As we were building websites for authors, we kept hearing feedback from our clients. Whispers of the need for something more. Frustration with the industry. Confusion on how to market your book once it was in print.

Our clients aren’t the only ones who are dealing with these questions. Everywhere we went, we heard writers vent about the same frustrations.

We started listening. As you talked of feeling lost in the publishing world, we were taking notes. When we met people in the industry, we shared with them your concerns.

That’s when something beautiful happened. A society dedicated to authors like you was created.

We’d like you to invite you to join the Bestseller Society.

It’s not a secret society or a commune for starving artists. We don’t have a swanky lounge with plush leather chairs and a butler to collect your coat. Throw those images away. This is something better.

This society is a place where writers from all over the world gather to exchange ideas, advice, and expertise. Publishing insiders and marketing experts are part of the society, willing to lend a helping hand to members who are willing to do the work to become best-selling authors.

This is the closest thing you will find to a shortcut in the publishing process. Instead of spending years learning this information through trial and error, you’ll be provided the facts by the people who know.

Every month, a team of industry insiders will provide you with exclusive information that will help get ahead in the publishing process. It doesn’t matter if you are writing a book or need help marketing it. There’s someone in the Society who will help you.

It sounds wonderful, doesn’t it?

The Bestseller Society was created with authors just like you in mind. Members come from all stages – some are already best-selling authors while others have great ideas for books that are just waiting to come out. There’s a place for everyone here. The only person missing is you.

We are having a special Online Launch Party on May 15th, at 3:30 CST. During this one-hour kick-off party, there will be live interviews with Thomas Umstattd, Mary DeMuth, and Jeff Gerke, the masterminds behind the society. Attendees will have the chance to win a free memberships by sending in questions on the Bestseller Society fan page or tweeting to @BestsellerSoc with #Bestseller as the hashtag.

Please RSVP for the Online Launch Party. Remember, it’s happening at 3:30 – 4:30 PM CST on May 15, 2012.

See you there!

Anyone can tweet.

Twitter is not rocket science. It doesn’t take much to compose something relatively witty and send it out like a public text message complete with the appropriate author-related hashtag.

But just like everything else these days, it’s important to measure effectiveness.

Time is the currency of the day and everything must be weighed so none is wasted. -  Click to tweet

Wouldn’t be wonderful if there was a magical way to tell when the best time to tweet was so you weren’t spending your day on the site?

It’s your lucky day.

1. Timely.Is

Timely is one of my favorite apps for timing tweets. With it, you can find the most optimal times of the day to send out your updates. They do this by analyzing your past 199 tweets. The program will continue to analyze your tweets so you are never behind the times.

I have used this app many times. If you are serious about scheduling, I would recommend this as one of your first stops. One of the best features is the price tag. It’s free.

2. Tweriod

I was recently introduced to Tweriod. This tool will help you discover when the majority of your followers are online. Their theory is that the best time to tweet is real time. Your friends don’t go through their news feed life like they do in other social sites. Twitter is all about now.

This report works well if all you want to know is the best time to tweet.  They have free reports as well as paid, premium reports.

3. Crowdbooster

I’m a little embarassed to say how much I love Crowdbooster. There was a time last summer where I was obsessed with this site. Crowdbooster is a powerful tool that let’s you analyze, well, almost everything.

When I log into my Crowdbooster account, I can find out how many impressions my tweets are getting. I can also see my follower growth and discover who my top retweeters are. And if I want to be incredibly analytical, I can see who my influential followers are. For those of you obsessed with Klout, it’s a great tool. It’s also free.

Keep Perspective

When you dive into the world of analytics, you need to keep perspective.

It can be easy to start fretting about numbers and losing sleep over your Klout score. While there are some numbers you need to worry about, they shouldn’t take center stage in your life.

Scheduling tweets will help curb the obsession. Find the prime tweeting time, write your tweets, schedule them, and then go on with your life. It can be that simple.

If you need help figuring Twitter out, we have a team of social media coaches who can help you.  Just let us know.

Join us on May 9th, at 3:30 PM (CT),  for a special webinar: Google Analytics for Authors.

Analytics can be a powerful tool but only if you know how to use them.  Accessing Google Analytics can be overwhelming for authors. Most haven’t had the program explained to them so it’s just another site of overwhelming numbers and good intentions. That’s why we’re launching this free webinar.

It’s time to take the gobbledygook out of Google.

If you don’t know how to read your analytics, you are missing out on opportunities to build your author platform.

On May 9th, at 3:30 PM (CT),  Google Analytics for Authors, Thomas Umstattd will share practical advice on how to make the most of your website data. This is a webinar that you won’t want to miss. Thomas will explain some of the mystery behind Google Analytics.

Understanding analytics is vital for any website. The data is a goldmine of information, waiting to be harvested, processed, and utilized. Your author website is no exception. If you don’t have staff paying attention to these numbers, you are solely responsible for your success…or failure.

At this free event, you’ll learn: 

• How to read analytics
• Which numbers you should worry about (and which you can forget!)
• What numbers agents and publishers are looking for
• How to tailor your writing to increase the right numbers
• What trends you need to watch out for

Join us this free webinar on May 9th at  3:30 PM Central Time.  Space is limited, register today!

On this webinar, you will learn how to become a data scientist, interpreting trends and learning how to adapt to visitor behavior. That may sound intimidating at first read

What are you waiting for? Register now!

Please note, this event will not be recorded. There will be a question and answer time after the main presentation.

Facebook has done it again.

Right as you got comfortable on the social media site, they changed things up by switching public, professional, and personal profiles (try saying that quickly!) to Timeline.

Take heart authors, this is good news. While it might seem like Facebook has thrown you a curve ball, what they’ve really thrown you is a perfect pitch. Timeline was created with the concept of story in mind. And who tells stories better than authors?

When you create your Timeline cover photo, there are a few things you need to keep in mind. Ignore them at your own peril.

1. Play By Facebook’s Rules -

You can read the full set of page guidelines but what you need to know about cover photos is this:

All covers are public. This means that anyone who visits your Page will be able to see your cover. Covers can’t be deceptive, misleading, or infringe on anyone else’s copyright. You may not encourage people to upload your cover to their personal timelines.

Covers may not include:

i.    price or purchase information, such as “40% off” or “Download it on socialmusic.com”;

ii.    contact information such as a website address, email, mailing address, or information that should go in your Page’s “About” section;

iii.    references to Facebook features or actions, such as “Like” or “Share” or an arrow pointing from the cover photo to any of these features; or

iv.    calls to action, such as “Get it now” or “Tell your friends.”

That means uploading a cover photo of all your books with “FEED A STARVING WRITER – ALL BOOKS 30% OFF IF YOU PURCHASE A BOOK TODAY AND LIKE MY PAGE!!!!!!!! PLEASE BUY AND SHARE THIS WITH ALL YOUR AMAZING FRIENDS!!!!” stamped across the photo will not fly with Facebook. Your friends and fans probably won’t like it either.

You are an author. Not an infomercial host or an used car salesperson. Your Facebook Timeline needs to reflect that.  - Click to tweet

2. Be Serious About Branding

The easiest way to create a cover photo is to use an existing photo that you like. Be aware that  while it is easy, it can also be dangerous. It looks sloppy when the proportions are off or part of the image is cropped. You need to make sure that your image is optimized for the Timeline both in size and in content.

Before you create your cover photo, you need to answer these questions:

• Why am I doing this?
• Am I trying to sell a book or build my fan base?
• Am I really the best one to do this job?

You need to know what the message is you are trying to create. Dig deep. What is your author persona? You may say it’s your personality but do you know what that looks like online? Have you asked your readers how they view you? You might be surprised at the answer!

Here are some authors with great Timeline Cover Photos that sell their brand:

• Robin Jones Gunn
• Mary Higgins Clark
• Ted Dekker
• Nicholas Sparks

3. Size Your Image

Once you have your cover photo designed, make sure that you have the proportions correct. If you are doing an author portrait, hire a professional photographer. Do not instagram yourself or ask your spouse to take your picture (unless they happen to be a professional photographer). Here’s why you should avoid the ugly author picture trend.

Facebook recently changed the image size for Timeline covers. If you want your cover to look professional, you need to know the dimensions.

Width : 851px

Height : 315px

Let your photographer know the dimensions you need. If you are adding other elements in the image, make sure you let them know. They will work with you to create an aesthetic image that will help brand you as a professional author.

Your profile picture dimensions are:

Width : 180px

Height : 180px

You can crop your photo with any photo editing software. Just make sure that the dimensions are correct!

The final step is uploading the image. Once you are logged onto your public/professional page, click “Change Cover.”  You can find this by hovering over the lower right corner of your existing Timeline photo.

Upload the photo you just finished creating. Make sure you save the changes!

What’s the most inspirational Facebook Timeline cover photo that you’ve seen?

What’s the deal with search engine optimization?  Do authors really need to worry about it?

(Wondering what it is? We explain it here.)

If you want to sell books, the answer is yes.

It isn’t enough to know how to write books. Every author needs to know how to write for readers and search engines.  If you don’t have a handle on SEO (or have someone on staff who does), you won’t be able to sell your books.

That’s right. Excellent SEO will sell books.

Professional marketers have known this secret for years and it’s time that authors understand that they naturally have the competitive edge.

Knowing how to write masterfully for the web will save you hundreds of hours in the future and thousands of marketing dollars.

On Monday, April 30^th at 7 PM CST, Thomas Umstattd, the founder of Author Media, will be hosting a FREE webinar for authors to explain how they can combine their natural writing skills with SEO to sell their books online. Thomas has worked with authors for many years, teaching them how to create a strong platform online, leverage social media, and sell their books through inbound marketing. Space is limited to 100 participants, so register early.

We understand that learning SEO can be overwhelming, especially when you have a tight deadline looming for your latest book project. That’s why we’ll help you take the guesswork out of SEO and teach you how to make your online writing sell your books.

In this FREE webinar, you will learn:

• The basics of SEO
• How to use keywords to attract readers (and which keywords you must optimize for)
• When the best time to optimize your site is
• Where your keywords matter (it’s not where you think!)
• What publishers and agents know about SEO that you don’t

The webinar will last approximately an hour with time for questions after. Save your space now by registering today.

On the Author Media blog, we focus on the technology side of writing; how to set up your social media sites, use WordPress like a pro, and understand how technology influences your chances of getting published.

But there’s another side to the coin that you can’t afford to forget. As a writer, you must write.

You must face the challenge of leveraging technology so you can tell your story to a captive audience. It’s easy to get overwhelmed by technology and forget why you are even attempting to learn.

It’s about your story.

There are four writing blogs that I recommend to all of my clients. They will help you sharpen your writing skills and tell you story in an engaging way on the internet.

1. Jeff Goins is a storyteller who started his writing blog in 2010 to shed light on the personal side of being a writer. He’s been helping thousands of writers like you find their voices, pursue their passion, and stay sane  I read Jeff’s blog because his advice is solid. Every time that I read his blog, I come away with a nugget of truth that helps me sharpen my writing skills. GoinsWriter.com. (Note to readers: Is your blog providing the same kind of advice? It needs to. Readers crave that kind of personalization.)

2. CopyBlogger is one of the top industry sites for a reason. Their advice is not for the novelist but for the writer who suddenly finds themselves trying to write for the web. If you blog or write copy that winds up one the web, you need to follow this blog. I recommend this site to all of my clients and read it myself.  Copyblogger.com/blog 

3. Writer’s Digest has five different blogs for writers. Get advice on grammar, choosing an agent, and even writing poetry. If it pertains to writing and publishing, someone at Writer’s Digest has it covered. It’s just up to you to read. WritersDigest.com/editor-blog

4. Pro Blogger is where professional bloggers go to get better. With over 600 pages of free content, you’ll learn about the nitty gritty techniques that will add polish to your blog. You’ll also learn how identify if your website
is ready for advertisers and if you are ready to start blogging for money.  ProBlogger.net/blog/

Which writing blogs do you read?

It takes awhile to find out how to pick the right stock photo for your website.

Some authors never get it right.They slap the first photo that catches their eye up on their website, not bothering to resize, crop, or edit it. Some of them go to a stock photo site, find one that they like, and then download the water-marked image.

Doing that is easy. But it also alienates your readers and identifies you as lazy, tech unsavvy and a pirate in training. Don’t be that author. (Find out what other mistakes authors make.)

Finding the right stock photo for your content is not has hard as it sounds.

There are a few things that you need to remember while you are searching for the right photo. These tips will never fail you and will keep you out of quite a bit of trouble.

1. Keep it legal

Doing a quick Google search will help you find images but they aren’t going to be legal. The lazy author is the one that often ends up in trouble. Using a watermarked image (without permission) is illegal. So quit ripping off stock photo sites. Your work is worth using legal images. Put the effort in to keep it legal. You owe it to yourself.

2. Make it match

Many authors make the mistake of finding an image that matches the title of the blog post. The photo needs to match the content. Bait and switch tactics are hated for a reason. Don’t insult your readers. If your blog post is about knitting, don’t put a picture of Justin Bieber next to the title.

3. Commit to a Photo

There are thousands of photos out there and you only need one of them to complete your page. Remember that because it can be overwhelming to scroll through pages of photos. Your picture is important but it shouldn’t take you hours to find the one that matches your content. If you run out of time or are looking for one for your homepage, ask us. We can help find the perfect one. The same goes for your author portrait.

4. Stay Relevant

Make sure that your photo is tasteful. You really don’t want to offend people. Don’t choose sexually charged photos or things that are generally considered taboo. Stay respectful of men, women, children, and people groups. You also want to make sure that your photo is timely. Unless you are aiming for irony, don’t choose photos that are dated. And please, no LOLCats.

Check out the nine premium stock photo sites we recommend.

5. Size it Up

Make sure that your photo is the correct size. That means you’ll have to open up your photo editing software to crop, shrink, or resize your photo. It’s important for you to know the dimensions you are working with on your website. Remember, you can always shrink a photo but you can’t always expand it. Buy big.

Which sites do you use to get legal pictures for your website? 

Are you ready for a website change? Let’s start building your new website.

For thousands of years, reading has been a solo activity.

With the advent of the e-reader, the game has been rapidly changing. Remember our 2012 publishing predictions? They are starting to come true.

“I think ‘social reading’ is still a huge opportunity for the e-reader space. So far, only Rethink Books seems to have the vision for this,” said publishing industry giant Michael Hyatt in a blog post last December. Hyatt is also rumored to be on the board for the company.

Think of BookShout as an online book club…on steroids.

Rethink Books is the parent company of BookShout, an app that is causing quite the buzz in the sector where social media and publishing collides. With this social reading application, you’ll be able to:

• compare notes with readers from all over the world,
• start discussion threads on passages, and
• read the author’s notes.

Listen to what BookShout founder Jason Illian has to say -

Users will be able to subscribe to anyone’s feed, similar to Facebook. For instance, if you wanted to read Hilary Clinton’s notes on Sarah Palin’s book (or vice versa), you’d only have to subscribe. The catch is that in order to read the notes in context, you’ll have to purchase the book.

BookShout is a win-win for everyone.

For users, it provides a richer reading experience. For authors, they can find out just what people think about their books. Publishers win by harvesting the analytics – they can now discover what people love (or hate) about a book, the most popular passages, and when someone puts down the book.

Currently, all the major publishing houses are on board with BookShout.

Publisher’s Weekly says, “BookShout is certainly a timely venture that offers social connectivity, easy access to digital books, and a new retail outlet at a time publishers are certainly looking for one.”

BookShout will be released in April 2012 for the iPad.  BookShout will be released in April 2012 for the iPad.

The question is, what do you think about BookShout? Will you be using it?

“The iPad is so ubiquitous, and so entwined in mainstream culture already, that it is hard to imagine a time without it.” – Tony Bradley, PC World

Last week Apple presented a keynote on the soon to be released New iPad. For those of you writers who haven’t seen it or don’t see how this snazzy new device applies to your industry, here’s the rundown on the features that will undoubtedly change the way authors everywhere are writing and staying connected.

Apple’s influence continues to grow.

Last year alone, Apple sold 172 million post-PC devices. They made a way for authors to create transmedia eBooks with iBooks. They keep revolutionizing the electronic media industry.

There are now 362 Apple stores worldwide in some of the largest global cultural hubs. Apple revolutionized the music industry with the iPod, and now it appears they might be revolutionizing the writing industry with the iPad.

The New iPad will run on iOS, the world’s most advanced and most user friendly mobile operating system to date (the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch all run on iOS). It weighs in at a little under a pound and a half, making it light enough without being wispy, and it sports a design that is so simple that only Apple can get away with it.

The goal is to be the best device to allow you to do the things you do most often, such as browse the web, email, connect via social media, and, for authors, write. (Need ideas on what to write about? Try one of these 50 ideas!)

The New iPad is better than ever.

Check out some of these new features:

1. Retina display: This means that, when the iPad is used at a normal distance from the eye, your retina is unable to discern individual pixels. This allows for vibrant images and sharp text, which is great for reading (and producing enchanting blog posts, etc.). Also a new development in the A5X technology powers graphics four times as fast as before, allowing for the best mobile display ever.

2.iSight camera: A fantastic new camera which comes with auto-exposure, auto-face detection, auto-focus, and a focus and exposure lock.

3. HD video recording: This comes with video stabilization and temporal noise reduction for better quality recording.

4. Voice dictation: This nifty feature allows you to dictate text automatically and is particularly useful for anyone who writes or wishes to dictate notes, emails, etc.

