Your name: D’vorah Lansky

Your website: http://BookMarketingMadeEasy.com

Your bibliography: Connect, Communicate, and Profit: Build Successful Business Relationships Online Book Marketing Made Easy: Simple Strategies for Selling Your Nonfiction Book Online Promote Your Book with Teleseminars: Simple and Affordable Ways to Turn Your Message Into Money

1. What is your background? I have a Master’s Degree in education and have taught in various places around the globe.  When my son was born I began marketing online, that was 1994. This led to many speaking opportunities and the publication of my books.

2. What led you to self-publishing? I like the control I have over to project so I can set the pace. With so many options available an author can accomplish a great deal while retaining the rights to their book.

3. What have you found to be the biggest challenge in self-publishing? Sifting through all the offerings and finding the best book cover designer, editor, etc. Some of the programs where you pay someone to do it all sound appealing. Since I am quite proficient in online marketing I don’t need the support with building sites and social media, so still looking for the right match.

4. What has been the biggest surprise about self-publishing? That an author can write a book and publish it. I thought publishing a book was a huge mystery and rare occurrence. I was delighted to find out that this is not the case.

5. What inspires you? Being around kind, positive, giving, successful people.

6. Describe your writing process. I use the “gatherer” style of writing. I like to outline my project in word or as a mindmap. I then plug in subtopics, idea, resources, etc. Next, I open up word and pop each page/idea onto it’s own page. I format the text so that everything is uniform and then I dig in and begin writing. I like to set a goal for number of sections I’ll work on during each writing session. Sometimes I’ll print off these pages and attach them to a clipboard as I often enjoy sitting in bed and writing first thing in the morning.

7. How do you stay disciplined? I actually am quite disciplined and have to force myself to go to sleep or go have fun, away from the office! To me,work, writing, marketing, meeting people, networking, IS fun!

8. What is your favorite self-marketing idea? Setting up and participating in an online Virtual Book Tour. I was inspired by the book tours of Dana Lynn Smith and Joanna Penn and set up what ended up being a very successful 21-day virtual book tour. If anyone is interested in gathering ideas for their own tour there are lots of tips and ideas right on my tour page and on my blog at http://BookMarketingMadeEasy.com

9. What advice do you have for burgeoning self-publishers? Set up a WordPress blog the foundation of your online platform. Begin promoting your book and developing your author platform when your book is just a glimmer in your eye. In this way you’ll have a strong foundation and solid relationships with people who will support you when it comes time to promote your book as well as a place for people to come to to find out more about you and your book.

10. When you’re not writing what do you do for fun? I enjoy going to the bookstore, playing cribbage, hiking, quilting, dancing, and reading.

11. What project are you currently working on? I actually am working on two projects.

1) The Third Annual Book Marketing Conference Online. Fifteen sessions with top book marketing experts.
http://BookMarketingConference.com

2) A course on Relationship Marketing for Authors that Shelley Hitz and I are teaching together.

http://www.greetingcardsforauthors.com/ecourse/

I’m pleased to welcome today’s guest post by author and former CBS News journalist Hardy Jones. He wanted to share with my readers the lessons he learned in promoting his book through advertising.  I generally don’t recommend that authors advertise their books – reviews and other forms of publicity are weighted far more heavily – and this post underscores that.

What Not to Do to Sell Your Indie Book

By Hardy Jones

In May of this year, I self-published my book, The Voice of the Dolphins (VOTD), through CreateSpace, an Amazon subsidiary. The book has been released in print, Kindle, and in enhanced eBook format with embedded video clips through iTunes and via the eBookStore app.

After having a horrific experience with a mainstream publisher I got the rights back and eventually wrote the book I wanted. But my sales have been paltry, roughly 300 units, virtually all from my FaceBook and Twitter reach and enewsletters of BlueVoice.org and other ocean environmental organizations.

VOTD received a very nice review from Kirkus and is five-stars on Amazon. I’ve had enough professional feedback to be confident it’s a good piece of work. So as sales dwindled from initial 60 per month to 30 to fewer, I became frustrated. The book is not only the story of nearly 35 years filming dolphins and whales in the wild, it contains important information on toxics in the ocean environment that affect the health of both dolphins and humans.

Then I saw an ad in the New York Times Book Review offering half price off ads for first time authors. I’ve made more than seventy films for television but VOTD is my first book. I thought I’d try to achieve a breakout for the book through an ad in the NYT Book Review. The sales agent said they reach 4-million readers. Even the half-off price was $5,100, a lot of money for me. But fortune favors the bold, I told myself.

I wasn’t trying to generate enough sales to cover the cost of the ad but I thought I might make a couple of hundred sales and get some media attention. I had a professional do the graphics, we had endorsements from Ted Danson, the Kirkus Review, and a nice blurb from Paul Watson. I anxiously awaited the publication date: September 18, 2011.

