Category Archives: Uncategorized

More Marketing Tips

January 10, 2014Uncategorizedbook marketing, book promotion, building contacts, marketing, niche marketingkgbookspub

This post has some great tips on marketing including finding your niche market. Then points out ways to approach people about your book. Last of all, it gives you ways to offer your services to teachers.

Stop Procrastinating

January 3, 2014Uncategorizedauthors, determination, elements in a story, procrastination, setting goals, writing, writing process, writing tipskgbookspub

Most writers struggle with this and it interferes with their creativity and the ability to get their manuscript completed. Yes I am talking about that dreaded word, Procrastination.

According to Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: “Procrastination refers to the act of replacing high-priority actions with tasks of lower priority, or doing something from which one derives enjoyment, and thus putting off important tasks to a later time according to Psychologist.”

Procrastination can prevent you from accomplishing great things in your writing process, possibly even success. Writing is a process that takes dedication and set goals. A writer might start a project or manuscript and lay it down due to procrastination. They may think it is writers block and perhaps it could be. Could it feasibly be that they are dreading the outcome of the story the way it is going. You might decide to lay the story down and hope it takes a swift turn in another direction. It won’t happen unless you make it, by rewriting it yourself. Words don’t just magically appear on paper. They are formed first in the brain and transcribed by your hand onto paper. I use this concept perhaps because I am a nurse and I tend to use biological principles in my writing.

Procrastinating about something is not because of laziness. It could be from fear, anxiety about the outcome, lack of self control, impulse, etc… There are too many to name. The answer is to find a way around procrastinating.

1. Set simple goals- Tell yourself that you are going to write 1000 words a day or 2 chapters a day, etc… If you have self control issues, it is good to set goals to help you overcome this.

2. Relax and quit worrying about the outcome. you can always edit your manuscript when you are finished.

3. Stay focused. Quit thinking about things that need to be done. When you set down to write, your focus needs to be on writing not on things like bills.

4. Think about the prize. What reward is there when you finish your writing? Not only will you have a completed manuscript but you’ll have gratification in your completed work.

Writing in the holidays

December 21, 2013Uncategorizedkgbookspub

Anyone that loves writing must set aside a time to write, and a time for family. One may tend to get caught up in their stories and before long, hours has past. The holidays should be a time to spend with family but that doesn’t mean you have to put your passion on hold. You can enjoy writing, family, holidays and everything else in between if you set a time limit on writing this season. Happy Holidays!

bottledworder

There’s this plot I’ve been mulling over for almost half the year. Thank God the holidays are round the corner. I’ll put it down in writing.
There’s this draft that needs a complete re-do.
When?
The holidays, of course.
There’s a whole bunch of scraps of ideas scattered all over my drafts section. Have to sort through them. Will get to them when I can stay home-bound all day long with a cup of hot cocoa.
In the holidays.

With the idea of the holidays comes the idea of infinite time, of infinite leisure, of an infinite ability to address those backlogs that are outside our daily sphere of activities on regular days. We hope we can get to them all at once when infinite time is just round the corner along with friends, festivities and food.

Really?

Bad idea.

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Before Your Book Launch

December 8, 2013Uncategorizedauthor, book launch, book marketing, book promotion, business success, facebook marketing,  online marketing, marketing tips, self publishing, social media marketing, twitterkgbookspub

Hello new authors! There are things you need to do before your book goes to print. I have made a few suggestions to get you on your way to becoming a successful author.

– Have a professional photographer take a portrait of you to use for events.
– Print marketing handouts such as business cards / book marks. Vistaprint is usually reasonably priced.
– Get to know and introduce yourself to potential readers. Readers are everywhere. Internet makes it easy to access people from around the world such as on Twitter, FB, Pinterest, Scoopit
– Join several book communities such as: Goodreads, BookTalk
– Visit forums in your genre and start a new topic.
– Start and write regularly blog posts. Write at least twice a week. Set up a free blog at WordPress.com
– Create your own author website. Go to Wix.com. Purchase a domane name.
– Send your blog articles to newspapers / magazines such as E-Zines, Squidoo. Set up profiles with them.
– Write guest blogs for other bloggers to get your name out. Exchange interviews on your blogs.
– Write your “elevator pitch” or things you would say to a stranger about your book.
– Start a contact list with email addresses of potential readers
– Create an email signature & use it for every email you send out
– Invite several friends to like your fanpage on Facebook. Spread the word.