5. Next generation wireless: Thanks to huge advances, the New iPad will be able to download up to 73 megabits per second on LTE. This is extremely useful when browsing the web, downloading, networking, writing, or doing most anything else on the iPad. The New iPad, Apple boasts, is 3G world ready, and can be used as a personal hotspot which can be shared with up to 5 devices.

In addition to these perks, the iPad will continue to do well what it has always done best, which is to serve as a unique device which allows for better mobility and centralization. 

The iPad is great for travel and working on the road as it allows more freedom than would lugging around a big laptop, and it allows more freedom to work from more places. Although it won’t necessarily replace your laptop, it is ideal for using out and around. (Find out how the iPad 2 stacked up against the Asus Transformer). Even with the remarkable speeds and graphics of the New iPad, it will still hold its charge for ten hours, nine hours on a 4G network, allowing for extended hours of mobility.

For all of you writers out there, the New iPad will allow you to write comfortably from anywhere.

There is a keyboard on the screen, although the iPad supports an external keyboard, as well, and both options are easy to use. The device will also allow you to use vivid and beautiful color and images in your writing, a relatively new option for writers who have until more recently been restricted by ink prices.

The New iPad will make it easier for you to manage your blog in and out of the comfort of your own home, and will also allow others to read and share your blog easily.

As far as reading your work or others’ work, the iPad has been the favored device on which to read books.

The Kindle is a good device if all you want to do is read. (Did you see our review of the Kindle Fire?) However, if you want to read, write, create and compile your notes, browse the web and keep connected via email, the iPad is the device for you, plus you can still read Kindle books on the iPad with the Kindle app.

The App Store is larger than ever.

With 585,000 apps, the App Store is filled with numerous applications that are fantastic for the writing process, and these are all supported on the New iPad. The list includes apps for writing, editing, reading, scheduling, and note taking.

With the dawn of the New iPad, however, you can expect more useful apps soon, including one that will allow you to read books and take notes interactively with friends via BookShout.

Will you be getting the New iPad? How often do you use your tablet for reading or writing books? 

Is your website optimized for mobile browsers? Author Media create a website that is beautiful on any device. Ask us how.

It’s easy to trick ourselves that when we’re on our favorite social media site, we’re busy marketing our books. Chatting with your friends is not marketing your book (disable Facebook chat!). If you aren’t being busy on purpose, you’re just wasting time. It’s time to quit.

Authors don’t have time to waste.

You have deadlines to beat. Stories to write. Books to get published.  You have more important things to do than to spend time on Facebook, Twitter, and even Pinterest.

One of the easiest (and cheapest!) ways to solve the productivity problem is to turn off the internet. That’s right.  Turn off the wi-fi. Use some good ol’ fashioned self-control. But if you’d like an app for that, I’ve tracked down seven that will help you quit wasting time now.

1. Rescue Time - Free

Shame yourself into cutting down time on social media sites. This app will help you block distractions and take screen shots to give you accurate time tracking logs. At the end of the week, you can print off a complete analysis of how you spent your time. For the visually inclined, the data can be turned into graphs.

2. Freedom – $10

This app will help you block the internet so you can focus on your work without sneaking glances at your email, wikipedia, the news, the stock market, your Twitter feed, or the latest kitty cat video on YouTube…anywhere that isn’t your word processor. Your browser will simply act like it’s offline for the amount of time you selected. To get the internet back, you have to reboot your computer. That will make you think twice!

3. Anti-Social - $15

This Mac-only application will block you from your friends on the internet. If you squander most of your time in chat rooms, social networks, and YouTube, this is the application for you.

4. Easy Task Manager – Free

This app is compatible with the Getting Things Done method. Remember the method to get your inbox to zero? Same people. With this app, you can keep the focus going.  Learn how to prioritize, strategize, and get things crossed off your list! For Macs only.

5. Think – Free

Studies have shown that none of us can multitask as much as we think we should be able to. Think makes it easy to focus on the task on hand by blocking everything except the program you select. Genius. For Macs only.

6. Stay Focused - Free

Do you use Chrome? You should know by now that Internet Explorer is bad for authors. What you might not realize is that Chrome can be very productive for authors. Especially with the Stay Focused plugin. Instead of tracking your time on a social media site, it limits your time. Let’s say you want to spend only 60 minutes on Facebook a day. Once enter that goal in, that’s all you’ll be able to spend on there. Say goodbye to wasted time.

7. Focus Booster- Free

The logic behind Focus Booster is simple. Make a list, allocate time to work on those tasks, then give yourself a break. Your tasks will be broken into 30 minute chunks. Focus for 25 minutes and then an alarm will ring, giving you a quick five minute break before you are off to start your next task.

Authors, you don’t have time to throw away. You don’t have the luxury of wasting countless hours on the internet.

How do you stay on task? Is there a specific app that you use? Share your tips in the comment section!

Monday morning. There are 130 emails waiting for you in your inbox. Typical.

You can’t tell which ones are urgent and which ones are just a waste of digital memory. What are you going to do?

Option A: Carefully read each and every one of them.

Option B: Declare email bankruptcy and delete them all. (The easiest way to keep your inbox at zero!)

Unfortunately, neither option seems wise. But you can’t just leave them there. You have work to do. And hidden in that pile of emails is a very important message that could reshape your work week.

So what are you going to do?

A few years ago, I was introduced to the Getting Things Done method that was developed by David Allen. I was skeptical at first but once I started applying it, I was surprised at how well it worked. The trick is to use it and not let it become just another “good idea.”  Own it and make it your next good practice.

You are going to need to make five email folders. Mine aren’t identical to these but they are close.

• @Actions – This is where you will put the emails that require action. Mark the emails as unread so that you can see how many emails you have waiting for you.
• @Waiting For – Did you send an email off to an agent last week? Waiting for a reply? Put emails like that in this folder.
• @Reference – This is where I put all the articles, blog posts, author newsletters, and infographics that catch my fancy. If I have a spare moment during the work day, I can go back and look at them.
• @Project – Make as many of these folders as you need. Personalize them with the name of clients, books, or writing projects. Then move all the relevant emails over!
• @Someday – Daydreaming about a future author website? Or maybe your future novel? Put emails that have to do with future projects in this folder. You can look at it when someday comes instead of wasting your workday today.

Once you’ve created the appropriate folders, you have a few more questions that need to be answered before you can get your inbox to zero. But you must realize that your inbox is not a folder. Don’t plan on storing things there long-term.

While you are wading through your 130 emails, see if you can do one of these five things:

1. Delete It - Is it spammy email that you don’t need? Unsubscribe from the list and then delete the email. Don’t report it as spam if it is something you were once interested in and just aren’t any more.

2. File It – Will the email fit in one of the folders you created? Store it there.

“Do I need to friend my fans? Will people quit reading my books if I don’t accept them on my personal Facebook page? But what about privacy? I don’t want strangers seeing pictures of my family!”

Do those questions sound familiar? For many authors, the answers don’t come easy. They have mini crises because they don’t want to offend people while protecting their privacy.

Facebook has created artificial social norms that most people don’t know how to navigate. (Don’t know where to start? Try this article on how to integrate your platform with Facebook.)

When I sit down with clients, I ask them what their vision for Facebook is. Some of them have never thought of the question before. Authors are in the unique position of being entrepreneurs.

The line between personal and business has been smudged, if not completely erased. 

Having a clear game-plan will help you answer the questions before they become a crisis. Here are some of the questions that I ask clients:

1. How many “friends” do you currently have on Facebook?
2. How many of them are acquaintances?
3. What are the things that you will not post about?
4. How important is privacy?
5. How do you define privacy?
6. What kind of things do you not want shared with anyone outside your “inner circle?” Do you currently share those things on Facebook?
7. What do you want to be known for as a writer?
8. What are fun aspects of your personality that you are trying to build into your author brand?
9. How comfortable are you with Facebook? Do you consider yourself savvy?
10. Is your goal to make friends or to sell books?

Working through those questions will help you look at your Facebook account objectively. If you’ve used it for the past five years to keep in touch with family and friends, suddenly switching to marketing and promotion is going to feel unnatural. But if you are someone who has used the site to network, it’s going to be much easier. Finding out where you are now will help you become the author you want to be.

I personally recommend that authors have their own Facebook Author Timeline where they can interact with their fans. There are quite a few advantages to using one. Here are some of my favorites:

Facebook is always changing the game. Just yesterday, they unveiled Timeline for Brands (read our review on Timeline for author pages). It’s a game-changer for business and authors because it shifts the preference from products to stories.

With Timeline for pages and profiles, it can be tempting to ditch the page to focus on your profile. After all, why would you want to put in twice the work to manage two Timelines?

The reason you need to focus on your author brand Timeline is because that’s where potential sales will happen. Your personal Timeline wasn’t created for marketing. Your brand Timeline was. Brand Timelines offer customizable tabs, Facebook marketing opportunities, and analytics.

Understanding your Author Timeline analytics is essential to your success.

Analytics are more than you think they are. Log in to your Facebook account and look at the “insights” on your brand page. If you haven’t taken the time before, you need to familiarize yourself with the data. By looking at analytics, you can discover what it is about your story that is resonating.

• What is getting the most likes, shares, and comments?
• What is driving engagement?
•  How many fans are actively engaged vs. passively just there?
• What kind of post gets the most engagement?
• How many new fans do you have?

Understanding your Facebook analytics is key to your marketing strategy. 

One of the most useful aspects of Facebook analytics is that you can view them in real time. That means if you have a highly trafficked page, you will be able to constantly adapt to what your fans are asking for. If there is a post that is performing well, you can identify and analyze the factors that are making it popular. The same goes to a post that is underperforming. Identify the factors, adapt your strategy, and fix the post.

The happier your fans are, the more likely they will be to purchase your book.

Does this sound very cut, dried, and businesslike? That’s because your writing is not only an art, it is a business as well. There are numbers you need to get published  (find out what numbers they are looking for on your author website) and numbers you need to help sell books.

You need to approach your writing as a business. Best-selling authors know that they can’t expect their books to sell or fans to show up on their own.  The publisher’s job is to get your book published. It’s part of your job to get them sold.

If you don’t have an online marketing strategy, our social media coaches can help you craft one. Traditional marketing barely has a pulse. Social Media, inbound marketing, and search engine optimization (SEO) are all growing stronger every day.

How often do you look at your Facebook analytics? How do they impact your online marketing strategy? Leave us a comment and let us know.

What’s your author story? The answer may be more important than you think. On February 29^th, 2012, Facebook unveiled the long-awaited Timeline for pages.

What does that mean for authors? It means that the game has changed once again.

Facebook knows that story is what drives people. As an author, the cards are stacked in your favor.

In the world of marketing, Timeline is about amplifying the stories that businesses want to tell (and want others to tell as well.) For authors, the challenge is to share your stories and get your community to tell the stories of how your books have impacted their life. Your books are your brand.

Are you ready to tell your story? People want to hear it. They crave it. That’s one of the reason you get so many friend requests. (Here’s 10 ways to get more fans this week).

Instead of relying on your personal profile to interact with your clients, you can keep your fan page as a buffer. You only have to share as much as you want. As an author, you can now tell your stories online without feeling like you are spamming your friends and family.

Every industry leader will have a different opinion but I believe that the new Timeline for Brands will make things much less painful for authors.  Many authors come to me asking me how to avoid self-promotion on their personal page. I usually advise them to keep a posting schedule and to keep the majority of their updates on their personal page personal.

I’m going to be addressing Timelines (personal and brand) in more depth in Facebook Timeline for Authors. But for now, here’s why I’m excited about pages for authors.

You can now:

• Share the stories behind your books,
• Tell your author story,
• Share your triumphs,
• Interact deeply with fans,
• Customize your cover photo as a marketing asset, and
• Send email from your group page instead of your personal page.

Another massive change that was unveiled was Facebook Premium. According to Facebook’s internal data, there is a standard 10% interaction rate on pages. Facebook Premium boasts a 75% interaction rate. Premium is geared towards businesses but can easily be adapted for authors as well. Author Media can help you figure out

If you don’t understand how Facebook Timeline will affect you as an author, you can schedule a consultation with our Social Media Specialist.

We’re excited about the new changes in Facebook and are preparing help all of our clients navigate the tricky waters ahead. Don’t be afraid to ask us how.

Once upon a time, Seth Godin wrote a book that changed the marketing world. It was called Purple Cow.

Godin tells a story about driving through the countryside.  He and his fellow passengers were amazed by the sheer number of cows that were surrounding them. They couldn’t stop talking about the cows.

But then something happened.

The cows ceased to be a novelty. There were so many of them, that they seemed like one mass herd of boring. That’s when Seth realized that to be truly remarkable, a cow would have to be purple to stand out. He realized that the same rule applied to the marketing world.

And thus the legend of the Purple Cow was born.

In business, a purple cow is a product that is so revolutionary and different that people think of it as a novelty.

The old rule of business was to create safe, ordinary products that people would use and combine them for great marketing.

Here are two examples of the old rule of business.

• Soap. Yes, soap. There are thousands of different kinds of soap. Can you name five of them? It’s a safe business and it has been for years. People aren’t going to suddenly give up cleanliness. The soap scene was boring for years. It was boring because they didn’t feel the need to innovate.
• Instant coffee. This household staple was invented in 1901 and began mass production in 1906. Maxwell House came on the scene in 1926. For the rest of the twentieth century, Maxwell House and Foldgers owned the scene. Boring.

The new rule of business is to create remarkable products that the right people seek out.

Let’s revisit our yawn-inspiring examples.

• When the soap scene got boring, Dove decided to differentiate itself as the soap for women. They started the Real Beauty Campaign to help women celebrate their non-photoshopped selves. They have resources to help little girls develop healthy levels of self-esteem. They found a huge market (the 99.9% of women who battle self-image issues) and have created content that helps change their lives in positive ways. And as a result, Dove has set their brand apart from all their competitors. And they’ve sold a lot of soap.
• When instant coffee needed perking up, Starbucks came to the rescue by developing their VIA line. Until 2009, there had not been any major innovations in instant coffee. Starbucks knew that they had a dedicated group of customers who loved Starbucks coffee but didn’t have the time to wait in line.

This directly applies to your writing and you as an author.

If you try to write like every other author, you’ll be just another author. If you try to write to the masses, the masses will ignore you.

Your writing needs to be remarkable. Radical. There are millions of websites on the internet, authored by millions of writers who have dreams that are very similar to yours. If you want readers, you need to stand out of the herd. You need to be a Purple Cow.

Take some time to evaluate where you are now. Ask yourself these questions:

• Do you ever hear from readers?
• Do your posts have a social footprint?
• How many “shares” or “likes” do you get on average?
• Would you read your blog?
• What makes you different than every other writer?
• Do you know what agents and publishers are looking for?

It takes time to become a Purple Cow. You can’t microwave the process.

Your writing will not be an overnight success. For many authors, it takes years and years to achieve success. Some of them never make it. But there are many that do. And you can be one of them.

In his book, Seth shares ideas for how to turn your product into a Purple Cow. I’ve adapted them for writers.

• Tailor your writing to a niche, underserved market. Create a website tailored for them.
• Build a permission set. Market to your fans via newsletters.
• Be willing to take the time to innovate wisely. Don’t just slop things together.
• Tell stories that will change the lives of your readers.
• Write back to readers who email you. Get to know them personally.
• If your story’s future looks bleak, change course. You can spend years rewriting or you can write a new one tailored to your audience.
• Find the things that are “just not written about” in your genre or industry. Write about them.
• Before you nix a crazy idea, ask “Why not?”

How can you revolutionize your writing? How can you become a Purple Cow as a writer?

So you’re thinking about actually making the big step and buying an author website, or maybe you’ve already taken the leap and signed the check.

At Author Media, we understand what a big deal this is, and how scary it can seem.

However, there’s one trap that authors tend to fall into when building a website (or maintaining one, for that matter).

The perfectionist mentality

One thing every serious aspiring author knows is that he isn’t perfect, and that learning the craft of writing publishable work is a long process. If you don’t accept this fact, you become so tied up with making everything you write perfect that you’re unable to write anything. Progress begins when you accept imperfection and decide to write anyway.

What many authors don’t realize is that this applies to websites as well.

There’s no such thing as the perfect website.

That includes ours. We’ve tried very hard to make it a beautiful site with amazingly helpful content, but is there room for improvement? Sure.

You may stress over every single aspect of the website process, from the appearance of the sidebar to the logo to the wording of your first blog post, but this will serve only to frustrate you without really improving your site.

God doesn’t expect perfection.

Something we’ve heard from our authors before is that since they are building this site for God, it needs to be done right. While that is a commendable perspective, the danger in that type of thinking is a tendency to fall into the perfectionist trap.

While we should our best at everything, God gives grace to grow and fail and succeed, and that grace extends to our websites too. So give your website grace. Remember that we are all works in progress, so relax and enjoy the ride!

What are some ways you have struggled with perfectionism in your writing or your website? What did you do to overcome it?

A picture is worth a thousand words. Avoid lame author portraits. Your agent, family, and fans will thank you.

For years, we’ve heard the adage about pictures having impact. But in the age of digital photography, it is tempting to think that anyone with a camera is a photographer. It’s a lie.

Contrary to popular belief, there is not an app for talent.

Your author picture matters. If you don’t have a high-quality picture, you won’t be taken seriously.

Like it or not, that’s the way it works in a digital world. You are judged by your pixels.

