Category Archives: Publishing Books

Since officially deciding to “get into” publishing, I’ve been toying with the idea of taking one of those publishing courses. There’s the famous summer program at Columbia, and a certificate from NYU. Stanford and Denver also boast impressive courses (you can find a whole list of other schools here). But at $5,000 a pop, is it really worth it?

Honestly, I’d love to take a class at NYU’s Center for Publishing. They offer a Master of Science in Publishing, professional certificates, continuing education and a six-week long Summer Institute. The classes sound like a lot of fun too (or at least they do for nerds like me). You only need to take five for a certificate, but I don’t know how I’d choose! There’s everything from fundamentals to copy editing to freelance to graphic novels.

So I’m back and forth on this. With each class at around $500, I don’t really have the money to drop, especially since I’m still technically unemployed. But if I knew that taking these classes would land me a job, I’d take out a loan in a heartbeat. Would it hurt? No, probably not. But what I’ve been hearing from the various people actually in publishing, is that it’s always a plus to have something that specific on your resume, but it wont necessarily get you a job. Most people say an internship at a publishing house is just as valuable as one of those courses. Some would argue even more so, as you actually get hands-on experience rather than just practicing theory.

But what about networking opportunities? These classes are usually taught by some seriously impressive people. People you don’t have to make an appointment with or spend ages on the phone harassing their assistant to get five minutes of their time. No, these people are specifically there to help you. Ah… what I wouldn’t give.

Alas, I currently do not have the funds to take such a course. The thing I’m learning about networking though, is that there are plenty of opportunities outside of the classroom. You just need to have the balls to take advantage of them. For example, I just recently joined NYC Women in Publishing, who have monthly Networking Happy Hours at the Stone Creek Bar. I also joined the Women’s National Book Association (it’s the feminist in me, what can I say), who put out a great newsletter and are having a big “welcome new members” event in September. Membership is $50, which I’ve managed to scrounge up, but there are other meet ups, such as the Digital Publishing Group, which are free.

So while I really (really, really) want to take the NYU courses, I think professionally I can get the same benefits by setting up informational interviews, joining publishing organizations, and just generally sucking it up by putting my $10 business cards in my pocket and actually meeting people the old fashioned way.

Author: Marian Schembari
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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One of the greatest challenges for “indie” authors during the post-writing stage of their books is how to reach their target audience. Most independent writers are also the publisher of their works, whether these are e-Books or physical books. Certainly, these authors and self-publishers are looking for cost-effective ways to market their publication.

Here are at least five (5) ways to market and promote your book without having to spend much:

Dedicated websites – find sites that devote themselves to promoting authors and their publication. As an Indie author, you get to benefit the most from these sites. Find a site that will do the following on your behalf:

– stimulate interest and curiosity of readers to get to know you and your stuff better, such as with their daily feature that highlight your work and your biography;
– publish relevant information about you including your website and social networking sites where your target audience can connect with you;
– give away freebies to readers such as free Kindle and Nook downloads;
– enable you to benefit from both free and paid promotion.

Membership to book forums – you will find several book forums on the web where members and participants talk about authors and their works. Most book lovers browse these forums for interesting finds. Sign-up with these forums. Some of these are the following: Kindle Boards, Nook Boards, Amazon Discussion Boards, Mobile Read, and Library Thing.

Blog world – network with book bloggers and benefit from their influence to encourage their readers to consider reading your book. Specifically, pay attention to bloggers who post their reviews on self-published or indie books. To find these bloggers, access their listing from online directories. You may just have to sort out which ones welcome indie authors. You may wish to check out these sites: Kindleboard listing of book reviewers, Indie reviewers list, as well as book blogs where you can find a listing of reviewers of indie and digital books.

Social media – tap the power and influence of social media to market and promote your publication. You can take advantage of the huge population of social networking sites in promoting your books. You can get long advertising mileage without having to spend as you would with conventional advertising. An example would be creating your Facebook page where you can connect with your fans. You can increase their engagement by holding contests or quizzes and giving away freebies such as free Kindle e-books or Nook e-books in return for their participation.

Search engines – if you have built your own website or blogsite, it pays to be nice to the search engines as they will bring you your natural traffic. Make your post interesting and engaging at the same time optimizing your content for the search engines. Your site should be a venue where your readers can get all relevant information they need about your publication. It is also where you can keep them hooked up to reading your books.

There you have your five (5) cost-effective ways to market and promote your publication. As long as you stay committed to your goals, and you know how to benefit from the vast resources of the internet, you can always reach your goals just like the rest of successful indie authors.

Are you looking for more information regarding indie authors? Visit http://www.indiehousebooks.com/ today!

Author: Pete Morgan
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Video news

The term “Paradigm Shift” was coined in the sixties by Thomas Kuhn. It is essentially a significant change in our fundamental view. As an example Kuhn sites the making of books. Gutenberg’s invention of movable type made books readily available, easier to handle and cheap enough for commoners to acquire directly. As more and more people learned to read, these new devices started an information revolution in the 1400s.

Churches and Governments began to lose control over what people were allowed to know. As time went on those who could afford the presses and control the flow of information became people of great influence.

Today, thanks to computers, the internet and printing technologies, anyone can afford to have their words “prepared and issued for sale or distribution to the public” (Published).

I was actually able to prepare and publish my book in 6 different formats, including a 337 page paperback, for free. Of course I had to write the book, do a lot of research, learn to use some new software and have the book mentioned in the right circles to generate sufficient sales to offset my costs. But even if I hadn’t sold a single e-book, my total investment would have been less than $1000. And if my readers hadn’t insisted on a paperback, I could have e-published without investing a dime.

