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In order to read and study a book well, we have to first of all understand both terms.
What is reading a book?
Reading a book is the ability to look at what is written on its pages and understanding what is bieng explained. If a person is able to look at a book written in Chinese characters and he or she is able to undestand the meaning of what is being explained, then he or she can be able to read the book.
In order to read a book effectively, the following guidelines should be taken into consideration.
1. Understand the books Title.
2. Understand the books subject matter.
3. Understand the Titles, Subtitles, Headings and Subheadings.
4. Read the Book’s introduction from it’s Author.
5. Devote your time to read the book.
To understand the Book’s Title: This is the name of the book. It’s usually written on the books front cover. It explains to a reader what the book is all about. If you want to read a book named Astronomy, you should be able to understand that the book is about the Sun, Moon, Stars and the Planets.
To understand the Book’s subject matter: This is what is being written about and explained in the book you are reading. If you want to read a book on Astronomy, you should know that the books explains the Sun, Moon, Stars and Planets, hence the book’s subject matter is about the bodies found in Outerspace.
To understand the Titles, Subtitles, Headings and Subheadings contained in the book: They help readers to know more of what is being explained of the books subject matter hence if you are reading a book about Astronomy and you find the heading THE MOON, a reader should understand that the moon is being explained about in a certain chapter or paragraph.
To read the book’s introduction: It is very important for readers to read the book’s introduction. It is usually written on one of the front pages of the book.It is an introduction of the book to readers by the author. The introduction does help readers to understand what the author was writting about so it’s important to read it.
Time devotion: Finally, Readers should devote their time, attention and thoughts to read the book they are reading. It is very important for readers so that the may Understand what they are reading. One cannot read a book effectively while holding a book in one hand and holding a baby in the other. The reader’s attention and time will be divided between the two.
What is studying a book?
In order to study books effectively, one has to understand what the process is all about. Studying books involves the following three steps.
1. To read the book one is studying.
2. To understand whatever is being read.
3. To actually study the book.
To read a book is the ability to look at what is on the pages and to understand what is written or printed on it. To understand what one is reading in a book is to have the ability to know the meaning of what is bieng explained. To study the book is to devote your time, attention and thoughts to read and understand the contents of the book.
The above steps are what readers of books should apply to read effectively
Because people are different, People study books for different reasons.The main reason why people study books is to acquire the vast amounts of knowledge that they contain, For instance, How much can a person learn from any Encyclopaedia?
Do you want to save your money on your favorite books, then book clubs are the best option for you. On these clubs, you can place order of your favorite books from numerous book sections. Every person, who is fond of reading books, can enjoy reading by joining reading groups. You can easily find books of your choice on these book clubs. These book clubs have the special deals with the book publishers. That’s why, one can get books at the very reasonable prices. They also deliver your books at your address without charges any extra money. So you need not go for shopping the books in the market and you can purchase your books without any hassle. These reading groups save your money and time.
There are lots of advantages of book clubs, but an individual should have some cautious before joining the book club.
Some book clubs choose books for you and deliver them at your home. In these clubs, you can not choose books according to your requirements. But some book clubs allow you to select your books that meet your requirements. Some clubs also take the extra shipping charges for the delivery books. So you should aware of these charges. Some book clubs offer exclusive gifts but they provide the bad quality books to its members. So you should consult with your friends before joining any club. Many book clubs give introductory offer on becoming its member but they give other books on the very high price. So you should always compare the prices of the books and offers with the other book clubs and you should choose the right one according to your needs.
Most of the clubs have been designed for the particular age of people. But India today Book Club, India’s most appreciated book club, brings the large collection of books for everyone. So you need not join lots of book clubs. This club has numerous books on various categories such as Information Technology, Religion and Spirituality, History, Military, Children’s choice, Best Sellers, Non-Fiction, Fiction and much more. India Today Book Club not only allows the group member to choose your favorite books, but it also delivers books at your home without taking any shipping charges. It also arranges a meeting with other group members for the discussion of a book. So, this is the best book club that gives all the facilities to its group members.
Most writers claim that ‘writing’ is the painless part of being a writer- the real challenge begins when you attempt to publish your masterpiece. The book industry can be a really hard one to crack, especially if you’re a newbie. No need to panic though – if you’re reading this, all your publishing problems are nearly over!
This guide explores; Publishing thorough an Agency, Mainstream Publication, Self Publishing, Local Publishing Companies and eBook Publication. It furthers to explore life after your book has been published. So whether your interests lie in large international exposure for you book, or self publishing, simply read on for a detailed tour of the publishing industry.
Option 1) Publishing through an Agency
The Process
The first step to saving time whilst publishing is making sure that you avoid writing something that will never be read! My advice to anyone who aspires to publish something is to find a literary agent . This is a great time saver as, when you have an agent, you will never again waste time writing something that may be defined as ‘unmarketable’. To further explain – the literary network is very closely knit i.e. in order to have your book published; you would need to go through specific channels. A strict system has been designed to maintain a sense of order in the realm of literature.
Now, an agent can help you weave your way through the system – especially if you are a first timer. An agent is an individual who is able to help you through much of the information filtering process. A recommendation from an agent almost guarantees that your manuscript will be read by a publishing house. Essentially, the role of an agent is to read and approve your manuscript or any ideas that you may have i.e. queries and proposals.
The agent will then decide whether your venture could be successful. If so, the agent will further to draw up a contract with you. Contracts of this nature usually express the agent’s promise to use his/her best efforts to get your manuscript into a publishing house – the exchange is usually about 15% of the entire deal. Your new agent will then work extremely hard to sell your idea.