If you are an author, you need a professional quality author portrait. This photo is how you will be represented to the world on your blog, Facebook author page, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest account, your business cards, and on the back of your books If your portrait isn’t up to par, people can tell in a glance. There’s nothing worse than an out of focus, awkwardly posed photo.

There are photos that belong in family albums and photos that belong in the public eye. All too often, the lines between the two get blurred when people are on a budget.

Your author picture is just as important as your about me page. It’s worth every penny you spend on it. If you amortize the cost by dividing the price by the number of impressions it will have, it’s one of the best investments you will make as an author (right behind an author website).

If you want a professional photo, hire a professional. Don’t for the cheap photographer who uses a point-and-shoot or iPhone.

Photography is an art, just like writing. Professional photographers are just as misunderstood as professional writers. Treat them with respect. Review the photographer’s portfolio before you hire them. Many photographers have websites that showcase their work.

See if their photography has these three vital elements.

1. Clarity

Do you know part of your body needs to be the focal point? It’s your eyes. The clarity of the eyes is the difference between a professional photographer and an amateur. Your eyes should have catchlights so you look alive. Look at the man’s eyes in the picture above. His eyes are sharp and in focus. The man in the first photo is a different story. He looks dull and lifeless. His picture is all too common and ugly.

2. Conciseness

Your picture is not a modern painting. The only elements that draw the viewers attention should be your face. This is not the time to be coyly posing behind a palm tree. The background should not be distracting. Your photographer needs to take the time to make sure the background is complementary. Look through their portfolio. Are there ugly elements like bad poses or model placement? If your photographer’s portfolio resembles a photo mill from the 1990′s, run far, far away.

3. Consistent

How does your photographer draw out  their models personalities? Your image personifies your brand and you need to make sure that your photographer can help you present that. If you write about horses, incorporate a horse into your picture. If you write thrillers, you can take a cue from Ted Dekker and experiment with shadows. Ask the photographer how they draw out the unique aspects of each client.

What kind of experience do you have with photographers? What tips for finding a photographer can you share?

Finding something to blog about can be hard. Writer’s block can be a serious condition that cripples authors.

It doesn’t have to be that way. Especially when you are working on other writing projects and every ounce of your creative juices have already been squeezed out of your body.

Your blog is the first draft of your book. It’s what agents and publishers look at before they sign you on as an author.

If you write fiction, try blogging about one of these topics to kill your writer’s block:

• The inspiration behind your work in progress
• A story you uncovered while searching your novel
• 10 Authors who inspire you
• Your first rejection letter
• 10 Movies that inspire you
• The worst moment in your life
• Books you wish that you had written
• The best way to track your site statistics
• How your faith interacts with your writing
• Interviews with one of your main characters
• The moment you decided to be a novelist
• How to survive the holidays as a writer
• The moment your writing started to pay off
• How you deal with stress
• Writing conferences you recommend
• How to carve out writing time while maintaining a social life
• How to write a novel while working a full time job
• Common misconceptions about novelists
• When the worst time to write is
• How you use Pinterest
• How to make your characters come alive
• How to avoid lame author portraits

If you write non-fiction, try one of these posts to cure writer’s block:

• Research tips
• How to find someone to interview
• How to set realistic writing goals
• How to request an interview
• How to fact-check after an interview
• How to avoid libel
• Elements of an effective newsletter
• 5 non-fiction writers that inspire you
• 10 true stories you want to write about
• Organizations that support the causes in your book
• How to build your author brand
• How to narrow your focus
• Myths about nonfiction writers
• Finding historical sources
• Why people should read more nonfiction

If you are a public speaker, you can always blog about one of these topics:

• The most unusual person you’ve met through your speaking engagements
• How to track your message online
• The strangest venue you’ve spoken at
• 10 tips for mentally preparing for a speech
• How to know when a speech is ready for delivery
• How to write for the web
• Memory of your first speaking engagement
• How to find speaking engagements
• Essentials for your online press kit
• How to send more traffic to your website during a radio interview
• Leveraging social media to connect with your audience
• Finding your audience
• How to increase your speaking gigs
• 5 productivity tips you use
• Speakers who inspire you
• What makes some speeches great and others terrible

What do you write about when you are faced with writer’s block?

If you know someone who is fighting writer’s block, feel free to share this article with them.

One month ago we had fewer than 200 fans. Now we have over 2000. Here are the 10 things we did on the Author Media Facebook page to create explosive growth. You are welcome to steal these tricks to attract publishers and sell books.

Without fans, your page is empty. A useless book marketing tool.

These tips worked for us and they can work for you.

1. Provide Consistent Value

Everyone has the same question.

• Why should they like your page?
• What is in it for me?
• What can your page offer that half a dozen (or a few thousand) other pages can’t offer.
• Why should I share this page with my friends?

If you want to have followers you have to serve them in some way. No one cares about you. But they will follow you anyway if you offer them some sort of benefit for following you. What should that benefit be? That depends on your book. If you are writing about parenting you should probably answer parenting question on your Facebook page. Giving away parenting advice won’t hurt either.

When we started our Facebook page we asked what our visitors would want to see. How could we serve them? We decided to offer our fans:

• book marketing tips
• inspirational quotes
• articles relevant to writing and publishing.

For you the answer will be different. If you are just talking about yourself why should someone follow you?

2. Invite Friends To Like The Page

This can occur at any time in the life of your page. However, you can only send a mass invitation to all your friends immediately after the page has been created. If you have thousands of friends, make sure you invite them to like the page immediately after it was created.

Also, you generally only get to do this once so make sure the page provides a clear value before you send out the invite.

3. Create Sharable Images

They say that a picture is worth a thousand words. In the virtual world of Facebook, a picture with a few words is worth shares and thousands of impressions. We’ve discovered this is true. The above “image” was shared by dozens of people and reached thousands of people. And the image is just text! Every time the image was shared, a fresh group of people were exposed to our brand. Make sure to include your web-address on the image so people know where to go.

4. Promote Offline

It’s easy to add the words: find me on Facebook at Facebook.com/AuthorName.

You can add these words to:

• Business cards
• Last Page of Your Book
• Bookmarks
• Flyers
• Post Cards

5. Put a Facebook Icon At the Top Right Side of Your Website

Readers generally expect to see social connection icons at the top right side of your website. This is where you can generally find Twitter/Facebook/RSS etc. When you put the icons somewhere else it makes your Facebook page that much harder to find.

If for some reason you can’t put it at the top right, put it in the sidebar or in the footer. The harder it is to find your Facebook page the fewer fans you will have.

6. Put a Facebook Widget on Your Blog

This is sometimes called a Facepile and it shows how many other people like your page. This social proof is very powerful. People are more willing to like a page they see other people already like.

After we started doing this at Author Media, traffic grew by leaps and bounds. Also, every time we got a traffic spike it led to a spike in new likes on Facebook.

7. Buy Facebook Ads

Advertising has contributed more fans than all the other tips in this list combined. If you are interested in learning more about Facebook Advertising contact us. Also, let us know in the comments if you would like more posts about Facebook advertising in the future.

Nothing increases your number of likes faster than effective Facebook advertising.

8. Get a Facebook URL

Do you have a personalized username and url? Ours is Facebook.com/AuthorMedia.  To get your own customized name simply go to Facebook.com/username.

Be careful, once you pick a name you can never change it. Make sure and read our guide to picking the correct Facebook name before you make a mistake you will regret for years.

9. Created an Optimized Landing Page

Optimized landing pages transform strangers into fans. When you combine Facebook advertising with optimized landing pages, you are able to create fans far more rapidly. Look at our landing page. It’s important that your landing page match your advertising campaign.

The best landing pages have two panes. One for fans and one for non fans. You want to encourage people to click “like” by offering them a boon of some sort for clicking like. For us, we generally give away some sort of eBook or guide.

10. Promote your Page in Your Email Newsletter

It’s okay to direct your email readers to your Facebook page. Put the icon in your newsletter and then encourage readers to become fans. You can incentivize them by creating a customized landing page and offering them something special for liking your page. Some authors offer bonus chapters of their books.

How do you promote your Facebook page? How long did it take you to grow the page?

Agents and publishers are getting savvier when it comes to measuring author websites and online platforms.

If you want to attract agents and publishers for your next book, you will want to check these seven things before they do.

Minding these elements is like brushing your teeth before you go to the dentist.

1. Google PageRank

What is PageRank?

Page Rank is how important Google thinks your site is. It is a logarithmic scale from 1-10 where bigger is better.  The more links you have pointing to your website, the higher your PageRank. Publishers typically look for sites with a PageRank of 4 or 5 on the homepage.

Why is PageRank important?

The higher your PageRank the easier it is to rank for various words and phrases on Google. The higher you rank for relevant phrases the more traffic you get and the more books you sell. The more books you can sell, the more publishers will want to sign you.

How do you measure PageRank?

You can check your PageRank by going to PRchecker.net. But the best way to check your PageRank is with a browser plugin. A browser plugin will show you the PageRank for every page you visit online. That will help you get a feel for what scores are good for different kinds of sites.

We recommend:

• PageRank Status (Chrome)
• SearchStatus (Firefox)

How do you improve PageRank?

Get more links from other sites with high PageRanks. The best way to do this is to put your blog on your website and not on Blogger.com, Blogspot.com or WordPress.com. Your blog needs to be at www.YourName.com/blog or www.YourBookTitle.com/blog. Blog posts attract incoming links which boost your PageRank and traffic.

2. Social Proof

What is Social Proof?

Social Proof is an indication of people following you and your website. It is a combination of Facebook Likes, Twitter Retweets, Comments and Google +1s. People want to do what other people are doing. This turns social proof into a virtuous cycle. So getting more visitors can lead to getting even more visitors.

Why is Social Proof important?

Agents and Publishers need to be able to tell at a glance that your website is popular on social media. You want the first thought that comes to their mind to be, “Wow, this author is popular!” Most publishers lose money on over half the books they publish. To reduce their risk, they look for authors who already connect with a following online. They call this “platform” and it  reduces their risk of losing money on new authors.

How do you measure it?

Count your:

• Facebook Likes (both your fan page and for blog posts)
• +1 on Google
• Twitter Retweets
• Comments
• Twitter Followers
• RSS Subscribers
• Email Subscribers

How do you improve it?

Boosting social proof is as simple as putting counters on your website. Believe it or not the mere presence of a counter will increase social engagement. You will notice that on Author Media, we have badges at the top of each post that show the number of Tweets, Likes, etc. Do the same on your website and then watch the number of shares increase. If you find this post helpful, feel free to share it on Facebook.

3. Alexa Rank

What is it?

Alexa tracks how much traffic websites get. They give each website a score (with 1 being the most popular website in the world). Agents and Publishers typically look for Alexa ranks lower than 500,000. They get particularly excited when the find a site with a score lower than 100,000.

Why is Alexa important?

The lower your Alexa rank, the higher your traffic. A low Alexa rank indicates that your website is already popular. Many browser plugins show the Alexa rank of websites automatically. This means savvy agents will check your Alexa rank within seconds of visiting your website.  You want thier reaction to your Alexa rank to be “wow” not “yuck.”

How do you measure it?

Go to www.alexa.com and enter your website in the search box on the homepage. Or use one of the Alexa browser toolbars.

How do you improve your Alexa rank?

Alexa measures traffic, so to increase your Alexa rank you will need to boost traffic to your site. The fastest way to boost your traffic is to bring your blog over from blogspot or blogger and integrate it into your website. When we did this for Mary DeMuth, her traffic went up 1000% the next month.

You can also sign up for our email tips newsletter and get our free guide How to Boost Traffic to Your Blog which will also apply to your website.

4. Compete Rank

What is it?

Compete is similar to Alexa in that it measures the traffic to your website. Like Alexa, a lower score is better. Compete is more accurate than Alexa but it doesn’t track as many websites. If you are just getting started, you will likely have a Compete rank of N/A.

Why is Compete important?

Compete is the most authoritative source of third party traffic (yes, better than Alexa). Not having a Compete rank hurts your chances of getting published. Publishers will lookup your Compete score long before they ask for your Google Analytics data.

How do you measure it?

Go to www.compete.com and enter your URL.

How do you improve it?

You improve your Compete rank the same way you improve your Alexa rank. You can also buy online PPC ads to drive traffic to your site. So you can boost traffic either by spending time creating valuable content or you can spend money buying ads.

5. Professional Design

Why is design important?

The quality of your site design reflects on how professional you are as an author. There are many wannabe authors on the internet with lame-looking websites. Publishers are not looking to sign these sorts of authors. The more professional your site, the more attractive you will be to publishers.

How do you measure design quality?

The quality of the design is the most subjective of these 7 elements. Your friends will generally tell you they like your site even if they secretly hate it. We recommend that you ask an impartial graphic designer what they think of your site. You can also schedule a free 15 minute consultation with us to look over your site.

How do you improve design?

• Avoid Lame Author Portraits
• Use a Premium Template and then don’t change anything. You are an author not a website designer. Stick close to the “recipe” for an inexpensive and quality design. Most author changes to templates do more harm than good.
• Get a Profesional Author Website Design.

6. WooRank

What is it?

WooRank is an amazing tool for measuring how good your website is. In many ways, it is a single score that summarizes all the others. It measures social proof, site traffic and how well-coded your site is. It will be the hot new tool for publishers to vet author websites in 2012.

Why is WooRank important?

WooRank looks at over 100 aspects of your website. It gauges everything except for design. Publishers will be using this tool or others like it to measure your website.

How do you get a WooRank?

Go to www.WooRank.com and enter your webiste. At the time of this writing WooRank is free.

How do you improve your WooRank?

WooRank is the most technical thing on this list. WooRank will give you recommendations on how to improve your score. Some will be easy and some will be tough. The easiest way to increase your WooRank is to email the report to your web company and have them implement the improvements for you.

7. Hubspot Marketing Grader

What is it?

Marketing Grader (formerly Website Grader) is a tool to measure the effectiveness of your website.  Unlike Compete and Alexa that measure website traffic, Marketing Grader measures how effectively you are able to convert those visitors into book buyers.

Why is Marketing Grader important?

A website that gets a lot of traffic but makes no sales is unattractive to agents and publishers.

How do you get a grade?

Go to www.marketinggrader.com and enter your website along with a couple of competing websites. If you don’t know who your competition is, you need to spend more time researching your market.

How do you improve your grade?

The nice thing about Marketing Grader is that it will tell you exactly what to do to increase your score. If you need help, Author Media has coaching packages that will help you increase your website effectiveness. HubSpot can also help you.

What do you think? How should agents and publishers measure author websites?

Do you want to get connected with a literary agent who represents Christian fiction?

Look no further.

We’ve compiled a list of the top Christian literary agents on Twitter.

If you are an agent and you’d like to be included on the list, let us know. If you are represented by an agent who is not on this list, also let us know.

Just remember, Twitter is not the place to spam agents with your book proposals.

Tweet wisely.

Maurilio Amorim
Amorim Agency

Karen Ball
The Steve Laube Agency

Jenni Burke
D.C. Jacobson & Associates, LLC

Terry Burns
Hartline Literary Agency

Rick Christian
Alive Communications

Jonathan Clements
Wheelhouse Literary Group

Claudia Cross
Sterling Lord Literistic, Inc.

Greg Daniel
Daniel Literary Group

David Dunham
The Dunham Group

Diane L. Flegal 
Hartline Literary

Rachelle Gardner
Books & Such Literary Agency

Don Jacobson
D.C. Jacobson & Associates, LLC

Nancy Jernigan
Hidden Value Group

Deidre Knight
The Knight Agency

Janet Kobobel-Grant
Books & Such Literary Agency

Steve Laube
The Steve Laube Agency

Wendy Lawton
Books & Such Literary Agency

Shannon Litton
Amorim Agency

Amanda Luedke
MacGregor Literary

Chip MacGregor
MacGregor Literary

Tamela Hancock Murray
The Steve Laube Agency

Bill Reeves
Working Title Agency

Nicole Resciniti
The Seymour Agency

Rebeca Seitz
Reclaim Management

Meredith Smith
Creative Trust, Inc.

Les Stobbe
Literary Agent

Andrew Wolgemuth
Wolgemuth & Associates

Erik Wolgemuth
Wolgemuth & Associates

Robert Wolgemuth
Wolgemuth & Associates

While you’re following people on twitter, why not Author Media? While you’re there, subscribe to our Twitter list of agents. We’ve compiled a list of over 300 agents in all genres.

If you need help building your online author platform, Author Media can help. Schedule your free consultation today.

What’s the most important relationship you have as an author?

It isn’t with your agent.

It isn’t with your editor.

It’s your relationship with your readers. How well do you know them? Do you know what they want from your website?

You have a relationship with them even if you don’t have a book published. If you are a writer, you have readers. Don’t think that this article is just for best-selling authors. It’s for you.

Your readers love you. It’s time for you to woo them.

Your fans are the ones that know your secrets. The’ve read all your blog posts. They don’t always disagree with you. But they believe in you enough that they keep coming back to read what you have to say. They are the ones who buy your books and share their opinion of you with the world.  You need them in your life. Don’t take them for granted.

Building a relationship with your reader is just like building any other relationship. It takes time, hard work, and a spark.

1. Get personal

 Build trust by revealing more about yourself. That’s how you build relationships in real life. It’s no different online. People want to know that you are real. Just remember that when you share things online, they can be shared, liked, and tweeted to the world. Make sure your personal tidbit is something you don’t mind everyone knowing.

