Recommendation: SPAWN'S Outreach for Book Reviews: "A Lot for a Reasonable Price"

Second Issue Coming! Deadline Approaching! 

You probably know that my newest book in the multi award-winning series of books is How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically. This is a new opportunity that lets you reach over 1,000 top book reviewers and bloggers with a bi-monthly newsletter under the credible SPAWN name. Register now at http://www.2spawn.org/register-for-new-releases-from.html. Have a book description of 75 words and your book cover image ready!

This newsletter was out less than a couple hours when a request for a review popped into my e-mail box!  I can not only expect a review, I have a new contact to pass along to you in my #SharingwithWriters newsletter if I love my new reviewers' new site!

This program solves the mystery of getting a book in front of legitimate reviewers. Feature your book in the new service from SPAWN. It's easy. You don't even have to do the design of your "ad" yourself! 

New Releases from...Small Publishers, Artists & Writers Network. 

Congratulations to those of your who signed up for the first edition! But wait! It's not too late. There are more to come. Here they are:

The next issue dates are:Ho

May 25:  Deadline May 15

July 25:  Deadline June 15

Sept 25: Deadline Sept. 15

Nov 25:  Deadline Nov. 15
  

This service is open for all books published within the last year. And, yes! I am participating. Two major convincers: The credibility of the SPAWN name and the Cision list (mentioned in the newest book in my multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers)  that SPAWN is  using for this project.  Cision is formerly the famous Barron’s known to professional publicists everywhere! That list is so costly small publishers and independent authors probably couldn’t afford access to it.  So this is a grand opportunity. 

Here are details you need to know:

This newsletter goes out every two months to over 1,000 book reviewers and book bloggers. The reviewer list is pulled from Cision, the premiere online media database company that updates its media lists daily and includes top publications, online and broadcast resources like NPR, daily and weekly newspapers that publish book reviews, and a host of freelancers and bloggers who review books.

Each participating author submits up to a 75-word description of the book that starts with a catchy log line such as appears in the New York Times Book Review or online at Kirkus Reviews. Log lines are the concise one sentence description of the book usually at the top of the review. We want these descriptions to sound professional and grab reviewers.

Along with the description, an image of the book cover and a link for reviewers to use if they want a print or e-book version. Since many authors don’t have reviewer pages on their website for downloading e-books or requesting a printed book, this ability is included in the service

You can view a sample of this style page at: http://www.kkadownloads.com/   Password: 2016BooksKKA (case sensitive)

The design of these two pages is included in the fee and will remain on the site for six months after final publication of newsletter.

Fee and how to participate in the New Releases from... newsletter

     Option One:  $250 for one book description and cover plus the links for reviewers to download, which includes all three e-formats, and downloadable cover image and media kit (if available.)

     Option Two:  $400 for two editions with the download features.

SPAWN’s New Releases from… newsletter goes out every 2 months.

If publishers want to use this as an author service, a special price
and publisher page for their own books can be created.
Contact Kathleen Kaiser at Kate@spawn.org for details.

MORE ABOUT THE BLOGGER

  Howard-Johnson is the author of fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry. She is also a marketing consultant, editor, and author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers including the award-winning second editions of The Frugal Book Promoter and The Frugal Editor. Her latest is in the series is  How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically. Learn more on her Amazon profile page, http://bit.ly/CarolynsAmznProfile. Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers is one of her booklets--perfect for inexpensive gift giving--and, another booklet, The Great First Impression Book Proposal helps writers who want to be traditionally published. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including one she encourages authors to read because it will help them convince retailers to host their workshops, presentations, and signings. It is A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. In addition to this blog, she helps writers extend the exposure of their favorite reviews at TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com. She also blogs at all things editing--grammar, formatting and more--at The Frugal, Smart, and Tuned-In Editor (http://TheFrugalEditor.blogspot.com )

How to Help Bookstores You Can't Visit for a Signing

This Q&A from a coaching client of mine is a reprint from my SharingwithWriters newsletter. I often recycle articles I write and other work I do. If you are like me and don't have an assistant, it's may be  time to break Google's rules or preferences or whatever they call them. It seems to me the world wide web is big enough to accommodate a whole lot of valuable information twice.  And I figure my newsletters are long enough that there is still plenty of new material in it if I occasionally borrow from it for this blog. Ahem!   

