will learn how to . . .”; Discover ways to . . .”; "You will improve your . . .". Linked - 5 Essentials Of A Powerful Book Introduction Part # 4. The Format – What Will Happen In The Coming Chapters? Here you will give the reader a quick idea about how your book is arranged. Your book's table of contents has already given the reader a quick glimpse of how your book is arranged and what it will discuss. But here you will tell the reader about some of the other features that aren't necessarily reflected in the table of contents. For example, tell the reader about the side-bars, tips, facts, stories, interviews, quotes, pictures, diagrams, appendix, etc.,

Joel Friedlander, blogger and book designer. We talked about the importance of good book cover design as well as his well-designed Microsoft Word templates. Joel Friedlander started self-publishing before self-publishing was a thing. Joel has two websites that are a resource for writers: http://www.bookdesigntemplates.com/ and www.thebookdesigner.com. Joel offers a book cover design competition on his website every month and every submission gets feedback. Joel addresses what to do for a good book cover: Make sure the style matches the genre so make sure you follow the genres, bring on someone to design it (unless they are a designer), making sure the book communicates what the book is about, and of course hiring a good designer. He also mentioned his free Book Construction Blueprint which is a great guide for putting a book together. If you want more information on Laura Powers, you can go to her website www.laurapowers.net. You can also find updates on the podcast by following the Write Hot Podcast on Facebook.

Synopsis You must first realize that a book's cover is the equivalent of a product's packaging. You must figure out what needs to be on that cover in order for a buyer to choose your book over the many others that cover the same topic. By utilizing these ten fundamental design tips you will greatly increase your chances of making more sales, and thereby helping more people. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn ten fundamental design tips to help you create a great book cover. 2. You will learn how to determine what needs to be on your cover that will attract your audience. 3. You will learn how to make your cover look good in print, as well as online. Introduction You must first realize that a book's cover is the equivalent of a product's packaging. What's on that cover, or packaging, is advertising, or promotional copy. You must figure out what needs to be on that cover in order for a buyer to choose your book over the many others that cover the same topic. What needs to be on your book's cover that will draw in, or attract, a buyer? Thank you to author Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article. You must separate yourself from your personal feelings about your book, and think as the buyer would think. What would attract you to a book like yours? Your book cover's ability to attract buyers will have a direct effect on how well your books sell. So, don't be afraid to design several covers. And don't be afraid to hire professional help. By utilizing these ten fundamental design tips you will greatly increase your chances of making more sales, and thereby helping more people: Design Tip # 1. The Title Should Be Readable From Six Feet Away This is a good general rule for most book covers. This is especially important if you ever plan on having your book on the shelf of a bookstore. This will also help with Design Tip # 3. “The cover is your chance to make a great impression, and get the attention of those that need your help.” (Tweet) Design Tip # 2. The Font Should Be Readable And Appropriate If your cover's font is too fancy or complicated, it will be too difficult for buyers to read your cover. This will also be important when it comes time to reduce the image of your book cover that will be viewed on the internet. Don't be afraid to use one font for the main title, and another for the subtitle. Design Tip # 3. The Cover Should Be Recognizable As A Thumbnail Picture This is extremely important in today's internet world. Most buyers today will only see your book's cover as a tiny image before they buy it. Thank you to Iryna Spica of Spica Book Design for featuring this article on her website. Design Tip # 4. The Cover Images Should Reflect The Theme Of The Book There should generally be some connection - vague, obvious, or somewhere in the middle - to the overall subject matter and theme of your book. Design Tip # 5. Include Testimonials On The Back Cover Put several short testimonials from big recognizable names on the back of your cover. Thank you to Ivin Viljoen for posting this article on his website AuthoPublisher.com Design Tip # 6. Include Really Impressive Testimonial On The Front Cover Put your most impressive short testimonial from the most recognizable person that you can get. Design Tip # 7. Include The ISBN, The Price, And The Bookland/EAN Bar Code on Back Cover Amazon, and every bookstore in the world, will only accept your book if it has the appropriate ISBN and Bookland/EAN bar code. It's generally a good idea to include the cover price and its accompanying barcode, but it's not always required. Design Tip # 8. Include Bookstore Shelving Category On Back Cover You put this on your back cover so that the bookstore clerks don't put your book in the wrong section of the bookstore. It also helps the buyer quickly categorize your book in their own mind. Linkedin - Top 10 Book Cover Design Tips