Agent Hunting
There are usually 2 types of agents – those who work with fiction and those who work with non-fiction. The easiest way to find your match is by paging through a publishing guide/directory, which lists the functions of a variety of agents in great detail i.e. ‘Guide to Literary Agents’. It is important to take note of any previous books that have been published by the agent/s that you are interested in – usually an agent will take interest in a particular theme, and stick to working with ideas along its lines.
Contacting an Agent
Once you have compiled a list of potential agents, feel free to start contacting them. The best way to do this is via a query letter. In essence, a query letter a short introduction of yourself and your idea – it should feed the agent enough information to arouse interest, but not too much to bore him/her. This is a suggested letter structure:
The Teaser
Your introduction is usually the aspect of the letter sells you – so make it an attention grabber. Ideally, you would want to describe the compelling fit between the person that you are and your idea for a book.
Develop Your Idea
Use your next few sentences to explore your idea, explaining what it is that you want to write about. Feel free to add in a snip-bit of your writing that best exemplifies your idea.
Self Description
Your third paragraph should be based on you. Try to reiterate the connection between you as a person and your idea. You should also feel free to show-off your academic or intellectual achievements.
Wrapping Up
Be sure to personalize your concluding sentence- making the agent feel unique and valuable to you in your selection process. Conclude by sharing your contact details and preferred method of communication.
Remember, this letter is merely an ‘appetizer’ so keep it short and simple.
Proposal Preparation
After sending your initial query letter to an agent, he/she would normally follow up by requesting a proposal. Essentially, your proposal is a document that accurately outlines an idea for a book. Here’s idea of what your proposal should contain:
The Overview
The first 2 pages of your proposal should contain a broad summary of the book. Non-fiction: Explain your intentions in terms of contents and topics. Fiction: Provide a general outline of your plot.
Target Market
Your next 3 pages should contain a description of your prospective target market. You should define this in terms of; age, socio-economic, and educational characteristics of you potential audience.
Market Threat and Competition
This section allows you to define what type of threats your book may face in terms of competitors and other books that cover a similar topic. Be careful to do all your homework here, because this section is really important to an agent as it dictates your books marketability.
Authorship
Use this section to write up a brief description about yourself and your co-authors, if any. Take this opportunity to brag as much as possible, as this section will help your agent convince a publishing house to pay you for your idea.
Summary of Chapters
This should be the largest part of your proposal – it contains an outline of what you intend to cover in each chapter of your book. Non-fiction: Provide a minimum amount of information i.e. outlines. Fiction: Provide definite samples of your writing.
Delivery
This section is relatively small – it simply contains the number of words you think your finished book will contain and the approximate time you will take to write it.
Contracts
Happy Day! So your proposal finally earns you a thumbs up…now what? It’s time to get into some paper work. The best part about this section is that you are not bearing the work load anymore. Your new agent will now send you a contract. These contracts are usually short documents that you can probably work though on your own, so no need for an attorney.
You just need be careful about two things – firstly, that your agent is not looking to exclusively represent you for over 12 months, and secondly that you are not going to billed for the cost of office overhead if your book does not do well on the market.
Once the contract has been signed, your agent will send you a copy of your original proposal with a few editorial suggestions. As soon as you finalize your proposal’s contents, your agent will start pitching your idea to the ‘big boys’ i.e. publishing companies. Once you get the go-ahead as well as the funding, feel free to start writing…Microsoft Word will be your new home!
Option 2) Mainstream Publication
The Process
This option is slightly similar to the first; however the two do have a few minor differences. The primary difference is that the ‘middle man’ or agent is no longer involved i.e. the first step that you need to take in the field of mainstream publication, is directly locating a publisher. Once again, you can feel free to look through a publishing directory or make use of a search engine. This way, you can choose a publisher, that best suits you. As soon as you have made contact with a publishing house and managed to spark a bit of interest, you might be requested to ‘pitch’ your book to the company in person.
The Pitch & Self Marketing
Now if consider yourself to be a great public speaker, this could be your moment to shine – if not, just remember that you will only be speaking to a few suits! The pitch is almost a verbal explanation of everything you would express in a proposal – if you happen to be unfamiliar with the guidelines for a proposal, simply follow the outline mentioned in option 1.
If you choose to publish via mainstream publication, it is important to note that you must be able to market yourself. Even if you do get lucky and a publishing house chooses to publish your book, you will still have to do a major part of the marketing – keep that in mind when it comes to your budget as it will help to have some additional money to use for publicity.
Risks/Benefits
The obvious benefit of publishing via a mainstream company is the possible exposure that you and your book could attain. On a large scale, the scope of various mainstream publication houses extends from local to international. The greatest risk involved in using this method of publication, is the risk of rejection. You may even be rejected before publication as well as after. It is not often that a well-known publishing company would risk a dollar on an unknown author – so prepare yourself for possible rejection after your pitch. Even if your book does get accepted for publication, rejection is still a factor in terms of your book’s marketability and it is highly unlikely that your publisher will pick up the bill should your book not be successful.
Option 3) Self Publishing – (POD) Print/Publish on Demand
The Process
This option refers to printing a book at the time of purchase. It is an innovative method of publishing books that saves money, time and supplies. The printing industry is ecstatic about this method of publication as it means that books no longer need to be warehoused until purchased.
This method of publication allows you to handle the design work of your book or opt for a service/package that offers cover design, formatting and editing. Various companies offer these services. These companies will assist you in the areas that you may need help – from the time that your book has been ordered to the delivery. The POD will actually help you list your book on Barnes and Noble, Amazon.com and other major bookstores by hooking you up with an ISBN. Here’s how the process works:
Submit the final draft of your book to a company that offers POD. Make sure your draft is formatted in the way that you want it to look in its final publication.
