E Reader Revolutions

I ADMIT IT...I pop into Facebook every day. There is always an interesting conversation going on. 

Today the hot news is the launch of Kindle Fire from Amazon. They enter into the tablet market, with an ‘ereader on steroids,’ and it is one quarter the price...at $199 US. Along with this fancy new piece of tech, Amazon launched three new versions of Kindle starting with the basic Kindle going out the door at $79. As I commented this morning on Facebook, I looked at a Kindle yesterday thinking I could afford it as my Dad wants one for Christmas then discovered I was looking at the fancy cover you can buy for it. Kindle are $289 NZ. (Maybe next year Dad!)

However the launch of the colour whizzy Kindle Fire in time for the Christmas market shows how ereaders will be the tech gift of choice this Christmas as the mainstream buyers start to pick up on this technology. Now is the time to upload content for them to buy.

Joanna Penn wrote a great little piece on what the Kindle Firemeans to Authors...It is time to get off the fence!

Melinda Szymanik must have known something was up as her first ebook The Half Life Of Ryan Davis will be available this weekend on Amazon. I think this maybe a NZ first. First Young Adult Title to go straight to ebook before print. Melinda has a competition on her website for a copy and she also has the opening chapter up to give you a taste of her teen thriller.

This week Jane Friedman was also looking at ebooks on Writer Unboxed. Jane has written a great article with a handy checklist on marketing ebooks looking from the viewpoint of the marketing 4 P’s.

Bob Mayer has an interesting article on The Perfect Storm In Publishing that is looming. As more and more agencies look at adding epublishing imprints to their business...Are they looking at the author as a brand? and How is Pottermore and Amazon Publishing changing the game?

Roni Loren takes a hard look at Author Branding and Social Media. She has listed five ways to guard your brand...Something we all must keep in mind as we log on to the internet.

James Scott Bell has written an open letter to Traditional Publishers wishing them well in their recovery.

Dean Wesley Smith has a timely warning about Agents and Money...Do they know what they are doing? and Do you know what they are doing, with your money?

If you want a sneak preview on what will be talked about at the Children’s Publishing Goes Digital conference being held at the Frankfurt Book Fair next month Publishing Perspectives has an excerpt from the program guide on Building Online Communities For Teen Readers

Over on the Craft Side

Mary Kole has an in depth article on beginning your stories with a balance of information and action and how to achieve this.

Mary Anne Scheuer of Great Kids Books has begun reviewing Children’s Book Apps...have a look at her criteria and check out what she has to say.  

Over on Craicerplus (My Amplify Page) I have links to articles on

Ebook Covers -Getting It Right!

Porter Anderson’s Interview on Journalism Today...The rise of dramatic storytelling in news stories...

To finish,

I read this true story this week with amusement then alarm. It reads just like a MG/ YA plot.  Last week a boy dressed in a banana costume and ran onto a high school football field at half time to rally the crowd...the school principal took exception and recommended suspension for the rest of the school year...(school has just started.) Read what happens next...

This kind of plot will soon be in a popular ebook coming to a Kindle near you...

enjoy,

maureen

That Dirty Word...

Sometimes, as I research sites on the blogosphere for this weekly roundup, a topic just keeps getting highlighted. 

This week it is marketing. 

Everyone seems to be talking about marketing books or ideas in some way or another. 

Marketing is one of those dirty words that authors need to know and understand but would prefer that other people say and do on their behalf.

Now that the author is stuck with having to learn marketing tips, as the publishing industry either ditches their authors or ditches their publicity budget, marketing is becoming a hot topic.

What works?

This week some online gurus had some interesting things to share about this bright, new, shiny, wholesome word.

Michael Hyatt is CEO of Thomas Nelson Publishers and has a popular blog. This week he is looking at How to use FREE as your marketing strategy.

The BookDesigner has started a new series on Book Marketingfor the beginner self publisher. Even if you are not self publishing take a look. You never know where you might find a golden tip to generate more sales.

Ducttapemarketing has posted a podcast interview on their site with David Merman Scott on his new edition of New Rules of Marketing and PR. David’s book changed the landscape of small business marketing when it came out in 2007. His ideas and tools quickly became a bible for small business. So if you are seriously in business, drop by to listen to David.

Tony Eldridge recently reposted his Bookbuzzr link.  This is a nifty piece of code that allows you to put a sample of your book in a book icon with your cover on it on your websites with links to bookseller sites....and it is free.

While you are focussing on the word FREE... a group of dedicated contest lovers have started a Facebook page where they list every free book giveaway contest going. This is an interesting bit of marketing...for authors... bloggers...publishers....  Word of mouth is an incredible force and so is Facebook. They have only been going a couple of days and already they have over 200 people joining in.

The Children’s Writer’s and Illustrators Market Guide 2012 is out this month and Kidlit.com has a free copy to give away...because they contributed a couple of articles. With our exchange rate looking so good it is worth investing in a copy of the Guide. It is the white pages of publishers, agents, and art editors across the US (and their international section is growing every year) for people working in Children’s Publishing. It has great articles and how to tips as well. It is tax deductable and, if you get a free shipping bookseller, so worth the money. ($28 NZ for over 400 pages)

In the hot topics being discussed this week...David Gaughran’sidea of getting translators to translate your ebook/book for a share of theroyalties became a hot topic amongst the translating community as well as the Indie publishing community. Writers and Translators were weighing into the discussion to say how it might work or should work. Lots of interesting comments and examples of how to get your book translated into other languages as publishers get ready for the roll out of Kindle into non English speaking markets later this year.

Publishing Perspectives has focussed their critical eye onthe Gamification of books. If you are scratching your head...Children’s publishing has taken a head start on this with 39 Clues and Pottermore...those poor adult writers...how do you make a game out of your cookbook? Ah ha, read the article to find out...

Mark Coker, the guy behind Smashwords, has uploaded his slideshow keynote from The Central Coast Writers Conference last weekend about Five Big Trends That Will Rock The Future Of Publishing.

Over in the Craft Section,

The Five Elements Of The Riveting First Line. K M Weiland takes a scalpel to the first line and shows you how to craft the layers in. (take some time to trawl around her site too. You Will Be In Awe.)

Over on Craicerplus (My Amplify Page) I have links to articles on...

Links to Free Clip Art

The Agents Side Of The Gay YA Saga

What StartUps Can Teach Publishers....This is a great article looking at crowd sourcing, dynamic pricing...

To Finish,

 A couple of months ago Writer Beware highlighted the questionable behaviour of Publish America...a ‘publishing’ firm who (for a fee) would take your MS to Edinburgh and present it to JK Rowling for comment. Yesterday, Writer Beware has become aware of a new scheme(scam) by this ‘reputable’ company...They can get your Christian Book in front of Christian Booksellers (for a fee.) Read the whole story and BE AWARE that sometimes Marketing (by unscrupulous people) is still a dirty word.

enjoy,

maureen

pic from ablebrains