Synopsis If you don't include all the basic information that your readers are looking for when they visit your blog, they'll leave your site feeling disappointed, and without making an emotional connection to you, your products, or services. By making sure that your blog has, at the very least, these six items, you'll go a long way to helping your readers to make a positive emotional connection with you and your company. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn about some of the basic items that most readers expect from your blog. 2. You will learn that these fundamentals will really help you understand what blogging is really about. 3. You will learn how and why these fundamentals can make your blog your most powerful marketing and branding tool. Introduction The blog is now the most basic and essential marketing tool needed for today's small businesses. Your blog can be a very powerful way for your readers, customers, audience, and market, to connect with you on a practical and emotional level, 24/7. Share This Image On Your SitePlease include attribution to https://kunzonpublishing.com/ with this graphic. If you don't include all the basic information that your readers are looking for when they visit your blog, they'll leave your site feeling disappointed, and without making an emotional connection to you, your products, or services. And because of this, many will not return to your blog or buy your products or services. Here is a quick run-down on the most essential information that you must include in your blog: Expectation # 1. Quality Content, Not Quantity Content, content, content. Content is king. We've all heard these two phrases before. The problem is that too many blogs still don't provide quality content. Practical, useful, insightful, honest, and helpful content, that provides the information that your audience is looking for, is by far the best way to build an audience. Quality content is your way to prove to your audience that you know what you are talking about. “The blog is now the most basic and essential marketing tool needed for today's small businesses.” (Tweet) Quality content will also show that you have respect for the subject matter, as well as the audience. Then your audience will begin to trust you, your information, and your blog. Quality content is what will bring them back for more. Hopefully, these same people will then choose your products and services over your competition's. Always remember: the quality of your content is much more important than the quantity of content. Thank you to author Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article. Please don't believe the many websites about blogging that tell us the opposite. Those sites are showing you how little respect they have for you, for themselves, and for their audience. And they give blogging a bad name. Expectation # 2. Biography / Personal Information This is the place to show your credentials in a positive light. Show how your experiences, education, career, jobs, accomplishments, awards, etc., are proof that you know what you're talking about. Be very careful not to exaggerate. The instant your readers get the slightest hint that you are exaggerating, or boasting, or lying, you'll lose their respect and trust – forever. They'll never believe you again, and never come back to your blog, and never buy your products and services. Your readers, customers, and clients will give you some leeway for boasting about your accomplishments. They will usually write this off to pride. But this can be a very fine line to walk on, so be very careful. Error on the side of understatement. Linkedin - 6 Things Readers Expect From Your Blog Expectation # 3. Contact Information You must make it as easy as possible for your readers to contact you. For some businesses, an email address is enough. For others, an email and telephone number are essential.