You will be requested to wait until your file has been added to the data system of that company.
The printing company receives an order for your book according to its ISBN.
An operator at the printing company accesses your file in their system. Ensuring all editing and formatting is correct; the book is released to the printer and binder system. Your book is printed in less than 5 minutes.
Your book is then packaged and addressed to the customer. It is then sent directly to the customer. This entire process takes approximately 10 working days – thus your book can hit the market as soon as possible.
Budget
While this type of publishing has become increasingly popular in the industry, it is important to note that it requires you fork out a bit of your own money – each book will cost you approximately $5.
Risks/Benefits
This option has various benefits. Firstly, most of the companies involved will accept any type of work, no matter who you are – so rejection is not something that you will have to worry about. Secondly, if you are involved with the design and formatting personally, your book automatically will gain a unique edge. Finally, the POD handles distribution and order fulfilment. This means that when you book has been ordered; the POD will print a copy of your book, ship it and pay you a royalty of approximately 30% of the purchase price – leaving you with less grey hair! With regards to the risks involved, it is important to note that the owner of the ISBN also owns the book’s copyright, so be careful with that and make sure that you purchase your book’s ISBN under your name, not the vanity publisher.
Option 4) Local Publishing Companies
The Process
Local commercial printing companies use the same technology as PODs. Feel free to browse through a publishing directory or just your local directory for a list of companies that offer publishing services. Your next step is to contact the publishing house that you have chosen.
Budget
While prices may vary, expect to pay 3 cents per black and white page i.e. a 200-page book could cost you approximately $6.50.
Print Style Options
Your first choice in terms of printing style is between color printing and black & white printing. This will dictate the cost that you will need to budget for. Most companies offer digital printing, so you can choose the amount of copies that you want printed at the time of publication. In terms of cover design, you are only limited by your own creativity – once again you are free to take charge of your own design. Binding on the other hand, will be handled by the company and is included in the original price per page.
Risks/Benefits
When you publish through a local company, you must take note that the printer will print precisely what you send – this is without any revision or editing. It is crucial that your book is proofread before submission. Also with this option, you will still have to promote your book, fill and ship all orders.
Option 5) eBook Publication
What is an eBook?
An eBook is an electronic copy of your book that may be purchased, downloaded and read immediately online. It can serve a variety of purposes i.e. advertising, the gathering of potential customer’s information and the generation of interest. Not only does this option provide the media for a sample publication of you incomplete book, but it also allows for full publication of your book once it is complete – thus you can sell the electronic version of your book, as if it were a hard copy.
The Process
This option may be deemed the most convenient and economical way to publish a book. Here is a basic outline of the process:
The Final Draft
To prepare you book for eBook publication, you have to format it exactly the way that you want your readers to see it. This will be easy if you are using a word processor such as Microsoft Word.
The Format
Unless you know exactly what you want in terms of formatting, I suggest that you stick to a standardised type of book formatting – the outline of a manuscript format is included later on in this article.
Proofreading
Sorry to say, editing will be your worst nightmare – just when you think that it’s over, go back and proofread again and again. Also try and get others to read your final draft too. Don’t skimp on the quality of your writing simply because you are publishing electronically.
Copyrighting
Copyrighting your book is your next move. Don’t stress out too much about the ISBN, as you are actually the publisher now, so you will be in charge of the distribution and price setting.
Designing the Cover
If you happen to have an arty side, this is your chance to bring it out! Feel free to extend your creativity but remember to keep your design, appropriate with regards to your book’s contents. You can also make use of external services should you need help i.e. graphic designers do freelance their services for this type of thing.
Publication
Now it really gets interesting…There are various programs available that generate self-executable eBooks. It is however important to note that most people are cautious when it comes to downloading new programs. I therefore recommend that you publish your eBook in plain old .pdf format. Adobe Acrobat Reader is a well established brand which is both safe and also free for anyone to download. Visit Adobe Online and register for their online PDF Creator to publish an ebook or feel free to do a Google search for a few more eBook publishing programs.
Your Account
Set up a business account with an ecommerce site like PayPal. You will then have to add your book’s ISBN to your ‘product list’. PayPal will then generate an html code that you can copy and paste where ever you would like to promote your eBook. You will in turn be notified via email, when someone purchases your book. Your last move is to reply to that email by attaching the .pdf of your book and sending the mail directly to your customer…and voila! Your first eBook is sold.
Risks/Benefits
There are various benefits related to this new wave of publication. Firstly, it requires you to spend little to no money out of your own pocket. Thus, there is very little financial risk involved. Secondly, your book can be published from the comfort of your own home…a few clicks here and there is all that it takes. Finally, from a marketing perspective, an eBook opens up various avenues for advertising – it allows you to add links within your book, directing the reader anywhere that you would like i.e. this gives you a chance to expand your business network. Once again, you must remember that you are in charge of your book’s marketing.
Irrespective of the method of publication that you choose, you will need to master manuscript writing…Here’s a handy guide on how to correctly format your manuscript.
Try to make use of this type of formatting prior to submitting it to an agent or publisher. At first glance you may think that these standards may not be aesthetically pleasing, but don’t stress, your publisher should send your original manuscript to a ‘formatter’ that standardizes the format during publication.
Basic Formatting Rules
Use 1 inch margins around all your text – repeat this on each page.
Double spacing should be used throughout your manuscript. This type of spacing enhances your manuscripts readability and makes it easier to edit.
If you want to italicize something, don’t do it now. Only highlight this before the final version is published – anything that you want in italics should be underlined in your manuscript.
All numbers should be spelt out i.e. type out four instead of 4.