The results were pathetic. Sales ran less than 20 on the Amazon and Kindle sites combined. There were a few more on the eBookStore and probably some on iTunes (won’t know for a month or more). So the ad was a complete and total waste of money.

But hope springs eternal. VOTD is up for a literary award, I’ll be speaking to the Society of Environmental Journalists, there are two library appearances on my docket, a booth at a marine mammal conference and a whale festival. That may generate a few sales.

In the end the greatest value may be in sending signed copies of the book to donors to our nonprofit (www.bluevoice.org). One copy went to a donor who promptly sent a gift of $3,000. We’re sending copies to donors all over the world now – Japan, Qatar, Brazil, Colombia, and of course, the USA and Canada.

The bottom line is I love the book and will keep fighting to get recognition for it; but not through the NYT Book Review.

Hardy Jones has spent more than thirty years investigating and working to save dolphins. He began unique research on dolphins in the Bahamas in 1978 that has led to four internationally broadcast films and many awards. In 1979 He broke the story of the slaughter of dolphins at Iki Island, Japan which led to international outrage and helped shut down the killing of dolphins in several villages in Japan.  Since then Hardy has worked at Futo and Taiji to stop the last vestiges of slaughter on Japan’s main island. Hardy has covered the increasing levels of toxic chemicals in the oceans and their connection to disease in dolphins and human beings. Hardy is a former journalist with CBS News. He attended Tulane University and studied law at Columbia University under a CBS Foundation Fellowship. Visit his website at http://hardyjonesdolphins.com.

Here are some questions to ask yourself:

How long are you willing to wait to see your book in print?  Let’s skip right over the months and possibly years it might take you to find representation and assume you already have a finished manuscript and an agent. It may take some time for the agent to shop around and find the right place for your book. Let’s further assume the agent finds a publisher who is interested and offers a reasonable contract. You still might have to wait another 12 to 18 months to see your book in print.  Self-publishing can be done in a much shorter amount of time—usually just a couple of months if your manuscript is professionally edited and the book is professionally designed.

What are your reasons for wanting to be traditionally published?  A lot of authors today make the choice to self-publish rather than pursue a traditional deal. They believe they can better produce and market their books—and potentially make a lot more money. But in some circles there is still a certain amount of “prestige” in landing that trad contract. If it’s the so-called status of a traditional deal you crave, then self-publishing may not be right for you. If you simply want to get your work out there, then collecting rejection letters may just postpone the inevitable.

How much control are you willing to let go of? In general, when you sign a contract with a traditional publisher, you give up a certain amount of control over your project both editorially and creatively. The publisher will likely have final say over the content, the title, and the cover design. Most of the time, authors are satisfied with the results. However, having worked on the traditional side of publishing for a number of years as managing editor of a small press, I can think of a couple of different instances when authors were not happy with decisions we made regarding their books. They had no choice but to live with it. With self-publishing, you maintain full control over every aspect of the production process.

Do you have a sizeable author platform in place? You may not have a chance with a traditional publisher if you don’t have a large list of connections and potential buyers. The fact of the matter is that regardless of how good your book is, most trads expect you to have a large following before they will sign you on.  (Plus, you’ll still have to shoulder much of the marketing and promotions burden yourself.) Of course, author platform—and marketing and promotions— is equally important in terms of sales if you decide to self-publish.

Would you be self-publishing strictly out of frustration? Self-publishing is not as easy as simply uploading your Word document to CreateSpace. At least, it shouldn’t be. Care should be taken to ensure your content is top-notch (hire a good editor) and its presentation matches that of the trads (hire a book designer). There’s the also the little fact that you are now taking on the role of publisher in addition to author, which leads me to the next question.

Are you interested in becoming a publisher in addition to an author? This is a biggie because as a self-publisher, you are forced to take on that role. Even if you hire professionals to help put your project together, you’ll still have to make final editorial and design decisions. You’ll need to decide on a name for your publishing company and open up a bank account. You’ll have to obtain the appropriate numbers for your book. You’ll need to handle accounting and budgeting for the project. You’ll have to figure out distribution and fulfillment. Of course, there are companies that can help you with all that, but it’s definitely more involved than “just” being an author. It’s not for everyone. 

Do you have the budget to do it “right”? Sure, there are places where you can get your book published for “free,” but chances are your book will be immediately identifiable as “self-published” and disregarded by reviewers—or worse, trashed by them. I simply don’t believe there is any way around having your book professionally edited and designed. You don’t need to pay thousands for each, but you’ll probably have to pay something. And please make sure you have enough money to purchase your own ISBN. Never use one of the so-called “POD self-publishing” company’s ISBNS. Never. Make sure you are the publisher of record.