2. Praise them publicly

What do you like about them? What makes them so awesome (and being your reader does not count). Publicly praise them on your website.  Michael Hyatt does this beautifully on his blog. Every month, he recognizes the top posts and commenters on his blog. People love being recognized. Your readers are no exception.

3. Invite them to tell about themselves

Do you have an ongoing series that your fans could write for?  Don’t play hide-and-seek with your readers. Get to know them. Ask them to share their stories on your blog. It will build your relationship with them. How can you invite them to tell their story?

4. Pursue them by reading their blogs

 Do you read what your readers write? Take the time to get to know them. Relationships take work from both people. Invest in them.  Read their blogs. Get to know their hopes, dreams, and fears. If you were dating, wouldn’t you want to get to know the other person? It’s the same thing.

5. Give them a gift!

When you are dating someone, you shower them with gifts to express your affection. Don’t buy them flowers and chocolate. Give them free copies of your books, a special e-book, or some sort of special gift that says “I’m thinking of you and I value you.”  What would you want from your favorite author?

How do you woo your readers? Do you have an action plan? If you have questions, schedule a free 15-minute consultation. We’ll coach you on how to woo your readers.

Ready to start the weekend? Don’t leave your creative spark behind.

The weekend is for writers.

The weekend is for renewing your love affair with the written word.

The weekend is for turning your creative spark into a fire.

The weekend is for blogging on your author website.

This weekend, instead of waiting for your creative muse to come to you, go to her. Being a published writer is about commitment. You will never be able to live your dream without first pursing your passion.

Try one of these tips for staying creative this weekend.

And get writing.

What are you going to be doing to stay creative? Add your ideas to the comment section.

Pinterest is one of the hottest new networks. It is also a powerful marketing tool. Yesterday, I showed you three way authors can use Pinterest guilt free. If you’re on the fence about joining the site, read that article first.

Today, I’m going to teach you how to set yourself up for success on the site. Pinterest has their own way of getting you set up on their site. This will explain the process for you and help you save time in the future.

1. Get an invite

Pinterest is an invitation-only network. If you haven’t gotten an invitation, use your other social media outlets. I scored mine after tweeting that I needed one. Two minutes later, I was on the site.

2. Register using Facebook

I like logging in using Facebook because it makes it easy for me to share content with my friends. If I find something so amazing that I want to share it with my Facebook friends, I can. Most of the time, I don’t.

At this point, you will be asked what you are interested in and given a list that includes design, art, and photography. Choose wisely because your feed will show these elements. If you are looking for someone to follow, try Author Media.

3. Create your profile

Fill out your profile. Be sure to include your website and other social network links. I recommend setting your visibility settings to the above. You don’t want to update your friends every time you add a new pin.

4. Install the “Pin It” Button

Find the about tab and click on the Pin It Button. Getting this button will allow you to curate content from all over the web (and your website). Follow the instructions on the page. Pinterest has done a great job of explaining how to install the button on your browser and on your website. If you don’t know how to install the button to your website, ask Author Media.

5. Avoid being that person on Facebook

Your friends don’t want to be notified every time you upload a new pin. That’s why its important to get on top of this before you start.

Log on your Facebook page and access your account settings. Then click on “Apps”. It will be on the navigation bar on the left side of your screen. Find the Pinterest app and click “edit.” You should see a screen like the above.

You will want to remove the authorizations that are not required. Now go to the “App activity privacy” section. Set the publishing to “custom” so only certain people will see your pins or “only me.”

6. Create a board

This is where the fun begins. Unless you are creating a community board for your fans, set the pin authorization to just yourself. Name your board and select a category for it. Categories help other pinners find your work within Pinterest.

I have boards for future stories, future adventures, and mini-stories. If I find a photo that captures my imagination, I use it as a prompt, craft a three sentence story, and pin it to the board. It helps my creative juices get flowing.

What if you created a board for each book you’ve written? Start with the book cover and then add the characters.

7. Get pinning!

Creating a pin is as simple as uploading a photo. Make sure that you add a description to your pin. Insert your hyperlinks. This will direct people back to your site. Let me know if you need more ideas.

The above is an example of a repin. If you find something you like on Pinterest, you can repin it to one of your boards. I’m adding this pin to my “Interesting|Words” board. In this case, I will edit the description to add my own flair.

8. Go to the home page

Once something is pinned, it goes to the main Pinterest page. The red Pinterest logo is actually a button. Click on it and you’ll be brought to the main page. That’s where you’ll see the pins that your friends have posted. You’ll also be able to search the site for specific things. You can search by category (see the drop down menu) or use the search bar.

9. Get Smart

This is a brilliant example of how you can use Pinterest to market your book. Tricia Goyer is an author who gets the potential of Pinterest. Her boards are full of her story worlds. The pin for The Swiss Courier is spreading through Pinterest. Tricia knows that once she pins something, it lands on the home page of her followers. Nicole repinned Tricia’s pin and that’s how the pin landed in my feed. And now I’m going to download Tricia’s book.

Did you notice the icons on the top of the pin? I have the option to repin, like, or comment. All of which will help spread the content to my friends.

Are you seeing the potential here?

10. Set a timer

Pinterest is a beautiful world. And like anything visual, it can be highly addicting. Set a timer. Allow yourself more time in the beginning but then once you understand how the site works, get disciplined.

How do you use Pinterest? Could you try to implement one of our 89 book marketing ideas with your boards?

Be sure to follow Author Media on Pinterest. Happy pinnings!

I should probably confess this right now.

I’m smitten with Pinterest.

I avoided it for a few months but then I feel prey to the pinning site. If Twitter is public text messaging, think of Pinterest as a public personal pinboard.

After joining the site, I believe that every author should be on Pinterest. I’m not alone. Gini Dietrich wrote a compelling piece on three ways you can use Pinterest for business. Gini is a marketing genius who is highly respected in her field. Bloggers from every sphere are writing about the new opportunities Pinterest is providing.

Here’s why you as an author should be on Pinterest:

1. Inspiration

Are you working on a novel? Are you populating a world? Get inspired.

Find the house that your main character lives in and put it on a  board. That’s what I do on my Book|Places board. There are something about the pictures on the board that speak to me.  I know that a scene from one of my stories will fit into those pictures.

How do you populate your worlds? Where do you get your inspiration?

2. Directing Traffic

My friend Ashley writes Domestic Imperfection, a DIY blog. She regularly shares photos from her blog to Pinterest.  Her design photos get repinned hundreds of time. Every time that happens, her blog is introduced to a new set of people. By using Google Analytics, Ashley has been able to track where her viewers come from. A large chunk of her viewers come from Pinterest. So she keeps using the site. It’s a great strategy that is paying off.

How can you use Pinterest to direct traffic to your site?

3. Sharing Character Details

Nicole is an author who writes historical novels that feature horses. By having a board dedicated to the horses that populate her books, she’s giving readers the opportunity to connect with her stories in a deeper way. She also wrote a great blog post on why authors should use Pinterest.

What if you created a board for your main character? What makes them unique? Put it on a board and share it with your readers.

There’s a Board For Everyone

Populate the world you are creating. Collect character pieces from all over the internet and share them in one place. Post your board to Facebook. Let your readers visualize your world and encourage them to get creative and build their own fan boards. Then encourage them to share those boards on your fan page.

What kind of boards do you create? Where do you draw your inspiration from?

Author Media can help you create a social media strategy that will help you maximize your impact while minimizing your time. Ask us how. 

January went by fast.

It’s already time to look back to the posts you loved the most. These were the posts you tweeted, Facebooked, and +1′d.

We’re looking forward to bringing you more fresh content in February. What kind of posts would you like to see?  More reviews? More social media tips?

Let us know in the comment section or on the Author Media Facebook page.

1. 89 Book Marketing Ideas That Will Change Your Life

This is $3,000 advice that you are getting for free. You won’t get this kind of list anywhere else without having to pay a subscription fee or a consultant. If you need to find tips to increase your web presence, fan base, or build your brand, use this master list. If you know someone who is self-publishing their book, make sure to pass it on to them. These tips will make your book sales skyrocket!

2. 44 Essential Twitter Hashtags Every Author Should Know

Are you an author on Twitter? You’ll need this list by your side. Discover how to make your tweets more effective so you can spend more time doing what really matters – writing. Readers have added their suggestions making it better than ever. We recommend printing it the list out and keeping it next to your computer.

3. Build Your Author Brand in 5 Easy Steps

What is the best way to build your author brand? Everyone will give you their opinion for a price. Instead of We highlighted five different online venues. You decide which one to commit to and start building away.

4. Is Your Author “About Me” Page Boring Your Readers To Death?

An “About Me” page should be one of the most interesting on the site. But instead, what we usually get is a list of accolades without a spark of personality. Everyone has gone to college, married their high school sweetheart, runs 5ks, and lives in Dallas, Texas. They’ve written books, worked in ministries, and are just as interesting as Mr. Rogers’ sweater choices. You don’t have to let that happen to you.

5. 3 Google+ Features Every Author Needs To Know About

Are you using Google+ to your advantage? Are you using it at all? This article will explain why you should be using it to connect with your readers using the social network. It also explains how you can use Hang-outs, Circles, and the SEO boosting +1 button to boost your ranking with your readers.

Which one was your favorite post of the month? What kind of posts would you like to see in February?

There’s a trick to building a community.

It’s not the 89 book marketing tips. It’s not a formula. It’s not what you’re thinking, either.

It’s knowing that you can’t “build” anything.

People aren’t bricks, beams, or concrete blocks. You can’t dictate their actions. You can’t purchase just the right one at Home Depot. People are lumps of flesh and blood who don’t want to be forced to do what they don’t want to do.

Think of your blog as a group of friends. You can’t demand people to interact. You need to coax them out of their shells. Let them know that your blog is a safe place to express their opinion.

Trust is the foundation you need to build a community on.

Cultivate trust by being yourself. Don’t write things you don’t mean. Don’t try to write like Jon Acuff, Donald Miller, or Seth Godin. That’s not who you are. You aren’t going to build a community by being a fake. We call those people liars and frauds. Aspire higher.

Write your passions. Write your personality. Write with your tribe in mind.

It takes a lot of work to build a community on your blog. Unless you are famous, you won’t start a site and magically have high traffic on the first day. Most writers live in obscurity, famous only in their mind and in their small circle of friends. They write for themselves and never meet the tribe of people waiting to hear their voice.

Which writers do you think have the best interaction on their blog?

Ask questions to connect with your community.

You’ll never know what your readers are thinking unless you ask them.

Think back to first grade. You were curious. You wanted to know the answers to everything.

Tap back into that insatiable curiosity. Ask your readers questions. Sprinkle them throughout the post or ask them at the end. Your tribe members have faces and they want to be known. Not convinced? Watch this video.

Acknowledge responses.

If someone takes the time to leave you a comment, you better take the time to respond.

Imagine going to a party, finding the cool kid, and talking to them. You’ve just heard them tell their story, now you want to give them your thoughts on the matter. So you open you mouth and offer your gut-level response. Maybe it’s something that you’ve never shared before. But you know that even though this person is ridiculously cool, they seem to get you.

Instead, they ignore you. They don’t even acknowledge that you are there. How rude!

When you don’t respond to reader comments, you’re snubbing the very community you’ve been slaving away to cultivate. Would you want to be that person?

Invite Further Discussion.

Conversations require more than one or two sentences. Friendships are more than 140 characters.  They require continual interaction. They require caring. Sharing. You know…talking.

So start.

When a reader comments, talk back to them and ask a follow-up question. Probe. Find out what they really think. They have stories of their own that are worth being up on your website. Get to know them like you were sitting across from them at a coffee shop.

Isn’t that what you’d do if they were standing in front of you?

If your discussion becomes long, invite them to email you. John Locke does that masterfully because he knows that community is built on friendships.

How do you engage your fans? What are some of the ways that you like to be interacted with?

Author Media provides social media coaching for writers who need help online. February is already filling up. Schedule your free 15 minute consultation today.

Everyone has their pet theory about the future of publishing. E-book wars, price wars, someone is going to come out on top as the winner. But will it be the reader or the writer?

DK Publishing has their own theory.

They created this fantastic video about the future of publishing and how both the reader and author can win. Watch it in its entirety before forming your opinion.

Let us know what you thought in the comment section.

Earlier this year, a team of industry insiders gave us their predictions about what 2012 would hold for publishing. They had a lot of great ideas but none of them were as simple as this video.

The future of publishing is in knowing what your readers want.

Crafting your message in a way that resonates with your core audience is what will make you stand out as an author. Writing isn’t about the author as much as it is the reader. This is the secret behind author John Locke’s success.

Think of writing as a business. You would never open up a business without knowing what the market wanted. If your business could meet a need that consumers were craving.

Can you answer these questions?

• Who are your readers?
• What life stage are they in?
• What offends them?
• What are they passionate about?
• What causes them to hit the “share” button?
• What do your readers expect from you?
• What kind of language will they allow?
• How long do they expect your posts to be?
• How often do they expect you to write new content?
• How long have they been on your site?

The answer to those questions will unlock your potential as an author. When you write, you need to have your audience in mind. If you just write for the sake of writing, your message will get lost. It won’t resonate with the internet. The internet is not a person. Your audience is made up of living, breathing, complicated people who come to your site for answers, encouragement, or a distraction from their daily life.

If you don’t know how to identify your target audience, Author Media can help. Our team of experts will teach you how to define your audience, identify their needs, and reach them in a way that will cause them to keep coming back.

Quick, what was the last book you read?

Not the last book you wrote. The last book you read.

If you can’t remember, you need to get online. GoodReads is a community of almost seven million readers who use the site to track their reading, share their reviews, and discover new favorite books. If you’ve written a book, it’s probably been mentioned, ranked, and reviewed on this site. As an author, you can list your works on your profile. It’s a great soft-approach to marketing your books that is natural and welcomed by most readers.

One favorite feature on GoodReads is the reading challenge. Members are encouraged to set a reading goal for the year. Every time they review a book or mark another one as read, the count goes up.

There are no prizes. No pats on the back. Just a broader knowledge base and the confidence that comes from hitting your goal. Any book counts – textbook, ebook, and good ol’ fashioned hardbound editions.

Three of our employees are on GoodReads. They serious about hitting their reading goals for this year.

• Thomas Umstattd, the CEO of Author Media has a goal to read 60 books this year.
• Sam Fagan, our lead designer, is keeping her goal secret for the time being.
• Caitlin Muir, our Social Media Specialist, wants to read 104 books this year.

At Author Media, we encourage reading within our community. There’s a bookshelf at the front of  our office, full of books our employees are encouraged to read. Some of them are by business pundits and others by the authors we’ve built websites for. Why is there such an emphasis on reading? Reading helps your career. It doesn’t matter if you read fiction or non-fiction. When you read, you surround yourself with some of the best ideas.

As an author, reading sharpens your writing while teaching you about imagery, marketing, and the book publishing industry. If you don’t have a list of books to read, ask our Social Media Manager for her list of recommended reading.

What’s your reading goal for this year?

“Ping!”

We’ve all heard that dreaded sound. It means that you’ve been caught surfing Facebook. Probably when you should have been working on your manuscript or your book marketing ideas. Someone wants to talk to you.

It feels rude to ignore the chat. So you get sucked into a discussion that last for hours. You’re talking about your book, so that should count as marketing, right? Nope. It’s a waste of time.

You’re a professional writer. Hanging out on Facebook Chat isn’t going to help you write or sell books. All it will do is distract you. Turning it off will help you drastically improve your writing.

Disable Facebook Chat. Now.

1. Log on Facebook
2. Click the gear in the lower right corner of your screen. The gear will be on the messaging sidebar.   
3. Uncheck “Available to Chat.“

You’ll still see the pictures of some of your friends. If you want to hop back on Facebook chat, it’s easy. You can click on your friend’s profile picture on the messaging sidebar, let them know you are available (by clicking on the button that suggests it), or reversing your decision and checking “Available to Chat.”

I recommend hiding the message sidebar by clicking on the “hide sidebar” icon. It’s located on the far right of the messaging sidebar. Once that’s gone, you won’t be thinking about the people you aren’t talking to.

Be Sneaky With Customized Facebook Chat Options.

Yes, there are ways to do this. Go back to the messaging toolbar. Click the gear in the lower right corner. Select “Limit Availability.” You’ll see a screen that looks like this:

You can choose between “Make me unavailable to” or “Make me available to.” Either option lets you choose which list you want to talk to. This is perfect for when there are certain people you want to avoid (we all have them, it’s okay) or just a select few people that we want to be able to get ahold of you anytime.

Authors need to use their time wisely. Writing is a business and needs to be treated with the same respect as you would give a high-profile job. There’s a place for Facebook in your marketing plan. Ask one of our experts how you can use it effectively.

Do you get trapped on chat? What other time management tips do you have for authors on social networks?

Authors need to know more about Twitter than how to get started.

Used correctly, Twitter hashtags are one of the best ways to connect with industry experts, readers, and other authors. Used incorrectly, it’s just another way to waste your precious time.

And you dear author, do not have time to waste.

If you’ve used the social network for any length of time, you’ve seen hashtags floating around at the tail end of the 140 character tweets. Here’s what you need to know to use them well.

Hashtags are used for:

• Indexing emotions (#Vague #OhNoHeDidnt)
• Identifying a Brand (#Ferrari)
• Recommending a Product (#BestRead)
• Connecting with like-minded people (#MemoirChat)
• Finding Experts (#AskAgent)

If you don’t know what a certain hashtag is, you can look it up on TagDef.  The chances are, it will be there. If you’re lost by all of this, one of our social media experts can help you out.