So if we can all afford to get published, can we all become persons of great influence?

This is where we have not yet seen the paradigm shift. Or at least, we have not yet discovered the single method or process that lets us control the flow of information.

There are millions of digitally published authors on the internet. There are hundreds of thousands of print published authors with books available at your online and local stores.

YouTube has millions of videos competing for our attention while PodCasters, shock-jocks and talking heads preach their gospels to us every minute of the day. And let us not forget the ubiquitous handhelds texting us those vitally important HBYs, DYKs and LOLs while we try to study, work, watch, eat and sleep.

The presses have not just been freed. They have been enhanced, tuned and digitized to provide us with a never ending flow of information from an ever increasing number of sources. And who controls this flow of information? YOU!

Every individual can now choose to pay attention to whatever is important to them.

This is a tremendous responsibility that has been thrust upon us. Just as our brethren from the 15th century no longer had their “beneficent” Church and Government making their decisions for them, so too are we losing the infallibility of our god-like Media Moguls and Celebrities controlling our ability to reason.

Your voice is now just as audible as all the others. Your TV station is now another channel to be surfed. Your words are readily made available to billions. So the question is no longer, “How do I get published?” The question is, “How do I get YOU, the person of greatest influence, to put me into your flow of information?”

B.L. Lindstrom is a proponent of Modern Mythology and believing it’s never too late to try Someplace Else. He is passionate about his writing and his topic, with a new book titled, SomeplacElse.

Author: B. L. Lindstrom
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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Believe it or not, getting published is now easier than ever before – but it depends how you define the term. Traditional publishing – where you sign a contract with a publishing house to print and distribute your manuscript in return for a share of the profits – is in the doldrums these days. Under threat from the dire economic situation and increased competition from digital media and other forms of entertainment, the industry has battened down the hatches and is releasing fewer and fewer titles. Only established authors or well-known celebrities with a story to tell are getting a look in. So unless that’s you, don’t give up the day job just yet.

However, as I’ve already hinted, there are plenty of other opportunities to distribute your work. Gone are the days when you had to rely on scarce expensive printing equipment and a tight-knit clique of industry insiders who held the keys to the gates. The explosion of the internet in the last two or three decades means that anyone with access to a computer and internet connection can promote themselves and release their work to a far greater audience than before, even without the help of a publisher.

Digital publishing in the form of websites, blogs, wikis, ezines and the like have the advantage of being very cheap to produce and distribute to a potentially global audience. These forms of publishing also tend to be very immediate in that there is virtually no lag between the time you write something and your readers consume it.

Another recent innovation in the publishing industry is the rise of Print On Demand (POD) technology which eliminates the need to warehouse large quantities of merchandise prior to it being sold, and thus drastically reduces the financial risks associated with producing large print runs. This, coupled with the option of self-publishing and electronic self-marketing using Web 2.0 technologies mentioned above represents a viable option for writers prepared to take personal responsibility for bringing their work to market. It is not uncommon for authors who make a success of this publishing model to be offered a more traditional contract for future projects.

In conclusion, there is no reason why you cannot become a successful published author. But instead of “waiting to be discovered”, you will have to be prepared to get your hands dirty and do the hard work to make it happen yourself. It’s your choice.

Learn all about how to write an autobiography, freelance travel writing and much more at The Crafty Writer’s free online non-fiction writing course.

Author: Rodney J Smith
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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So you want to start an indie label, become a music publisher or both. It all boils down to what can you do with a diamond in the rough?

Here’s my example.

You want to be in the game. You want to be a producer, indie label, publisher, or all three, and you want to have the ability to take yourself, and your artists to the next level, or several levels. You want to be a player. You want the ability to turn a diamond in the rough into a prize winning masterpiece.

In the Music Business, probably more than any business you can be in, Knowledge is Power. To succeed in the music industry, you absolutely MUST gather information, study it, learn to apply it, and learn how to package your knowledge into a presentable format.

If you are going to play the role of taking you and or your team, and or just a new artist you find off the street up the music industry ladder, you must to be able to approach artists with a reason actually several really impressive reasons as to why they would want to work with you. Nowadays, artists will always be asking the question what can you do for me.

Quite often the answer from a newbie producer, promoter, indie label, and or publisher should be I can get you up several levels. The response by all means should be absolutely honest. You do not have the advertising dollars or distribution resources that the major labels have, and most likely you never will. You may or may not even have the financial resources that a lot of the small indie labels have.

So with that said, you must ask yourself, what do I have to offer? Lets say you want to start a small Indie label, that also handles publishing and promotion. Ask yourself, what are my talents, what are my strengths, what can I do for artists that I believe in?

Quite often it boils down to one thing, and one thing only. You are willing to work harder and stay more focused on that artist than anyone would be willing to work with that artist at that particular artists level.

As a beginning publisher, and or indie label, you must sit down and make a list or put together a package explaining what your capabilities are, and what you can do to take an artist from level one to say level three. Every level is an important step. Every level creates more and more buzz about your artist, and Major labels, and even the larger well financed indie labels are constantly listening out for the buzz of a new artist. A joint venture with another small but well financed indie label, and or signing your artist to a major label can be a huge career changer for you and your artist.

You need to start with making a list of the things you must be able to do to help your artist or artists with to further their career, and if there are items on the list that you should be able to do for the artist or artists you are representing, that you do not have the ability to do, then find out how to do them, and do it.

There are minimal things that a small beginning publisher, and or indie label startup should be able to do for their artist or artists. Indie label publishers, promoters, and the Music Business.

Brent Thomason manages TitleLoanGeorgia.com

Georgia Title Loan

http://www.TitleLoanGeorgia.com

Author: Brent Thomason
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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