Do you truly have a quality manuscript with a unique message? Have you tried but failed to get a traditional deal because your manuscript is a piece of crap? Has no unique message? Is poorly written? Then self-publishing is not for you either; you’ll probably waste a lot of money and time on something that will not sell—and worse, could harm your reputation. If, however, you truly believe you’ve been rejected by the trads through no fault of your manuscript (it’s tough to land an agent, let alone a contract these days), self-publishing is probably your best bet. With a good book and a solid marketing plan, you will probably even be successful.

Your website/blog: http://www.MacStartup.com

Your bibliography: How to Start a Business: Mac Version; i.Business Issue #3, #4 magazine articles:

1. What is your background? Writing a Masters thesis for my Masters degree in Administration was the largest document I have ever written up until that time, and if you had told me 10 years ago that I would write a book, let alone one about computers, I would have said, “Yeaaa, riiiight!” Ever since I bought my first Apple computer in December 1983 I’ve been fascinated about computers as tools, whether its Windows, Mac, or Linux. When I left the US Air Force in 1992 I got a job selling computers to businesses and spent over a decade helping Fortune 500 companies, small businesses, startups, Dads and Moms working from home, even high school kids cutting lawns during the summer to find the right computer solutions for their businesses. Fortunately, selling computers to businesses for a number of computer companies, including a three-year stint at Apple selling Macs to businesses, I was able to interact on a daily basis with my business customers and my future potential book audience, getting both great content and feedback. When I was a kid I had a paper route, so every once in a while in the back of my mind I thought about starting my own business. But when I decided to take the plunge writing my book, and afterwards starting my own business, I could never find any books that helped me with the business case of a computer, i.e. I have a Mac loaded with tools from iLife, but how could I use them for my business? There are plenty of books about business issues such as marketing, sales, and the like and plenty of books about computers, how to use Windows and how to use Microsoft Office for the Mac, but nothing that combines both business and computer use for the solo business owner such as my wife’s real estate business or a Mompreneur. So, as it is said in the computer programming industry, I decided to “scratch my own itch” and write the book myself.

2. What led you to self-publishing? I knew that as a new author I was going to have a difficult time finding a publisher since I am an unknown potential, so independently publishing my book was my best course of action. One of the key issues surrounding any entrepreneur or start up is being able to do things at no cost or low cost, to stretch your cash. I could not afford Adobe’s InDesign or Quark Xpress applications, let alone pay someone to use these applications. Besides, as any good entrepreneur says, “Let’s see if I can do it myself.” I have read numerous articles and blog posts that Microsoft Word is the default application to write a book in, but being a Mac fan boy Apple’s iWork office suite had a word processor and page layout application called Pages and I wanted to see if it could get the job done “low cost.” Researching book design one of the key elements is leading, the spacing in between each line of text. I researched the answer to do 12 on 14 (12 point Garamond font with 14 point spacing) leading in Pages and I gave my wife a sample single spaced and a 12 on 14 line spacing page book chapter to my wife and asked her to decide which she liked best: She liked the 12 on 14 page! Woo Hoo! This proved that Pages could get the job done creating a good book. Next was to see if any Print-On-Demand (POD) company would accept the Mac’s PDF file with no technical issues. Upon seeing the great final printed output, I knew that I was on my way to independently publishing my book, the low cost, Mac quality way.

3. What have you found to be the biggest challenge in self-publishing? Listening to a teleseminar by Jack Canfield he stated that 10% of your effort is in writing and producing the book, the other 90% is marketing. Having heard that and watched my wife with her real estate business and other entrepreneurs, this same comment applies equally across all industries and entrepreneurs. Marketing yourself and your content will be the most demanding of any writer’s time and effort.

4. What has been the biggest surprise about self-publishing? The biggest surprise about self-publishing is the fact that there are now no barriers for authors wanting to get published today, the only thing stopping a writer is themselves. It still takes the same amount of work to write and produce a good book, whether by a publisher or independently publishing it, but as long as the writer knows this and markets their work, nothing should stop a writer for making sales and a living at what they love.

5. Describe your writing process. Looking back over writing my book my process was first was to just start writing whatever I had in my head to get it on paper, or in my case, getting it into my computer. As I wrote on a daily and weekly basis I found myself growing both as a writer and becoming a project manager, my book had now become a major project. Any writing process begins with the writer’s personality, some prefer pen/pencil and paper/journal (analog), others a computer (digital). Writers who need to write long hand need to feel the pen and paper in their hands and the smell of the ink as they write and others, such as myself, get on the computer and just write. Some even do both as each writing process brings out different styles and types of writings. Even writing with a computer there are the familiar word processors, but there is also speech to text applications such as Windows Dragon Naturally Speaking or the Mac’s Dictate software that will allow you to speak and convert it into text. Personally, when I start a new project or article I use the Mac’s program Dictate in my office to get all my thoughts on my Mac and with the headset’s long cord I can walk around my office and dictate my thoughts “puking it out” without skipping a beat. I also carry a journal in my laptop’s backpack to write or draw freehand my thoughts or discussions with others. While I could use Dictate to edit my work, I mostly use my keyboard to edit and polish. In the early days of my writing I would have a thought or thoughts and would rush to write it down or type it into my Mac. But because of the program Dictate I can now create my thoughts and words without having to worry about losing a train of thought “in my zone” because I cannot get it down quick enough. Using Dictate has changed my writing process.

