Self Published Book Review of the Week: The Adventures of PJ and Split Pea

November 28, 2009 at 9:07 am (Book Review of the Week)
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The Adventures of PJ and Split Pea, Vol. 1: Fine Feathered Friends

by S.D. Moore

This self-published book was recently reviewed by www.readerviewskids.com:

“The Adventures of PJ and Split Pea, Vol. 1: Fine Feathered Friends” begins with a boy named PJ trying to decide what kind of pet he wants to get. After not being able to decide he hears a voice say hi to him. He sees that it is a bird named Split Pea. Nobody has wanted to bring Split Pea home because his feathers look like they have splits in them, so the pet shop owner just gives him to PJ.

Cayden: “In the beginning of the book it said they were going to the pet shelter to get a pet that was lost or that someone got rid of but then on the next page they were in a pet store. A pet store isn’t the Humane Society. We went to the Humane Society and brought the dogs treats and other stuff, remember? I liked that he got a bird that no one else wanted though. That was good that they gave it a home. It was funny when PJ tried to fix Split Pea’s wings. I liked that the bird could talk to him.”

Parent’s comments:
I agree with Cayden that there was a little bit of an inconsistency in the beginning about stating that “his mom was going to take him to the pet shelter to adopt a lost and abandoned pet” and then three sentences later it says that “PJ and his mom arrive at Mr. Peppy’s Pet Store.” However, they do end up with a pet that no one else seems to want so it all evens out in the end. The story of PJ and Split Pea was a creative one and we enjoyed reading about all of the “solutions” to the split wing problem. I also liked the great lessons taught in the story of self-acceptance and of accepting others the way that they are. We recommend “The Adventures of PJ and Split Pea, Vol. 1: Fine Feathered Friends” by S.D. Moore.

For more information or to buy the book, visit the author’s webpage: www.outskirtspress.com/pjandsplitpea


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Self-publishing and Harlequin Kicking-up Dust

November 24, 2009 at 3:45 am (Tips, self-publishing)
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A mass of heated discussion is being shouted around the publishing world in the wake of recent announcements by Harlequin and Thomas Nelson to step in the direction of self-publishing.

Responses have exploded across the industry from the New Yorker to Publisher’s Weekly. Crotchety, curious, and shocked are among the many opinions swirling about, with the resurgence of the term ‘vanity press’ included in the semantical outcry of the literati.

Shocking at best. Inevitable indeed. Masturbatory? Opinions will be opinions. While I cannot fault traditional publishing houses from offering genuine detraction of these decisions – they are business too, after-all. As authors we must be wary of drinking the cool-aide. Not an easy thing to do. Writing is a personal, often intimate endeavor, which propagates a natural to desire for validation – something agents and traditional publishers have a monopoly on.

If writing is an art, publishing is a business. In business, components such as, ingenuity, creativity, evaluating risk, and (gulp), diversification have a proven track record. Those elements should be considered on the micro and macro levels – the success of your own book along with the industry in general.

Agent Richard Curtis provides a rather pragmatic perspective on the subject worth taking a look at on his site E-Reads. What are your thoughts?

- Karl



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Self-Published Book Review of the Week: The Heroes of Googley Woogley

November 21, 2009 at 8:04 am (Book Review of the Week)
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The Heroes of Googley Woogley

by Dalton James

This self-published book was recently reviewed by www.readerviewskids.com:

“The Heroes of Googley Woogley” is a creative book written and illustrated by seven-year-old Dalton James. The book tells the story of a boy and his father going off to space to help the people of the rectangle-shaped plant of Googley Woogley.  Cayden: “I liked that a kid wrote this book and drew the pictures. He colors and stays in the lines good like me. I liked the pictures of the SooDos and the SooDonts. My favorite part was when the bad guys got stuck. That was funny! This was a good story.”

Parent’s comments:
We found “The Heroes of Googley Woogley” to be an interesting and fun book. I love the fact that it was created by a child! I hope that Dalton James continues to follow his dreams and produce more work in the future.

For more information or to buy the book, visit the author’s webpage: www.outskirtspress.com/DaltonJames


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7 Reasons to Self-Publish, From the Top…

November 19, 2009 at 6:30 pm (Uncategorized)

I’ve helped savvy authors transition their books away from traditional publishing houses, newly publishing authors make informed decisions to pursue other options, and even had personal experience publishing under my own traditional contract. Here are the top 7 or so reasons to re-consider holding out for that traditional contract and self-publish today…

7 – Traditional publishers lose money on over 85% of the books they publish, so they only accept 2% of those that are submitted.