Click here to download this PDF ebook               Synopsis Here's a list of 37 tips to help the person that is going to be writing the foreword for a book. This list is written simply as a way to help the author of the foreword, and the author of the book, to understand the basic elements of a helpful and insightful foreword. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn 37 things that will help you understand the basic elements of a well-written book foreword. 2. You will learn the specific items that must be included in a foreword. 3. You will learn about the fundamental roles the foreword plays in the overall success of the book. Share This Image On Your SitePlease include attribution to "KunzOnPublishing.com" with this graphic. Introduction Here's a list of 37 tips to help the person that's going to be writing the foreword for a book, also known as the author of the foreword. This list is written simply as a way to help the author of the foreword, and the author of the book, to understand the basic elements of a helpful and insightful foreword. Thank you to author Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article. It doesn't matter if the foreword's author is a celebrity, or big-shot, or whatever. They have an obligation to their own readers and followers, also to the readers of this new book that they are writing for a foreword for, and also to the book's author, to write a helpful and honest foreword. Tip #1. Read the book. Understand the message. Tip #2. Reading the Table of Contents and one chapter alone is not enough. Tip #3. Take detailed notes throughout the book. Tip #4. Write to the book's audience. Tip #5. Write in a familiar voice. Tip #6. Be very careful not to talk down to the readers. Tip #7. You should probably write between 750 and 1,500 words. Tip #8. The foreword's main role is to help give the book's author credibility. Tip #9. With increased credibility, comes more sales. Tip #10. Explain how you know the author of the book. Tip #11. If you don't know the author personally, devote more space to the book's message. Tip #12. You're trying to make an emotional connection with the reader. Never forget this. Tip #13. You want the reader to like you and your story. Tip #14. Your job is to help get the reader to believe and trust what you have to say about the book's author and the book itself. Tip #15. Keep the tone simple and personal, but keep your writing tight. Tip #16. Include short anecdotes and real-world examples that illustrate the theme of the book. Linkedin - 37 Tips For Writing A Book's ForewordTip #17. Anecdotes are an important way to help the reader like you and your story. Tip #18. Discuss why this book is significant or timely. Tip #19. Show why the book's author is a credible person to have written this book. Tip #20. Tell readers why this book is worth reading. Tip #21. Show how the reader will benefit by reading it. Tip #22. Refer to specific things in the book. Tip #23. Explain why you chose those things to discuss. Tip #24. Connect the book to experiences that a reader might face in everyday life. Tip #25. Mention the good points about the book and what the readers will get out of reading it. Publetariat - 37 Tips For Writing A Book's ForewordTip #26. Be sure to give a very brief synopsis of the book. Tip #27. Talk to the reader as if you were talking to a friend. Tip #28. Keep it engaging and tell an interesting story. Tip #29. Make sure your foreword has a beginning, middle, and end. Tip #30. Tell readers why you are qualified to write the foreword. Tip #31. Don't be afraid to name-drop. Tip #32. If readers can recognize any of the names, you will gain credibility and like-ability. Tip #33. Put your name, title, and location at the end. Tip #34. Make sure you mention if you have a fancy title or prestigious award. Tip #35. These things help establish your own credibility and cel...

Joel Friedlander is the author several books including The Self-Publisher's Quick & Easy Guides, a series of ebooks that help to solve key challenges for self-publishers. He has won the AIGA “50 Books of the Year Award” for his work at Aperture Publishing, and the Printing Industries of America Gold Award for his book design […] The post 88: Self Publishing Print Books and Interior Book Design with Joel Friedlander appeared first on TCK Publishing.