6. How do you stay disciplined? Staying disciplined requires three views of just about anything: Where am I, where my going, and how my going to where I am going? Without knowing these three pieces of information there is no real reason to be disciplined. And viewing “where am I going” means I can write short pieces until such time I can see farther into the future of where I’m going, much like driving from Denver to LA, you can only see so far down the road, but you do have a destination to head toward. Here is how it looks regarding my book. Where am I: I have experience with computers that businesses often ask for my opinion. Where am I going: since a lot of businesses keep asking the same questions over and over speaking to them on a daily basis, I can reach more people through writing a book and not be limited by time (eight hours a day) or space (being only one place at one time). How do I get there: I’ll start writing and as I come across different ways of getting my experience to my audience, I’ll adapt to fit their needs. Solving my customer’s problems with satisfaction with my talents is my discipline.

7. How are you financing your publishing project? I initially financed publishing my book myself from income from a job and then with book sales. One of the key concepts that changed my way of thinking regarding writing my book during my early writing days was a seminar that suggested that it’s no longer about the book, it’s about the content: The content can become a book, e-book, seminar, workshop, speaking engagements, etc. A significant life lesson learned after publishing my book is there are two major skills of a writer: There is the craft of writing and then there is the business of your writing craft, how do you make more than a living at it. The same goes for any other career or passion someone has, there is the law for a lawyer and then there is the business of law, medicine for a doctor and the business of medicine, graphic art and the business of graphic art. Each writer needs to understand both the craft of writing and the business of writing, how to make a profit and a living from your writing.

8. What is your favorite self-marketing idea? I have two. First, offline I help others with what they are doing, so I always ask first, “How can I help you with your writing/business/life?” By being a “Go-Giver” and finding solutions for others and actually helps create a mini Mastermind session between us. Second, online I like to leave marketing “crumb” answers and solutions on various websites that relate to my target audience and drive traffic to my website, especially though social media. This entails finding subjects, ideas and comments about things that relate to my book content on the internet and leaving comments and answers and my website URL for them to follow up with my thoughts.
9. What advice do you have for burgeoning self-publishers?  First, just start writing, because you can’t steer a parked car. This means anything and everything to get your writing muscle, your brain, tuned into the writing process. My good friend Bob stated that over time during the writing of your book you’re writing style will change and improve. My first writing coach, a retired ER doctor, said the first draft of your book should be “puked out” as quickly as possible. Most writers write the first chapter and then go back and edit it over and over, rather than finishing the book and then polishing it. Second, learn how to make a profit and a living writing. It means finding a hungry crowd and feeding them what they are hungry for. With technologies allowing you to independently publish your book, there is no better time than now to get your book into the hands of your audience. So get out of your own way and just do it and make a profit.

10. When you’re not writing what do you do for fun? One of the telltale signs of a writer is that they are voracious readers, so I love to read at least a book a month, or more if I can. But to get my head out of these words, I go running, go to various Meetup.com meetings, and hang out with other like-minded individuals around our Colorado and entrepreneurial lifestyle.

11. What project are you currently working on? I am creating a PC version of my book and a seminar/workshop surrounding my content and will be connecting with other individuals such as a lawyer, a CPA, a social media expert, a copywriter, and others to produce a one-day seminar for people interested in starting their own business. My plan is to have this done by midsummer for people to attend.

You can find Jody at: www.jodyreinbooks.com

And the Webinar at: How to Secure a Literary Agent for Your Self-Published Book

Sue: Ok, the big elephant in the room first. Why would a happy self-publisher want an agent?

Jody: Well, you know that there are hundreds of thousands of self-publishers out there, and each one has a different story. In brief, a literary agent is a good choice for a self-publisher who hopes to publish some or all of his or her books through a traditional house, or who needs help and access to sell subsidiary rights (such as film or foreign) to his or her self-published work, or, possibly for a self-publisher who seeks career management.  The services I just listed are all in flux as I type—the whole publishing world is in the midst of a massive identity shift.

I’ve been thinking lately that what we’ll see, at least in the near future, are increasing numbers of people who jump in and out of self and traditional publishing over the course of their careers, and who end up with some books self-published and some books traditionally published. If this is in fact the way this world evolves, the role of agents could be quite important in helping authors make these decisions.

Sue: Don’t most agents look down on self-publishers?