6 – Traditional publishers typically accept manuscripts only from established authors who have already demonstrated a proven platform.

5 – Authors lose all control of their content during the editing process with a Traditional Publisher.

4 – Authors must still invest an enormous amount of time, energy, and money promoting a traditionally-published book.

3- Traditional Publishing: Authors typically receive 5-10% royalty on the wholesale price of the book, and from that have to give 15-25% to their agent. Do the math.

2 – The majority of books published by Traditional publishers go out of print within 3 years. Many books that are stocked on book shelves remain stocked for as little as five weeks before being returned, unsold, to the publisher.

1- Traditional publishers acquire all rights to your book and keep them, even when the book goes out of print or the publisher goes out of business!



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- Karl Schroeder

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Understanding the Amazon Marketplace and Self-published, POD titles

November 19, 2009 at 3:24 am (Book Marketing, Tips, marketing, self-publishing)
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If you’ve looked your Amazon.com listing, or any title if you’re just now preparing for publishing or self-publishing your book, you may have noticed “new and used” editions of books available for sale through the what is called the Amazon “Marketplace.”

Think of the Amazon Marketplace like e-Bay; it allows vendors and bookstores the opportunity to list books for sale in a new or used condition. 99% of the on-demand books sold through Amazon Marketplace are brand new and actually, in most cases, have yet to even been purchased by a wholesaler. In fact, most haven’t even been printed yet.

Marketplace is an apt name for this portion of Amazon because these book sellers are using it to “market” their businesses. So if you see “54 New and Used” copies of a book available through Marketplace, that does mean 54 copies have sold and are now available as read-and-used. It simply means that savvy bookstores are trying to draw the buyers’ attention away from the main Amazon listing and to their listing.



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- Karl Schroeder

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Self-publishing Tip: Ebooks

November 17, 2009 at 4:52 am (Book Marketing, Choosing a Publisher, Networking, Tips, self-publishing)
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Much discussion surrounds the future of publishing in the digital world, the Kindle, and e-books. Will e-books replace libraries and bound copies of books? That’s really not the question; as authors, let’s step outside the box.

Think of e-books as an opportunity to tease. With a lower purchase price and more immediate gratification, many people are inclined to give an e-book a try when they might pass on a traditional paperback, especially in the non-fiction and how-to genres. Instantly accessible information has its place, even though it is far from “everyplace”. And doubtful it ever will be. If readers like your e-book, chances are good they’ll end up purchasing the hardcopy book, anyway.

Make sure your self-publishing option offers an e-book format. Many will for free.



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Self-Published Book Review of the Week: By the Side of the Buffalo Pasture

November 14, 2009 at 8:57 am (Book Review of the Week)
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Buffalo Pasture.coverBy the Side of the Buffalo Pasture

By Lisa Boblett

Recent review for By the Side of the Buffalo Pasture:

Kathleen Buerer’s memoir, By the Side of the Buffalo Pasture, evokes yearning for meaning in life. This woman of courage left a materially comfortable existence in pursuit of that which is intangible yet as necessary as water. Clearly and compassionately, she describes her experience of leaving her position with the Environmental Protection Agency in Washington DC and the promise of a “fat retirement check” in search of something more.

That something more begins to unfold after she reads a newspaper article about the birth of a White Buffalo on a farm in Janesville, Wisconsin. She plans to visit the farm during her next trip to the Midwest. When she gets there, she feels drawn to Miracle, a “muddy beast” that in Native American culture represents the fulfillment of an ancient prophesy.

While many in midlife might turn to materialism to avoid confronting the mystery of life, Buerer chooses to delve deeper into life’s purpose and find meaning in her own existence. She visits Miracle repeatedly over the animal’s life span of 10 years and finds herself learning lessons from those encounters. She becomes more sensitive to the environment. “Love the Earth” is fixed in her subconscious. She becomes sharply aware of consumerism and the carelessness of the modern age and examines what it means to be a woman, a keeper of the earth, a mother.

Miracle, the White Buffalo, represents an era that has passed and the author romanticizes a simpler time when herds of buffalo roamed the plains offering their lives to sustain Native peoples. The captivating mythological
Legend of the White Buffalo Calf Woman is beautifully retold and reminds us of the wisdom in the search for the still voice within. Buerer poignantly takes us back to the simplicity of the earth, the beauty of nature and the search for those things that make life worth living – love, compassion and honoring the planet and all of its inhabitants.

This book is an easy read. And well worth the journey.

To find out more about the author and her work visit www.kathleenbuerer.com.