Here’s our list of essential Twitter Hashtags. You should use them and monitor them. If you are using TweetDeck, it is easy to monitor hashtags. Just create a new column to follow the hashtag. Monitor away and jump in to the conversation.

Connect With Other Authors -

• #AmWriting
• #AmEditing
• #WordCount
• #WriterWednesday (or #WW)
• #WritersLife
• #YALitChat
• #LitChat (every M/W/F)
• #MemoirChat (every other Wednesday at 8 pm ET)
• #BookMarket (Thursday’s at 4 pm ET)
• #WritingParty
• #IndieAuthors
• #WriteChat

Connect By Book Genre -

Get Industry Information -

Get Your Creative Juices Flowing

Connect With Readers

• #FridayReads
• #BookGiveaway
• #MustRead
• #LitChat
• #StoryFriday
• #MustRead

What hashtags do you follow? Which chats do you like to jump in on? Let us know in the comment section.

Have you ever sat down in front of your computer screen and stared disinterestedly at your blog? You’ve made your realistic writing goals but maybe you just don’t know how to hit them.

But you’re bored. The blog feels stagnant. You want something fresh. Something different. You need to improve your writing or you need to quit.

You’re in a committed relationship. You have readers waiting for your content. People who depend on you. There’s no way that you can just back out. It’s time to up your game and improve your writing.

You’ve come to the right place.

30 tips to improve your writing

1. Turn off the internet.
2. Turn on your favorite writing music.
3. Hide your smartphone.
4. Write the first draft in Word.
5. Outline your ideas.
6. Free write for ten minutes. Go back and edit.
7. Write somewhere new. Sometimes changing location is all it takes to get the creative juices flowing.
8. Cheat a little. Use Scribe.
9. Pull out a piece of paper and write your first draft by hand.
10. Write with a specific person in mind.
11. Write a review.
12. Capture your post ideas in Evernote. When you need an idea, go back and pick one out.
13. Write what resonates with you. It will resonate with someone else.
14. Create a reader poll and ask your readers what they want to hear about.
15. Add pictures when you can. Keep them legal.
16. Write with the web in mind. Avoid blocky paragraphs that turn your mind to mush.
17. Don’t write as someone else. Readers want to hear your voice.
18. Ask a professional how you can improve your writing. Get a blog booster.
19. Get a fresh pair of eyes to read your work before you hit the publish button.
20. Write a response post to a controversial post by a famous blogger.
21. Write about current events.
22. Don’t pretend. Keep yourself authentic.
23. Use Google Analytics and find out what your readers want to read about.
24. Use lists.
25. Write out ten magnetic headlines. Pick one. Write a blog post.
26. Interview someone.
27. Create a video.
28. Use Keywords.
29. Set realistic writing goals and use an editorial calendar to help you hit them.
30. Link to the blog posts you are reading and add commentary.

When Apple introduced the iBooks app on January 19, 2012, the world took notice. Hailed as a way to revitalize the publishing world, thousands of people eagerly downloaded the app. Apple made it easier than ever for would-be writers to become authors…or did it?

Seth Godin says otherwise. But we’ll get to that later.

There’s one major drawback to iBooks.

You can only read the published book on an iPad or or iPhone. The program was originally with educators in mind as a way to incorporate the iPad into the classroom. Think of all the money, space, and trees saved by carrying an iPad instead of a heavy backpack full of textbooks.

Creating an iBook is easy. But I was unable to preview the finished book on my MacBook. That’s a severe limitation. If your market is made up of  an army of Apple aficionados who have iPads and iPhones, your life just got better. But if your core readership is more diverse than that, you’re in trouble.

iBooks is

• Intuitive
• Apple knows how to make things user-friendly. Dragging and dropping text onto the pages is easy. Inserting entire chapters from files into the program is easy. Adding graphics is easy. If you open up the program, you’ll know how to use it.
• Inventive
• Remember those publishing predictions we shared at the beginning of the year? Some of them are coming true. You can now add music and movies to your e-book.
• Interactive
• Adding galleries, media, interactive images, and 3D images to your e-book appeals to more than one sense. Instead of referring to things in the text, you can now include them.

Seth Godin on the iBooks for Authors

There’s a huge difference between printing and publishing.

Printing is a commodity, a straightforward but important process that takes time and money. Clearly, digital ‘print’ in the form of an ebook is easier and cheaper than paper printing, which involves cutting down trees and paying for trucks and shipping, etc.

But publishing is something else entirely. Publishing is the act of curation, of taking financial risk to do the marketing work of finding people who want to read your book. Publishing is venture capital for ideas. Publishing involves either building direct relationships with readers (like you and I have) or in gaining access to scarce shelf space with retailers who have those relationships. A good publisher, then, gets your book on the shelf at Barnes and Noble, or uses some sort of connection (an electronic one, perhaps, or a trade show) to get the book in front of the reader and to make a sale. – Seth Godin, The Domino Project

Do you agree with Seth?

Know Your Audience Before Publishing With iBooks

Before jumping on the iBooks bandwagon, you need to know if you will be alienating your audience. This is where Google Analytics is going to become your best friend. (If you need help setting it up, try this video or we can set it up for you.) Google Analytics can help you find out who is accessing your site, which browser they are using, and what kind of smartphone they are using.

If the analytics reveal that your core audience uses Safari or an iPhone, you are in luck. Spread your book. If it isn’t, use a different medium. Your readers deserve to read your book. Don’t alienate them.

What do you think of iBooks? How do you think it will change publishing?

You might have heard about SOPA.

It’s a bill that looks good at first glance. It’s mission is to “stop piracy.”

But SOPA is also about censorship, limiting freedom, and losing liberty. That doesn’t sound good. There’s a reason WordPress, Google, and other internet giants are against SOPA and it’s sister bill, PIPA.

The bill would kill their sites, imprison their founders (and users), and stop the flow of information. Say goodbye to YouTube, Justin Bieber, and Wikipedia. If you’re a musician, covering another artist’s song will put you in jail. That seems a little harsh, doesn’t it.

Authors, piracy is not your enemy.

Here’s a video that explains SOPA.

PROTECT IP / SOPA Breaks The Internet from Fight for the Future on Vimeo.

Mashable released a great explanation of why SOPA is dangerous. Take a few minutes to read it. SOPA could kill your website and land you in jail.

Outraged? You should be. Find out who in Congress is supporting SOPA and call them to voice your opinion.

What do you think about SOPA? What resources have you found about it?

Google+ is great for authors. I’ve blogged before about the 3 Google+ features that every author  needs to know about.

But what if you aren’t quite an author? What if you’re still struggling with a manuscript?

Try leveraging Google+ and Google Docs with your critique group. It’s a matter of time before the two properties are streamlined.  Get ahead of the pack by learning how to use them now. It will make life a lot easier and help you build your writing skills while finishing your manuscript.

Please note, these tips will only work if all members have Gmail addresses. If the other group members don’t have a Gmail address, invite them to join.

1. Create a Critique Group Circle

Put all of your group members in the same circle. By doing this, you gain the ability to micro-publish updates crafted specifically for them. Making a circle is as simple as dragging and dropping.

If you’ve never created a circle, go to the circles tab. It’s near the top of your screen, just left of the “Search Google+” area. Clicking on the icon will bring you to the circle page. You should see row after row of thumbnails of your friends on the page.

On the lower third of the page will be blue and gray circles. Click on a gray one, name it “Critique Group”, and start dragging and dropping members into that circle.

2. Create a Critique Group Collection

Organize your critique group documents by creating a collection specifically for them. This is where all of your manuscripts will be going.

Log into Google Docs. Click on the red “Create” button on the left  side of the page. Name it after your critique group. Invite your critique group to collaborate on the collection by selecting the collaboration and then the “More” button. A menu will pop down. Select the “Share” option. Then select the next “Share” button. You will then add the member email addresses

When you create a document for this collection, drag and drop the document into the collection to populate it. Upload the documents you need for your group – manuscripts, proposals, and book summaries.

If you’re feeling with social networks, sign up for social media coaching. We can teach you how to use them to build your brand, boost your writing, and make money.

3. Create a Critique Group Hangout

Instead of emailing once a week, you can now use the Hangout feature to discuss the changes with your critique group in person. Or at least, via webcam. You can invite up to 8 people on these Hangouts. Make sure everyone has access to a webcam and a microphone. Most new computers come with these built-in. Schedule a time that works for everyone and keep it sacred.

Look for this icon:

Instead of wondering what your critique group partner meant with their red ink markings, you can ask them directly. Close the distance gap. Make your peers real people. Once you start a hangout, you’ll see this screen.

Follow the instructions. Make sure your microphone and webcam work. Don’t give in to the temptation to turn off your camera. Stay human. Add your “Critique Group” circle to the Hangout, press the green button, and start your meeting.

You can also branch out and use Hangouts to build your author brand. While you’re there, why not add Author Media to a circle?

Authors, how do you use Google+ and Google Docs with your critique group? What insider tips can you give new authors? 

Fresh out of ideas on how to help your writing take off? You’re in luck.

We’ve compiled a list of 89 book marketing ideas that will change your life, build your brand, and sell your book. There’s something for everyone on the list.

Best of all, the list is free. Completely free.

Sound intriguing? Read on.

89 Book Marking Ideas That Will…

Make some extra money:

Find a Place To Give a Book Reading:

Become an expert:

Have any book marketing tips you’d like to add to the list? Leave them in the comment section.

Need help implementing some of the ideas? Author Media can help.

Book trailers are swiftly becoming an essential part of the publishing process.

Authors on a budget have tried creating book trailers on their own. Unfortunately, many of them don’t know where to begin. We’ve all seen cheesy trailers full of clip art, warbling voice overs, and bad animation. They make us snicker, cringe, and vow never to buy the final product.

The quality is going up as authors are becoming tech-savvy. Yet, the process can be disheartening for writers who want to jump on the book trailer bandwagon without being pushed off the shelf by their fans.

Authors who don’t want to create cheesy videos go to the ultimate low-budget level. They star in the video themselves. The results can be hilarious or disastrous. Here are two examples.

Don’t Complain

Score: 2

Could you relate to Jonathan Frazen? He expresses his discomfort with the fact that he has to create a book trailer. He thinks that the world of reading is the much needed quiet alternative to the busy world. He has a view that many authors share. But book trailers aren’t the place to express your manifesto. It’s where you promote your work.

Frazen isn’t comfortable. At all. As a result, the viewer isn’t comfortable either.

Authors, you set the tone for the viewer. Try these tips for your next book trailer -

• Practice being in front of the camera. The first take will be horrible. So will the third. Just keep practicing.
• Don’t drone in a monotone. Use voice inflections, as if you were in an actual conversation.
• Bring a high energy level with you. You should be closer to Tigger than Eeyore.
• Smile. Don’t glare at the camera. Be inviting.
• Do something to make you relax. Some people dance, other people tell jokes. Find what works for you.

What were some of the things you liked or disliked about this video? Let me know by leaving a comment.

Use Humor

Score: 6

This husband and wife team obsess over their Amazon Ranking. But by focusing on Amazon, they aren’t seeing the bigger picture.  Authors, don’t bow down to Amazon! Mentioning low sales number is a terrible marketing technique. It’s like screaming, “Hey, nobody likes me!” You should focus on how popular you are.

The authors do make it funny. Instead of lamenting, they make a joke of themselves. Humor is a great element that you should try to include in your video.

Another thing they do right is mention the titles multiple times. That’s a trick that authors should keep in mind while giving radio interviews. But they never hint at what the books are about. That’s a problem. Tease your readers. Give them just enough to make them want to purchase

Here are some of the other positive elements in their video -

• Multiple shots. Viewers are used to shots changing every 4 -5 seconds. Anything much longer than that starts to feel uncomfortable.
• Acted out a story. Authors know that in their writing, they need to show, not tell. The same goes for videos.
• Used B-Reel. B-Reel clips are the “action shots” that are interspersed. They help propel the story.

Neither one of these are blockbusters. They aren’t high budget. They are just authors trying to sell their books. What do you think about book trailers? Which ones have you watched? Which ones would you watch again? Let me know by leaving it in the comment section.

If you still need book marketing help, contact Author Media for a free consultation.

According to many publishing insiders, 2012 is set to be the year of the e-book. Is your author brand strong enough to get you published? If you have to ask yourself that question, the answer is probably no.

When you start building your brand, you have an idea of what you want to be known for. But what you want to be known for might be what you end up being known for. It’s important to know your audience so you can tailor your message to them. John Locke is a great example someone who knows exactly what his audience wants.

Here are five incredibly easy ways to build your author brand. Find the ones that work for you and start using them.

1. LinkedIn

LinkedIn is often overlooked by writers and that’s a pity. There are four reasons why every author should use LinkedIn. One of the reasons not listed is LinkedIn Answers, an emerging branding tool for professionals. You can use LinkedIn answers to field questions that fall in line with your author brand. It will build your credibility and increase your audience.

What categories could you sign up for?

2. Google+

There are 3 Google+ features that every author needs know about. Do you know what they are? The Hang-Out feature is a powerful tool in building your author brand. You can now hold virtual events, inviting as many viewers as you want. If you are a historical novelist, you could interview an expert about the time period your latest book is set in. Doing interviews via Google+ is a win-win situation as both you and your interviewee are inviting your friends to join in.

How do you use Google+ to engage your audience?

3. Facebook Pages

There are 800 million people on Facebook. Author Pages help you stand out from the crowd. It’s important to pick the right Facebook page title when you are naming your page. After you have 100 fans, you can’t change it. Having a public page means that you can keep your private life, well, private. You can also personalize your public pages so friends can sign up for your newsletter, receive exclusive offers on your books, and post their “fan favorites” about your book.

How often do you use Facebook to engage your fans?

4. Twitter

Think of Twitter as public text-messaging. It’s also one of my personal favorite social networks. Twitter lowers the social barriers making it easy to connect with anyone – educators, politicians, actors, artists, and yes, authors. (Guess who else is on Twitter? @AuthorMedia) Your readers want to connect with you. They are already talking about your author brand on there so it’s time you join the conversation.

Who do you interact with on Twitter?

5. Newsletters

Newsletter are where you can get even more creative with your readers. If a blog is like holding a conversation in your living room, think of a newsletter as being invited over to your friend’s house. Share exclusive updates, offers, and interviews. And be polite! It can’t be all about you. Give your reader the content they want. If you need ideas, read 8 Elements of Effective Author Newsletters. 

Which newsletters do you read?

If you are overwhelmed by building your brand, we offer social media coaching. In just a few hours, we will transform your questions into answers and a personalized social media plan. Our initial consultations are always free.

What other ways can you build you author brand? Let us know in the comment box!

We’re launching something new at Author Media. Every month, we will be doing one free website review on our blog. If you are interested in having your website featured, leave us a comment or contact us.

Today we’re reviewing Kathy Pooler’s website.  Kathy is an avid blogger who is writing a memoir this year as part of a challenge. She agreed to let us review her site publicly, so we’re going to highlight three things she’s excelling at and three things she can work on.

Pro #1 – Her Name is Her Domain

There’s nothing simpler than having your own domain name. It shows that you have commitment and are serious about building your author brand. Kathy blogs at www.KRPooler.com. I’m not sure why she didn’t go with her full name but the bottom line is that her website is still very easy to find. It also passes the important radio test.

Buying a domain is easier than you think. When you do buy a domain, please avoid GoDaddy.

Con #1 – Branding Inconsistency

Kathy has a beautiful bio box and a great About Me page. Unfortunately, they don’t match. This isn’t really a con per say. She just needs to pick which one she wants to use and commit to it.

A professional author portrait would also boost her branding.

Branding doesn’t just happen in the text of your website. It’s reflected in your photos, your header, and even the color scheme of your site.

Pro #2 – Blogging Consistently

Kathy blogs every week. For two years, she’s faithfully been writing her blog. That’s a lot longer than a lot of Hollywood marriages. She’s committed to her writing and it shows.

You might not think that two years is a big deal but it is. Imagine how well you would get to know someone if you saw them every week for two years. There’s a lot of trust that gets built. She’s built trust with her readers. She’s shown that she’s not just playing at writing. She’s writing every single week of the year.

Con #2 – Flabby Content

This doesn’t reflect on Kathy’s writing at all. She’s just not a web geek. Writing for the internet is different than writing for books. Paragraphs need to be shorter in order to retain readability. A good rule of thumb is that each paragraph should be no longer than four lines (not sentences). If your paragraph exceed four lines, make the next paragraph one line.

That’s just as hard for me as it is for you.

Tighten up paragraphs. Use excerpts on your page so reader click-through to read the entire post. Write magnetic titles. Sprinkle photos throughout. That’s a formula that pays well in the blog world.

Pro #3 – Strong Community

Kathy has a great community of readers on her blog. But I bet that didn’t happen overnight. If you look carefully, Kathy replies to every comment on her blog. That’s engagement. That’s what builds community like nothing else. When you get a comment, reply. It takes time but the time is never wasted.

I love what Kathy has to say about this.

Kathy tells stories every week. Put yourself in her shoes. Imagine you’ve just told a story and your guest has made a comment or asked a question. You wouldn’t just ignore them would you? Don’t do it online.  She also invites her readers to connect with her outside her blog.

Great job on engagement, Kathy!

Con #3 – It’s Hard to Share

Kathy has social icons, which are essential these days. She has people who want to share her content, which is great! The only problem is that her sharing icons are hard to spot.