QUESTION from a COACHING CLIENT: 

My friend Tracy, a writer on the West Coast, offered to drop off my media kit at bookstores in the Berkeley area this month. This is too far away for me to travel for readings; not a cost-effective way to sell books, unless they pay my expenses (dream on!). What should I ask for in my cover letter? For the store to order the book for their shelves? Anything else?

Jendi Reiter

Author of Bullies in Love (Little Red Tree International Poetry Prize) and a new LGBT novel released this month, Two Natures.

Follow me on Twitter:

http://www.twitter.com/jendireiter 

ANSWER:

Oh, I agree! Even in San Francisco where your book is sure to have a loyal following, you would not make up for your expenses with book sales, even  very good book sales. Yes, ask them to carry your book. But also suggest they feature your book in their newsletter and be sure to offer as much help as they can possibly use. 

Example: an article or an excerpt? You might also tell them that you have small 12 x 14 posters for them to post in their windows or on their doors, which you would be happy to send them at no charge.

Even better, why not print up your posters and have your friend just deliver one along with your kit. And a reminder: does your kit include high res digital images of you and your book cover? Is there a chance that we missed that detail when we were talking about kits before? And do you have a glossy headshot as described in the Frugal Book promoter in your kit?  After all, these will not be delivered digitally!

And for this kind of long-distance promotion, maybe you should think about providing some of the things that you would provide if you were in attendance. Like fliers.

If you got an offer you couldn't refuse, would your friend be willing to host you so you wouldn't have to cover hotel bills?  

Speaking of fliers. No need to make them expensive. Light weight is good if you'll be mailing them, right?  I wish I had a copy of the big (expensive plastic coated poster) I made for my first novel, This Is the Place, back in 2000. Use your book cover on both your fliers and your posters. Use the greatest and very brief excerpt/endorsement/blurb you have. Include your Website address. And your name—BIG. Especially since your name is recognizable by a huge audience.  Think Danielle Steele's book covers. 

When you choose quantities, also think businesses you might approach, particularly in LGBT communities.  Yep, walk in. And ask.  I have one little Armenian grocery store that posts my local readings and also a beauty shop—every time I ask. I just ask when I happen to be in the neighborhood.  Oh, and the local carwash can use the same fliers on the bulletin boards most of them have. Maybe your friend will ask businesses she frequents as long as she is there anyway.

You might also contact local radio stations (there are probably many LGBT targeted stations in San Francisco). Pitch an interview and mention the bookstores that stock your book.

Great question! I encourage people to use the frugal way when they can make it work as well—or almost as well—as being there in person.

ABOUT YOUR SHARINGWITHWRITERS BLOGGER

Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of This Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of poetry; and how to books for writers including the award-winning second edition of, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher; The multi award-winning second edition of The Frugal Editor; and Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers . The Great First Impression Book Proposal is her newest booklet for writers. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog where authors can recycle their favorite reviews. She also blogs at all things editing, grammar, formatting and more at The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor .

Valerie Allen Gives You Most Inexpensive Promotion in your Marketing Campaign

Business Cards

by

Valerie Allen

A “must have” for every professional author is a business card with contact information. No one should ever wonder who you are or how to get in touch with you! The objective is to provide information about you and your books, yet keep your business card uncluttered. Have a mix of text and graphics, but remember white space is a good thing.

Minimal information on your business card includes:

1.  Your name

2. Book title

3. Email address

4. Web page

Additionally, you may include the ISBN, a post office box, or FAX number for direct book sales. To avoid unexpected company, do not use your physical address on your business card.

     The reverse side of your business card can be used for     marketing and other information. Suggestions include:

1. Your photo

2. Book covers

3. Your 25 word pitch

4. A tag line from your book

5. List of your other books

6. Social media links, ie, Facebook, Linked In, Twitter

7. Code number for a discount if ordering directly from you

A low-budget idea is to rubber stamp a small picture that coincides with your book or your name on your card. Craft shops have hundreds of unique stamps with letters, numbers, symbols, plants, animals, smiley faces, etc.

Business cards will likely be the least expensive item in your marketing plan, but the most versatile. Keep them in your car, wallet, purse, briefcase, home, and office. Use several of them as bookmarks in each of your books.

