Amplifying into the future...

Blogging demands commitment and so I trawl the web searching for interesting information for my weekly post. (well that's my excuse)

Often I find lots of interesting stuff which is not directly related to the topic of Author Marketing. So what to do...? I could make my blog articles longer....No (they are way to long already.)

 I could post more than once a week. No (because I have a computer addicted personality and I would never get any writing done if I gave myself any more permission ‘to research.’ )

Amplify to the rescue. In my sidebar you will see the amplify button. This will take you to a cunning page that I have set up called CRAICERPLUS. 

On this page are comments and links to sites and articles of interest to writers and publishers. There are links to futurists Mike Shatzkin and Guy Gonzales who have both posted interesting blog posts on future change in publishing. 

On CRAICERPLUS you can comment on what you’re reading back to me if you like.

So what made it to the Blog today.

Bologna, ah Bologna...Oh don’t I wish I was there....however Agent Kristin of the very popular Pub Rants blog is and she is letting her readers know about the latest trends there. Midgrade is making a comeback...yippee coz I love midgrade and that’s what I write. And werewolves and vampires are mostly over.

David Meerman Scott is writing about Brand Journalism...Companies need Journalists or Writers to mange the content of their online business. This cannot be left to IT departments. He has written an open letter to Journalists to tell them about the new opportunities he sees.

You don't need to compromise your integrity. You still tell stories. You still practice your craft. You still have followers who care about what you do. You still change people's lives.

The Huffington Post has a very popular post on the eleven most surprising banned books...Judy Blumes, Are You There God? is on it.  I can’t for the life of me think what is so bad about that book....

Justine Labalesteir has a great post on teenagers and reading...Yes they are and No don’t get worried...

But even if we could reach a consensus on good writing—so what if a teen is only reading books you consider appalling? Plenty of adults are doing ditto. The pleasures of bad books are many. The pleasures of reading a book your parents don’t want you to read are even greater.

Have a great Easter...
Maureen

Forty two tips to help you in the future...

The advent of blogger pages meant that it was time to tidy up my blog (my house remains dusty.) 

While I was doing this I reviewed my Author Marketing Series (it now has its own page.)  I needed a reason  for blogging in the first place. I was learning in public and I thought you might be interested in what I learned so the weekly blog post started. Along the way I have been sidetracked a few times...but the core of the blog is about learning author marketing.

My author marketing series links to seventeen blog posts on different strategies, ideas, tips that you can use to market your book. Each blog post has links you can go to get further information.

However it is not just authors who are making use of this list. Small business owners are dropping in or being referred to this list by others. Substitute the word ‘book’  for  ‘business‘ and it all works just as well.

I have posts on branding (individual and group) social media, press kits, publicity and a few other interesting  ideas.

Today’s post is going to join the list as it links to a couple of interesting sites with a similar focus.

The first link is to Novel Journey. This is run by an author collective and they have some great posts  including this one. 10 things you can do now to promote your unpublished book. I felt for Gina Holmes, the writer of this post when I read this.

Now I find myself with just weeks left to publicize my all important, debut novel, and write my all important sophomore novel.
I also have five children, a day job and Novel Journey to tend to. Guess what? I’m stressed, but not as stressed as I would have been had I not started preparing for this moment years in advance. I’d like to share some of what has helped me.

Gina points out, among the other great tips, that an author must have a great (professional) head shot for publicity. This is always a flee from idea for me...but I know it is necessary...I just hate the camera.

The second site is Tony Eldridge’s blog marketing tips for authors. Tony always serves up a great read on the topic and this week he has a guest post from Carolyn Howard Johnson who has written a book THE FRUGAL BOOK PROMOTER: HOW TO DO WHAT YOUR PUBLISHER WON'T

There is an excerpt there with 15 commandments on getting free publicity for authors.

These sites are well worth a visit to add ideas to your PR folder for the future.

If you are over the whole author marketing thing go to David Wilsons blog and read his rant on book promotion alternatives to make you feel better. David’s site is proudly labelled for the overactive mind and one look at what is going on there will make you think longingly of a darkened room and herbal tea but he has some interesting ideas if you want to fossick around.

Do you really need to be on Facebook, twitter et al...flogging your book contributing to all that noise out there? (this said as I finally joined Facebook yesterday- ahhhh but I have an ulterior motive...it goes with the reason I am on Twitter....)

This week the Washington Post had an article on the future of children’s publishing where they talked to Jeff Kinney, author of the book series, Diary of a Wimpy Kid.

Jeff has written for video games and has a movie coming out so he was the ‘go to’ guy to comment on the future.(a good read none the less)

Kinney's balancing act reflects the broad strategy of children's publishing today. Publishers are trying to entice kids to read books by offering companion Web sites that are graphic-rich and able to plunge young readers into the story. Along with the tale on the page, kids can dip into online videos and games, win prizes, create Internet identities and get into social networking. It is a tricky gamble for publishers, one requiring a deep commitment of time and money.

I come across many gems and thought provoking stuff as I research for this blog. I know that some readers of my blog feel engaged by these discussions. Some readers feel threatened and some want it all to go away because they are not ready or feel it doesn’t apply to them. Publishing is in a state of change. The industry we thought we were a part of is morphing into something new and no one quite knows where the children’s author is going to fit. Hopefully reading this blog is helping you to keep an open mind, alerting you to new opportunities and allowing you to have one eye on the storm so you will know when to dive into the basement or get out to fly the kite.

maureen

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