Most symbols should also be spelt out i.e. don’t use the ‘%’ sign, instead type out ‘percent’.
Life After Publication
Even though your book is now on its way to mass production, you need not let your relaxation period be short lived – don’t become overridden with anxiety about publicity, marketing and even worse, sales!
For a stress free way to boost sales and keep abreast of your new book’s performance you should consider subscribing to a promotions and sales tracking company.
With modern publishing methods, like self-publishing and eBook publication in mind, it is easy to understand why sales tracking has become a common pastime for most writers. Because most publishing options force you to take charge of your book’s marketing, it may be a good idea for you to make use of an online service to help you track the sales of your book and handle do a bit of book promotion on your behalf.
Taking this into consideration, let’s take look at the sales ranking and promotions company, RankTracer. This company will do some online promotion and track your book at the same time – giving you on-the-hour sales rank information, graphs, reports and actual sales estimates.
With an external company tracking your sales and offering you a bit of extra help with book promotion, you are left with more time on your hands to use as you please – feel free to explore book-signings, tours, public talks and even blog about your new book!
So now you know! I trust that you found my walk through the publishing industry informative. Hopefully it has answered a few of your publishing queries and has helped you find the perfect publishing fit for you. Good luck and happy publishing!
The best way to look at online book marketing is to think about creating relationships. This is an integral part of authoring books of any type and it is not really enough to be simply an expert writer.
Marketing of books is all about creating attention to them, to try and convince prospective readers to buy. Put simply, the basic truth about marketing a poorly written and edited book is that it can be embarrassing, causing returns and refund requests.
You would be advised to use a well written sales letter type of website for either your own ebook or as an affiliate book marketer.
Books, whether they might be Old Books or New Books of any type have the ability to make us happy, sadden us, heal us or create inspiration in our brains and they can transport us in our minds to new and intriguing places and other imaginary worlds.
Books and ebooks basically are “materials of experience and dreams,” and you never know whether you’ll be happy with a particular book until you’ve actually spent time reading it.
Only when you have invested a little of your time can you decide whether or not a book is for you and indeed whether to complete your travel to the very last page. This will always be so, no matter if the book you are reading is an old book, new book, fiction book, biography, educational book or indeed any other creative writing work.
Online book marketing works far easier and much better than traditional book marketing. For individuals that have the motivation, and driven ability to sell their book it can really work extremely well.
Regular Marketing of your book can help to increase its sales for a greatly extended periods, which is an established and well proven fact.
Which leaves just the remaining question.
Do you want to take the plunge and get your book produced & marketed in an innovative, cash generating way. so that you call attention to your book, and convince prospective readers to buy it?
It is definitely possible for you to make masses of recurring income from your book for many years to come by carrying out one or more of the following.
1) Build a web page to establish an online presence, making your book available via a website.
2) Try to place your book for viewing in bookshops, libraries, supermarkets, etc.
3) Generate other spin off products from your book, then market those products as well.
As an example, if you write a book about keep fit training you can obtain partnerships with a local gym or health centre.Or maybe an International Training equipment manufacturer, to whom you can offer an affiliate commission for marketing and selling your book.
In return you will obtain an affiliate commission whenever their product is sold through a link in your book.
You should try to obtain partnerships with associations, organizations and businesses that are relevant to the marketing of your book and try to get those partnerships well known in the public domain.
Every time you add new chapters to and restructure your book, re market it to the public using the same methods that you used in your original book marketing strategies. Even before you write a single chapter, try to visualise a picture of your prospective target audience, and you will enjoy much more success in the promotion of your book.
Remember always try to create and foster good relationships with your prospective joint partners and affilaites. Also have a policy of creating a good relationship with your prospective purchasers, so that they build up a trust in you, possibly becoming a customer for many of your future products for life.
Have you ever written a book before? Well, if not, then there are certain things that are important and should be considered. Writing a book is in no way similar to academic writing. Well when you do your book writing, you not only write for the audience of your book, but before that you also have to draft a manuscript or proposal for the publishers of the book. Your writing should be both edgy and catchy.
The list of good book writing tips could go on and on, but, here are few of the most important ones, these tips go for all book writers.
1.The spotlight should be on your main characters, you need to differentiate between the leads and the supporting characters.
2.While writing a book you need to check whether you have been able to develop your characters completely. Book writing is not just about the characters, it is also about emotions.
3.Has your protagonist changed while book writing? You need to make things practical, well as we grow, we learn from our mistakes, so should the characters in your book, a lot of book writers make this mistake, as a book writer you need to know that it would not be convincing if your characters do not change at all through the span of your book.
4.Your story needs to be logical because without logic, even fiction does not work.
5.While book writingyou need to have a constant tone though out your writing, your audiences cannot see you, for that reason book writers, while writing a book, have to be very cautious about their tone.
6.Is your book writing appealing enough, does it have a strong background? Does it showcase all the senses? Have you used a passive or an active tone? Dull writing or boring voice could ruin your career as a book writer.
These are some basic layouts for writing a book; as any other book writer, you need to deliver high quality content, to do so you can always use a book writing software.
On websites providing writers software, you can get various types of paid book writing software tools and free book writing software info. A good quality book writing software can help you deliver a better and a nicely formatted content. Free book writing software have a paid version as well, if you are a beginner then a free book writing software will be ideal for you, because as you grow as a book writer and as you explore more, you will keep on getting comfortable with the advanced book writing softwares.
Maintaining the integrity of books considered archives, heirlooms or historic can be challenging given the variety of elements and situations that can damage them. Fire, mold, water and smoke can all damage historic and archived books easily if proper prevention methods are not followed. Though the digital age has converted much that was print into an online format, there is still great value in preserving the books on -which so much has been built.
Restoring antique books that have been damaged can be challenging, but not impossible. Depending on the severity, type of paper and binding, books can be restored using methods like freeze-drying and vacuum-drying. Both of these require the services of a professional who understands the processes and sensitivities of using each.
Below are describes various methods individuals can follow to attempt to restore a book that has been damaged. However, it is important to note that for archived books, it is highly recommended that an expert in book restoration and damaged document recovery be called in to ensure good results.
Water Damaged Books
When restoring a book damaged by water, experts recommend taking the following steps and precautions:
1. Leaving the book in its original condition when found. If the book was closed when damaged, leave it closed. If it was open, leave it that way
2. If the book had coated paper, place wax paper between the pages
3. To store or move the book(s) before it has been treated, pack them spine-down in boxes or crates with freezer paper separating individual books
4. Mud and dirt should only be removed when the book is dry
5. Do not use bleaches or detergents to clean
6. Dry out wet books slowly using a fan. DO NOT USE THE SUN
7. Use cornstarch and talcum powder to help absorb any extra moisture and prevent mold
8. To straighten folded or wrinkled pages, wait until the book is partially dry. Then, gently press and hold the book together over and over as it continues to dry. When the books is close to being completely dry, place it in between two dry boards with a vice or clamp for at least 24 hours.
If the delicacy and detail of managing the drying and restoration of a historical or archived book seems daunting, find a service that can professionally restore books instead.
Antique Book Restoration
Materials and chemicals used to publish pages corrupt the integrity of old books over long periods of time. These books and particular damage require specific restoration care in order to ensure they prevail as time passes. The following steps and precautions should be taken for restoring antique books.
1. Clean your work area using a mild general purpose cleaner and let the area dry completely
2. Create the workspace in an area away from direct sunlight to avoid additional damage. Rather use a low, natural lighted area.
3. Oil and residue from your hands can stain and further damage antique books. Therefore wear white cotton gloves to handle the book or wash and dry your hands thoroughly before handling and every so often during the restoration process.
4. Clean the book gently by brushing away dust with a soft brush or gas duster.
5. If the book is fragile use very loose rubber bands to fasten together the cover and pages. Do not use staples, paper clips, tapes, or adhesives.
6. Clean pages using pencil erasers or very fine grit sandpaper
7. Only use a single-edged razor to remove food, gum, and waxed crayons.
8. Place the book into a sealable storage bag after it has been cleaned
Antique books should be cherished and stored with care. If you have antique books in your possession, look them over and take steps to preserve any that may be falling apart due to age, light or worse – mold. There are ways to preserve them, either by your own means or by bringing in a professional book restoration specialist to take on the task.
~Richard McNeal, 2009
Self-publishing provides a wonderful opportunity for any author who wants to take control over the publishing process and get their words into print. But because self-publishing is so easy to accomplish with a few bucks and some typed pages, many authors make mistakes along the way.
As a former bookstore owner, I have seen it all. A steady stream of authors used to parade through the store with their books and I could instantly tell when a book was self-published on a budget. From low-quality cover design and lack of editing to unreasonable pricing and an absent marketing plan, at least 90% of the authors I encountered made some major mistakes.
You can avoid new author pitfalls by preparing to be successful. Following are some guidelines to get your started on your journey.
Quality Matters
Successful self-publishing starts by producing a book that looks like it is hot off the press from Random House or another major publisher. The cover should be professionally designed and the text should be thoroughly edited by a pro—not your spouse, friend or business partner. Your book is a reflection of you. It should be impressive from start to finish. Cutting corners with design and editing will surely be reflected in book sales.
Pricing Considerations
Some of the print on demand (POD) companies force authors to set unreasonable prices for their books. A standard bookstore will expect to purchase your book at 40% off of the retail price and Amazon.com takes a whopping 55% discount. The price for your book should be reasonable for your target audience, yet still leave room for you to make a profit.
For example, if your book has a retail price of $20, a bookstore will purchase it at 40% off which comes to $12. In order for you to make a profit, you should be able to purchase wholesale copies of your book for less than $12. Unfortunately, some publishers lure authors in with low set-up fees, but make up for it in higher per-book costs.
Conversely, I have seen 100-page trade paperbacks with a retail price of $25 or higher. Unless the subject matter is highly technical or specialized in an industry that can bear this kind of pricing, it will be difficult to convince consumers to pay such a high price for a short book. When researching publishing assistance, inquire about the purchase cost of your books and how the retail price will be set.
Placing Your First Order for Books
When researching the minimum order requirements of book publishers and printers, consider how many books you need. Your purchase price for books will always be lower when you order in large quantities. However, if you order thousands of copies, you will need a climate-controlled place to store them and plan for selling them.
I advise authors to order enough books for one year. This means that you must tabulate how many you believe you can sell. If you are a professional speaker and can pre-sell books to companies and associations, you may be able to commit to several thousand copies. If your book is more of a hobby for you and you will be selling them out of the trunk of your car one at a time, it probably doesn’t make sense to order thousands at a time.
Make a list of potential sales opportunities and how many you think you can sell over the course of a year. Also, if you’re serious about marketing your book, plan to send out at least 100 review copies to media professionals. Book reviews sell books and authors should be willing to give books away in order to gain valuable publicity. One mention in a local newspaper can translate into a flurry of book sales. Expand your reach to online media, bloggers, radio show hosts, television and trade journals and you will uncover plenty of opportunities.
Marketing Begins BEFORE You Publish
The biggest mistake an author can make is to wait until a book is in print to begin the promotion process. When it comes to the media, a book is most relevant in its first few months in print so timing is critical. There are literally hundreds of book marketing strategies that you can begin to tackle right away. Here are a few to get you started:
* Get known online through your website and/or blog. Add content related to your book and of interest to your target audience.