Synopsis Understanding who your readers are, and what they need, and how to hold onto them, is essential for your financial success. Here are three common myths surrounding book-buyer retention that might have been preventing you from implementing a plan to help you retain past and current readers and buyers. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn the three major myths about holding onto your past and current readers and buyers. 2. You will learn some of the basic elements required to start building a core of devoted fans. 3. You will learn what is required of you in order to hold onto that core audience. Introduction The business concept of holding onto, or retaining, past and current customers, is typically not given much thought by many self-publishers. But, building a following of readers that will continue to read and buy what you've published in the past, and will publish in the future, is imperative for your long-term financial success as a self-publisher. Therefore, implementing a book-buyer retention plan, more commonly a called customer retention plan, must be an essential part of every self-publisher's marketing plans. Thank you to author Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article. Myth #1. Book-Buyer Retention Is Not Realistic Or Practical For Self-Publishers One big mistake many self-publishes make is attaching little or no importance to book-buyer retention. Many self-publishers see book-buyer retention as too difficult to accomplish, and as a waste of precious time, to be of any significant value. However, my own research has shown that by simply retaining a small number of committed readers and book-buyers, you can significantly increase your profits now and into the future. It can take quite a bit of time to build this core audience. But as long as you keep producing quality content that they need and can benefit from, your audience will grow. Therefore, you must take the time to develop that core group of people within your niche that you strive to be the go-to person for if you ever expect to become a financially successful author. EzineArticles.com - 3 Common Myths About Book-Buyer Retention Myth #2. Book-Buyers Will Continue To Buy From You If They Like You Being liked or trusted isn't enough in today's world where it's very easy to find a trustworthy expert in a particular niche. And book buyers can easily get overwhelmed because of the increasing number of new books being published every day by likable and trusted authors. Therefore, you must never take your followers for granted. The minute that you stop updating your blog with new and relevant content, for example, you're taking the risk that your readers and book-buyers will start to forget about you. Even the most loyal supporters of your brand can very easily be lured away by other authors that are also writing within your niche and pursuing the same audience that you are pursuing. Therefore, in order to be financially successful as a self-publisher, you must keep reminding your audience with new content and new books, that you're the go-to person within your niche. Linkedin - 3 Common Myths About Book-Buyer Retention Myth #3. It Is Possible To Hold Onto All Of Your Readers And Buyers Every self-publisher must accept the fact that not all readers and book-buyers will stay with them for the long haul. Despite your continued efforts of producing more blog content, videos, and new books, many consumers will always be searching for the next hot author and quickly stop following you. You can't allow this fickle group to bother you, or slow you down from your mission of producing quality content for your audience. “Implementing a bookbuyer retention plan must be an essential part of every self-publisher's marketing plans.” (Tweet) Nothing you do or say will hold onto this group. Keep focusing your attention and efforts on your core audience.

Synopsis: A foreword, preface, and introduction can each play a pivotal role in a book's marketing plan. Understanding the differences, and how to use each to your advantage, can help propel your book to critical and financial success. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn the fundamental differences between a book's foreword, preface, and introduction. 2. You will learn how these three sections can make your book more impressive than most other books. 3. You will learn how important a role these three sections can play in your book's financial and critical success. Introduction A self-publisher needs to understand the differences between the foreword, preface, and book introduction. Each section plays a vital role in the critical and financial success of the book. Without these three sections, a non-fiction book is incomplete and not giving the readers their money's worth. Therefore, I've laid out some basic definitions of each section to help give new self-publishers a starting point before beginning their first book: Thank you to Danielle de Valera for posting and linking to my post "Foreword v. Preface v. Introduction" on her great blog "The Manuscript Assessor" Thank you to Barbara Pittman for linking to this article from her website PittmanLettersProject.com 1. The Foreword (Why the reader should read the book) The foreword is the place for a guest author to show the reader why they should be reading this book. The foreword of a book is a major selling tool for the book. If it's written properly, and by the appropriate person for the job, the book's author will gain a lot of credibility in the reader's eyes. It's important to remember that the author of the book shouldn't write the foreword. Instead, the author can use the book's preface and the book's introduction to say what needs to be said about the book. Forewords introduce the reader to the author, as well as the book itself, and attempt to establish credibility for both. A foreword doesn't generally provide the reader with any extra specific information about the book's subject. But instead, it serves as a reminder of why the reader should read the book. The foreword must make an emotional connection with the reader. Thank you to author Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article. Thank you to Laura Lee for linking to this article from her website StressManagementForWriters.WordPress.com" 2. The Preface (How the book came about) The preface is a place for the book's author to tell the reader how this book came into being, and why. It should build credibility for the author and the book. The preface is very similar to the foreword, except that the preface is written by the book's author. The preface is also an important selling tool for the book. Here the author should explain why they wrote the book, and how they came to writing it. The author should be showing the reader why they are worth reading. Thank you very much to Kristan Lukasak of GettingOnTop.WordPress.com for linking to this article. 3. The Introduction (About the content of the book) The introduction introduces the material that is covered in the book. Here the author can set the stage for the reader, and prepare them for what can be expected from reading the book. The introduction is a way for the author to grab the reader, and intensify the reader's desire to find out more, and hopefully devour the entire book. In the introduction, the author can quickly and simply tell the reader what is to be revealed in much greater detail if they continue reading. Conclusion As you can see, it is imperative to understand the basic differences in these three book sections in order to produce a professional-looking and complete self-published book. Each section is clearly different, and each performs a specific function in the book. Therefore, in order to produce a high-quality and well-designed book,