One easy solution is to embed social share icons at the end of every post. That way once someone is done with the article, the natural response is to “share” or “like” it. They want to like more than your page.

Bonus Pro – Kathy isn’t One Dimensional

One thing I noticed right away is that Kathy isn’t just a writer. She’s a storyteller. She uses pictures to enhance her writing. She even has her own YouTube channel. Branching out like that will only help her in the long run. She’s creating elements that will appeal to every type of blog reader.

Bottom Line:

Kathy is a great writer. She has all the elements she needs to have a successful blog. It looks like she spends a fair amount of time reading other blogs, so she knows which elements she needs on her website. The social elements she’s added shows that. Kathy’s only problem is that she’s not a geek.

The issues on her website can be easily taken care of by someone who is fluent in web-design and layout. We’d love to help.

How can you incorporate Kathy’s best practices into your blog? Do you want your website to be reviewed next? Let us know.

Contemporary author John Locke has been on The New York Times Best Seller list a multiple times. He sold millions of e-books before he had an agent. Within a few months, he went from a nobody to the top of the Amazon Best Seller’s list. He has a small, rabid following who will buy anything that he writes. He’s living his dream.

John Locke recently wrote How I Sold 1 Million eBooks in 5 Months. You can buy his 157 page eBook for $2.99 or you can keep reading. His “secret” isn’t revolutionary. Locke has a four keys to success that he expounds on.

They are -

1. Have a Plan
2. Know Your Target Audience
3. Take a Business Approach
4. Use Your Tools Properly

Pretty simple, right?

Locke’s Real Secret

The heart of John Locke’s success, and the one element he goes over multiple times in his book, is “know your audience.”  Locke’s books aren’t for cozy mystery fans, Twilight aficionados, or formula romance readers. By his own admission, his fans could read a high-brow literary work but at the end of the day, they just want something that entertains them. His target audience is older professionals that like sexual situations, sexual banter, and disturbing violence. They like strong, silent heroes who can save the world but have trouble with women.  That’s exactly what you’ll find in one of his books. He writes with his readers in mind. In his book, Locke tells how he carefully analyzing content. If one book is selling better than another, he’ll find out what his readers loved and write the next book in the same style. Are you making the mistake of focusing on yourself instead of your reader? Find out the top 5 mistakes authors make on their website.

If you want to be a best-selling author,  you need to get to know your audience at the same level Locke knows his. How well do you know your audience?

Locke’s Relationship Formula

John Locke gets to know his fans by interacting with them. He tweets about different blogs he’s reading. He recommends other authors online. He builds relationships. He doesn’t post to his blog regularly but when he gets an email or tweet from a fan, he takes the time to respond to each and every one of them. When he meets someone on Twitter, he develops the relationship into an email relationship. That’s how you get to know your audience. You become their friend. Look at how Locke interacts with his readers on Twitter. He’s a master a connecting with his readers. If you need help with Twitter, read 7 Articles to Help You Become a Twitter Ninja.  You can also sign up for a social media coaching session.

Here’s his formula for meeting people:

1. Use Twitter to create a friendship circle
2. Drive your Twitter friends (and book readers) to your website
3. Drive them to your “Contact Me” button
4. Personally email them
5. Convert them into loyal friends
6. Convert your loyal friends to buyers
7. Convert the buyers to reviewers
8. Put them on your Guaranteed Buyer mailing list
9. Email them to promote your next book

Locke’s Plan in Action

Locke takes “know your audience” to new heights. He recently asked for his readers to review a book he was considering in a blog post. He was concerned that it was too graphic and disturbing, even for them. So he emailed the book to his core fans and within 24 hours, 500 people gave him their answer. They responded with negative reviews and asked him not to publish it. So he didn’t publish the book. He blogged about the experience (brilliant!), which solidified him as an author who cares about his fans. The title of his blog post? “I Love You!”

Check out how he talks to his fans -

You helped me remember something important this week. You got me back on track. I almost forgot why I do this. I don’t want to change the world or write books kids will have to study in high school someday. I want to keep writing the kind of books I’ve always written: books that take you out of your stressful lives for a few hours and make you smile. It’s who I am, what I’m good at…In the end, thanks to your wonderful emails and comments, I realize it’s like it’s always been. Despite my mistakes and imperfections, you love me just the way I am, same as I love you. And we’re still in this writing adventure together, as partners and friends. We’re still having fun, still making history together.

He writes as if he’s sitting on the porch with old friends, having that heart-to-heart after the football game. Have you ever written a blog post blatantly for your audience?

John Locke’s secret is simple. Know your audience. Take the time to interact with them. Find out what they love about your writing and tailor your book to fit that expectation. You’ll only get to know your audience at this level through social media and some good ol’ fashioned email writing. Take the time. It matters.

If you need help getting started, contact us for a free social media consultation. We can coach you through your toughest questions. Ask us how.

Dear Jill,

Do you have a book just waiting to get on the shelf of a bookstore? Happy House Publishing Company is looking for talented new authors in 2012. Industry leaders predicted what will happen in the publishing world in 2012. We listened! Readers are tired of the same authors writing cliched books and we are too. That’s why we’re looking for fresh authors with untold stories.

We don’t think that you have to have a literary agent in order to sell books. If you have a book, it should be in the hands of happy readers. That’s why Happy House works exclusively with unsigned writers. 

For just a small fee, Happy House will:

• Review your book.
• Print your book and turn it into a best seller! 
• Sell your book on Amazon.com 

Jill, we’re really excited about seeing your new manuscript. If you want to become the next best-selling author, join us at Happy House.  Our formula is simple = happy readers + happy house publishing = a rich, happy author.  

Wouldn’t you like to be a rich, happy author? 

Sincerely,

Happy House

Have you ever gotten an email like that? I have. No author ever thinks they will be the next victim in a scam. But every year, hundreds of authors fall prey to unsavory publishing houses that bilk them out of their creative work and their money. It often starts off with an email that seems too good to be true.

The three “Happy House” fees are classic signs of a publishing scam. Don’t become the next victim.

1. Reading Fees

This is one of the oldest scams. Yet new authors fall for it time and time again. You should never have to pay to get a publisher or an agent to read your work. Never, ever, ever. Get this through your head. Many scammers will try to lure new writers in a “small reading fee.” A reputable agent and publishing house will never ask you to pay for them to read your manuscript.

The bottom line is that a real publishing company does not get paid until your book is published. That’s why they are so interested in selling your book.

2. Publishing Fees

You should never pay to be published. If you are asked to pay a printing fee, you aren’t being published by a legitimate company. If you are asked to pay hundreds or thousands of dollars in order to get your book in print, run away! They often lure writers in with the promise of recouping the money once the book begins to sell. These scams are called “co-op” or “joint-venture”  because often the company will promise to match the authors monetary contribution.

If you are self-publishing, there will be fees that you will have to pay. That’s to be expected. But if you are going through a legitimate traditional publishing company, you should not pay for your book to be printed.

3. Listing on Amazon.com

Scammers prey on the tech unsavvy. They ask you to pay them to list your book on Amazon. Many authors don’t realize that it only takes a few clicks of the mouse to be able to sell your book on Amazon and a few more to get sell their e-book on Barnes & Noble. Fake publishing companies will make it sound like a complicated process but it isn’t. The majority of authors who have self-published e-books have done it already.

Happy House was wrong about Amazon. Authors don’t have to bow down to Amazon. It’s smart to have your book for sale on Amazon but it’s even smarter to have your own webstore. Ask us how we can help you set up your online store.

Conclusion

Happy House is a fictional scam but there are hundreds of real ones out there. Learn how to spot them so you aren’t the next victim. Fake companies may have websites and social media avenues. Do your research. One simple way to test is to google “(company name) publishing scam” and see what kind of hits you get.

The only people who are happy at places like Happy House are the scammers. They are laughing all the way to the bank. That’s why it’s so important to learn about the publishing process. Read 3 Baby Steps To Get Your Book Published to get started. Then read the 2012 Publishing Predictions. Don’t get scammed.

What are some other signs of a publishing scam? What are some other services you shouldn’t have to pay for?  

Share them in the comments below. 

Author Media helps authors build their online platform. Find out how we can help you.

Google+ is innovative, imaginative, and all too often ignored.

Born in mid-2011, the social network had quite the buzz surrounding its debut. Millions of people are signed up for the site but that is not indicative of actual use. After initially signing up for the site, millions of people promptly forgot about it because it wasn’t as exciting as Facebook. Sadly, authors are no exception.

There are  3 Google+ features that every author needs to know about and use. Here’s what they are.

Hang-Outs

Surprisingly, the Dalai Lama was one of the first people to start taking full advantage of Google+ features. One month after the site was launched, he hosted a hang-out with Archbishop Desmond Tutu. Millions of people attended and both men were given direct access to share their message. The audience of millions felt like a small party of friends as Archbishop Tutu and the Dalai Lama joked and laughed with each other via the Hang-Out Google+ feature. The hang-out gave the perception of lowering barriers, even though the men primarily interacted with each other.

Think about what that means for authors on a budget. Book tours can take place in your home. Interviews and collaborations are easier than ever. Up to nine people can interact on  Hang-Out. That could be a critique group, writing group, or a team of experts that you want to interview. While only nine people can interact on camera, the number of people who view the Hang-Out is unlimited.

Authors, how do you use the Hang-Out feature?

Circles

Managing your account has never been easier than with Circles. The list feature in Facebook is clumsy to use, with millions of people not even knowing it exists. Google realized this and made their Circles intuitive and easy for everyone to use. They know you don’t hang out with the same group of friends. So you can clump people by their social circle. Separate fans, family, friends, and other authors. It’s one of the best Google+ features.

Once you have your Circles made, you can chat, hang-out, and micro-publish your content with them. This is great for authors as you can choose exactly how much you want to share with your fans. You can be as exclusive as you want.

What circles have you created?

+1 = SEO

Google makes the rules in Search Engine Optimization (SEO). This last year, they changed their algorithm to favor their own social media network.  The +1 is similar to a Facebook “like” in that it shows that someone approved of what you wrote. Facebook has their own algorithm that makes “liked” items more visible within Facebook. The search engine giant answered with the +1. Only this doesn’t only boost your content inside the social network. A +1 helps content rank on the search engine. Want to boost your SEO? Take advantage of the +1. If one of your contacts +1′s something, that result rank higher in your search results.

To help raise your visibility and increase engagement, you need to do more than just know how to connect your blog to Facebook. In the past, it was enough to post your blog content to Facebook and let your fans share and comment on it. By sharing your blog content on Google+, you are also giving your fans a chance to +1 your content. It’s not an either/and between the two social media sites. Share your content on both and make sure you have a “like” and “+1″ button on your blog.

If you haven’t read it already, read 8 Quick Search Engine Optimization Tips and read how author Dave Evans thinks authors should use social media.

How do you improve your site’s SEO?

Bottom Line:

Authors need to use the Google+ features. By using Hang-Outs and Circles, authors can connect with and micro-publish with their fans. By posting content, authors can increase their SEO ranking by having fans +1 their content. You are welcome to follow Author Media on Google+.

Facebook isn’t dead, nor will it die any time soon. Authors need to engage on both social networks. Don’t ignore one in order to be exclusive on the other.

How do you connect with your fans on social networks?  Which of these 3 Google+ features is your favorite?

Do you need a map to help you make sense of social media? Author Media offers Social Media Coaching.

Exciting things are going to happen in 2012.

In 2012, the U.S. is electing a new president. The Summer Olympics go to London. The Queen of England celebrates her Diamond Jubilee. And according to the Mayans, the world is going to end.

But what does 2012 hold for authors? We wanted to know so we asked experts from across the book publishing industry. We did not let them see each others predictions so pay attention to the duplicate predictions.

Here’s what they had to say. Feel free to share your predictions in the comments.

2012 eBook Sales

“I believe we will see a steady increase in ebook sales, even on front list titles and it will become an increasingly important facet of a publisher’s strategy.”  - Steve Laube, President of Steve Laube Agency.

“eBook sales will double in 2012 from their 2011 numbers.” - Thomas Umstattd, Author Media CEO

“E-books will exceed 50% market share in US fiction.”  - Randy Ingermanson, Founder of Advanced Fiction Writing.

“I anticipate that we’ll see the percentage of ebook sales climb from 20-30% of the business to almost 50%.”  - Julie Gwinn, Editor B&H Publishing Group

What do you think will happen to eBook sales in 2012?

2012 eBook Wars

“Look for all the major houses to re-gain control of the e-book wars, and begin shifting their publishing models and their economic plans to better reflect the new world of book commerce.” - Chip MacGregor, President of MacGregor Literary Agency.

“I predict that traditional publishing houses will continue to miss the ebook boat and alienate more authors in the process. Theirs is a model that cannot fit the new paradigm, but most have too much invested in the old way to make the sweeping changes they’d need to make in order to survive. So they will keep playing violin as the Titanic goes down.” - Jeff Gerke, Founder of Marcher Lord Press

Who do you think will win the eBook wars?

eBook Technology

“I predict that the e-book revolution will continue, with enhanced “transmedia” e-books beginning to become all the rage by the second half of 2012.” -  Jeff Gerke, Editor

“I see enhanced eBooks as the next “big thing.” Readers will want to interact with the content, being able to pull up maps, videos, Scripture, resources, etc. as they are reading along.” - Julie Gwinn, Editor, B&H Publishing Group

“I don’t think the technology of eBooks will change significantly in 2012. Enhanced eBooks won’t increase sales enough to justify the cost of production. A few publishers will try them and then abandon the effort after taking significant losses.” -  Thomas Umstattd, Author Media CEO

“Someone will develop (and possibly launch) a Web site that rates e-books similar to the way Rotten Tomatoes rates movies. With the explosion of self-published e-books there are too many for the average reader to wade through. If 90% (a made up stat) of self-published e-books are dreck, there is a huge opportunity for a company to become a filter and point readers to the cream.” Jim Rubart, Author  & Marketer

“The one change I anticipate is that eBooks will become more social. Soon readers will see their eReaders as places to connect with other book readers.  In other words, your Kindle will come with a global book discussion for each book built into the experience.”  -  Thomas Umstattd, Author Media CEO

eBook Prices & Royalties

“EITHER the Big Six publishers will begin offering standard royalty rates on e-books of at least 40%  OR  more A-list authors will begin self-publishing e-books.” - Randy Ingermanson, Author

“Big publishing houses will NOT increase eBook royalties.” –   Thomas Umstattd, Author Media CEO

“Authors will stop signing contracts that include an exclusivity agreement with their publisher. This isn’t so much a prediction as it is an acknowledgement of what has already happened and that the scales will tip from a few authors self-publishing additional content to add to their traditional output, to the majority of authors. Yeah, I think getting $2.99 of 6,000 book sold rivals getting .80 cents of 20,000 books sold. (Six thousand books at $2.99 = $17,940. 20,000 at .80 cents = $16,000.)” - Jim Rubart, Author  & Marketer

“Novice writers will continue to flood the market with inexpensive e-books priced between $0.99 and $2.99.  Most of these e-books will continue to not sell very well because the reading public will continue to prefer high quality to low prices.

Traditional publishers will lower their prices on e-books to $9.99, because they’ll realize that earning 70% of $9.99 is better than earning 35% of $14.99. Midlist authors who have been traditionally published in the past and who are now self-publishing e-books will raise their prices to the mid-range ($3.99 to $6.99) so as to avoid being confused with the zillions of low-quality books priced at $0.99 and below.  They will find that they sell better at a higher price, as long as they stay a bit below the $9.99 price point that will be favored by traditional publishers.

To summarize: a pricing structure will emerge in which price is proportional to quality.  The market will reward books that are priced “correctly” on the price-quality curve and the market will punish those books that are priced either too high or too low.” - Randy Ingermanson, Author

Publishing Industry

“I predict at least one smaller publishing house will be sold to a new owner.  -  Steve Laube, Literary Agent

“I predict that freelance book editors, book cover designers, and book marketers will have banner years, as individual authors turn to self-publishing but seek to separate their books from the typical self-published dreck.” - Jeff Gerke, Editor

“I think a lot of the little e-book houses that were fast out of the gate will find themselves squeezed out, bought out, or spent out of existence.”  - Chip MacGregor, Literary Agent.

“I predict that more brick and mortar bookstores and chains will fold and/or be purchased. Conversely, I predict a resurgence of indie bookstores springing up to rage against the death of the bookstores, and there will be a proud, underdog rally around these stores. I predict that most of these stores will fold in 12-24 months.”  - Jeff Gerke, Editor

“I see publishers moving to be a “service” provider. Focusing on the services they provide (editing, packaging, distribution, marketing) as a way to address the growing trend of self-publishing. I also see Christian publishers searching for quality young adult Christian fiction to try to fill the void left by the Harry Potter, Eragon, Twilight and Hunger Games finales.”  - Julie Gwinn, Editor

“New micropresses, small presses, and niche presses (like Marcher Lord Press) will meet the needs of many segments of the reading population that are not being served by the increasingly narrow and conservative titles that will be released by the major publishing companies.” - Jeff Gerke

What do you think will happen in the publishing industry in 2012?

 Thomas Nelson Acquisition Repercussions

“In 2012 we will get to watch the absorption of Thomas Nelson into the HarperCollins world. And will be watching the implications with Zondervan, the other Christian imprint of Harper. -  Steve Laube, Literary Agent

“HarperCollins will lay off 10% of the staff of Thomas Nelson and Zondervan.” -  Thomas Umstattd, Author Media CEO

What do you think the repercussions will be of the Thomas Nelson acquisition?