* Leverage the power of social media such as Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter. Participate in one or more of these sites to gain exposure.
* Write interesting articles and make them available for reprint through sites like www.ezinearticles.com and www.IdeaMarketers.com. Make sure to include a brief author bio that mentions your book and include a link to your website. Offer articles for reprint to as many websites and print publications that you can find that reach your target audience.
* Ask your family, friends and peers to help spread the word. Ask who they know who might be able to help. Perhaps your aunt Jane has a friend who is a book reviewer for a major newspaper. Or your sister may know the host of a talk radio show. You won’t know until you ask.
* Get on the speaking circuit. Put together a couple of speeches related to your subject matter and pitch them to your local trade and community associations (chambers of commerce, Rotary clubs, specialty associations). When your audience likes what you have to say, they will naturally want to buy your book. If you enjoy speaking, you can expand beyond your local community and even get paid to travel and speak to audiences around the world. (By the way, the fact that you are a published author is going to open doors of opportunity for speaking engagements. If you want to refine your skills, consider joining a local chapter of Toastmasters.)
Your book can become the best business card you have as it will allow you to uncover opportunities beyond your imagination. However, if your book isn’t professionally produced and you fail to develop a book marketing plan, those opportunities could pass you by. Do your homework before you take this major step so that you can prepare yourself for a fantastic journey.
Book signings seem to be obsolete these days. The good thing about this is an author shouldnât really care. While book signings are slipping from existence, there are more creative options coming out for authors to promote each year. Many of them have brought in more books sales than a signing ever will for todayâs author. Whether you decide to embark on a book tour or have a signing, is your decision. I would like to point out, however why you shouldnât be disappointed if book signings do not bring you the success you seek. They usually donât and this is normal. Book signings can be very disappointing. Iâve outlined reasons why you shouldnât do book signings, instead of reasons why you should. I will also mention options afterwards that are not only better sales-wise but a lot more fun.
Book Signings Are Short-lived Sales
Book signings take a lot of effort to set up. Even if you do sell at a signing, which is highly unlikely these days, these sales are short-lived and most times forgotten. The most an author sells at a bookstore book signing is less than ten books. Some sell less than five. They say itâs important for an author to build a relationship with the people in the stores. Why? Not only do the workers care less about an author these days, unless you made a big impact, they wonât remember you from another author who signed at the store. If you do make an impact youâll be invited back. Iâve been invited back to stores many of times. But the myth that authors build relationships with the stores by doing signings is completely false. There is such a turn over with staff at bookstores that building a relationship is not even possible. Either way youâre not there to make friends. Youâre there to sell books and often this does not happen.
No Guarantee That Your Book Will Stay in That Location
Some authors think that just because they do a signing that it means that specific storeâs location will keep their books on hand. This is not true. There have been many instances where an author had a successful signing, even signed out only to have that store not to order more copies of their books. Do not believe that your book will stay in a location just because you did a signing. This is not a guarantee.
Big Book Stores Do Absolutely Nothing To Market A Signing
So youâre all excited about your signing huh? Youâve made all the arrangements and your publisher has set it up for you. Youâre expecting a huge turnout. Youâve promoted through your local radio station or newspaper. You even had a big contest on your web site, showcasing the event. You get to the store Saturday at 2pm to find that no one is there. Well, except the workers. Whatâs going on? You wonder. This is the big let down. Bookstores do not promote signings anymore. They put your signing in one dinky store newsletter, make one little sorry sign that you could have done yourself and thatâs it. You find once again that youâve done all the legwork only to be disappointed.
The truth is that a signing takes the participation of a bookstore to promote it. If they donât it not only shows their lack of appreciation for you as an author, but also it shows they simply do not care. The truth is that big chains have grown rather cold-hearted in terms of welcoming an author for a signing. Some locations help the author more than others but as a hold, big bookstores no longer go to the trouble of making authors feel welcome like the old days. The alternative option is signing at independent bookstores. Independent bookstores usually throw out the red carpet when an authorâs doing a signing. They appreciate you bringing readers to the store and in return you appreciate them for allowing you to sign. If you intend on doing book signings at stores you should focus on the smaller stores that at least show you they appreciate your presence.
Most Times Not Worth The Time And Effort
Due to the lack of participation with the stores or lack of publicity of your publisher, youâll often be disappointed with a bookstore signing. An author can only do so much. You cannot force people to show up and buy your books no matter what you do. It’s nothing more humiliating than being at a signing only to have people pass you up and treat you as if your book is less important than the ones on the shelves. Yet, it happens. Authors do not have to put up with this treatment simply to sell books. Those days are over.
A new day has come and now, authors hold all the cards. We have control of how we want to promote our books and where we want to sell them. Now that Iâve outlined why bookstore signings may not be worth it, below Iâve suggested some options and alternatives you may want to consider.
Festivals:
If you insist on doing book signings, skip stores altogether. If you want to sell books and have fun, try festivals. There are tons of festivals in almost every big city geared towards authors meeting the public and selling books. Festivals are so much more rewarding that even if you only sell a few books, you wonât care because youâll walk away with so much more. Youâll get a chance to meet readers, other authors, other literary professionals, and media that attends bringing you publicity. This adds to more exposure.
Group Signings:
You can both get with some author pals and host your own group signings or participate in group signings at your local bookstore. Many stores hold group signings once a month and local authors are encouraged to participate. Group signings bring more readers to the event as well as give you the chance to meet other authors. Bookstores promote group signings more effectively than an individual authorâs event. You also wonât walk away in shame if you donât sell books. You may not sell at group signings but youâll end up with more exposure and friends in the industry.
