Amazon Giveaways

I've been eyeing Amazon Giveaways for a while, now that they work for e-books as well as physical items. Giveaways help create buzz, cultivate potential future readers, and possibly earn those much-needed reviews.

So yesterday I decided to try it.

You can run a giveaway on any item you like, even if it's not yours, but I did it for my new e-book. Another idea is to give away prizes that are somehow related to your book. Then you can change the settings to make it less public and send the link only to your readers as a sort of loyalty reward. Various other possibilities make this a versatile tool.

This is how a giveaway goes:

-Go to your book (or whatever item you want to give away) and click on “Set up a Giveaway” near the bottom.

-Buy as many copies as you want to give away (so doing this on a sale day might be a good idea, depending on your pricing). You can choose from 1-50 copies, which means it's economical to play around and do small test giveaways. Pay as normal through Amazon. If you're giving away your own book, you will recoup some of this money as royalties when the sale goes through.

-Set various parameters, like if you want a random drawing at the end or if you want, for example, every 100^th entrant to win.

-Decide what people must do in order to enter. Possibilities include following you on Amazon or Twitter, tweeting a message, watching a video, or answering a poll. You can also do it without requiring anything from the entrants, but I think getting followers or having people tweet about your book would be helpful marketing tools. It's a bit unclear how useful Amazon followers are. You can't see how many you have or contact them directly, but Amazon supposedly sends them e-mails when you publish new books or have other big events. Amazon may also ask you to write messages which they send on to your followers. If anyone has experience with this, it would be interesting to see in the comments below.

-Create a title for your giveaway.

-Write a short welcome message, a message to people once they've entered, and a message to the winner/winners (maximum 250 characters each). Look at some other giveaways to see examples of their welcome messages (usually a snappy contest or product description) and decide what will work best for you.

-Upload a photo of you (or your logo, etc). Don't upload your book cover here, as they'll automatically show the book cover below and you don't want to duplicate. Something went wrong with my picture, as it didn't appear when the giveaway went live. Unfortunately there's no preview.

-Submit it. Mine went live within a few minutes, though it can take several hours.

-Post your link on your social media, blogs, etc. For legal reasons, be sure to include wording like “enter for a chance to win,” not “enter to win.”

For more information, see Amazon's FAQs.

My Experience So Far:

In the first 4 hours that my giveaway was live, without me doing any advertising at all, 129 people entered the contest, and they all had to follow me on Amazon to do so. Then the rate slowed so that in 24 hours the number was about 180. 

 Obviously I wish one of the requirements were to subscribe to my mailing list, but it still seems a positive thing. Now I'm going to do a bit of promotion and see what happens.

If you're interested in Alaska, or just want to see how it works, check out my giveaway: https://giveaway.amazon.com/p/76034327196b88cf

Your Experience?  

If any of you out there have done Amazon Giveaways, we'd all love you to share your wisdom in the comments below.

Being an Arizona girl, Melinda Brasher loves glaciers, streams, whales, bald eagles, and real trees with green leaves.  That's why she's in love with Alaska.  If you want to see a bit of Alaska for yourself, check out her latest book, Cruising Alaska on a Budget; A Cruise and Port Guide.  Read it for free with Kindle Unlimited.

Mindfulness and Writing

The other day I was in the grocery store and saw on the cover of Time Magazine the words “Mindfulness” with a corresponding story inside. Mindfulness has become the new buzz word. I recently attended a webinar to incorporate mindfulness into the classroom. I’ve been practicing mindfulness for about 5 years now. So, what is this crazy all about and can it help with our writing?

Mindfulness, at least to me, means to be aware of yourself in the present moment. If you stop right now and think about yourself sitting wherever you’re sitting and reading this article and experience the feeling of being aware of yourself in the present moment, what do you feel? If you feel a sort of exhilaration then followed by anxiety, well, you’re normal. When we are really “present” or living in the moment, it is exciting and thrilling. But, then, suddenly our minds take over and it kind of creeps us out and gives us a sense of anxiety mainly because we’re not used to it. However, with practice, you’ll get more and more used to it and even enjoy it.

When you think about it, life occurs in present moments—not in the future and not in the past. We tend to live in either of these places. We are either making plans for our future and indeed we do need to do this or we are ruminating over something from our past. And as a therapist, I can say that some looking back is necessary for healing. However, we tend to ALWAYS live in either one of these places and not in the present moment. What if we started living in the moment and then moment by moment? It would revolutionalize our lives.

