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Self-Publishing Mistake #3: Layout Your Own Interior!
Mistake # 3 Layout Your Own Interior! How words look can be as important as what they say Pagination (typeset in the old days) is how the interior of your book is laid out. Most new authors don’t even know pagination is a word, let alone how it plays a profound part in the reader’s experience. I do not recommend you paginate your own book; you don’t have the proper software (*hint: Word™ is not the proper software) and even if you follow all of the advice below, there are probably twice as many pitfalls I’m forgetting to tell you about here....
read moreVideo Blog: How do I use the Admin Panel on my Facebook Page
In this week’s screen capture video, we discuss the Admin Panel on your Facebook Page. This is an area that a lot of people struggle. You can do wonders with it…you can also destroy your page or even delete here. Be sure you know what you are doing and how best you can use the Admin Panel....
read moreSelf-Publishing Mistake #2: Design Your Own Cover!
Mistake #2. Design Your Own Cover! You’ve heard the old saying; “You can’t judge a book by its cover”? Unfortunately that’s exactly what happens; your book will be judged by its cover. In the span of a few seconds a potential reader, reviewer or professional book buyer will decide whether or not to pick up your book to look inside – based on it’s cover. Your Title – ‘a rose by any other name …’ One of the most common, most obvious mistakes made by self-published authors is putting a title on their book that means the world to them … but...
read moreVideo Blog: How to create a Facebook Page from scratch
By now you have heard how everyone should have a Facebook page, whether you are an author, a business, a non-profit, or a person of influence. With over 1 BILLION people on Facebook, I agree! For many it comes down to the mechanics of how not the question of why. In this screen capture video, you will learn how to create your own Facebook page from scratch. Over the next few weeks, we will dive into the specifics of how to use it and gather up your...
read moreSelf-Publishing Mistake #1: Edit Your Own Book
Mistake # 1: Edit Your Own Book! Spelling and Grammar – ouch! Do you think editing is just a matter of running ‘spell-check’ on your word processing software? Think again. Do you think that you are your own best editor or that hiring a professional editor is too expensive or an unnecessary expense? Think again. Editing your book isn’t just about correcting spelling mistakes. Even if it were, your word processor’s spell-check program won’t pick up the difference between two, to and too, or there, their and they’re. Spell-check...
read moreTelling Your Story
I was talking to a book publisher friend of mine in the UK this morning and I told him that our business really shifted a few years ago from publishing books to telling stories. We publish books, lots of them, but that’s not our business. Our business, whether it’s through authors, musicians, ministries, or corporations, is telling stories. Matt and I were talking to one of our authors, Chip Furr a week or so ago about his upcoming devotional book, “Unfiltered” (working title). You see, Chip and his wife Cheery own and...
read moreDon’t Bother with a Book Proposal
I received a manilla 8 x 10 envelope in the mail from a close friend of mine this week. Inside was another manilla envelope, self-addressed and postage paid, along with an introduction letter (I’ve known her all her life), a one page bio (I’ve known her all her life), and three typed, double-spaced chapters of her fiction manuscript. It was a book proposal. At least that’s what they called it on a planet that no longer exists. I know what happened; she read some advice, hopefully not in a book that cost her money, on how to...
read moreUse Sneezers to Spread Your Message
The best way to spread a virus is through sneezers. Sneezers are people who infect others with whatever they’ve caught. Although the analogy sounds a bit gross, that’s exactly what you ought to be looking for as you reach the world with your message – sneezers. *shout out to Seth Godin for the terminology If I give a copy of my new book to my neighbor Bob and Bob reads the book and enjoys it, that’s great! Now, when I see Bob he tells me, “Great book! I really enjoyed it.” That’s nice, Bob’s a...
read moreSocial Media – Why, What and Who before How To
‘How-to’ is a pretty popular topic for Social Media. I Googled some of the big ‘how to’s’ this morning: “How to Blog” – 5.1 billion search results; “How to use Facebook” – almost 8 billion search results; “How to use Twitter” – 6.1 billion search results. That’s billion, with a b. But before we jump right into ‘how to’, maybe we ought to ask ‘why’ and ‘what’ and ‘to whom’ first. Social Media has swept over...
read moreA Sowing Lesson
What does it mean to ‘reach the world’ with your message? Whether you’re a writer, teacher, preacher, speaker, entrepreneur or fundraiser, ‘reaching the world’ means touching your widest possible audience, effectively, with your message. By ‘widest possible audience’ I mean the greatest possible population of those predisposed to be receptive to your message. Marketers call this ‘target marketing’. I call it, ‘planting seeds in the garden and not on the road’. Speaking of...
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