– Submit photos of your book cover image to Pinterest, Flickr…
– Write a blog post about the upcoming launch
– Spruce up your website and blog for your book launch
– Ask your friends to “Like & “Listmania” your book on Amazon
– Comment on other blogs and write lots of guest blogs
– Donate your book to local libraries and offer to speak
– Gather writing friends for cross-promotions and blog tours
– Add press clippings and articles, already published, to your website
– Get a new business card with an image of your book and sales link
– Place the books’ cover image & description everywhere you can find. Author websites allow this for free.
– Announce your book launch or book signing on Google+ for FREE
– -Start your own newspaper online for free. Go to paper.li or enter: http://paper.li/

Self Publishing- Publishing Your Way

November 20, 2013Uncategorizedbook self publishing, online publishing, publish a book, publishing a book, publishing books, self publishers, self publishing, self publishing bookkgbookspub

You might ask: “How Do I Write a Book and Get It Published?” There are several different types of book publishing companies today but all work to produce an end product such as a book, manual, newspaper or textbook. There are traditional publishers, Subsidy or Vanity Publishers, Independent and Self publishing Companies. With Garrison Publishing we work with the author to develop a polished book that meets your highest expectations. We work side by side to produce a high quality book; we can help you market it to the public too. After writing your book, consider self publishing it.

Self Publishing is the process of producing a printed book by using a process of development, production and distribution by using an online publisher to guide you in every aspect of the process. Each stage of publishing goes through different actions and events to produce material for market. Self publishers work with authors to produce a desired outcome. A small fee is paid to the publisher to oversee the development process.

The process of development might include copy editing a book, proofreading, formating, text blocking, illustrations, cover art and presentation.
Production might include obtaining copyrights, typsetting, page layout, proofing, price setting and finallly printing. Printing alone involves binding, dust jacket composition, creating negatives, plates and book production.
Distribution might include marketing, assigning an ISBN number and supplying goods to bookstores, printing companies, and online retailers.

Publishing is a process that takes time, effort, energy and patience until a finished product appears on the market. I hope this helps your understanding of the Book Publishing process and that it is a timely and detail oriented business, but the end product and the money spent, is well worth it when the book is finished.

See Garrison Publishing’s website: http://garrisonpublishing.org

How Point of View Changes the Story

November 13, 2013Uncategorizedauthors, books, elements in a story, fiction, how to write a book, point of view, story, writing, writing process, writing tipskgbookspub

There are different points of view in stories. What is a point of view? A point of view is the way a story is told by the narrative voice or the viewpoint. Whether a short story, children’s story or any genre, a point of view can change a story drastically. When an author begins their story, they have to decide how they will convey their story best by the point of view they use. Point of view is defined by the pronouns that are used. It is important to continue the story in the same point of view. If an author starts using a certain point of you, then shifts to a different point of view, it makes it harder to read and more confusing.

First person point of view is when the author uses the words, “I or me” to tell the story. First person is used when the author acts as a narrator.

Second person is when the author uses, “you or your” to tell the story. This is the one that is used the least amount of time. Rarely does the author talk directly to the reader.

Third person is when the author uses, “he, she, it and they” to tell the story. Often they use the characters names when writing the story.

Now lets look at how Point of view can change a story. A story written in first person looks like a memoir or personal biography and that might not be the case. Second person point of view is used to personally address the reader. Third person point of view is used more in novels and fiction writing and brings the characters perspective into view. It tells us what they might be thinking and why they are acting the way they are.

If an author is writing a nonfiction book and uses the first person to tell the story and they are not an expert of the subject, the story might not reach the reader. If the author changes the point of view to third person and use quotes from an expert, the story becomes more valid to the reader, and it might hold more klout.

Marketing Through Writing Valuable Content

November 9, 2013Uncategorizedadvertising, authors, blogging, book publisher, books,  online marketing, marketing, marketing techniques, marketing tips, promoting, self publishing, valuable contentkgbookspub

Marketing comes in different forms. One new way to market yourself is by offering valuable content to the public, which helps your website rankings on Google. You can write articles and post them on article sites.

More and more people from all over the world is using the Internet to search for content in several different topics. A new author may search for ways to promote their book by using the Google search engine. Book readers may search the internet by using keywords such as: books, crime, mystery, romance books, etc…

As an author, you have knowledge to share with others. One way is by Blogging. This is something like writing on a website. There are two main blogging sites that are free to write on. http://Wordpress.com, http://Blogspot.com, and http://thoughts.com/free-blog

Start slowly by writing about things you know. You will be amazed at the topics you can come up with. Make sure you post something on a regular basis. You can post excerpts from your book, offer free tips to other authors, interview other authors about their books. Book readers love to read reviews on books before purchasing them. Your first post could be all about your book and include a picture, excerpt, and buy link.

Then make sure you share your blog on all of your social media sites. If you haven’t started posting on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Goodreads by now, you need to start right away.

So it is important to get your name out there by writing relevant and valuable content about topics such as:
•How to Write a Book
•All about Writing
•Reading
•Marketing tips
•Blogging

Another important way to spread your articles or valuable content is by using Syndication sites. Here is a link that list many syndication sites to use. I know it takes time, but this will help you build a brand for yourself.

http://www.buzzblogger.com/500-places-to-syndicate-your-content/

Below is a list of places that allow you to post articles for free. On the bottom of your article, don’t forget to mention your website or ways for people to reach you. I suggest choosing a couple and starting there.

Ethics and Morals in Business

November 1, 2013Uncategorizedbusiness, business ethics, ethics, ethics and morality, ethics definition, moral code, morals, morals and ethics, values and morals, what is ethics?, what is morals?kgbookspub

No matter what type of business you are in, there needs to be a certain set of standards of which you live by. A professional business with good ethics will service their customers and satisfy their needs, by following through with the best job performance possible. They will over-exceed their customers satisfaction by going over and beyond what is expected. Lets examine ways to prevent unethical practices in the workplace.

First, A business should not hire employees that have no personal morals or ethics. For example: If you are a nurse that works in a hospital setting, your morals should accompany your ethics. To simply do the least amount of work possible to get through your work day should be considered unethical, especially if it deals with another life.

Secondly, A business should not go against their own set of standards to please customers. Just like a person with no standards, a business will become degraded into a poor rated company that customers do not trust. For example: If you are a company that only sells top quality books and your name is: Top Quality Books, then why would you mislead your customer by selling sub-standard books.

Next, The business should have a customer service number where individuals can call and talk to someone about problems they are having. The employees working this service should handle complaints and answer questions in a professional way. The motto should be: the customer is always right. Keep in mind, we know that there might be some complaints that cannot be solved no matter what you do, but the majority of complaints can be solved in a timely fashion.

Last of all, find ways to solve issues before they become employee or customer complaints. Listen to your employees and ask for suggestions on how to improve the business. Don’t micromanage your employees, be willing to do the work you ask them to do. Don’t set up rules that you do not follow yourself.

Below are a set of guidelines that might prevent customer dissatisfaction.

Define the job or service in great detail
Clarify misunderstandings immediately
Do more than what is expected
Hire great employees with morals
Get the job done in a timely fashion
Show professionalism
Perform the job or service the best way possible
Sell a high quality product or service

Ethics is a term involves systematizing, defending and recommending concepts of right and wrong conduct. Business ethics is a form of professional ethics that involves the conduct of individuals that make up a business. A professional business should have a set of ethics and a code of which they live by. They should present themselves in the best way possible by following through with their promises. They should not compromise their standards to gain monetary gain.

http://ezinearticles.com/?What-Is-the-Difference-Between-Morality-and-Ethics?&id=6171320

http://ezinearticles.com/?Morals-and-Ethics…-Where-Did-We-Go-Wrong?&id=128497

Should Authors Use a Pen Name?

October 17, 2013Uncategorizedadvertising, author, books, branding, business success, character, Creativity, elements in literature, fiction, leadership, novel, pen names, story, writerskgbookspub

The use of pen names is becoming outdated. Authors should recognize that by using a pen name they might not receive the recognition that they deserve. Who knows who Samuel Langhorne Clemens is? He is only one of the most famous authors in the world. He wrote The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and its sequel, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, and The Prince and the Pauper. His pen name is Mark Twain. Yes, everyone recognizes Mark Twain but few recognize Samuel Langhorne Clemens.

Some use a pen name to keep their lives private. It would be hard to keep your life private if your name appears on every major newspaper, social media site or television station. Most major publishers are saying that the use of pen names is outdated, unless you are already using one. Famous people in different careers are using pseudonyms such as actors, celebrities and writers to keep their lives private, because their name is hard to pronounce or for marketing purposes. Perhaps they think that a pseudonyms can help establish their brand. So to answer the question about using a pen name, I’ll let you be the judge.

If you decide on using a pen name, my suggestions are:
1. Make the name unique
2. Don’t chose a name after one of your characters in case you write several books with major characters.
3. Don’t chose a name that would conflict with any genre that you may use later on. Ex. Your pen name is Suzie Que and you write a dark fiction novel. It doesn’t go well.

Famous people with pseudonyms.