Business End

Articles about the business aspects of publishing and self-publishing.

5 Reasons Writers Need to Embrace Technology

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Many people I meet say “I don’t like computers” or “It’s too hard to use all these sites” when I mention words like ebooks, social networking, online author platform and blogs.

But if you are serious about your career as a writer/author, think about these 5 reasons you need to embrace technology (by which I primarily mean the internet!).

  • People are online. Those people could buy your book. Even if you don’t like consuming ebooks or on mobile devices, millions of other people do and more join the fun every day. You want to reach them so you need to be online or at least have your information available to be found. If you are engaging on social network sites, providing information on your blog or producing your work in podcast audio format, you are more likely to get readers of your work than if you just wait for a publisher to find you, or bookstores to stock your book.
  • It is the best way to build an author platform. The author platform is now critical for everyone except the top authors and famous celebrities. It means people will find you, hopefully engage with you and then be interested in your writing/books or business. The old way of building a platform was through traditional media and PR (which costs money), or through 1:1 contact/networking as well as speaking. All of this is still relevant, but if you also have an online presence you will reach people globally when they are searching or browsing. You can also utilize word of mouth online which can boost your platform much faster and much further.
  • The tools have never been easier and they are free. You don’t need to know how to program to have a website or blog now. You don’t need $20,000 to have a website. You can have one for free. You don’t need to know much except how to drive a mouse. Point and click is all you need for most of these tools plus the confidence to try them out. The recent list of the most influential websites in the world included Facebook, Twitter and Flickr, all of which are great tools for platform building and all very easy to use. For more ideas, check out my free Author 2.0 Blueprint which contains other free sites you can use.
  • Mobile devices are exploding and the internet is going mobile. You may not know people with an ebook reader, but how many of your friends and family have a mobile device? Most of them? All of them? In fact, 1 billion mobile web users are predicted in 2010. Some of these people absolutely love what you do. They want to know you, connect with you and read what you produce. You need to be online to connect with them. The exciting thing is that this opens up the market to millions of people in countries who can’t afford a computer but who can surf the web on a mobile device. Wow! A whole new world of readers.

Check out this video if you need convincing, it’s a brilliant look at this mobile, connected world.

How can you embrace technology and not go mad?

Pick a site and start somewhere. Grow from there. That’s it! Here are the most influential websites online – they include some great sites to start playing with technology including Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

If you are overwhelmed, start with these 3 : Decide on your goals. Set up a blog. Start on Twitter. [Read the whole article here].

Yes, you will get frustrated. You will find it a bit hard to get started. You will have to play around, spend some time with it, and you may get it wrong. But the rewards are endless!

Please do let me know any questions you have on this. I’d like to help you!

Personal note: I am an IT consultant, but not a programmer. I am Gen X and was not brought up with the web or computers in general. I got my first email account at 21. My degrees are in theology and psychology, not IT. I am a geek but I have learnt this stuff, it doesn’t come naturally. So this is something I am still learning myself! Come and join me!

This is a cross-posting from Joanna Penn‘s site, The Creative Penn. See this page on her site for more information about the various ways to contact and connect with Joanna.

The Thorny Issue of Ebook Royalties

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This post, from Sharon Blackie, originally appeared on the Two Ravens Press blog on 1/8/10 and is reprinted here in its entirety with her permission.

In a recent blog, the Society of Authors has been railing against publishers again, and calling for higher e-book royalty rates than the 15-25% that currently prevails in the market:

 …it is unconscionable that publishers should be attempting to strong­arm authors into accepting fixed royalty rates on e-books for the entire duration of copyright—and setting them, what is more, at a miserly 15% to 25% of their receipts. That may still be fair enough back in the Cretaceous world of dead tree publishing, but it is hard to see what it is about the selling of an e-book that entitles the publisher to cream off such an exorbitant share of the revenue.

I should say that, as a published author, I am a member of the Society of Authors, and I think they do many fine things. However, this whole e-book royalty question is NOT as simple an issue as it appears, and I find myself wishing that they would do a little more research before they simply assume that all publishers are out to fleece all authors for every last penny that they can. I’ve read a number of statements from the SOA recently (including in the recent issue of their magazine, The Author) on this issue and they are often filled with misconceptions about the practicalities of running a publishing business when it comes to independent publishers, who publish rather a lot of their members.

For example, one piece (irritatingly, I can’t locate it any longer) stated outright that there were no big distribution/wholesaler costs for e-books as there are for print books, because there is no need for warehousing/storage. WRONG! – Absolutely, utterly, 100% wrong. The distribution and warehousing charges for e-books are absolutely as high as they are for print books. For example, the biggest book warehouser in the country, Gardners, who distribute our e-books, charge exactly the same as they do for print books – an average whopping 50% of retail price. Why? Because they argue that there are still large costs associated with the production and maintenance of e-books: they’re just different ones. They relate to building, managing and keeping secure e-warehouses, among other things.

At Two Ravens Press we price our e-books as low as we possibly can, but the ultimate price of an e-book is driven by a desire to ensure that the author will get as much royalty from the sale of an e-book as from the sale of a print book – to the extent that that is feasible in the marketplace. With 25% royalties, we can usually achieve this. In fact, for e-book sales through our website, we can usually do better. According to the SOA, we must therefore be making vast amounts of money! Well, the truth is that on the average e-book, after we’ve taken off file conversion costs and everything else, we don’t make any more than we do on the sale of an average print book. And we still have to produce, market, cover our overheads etc etc – just as we do with print books. It is true that if your anticipated e-book sales for a given title are in the thousands and thousands for a bestselling title, you might be making a very large amount of money indeed for a relatively small amount of work. But in order to make back the conversion costs alone of an average TRP e-book, we’d have to sell over 100 copies. That’s without taking into account time, overheads and the vague desire that one of these days we might make a profit. Right now, I think our bestselling e-book has shifted around 6 copies.

The moral of the tale? Well, there are many, but I’m not going to go into them all here. At a minimum, please don’t tar all publishers with the same brush. Independent publishers with low volumes simply cannot operate, let alone make a living, on the kinds of royalties and terms that the SOA is beginning to insist on for all its members, regardless of who the publisher is. At TRP our publishing contracts are among some of the most generous around – certainly compared with other small indie publishers. But they’re right at the limit of what we can do and still operate. And whereas our authors always make money from their books, we often don’t.

Sharon

 

In 2006 Sharon Blackie, a former neuroscientist and practicing psychologist, decided to throw in all forms of gainful employment and set up a small independent publishing house at her 5-acre croft on the shores on a sea-loch in the north-west Highlands of Scotland. Her husband, David Knowles, a former Royal Air Force fast-jet pilot, became infected with the same insanity and gave up flying to join her. Both are successful writers and are firmly committed to their writer/publisher model; Sharon is a novelist and David is a poet.

Two Ravens Press specialises in contemporary literature – fiction, nonfiction and poetry – with a penchant for books that take risks with form and language. Described as ‘a quiet publishing revolution’, Two Ravens Press has also developed a reputation for being unafraid to tell it like it is on their blog at http://tworavenspress.wordpress.com.

Platform Resolutions For Writers 2010

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This post, from Christina Katz, originally appeared on her blog on 1/4/10, and is reprinted here in its entirety with her permission.

Before writers establish an author platform, they typically establish a writer platform. Over the past decade, thousands of writers have parlayed established influence into traditional book deals. Landing a traditional book deal is still an effective way to exponentially increase your credibility and visibility.

Your “platform” refers to what you do in the world with your professional expertise that makes you visible and influential in the world. Having friends on Facebook or followers on Twitter is not your platform, unless the majority of those people know who you are, what you do, and are enthusiastic about your work.

I thought I would offer some advice about how to slowly and steadily establish a lasting platform. You may note the lack of fanaticism in this advice and the emphasis on enduring success instead. I’m a mother and a wife, a freelancer, a speaker, a teacher, and a blogger, so aiming for balance is the only way I can afford to work if I plan on sticking around for the long haul.