For us writers, we live in shall we say “other” worlds, at least us fiction writers do. We can forget to eat when we’re writing because we are so engrossed in what we’re doing. But, sometimes we feel a bit stuck. We can’t think what to write next. We can’t think of how to bring a character to life or create enough tension in the story or how to write a decent ending. My suggestion to you is next time you feel stuck, take a moment and walk away. Do something else entirely. Play with your kids; play with your dog or cat; play with your spouse; enjoy an outdoor sport; eat something delicious—whatever floats your boat. But, more importantly, though, than just doing this activity is practicing mindfulness while you’re doing this activity. Really be in the moment. When you have done this, it will unstick your mind and when you return to writing, you’ll be surprised at what comes up for you.

I’d like to challenge you to practice mindfulness at least once a day. Take a deep breath and feel yourself in your body being in this moment. And then, by all means, please write about this experience. Come back here and share your thoughts and feelings. Come on writers, let’s become mindful!

Wanda Luthman has her Masters of Arts in both Mental Health Counseling and Guidance Counseling from Rollins College located in beautiful Winter Park, Florida. She has worked as a Licensed Mental Health Counselor, Adjunct Professor, and Hospice Counselor for teens. She’s currently a Guidance Counselor at a local High School. She has self-published 4 children’s books (The Lilac Princess, A Turtle’s Magical Adventure, Gloria and the Unicorn, and Little Birdie). She belongs to the National Pen Women Organization in Cape Canaveral; the Florida’s Writers Association; Space Coast Authors; and Brevard Authors Forum. She presently resides in Brevard County Florida with her husband of 22 years and 2 dogs. Her daughter is away at college, like Little Birdie, she has left the nest. To download a free ebook, visit Wanda Luthman’s website at www.wandaluthmanwordpress.com and follow her on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/wluthman.

Sneak Peek in Next Book in the HowToDoItFrugally Series

Book Covers for Book Series Demand Extra, Loving Care

By Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning
HowToDoItFrugally series of book for writers

Considerations for covers for series aren’t really so different from any book except that an author and her cover artist must consider whether the elements can be sustained and there are several ways to do that with the cover.

One of the most sustainable elements of marketing a book series is the author’s name. New authors and artists without special training in book cover design often under emphasize their own name. I tell them to look at the books in the window of Hudson’s bookstores in airports. The authors’ names are huge. The authors’ names are sometimes gilt. The authors’ names are often embossed. That’s because (you’ve heard this before from me in my multi award-winning book, The Frugal Book Promoter), an author’s name is her true brand. Or soon will be. And an author planning a series is even more dependent on his or her own name for recognition and identification than most.

In addition to the size of the author’s name, authors of book series should consider repeating its position on the cover, using the same solid—very bright—color, that metallic look, embossing if the publisher can afford it, or all three.  The font should be repeated, too—preferably one that’s identifiable even if only subliminally.

Of course, it’s the overall look of the cover that interests most authors and that brings up genre. All the elements of all the covers in the series must evoke the genre. This is one time that being super-original may not be best for sales. The look must suggest to the reader exactly what he or she will find inside the book. Think Picault’s images for Danielle Steele’s books. They catapulted him to fame in the world of fine art. Internationally known Park West carries his originals and prints even after his death. We may not be able to name him on sight, but we know it’s his work when we see it and that when they appear on a book cover, they are Steele’s books.  To evoke a feeling of familiarity among readers usually means using the same artist on each of the books in a particular series—perhaps even across different series.

Note: Consider negotiating with your artist that he or she will do book cover art only for your series. This probably will require a renewable stipend for exclusivity, but it may be worth it.

These are all considerations for series written by nonfiction authors, as well. Notice the unique font/art developed by Chaz DeSimone (http://DeSimoneDesign) for my HowToDoItFrugally series. Those coins say something visually and they are memorable.

It’s not always possible to be that creative, though. Chaz said my frugal titles were like the perfect storm. Everything came together for inspiration. But that’s still possible, even without that once-in-a-career brainstorm. Consider the famous Dummy series. In addition to carrying through a specific, very bright contrasting color scheme (yellow and black).  These books also all place logo in the same place on every cover  (I plan to talk about logos later in this book to be published in 2018). Consistency in image placement is important, too. In the Dummy books, they use  realistic images-- usually actual photos or true-to-life illustrations.

The Dummy graphic designer knows that the font is still important. He or she uses two fonts in the titles and both have a kind of do-it-yourself character. “Dummies” is in every one and connotes a small child’s first approach to printing without using too-obvious backwards letters or mixed caps and lower case. The other part of the title very simply tells the reader what he or she will learn. Word. Home Buying Kit. Mortgages. And because it slants right in a sort of italic look and is black and white, it evokes a chalkboard and—once again—a new learner. These cover took a lot more thought than is at first apparent.