Synopsis Asking someone to write your foreword is generally a simple process. The difficult part is finding the best person for the job, and then convincing them to write it for you. Here are the basic steps to finding the right person to write your book's foreword. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn the basic steps to finding the best person to write your book's foreword. 2. You will learn what personal and professional characteristics they should possess before you ask for their help. 3. You will learn how to explain to them how they will benefit by writing your book's foreword. Introduction It's very easy to get someone to write your book's foreword. The difficult part is finding the best person for the job. You need someone with a proven track record, like being a published author, or a successful person in their industry or that has a huge social media following. Plus, they need to understand what a foreword is about, why a book has a foreword, and what role it plays in the success of your book. That's a lot to look for in one person. But, if you follow the basic steps that I give you here, you'll be well on your way to finding the right person. Here are the basic steps to finding the right person to write your book's foreword: 1. Make A List Of Names This list should be a very easy task for you to accomplish. You must have certainly come across all of the “big names” while doing the research for your book. Also, doing a search on Amazon will help you find the names of authors whose books are actually selling. Share This Image On Your SitePlease include attribution to https://kunzonpublishing.com/ with this graphic. And an Amazon search will help you find the authors of newly published books. Also, look at their websites. Ideally, you want a person to write your foreword that has a large social media following, or substantial coverage in the press. 2. Start Making Contact Find their email address on the internet – typically at their website or job. If you can't find their website, you can email their publisher directly. Many authors will provide you their email address somewhere in their book. Making first contact is a two-step process: (1) Send them your first email with a compliment about a book of theirs that you have read and referred to in your writing. Or, in place of that email, you can try to connect with them on LinkedIn, and give them a compliment about their writing or book. (2) Send them a second email within a few weeks asking them to write your book's foreword. Chris Well's DIY Author Blog - 5 Steps To Getting A "Big Name" To Write Your Book's Foreword, by Joseph C. Kunz, Jr. 3. Make It Easy For Them Making it easy for them to say yes in three easy steps: (1) In that second email, attach a PDF of your book. (2) Make sure that your book is very polished. No typos, no spelling errors, no mistakes. You must include a very professional-looking book cover in your PDF. All of this will help you look like a professional. Like someone they can trust and won't mind attaching their name to. (3) And finally, keep your request simple and short. Your request must be very honest and sincere. If there's any hint of dishonesty or lack of sincerity in your request, they'll never deal with you again. Thank you to author Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article.4. Explain The Benefits Explain the benefits of writing your foreword in three easy steps: (1) The main benefit that they'll get from writing your book's foreword is exposure or publicity. Make sure that you tell them you'll be including their name on the cover of your book. Celebrities, industry “big shots”, and “big name” authors are just as interested in publicity as the rest of us. We all want to attach our name to someone we believe has a good chance of getting us that exposure. “It's easy to get someone to write your book's foreword.