This advice has worked consistently for my students over the past several years. I think you will find that a grounded, step-by-step approach works just as well for you if you choose to follow it:

1. Develop a platform topic that you love and can work on tirelessly for the next few years. Your passion of the moment should come in second to the topic you could delve into deeply for a good, long time. Prior professional education and a depth of personal experience are going to be a boon to your platform if you have an eye on a future book deal.

2. Hang back from establishing a blog on your topic until you have cultivated a wealth of content and experience working with others on specialty-related activities that lend credibility and trust to your name. Others will tell you to start blogging immediately, but don’t, if you want to be efficient with your time and money.

3. Instead, gain authority by seeking publication in established, highly visible publications both in print and online that serve your target audience. Avoid the kind of publishing that anyone can accomplish, like posting on article sites, and work on your professional communication skills instead. By all means, avoid the content mills offering writers slave wages with the promise of future earnings.

4. Don’t begin any kind of marketing campaign for any product or service offerings until you have established yourself as a go-to person on your topic, again saving you time and money. Before you look at ways to serve others directly, channel your expertise into the best service methods possible based on your strengths and weaknesses. This is a meaty topic that is covered in-depth in my book, Get Known Before the Book Deal, Use Your Personal Strengths to Grow an Author Platform (Writer’s Digest Books 2008).

5. Then, develop a product or service that can become one of several multiple income streams over time that will support your goal of becoming a published author. For example, teaching classes over the years has allowed me to re-invest more of the money I earn from writing books back into book marketing. Make sure any offerings you produce are released conscientiously and are integrated into the professional writing you already do. Otherwise, you will seem like you are all over the place and just trying to score a buck.

6. Don’t expect your platform to support you financially for at least one or two years, as you micro-invest in it, re-invest in it as it grows, and expand your visibility.

7. Once you have a professional publication track record in your niche topic, then it’s time to hang your online shingle. I’ve seen this accomplished in as little as six months by exceptionally focused students. Take a portion of the money you’ve earned writing and invest it in a professional quality online presence.

8. A low-cost way to do this is to purchase your name as a URL and use a hosting site like GoDaddy.com to host a WordPress.org blog. I use the Thesis Theme, which you can see in action at my blog. In this way, a blog can also serve as your website where you post your published clips, offerings and bio. If you don’t have a ton of money to invest in the look of your site, you can always pay a designer later.

9. Delay partnering with others on joint ventures until you have a clear idea of your own strengths and weaknesses in and around your topic. And when you do partner with others be extremely discriminating. Make sure the partnership is going to be win-win-win for everyone involved.

10. Start an e-mail newsletter or e-zine with those who are most interested in your topic. Build your list by invitation and then grow it into a permission-based following over time. Create an expected, ongoing dialogue that is mutually beneficial to everyone involved and your list will grow.

11. Now you are ready to start blogging. And yes, I mean while you continue to do all the things we’ve already discussed. Be sure to zoom-focus your blog on what you have to add to the conversation that is already going on about your topic. Don’t just share information; make an impact. Make your blog a go-to, up-to-date resource for your audience.

12. Partner selectively with others who serve the same general audience that you do with integrity and humility. Spend time getting to know folks before you decide to partner with them. You can’t afford to taint the reputation you have worked so hard to establish by partnering with just anyone.

13. Now that you have an established niche and audience, definitely participate in social networking. I like Twitter, Facebook, and Linked In because they all offer something unique. The best way to learn is to jump in, spend an hour online each week until you are up and running. Follow the instructions for getting started provided by social media expert Meryl K. Evans.

This start-up plan for a writer platform will eventually blossom into an author platform. From start to finish, implementing a solid platform following this advice should take you about a year. By the end of that year, you will have established yourself as a serious contender in both professional and online circles, without killing yourself for some huckster’s promise of overnight success.

Have a plan. Leave a legacy in words, connections and professional influence. If you are consistent, by the time the year is done, you will have made effective use of your time and money in 2010.  I wish you the best of luck in your platform-building efforts!

 

Christina Katz is the author of Get Known Before the Book Deal, Use Your Personal Strengths to Grow an Author Platform and Writer Mama, How to Raise a Writing Career Alongside Your Kids for Writer’s Digest Books. She has written hundreds of articles for national, regional, and online publications, presents at literary and publishing events around the country, and is a monthly columnist for the Willamette Writer. Katz publishes a weekly e-zine, The Prosperous Writer, and hosts The Northwest Author Series. She holds an MFA in writing from Columbia College Chicago and a BA from Dartmouth College. A “gentle taskmaster” to her hundred or so students each year, Katz channels over a decade of professional writing experience into success strategies that help writers get on track and get published. Learn more at ChristinaKatz.com.

Publetariat, Circa 2010

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April L. Hamilton here, your friendly Editor in Chief, with some Publetariat news and freebies for you. On February 11, Publetariat will celebrate its one-year anniversary. It’s been a busy, fulfilling 11 months, and Publetariat has some new developments and giveaways set for its audience in 2010, as well as one event. 


Publetariat – New Contributors
First, Publetariat is proud to welcome Joel Friedlander, Jenn Topper, Stephen Windwalker, Bob Spear, Richard Sutton (The Indie Curmudgeon) and Mark Barrett as regular site contributors. Indie authors and/or publishing professionals all, they’ll be bringing valuable information and thought-provoking opinion to Publetariat.

 

Publetariat – Blogs and Free Exposure
Just a reminder: all Publetariat members have access to create blog entries on the site, and the 10 most recent blog entries are always featured on the front page of the site in the right-hand column. It’s an easy, free way to get some exposure to Publetariat’s  audience of writers, authors, publishers, and all manner of other bookish types, and that audience is quite large. As of this writing, Publetariat ranks in the top 1.4% of all websites worldwide in terms of traffic, per Alexa.

Publetariat membership is free, and we don’t share your contact details so you need not worry about being added to any spam lists. Heck, Publetariat doesn’t even send out any type of newsletter, so you don’t have to worry about us clogging up your in-box, either.

I’ll be honest with you: I do not recommend using Publetariat’s blogging feature as your primary blog, because it will always be framed by Publetariat columns/content (as opposed to a blog that contains nothing but content related to you and your work) and it doesn’t have all the nice bells and whistles you can get with Blogger, TypePad, WordPress, or another dedicated blogging site. Still, it can be a nice adjunct to whatever else you’ve got going on, and you may want to use it just to publish the occasional article you feel is deserving of wider exposure than your blog’s traffic level typically provides. I use it as an adjunct: even though I have my Indie Author Blog set up with Blogger, I use my Publetariat blog to publish my weekly #fridayflash flash fiction because my other blog is dedicated to posts about authorship and publishing.

If you’d like to start blogging here, just sign up for a free member account and, once your registration has been confirmed via email, log in and click the Create Content link in the upper area of the left-hand column on any page of the site. Select Blog Entry on the Create Content page, and you’re ready to go.

 

Publetariat Vault – Free Listings for the First Half of 2010
Sister site The Publetariat Vault was launched last summer and has recently announced it is extending free listings through June 30, 2010. The Vault is a listing service for self-published authors who still own the rights to their works and wish to sign those works with a mainstream publisher, literary agent or film/TV/game/multimedia producer. Self-published books which have generated a lot of buzz, or sales, or both, are of great interest to such people, but until now it’s been very difficult for them to locate these books in the vast, undifferentiated sea of the internet.

That’s where the Vault comes in, providing not only standard catalog data (e.g., title, date of publication, page count, etc.), but actual sales figures and author platform links as well. Some have asked why anyone who already has a slushpile on his or her desk would want to search the Vault, and the answer is simple: not only is the Vault’s content searchable based on specific criteria (e.g., genre, protagonist sex or age, intended reading age for audience, more), but the results of Vault searches include actual sales and author platform information. This extra bit of information and links enable self-published authors to clearly demonstrate how both they, and their books, are performing in the marketplace.

The reason behind the decision to extend six months of free listings, a $60 value per listing, comes down to raising awareness. While the Vault has already registered such searchers as Sourcebooks, NBC/Vivendi/Universal (TV shows, movies, games), agent Nathan Bransford and publishing think tank Idealog, we recognize that the site needs more time to fully develop and become a trusted resource for its intended audience of authors and searchers alike—but we don’t expect authors to finance the effort.