Amazon

“I suspect Amazon will add a religious imprint to their publishing program under which they will go after world famous religious teachers like the Dalai Lama. -  Steve Laube, Literary Agent

“Amazon will sign at least 24 more New York Times Bestselling authors into one of their publishing imprints. This will put pressure on the Big Publishing Houses to increase ebook royalties.” -  Thomas Umstattd, Author Media CEO

What do you think Amazon will do in 2012?

 Independent Publishing

 ”New services, sites, and apps will rise up that attempt to do for self-published books what Pandora.com does for musicians. Most of those services, sites, and apps will fail to catch on, but at least one will succeed and have staying power.” - Jeff Gerke, Editor

“Indie publishing will continue to grow and that critics of agents and traditional publishing will get even louder.”   –  Steve Laube, Literary Agent

“2012 will be the year of the self-publisher, with more authors doing it, more freelancers enabling it, and more people buying it than ever before.” - Jeff Gerke, Editor

“I predict that more self-published authors will rise to prominence (and riches), giving further incentive to other authors to self-publish.” - Jeff Gerke, Editor

“This will be the year of the wider gap between a hobby author and the entre-author. Authors who simply view traditional publishing as the only way to publish, if they have large platforms already, will continue to sell, but may seem some decline in sales. Authors who dabble at writing will see decreased success. And authors who look at their careers as entrepreneurs (Entre-Authors) will thrive in this changing, dynamic publishing paradigm.

 Entre-Authors will formulate a cafeteria-plan style of success where they offer products, ebooks, and print books, depending on their own personal strengths and bents. They’ll see change as invitational, not scary or insurmountable. They’ll specialize in social media. Those that do well will learn the art of selling without being creepy or making money an idol to worship.

Entre-Authors will struggle to find balance with time demands, will see the value of focus, and will publish shorter e-works as a way to make a consistent living. ” – Mary DeMuth, Author

What do you think will happen in independent publishing in 2012?

Conclusion

Self-publishing and eBooks have already changed publishing. There’s no question about that. In 2012, they are poised to take over. What this means is that authors will have to become even savvier about book marketing. Their author website will become even more important as readers will consume and interact more electronically. In order to succeed, writers will need to know the differences between published and unpublished authors.

Is your online platform ready for 2012? Author Media can build your author website. Ask us how.

Thanks to everyone who sent us their predictions. It’s your turn. What are your publishing predictions for 2012?

This year could be your year.

The year that you finish that manuscript, get your agent, and land the coveted book contract. You have visions of movie options, book tours, and making money off your blog dancing in your head. You can quit your day job, retire to a lakeside cabin, and spend your days writing best sellers. All by the end of 2012. What a great new years resolution.  Those are grand and glorious writing goals. But they are entirely unrealistic if you don’t have an action plan.

Here are five steps to setting realistic writing goals for 2012:

1. Number Crunch

How often do you want to blog every week? How many words or chapters do you want to have finished by the end of every month? Is there a set number of books that you want to write by the end of the year?

Writing these numbers down will help you set realistic writing goals. You can’t hit targets that are shrouded by haze. Have them in black and white. Keep the numbers where you can see them. Just having them in front of you will do great things for you.

2. Look at Your Schedule

Are you spending more time writing or writing about writing? If the answer is the latter, there’s something wrong. As a contracted author, you need to focus more writing time on your manuscripts than your blog. That means you need to find a way to post regularly to your blog without sacrificing your manuscript. If you are using your blog to get published, focus your creative juices on your blog. Being a great author is more than writing though. You aren’t a machine that can sit in the dark and churn out best sellers. You need to have time for relationships and life.

On your calendar, block out sections of time for your writing. Maybe you want to cluster your blog post writing time on the weekends so you have time to work on your novel during the week. Find what works for you and put it on the calendar.

3. Identify Your Commitments

What writing commitments do you have? Are there deadlines you have to meet? Do you remember your deadlines right after they pass you by?

Every month, I know that I have four columns that must get out to different publications. Those are commitments I made a long time ago that have to be met. In addition to that, I have my own blog, book reviews, and manuscript to work on. At work, I blog almost every day. That’s a lot of writing and like everyone else, I can get overwhelmed. If I don’t want things to slip through the cracks (which they have before), I have to put them on the calendar and make them a priority. My columns come before my blog. No one will want to read what I have to say if I don’t have integrity and keep my commitments. That’s the bottom line.

4. Set Up an Editorial Calendar

Get on Google Calendar and create a specific one for your writing goals. Put your commitments in first. Remember, these are the things that have to be done before you get to write your own content. By syncing Google Calendar to your smartphone, you’ll get reminders on the go that you need to sit down and write.

The next step is to write down all your blog titles for the next month. Make sure you aren’t making one of the top 5 blog title mistakes that authors make. Give yourself an hour or so of brainstorming time. Then schedule the publishing dates of these posts. If you are really organized, you can do the same for your book, either by word count, scene, or chapter. Again, find what works for you and commit to it. This will keep you on track to hit your goals. It won’t always be easy but it will be worth it.

5. Write

You can have the best intentions in the world but intentions don’t mean anything without the actions to back them up. Now that you’ve created goals, priorities, and calendars, the only thing left to do is sit down and write. This is the hardest step. But those words aren’t going to spill out on the page by themselves.

So sit down and write.

Authors, what are your writing goals for 2012?

Need a little bit of help taking your online presence to the next step? The Best Seller Society can help.

Author Tech Tips is now the Author Media Blog.

In 2009, Thomas Umstattd Jr. started Author Tech Tips as a way to share writing strategies with authors who were timid about technology. He knew that most authors weren’t technology experts. They were professionals writers but that didn’t mean they were experts in marketing, the internet, or how to sell the books they were writing. They needed help but didn’t know who to ask.

As he talked with different authors, Thomas discovered that they needed help discovering where to find free & legal stock photos online, how to get Twitter on their phones, and even how to avoid lame author portraits. Thomas knew the answers. He just needed a way to share them with authors. That’s when Author Tech Tips was born.

It’s time for another change.

Author Tech Tips is now the Author Media Blog.

The name change comes as the blog deepens and Author Media continues to grow. Authors will still be able to find free how-to guides on technology, book marketing, and social media. We’re also adding more technology reviews that are tailored to authors and their specific needs. You won’t be buried in technical details. You’ll discover which gadgets make the grade for authors based on criteria such as user experience, writability, and sticker shock.

In 2012, the Author Media Blog will focus on:

• Platform building tips,
• Technology reviews for authors,
• Marketing success stories,
• Book reviews of materials essential to book marketing success,
• Social Media secrets, and
• Reader suggested reviews.

The other big change is that we will update the blog more often. Instead of posting once in a while we will be posting multiple times a week.

Authors, do you have specific questions you would like answered on our blog? Are there specific products you want reviewed? Leave us a question or post suggestion in the comments.

Author Media has built author websites for years. Is 2012 the year we build yours? Contact us for a free website consultation.

How does he do it? Santa, the big man himself, is everywhere. During the holiday season, he makes appearances in parades, shopping centers, and of course, your home. Every year, he comes out a little bit earlier to add a few more appearances to his list. The man has hustle.

Santa can teach authors a lot about book marketing. How to dress well is not one of them. Authors, please do not put Santa on your sartorial advisory board. Put him on your book marketing advisory board instead. You will be much more successful as an author that way.

Here are seven things that I think Santa can teach us about book marketing:

1. Santa Persists

Nothing is harder than getting up and writing when you don’t feel like it. Work ethic is what separates amateur writers from professional authors. Professionals write whether they feel like it or not. They know that things have to get done. The bottom line propels them. Santa is the same way. He delivers presents whether the weather is good or bad. For Santa, “snow days” means that he adds Rudolph to the lineup of reindeer. There is no calling in sick. He adjusts his life so no one is disappointed on Christmas morning.

2. Santa is Easy to Contact

Santa gets more mail than anyone else on the planet. His address is simple: Santa Claus, North Pole. If you don’t have a stamp, you can drop off your letter at the nearest Macy’s. If that’s not easy enough, you can visit him in person. Every year, thousands of children stand in line, waiting to sit on Santa’s lap and tell them what they really want for Christmas. This personal connection is what builds an emotional bond that lasts for generations. The easier you are to reach, the greater your emotional connection will be with your readers.  The greater that connection is the more likely they are to read and share your book with others. Don’t hide your contact information.

3. Santa Focuses on Giving to Others

One of the reasons everyone loves Santa is that he is so generous. He doesn’t ask for anything in return for his gifts (although he does accept milk and cookies). Many authors think about what writing can do for them, how it make them rich, famous, and adored by millions. This is backwards thinking. Authors, no one cares about you. People care about themselves and what you can do for them.

If Santa came into people’s houses looking for what he could take, he would have been locked up long ago. You build a following through generosity not through greed.

4. Santa Fosters a Great Team

Creating toys for the children of the world is not a one man job. Neither is writing and selling a book. To be successful you will need a great team.  Think of them as your own small army of elves. Or you can think of them as your evil minions.

Your team should include:

1. A Book Mentor,
2. A Critique Group,
3. An Agent,
4. An Profesional Editor (self-published authors I’m looking at you on this one),
5. A Publicist,
6. A Webmaster, and
7. An Assistant

5. Santa Focuses on Just One Thing

Santa only does one thing on one holiday. He doesn’t take a second trip in February to give away Valentines Cards or drop off a significant other at your front door. This takes self control because there are a lot of lonely hearts on Valentines Day who would love for someone as trusted as Santa to set them up. But we know that it isn’t going to happen. Cupid does Valentines Day. Santa does Christmas.

As an author you owe it to your readers and to your brand to focus your writing on a single subject area. Focusing on too many things is one way to wash out as a writer. By focusing on one topic, you will become an expert and your readers will know what to look forward to.

6.  Santa Works Hard

Bringing Christmas presents to every boy and girl in the world is not an easy task. Even with the elves, Santa has his work cut out for him. But guess what? Santa doesn’t care. He puts in long hours, knowing that there are millions of children expecting him to live up to his legend. Writing a book is not an easy task. Learning to write well is even harder. Be prepared to work hard.

7. Santa Enjoys the Journey

Many authors get destination fever, thinking they will only be happy once their book is on the shelves. Santa has a lot of work to do but he keeps a positive attitude and genuinely enjoys what he does. The authors who learn to enjoy the journey the writing, editing, hustling and selling and the ones who are truly successful. Like Santa, these authors are jolly. You can be like Santa or the Grinch. Choose wisely.

What other book marketing lessons can authors learn from Santa?

Want to give the gift of a new author website to yourself? Author Media can help. Contact us to find out how we can help you spread cheer while building your online platform.

Christmas is hard. There are deadlines to meet, agents to keep happy, and fans to engage with. On top of that, there are traditions to uphold, presents to wrap, and family dinners to survive. What should be one of the most fun and sacred times of the year often becomes one of the busiest.

It’s tempting to steal away from the parties to spend some time on social media. It’s easy to sneak a peak on a smartphone or start your day off by going through your Google Reader. Once that happens, it’s even easier to open the laptop and start writing. Forget family. Forget holidays. There’s a blog that needs to be updated! There are thousands of fans who will abandon you if you don’t post! You can write a blog post on your iPad while attending your son’s choir performance, right? All the good authors post during the holiday season.

Are you listening to yourself? You aren’t a writing machine. You are a person with a family who wants to spend time with you this holiday season. You need a holiday just as much as every other person on the planet. Don’t deprive yourself of one just because you want to boost your blog numbers. When you live that way, no one wins. It’s one thing to meet a publisher’s deadline but if you can buy yourself time with your family, do it!

Think about taking ten days off your blog, starting December 22. Those ten days are some of the most jam-packed with memory making opportunities. Still need convincing on why you should take some time off? Jon Acuff wrote a post giving readers five reasons they should walk away from their blog this Christmas. 

Are you finally convinced you need to take the time off? Here are three Christmas survival tips for authors that will let you walk away from your computer with ease.

1. Schedule posts

Take advantage of the “schedule post” option on WordPress. Take two afternoons this week to write ten days worth of blog content. You don’t have to create ten blog posts. You only have to create ten days worth of content. So if you only post twice a week, you’re only creating four, maybe five blog posts. Compare your editorial calendar with your social calendar. This is the time of the year that you can let your social calendar win.

2. Repost the top ten blog posts of the year

Jon Acuff recently suggested this to his followers and it’s a fantastic idea. It gives you the chance to breathe and your readers the chance to rediscover why they fell in love with your writing all over again. So go through your analytics and find out which posts got the most traffic and the most comments. Repost them as they are or spend a few minutes to write a new introduction. Not all of your fans have read all of your posts. There will be a lot of readers who recently started following your blog and have no idea what other posts you have written.

3. Walk Away

This might be the most unpopular choices on the list. Sometimes authors and their fans both need breaks. This is one of the hardest things for an author to do because they fear that they will never come back to their writing. Or their readers will forget about them. That’s not likely to happen. Writing a post letting your readers know that you are taking the holidays off will remind them that you are human.

What are your plans this holiday season? How do you plan on surviving Christmas?

Want to give the gift of a new website to an author in your life? Ask us how.

I almost didn’t get the chance to review the Kindle Fire .

When my boss handed me the sleek black e-reader with the directive to play with the device and review it for Author Tech Tips, I was excited.  The first thing I did when I got to my house that night was turn it on. Tried turning it on. There’s only one button on the small machine, so I pushed it. Nothing happened. The battery was dead.

I plugged it in and let it charge. The next day, I tried again.

Nothing.

By this time, the machine was fully charged. Was this some sort of sick practical joke? How would I be able to review the Kindle Fire  for authors if I couldn’t even turn it on?  So I did what any self-respecting member of the millenial generation would do. I googled it.

It turns out that I wasn’t the only one who had problems getting the Kindle Fire  started. I had to perform a “hard reset” on the machine, holding the power button down for 30 seconds. This isn’t how I wanted to start out my Kindle Fire experience.

What I loved about the Kindle Fire:

• Free e-book rentals with an Amazon Prime membership. Getting one free book a month is a great way to get casual readers used to using an e-reader. I downloaded The Hunger Games and finished it in a night. Now I’m more likely to purchase the whole series in e-book format. Great job, Amazon.

• Streaming movies from Amazon Prime. Again, another fantastic perk of being an Amazon Prime member. Movies play beautifully on the 7″ screen. It isn’t a home theater experience, nor should it be. If you’re on a mass transportation or even sitting in a coffee shop, the personal screen delivers your movies to you. Slip on a pair of headphones and you’re in your own little world.

• The feel of the Kindle Fire. It doesn’t feel like a book but it’s a lot closer than any other e-reader I’ve used. There are no side buttons to push like on previous versions. You can flick the screen with your thumb, much like thumbing through a paper book.

• Built-in dictionary. I loved that when I found a word I didn’t understand, I could highlight it and instantly find out what it meant. It’s the little things in life that bring joy to my logophile heart.

•  The internet. I love that the Kindle Fire comes with browsing capabilities. I can do one click shopping on Amazon, listen to music while I read, or work on documents.

What I hated about the Kindle Fire:

• The cluttered bookshelf. If you open an application up, it’s on your bookshelf. I haven’t been able to declutter the bookshelf and it is driving me crazy. The scrolling screen also makes it hard to find the book you are looking for. If everything came automatically alphabetized, it would add some much needed order to the Kindle Fire.

• The battery life. If you are going to watch a movie, keep the charger handy or turn off the internet as soon as possible. If you are just reading offline, you’ll be fine with the ten hours. Those hours go down rapidly once you are online and streaming content.

• Unpredictability. The Kindle Fire and I did not start off well. Having to perform a hard reset from the gate doesn’t make me glow when talking about the gadget. Now that it has been reset, it works well. But other user reviews have revealed that there are more glitches yet to be worked out. That just makes me a little nervous.

• The Kindle Fire feels intuitive but when it’s not, it throws you for a loop. It’s hard to remember that it isn’t an Apple and you can’t use all the same swipes and motions on it as you can the iPad. Having the button be on the bottom of the device goes against intuition and makes it very easy to accidentally turn off your reader. In the middle of a book. So frustrating.

The bottom line:

The Kindle Fire  is not the iPad. You will not get an iPad experience when you purchase the Kindle Fire. If you are looking for an e-reader with some fun extras, the Kindle Fire is for you. If you are looking for a tablet with an e-reader, keep looking. If you want any sort of chance of happiness with your Kindle Fire, you need to get the difference locked in your head.

I’m looking forward to using the Kindle Fire . It’s a fantastic e-reader. I’m also excited about using the different apps to modify documents while I’m on the go.

Agree? Disagree? Leave it in the comments!

Have an e-book that needs marketing? Author Media can help. Contact us to find out how.

Christmas is almost here. Which means it’s time to buy a present for the author in your life. Especially if that author is you.

Some of the hottest gifts this year are tablets. They are ultra mobile and relatively light on the wallet. For a long time, Apple has dominated the market. Does anyone even remember the HP TouchPad? It never stood a chance. Great product but it couldn’t compare with the big kids in that price range.

Asus has brought the first real contender to the field with their Transformer. It’s a tablet that connects to a docking station with a keyboard. The catch is that the tablet and keyboard are sold separately. Sneaky. I reviewed the product with a docking station as that was the most natural for authors.

This isn’t going to be a technical review because most authors don’t care about that. They care about writability, battery life, user experience, and the sticker shock.