Book Club Signings:
Contact a local book club and see if they are interested in letting you do a signing at one of their upcoming meetings. Make your book attractive for them to pick as a featured book then let them know that youâd be more than willing to do a signing at their meeting. Book Club signings can be very fun because they also turn into discussions and this ends up being a learning experience for the author as well as the club.
Sign At Places of Your Choice:
You can also pick a fun place of your choice to hold a signing. This could be in the park, at a club, festival or in an arena where some big event is being held. This will attract people to you as they attend the other event. The difference between this and a book signing is that you order your books from your publisher then you sell them at the event and keep the profits. Be creative. You can even hold a signing at a baby shower, birthday party or family gathering. Youâre sure to sell tons of books. Not only are you completely in control but youâll feel more comfortable signing in a place of your choice. These are also the most fun. Remember to advertise your event. Put an ad in your local paper and promote online to people in your area. The possibilities are endless.
Last but not least, the biggest option would be:
Virtual Book Tours
Itâs been speculated that VBTs sell more books than a regular book tour ever could. You reach more of an audience because youâre doing everything online. Some authors set up their own VBTs but if youâre not familiar with the concept and want to skip the hard work, then hire a company to work with you. Theyâll do all the legwork and all you have to do is show up on blogs and sites. Youâll do interviews, pod casts, guest blogs and more. Itâs all up to you. VBTs allow authors to promote from the comfort of their own home and at their most convenient time. Think of having a book tour in your robe and slippers. Sounds good to me. Also, youâll gain more traffic to your web site, sell more books and meet more fans during a VBT than you ever could offline. The best thing is that your tour remains visible forever. Your appearance stays on the sites as long as they stay online so your tour is archived and will be visited by web siteâs visitors time and time again. This of course means long-term exposure and sales.
Weâve all had bad experiences with book signings. If youâre like me then youâre completely turned off by them. I donât plan on doing anymore in-store signings but luckily there are so many options available. Book promotion is easier these days than ever. Authors should take full advantage and only then will they receive the ample rewards that come along with that.
Remember to think out of the box. It takes creativity to promote effectively and to enjoy it.
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Long before the internet, people have read book reviews. Before spending their time and money on a book, they wanted to find out if a book would be a good investment. Today is no different. People simply have many more choices now that the internet is so commonplace. We have the ability to read numerous reviews about any book that interests us, those written long ago, or bestsellers of today.
A quick search will yield results for numerous online book review websites. A few of the top ones, and most used are Amazon.com, bookstore websites like Barnes and Noble or Borders, and those that have been around long before the widespread use of the internet, like the New York Times book review. Some consumer networking sites like Acobay also has book review category.
Amazon.com is one of the top shopping and review websites. Along with editorial reviews, there are customer reviews. Because of the sheer number of people who use Amazon, there are many customer reviews on most books, especially best sellers, giving the reader a larger number of reviews to base their decision on. This can be good for the reader, giving many different opinions. Once a book has reviews in the thousands though, it can be overwhelming to wade through all of them.
Amazon provides reviews for all types of books, including fiction, non-fiction, bestsellers, and children’s books. Books can be searched by title, author, genre or ISBN. Amazon also gives recommendations of other books the reader might like based on the books they have searched for. It is easy for the reader to find most any book. And Amazon has a useful feature which allows the customer to “look inside” select books, sometimes being able to read a few pages.
Borders.com is another shopping and review website. It, like Amazon, has customer reviews, though not as many. For example, a search on a popular book, “Eat, Pray, Love” turned up 1792 customer reviews on Amazon. The same search on Borders only turned up 21 reviews. The website gives a description of the book, but no editorial review. The customer can use a wide variety of searches including title, author, ISBN or genre. Borders also lists similar books to view based on current searches. If the customer has a Borders store nearby, a quick search can tell if the book is available at their local store. Similar to Amazon, Borders gives the reader the ability to “look inside” select books. Borders also has a large variety and amount of books available, allowing the reader to search for and find most any book they are looking for.
A different, yet well-known book review website is the New York Times book review. It lists the top books, based on sales each week. The New York Times lists the latest books. Not all are reviewed, though they may be in the bestsellers list for the week. The reviews that are listed though, are very detailed and thorough, giving the reader a good idea of what to expect from the book by professional reviewers. Because different works are placed together on the same page, fiction, non-fiction, poetry, it can be difficult to determine what genre each writing is at first glance. Therefore, the website requires more navigation to find books the reader may be interested in. The online database goes back to 1981, giving the reader access only to books reviewed since that time. On some books, the reader can choose to read the first few pages or chapters of a book. This is a nice feature, since sometimes it is in the first few pages that the reader makes the decision whether they would like to continue the book or not.
Overall, each book review website has some unique attributes. If the reader is looking for a place to review and purchase a book in one easy step, a place like Amazon.com is a great place to look. If the reader would rather get an idea of what a book is about before going in to shop at a nearby bookstore, a website like Borders.com might be the top choice, since local availability of the book is also given. For a more thorough and professional look at bestsellers, the New York Times the top place for many to search. Whatever the choice, today’s reader has many options and the ability to find a new book to read in just a few clicks of the mouse.
You want to write a book – a very exciting and challenging undertaking. Good for you. You have a great book idea – an idea that you believe needs to be in print. You believe that other people have an interest in what you have to say. You believe that many people will buy your book, and if you do the job of writing correctly, many people WILL buy your book.
It is your dream to have your book in every bookstore in the country, perhaps even in several countries. But wait, have you planned beyond bookstore sales? Many authors are unaware that there are many markets for books beyond the bookstores. The bookstores may be your first market, but there are many other “hidden” markets, and here are some key book marketing tips to help you tap into those markets.