There are other tricks for books in series, too. The visual can be maintained throughout a series in a geometric shape—a circle, oval, triangle. By using blocks of color that repeat themselves. We mentioned overall color schemes in the analysis of Dummies.

Obviously much will depend on an author’s publishing situation. When an author is traditionally published he may have very little control over his covers or none at all. Still—if possible, he should let the designer know the genre, his preference for an artist or style, and that it will be a series. That means that he must work to work as a partner with the designer and the more he knows about covers, the better partner he will be.

Note: If your book lends itself to using a reproduction of a famous painting in the public domain, put that idea on your list to consider. It has been shown that these images increase how well a reader remembers the cover, title and content of a book.

One thing the author will usually have complete control over is the size (thickness or page number) of her books. If one is very fat and another very slim, much will be lost in terms of a cohesive brand.

As you can tell, I am big on using the author’s name as a major design element, but there are times when the emphasis may best be put on another element of the cover. Sometimes it’s hard for an author to be open to something different from their first concept. Many authors fear looking too commercial or are very shy and loathe the idea of making their name the main design element. Many authors have an artist they want to feature (a mother who does water colors or uncle who does killer charcoals). That would be nice and personal, but if it doesn’t fit the topic, they should be open to rearranging their demand. Beyond the basics, I believe in giving the most professional designer you or your publisher can afford full reign to allow her creativity to shine. Sometimes it’s easier to make suggestions and fine tune afterward, anyway.

After you and your designer have settled on the look of your cover, you want to carry the branding sensibility you’ve begun to the interior of your book. Many graphic designers can help you with that, too. And you’ll want to keep all of this branding you’ve done in mind for the entire marketing campaign. A prissy, wedding like launch party with canapés doesn’t cut it for a series on caring for your car.

Note: If you are self-publishing and have decided to use a template like those provided by Createspace, be very careful to choose one with a structure that is most likely to be carried though for the entire series.

Those elements of your marketing campaign—Web site banners, the site itself, logos, business cards, bookmarks, signs for book fairs and on and on will become more apparent to you as you read the first

in my HowToDoItFrugally book series, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or partnering with your publisher (http://bit.ly/FrugalBookPromo). If this is your first book in a series, your campaign will grow as your plan—even if you are one of those who maps out the campaign carefully. A good map, though, will help you avoid having to make too many corrections as you go. That is both smart and frugal.

Note: Before making your final decision, reread the chapter in the flagship for of my #HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers, The Frugal Book Promoter. There you will find what you need for writing the copy for our book’s back cover like the mini biography, the oft-ignored (sadly!) second subtitle, and the pitch or mini synopsis. This may be an area that you are better at than your designer, though many graphic artists or cover designers who have lots of experience with books are also excellent copywriters and marketers. So do ask for advice and listen to the answers.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

This article is destined to become part of Carolyn Howard-Johnson’s fourth book in her multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers set for 2018. It will have a foreword written by her book designer Chaz DeSimone and the frugalish coin design of the How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically (http://bit.ly/GreatBkReviews) where you will learn Carolyn’s secret to getting review from big journals by going through the back door and how to use reviews to access commercial catalogs.

first two will be carried forward to this book, too. Her newest book in the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers is

Learn more about Carolyn including her poetry and fiction at http://howtodoitfrugally.com where you can also see some cover designs for her series of poetry books that were courtesy of free templates offered by Createspace.com.

WRITER’S BLOCK? NO SUCH THING

By Linda Barnett-Johnson

The dark recesses of your brain, known as the cerebral cortex, is where the words to your many stories lay dormant.  They’ve taken a leave of absence without any authorization.  You know they’re there because you’ve accessed them many times before.  Is this what is known as “writer’s block?”

Is there such a thing as “writer’s block?”  Does our writing mind shut down like a factory when it’s time to go home?  Does our writing ability go on vacation or enter la-la-land?  Or does it act like a signal light going from green, writing without ceasing; yellow, slowing down - getting off the track; or red, complete meltdown - do not pass go or collect $200.00 - stopped dead in its tracks.

If writer’s block existed, you wouldn’t be able to write your name, make out a shopping list, pay your bills, or write down an appointment and keep it!  So unless you’re dead or in a coma, there are many opportunities to get over your “writer’s block.”

Get Creative:

Go to the park with pen and paper and write what you see.  Then what you hear, smell, feel and taste.  Your senses are always in working condition.  For example:  “The bird looked like it stood still in the air.”  Now fill it in with more description.  “The large hook-billed eagle hovered over the ground, looking for prey with his keen eyes.”  Try it with all the senses.

Another trick is to take your dictionary and start reading the words.  A lot of times this will trigger something loose.  Or randomly pick a word and write about it.  How about randomly picking a word and adding the word, land or village or town behind it.  For example:  I close my eyes and my finger lands on - “revolve.”  Now put the word land behind it and you have - Revolve Land.  I don’t know about you, but I can see a children’s story about a town that has revolving playgrounds or schools.  Use your imagination and you’ll be surprised at what you come up with.

I have a fun project I started that keeps my brain from going to la-la-land.  

1)  Take a small box about 12”x12” (or a size that suits you), and write “Story Starters” on it.

2)  Get some baggies, a black marker, pen, and notebook paper.

3)  On one baggy write: “Character Names, another “Settings,” another “Emotions” and the last “Objects.”

4)  a)  Take your pen and paper and write as many “Character Names” you can think of.  Just make up names.  Get a phone book if you have trouble.  Fill up the whole page.   Now do the same with “Settings,” “Emotions,” and “Objects.”

     b)  Cut and fold each one and put them in their individual marked baggy.

     c)  Now draw a paper from each baggy.  You now have a “Story Starter.”

Here’s an example:

Character Name                   Setting                  Object                      Emotion

Baron Colmsby                    Concert                 Baby Girl                 Funny

I choose one piece of paper from each baggy and this is what I come up with.  My imagination is running wild.  I visualize Baron Colmsby at a musical concert.  Someone has brought a baby to the event.  Think of funny incidents regarding the Baron and the baby.  In fact, that would be a good title for the story - The Baron and the Baby.  Could make for a funny story.

You can make a baggy for anything.  How about:  “Story Titles,” “occupations,” “mannerisms,” to name a few.  That’s the fun of this project.  I even have a baggy with “phobias.”  Whatever phobia I pick from the bag, you can be sure that one of my characters has it.  It’s a blast!  There are tremendous possibilities, as well as a myriad of things to write about.  Keep it simple, or make it as elaborate as you want.

So you see there are potentials all around us.  All you need is your imagination and your senses.  So, in my opinion, unless you have no imagination, there’s no reason for “writer’s block!”

This article was originally publlshed at: 
http://lssarchives.homestead.com/WritersBlockNoSuchThing.html

Linda Barnett-Johnson is a Virtual Assistant for authors, and enjoys writing poetry, short stories, and making up quotes. You can locate her website here: www.lindabarnett-johnson.com She also posts new books, writing articles and author interviews on her blog:  http://lindabarnett-johnson.blogspot.com/

Had a Children’s Book Ghostwritten - Now What?

With a steady stream of ghosting clients, I am often asked what comes after the manuscript is written and edited.

Well, this depends on which publishing road you’ll be taking: self-publishing or traditional publishing.

Since the majority of my clients go the self-pubbing route, I’ll start there.

Self-Publishing a Children’s Picture Book

Some basic pages and copy in addition to the story.

1. You’ll need back cover copy. This is a brief synopsis of the story, usually 100-200 words. It needs to be ‘grabbing’ and ‘clear.’

2. It’s a good idea to have an About the Author or Author’s Note page at the end of the story. It’s definitely optional though.

3. A Copyright page – you can include acknowledgements on this page.

4. A Dedication / Acknowledgment page is a thought.

5. Some authors want a Preface page, but in most cases this isn’t necessary.

6. If you have words that may need to be defined for the young reader, you might include a Glossary right after the story. Most authors don’t bother with this.

7. Then there’s the Activity Page and Reading Comprehension Page. If you’re hoping to get your book into the classroom, this is a must.

Unless you’re creating your own pages, these items will usually be an additional fee.

Illustrations

Interior:

If you have a children’s picture book you’ll need to get illustrations done. This can be done one of two ways: 32 illustrations (one per page) or one illustration per spread (16 illustrations). This is based on a standard 32 page picture book.

Keep in mind that a full spread illustration (two pages - left and right sides) is usually considered two pages of illustrations.

Exterior:

The book cover is a BIGGIE. The cover is one of the most influential elements to motivate someone to pick up your book. You want it done right. Covers are more money than interior spreads.

You might also want to go for a small back cover illustration. This isn’t really necessary though. You can simply have a colored back cover with your synopsis on it. Possibly include an image of yourself (the author).

Pricing for illustrations vary. I recommend two illustrators to my clients: one charges $50-$60 per interior illustration and the other charges around $75-$100. There are others who charge $150 and up per interior illustration.

On the flip side, you can probably get illustrations cheaper through various services / illustrators. Just be sure the one you choose is capable of creating quality illustrations.

Again, cover illustrations are more.

Here are a three places you can look for illustrators:
https://www.upwork.com
https://fiverr.com
http://blueberryillustrations.com/childrens-book-illustrations/

You can also do a Google search.

So, you can see that self-publishing a children’s picture book can get pretty expensive.

Hot Tip: Unless you’re a professional illustrator, or really, really, really good, don’t attempt to do your own illustrations.

Checking the Illustrations and Illustrations to Text

Unless you hire someone to oversee this process, you will need to make sure there are no errors in the illustrations.

For the first part, you need to carefully review each illustration, including the cover and back cover (if you have an image on the back cover).

It can be something as simple as part of a foot missing, or a picture described in the story conveyed wrong in the illustration. These, among many others, were mistakes I found for one of my clients who hired me to oversee this process for him.

It can even be consistency, maybe how the characters look throughout the story or even the background scenery. In one project, the illustrator had molding in some illustrations and none in others where is should have been.

You’ll have to have a keen eye for this stuff, but getting it right is the difference between a good quality product and a poor quality product.

For the illustrations to text review, it’s the same. You want to make sure the illustration fits the text per spread. Most illustrators get this right, but I’ve come across a few who do make mistakes.

This is your book. You want it to be the best it can be. This means getting all the details right.

Time Frame

Having the book ghostwritten and illustrated can take around 3 months, possibly longer.

The Story

Using myself as an example, I usually take two-four weeks to write a children’s picture book manuscript of 800 – 3000 words (depends on what my clients want). I do mention in my freelance agreement that it can take up to six weeks.

It’s important to know that if you’re self-publishing your word count can be around 1000 words. If you’re going the traditional route, it’s a good idea to stay under 800 words.

Another factor in the time it takes to write the story is the time it takes the client to respond to questions and approvals of content. If a client takes more than a couple of days to respond to emails, the time frame will be thrown off.

The Illustrations

Getting the interior and exterior illustrations done can take one-two months, sometimes more. It will depend on the illustrator you use and his/her workload.

Getting the Book Published (ready for distribution / sale)

Depending on your budget, you can hire someone from a site like Fiverr.com to format and upload your book onto Kindle and/or other publishing venues.

Or, you can hire a service, like CreateSpace, Dog Ear Publishing, Golden Box Books, and Publishing Push to do it for you. This route will cost more money, but you’ll have all your “Is” dotted and “Ts” crossed.

For a great resource on publishing ebooks, check out:
https://janefriedman.com/how-to-publish-an-ebook/

Self-Publishing a Chapter or Simple Middle Grade Book

If you have a chapter or simple middle grade book ghosted, you’ll only need illustrations for each chapter. And, they can be simple grey tone sketches.

While it’s not an absolute must to have illustrations for these books, it does help with engagement for the young reader.

The Traditional Road

The traditional route will cost much less. All you’ll be paying for is the ghostwriter. You won’t need illustrations.

While it will cost less, it will certainly take a lot longer.

You’ll have to submit your manuscript to publishers and/or literary agents to hopefully get a contract. You’ll need a query letter for this. And, having a synopsis of the story is another must.

When and if a contract happens, it takes an average of two years before your book is actually published. So, patience will be needed.

And, be prepared for the publisher’s editor to go over your story and possibly request changes. This is just part of the process. Be open to suggestions.

I recommend you get the most recent edition of “Children’s Writer’s and Illustrator’s Market” by Writer’s Digest Books. This book provides information on publishers and agents in the children’s writing arena. These are the people you’ll be submitting your manuscript to.

I also recommend reading:

Children's Writing and Publishing - The Traditional Path


The Author Website

Before you publish your book, you absolutely need an author website. Publishers and agents will expect this. And, if you’re self-publishing it’s even more important.

According to Chuck Sambuchino of Writer’s Digest, in his book “Create Your Writer Platform,” an author’s platform (its visibility, connections, and reach) is a key factor when looking for a publisher or agent.

Take note that this is not after a book is published; it’s when the author is looking for a contract. Your platform begins with a website.

Summing it Up

So, there you have it, a basic run-down of what to expect and what you’ll need to do to get your manuscript published.

About the Author

Karen Cioffi is an award-winning author and children's ghostwriter. You can learn more about her at http://karencioffiwritingforchildren.com

NEED HELP WITH YOUR CHILDREN’S MANUSCRIPT / STORY?

Let Karen take a look at it. She's a working children’s ghostwriter and rewriter. She can turn your story into a publishable book that you'll be proud to be author of. Send her an email at: kcioffiventrice  @   gmail.com

Article originally published at: http://karencioffiwritingforchildren.com/2016/03/27/had-a-childrens-book-ghostwritten-now-what/


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