Here’s how the two tablets stack up against each other:

Asus Transformer vs. iPad 2: Writability

Asus Transformer: Like I mentioned, it has a mobile docking station that you must purchase for it to live up to its name. The keyboard is 92% of full size so it isn’t going to bother you if you’ve ever used a netbook. Once it is hooked up to the dock, it doesn’t feel like a tablet any longer. It just looks like another netbook. An incredibly cool netbook with a touchscreen. If a mobile docking station just isn’t your thing, there are wireless keyboards you can purchase.

iPad2: It has wireless and Bluetooth enabled keyboards that you can purchase directly from Apple. You can also buy cases with built-in keyboards.  None of these mimic the netbook feel of the Asus. Which, for many people, is a perk. It was never designed to be one.

Winner: Toss-up. 

Asus Transformer vs. iPad 2: Battery

Asus Transformer: This is where this machine shines. The tablet itself lasts 9.5 hours, which is slightly inferior to Apple’s product.  With the docking station, it is boosted up to 16 hours. One brilliant feature is that the docking station charges the tablet. You can forget about looking for coffee shops with electrical outlets. All you need to do is grab and go.

iPad 2: This tablet has a battery life of 10 hours. There are battery boosting apps but none of them come close to adding hours like the docking station.

Winner: Asus Transformer. 

Asus Transformer vs. iPad 2: Sticker Shock

Asus Transformer: It will set you back $409. Add the other half of package is $119. For $528, you’ve got yourself a tablet and a netbook in one.

iPad 2: Apple has a fixed price of $499 for the entry-level product. An Apple official wireless keyboard is $69. By spending $568, you have your hands on the gadget that redefined cool.

Winner: Asus Transformer Even if you purchase the iPad with a wireless keyboard, you are still left with a tablet that needs a cover. The docking station for the machine closes up like a netbook, protecting your tablet. 

Asus Transformer vs. iPad 2: User Experience

Asus Transformer: The product just isn’t as intuitive as the iPad. Nor does it have Apple’s the incredible operating system. Instead, it uses Honeycomb, which makes me just as hungry typing it as does the Ice Cream Sandwich OS. Were the engineers starving when they created these programs? There’s a learning curve to using this product. It’s not incredibly steep but it’s there.

iPad 2: Do you really want me to wax poetic about iOS5? I could. But it would be a waste of time. You already know that it’s the best system out there.

Winner: iPad 2. 

Bottom Line:

The Transformer wins. Barely. If you are a serious author who just needs a grab and go device, the Transformer is what you need. It isn’t going to be as sexy as the iPad 2 but you don’t need it to be.

There are only a few more days until Christmas. Have you gotten the author in your life a present? If the answer is no, you’ve got to get moving. Santa isn’t going to be covering for you this year. He quit. It’s up to you. Luckily for you, we compiled a Christmas Gift Guide for authors. Think of it as your cheat sheet for gift-giving. We’re taking the guess work out and leaving you with the easy task of choosing one of the items.

Here’s the ten Christmas gift ideas that will please any author:

10. Apple Money

Authors can use Apple gift cards to purchase writing apps, iPad accessories, or music from iTunes. You can load it up for any denomination between $25 and $5,000. That would make any author happy.

9. Moleskin Journal

Story ideas have to be put down on paper before they make their way to the bookshelf. Chances are, your author friend has a few Moleskin journals of their own already, filled up with stories just waiting to be told. Give them a gift that they will be sure to use.

8. Scrivener

Ahhh…the gift of technology. This little electronic writing studio has made it easier than ever to compile your thoughts, plots, and characters in the same place. With Scrivener, your author friends will be more organized , making hitting deadlines easier than ever.

7. A New Keyboard

Are all the e’s on your author friend’s keyboard worn out? Do they have a tablet that they type on directly? It just might be time for a WiFi keyboard. This might be one of the practical gifts as it is something they will use every day. Logitech has a very affordable wireless mouse and keyboard combinationthat just might fit under the Christmas tree.

6. Tablet Cover

Does your author friend have an e-reader, iPad, or Asus Transformer? Get them a cover for it. Not only will it help protect the tablet, it will set it apart in a world of boring tablets. There’s a whole world of tablet covers out there. The options range from fake books to the eco-friendly bamboo covers made from the friendly folks at Grove.

5. Spill Proof Mug

Authors need hot drinks to keep them writing late in the night. Coffee, tea, it doesn’t matter. They just belong together. Unfortunately, that combination, magical as it may be, is a recipe for disaster. Save everyone a headache and get a spill proof mug for the author in your life. The Brugo mug comes in a variety of colors.

4. Amazon Gift Card

Is your author a reader? Give them the gift of an Amazon gift card so they can load their e-reader up. Amazon has made it easier than ever to give gift cards. You can send it by email, Facebook, print, or the standard plastic card. You can also personalize the card with your own photo.

3. A Lomography Camera

Is there an author in your life who is always looking at art for inspiration? Help them express their imagination in a new way by getting them a lomography camera. These cameras aren’t the kind you’ll be taking to fashion photo shoots. These are the delightfully artsy ones that were popular in the ’60s and ’70s. Yes, you can get an app for that on your smartphone but where’s the sense of whimsy in that?

2. Nike Running Shoes

When authors are in the middle of a manuscript, fitness is the last thing on their mind. If it’s on their mind at all. They’ve got deadlines, characters, and plots twists running in their head, not gym time.  Give them the gift of health with a pair of Nike running shoes. Better yet, sign both of you up for a 5K and train together.

1. A New Website

Does your author friend have a great stories and terrible web presence? Give them the gift of a new website. Author Media can help you. Ask us about gift certificates for author websites.

Authors, need to send someone a holiday hint? Share this post on Facebook!

Did we forget something? Leave us a comment below!

It’s that time of the year. Time to round up some of our favorite author blogs of 2011.

Some of these author blogs will be familiar, while others are just some of my personal favorites. Each author has spent a considerable amount of time connecting with their fans through their blogs. For some of them, their blog is how they launched into the writing world. For others, their blogs came to being after they had a book published. All of them know that keeping a blog is important.

So without further ado, the best author blogs of 2011:

1. Ann Voskamp

   Ann is one of the top Christian bloggers and authors for a reason. She’s real. Without her blog, the world would never have heard about Ann or the “One Thousand Gift” challenge that has inspired hundreds of bloggers to participate in “Thankful Thursday.”

2. Don Miller

   Don’s books start on his blog, edit themselves on his computer, and finish once they reach the hands of his followers. He’s a great example of a best-selling author who continues to have conversations with his fans.

3. Jon Acuff

   Jon went from being a copywriter on a auto-trading website to one of the most successful bloggers. His most recent book, Quitter,is a great resource for anyone who has a dream of working for themselves or being an author. The advice he gives isn’t what you’d expect. Pick up a book and subscribe to his blog.

4. Michael Hyatt

   The former head of Thomas Nelson, Michael Hyatt continues to be one the top authorities about the book publishing industry. What most people don’t realize is that he’s penned best-selling books as well. If you want to be published, subscribe to his blog.

5. Tricia Goyer

   Tricia is one of the best examples of an author doing all the right things through social media. She’s always leveraging her blog through Twitter, Facebook, and radio interviews. If you have a blog and a book deal, she’s a great case-study on best practices.

6. Mary DeMuth

   Mary is an author who does more than just write books. She gives back to the writing world by mentoring other authors. Which is a great thing if you ask me. She’s another author who is a case study in doing things right in the social media world. And in social media, your author blog is your foundation.

7. Emily Freeman

   Emily is another blogger who successfully built a platform that attracted publishers. What started off as a simple blog soon turned into a way to make a name for herself. She’s a great example of the power of a blog and a woman with a dream.

8. Pete Wilson

   Pete is the pastor at one of the largest churches in Nashville, TN. He’s also penned a book. He uses his blog to challenge, encourage, and inspire his readers. He’s a very busy guy but he makes time to connect with people. That makes him one of the most approachable pastors out there. Or at least on the internet.

9. Seth Godin

   The marketing world would not be the same without the work of Mr. Godin. His daily blog makes its way into the inboxes of thousands of people every morning. If it isn’t on your must-read list, put it there. Now. It will change your life.

10. Chris Gillbeau

    Mr. Gillbeau is responsible for the cult of “The Art of Nonconformity.” He’s a great example of what people can achieve with hard work, determination, and an extra dose of creativity. His website has inspired thousands of people around the world. He’s helped people start micro businesses and become globe trekkers.

Need one more example of a great author blog? Try Tim Ferris. He’s the controversial author who has “hacked” his way to success. Love him or hate him, the man knows how to connect with his readers. While he might not blog regularly, his posts go viral when he does.

What author blogs would you add to this list?

Need help building your own author blog? Author Media can help. Contact us for a free consultation. 

This guide will show you how to add someone’s email address to Mail Chimp.

Picture Guide

Login to www.mailchimp.com

Click Lists:

Click Add People:

Add people one-by-one using this form:

Or use the import option:

Click one of the two options:

If you chose the top option, it’ll look like this:

Click Browse:

Find the .csv that you want to upload:

Click Auto-Update & click Import list:

If you have any unnamed columns, you’ll need to Edit them:

Select the appropriate title and click ok:

Click All Done:

Focusing on writing is tough. Here is how to be creative even when surrounded by distractions.

In this article you will learn how to overcome interruptions and innovate your writing.

Interruptions Kill Creativity

Here are some ways to take on that next great project of yours. You know the one I’m talking about. The idea that’s so good you can count on it to pay the bills. It’s a great idea.

But with so many interruptions, you haven’t started. You’ve thrown together a pile of notes But … Interruptions. E-mails. Texts. Phone calls. and tweets get in the way.

And what part of the day or night are we going to do this?

Remember, you are not merely writing a book or crafting a speech. You are going to create a work of art. Your masterpiece will be funny, lyrical, persuasive, memorable. You want to help others. Not too much pressure, eh?.

The Key to Creativity

You can’t expect to pull off this creative event just by blocking an hour or two out each day. The way to do pull it off is to unleash the muse inside of you. The muse is that part of your brain from which your creativity flows.

One way, I’ve found, is to stimulate the muse with external stimuli that lures him out. As I explain in my storytelling manual, The High-Impact Writer: Ideas, Tips and Strategies to Turn Your Writing World Upside Down, there are easy ways to welcome the muse.

6 Tools to Unlock Your Muse

Sounds

The sound of water is a popular stimulator of the muse. I wrote my best story — my marriage proposal column in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram (“Dog’s not all I need to fill hole in my life”) beside a babbling brook in an Arkansas forest. Water sounds can also unleash the muse in showers, baths, even smart phone apps that cost $1 and recreate water sounds. Other sounds work, too. What’s your sound?

Music

Music works for almost everyone. Everything I write has its own theme song. Use your music player to tap your writer’s muse. Create a writer’s playlist of songs that get you going in the direction you want to go. Play those songs every time you sit down to create, and you’ll train your muse to come out when it hears the music.

Driving

Of course, some of your best ideas come while driving and listening to music on the radio. Your muse is stimulated by the steadiness of the road. Keep a cheap digital voice recorder in the car to grab ideas because you won’t remember the good lines later. See, the muse never sticks around.

Middle-of-the-night thoughts

Eight hours a night, you’re sleeping. Yet your muse remains on high alert. Before you nod off or even in the middle of the night, if an idea pops, grab that pen and pad that should ALWAYS be nearby. No need to turn on the light. Write in big block letters, several large words to a page, so you can translate it the next morning.

Movies

For the same reason, I never go to a movie without a pen and paper in my pocket. Movies are the best stories, and they sometimes trigger a million-dollar idea. I write in big block letters — or try to sit in an aisle seat with a safety light.

Read great stuff.

Read your favorite book before you start. Set your bar high. Get your mind thinking like a great writer by preparing like a great writer. Tap the muse. Lure him out, and don’t let him get away.

What do you think? How do you focus on your writing and unleash your muse?

Most author websites fail to sell enough books to reimburse the author for the cost of building the website.

The reason is because most authors don’t know the following seven secrets.

Secret #1: People Don’t Care About You.

This is a painful truth. People care about themselves. They care about you to the degree that you can make their lives more enjoyable. This is the hardest secret for many authors to grasp. Most authors want their websites to be all about them.

The result?

Each author’s website looks pretty much the same. They all have the same pages: About, Books, Contact, and Store. They also don’t get much traffic. Even best-selling authors often get  few visitors because they don’t know the secret that makes websites successful.

The secret? Provide value.

Your website has to help the visitor in some way. Answer the question “What is in this site for me?” for your visitors. As an author you need to face the reality that no one wants to come to your websites to see photos of your children. For anyone to visit your website, it has to be the most interesting thing on the entire Internet…  for that person at that time.

How you can provide value depends on your book. For nonfiction books, providing supplementary materials for the book such as fact sheets, tips, and guides often works well. A good blog on the topic can also get a ton of traffic.

For fiction books, podcasts can often work well. Think of your website as the bonus features on a DVD. What do you like to see on a DVD? Deleted scenes? Character backgrounds? Character photos? Think about copying movie websites instead of other author websites.

Secret #2: Be Remarkable.

Seth Godin has an interesting definition of “remarkable.” He says that for something to be remarkable, it must be worth making a remark about. Is your author website remarkable? Do people start talking about it on Twitter and Facebook after they visit?

There are many ways to be remarkable and one good way to be unremarkable. To be unremarkable, all you need to do is be normal, fit in, and copy other authors.

To be remarkable, you need to be different, edgy, or unique. A website can be remarkably bad or remarkably annoying. You want your website to be remarkably helpful, funny, or insightful. How is your book remarkable? Expand on that for your website.

At Author Tech Tips, our goal is to be remarkably helpful. We want authors to be so pleased with our site that they tweet a link to their Twitter followers and share a link with their Facebook friends. We measure success in tweets, not in comments or hits.

Secret #3: Have an Audience for Your Website.

Who is your website for? Many authors think their websites are for themselves. This thinking is a shortcut to obscurity. Successful websites are for their readers, not their owners. So, who are your readers?

Knowing who you are not targeting is the key to thrilling the people you actually want to reach. If you are writing romance, don’t try to target men. Remember, for anyone to visit your website, it must be the most interesting thing on the entire Internet. You won’t become that interesting by trying to please a big group of people. But you can thrill a few. Focus!

Even when you slice the Internet super thin you still get a huge number of people. By naming this site Author Tech Tips we turn off 99% of potential visitors. But this site would be a failure if it were just Tech Tips. There is simply too much competition for tech websites out there.

Secret #4: Have a Mission for Your Website.

Most authors I have talked with have no idea what they want their website to accomplish. They also have no idea if their current website is effective or not.

Successful websites have one clear goal. To help my clients pick a goal I ask them the following questions:

• What does the ideal visitor outcome look like?
• What do you want people to do after visiting your site?
• Why do you have a website? Guilt is a bad reason to start a website.
• What do you want your website to accomplish?

If the goal of your website is to:

• sell books then you had better have a big shiny “buy now” button somewhere on the homepage.
• build your platform you had better have a very prominent subscribe form for people to get email updates.
• increase the number of visitors you had better have some remarkable content and some “share” buttons where people can easily share your site on Twitter and Facebook.
• connect with readers you had better have a way for people to leave comments.

You can have secondary goals, but if you don’t know where you’re going you will never get there.

Secret #5: Integrate Social Bookmarking and Social Media.

Okay, so now you have a remarkable website that provides value to a specific target of readers you can thrill. Now you want to make it as easy as possible for them to share your website with one another.

The best way to do this is to integrate social media into your website. Buttons like “Share on Facebook” and “Share on Twitter” are key to growing your traffic. If your website is run on WordPress, there are some great plugins that will do this automatically. I use Sociable among other plugins for my clients.

Secret #6: Integrate a Blog.

Websites with blogs built in get 55% more traffic than websites with no blog.

They get more traffic because blogs posts are more likely to be shared on social networks than static content. Blogs also boost your rankings on Google. Each blog post is a chance to get Google points to rank high in searches. Think of it as a lottery ticket. The more blog posts you write the bigger chance you have of hitting it big.

You want your blog integrated into your website. This means the address is on yourdomain.com, not blogger.com or wordpress.com. Why?  When you blog on Blogger, you give all your Google points to Blogger and get nothing in return. Blogging is a big time investment and it is foolish to spend all that time working for some other site. My company, Umstattd Media, specializes in building websites with integrated blogs for authors.

Secret #7: Focus on Content Over Design.

A pitfall many authors fall into is that they keep redesigning their websites instead of adding value to them.

When they first get their website, it is the most beautiful site on the web. Like the mother of a newborn, they can’t see the flaws and only see the beauty. After a while, they begin to get tired of the design and start to nitpick. After a couple of years, they hate it and want to start over. They forget that their visitors don’t spend hours looking at their sites like they do. Their visitors don’t notice the subtle “problems” of their site.

Most author websites look just fine. The problem is there is nothing to see.

Think of the design as a picture frame and the content (blog posts, articles, podcasts) as the picture. My recommendation is to spend ten times more time and money creating a good picture (the content) rather than a good frame (the design).

Creating a valuable and remarkable content takes time and effort. It takes months and even years to rank well on Google, so don’t let how your site looks distract you from making it excellent.

This is not to say that design is unimportant. You want your site to look professional. But once you get a professional look, stop fiddling and start writing. Your site is either professional or it’s not. You don’t get bonus points for being extra pretty online.

What do you think? What are author websites that you like? Do they incorporate these secrets?