 

 

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2009 LONDON BOOK FESTIVAL AWARDS Calling for SELF-PUBLISHED ENTRIES

November 11, 2009 at 8:12 am (Book Awards, Book Marketing, Book Promotion, self-publishing)
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London Book Festival Awards calls for unique self-published book entries:

The 2009 London Book Festival will hold its annual awards program celebrating books that deserve greater recognition from the international publishing community on January 21, 2010 at the city’s famed Grosvenor House. The awards ceremony is open to competition entrants and invited guests of the festival.

The awards ceremony is open to competition entrants and invited guests of the festival. The 2009 London Book Festival will consider books in English, Spanish, French, German, Portuguese and Italian in the competition. The works may be published, self-published or independent publisher non-fiction, fiction, children’s books, poetry, art/photgraphy, teenage, how-to, audio/spoken word, comics/graphic novels, e-books, wild card (anything goes!), science fiction, romance and biography/autobiographical works.

A panel of judges will determine the winners based on the following criteria:

1) The story-telling ability of the author;
2) The potential of the work to win wider recognition from the international publishing community.

Our grand prize for the 2009 London Book Festival Author of the Year is $1500 and a flight from your city of entry to London OR Los Angeles – your choice!

ENTRIES: Please classify your book and enter it in the following categories. Multiple entries must be accompanied by a separate fee for each book.

1.General Non-fiction
2. General Fiction
3. Children’s books
4. E-books
5. Comics/graphic novels
6. Wild Card
7. Teenage
8. Science fiction
9. Romance
10. Biography/Autobiography
11. Audio/spoken word
12. How-To
13. Poetry
14. Art/Photography

FESTIVAL RULES: London Book Festival submissions cannot be returned. Each entry must contain a print-out of the official entry form, including your e-mail address and contact telephone number. All shipping and handling costs must be borne by entrants.

NOTIFICATION AND DEADLINES: We will notify each entry of the receipt of their package via e-mail and will announce the winning entries at the LondonBookFestival.com web site.

Deadline submissions in each category must be postmarked by the close of business on November 25, 2009. Winners in each category will be notified by e-mail and the results posted on the site. Please note that judges read and consider submissions on an ongoing basis, comparing early entries with later submissions.

TO ENTER: Entry forms are available online at http://londonbookfestival.com or may be faxed/e-mailed to you by calling our office at 323-665-8080. Applications must be accompanied by a non-refundable entry fee via check, money order, credit card payment or PayPal online payment of $50 in U.S. dollars for each submission. Multiple submissions are permitted but each entry must be accompanied by a separate form and entry fee. Entry fee checks should be made payable to JM Northern Media LLC.

Entry packages should include one copy of the book; a copy of your official entry form; the entry fee or receipt from online payment; and any relevant marketing materials, i.e., press kits or other material that illuminates the background of your book. Entries should be mailed to:

JM Northern Media LLC
The London Book Festival
7095 Hollywood Blvd. Suite 864
Hollywood, CA 90028, USA

AWARDS: The London Book Festival selection committee reserves the right to determine the eligibility of any project.

The London Book Festival is produced by JM Northern Media LLC, producers of the Hollywood Book Festival, New York Book Festival and DIY Book Festival. We are sponsored by the Larimar St. Croix Writers Colony, eDivvy, Westside Websites and Shopanista

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Self-Publishing Advantages Out on the Table

November 10, 2009 at 6:20 am (Book Marketing, Book Promotion, Choosing a Publisher, Tips, marketing, self-publishing)
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This posts and blog exists to help you make the best informed choices for the future of their books. Whether you’re still in the conceptualization phase or searching for a publisher, these are tips, each worthy of careful consideration.

For example, take a moment and write out your personal publishing goals…

For many authors, these 7 are the most important:

1) Keeping 100% of your rights and creative control to your book
2) Keeping 100% of your author royalties
3) Unlimited wholesale and retail availability
4) Additional marketing support and services
5) Publishing imprint and ISBN flexibility
6) High-quality book design
7) Complete print-run flexibility (1 to 1000s)

What would you add to this list?

– K


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Self Published Book Review of the Week: Drift

November 7, 2009 at 8:39 am (Book Review of the Week)
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sb10067280c-001Drift

by Sara San Angelo

Recent reviews for Drift:

“I had to force myself to put it down so I could savor it.  One of the best books I’ve read!”–Jackie Giorna
 
“There are so many life lessons in this book that I don’t think I will ever see things the same again.”  Cathy Raymonds

For more information or to order the book, visit http://www.driftnovel.com/


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