Begin to collect business cards for creative ideas, author networking, building resources, and collecting email addresses.

#

Valerie Allen is an author, playwright, and speaker. She has published fiction, non-fiction, short stories, plays, and children's books. Her popular book, used at writer conferences is, 'Write, Publish, Sell!: Quick, Easy, Inexpensive Ideas for the Marketing Challenged 2^nd Ed.' She also sponsors two book fairs each year in her home state of Florida. Valerie can be reached at:

VAllenWriter@gmail.com   and   ValerieAllenWriter.com

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 Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of This Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of poetry; and how to books for writers including the award-winning second edition of, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher; The multi award-winning second edition of The Frugal Editor; and Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers . The Great First Impression Book Proposal is her newest booklet for writers. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog where authors can recycle their favorite reviews. She also blogs at all things editing, grammar, formatting and more at The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor .

Winning Writers Contest: Template for Longer Media Release

I am a North Street Book Prize sponsor and believe it for lots of reasons, but especially the trust I have in Winning Writers, the sponsor. This prize also offers entrants benefits for entering and for winning and is--yes--something my frugal little self can wholeheartedly support. I wanted you to meet the winners of this prize for your reading pleasure; WinningWriters judges did not disappoint. They picked talented, readable books! 

As an aside, I also think my SharingwithWriters blog visitors and subscribers will benefit by seeing this release. It's an example of how rules (in this case the rule for a length of one page) and be broken when there is a good reason to do so! 

Winning Writers Awards Inaugural North Street Book Prizes to Jenna Leigh Evans, Elizabeth Kirschner, and Gloria Taylor Weinberg for Excellence in Self-Publishing

Winning Writers awards $1,500 each to Jenna Leigh Evans, Elizabeth Kirschner, and Gloria Taylor Weinberg, winners of the first North Street Book Prize competition for self-published books.

Winners of the 2015 North Street Book Prize
(top: Gloria Taylor Weinberg; bottom: Jenna Leigh Evans,
Elizabeth Kirschner)

Northampton, MA (PRWEB) February 15, 2016


Winning Writers is pleased to announce the results from its first annual North Street Book Prize competition for self-published books. Jenna Leigh Evans of Brooklyn, NY won first prize in Genre Fiction for her novel Prosperity. Gloria Taylor Weinberg of Fort Pierce, FL won first prize in Mainstream/Literary Fiction for her novel A Homicide in Hooker's Point. Elizabeth Kirschner of Kittery Point, ME won first prize in Creative Nonfiction/Memoir for her memoir Waking the Bones. We received 400 entries from around the world.

The top winners each received $1,500, a marketing analysis and one-hour phone consultation with Carolyn Howard-Johnson (author of The Frugal Book Promoter), a $300 credit at BookBaby, and three free ads in the Winning Writers newsletter (a $450 value). Two honorable mention winners in each genre received $250. View excerpts from all nine winning entries with critiques by the judges.

The 2015 contest was judged by Jendi Reiter, author of the novel Two Natures (Saddle Road Press, forthcoming 2016) and the poetry collection Bullies in Love (Little Red Tree, 2015), and Ellen LaFleche, an accomplished writer and editor whose publications include the prizewinning poetry chapbooks Beatrice (Tiger's Eye Press, 2012), Ovarian (Dallas Poets Community, 2011), and Workers' Rites (Philbrick Poetry Award Series, Providence Athenaeum, 2011).

Evans' Prosperity is a dystopian vision of contemporary Americans herded into a corporate-run debtors' prison. Prosperity occupies the same literary territory as the surreal short stories of George Saunders, where banality shades into horror, yet small acts of human connection create moments of grace inside a soulless bureaucracy. Honorable Mentions in Genre Fiction went to Glimmer by Tricia Cerrone, a military thriller about genetically enhanced teenagers, reminiscent of Robert Ludlum's spy classic The Bourne Identity; and Jem, A Girl of London by Delaney Green, a vivid and well-researched paranormal historical about an orphaned girl in 18th-century London who cross-dresses in order to practice medicine.