This article provides a good overview of what the Vault is and how it works. You can read the Vault’s FAQ here, and its Terms of Use here. You can view a sample, dummy listing here, and see what the publisher/agent/producer search form looks like here. If you decide to register for a free account, you can do that here. After doing so, you will receive an email with full details on how to create your listings and bypass the PayPal payment system when publishing them.

We’re also working on expanding the Vault to include authors who have published with a small press but are still seeking representation; there will be announcements both here and on the Vault site when site changes to accomodate such authors are complete.

 

Vault University – Free Lessons/Handouts in Publishing and Author Platform/Promotion
Sister site Vault University launched last fall. This site provides monthly lessons for authors in two curricula: Publishing and Author Platform/Promotion. Vault U. was originally developed as a free educational service for authors who have their books listed in the Publetariat Vault: authors with at least one Vault listing are entitled to free enrollment in the Vault curriculum of their choice, though they’re enrolled in the Author Platform/Promotion curriculum by default since that’s the area of most interest to most self-published authors. If you take advantage of the Vault’s free listing offer above, you’ll also get access to Vault U lessons for free through 6/30/10. 

But that’s not the only means of getting free lessons and handouts from Vault U. Because lessons tend to be lengthy, entire, self-contained sections of lessons are often provided in the form of separate, standalone pdf "handout" documents. When this is the case, Vault U. makes those standalone pdfs available online free of charge to anyone who wants them. I always tweet about them, so if you follow me on Twitter ( @indieauthor ), you’ll be sure to hear about any that are posted in 2010. There are also plans to add a page to the Vault U. site with links to all available free handouts by the end of this month, so watch the Vault U. site for the appearance of that page. So far, Vault U. has offered the following freebies:

Crunching The Numbers: How It’s Possible To Sell Every Copy Of Your Self-Published Book And Still Lose Money – And How To Avoid That Outcome

Setting Up An Author Blog

Basics of Effective Website Design (intended for authors with some web developer skills and HTML literacy)

What Goes Into An Author Press Kit

If you like what you see in these lesson materials and would like more, but don’t wish to list a book in the Vault, Vault U. also accepts paid subscriptions at a rate of $5/mo per curriculum. You can read more about the Publishing curriculum here, and about the Author Platform/Promo curriculum here. Subscription links are provided at the bottom of each of those pages. 

 

Author Workshop Cruise
Finally, there’s the Author Workshop Cruise, scheduled for the week of 10/10/10. In this weeklong, all-workshop cruise, only 30 attendees will have the opportunity to learn everything they need to self-publish and promote right. It’s a vacation and writer’s workshop bundled into a single trip.

Workshops will be led by me (self-publishing in POD formats), Joshua Tallent (publishing for the Kindle), Kirk Biglione and Kassia Krozser (author platform and social media for authors) and Seth Harwood (author platform and podcasting for authors). Attendance is limited to allow for more personalized attention, and because all attendees will receive a private, 45-minute consulting session with a workshop presenter.

Cruise sponsors include Writer’s Digest, Smashwords and Everpub, and travel arrangements are being handled through AAA Travel, of the Auto Club of Southern California. This hasn’t been officially announced yet, but just between you, me and the internet, in addition to premiums provided by sponsors and workshop presenters, all cruise attendees will also receive a free, 12-month enrollment in the Vault U. curriculum of their choice as a benefit of cruise attendance.


That’s about all the news for now, but plans for a first-anniversary giveaway are in the works too so stay tuned!

Bundle Up, It's Harsh Out There

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[Editor’s Note: after the jump, this post contains strong language].

It’s f***ing freezing here. I was walking up First Avenue wondering how the hell people could be outdoors with no hat or scarf on. There were plenty of people looking perfectly stunning without the bundling that I am so comforted in. And then I arrived at my building and there are a half dozen fools huddled like zombies with no f***ing jackets on, smoking, no jackets. Ew.

So it got me thinking about going out unprepared for–well, anything. How could anyone step outdoors without preparing for the weather or traffic, making dinner reservations, bringing your Duane Reade coupon card, and the list goes on. (Sorry to non-New Yorkers, but these are essentials here.) And then I realized that MOST people launch into things unprepared, not just going outdoors or to a restaurant without reservations, but bigger things, like writing a book or launching a website.

I trained as a boxer, and I am also neurotic. So I have a leg up on the preparing-for-the-worst thing. But others–those of you who are, sadly, optimists–you might not have prepared to get punched in the mouth. While those punches may not always come, you still need to be prepared. And without preparing, you can’t possibly have enough wherewithal to take the offense with your work.

So that’s what my message is here today. I’ve seen so many aspiring authors launch into writing without the business plan to support their objectives. Or, worse, no objectives. They launch a blog with "ramblings," "random thoughts," "musings," and other shit. Here’s your first punch in the mouth: NOBODY WANTS TO HEAR YOUR FUCKING RAMBLINGS, asshole. Don’t speak up unless you have something to say of value–our googles are clogged up with half-assed blogs and websites regurgitating blather and spewage of verbal sewage. If you’re a writer, you most likely have more meaningful messages or short fiction–write it and you’ll earn readers.

This complicates things for the ever-increasing catalog of content swimming around our internets. It’s an inordinate challenge to find what we’re looking for now because of a general lack of organization; and because the current technology platforms for showcasing talent really only allow for the loudest voices to be heard, not necessarily the most appropriate, deserving, or talented ones.

Boo hoo, you say, the hard-working artist is ever the underdog. Well, buck up cowboy.
 

  • Readers need to speak up and help define how content must be organized. Readers need to get smart really fast and figure out how to grade the shit writing out there and let the good stuff emerge more visibly. No more mainstream book reviews, because they eliminate the independently released features altogether, so you have to find another way to trust recommendations. That’s what social media is for, right?
     
  • And writers aren’t off the hook. Look, agents and publishers aren’t superheroes. You can figure out what’s shit and shouldn’t be marketed. It’s like all of a sudden once someone becomes a writer they lose all sense of how their work compares to everything else out there. Come on, don’t tell me you can’t step back and get a perspective on your work and be a little more critical?
     
  • And as for the technology? We have to do better. "They" will only know what we need and want if we tell "them." Customer support and letter writing can have a profound effect on new products. SOMETHING has to be done about the haphazard bullshitty way platforms like Authonomy are headed. Goodreads has a better handle on it, but there still it’s clunky. We’re grownups, we don’t fucking need "friending," "following," and "fans," for chrissake. There’s got to be a better way.

(And yes, I’ll put some serious thought to it and make some proposals, myself, so I’m not just sitting here throwing bags of shit from behind a tree.) 

Writers all need to put their business plan in writing, realizing that writing a book that they want people to read is equivalent to launching a business. How many books do you want to sell? Print? Independent publisher or publish it yourself? Format it yourself for both electronic and print? That’s really hard but good luck. Where will you print it? What’s your wholesale discount? Who will sell it? Non-bookstore venues–and if so, which ones: schools, business premiums, cafes, others?

Learning as you go isn’t that hard. I’m doing it now. But knowing that preparation for the next step is what will keep you above water is vital to the survival of your own esteem; since knowing that few friends and family will purchase your book, you are most likely relying on total strangers to give you a pat on the back and $10 for your book.

This is a cross-posting from Jenn Topper‘s Don’t Publish Me! blog.

BookBuzzr – The One Free Tool That Every Author Needs For Book Marketing

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This post, from Saneesh, originally appeared on the Freado The Book-Marketing Technology Blog on 10/20/09.

[Note from Publetariat Editor in Chief April L. Hamilton: While this is really just a promotional piece about the BookBuzzr widget, since that widget is free and I use it myself and can therefore recommend it personally, it’s a resource I’m very happy to share with Publetariat’s audience. I’ve embedded the BookBuzzr widget for my book, The IndieAuthor Guide, at the end of this post so readers can see for themselves exactly what it is and how it works.]

As an author trying to market your book online, you may find that many of the simple steps involved in Internet marketing are actually quite daunting. Consider the simplest and most important prerequisite, of offering an extract of your book online in a nice to read format that can be easily shared among your readers.

 

99% of author websites are unable to allow sampling of books on their websites. They simply stick in an image of their book and hope that this is enough to stimulate the desire to read the book among site visitors. You know you can do better than that!

BookBuzzr is built from the ground-up for word-of-mouth (or shall we say, click-of-mouse) book-marketing. By signing up for BookBuzzr you can allow readers to browse through portions of your book in a nice to read online, flip-book format where the experience is similar to reading a real book. Additionally, they can get a [centralized] listing of all things related to your book such as links to where they can buy your book, where they can discover interviews with you, where they can listen to podcasts related to your book and more.

Need another reason to sign-up for BookBuzzr? Let’s talk about "share-ability" or "distribute-ability." Let’s say you saw a book-extract of a book that you loved and you want to share this with readers of your blog. The best most people can do is to put up a link to the book-extract. But is this enough? The era of people going to a few "destination" websites to get their content is over. Today you are as likely to see an interesting video embedded on a blog that you discovered as you are to see that video on YouTube. So we’ve taken care of this for you. Fans of your book can easily embed your book on their personal blogs and become ambassadors for your book.
BookBuzzr is intended to take care of most of the details related to online book-marketing and book promotion on an ongoing basis. At the very least, BookBuzzr helps you to:  

  • Reach your target audience by allowing them to discover your book in various places such as blogs, websites, social networking sites and more.
     
  • Tell them that your book is available by providing links to places where they can buy your book.
     
  • Persuade them to read it by allowing them to easily sample your book with jaw-dropping book simulation technology.

As a bonus, when you sign up, you also get listed on fReado.com where readers can interact with you and with other readers. Further, you can link from fReado to your own author site or blog, thus helping your search engine rankings. Because fReado.com is optimized for search engines and because fReado.com is regularly crawled all over by the major search engines, the information about your book will soon be noticed and your pages should be listed in response to web searches. We also have plans to connect fReado with Facebook Connect. This enables your readers to:
 

  • Seamlessly "connect" their Facebook account and information with your book
     
  • Connect and find their friends who are on fReado
     
  • Share comments made on your book with their friends on Facebook

Sign up now for free and join other elite authors who understand the art of online book promotion!

Given the growth of Twitter and its importance in helping authors build their platform and sell more books, a number of Twitter features have been added to BookBuzzr to help authors market their book on Twitter with a large degree of automation. The goals behind these features are:

  • To help the author gain more followers on Twitter
     
  • To make the book more visible among the authors’ Twitter followers
     
  • To help readers of the book share the book among their Twitter followers.

These Twitter features for marketing books online include:
 

  • Authors can schedule tweets about their book in their Twitter accounts daily or weekly.
     
  • Every time a reader opens an author’s book-excerpt, a tweet goes out to the authors Twitter followers mentioning that the book was opened.
     
  • Readers will find a link to follow the author on Twitter when they are reading the author’s book-excerpt and when they finish reading the book-excerpt.
     
  • Readers can tweet about the book with just a few clicks. 

 

My Self-Publishing Saga Continues

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My 3rd book, Surviving Hostage Situations, was turned down by 35 publishers. Those who were kind enough to explain why had a common theme: No one likes to think about the bad things that can happen to them. They were correct, but as an intelligence professional who lived for contingencies, I really didn’t understand that attitude. So, that experience plus the bad publisher experiences convinced me to self-publish.

This was fortunately the same time I acquired a Mac clone made from a Mac mother board and a PC case. I also acquired Page Maker software and entered the dizzy world of book design. I eventually sold 5,000 of these in English and 2,000 in German through a German publisher of a military magazine in Düsseldorf, Germany.

I also acquired rights to a Army Promotion Board study guide written by an Army education specialist. That became my cash cow. The first order for that little manual came from the European Stars and Stripes bookstore system in Germany. Their initial order was for 5,000 copies. The catch was it would be 6 months before they would pay. I had just paid out of my own pocket for 1,000 copies each of the hostage book and the study guide. I was tapped out of cash and credit.

I went to our bank across the street seeking a $15,000 line of credit to print more books based on the study guide order. After they finished chuckling, they said they’d be happy to set one up if I 2nd mortgaged my bookstore building. I didn’t really have a choice, so I did it. That study guide eventually sold 25,000 copies and funded the printing of several other books.

I took on one other book by an author other than myself–an exercise book by a Marine officer who combined traditional physical exercises with visualization exercises. It was a flop. Traditional exercise adherents thought it was too airy fairy. New Age readers thought it was too traditional.

The next book was Close Quarters Combat for Police and Security Forces. It was the non-lethal version of Survival on the Battlefield. It sold about 3,000 copies, but was never as popular as the military manual.

In 1992, after double knee operations, I had recuperation time on my hands. I wrote and typeset 126 pages of my next book, Military Knife Fighting. A month later, my Korean son, Patrick, and I went into the photographer’s studio with my 14-year-old daughter, Desiree, who was my script girl. She read each technique’s captions, and Pat and I went from pose to pose. We took over 350 pictures in an hour, completely blowing the photographer’s mind. That book became another cash cow.

In the BEA held in Miami, I obtained a table at the Military Book Show held in conjunction. Doubleday’s Military Book Club editor, Moshe Feder, looked over my books and signed me up for Survival on the Battlefield and Military Knife Fighting. They both became best sellers for the book club, selling over 25,000 copies. I didn’t make as much money per book; however, they used my printer and allowed me to order copies on the same print run. Instead of paying for books at the 1,000-2,000 copy price range, I could piggyback along with Doubleday’s 5,000 book printing, getting the 6,000-7,000 per book price, which was much cheaper. Economy of scale is a great thing.

Marketing became my primary focus. I met and made friends with the editors of men’s magazines such as SWAT, Soldier of Fortune, American Survival Guide, and Fighting Knives Magazine. They began giving me very positive reviews in their magazines. I in turn paid for display ads and classified ads, building up my direct marketing business. I began writing anti-New World Order books and became a popular interviewee on talk radio–so much so, that I was offered my own radio show–a 5 day a week hour-long show called the preparedness hour. With that ready-made marketing venue, I put together a 200-book mail order catalog operation and performed all operations myself, invoicing, picking, packing, wrapping, mailing, and inventory management. I was also traveling all over the US giving workshops and selling books at survivalist and book trade shows.

By 1997, I was completely burned out after 8 years of 12-18 hour days. I gave all 8,000 of my catalog customers a month’s warning and pulled the plug. This had been a 1-man endeavor and I couldn’t do it any longer. I never had time for writing. It had all become a full-time job of marketing.

After a 2-year hiatus of college to gain music teacher certification in the State of Kansas and 2 more years of teaching all subjects at our Juvenile Detention Center, I pulled the plug on that and began Heartland Reviews on line. I saw so many books submitted that weren’t ready for publication, that I began offering editing and designing services as a book packager.

Today I am focusing on writing fiction and helping self-publishers and small presses. At age 64, I am slowing down a little, but helping people has always been foremost in my mind. Thus ends how I fell into the wacky world of self-publishing.

This is a cross-posting from Bob Spear’s Book Trends Blog.

A Cautionary Tale…

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Several years ago, I was just a writer. I wrote what I felt like writing, and had penned at that point, two complete 97K novels plus two additional novels in progress. I was happy to write as the mood struck, and after completing the first two the two WIPs grew in fits and starts. It kept my mind off the usual business-related stresses and panics.

Then I started thinking about publishing.

The first book became my obsessive focus, editing until I had literally worn out the keys on two keyboards! Then there was refining the pitch, researching agents and small press publishers, and so forth. I learned a lot over the 6 years I was thus engaged, but what I didn’t really do, was work on the WIPs much. Especially number four. Conceptually, it was a greater reach, but the writing showed a lot more maturity. Of all my work, up to that point, I secretly believed it had the most market potential.

But, in light of my efforts in bringing Novel Number One to market, I set it aside to wait.

 
The fifth year, 2008, of my publishing endeavor, I had two catastrophic equipment failures. First, my desktop computer system lost a power supply, but when the replacement one was installed, it had an internal flaw, which melted the motherboard, and smoked every component hooked up to it, including the hard drives.

 
I had a regular back-up regimen well established, plus I always synched files to my laptop as well, plus making copies of all books on flash media cards. Then after resurrecting my desktop machine with a complete re-build, I restored my files and went on as if nothing terrible had happened. But, in those few months, before the laptop also failed utterly, I let a level of stupid complacency begin to set in.

 
I still made back-ups, but not so often and I decided that burning CD-ROMs was too slow. I stopped doing the flash media backups at some point. I’m not sure why – it just evolved. The day my laptop died – again, an actual hardware failure, I was so angry at the builder, ACER, that my venom took control of my thinking for enough time to hide potential issues. The old laptop literally went into a dumpster – with gusto! My ears greedily ate up the crunching, shattering sounds as it hit the steel floor.

 
I loaded everything on the new laptop and got on with it, but of course, never checked as to the existence of older backups of my WIPs No. 3 and No. 4. This is forwarning. I neglected to give it a thought.

 
After a few good months, I had a dream which gave me the idea for the plot twist I’d been vainly trying to find for WIP No. 3, and took a few weeks to add chapters and edit those I had already written – it was shaping up nicely. It took my concentration away from Novels 1 and 2 for a while, but soon, I was releasing Novel 1 to the publisher, and wanted to take advantage of my perceived readership’s attention span, so I began into more work on Novel 2 to ready it for a 2010 Summer publish date.

 
Now bear in mind, I must also work at my day job in the hopes of making a living, so I was pretty well occupied.

 
Last week, after another expository dream, I decided it was time to add some chapters to Novel 4. My favorite one – remember? I remembered the chapter count had been up to ten or eleven when I last worked on it, or maybe it was fourteen. As it turns out, I’ll never know, because it is gone. Nothing remains of either the old, hard-copy backups, or anything on any hard drive, including the ACER drive removed for just such a reason.

 
The moral of the story is simple. Don’t take any back-up for granted when it comes to your work. Actively go down the filenames and be sure that everything is there before you abandon a computer or move to a new one. I’ve been at this for many years. My first work computer was a 286 PC machine, back in the 80s, so I thought I knew what I was doing, but clearly I had gotten sloppy and stupid along the way. Don’t trust any machine completely. They are fickle, nasty bitches, who will skewer you if you let them! Back up your backups regularly, and keep them somewhere safe, outside of the box. If you don’t want a complicated backup system, then go out and buy a cheap usb thumb drive and use it every time you write, by saving a copy of the current version and overwriting the previous one.

 
Now, after beating myself up all week, I’m cautiously approaching this debacle from a new angle. It’s an opportunity. Really. I’ll rewrite it better than it was. Oh, and by the way, I have a really inexpensive bridge I can show you that’s for sale, in Brooklyn. Interested?

 

 

2009: The Year That Was (Jan. – April)

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This post, from Mick Rooney, originally appeared on his POD, Self-Publishing and Independent Publishing blog on 12/24/09.

So, here we go, 2009, the year that was in publishing. This is by no means a conclusive round-up, but the stories and events that caught my eye.

 
JANUARY
 
The year began with a lot of anxiety in the publishing world. There were already plenty of rumours and murmurings of editors walking the plank, staff layoffs, and publishers dramatically cutting back on their title commitments for the coming twelve months. We always knew 2009 would be a year of pain and change, whether we liked it or not.
 
In January, Author Solutions, owned by equity investors Bertram Capital, continued its strategy of development and expansion in the digital print-on-demand publishing world by purchasing Xlibris, a leading publisher in self-publishing services to authors. The purchase was announced on Thursday, January 8th, by Author Solutions CEO, Kevin Weiss. Little did we know in January that Author Solutions would stay firmly in the news, give us plenty to talk about, and ultimately, provide us with the biggest story in publishing later in the year.
 
The judge presiding over the Amazon/Booksurge antitrust lawsuit requested both legal representatives to attend court in Bangor, Maine. Amazon & Booksurge filed for the lawsuit against them to be dismissed in August 2008. The Judge would eventually rule that Booklocker’s action was valid and Amazon/Booksurge had a case to answer.
 
The case was taken by Booklocker.com last year following moves by Amazon to cajole some POD publishers into using their own print-on-demand company, Booksurge, for books sold through Amazon.com in the United States. For a period of time last year some POD publishers had their ‘first party’ buy buttons removed by Amazon from their online site. The strategy of Amazon was seen as an attempt to monopolize the POD book market.
 
I mentioned in an article last Christmas that book retailers in Ireland had performed marginally better in 2008 than on previous profits for 2007. However, the early figures presented in January for the completed trade period suggested that the UK book retail trade recorded profits that were marginally down. This was to be the continued trend throughout the year with layoffs and store closures.
 
Newsstand beat Blackwells by getting their hands on the first UK Espresso Book Machine. They were confident that they could create a demand for ‘on the spot’ printed books and planned to charge £10 for a standard paperback version and £14 for a large print book. Blackwell Books, also based in the UK, had hoped to be the first company to install these machines, but following delays their first installed machine did not appear until April in their bookstore in Charing Cross, London. 
 

“The point may soon come when there are more people who want to write books than there are people who want to read them.”

 
And so wrote Motoko Rich in the New York Times, January 27th, 2009. It was one of the most widely discussed articles for a long time in publishing. Rich was writing about the rise in self-publishing and the changes the publishing industry faced. It was nice to see a well established newspaper cast a cursory eye over an area of the publishing business which has long exploded into life. You can reflect back on that article and read my own thoughts on it. 
 

Read the rest of the post, which picks up with February, on Mick Rooney‘s POD, Self-Publishing and Independent Publishing blog. Also see the May – August post, and watch the blog for an upcoming September – December post.

Writer's Night Before Christmas

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‘Twas the night before Christmas and all through my draft
Were examples of my inattention to craft
My characters all hung about without care,
In hopes that a plot point soon would be there.

 
My family were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of red herrings danced in my head.
The dog on its blanket, and the cat in my lap
Had just settled themselves for a long winter’s nap.
 
When on my computer there showed a blue screen!
(And if you use a PC, then you know what that means.)
Away to the cell phone I flew like a flash;
I dialed tech support and broke out in a rash.
 
The sales pitch that played while on hold I waited
Ensured my tech guy would be roundly berated.
That is, if he ever should come on the line.
And for this, per minute, it’s one-ninety-nine!
 
“Good evening,” he said, in a Punjab accent,
“I am happy to help you, and my name is Kent.”
More rapid than the Concorde was his troubleshoot,
I was back up and running, after one last reboot!
 
"Now Gaiman! Now, Atwood! Now, Cheever and Austen!
Salinger! O’Connor! Shakespeare and Augusten (Burroughs)!
Don’t withhold your wisdom! Upon me, bestow it!
Inspire me! Show me how best not to blow it!"
 
To their books I turned for some worthy advice;
I was pumped to return to my work in a trice.
So across clacking keyboard my fingers they flew,
With a speed and a passion—and no typos, too.
 
Hour after hour, the prose kept on flowing,
Though I had no idea where my story was going.
“But write it, I must!” I decided right then.
I resolved to see this project through to the end.
 
At one a.m. the second act came together,
At two I knew this book was better than ever!
My hero had purpose, my plot had no slack.
I cut my “B” story and never looked back!
 
I got up to make coffee at quarter to three;
Curses! My spouse left no Starbuck’s for me!
With instant crystals I’d have to make do.
Cripes! He used all of the half and half, too!
 
“I could add some Kahlua,” I told myself.
“There’s a big, honking bottle right there on the shelf.”
So I added a splash. And then a splash more.
At five, I finally came to on the floor.
 
With more Kahlua than coffee in the cup nearby,
An idea for the third act I wanted to try.
Werewolves! In high school! And vampires, as well!
It worked for that Meyer chick, my book’s a sure sell!
 
I tied up the plot in a neat little a bow,
With the arrival of aliens, and giant worms from below.
Defeated were foes of the Earth and the sky,
And thousands of townsfolk did not have to die.
 
With the Kahlua bottle all but drained,
I turned to do the last bit of work that remained.
To this one tradition, I was happy to bend.
Two carriage returns, all in caps: THE END.
 
I sprang to Facebook, to announce I was through.
From thence, on to Twitter, and MySpace too.
But lo, I exclaimed as my face met the sun,
"Twenty-four days late, my NaNoWriMo is done!"

 

This is a cross-posting from April L. Hamilton‘s Publetariat #fridayflash blog.

#fridayflash: Writer's Night Before Christmas

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Twas the night before Christmas and all through my draft

Were examples of my inattention to craft

My characters all hung about without care,

In hopes that a plot point soon would be there.

 

My family were nestled all snug in their beds,

While visions of red herrings danced in my head.

The dog on its blanket, and the cat in my lap

Had just settled themselves for a long winter’s nap.

 

When on my computer there showed a blue screen!

(And if you use a PC, then you know what that means.)

Away to the cell phone I flew like a flash;

I dialed tech support and broke out in a rash.

 

The sales pitch that played while on hold I waited

Ensured my tech guy would be roundly berated.

That is, if he ever should come on the line.

And for this, per minute, it’s one-ninety-nine!

 

“Good evening,” he said, in a Punjab accent,

“I am happy to help you, and my name is Kent.”

More rapid than the Concorde was his troubleshoot,

I was back up and running, after one last reboot!

 

"Now Gaiman! Now, Atwood! Now, Cheever and Austen!

Salinger! O’Connor! Shakespeare and Augusten (Burroughs)!

Don’t withhold your wisdom! Upon me, bestow it!

Inspire me! Show me how best not to blow it!"

 

To their books I turned for some worthy advice;

I was pumped to return to my work in a trice.

So across clacking keyboard my fingers they flew,

With a speed and a passion—and no typos, too.

 

Hour after hour, the prose kept on flowing,

Though I had no idea where my story was going.

“But write it, I must!” I decided right then.

I resolved to see this project through to the end.

 

At one a.m. the second act came together,

At two I knew this book was better than ever!

My hero had purpose, my plot had no slack.

I cut my “B” story and never looked back!

 

I got up to make coffee at quarter to three;

Curses! My spouse left no Starbucks for me!

With instant crystals I’d have to make do.

Cripes! He used all of the half and half, too!

 

“I could add some Kahlua,” I told myself.

“There’s a big, honking bottle right there on the shelf.”

So I added a splash. And then a splash more.

At five, I finally came to on the floor.

 

With more Kahlua than coffee in the cup nearby,

An idea for the third act I wanted to try.

Werewolves! In high school! And vampires, as well!

It worked for that Meyer chick, my book’s a sure sell!

 

I tied up the plot in a neat little a bow,

With the arrival of aliens, and giant worms from below.

Defeated were foes of the Earth and the sky,

And thousands of townsfolk did not have to die.

 

With the Kahlua bottle all but drained,

I turned to do the last bit of work that remained.

To this one tradition, I was happy to bend.

Two carriage returns, all in caps: THE END.

 

I sprang to Facebook, to announce I was through.

From thence, on to Twitter, and MySpace too.

But lo, I exclaimed as my face met the sun,

"Twenty-four days late, my NaNoWriMo is done!"

 

Lowered Expectations, Or the Dregs of Stupid

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[Publetariat Editor’s note: this post contains strong language.]

Does lowering our expectations mean that we’re settling?

Is settling a bad thing? Or does it reflect our maturity and experience in weighing what’s best to meet our long- and short-term objectives?

This is all about writing, of course. You can take any inferences of relationships to another blog and cry your little eyes out there.

Months ago when I made the decision to go full-throttle with the writing, I thought that I was publishing my writing with renewed optimism, lofty goals, and shoot-for-the-sky objectives. Then I re-read 29 Jobs and a Million Lies as I was revising it and adding dialogue, and I realized what a totally different mindset I was operating with years ago when those tales occurred. If I had launched into writing back then, I’m not sure I would be making the same decisions I am now. For those of you who have read 29 Jobs, you know that I head straight into things balls-out, changing directions like a Dominican cab driver in the wrong lane on the BQE.

My expectation was that I would find–watch out now, brace yourselves–an agent.

I tried to find an agent. I did. Dan and Marc both know I tried hard. Even Miss Pitch. And then I stepped back, took a look at my 3 dozen or so rejections after only one request for a manuscript (by William Morris, I might add!) and thought, fuck, there’s got to be a better way. Why the fuck am I wasting my time?

And here I am, writing an unending series of flash fiction at Year Zero, meeting amazing people as I whore myself all over twitter, completed first novel and holding out til the spring to release it, and publishing 29 Jobs on my own with a lot of help from kind souls who built the website and pulling me through the muck of formatting.

Now that’s optimism: I changed directions rather than settling for what one could construe as less. Less than a contract? Nah, just different route to garnering readers. And that’s what a writer does, attract readers. Whether you earn $ doing that is another story altogether. I never knew before I submerged myself in learning about the publishing industry that the monster pub companies could let authors go back to day jobs. It seemed totally incongruent to me. It changed how I thought altogether and learned quickly that (a) writing a book isn’t that hard [let’s not talk about originality or quality of writing at this point] and (b) that’s why so many people do it. The market is flooded with books and authors.

Would books be better if authors all could quit their fucking horrible day jobs? Think about the hypothetical: we’re in a Platonic society where writers are subsidized so we get to spend all day thinking and telling stories and writing. Where is the barrier to entry? What’s to keep the dregs of stupid from declaring themselves a writer? (Who’s to say I’m not the dregs of stupid?)

Now, I ask myself again, have I lowered expectations? Or have I reoriented my expectations using the information about publishing and my own appetite for the masochistic formulas, restrictions, and limitations of the mainstream print publishing industry?

I know my answer, and I’m pleased with my decision. Fuck them, ups to DIY, is the response you expect me to blurt out. Sure, on first glance that’s where I am. But I do continue to dream larger, so that 20-something who made an ass of herself in 29 Jobs is still in here somewhere, despite having that same ass kicked all over the place, getting beat down but having tried everything. No Regrets. NO MOTHERFUCKING REGRETS.

…however: I Want More. (readers?)

word.

Have you lowered your expectations? Do you know what you want?

Piracy

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This post, from Luke T. Bergeron, originally appeared on his mispeled site on 10/21/09.

Merry Holidays and all that noise. I wanna talk about copyright today. Everyone and their Mom is talking about copyright and piracy recently, so I thought I’d join the fun. Keep in mind, these musings are long (as all my musings tend to be), so please bear with me.

We begin personally, as all my musings begin. I believe that the individual viewpoint is how we all see the world first, so it’s a comfortable and easy place to begin. So let’s start by talking about how I came to this in the first place.

It’s hard for me, as a content producer (sure, maybe the content is bad, but I’m still producing it) and also a content consumer, to understand how I feel about copyright and piracy (also called file sharing). I’ve thought about it a lot, because I am the guy who releases content I spend hours (months) on to people on the internet for free. I’m also the guy who will read/watch things that are legally available for free (Doctorow’s fiction, Hulu content) and sometimes pay if I like it and sometimes not. I’m also the guy who would someday like to be compensated for my work, at least to a level that I could scrape by an income and do it full time.

So…mix all those things together and you’ll soon realize that the ideas don’t jive with any logical consistency, not without some creative and double-sided accounting. I’m on the verge of releasing a new novel for free on the internet, a work that took me the better part of 18 months, and before I do that I feel like I should get my head on straight about copyright and file sharing. I wanna know how I feel about it so I can stick to my guns and also not feel like I wasted my time or limited my options in a way I’m uncomfortable with.

The real issue goes beyond digital piracy to copyright itself. Now, I don’t believe that digital file sharing, even of copyrighted materials, is theft. That’s probably a generational thing, but we’re gonna do our best to suss out as much meaning as possible. Keep in mind, this entry is a fluid conversation, so comment if you wanna participate.

So, theft seems to me like it is inherently defined by defined by the taking of something from someone else, depriving them of it. Theft is a physical concept, based on a starvation economy, that there is a finite amount of resources to go around, and possessing resources means someone else will not possess them.

Information used to be like that, too, since information was passed on via physical items. The price of a book was determined by two things: the cost of production and the cost of the information. The starvation economy also played into this, because there were only so many copies of the book. Stealing a book from a shop meant that the shop owner no longer had a copy to sell.

But the thing is, a starvation economy does not apply in a digital age. Or, at the very least, the costs are so absurdly low that the profit margins are absurdly high in monetized digital distribution. We exist in a world where time is monetized, and that’s the only cost for me to release a book. The fifty bucks a year hosting costs I pay to the website company are nothing. So all it costs me to put a book out on the internet is time, the time to write the book, edit it, and format it for distribution. Putting a copy of my book on someone else’s hard drive costs nothing and does not take the book from my possession. I’ve made a copy at no cost.


Read the rest of the post (it’s very lengthy, and there’s a great deal more thought-provoking stuff in it), and check out the debate going on in the comments section as well, on Luke T. Bergeron‘s mispeled site.

Excerpt from Christmas Traditions – An Amish Love Story

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"If it wasn’t for these ornaments thou gives me each year, the tree wouldn’t look near as pretty," said Luke, bending with his hands on his knees to inspect the presents. "Which one of these presents is the ornament thou brought this year, ain’t?"

"It’s a small package." To look among the pile of presents, she leaned over as far as she could without dragging the popcorn strings on the floor. "I don’t see it under the tree. Either your father left it in the sleigh, or he dropped it in the snow between here and the barn," Margaret dared to say in a scoffing tease, giving Levi a sideways glance.

"That’s the thanks I get for helping thee, is it?" Levi countered back.

He actually smiled at Luke and her. What a switch! Not that Margaret intended to read anything hopeful into his actions. As long as she’d known Levi, she knew he could go from hot to cold in a second. Oh how she wished no matter how slight it might be that Levi would have a change of heart for the better that would last.

She could tell Luke appreciated his father’s placid mood at that moment, too. "It’s fine. I’ll go look in the sleigh. Daed, would thou please put the popcorn strings on the tree for me? Thou are taller. Thou can hang them higher than I can so the strings are evenly spaced. We need to get that done quick. Poor Aunt Margaret’s arms must be tired. She won’t want to stand like that all night." The boy rushed to the kitchen door. He twisted around. "Just don’t start on the ornaments until I get back. I want to be here for that."

"Never would have thought to wait for you if you hadn’t said so," said Margaret with a teasing laugh.

Luke grabbed his coat from the nail by the kitchen door and put it on. He pulled his gray, woolen mittens out of a pocket and yanked them over his hands. He had his hand on the door knob when his grandfather called after him.

"Take the lantern with thee, Luke. It’ll be too dark in the barn to see the sleigh let along a small package in it. While thou is out there check on the cow again. Save me a trip."

"All right, Dawdi," agreed Luke. Lighting the lantern that hung on a nail next to the coats, he held it out in front of him as he went outside.

"You heard your son, Levi. Start draping these popcorn strings over the branches before my arms give out," Margaret dared to order.

"Daed, thou want to help her?" Levi looked at Jeremiah for a way out.

"Ach! I’m too old. I’ll just watch the two of thee have the fun," Jeremiah quipped dryly, stroking his bushy beard.

Finding no way to decline, Levi sauntered across the room to stand beside Margaret. They looked at each other until she broke eye contact when he took an end that dangled from her arm. As his warm fingertips touched her wrist, Margaret’s skin tingled. Her pulse sped up. She flinched and drew her arm back slightly. When she shrank away, his intense gaze flickered over her face before he twisted back to the tree and looped the string over the branches.

"Levi, the boy seems to be happy," Margaret ventured softly, hoping for a break in the chill of resistance she felt radiating from him at having to be so near her.

Lifting the popcorn string up high to drape it over the branches at the top of the tree, Levi answered, "I told thee he was. No need to spoil that. Not if thou cares for him as thee says." Was it possible that Levi’s voice soften? Or, did she just want to believe that. Was she hearing something that wasn’t there?

"I just want to do what’s right," Margaret maintained.

"For who? Luke or thee?" He searched her face as he took the next string from her arms.

Just for a moment, Levi’s eyes seemed warmer somehow, but his words didn’t sit well with Margaret. She glanced across the room at Jeremiah. His eyes closed, the old man’s head relaxed against his rocker. His shallow breathing lead her to think that he’d dozed off.

Just the same, she kept her biting voice low to keep Levi’s father from overhearing. "That’s not fair. If I was thinking about me, I’d impose myself on you more than one time a year to see Luke."

Levi held the popcorn string in mid air, ready to lay it over a bough. He twisted toward her and retorted, "Strong willed as thee are, Margaret, peers to me if thou wanted to have done that, not much way I could have stopped thee. Always thought that lawyer man thou married had more to do with thou not protesting how often thee comes to see Luke than the shunning did."

"Don’t blame this on my husband after all these years. You’re the one who said that once a year was all I could come," insisted Margaret, feeling her efforts to defend herself futile, but she felt the need to try.

"I did say that," Levi agreed vehemently. "That should have been the last time I spoke to thee as long as thee are under the shunning. I had to kneel for confession before the bishops soon after talking to thee to keep from being shunned myself. I confessed to permitting thee to stay here this week in December. Thou could have gone before the bishops also if thee had the desire to lift thy shunning. That would have made things so much easier for both of us." He made a wide scallop of the string over the boughs and turned back to her for another string.

Margaret noticed he purposely didn’t continue with what he had to be thinking. Lifting the shunning also included the fact that she would have to come back to live with the Plain people. That was the only way. Levi knew that wasn’t an option for her because of her marriage to Harry.

When he did finally break his silence it was to rehash their agreement. "If thou recalls, thee is the one who picked the week before Christmas to visit Luke. The day also happens to be Luke’s birthday. Not just one, but two very important days in that little boy’s life that I allowed thee to be here with him." Levi hadn’t mince words. He stooped to drape the last string over some of the tree’s lower branches.

"Luke needs a woman in his life, Levi," Margaret stated quietly to his broad, strong back.

Levi straightened and spun to face her. "Faith gave that right up when the boy was small. As far as Luke knows she died. We are going to keep it that way." His narrowed eyes froze her. "Thou didn’t want the job either as I recall," he said curtly, wanting to make how he felt very clear.

"You never understood." Margaret lowered her gaze. Even if she could get the words out, it was way too late to defend her reasons for giving away Luke. She bit her lower lip to stop it from visibly quivering. She couldn’t cry now. She’d appear weak. The only way to stand up to Levi Yoder was to remain cold and strong just like him. She’d learned that a long time ago. Never give that man the upper hand where Luke was concerned. She wanted the child in her life no matter how short a time she had with him. But she knew if she angered Levi beyond reason, the man was as good as his word. He’d never let her see her son again.

Levi glanced toward the kitchen. "Seems like it’s taking my son too long to find that ornament. It’s cold out there. I should go help him. Maybe something’s happened with the cow." He started toward the kitchen.

 

 

Margaret thought, feeling let down because Levi had tried to put a damper on her pleasant evening. Levi speaks bluntly and runs away.

 

                                                        Chapter 5

Levi paused with a hand on the door facing and stared into the dark kitchen. He whirled around. With his head slanted to one side, he studied Margaret. "Tell me the truth for once. Why didn’t thy husband come with thee this time?"

Margaret didn’t know how much longer she could hold up under Levi’s probing. She wished he’d just leave the subject of Harry alone. She gazed at the floor while she rubbed the prickly feeling away in her left arm caused from holding it out straight so long. She always felt as if Levi could read her mind. He certainly could tell if she chose to lie to him. In a barely audible voice, she broke the vow of silence she’d made to herself on the trip out from town. She blurted out, "Harry left me."

"Did he?" Surprise was in his voice. "The lawyer man did know the truth?" Again Levi’s slanted eyes raked over her face as he questioned her, trying to read her mind before she answered him.

She hated that Levi kept pushing. If being truthful was what he wanted, she’d be truthful since he asked. Maybe he would ease up on the way he treated her if he knew the truth.

"Not until a few days ago," she admitted.

Levi pounced in front of her. He poked his finger under her chin and raised her head so she had to look at him. Gazing down at her, he asked incredulously, "Maggie, thou never told him before this?"