View the infographic that goes with this post Click here to download this PDF ebook               Synopsis Are you really ready – not just your manuscript, but you – to self-publish? Here's a list of the ten most important things you must consider before getting into self-publishing. What You Will Learn In This Post 1. You will learn the 10 most important things you must consider before deciding to self-publish. 2. You will learn just how time-consuming and arduous self-publishing can be. 3. You will learn to re-evaluate your motives and expectations before self-publishing. Introduction Are you really ready – not just your manuscript, but YOU – to self-publish? Here's a list of the most important things you must consider before getting into self-publishing. So, before you ignore the traditional publishing process, make sure you have the stamina to become your own publisher. Self-publishing isn't a shortcut to seeing yourself in print, or to success. If anything, it's more arduous and time-consuming than writing the book itself. Sign # 1. You Believe That “If I Write It They Will Come” Get serious. This thinking might work for a big-time author like Stephen King, but not for you and me. A writer like King already has a very devoted audience of millions of readers and buyers. The rest of us need to work really long hours to make our books sell. We need to become experts in marketing, sales, SEO, blogging, and all social media. We need to spend every minute possible sitting at our desk and writing. And the writing better be good. Thank you to author Joel Friedlander of TheBookDesigner.com for linking to this article. Sign # 2. You Haven't Researched Your Market Thoroughly You better know everything there is to know about your market and your audience. Who will be reading and buying your books? What are the hottest topics and trends in your market? What books are actually selling in your industry (on Amazon)? By writing and publishing, you are putting yourself out there as an expert in your niche. Your audience expects you to sound and act like an expert. If they get the slightest hint that you aren't the expert that you're telling them that you are, you'll lose your audience and they won't come back to read or buy your books. Thank you to Eldon Sarte of WordPreneur.com for featuring this article on his website. Sign # 3. You Don't Understand What Actually Goes Into A Salable Book This one might seem too obvious, but to some of us, it isn't. Too many books are getting published that barely look like a finished book. I've seen one too many books missing the table of contents, page numbers, index, ISBN, etc., and even the author's name! If you want to be taken seriously as a publisher and author, and gain your audience's respect, you must create a professional-looking product. Complete in every way that a reader expects a book to be. Sign # 4. You Haven't Researched Your Niche Thoroughly Read everything that you can get your hands on about your niche. You should know who the big experts are, and have read their books. Read the publications and blogs of those writers and groups within your niche. It's important to remember that in today's terms, niche now means “micro-niche”. As a self-publisher, you'll most likely find the biggest success by narrowly defining your market niche. It's much easier to become an expert in a very specific market where it's much less crowded with big well-established writers and publishers. “Self-publishing is a business. It'll force you to become a true capitalist. It will take up a lot of your time and money, with no guarantee of success. But, the more effort you put into it, the more you will get out of it.” (Tweet) Sign # 5. You Hope To Get Famous From Self-Publishing This is possible, but not likely. Fame comes with a lot of hard work and lots of luck. Therefore, it can't be your only motive for self-publishing your...