Jody: I think the answer is deeper than a “yes” or a “no.” The first self-published book I represented as an agent was in 1994; You Mean I’m Not Lazy, Crazy or Stupid by Kate Kelly and Peggy Ramundo—it’s still in print and earning royalties with Scribner. Even before that as an editor I made my name in the biz partly by seeking out self-published and small press books to re-publish. It is now as it was then: books that were well-written with proven and growing markets were terrifically appealing to any publishing pro with open eyes and an understanding of the bottom line—particularly in nonfiction. Self-publishers still are at the forefront of trends and pockets of interests. Those books that break through and establish a market are as exciting as ever to agents and publishers.

The biggest difference I see now is that self-published genre fiction and to some degree even literary fiction aren’t dismissed out of hand because they have initially been self-published. But remember, agents historically weren’t looking down on self-published fiction from some unfounded position of bias— agents’ attitudes have changed because the product has changed. Cost barriers have dropped away at the same time traditional publishing barriers have grown enormously. This has encouraged serious novelists to pursue self-publishing in many cases, and will continue.

Sue: I have to ask—are you looking for self-published authors to represent?

Jody: Not right now; I stopped taking on new clients a few years ago to develop software for writers and focus on my existing clients, who were keeping me pretty busy. I just decided last week to open the door to doing some project by project consulting since this software is taking FOREVER to launch.

Sue: So nothing to brag about?

Jody: I didn’t say that! Watch for the Fox movie The Big Year starring Owen Wilson, Jack Black and Steve Martin coming out this fall! It’s based on my client Mark Obmascik’s terrific book (buy it, buy it—through an independent bookstore if you can!). And three clients have exciting proposals in the hopper–I’ll keep you posted.

 Of course there’s my Writer’s Digest webinar this Thursday, June 30th: How to Secure a Literary Agent for Your Self-Published Book

And, I promised my intern Kelsey: I’ll update my website & start blogging soon. I’ve got a lot to say about all this stuff…so we added a contact form yesterday for people who would like to know when I go all 21^st century. (Funny how you can be cutting edge one minute and old school the next…)

1. Educate yourself. Publishing is a business and needs to be treated as such. There are books, blogs, websites, and associations devoted to self-publishing. Failing to learn all you can about it can mean wasting thousands of dollars by blundering along without knowledge or a plan.

2. Study the competition. Be sure your topic hasn’t been overdone. Check the library, your local bookstore, and Amazon.com. But don’t stop there: Check Books in Print Subject Guide and Forthcoming Books in Print Subject Guide. Then make sure yours is better than what is already out there.

3. Write what other people want. Catering to one’s own personal desires often makes for a blah book nobody buys. Face the facts: Personal journals and impassioned tirades are best saved for family and friends, not foisted upon the general public.

4. Think “marketing” from the start. The time to start generating marketing ideas is before you even write the manuscript. Identify your market. How can you reach them? Start folders of ideas. What catalogs might be interested? Which associations reach your potential readers? Can you sell the book as a premium to companies that would give it away as a gift to entice new customers or use it internally for training? Think about who else reaches your potential customer and how you can partner with them. Do you have contacts who have national name recognition and might write an advance endorsement?

5. Get professional editing. You cannot edit your own work. You cannot.

6. Create a catchy title. The right title can make a book. Short is best. Clever is fine but don’t sacrifice clarity. Include a subtitle for nonfiction books as it gives you extra mileage in ensuring readers know what the book is about.

7. Include all the vital components. Depending on whether your book is paper or electronic, you may need an ISBN, LCCN, EAN scanning code, subject category on the back cover, the title displayed boldly on the spine, and so forth. Don’t know what you need? See item number 1 in this list!!

8. Have a dynamite cover. Get it designed by a professional who knows book cover design, not just someone who does nice logos or brochures. There is a lot of competition out there; this is your opportunity to stand out from the crowd.

9. Make the interior inviting. Study the insides of books that look clean and user-friendly; use these as your model. The production values of your book must meet the competition to be acceptable in the trade. It is not advisable to do your book layout in Word, so if you are not budgeting for the steep price tag and learning curve of a program such as InDesign, hire a pro.

10. Price properly. Books that are much more costly than the competition—or even sometimes a lot cheaper—can meet resistance. Figure out a per-unit cost that still offers you a margin for profit and enables you to offer booksellers a discount—and that keeps you in line with your competition.

11. Publicize, promote, publicize, promote. Eat, sleep, and talk your books. Ongoing, enthusiastic marketing is the real key to success. Never quit. Always be on the alert for new opportunities; marketing is forever and your efforts today can yield results way down the road.

(Portions of this post have been excerpted from the upcoming second edition of Jump Start Your Books Sales by Marilyn Ross and Sue Collier, scheduled for release in late 2011.)

I was stuck in Professor Uptight’s class against my will. It was a mandatory class I needed to obtain my degree, I was in my second to the last semester before graduating, and the time it was going to be offered the following semester just didn’t work. So I couldn’t drop it like my instincts told me to after the first day of class when I suspected our personalities were not going to mesh well.

The class was a literary criticism class, which, as an English lit major, came pretty easy to me at this point in my college career. But regardless of what I wrote, Professor Uptight hated it and graded accordingly. When I made an appointment to discuss this with him–after all, this was my major and I could not afford a C or a (gasp!) D in the class–I will never forget the way he looked with disdain at my outfit (early glam rock circa 1985) and my Walkman (the cassette version, for those of you who even remember those) upon learning I was listening to Billy Idol (he asked!). I kind of knew right then and there that I didn’t have a chance in his class.

My point after this long-winded narrative? As the old adage says, you just can’t please all of the people all of the time. As an author now, I am learning that there are people who will criticize my work—some of them like to do it over and over again. They will have a list of reasons–some of them valid, I admit–why my book sucks. So what to do when they tell the world about it?

You have two basic choices: You can ignore it. Or you can pay attention to it. (Well, I guess the third choice is to freak out about it, but I definitely don’t recommend that!)

I like to pay attention to it. My book is nonfiction, so I tend to respond (literally) to critical reviews when I can because I have real hard time keeping my mouth (keyboard?) quiet. I often agree with some of the criticism (my book was traditionally published, so some of the points of contention are about things that were out of my hands–a testament to one of the reasons why self-publishing can be a good idea), and I will generally mention that. Other points I will adamantly disagree with, and I like to say so. But I keep my tone professional, and I don’t bear a grudge against the reviewer. If you are going to put a book out there, you need to put on your big girl panties (er, big boy boxers?) and suck it up when someone doesn’t like it.

Another reason to listen to harsh criticism is because you can learn from it. Try to see your book from the reviewer’s point of view. There are probably areas you can work on in your next book. Essentially, a reviewer might be providing a valuable service in helping you improve your writing and your next book.

It’s tough not to take bad reviews personally. But it’s helpful to remember that the review is (usually) about the work not the person. You can’t be all things to all people, and neither can your book. Plus, reviews (like grades for literary criticism papers) are subjective. Repeat. Reviews are subjective. Just because one person doesn’t like your work doesn’t mean it’s bad or that everyone will dislike it.

Incidentally, I got a C in Professor Uptight’s class; it was the only C I got in any class in my major and brought down my entire college GPA. I got an A in Professor Flannel’s class. But I also learned a valuable life lesson beyond the course work: You cannot control a person’s perception of you, but you can control how you react to it.

Shannon says: Research your choices.  There are lots of self-publishing companies out there these days.  CreateSpace, Lulu,  iUniverse, BookLocker, Xlibris, and Authorhouse are just a few.  Some are totally free, and some aren’t.  For those that aren’t, check out their contracts or packages that they offer.  Know what you are getting for your dollar up front….

I’ll add: Keep in mind that going through many of these companies is not true self-publishing. AuthorHouse and Xlibris, for instance, are both owned by vanity/subsidy giant Author Solutions. If you intend to sell books and make a profit from your venture, it is recommended you not go this route. (I recently blogged about the different publishing options.)

Shannon says: Know your budget.  If you use a POD company that charges for a package, which package can you afford?  You should also plan on purchasing review copies.  How much money are you willing to invest on other marketing?  Don’t forget postage and shipping supplies!  Are you paying for editing services or for book cover design?…

I’ll add: Make sure you have a budget! In my opinion, you need to have your manuscript edited and you need to have a professional cover design, at a minimum. Yes, there are “free” services out there, but the adage “you get what you pay for” is certainly true. In terms of marketing and promotions, there are plenty of things you can do for very little or no cost, but if this is not your forte, you’ll want to set aside money for promotions. You can write the best book in the world, but if no one knows about it, no one will buy it.

Shannon says: Be prepared to invest in review copies!… 

I’ll add: Absolutely. I have seen more than one author’s attempts at promotion fail because they do not want to send out free review copies. We had one author, in fact, ask us to set up a virtual author book tour for her, but she neglected to fulfill review copy requests. The tour was a failure. My co-author of The Complete Guide to Self-Publishing, 5^th Edition, Marilyn Ross sent out some 500 review copies for her book Jump Start Your Book Sales; it was a valuable promotions tool and she attributes that as the number one reason the book enjoyed excellent sales.

Shannon says: Invest in a decent book cover…. Most POD companies have some sort of automated book cover design program with stock images.  Don’t use their stock images!  If you do, just know there will be other books out there that have the same cover as yours…. Research your options or hire a graphic designer for assistance.

I’ll add: I wholeheartedly agree with this. The templated covers put out by these so-called self-publishing companies scream self-published. Not only will there be other covers out there with your exact same image, but these amateurish-looking designs do nothing to generate interest in your book. I would also venture to say that a professional graphic designer with book cover design experience is essential.

Shannon says: Edit!  Most POD companies offer some sort of editing service, but it can be quite pricey.  If you can’t afford to hire an editor, at least have a smart friend or two read over the manuscript and look for mistakes and misspelled words.  Don’t think that your own eyes will catch everything, no matter how many times you read your own book. I’m guilty of doing that myself, and readers were quick to point out my mistakes. Sure, traditional books even have mistakes in them and some are always going to slip through, but if your book is full of mistakes and errors it can be a big turn off to the reader, and to reviewers!

I’ll add: The POD companies offer sub-par editing that is not worth the (usually expensive) price they charge. And don’t count on friends (unless they are professional editors) and don’t think you can self-edit. (I have been an editor for more than two decades—and I still needed an editor to read through The Complete Guide to Self-Publishing. The editor found plenty me and my co-author had missed.) Find yourself an editing professional whose style meshes well with yours. Ask for a sample edit of a chapter or so to determine whether the editor can edit your work without changing your voice. Where to look? Ask around writer’s groups (on Facebook or LinkedIn), tweet about your needs on Twitter, or look into groups such as the Rocky Mountain Publishing Professionals Guild, which provide listings of editors (and, incidentally, the other pros you may need in your self-publishing venture).

Shannon says: Format your book properly and follow the rules!  I have never, never, NEVER seen a traditionally published book that lacked right margin justification and I’m tired of self-published authors telling me that they did it that way because it’s easier to read.  No, you didn’t follow the rules because you didn’t do your homework, or you don’t know how….

I’ll add: I generally recommend that authors do not attempt their own interior designs. Unless they are well versed in a design program such as Adobe InDesign, they are probably not qualified and the results may not be pretty—or professional. However, if they want to do their own page layout, they should read websites such as The Book Designer so they can learn the elements of what makes good design.

Shannon says: Understand that physical bookstores are not your friends….  And never, NEVER call a bookstore and try to promote yourself over the phone!  They don’t have time to talk to you. Almost all bookstores expect a discount so that they can sell a book and make a profit.  With almost all self-published books, companies charge all customers list price so there is no discount for bookstores.  Or there’s no distribution of your book through wholesale channels for chain bookstores to be able to get your book anyway.  And if there is, the book is usually sold non-returnable so a chain bookstore will require pre-payment….

I’ll add: It is often an author’s ultimate goal to have their book on the bookstore shelves. But Shannon is right; this is really not the most lucrative way to sell books. Although you can get into the trade distribution system by printing with Lightning Source (owned by Ingram, one of the largest wholesalers in the country), you will be expected to offer a deep discount and a returnable product. However, I think it is worth it to have your book available at the bookstores, so this is another reason why I believe going the “POD self-publishing” company route is not a good idea. As Shannon says, companies charge customers list price so there can be no discount. Self-publish the proper way, and you can offer a discount and still make a profit.

As usual, it all comes down to educating yourself about the process and doing the most professional job you can. Your book’s success and your own reputation are on the line.

Upon further discussion, I learned that she had printed 3,000 copies of the book at a cost of about $10,000. Add this to the expensive menu of other production and marketing services she purchased from AuthorHouse, and it turns out her investment totaled about $20,000. It was with a sinking heart that I told her she had more or less wasted a large amount of money on books that would probably never reach readers let alone the library market. I explained the difference between true self-publishing and vanity/subsidy publishing; I told her she could have published books under her own imprint with her own ISBN for a fraction of that $20,000—and she would have had saleable, reviewable, marketable books.

So where did she—and countless other authors who fully intended to self-publish—go wrong?

Her primary mistake was in not understanding the definition of vanity and subsidy publishing.

Here’s how Writer Beware describes them:

A vanity publisher prints and binds a book at the author’s sole expense. Costs include the publisher’s profit and overhead, so vanity publishing is usually a good deal more expensive than self-publishing. All rights and completed books are the property of the author, and the author retains all proceeds from sales. Vanity publishers may exclude objectionable content such as pornography, but otherwise do not screen for quality.

A subsidy publisher also takes payment from the author to print and bind a book, but contributes a portion of the cost and/or provides adjunct services such as editing, distribution, warehousing, and marketing. Theoretically, subsidy publishers are selective. A subsidy publisher claims at least some rights, though the claim may be limited and non-exclusive. The completed books are the property of the publisher, which owns the ISBN, and remain in the publisher’s possession until sold. Income to the writer comes in the form of a royalty.

However, the lines have blurred over the past few years. What you’ll most often find nowadays is neither a vanity publisher nor a subsidy publisher in the classic sense, but a hybrid of the two–following the vanity model in terms of pricing and selection (building a fat profit into its fees and publishing anyone who will pay), and the subsidy model in terms of book ownership and income to the author (the publisher owns the finished books, and the author earns royalties on sales).

Writer Beware goes on to explain about a new player in the publishing arena that has joined the game in recent years: POD self-publishing services. These companies are similar to vanity publishers—upfront fees are charged, they will publish almost anything, and marketing services offered are minimal. The main difference is that it is less of an investment on the part of the author since books are printed only when orders come in, saving authors from printing thousands of books up front. (As an aside, let’s go over the definition of print-on-demand [POD]: It refers to a digital printing technology that makes it cheap and effective to produce books in small numbers, such as one or two at a time.)

POD “self-publishing services” use digital printing to provide publishing services to authors for free or for a very low cost. Most offer free templates that enable authors to upload and format their books. Most also offer fancier packages that include editing, design, and marketing, which can cost several thousand dollars. These services tend to be poorly done and not worth a fraction of what they cost.

It’s also important for authors to realize that the average book from a POD service sells fewer than 200 copies, mostly to the author. Companies like Author House, iUniverse, and Xlibris—all of whom are owned by Author Solutions, Inc.—lay claim to selling millions of books each year. What they don’t tell you is that given the sheer volume of books released, it averages out to only around 40 books sold per title. Lulu.com founder Bob Young admits that the average Lulu author sells fewer than 1,000 books (and I have read in various places that it’s really more like two copies). (Find additional stats here.)

POD services call what they offer “self-publishing” or even “indie publishing,” but it is not. With these types of services, authors are bound to the package deals these outfits offer in terms of production. The bulk of any money made off of sales is kept by the company to offset their costs; authors are likely only entitled to a small royalty. (What this means it that authors pay twice—once at the beginning and again with every book sold.) Most of these services own the ISBN assigned to the authors book, giving them at least some claim on publishing rights.

All that said, what exactly constitutes true self-publishing? It’s incredibly simple.

In true self-publishing:

The author controls all aspects of the publishing process, from manuscript editing to interior and cover design to pricing and promoting. There are many services, including my own company Self-Publishing Resources, that cater to authors in need of help with these services.

The author keeps all profits from sales of the book.

The author starts his or her own publishing company (very easy to do!), purchases his or her own ISBNs, and maintains all rights to the book.

The author works directly with a POD printer, such as Lightning Source, or an offset printer—or both. (Or neither—and simply goes the ebook route.)

The author has mainstream review, distribution, and sales opportunities that are not there with a POD self-publishing service or vanity/subsidy press imprint on his or her books.  

According to Writer Beware, whose mission is to track, expose, and raise awareness of the prevalence of fraud and other questionable activities in and around the publishing industry (the site also includes a much more in-depth explanation of the various publishing options), “POD services often portray themselves as a revolutionary new publishing model that’s opening up a world of opportunity for writers locked out of the market by the narrow standards of the monopolistic commercial publishing industry.” Don’t believe what these services say. The only way you can truly self-publish is to do it under your own imprint and your own ISBN. It’s that simple.

1. Not using social media at all. All too often, authors assume social media is just a waste of time. But the fact is that authors who are not jumping on the social media bandwagon are missing out on a valuable aspect of building their platforms. Even large corporations are using social media as part of their marketing plans. The truth is, authors who want to sell books probably can’t afford to sit on the sidelines.

2. Not having a handle on your objectives and goals. Diving into social media without a plan can be counterproductive. Authors should decide in advance how much time they will spend on social media, what they want to accomplish, and how they can reach the most people in their target market.

3. Trying to do too much. There are hundreds (thousands?) of social media sites. Authors do not need to have profiles on every single one. It’s best to decide on a few and focus your time on those. Because social media is so dependent on relationship-building, you need to use it consistently (much like nurturing relationships “in real life”). Figure out how much time you’ll spend each day, then focus only on a few sites with that limited time. Investigate the third-party applications available (such as HooteSuite and TweetDeck) to help streamline your efforts.

4. Not doing enough. Related to the previous item, putting up social media profiles and then not staying active is useless. If you’ve got profiles on dozens of sites, you simply won’t be able to be an active participant. You need to be an integral part of the social media community if you are to reap any rewards. Posting infrequently makes it appear as if you are not engaged, and you will likely lose followers and friends, making your efforts indeed a waste of time.

5. Treating social media as a form of advertising. It’s pretty simple: Advertising is about selling; social media is about building relationships. And whereas advertising is often ignored, social media offers opportunities to showcase expertise and engage potential customers in more meaningful ways.

6. Not listening. Don’t spend all of your time on social media expounding about your message. Much like a face-to-face conversation, listening to others and responding to their needs is just as important.

7. Giving up too soon. All too often I speak with authors who have been giving social media marketing their best effort for a month or two or even six, finding they are disappointed with the results. It’s important to understand that social media is a commitment in the long-term. Even in traditional advertising, it is important to build TOMA (top of mind awareness) over a period of time; the same holds true in social media. Relationships must be built and nurtured—and this takes time.

Ultimately, there are no shortcuts to social media marketing success. Authors must be engaged and authentic, and they must contribute to the viral conversation if they are to enjoy the rewards.