Out of words, Margaret shoved his hand away and lowered her head. She nodded no slowly, contemplating the one word she’d just heard that surprised her. In the midst of this heated discussion, Levi called her Maggie. The mention of that long ago term of endearment was a reminder of happy times in her youth. For many years now, Levi hadn’t used the nickname when he spoke to her. She had always felt lucky if he managed to call her Margaret Goodman. But now that he was so worked up, he didn’t seem to realize he’d called her by her nickname. Strange what it took to rattle this man. He remained cold and distant or angry when discussing his son with her but seemed on the edge of exploding when he talked about her husband.

Levi grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her as if that would dislodge her answer. "Why not?"

"Because I knew Harry finding out about you and me would hurt him. I feared he’d leave me," Margaret stated flatly, pulling away from his rough grip.

"Ach! Why tell him now then?" Levi said with a frustrated sigh. "If thou thought that, just leave the truth hidden. The fewer Englishers who know the better. Burn thy sister’s devil book and let well enough alone."

Margaret’s admission came painfully slow, because she knew it would only infuriate Levi further. "Because I promised Faith I’d give Luke the journal this year. If Luke was to know the truth now, I had to tell Harry first. Eventually, you know very well my husband would have found out somehow if I hadn’t. To find out from someone else wasn’t fair to him. It would have hurt Harry much more than my telling him."

"Is what’s in that journal thy only reason for telling Harry Goodman?" Levi asked, searching her face as though he expected more.

She didn’t understand. "What other reason would I have?"

Levi stared at her. His unwavering eyes filled with sadness. "Thou should have stayed home with thy husband this time. If thou had kept silent, his leaving thee would never have to be. Now what are thou going to do when thee leaves here?" Levi’s voice held a note of concern. In his eyes was tenderness. His face soften while he waited for her reply.

Or was she imagining his feelings toward her changed. She’d wished for that to happen for so long. Her resolve to be cold and defiant melted away. She wasn’t used to this type of emotion from him. He hadn’t displayed a hint of gentle feelings toward her in years.

Margaret sighed deeply. "Perhaps you’re right about me not giving Luke the journal. He’s well and happy with the way he believes things to be. After all these years, surely Faith is gone for good. What difference could it make to her now if I didn’t carry out her wishes if that’s the way you want it. I’ll give what you say some thought in the next few days. As for me, you needn’t worry. Harry gave me the house so I have a place to live. He’s using the time I’m here to move his things out." She sighed again. "The worst part will be trying to explain to the busy bodies in town why my husband left me. They’ll notice sooner or later."

"Don’t try to explain. Tell them it’s none of their business. Or better yet just ignore them," Levi said, his tone soft and husky.

"If only that would work," she said, doubtfully.

Suddenly, Margaret felt so very weary from the weight of her world being turned upside down. One thing she was certain of, she could only blame herself for what had happened to her

recently. Her sister, Faith, wasn’t there to blame for her misfortune this time. She sagged closer to Levi. He placed his hands gently on top her shoulders. His gaze didn’t budge from her face as he slid his hands until he touched her throat. With his thumbs, he caressed her neck. Mesmerized by his gaze and touch, Margaret felt helpless to pull back even if she had wanted to. Her pulse pounded under his thumbs. Levi lowered his head close to hers. He tucked a finger under her chin to lift her head up. She held her breath, daring to hope that Levi intended to kiss her.

"Oh, Maggie, —-," he whispered.

At the sound of Luke’s footsteps in the kitchen, Levi dropped his hands to his side. The boy watched his father glide away from Margaret. Luke paused in the doorway. Fearing tension between Levi and Margaret, the child hesitated in the door. He’d been raised with the belief that harsh words and raised voices were a forbidden sin. Margaret knew the only time heated moments occurred around Luke was when she visited. She saw the alarm on the child’s face. She hated what Levi and she did to him. They continually tugged that little boy back and forth between them like a piece of pulled, molasses candy.

Luke looked from his father to his aunt and back. In one hand, he held a small, snow covered package. In the other, he grasped a black book bound with twine.

Margaret’s breath caught.

Levi let out a low groan.

"The journal must have slid out from under the sleigh seat where I hid it," whispered Margaret out of the corner of her mouth to Levi. "He mustn’t read it yet."

"Come on in and warm up, son. Cold out there tonight, ain’t?" Levi invited, holding his hand out to encourage his son to enter the room.

 

Always the same pattern,

At Mediabistro's Ebook Summit

by

This post, from Laura Dawson, originally appeared on the LJNDawson Blog on 12/16/09 and is reprinted here in its entirety with her permission.

Yesterday I was at Mediabistro’s eBook Summit, an event that actually spans two days (but I had to take one day to get this newsletter out, so there you go). They opened with a session on Open Road, the company founded by Jane Friedman and Jeffrey Sharp.

Jane and Jeff were interviewed by Carmen Scheidel of Mediabistro, who gave Jane and Jeff a chance to explain exactly what Open Road is, and what it intends to do.

Apparently they are looking at backlist titles with an eye towards both ebook and movie products. Their example was William Styron, whose books make good movies ("Sophie’s Choice"); there is also some extant footage of Styron himself that’s never been widely available. And it’s high time his books were available as ebooks.

Additionally, they are publishing what Jane calls "E-riginals", which are ebooks native to Open Road.

When Carmen brought up the memo from Markus Dohle at Random House regarding digital rights (and many of the books Jane would like to publish are, in fact, Random House books), Jane very carefully stated: "We are only working with people who represent that they have those rights to sell to us." This she repeated a couple of times.

Open Road is also working with universities, which of course are great repositories of authors’ papers. And they are developing apps – Jeff cited an app that would lead tourists around Charleston, highlighting Pat Conroy’s haunts.

Some discussion from the Q&A – all answers are Jane’s:

What will it take for traditional publishers to thrive once again? "I think there will always be physical books, and it’s essential that we keep them. But some of the issues of traditional publishing have to change. Advances are difficult, The idea of chasing the bestseller is very very difficult. Most of the time if you chase the bestsellers, you don’t make money. We are in a secular change – meaning we are not going to go back. Publishers will get smaller, advances will go down, and nonreturnability of books is essential. Each publisher will find his or her way; it’s going to be a tough decade, and the balance between e-publishing and physical publishing, the e-world is going to get pretty close to representing 50% of the publishing business."

How will readers purchase your ebooks? At what price? "At this point we are thinking of standard list price as around $14. But again, nothing’s definite. We have to see what the audience will bear. All of the marketing that we are doing will live on OpenRoadMedia.com. Pieces will be pushed out everywhere else. But we are not selling books from our website. We are auditioning distributors. We are agnostic – we will be on whatever device exists. We will distribute and have our books sold everywhere ebooks are sold."

Could you talk about the kinds of deals you’re making with authors for backlist and e-riginals? "We are in 50-50 partnership. Our intention is to be a 50-50 partner with a content owner."

Are you encountering resistance from traditional authors that ebooks will erode print sales, and how do you mollify those concerns? "Number one, we have to respect the author. If Sherman Alexie doesn’t want his books on e-, that’s okay. The issue of erosion is like the issue of price. We need every possible consumer and every possible purchase we can get. We cannot turn away a customer. I do not believe that the publishing on e- should be delayed. That’s TODAY. I cannot be dogmatic. Do I think there will be some cannibalization? Yes, but we are building a new audience and we have to satisfy that audience. It’s extremely important for us to face this head-on – perhaps we will increase the reading audience rather than cannibalize the audience. Traditional publishers have very big nuts – their overheads are beyond anything that’s understandable by people who don’t work in a big company, and the erosion of hardcover sales WILL hurt their bottom line."

How do authors reach you? "We say that we are not accepting unsolicited manuscripts. If it’s agented or with a lawyer, we will accept solicitations."

 

CEO of LJNDawson, Laura Dawson provides consulting services to publishers, libraries, booksellers, and book industry service providers. Her clients have included McGraw-Hill, Audible, Ingram, and LibreDigital. She was also a co-founder of the StartwithXML project. Laura blogs at the LJNDawson Blog where you’ll find frequent updates on technology, publishing, bookselling, libraries, and industry gossip.