Let’s begin with the job of writing the book. When you put “pen to paper”, it is important that you focus on one audience but write for many markets. Let’s begin by identifying why you are writing a book. Some people merely want to be a published author, giving them claim to a copyright and their name on a book. That is satisfaction enough. They don’t care about the financial return or the development of writing or publishing as a career. Other people just want to write a family history and sell it to their extended family. Some people are interested only in selling to the attendees of their seminars. Many others, however, want to sell thousands of books in as many markets as possible. Decide at the beginning of the writing process why you are writing so that you can determine whether or not you are creating a business venture.
Once you have established your reason for writing, move on to what you are writing about. Don’t try to be all things to all people or the encyclopedic source of all information on a subject. Choose an area of a subject with which you are very familiar and develop your topic well so that you don’t overwhelm or bore your readers. For instance, if you are writing a cookbook, don’t try to be The Joy of Cooking – that’s already been done. Instead, write about a category of recipes, such as heritage recipes, or recipes of a region or culture, or recipes from famous restaurants, etc. Your goal is to make your book different, and better, than other cookbooks.
Having now decided on the why and the what, focus on the who, meaning who will buy your book. You believe that many people will be interested in your book, but let’s define “many”. Do you mean all of the people in your interest group, your church or your workplace, or do you mean everyone? A word of caution, though – there is NO book that is for everyone. Sure, everyone may need your book but not everyone will want it. If your book is a healthy lifestyle cookbook, everyone might need it, but only people who actually want to be healthy will buy it. Do some research on who those people are and where they are likely to actually buy your book. Understand their demographics: age group, income level, shopping habits, activities, etc. Now write for them. What information are your target readers looking for? Is their a gap in the information about a subject that is very familiar to you or in which you have the credentials to fill the gap? Make sure that your book solves a problem or problems for the reader, or make sure that your book will increase the well being of the reader. Avoid falling into the trap of writing to make yourself feel better – you are not the one who will buy your book. Or if you are, you are the only buyer that you will have!
The why, what and who now being defined, you can turn your attention to the where you can sell your book. Because there are many markets for books, decide early in the writing process just what those markets are and write to sell your book in those markets.
It is likely that the first market that will come to mind is traditional book stores, and of course they can be a vital part of your sales. Do your research in getting to know your competition on the book store shelves, i.e., look at the other books that have been written in your genre. What writing style is most appealing to a wide audience? Is there a gap in the information provided in the other books? Are there problems that have not been addressed? Find the needs and fill them. When you are satisfied with the information that you are providing, think about what will attract the book store buyers. They will want to know about your planned publicity campaign. If you want people to buy your book in book stores, you are responsible for letting people know that your book is available, thereby driving buyers to the stores.
Besides book stores, books are purchased in the nontraditional book market by display retailers, book clubs, catalogs, gift retailers, volume buyers (think Costco and Price Club), corporations, foundations and foreign markets. These markets are considered “hidden” because they exist outside the usual bookstore market, yet they account for many millions of dollars each year in book sales. In fact, we sell thousands of books to buyers like these every year (for more about our Book Marketing tips and secrets click here: Book Marketing Tips). These markets, however, do not buy any and every book. They are looking for books that appeal to their customers.
For instance, if you are writing a book about spiritual experiences, think about which of those markets will likely buy your book. Will you approach book clubs? If yes, which book clubs – those that specialize in spiritual books only, or those that market to the general public? Will you approach the gift market or catalogs? Each market evaluates its purchases for its own clientele. Book clubs that target the religious book reader have a greater interest in spiritual books than do general interest book clubs. Volume buyers, catalogs and gift buyers (unless they target a religious market), display retailers and corporations will very seldom buy a spiritual book. Foreign markets, however, are often very interested.
Even if your book is written for the general book trade, you can still think of corporations that might be able to use your book as a promotional item. Make a list of corporations that could be interested in your book and make sure that your writing supports their products or philosophy, and that what you are writing about will solve some problems for the corporate clients. For instance, one cookbook was targeted at busy people who want to follow a healthy lifestyle. It became a bestseller very quickly in the traditional book trade, but sales exploded when it was sold to pharmaceutical companies who used the book as support information for clients who needed to achieve a healthy weight. The book also sold successfully in foreign markets, to catalogs, as fund raisers and to shopping malls as a customer reward.
The point is: you need to know how to slant your writing for your markets. You can sometimes get around the road blocks by giving your book the look and feel of a gift book rather than one that is a “serious read”. Don’t give your book the look and feel of a thesis. Many volume buyers are looking for broad interest books that people buy on impulse as gifts. This approach to writing increases your market tremendously, so if you want to appeal to a very large audience, approach your subject from a much “lighter” angle.
However, if you are a professional speaker who knows that you have a very good chance of selling your book to your seminar attendees, and perhaps to the corporations who hire you, writing for a very broad market is not necessary. You are not even trying to sell to the impulse buyer. Your buyer is already looking for a source of expertise such as yours.
If you are planning to sell your book primarily from a website to a specific type of buyer, someone who is searching the internet for answers to a concern or problem, you can be as specific as you like. The general public, again in this instance, is not your market – you already have enough buyers to make you very successful.
So, before you begin the writing process, make an outline of your book. Then, look at your list of potential buyers. Have you filled their needs? If not, can you add information or chapters to your book that will increase the likelihood of sales to those buyers? If you want to sell thousands of books, think about the end user of your book and write for them, not for yourself. That is the ultimate book marketing tip. See you on the bestseller list!
© Copyright 2004 Ink Tree Ltd.
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