Weinberg's A Homicide in Hooker's Point is a gritty historical novel about the aftermath of domestic violence in a 1950s Florida sugar mill town. Through the eyes of Vicki, a sensitive, precocious child, one sees youthful idealism struggle to comprehend the gulf between law and justice. Honorable Mentions in Mainstream/Literary Fiction were awarded to Vacationland by Nat Goodale, a bittersweet story of a Maine lobsterman fighting gentrification, and Otter St. Onge and the Bootleggers by Alec Hastings, a rollicking adventure about a French-Canadian youth and his colorful family in the 1920s.

Kirschner's Waking the Bones is a gorgeous, searing memoir of recovery from child abuse. Her innovative style, cross-cutting between the past and the present, the literal and the mystical, captures the experience of a fractured mind reconstituting itself as a beautiful mosaic. Honorable Mentions in Creative Nonfiction went to Managing Bubbie by Russel Lazega, a gripping re-creation of his grandmother's escape from Nazi-occupied Europe, leavened with humorous present-day anecdotes of her life in America; and Deb McCarroll's The Long Hot Walk, a thoughtful account of her itinerant childhood in New Mexico with a schizophrenic mother.

ABOUT THE NORTH STREET BOOK PRIZE
The second annual North Street Book Prize accepts self-published books of literary fiction, genre fiction, and creative nonfiction (including memoir). Young Adult literature is eligible, but not books for children. Any year of publication is acceptable. The contest is open now through June 30, with three top prizes of $1,500 plus marketing support. The fee is $50. For guidelines, please visit https://winningwriters.com/north

ABOUT THE CONTEST SPONSOR
Winning Writers was founded in 2001 to provide expert literary contest information and resources to the public. In addition to the North Street Book Prize, it sponsors the Tom Howard/John H. Reid Fiction & Essay Contest, the Tom Howard/Margaret Reid Poetry Contest, and the Wergle Flomp Humor Poetry Contest (no fee). Winning Writers is one of the "101 Best Websites for Writers" (Writer's Digest, 2015) and one of the "100 Best Websites for Writers" (The Write Life, 2016). Learn more at WinningWriters.com and join our 60,000+ Twitter followers at @winningwriters.

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 Howard-Johnson, author of This Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of poetry; and how to books for writers including the award-winning second edition of, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher; The multi award-winning second edition of The Frugal Editor; and Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers . The Great First Impression Book Proposal is her newest booklet for writers. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog where authors can recycle their favorite reviews. She also blogs at all things editing, grammar, formatting and more at The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor .

Love Buzzing My Books with Bookbuzzr

Opportunity to Look Great!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I’m excited as anything about what Bookbuzzr.com (also known as Freado.com) does for our books. Think about the success of Amazon’s Look Inside feature. Now apply that to anything and everywhere online you’re promoting your book. Your Web site. Your blog (s). Your e-mail signature. I’m assuming your e-mail service like Mail Chimp (though I haven’t tried it there!). Your potential customers get to peek inside your book, get a taste of your voice, see the brilliant first line (and more) of your novel! Even read all the way to your hook! (That’s because you get to tell Bookbuzzr when to quit letting them peek and you can choose right there at the hook or cliffhanger!) Now, how can that not make a difference in sales? 

You also get a lovely profile page on Bookbuzzer. Mine is at http://www.bookbuzzr.com/Carolyn-Howard-Johnson (and, yes, they provided the nice, readable URL!) You can add just one book or all your books. Your choice. And once your visitor has read a sample using what Bookbuzzr calls your flipper (presumably because the pages "flip" like the pages of a book!), the widget makes it very, very easy for them to buy.

You know how I am about great e-mail signatures. Nag, nag, nag! This will make them work for you even better with many e-mail providers. But mostly it will do for you what you probably can’t do for yourself—let prospective readers get close up and personal.

CHJ

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 Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of This Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of poetry; and how to books for writers including the award-winning second edition of, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher; The multi award-winning second edition of The Frugal Editor; and Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers . The Great First Impression Book Proposal is her newest booklet for writers. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog where authors can recycle their favorite reviews. She also blogs at all things editing, grammar, formatting and more at The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor .

Using Listopia to Promote Your Book

I love to have professional PR folks share with my subscribers and visitors and Scott Lorenz is one of those who knows his stuff!

A Professional Shares PR Resources

Scott Lorenz Loves Listopia

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

How Authors Can Use Listopia to Promote Their Book

By Scott Lorenz

Westwind Communications

As a book publicist I am always on the lookout for effective inexpensive ways to reach book buyers. One way is to tap into the power of Goodreads by using Listopia lists. 