Is your work managing the business side of your publishing taking away from your time writing your next book? Are you feeling overwhelmed? It might be time to hire an Author Assistant. In this episode of the KWL Podcast, US Manager Christine Munroe interviews Kate Tilton, founder of Kate Tilton Author Services, LLC. Christine and Kate talk about: What do author assistants do, exactly? Kate says, “I give authors more time to write and spend with their family, by doing tasks that they may be able to do themselves, but they don't have time for.” Kate started as an author assistant in December 2010 – it was her first job, while she was still a high school student. A typical day for Kate might include these tasks: organize email inboxes, send review copies, run to the post office to mail out prizes, scheduling their blog posts and social media, beta reading, matching audiobooks to the written text. It's a diverse job; every day is different. Why should an author hire an author assistant? Every one could use help in some capacity. If you feel overwhelmed and work is piling up. Willing to delegate. Have the finances to afford the help. What projects can be outsourced? Anything, really, that is taking up time that you wish you could be using to write. You can also consider hiring a personal assistant instead, who will help with non-publishing daily chores (picking up dry cleaning, grocery shopping) to make your life more manageable. The job is really flexible – you make your own schedule and choose your author clients. It's great to work with multiple clients, because authors are not in competition with one another. Kate can bring them together for joint efforts like prize giveaways, and each is helping the other find new readers. How much should authors expect to pay for an assistant? Rates vary greatly, depending on the assistant's experience. For example, you can get a college-level intern and pay very little, but you'll need to take the time to teach them how to do what you need. With an experienced assistant, you'll pay around $40/hour, but it may be more efficient because they'll draw on their expertise to get the job done quickly. It's a decision to make based on your budget, time, and needs. For someone hoping to become an author assistant, check out Kate's resources on her website: http://katetilton.com/author-assistants/ For an author looking for an assistant, start with word of mouth – ask your author friends who they work with. There are many resources online, for example http://www.authorsatlas.com/ Kate recently contributed two sections to The Self-Publisher's Ultimate Resource Guide, edited by Joel Friedlander and Betty Sargent, which is available for pre-order on Kobo. Her biggest advice for tackling social media and marketing: figure out who the #1 die-hard fan of your book is going to be, and market to that kind of person. This thought process will help you really appeal to your ideal market. Kate also teaches by doing; she works on her own social media and branding to exemplify what she thinks authors should do. Her brand: Books. Cats. Tea. Nerdy stuff. Food. One great resource for learning more about marketing is CopyBlogger. You need to build a group of people who “know, like, and trust you,” because those are the people who are going to help you grow (and buy your books). #K8Chat is Kate's weekly Twitter chat, with the goal of connecting authors and readers. Every Thursday 9-10PM EST.

Who, in the indie publishing world, hasn’t heard of The Book Designer? Well, if you haven’t, then you’re in for a real treat! He’s our SME (subject matter expert) on January 4, 2015 at 5:30 p.m. CDT. His newest book titled, The Self-Publisher’s Ultimate Resource Guide, is available, now. It’s filled with, you guessed it, reliable resources every indie publisher needs. Joel’s goal is to help authors get their books to market. Join our chat Jan. 4th to find out why.

Katana and Vicky will be interviewing, Nina Amir, The Inspiration to Creation Coach. Join us as we’ll discuss:Craft marketable book ideasCreate a business plan for any bookDetermine if you have what it takes to become a successful author or indie publisherNina Amir is the author of The Author Training Manual and How to Blog a Book. She transforms writers into inspired, successful authors, authorpreneurs and blogpreneurs and moves her clients from ideas to finished books as well as to careers as authors by helping them combine their passion and purpose so they create products that positively and meaningfully impact the world. She speaks at the top writer’s conferences all over the country and is a regular writer for TFOI and Joel Friedlander’s TheBookDesigner.com, which was named one of the top self-publishing blogs by Digital Book World. A sought-after author, book, blog-to-book, and results coach, some of Nina’s clients have sold 300,000+ copies of their books, landed deals with major publishing houses and created thriving businesses around their books. She writes four blogs, self-published 12 books and founded National Nonfiction Writing Month. To learn more about Nina go to www.NinaAmir.com

In the fifth episode of See Brian Write, I chat with Jason Pendergrass, the author of Business Lessons of a Rookie Entrepreneur. In the Writer’s Toolbox, I talk about Joel Friedlander’s website The Book Designer. IntroPodcast book updates InterviewJason Pendergrass (http://www.pendergrassbooks.com/)Business Lessons of a Rookie Entrepreneur (Screwpulp Link: http://www.screwpulp.com/?browse&*=info&id=40#sthash.oQ5RNtTf.dpbs)You can contact Jason at businesslessons@yahoo.comFacebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/jason.pendergrass.311 Writer’s ToolboxThe Book Designer (www.thebookdesigner.com) NOTE: If you are a writer and want to be on the podcast, either email me (brian@seebrianwrite.com), or DM me on twitter: twitter.com/seebrianwrite. I am currently scheduling interviews a few weeks out due to a great response, but I will get you on the show!