How?

Listopia is a free tool through Goodreads for authors to see how people rank/rate your book and for readers to see all the riveting published work on the site. It is ideal for authors to list their own book on their list along with other books in the same genre to gain from their popularity and association. For example if you have a book similar to Gone Girl, list that book along with your book and other similar books. Your book can benefit as it may show up on Google, Bing and Amazon searches.

Here’s how to create a Listopia list on Goodreads:

Click the “Create a List” button on the top right-hand corner of the page.

Sign in or Sign up to create a Listopia account.

• After you Create or Sign in to your account, Click on the Explore drop down menu and hit the Listopia tab.

Click the “Create a List” link.

Provide the requested information for your list and click the Preview button to review your list and Publish list when you are finished.

Here’s the information you’ll be asked to enter:

Title of Your List: Make it searchable by keywords, other bestselling authors’ names or book titles

Description: Create a summary of what your list contains.

Add tags: This allows you to add keywords that help others discover your list.

Add Your Book: This is the core of your list. You can add anything from the book listings on Goodreads; (you can add books from your Amazon account too)

“I added my book Fireflies to a bunch of lists on Goodreads, and I was fortunate enough to have it voted as the number one spot on the Indie Fantasy List,” said P.S. Bartlett, author of Fireflies and The Blue Diamond.

“A review is worthless unless you say what you really think,” said Neina Campbell, author and reviewer on Goodreads. She went on to say, “I think the best reviews come close to capturing the ‘qualia’ of reading a book, and portraying what it meant to you.”

“I never knew about Listopia and have now added my book (Chocolatour) to an existing list about Chocolate books and have created a new list,” said Doreen Pendgracs, author of Chocolatour.

According to Lisa Ruefenacht, writer at PCmag.com, “Goodreads expands your literary community, it’s easy to use, and the recommendations come from your friends not from an automated database.”

Most authors are unaware of this inexpensive and valuable promotional service but should become familiar with it. By creating a list, and adding their own book, the author should also add their competition to the list. It is ideal for the author to create a list with his or her book listed along with the genre competition before someone else creates a similar list without that particular author’s book listed.

“If you’re a big reader with a circle of friends who are too—or if you’re looking for a like-minded community—you owe it to yourself to check out Goodreads,” adds Ruefenacht.

Interesting details to note about Listopia lists are as follows: First, the lists are public, everyone can vote on them so it is important to create a generalized title rather than a personalized one. For example, instead of “Denise’s Favorite Cook Books,” title it as “Delicious Cook Books.” Second, if a list already exists, they will be eventually merged together. Third, capitalize all list titles. Last, the Goodreads user can only create one list per day. 

Whether you are a well-known author or self-publishing your first book, Listopia is an economical way for you to promote your book.

The Bottom Line: Listopia gives authors free exposure leading to more sales and recognition. Make a Listopia list TODAY! If you don’t want to do it, ask your friends to create a list and include your book.

About Book Publicist Scott Lorenz

Book publicist Scott Lorenz is President of Westwind Communications, a public relations and marketing firm that has a special knack for working with authors to help them get all the publicity they deserve and more. Lorenz works with bestselling authors and self-published authors promoting all types of books, whether it's their first book or their 15th book. He's handled publicity for books by CEOs, CIA Officers, Navy SEALS, Homemakers, Fitness Gurus, Doctors, Lawyers and Adventurers. His clients have been featured by Good Morning America, FOX & Friends, CNN, ABC News, New York Times, Nightline, TIME, PBS, LA Times, USA Today, Washington Post, Woman's World, & Howard Stern to name a few.

Learn more about Westwind Communications’ book marketing approach at http://www.Book-Marketing-Expert.com or contact Lorenz at scottlorenz@westwindcos.com or by phone at 734-667-2090. Follow Lorenz on Twitter @aBookPublicist

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 Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of This Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of poetry; and how to books for writers including the award-winning second edition of, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher; The multi award-winning second edition of The Frugal Editor; and Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers . The Great First Impression Book Proposal is her newest booklet for writers. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog where authors can recycle their favorite reviews. She also blogs at all things editing, grammar, formatting and more at The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor .