Create a Unique Opt-in Button Webinar

Writers on the Move finally has a new webinar scheduled for this month: Create a Unique Opt-in Button – Have it Link to Your Opt-in Landing Page.

It’s set for Friday, January 25, 2013, at 4PM EST (U.S.). It’ll be around 30 minutes, maybe less, so it won’t take much time out of your busy schedules. If you're on live and time allows, we learn some of PowerPoints button-making features together.

It's a clever little button that will make you look like a pro. You can use in your sidebar or anywhere else you can link a JPG. And, it's done with PowerPoint!

TO REGISTER GO TO: http://www.anymeeting.com/PIID=E952DE88884F3E

I’m hoping to record it. If you’re not registered you won’t have access to the replay.

The image above is a quickly made rough opt-in button. If the image had link capabilities I could link it to the landing page of my choice. It's pretty cool! The 'how to' information was courtesy of an article at HubSpot.com.

You can check out the complete details for the webinar at: http://www.writersonthemove.com/p/workshops.html

Hope to ‘see’ you there!

PLEASE SHARE THIS EVENT.

Karen Cioffi

Writing and Weather

Forget the April showers, May flowers and March coming in like a lion, because that's January's job.  Here in South Carolina, only 12 days in, we have had rain, freezing temperatures, warm balmy temperaturres and a few things in between.  I was watching the news the other night based out of Asheville, North Carolina, and they were mentioning the snow in California and the single digit temperatures in the Utah-Colorado-Wyoming-Montana areas. 

Our writing is somewhat like the weather - we have that perfect day where everything falls into place and the weather isn't too hot or too cold; we have those really cold days where we can't think of anything to write and then we have those really hot days where we are smokin' and accomplish a lot.

I've been a funk, like the weather, and haven't really been able to shake it and get back to writing anything, although I'm hoping that by the end of the month to have many new ideas for my middle grade/YA characters to make into a series.  I'd love for more of the balmy, perfect days of writing but for now, it's just not happening. 

Maybe I need a total getaway from everything and start over like my daughter did or maybe I just need to open a document and start writing again and forget about the perfect days, just do it.  Whatever it is I need to get back on track, I hope it shows up soon so that I can get more stories published. 

Hoping all your writing days are balmy and perfect and not the super cold or super hot days - see you all in the postings - E :)

Elysabeth Eldering
Elysabeth's blog
Elysabeth's website
JGDS series blog
JGDS series website

Guest Post: The Challenges of Writing and Illustrating A Book with JD Holiday

The Challenges of Writing and Illustrating A Book

OR

The BRIEF Challenges of Writing and Illustrating A Book

By: J.D. Holiday

  

I found the challenges of being both the author and illustrator was only in the beginning. I self published after many years of trying to get published the traditional way. Though doing my own artwork was not something I found easy. I wrote for twenty-five years without doing the illustrations for two reasons. 

The first was traditional publishers told authors in those days, and still tell them if authors do their own illustrations, they, the publishers, might not want the book. Publishers reasoned they might like the stories but not the pictures which would make them reject the book entirely. 

Secondly, I didn’t feel confident enough to do my own art work because to that date, I had painted for fun and enjoyment.

It did take me some time to get to the point in a painting I was doing where I felt the painting was heading in the right direction and it took me a while working with digital art programs to do whole painting that way. I use to just use my paint programs for touch ups on my drawings and paintings. 

Now, my being the author and the illustrator is actually helpful in putting the story together. Doing both allows me to easily move back and forth between the story and the pictures. I can easily revise the storyline and the paintings to match. Once I let myself go and commit to doing the artwork myself, being both the author and illustrator became an asset.

Since I am the artist, too, I don‘t have to worry who will do the drawings and paintings for my books. Nor will I have to split the money made on the sales of my books with someone else. And I also have the satisfaction that comes from doing it all and having a good product.

About the Author: 

J.D. Holiday is the author and illustrator of four children's books. Picture books: JANOOSE THE GOOSE, THE SPY GAME, and Matt Shelley's Halloween Misadventure with Award-winning author, Christy Condoleo, and the chapter book for 6 to 8 year olds, THE GREAT SNOWBALL ESCAPADE. J.D. Holiday is a co-host on It's Story Time, Gather 'Round with Christy Condoleo on Blog Talk Radio's World Of Ink Network:

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/worldofinknetwork

You can find out more about J.D. Holiday, her books and World of Ink Author/Book Tour at http://tinyurl.com/bzwlprd

Follow J.D. Holiday at

The Book Garden http://www.thebookgarden.net

J.D’s Writers Blog http://jdswritersblog.blogspot.com/

Twitter: @JDHoliday

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JDspage

Facebook Fan: www.facebook.com/BooksByJDHoliday

Publisher Website: http://www.thebookgarden.net

 

What happens when you end up with a dog you don’t want and only stares?

About the Book:

Eddie would love to have a puppy to play with. A puppy would pull on a rope. Catch a ball and lick your face. But his Uncle brings Eddie an older dog named after a famous spy. What can you do with an old dog? It probably couldn't learn new tricks and the only thing this dog did was stare. It's what they find to do together that makes them the best of

friends!

Publisher: Book Garden Publisher, LLC

ISBN: 978-0-98186-144-9

Publication Date: August 2012

Places available for sale: Amazon, B&N

Kindle Select - What Works, and What Doesn't (a follow on post)

Last month I ran two Kindle Select giveaways.  The first was for a copy of the Christmas poetry chapbook Blooming Red that I co-authored with Carolyn Howard-Johnson, and the second was for my novel Black Cow.  When I blogged about these last month I promised an update with the results of this and here it is.  Here are a few things I learned the hard way:

1.  Promote EARLY. There are a ton of sites that feature free e-books and all of them have unique subscribers who want nothing more than to download your book, but most of them require you to submit your book at least 2 weeks prior to the free day. If you wait until the day your book is free then you'll miss out on a lot of opportunities to get the word out to new readers.

2.  Make sure that your Kindle book is perfect.  When I converted Black Cow to Kindle format, a lot of strange typographical issues crept in.  For example, about 25% of my L's disappeared, leaving me with words like four for flour and fat for flat. I did check formatting but didn't do another proofread after conversion which meant that the fantastic results - nearly 2,000 downloads that I got for Black Cow - were, to a certain extent, wasted because all of those downloaded books were typo ridden.  I was able to get Amazon to agree to send out a link for all of those who downloaded the book to re-download a perfected copy, but it will take them another 2 weeks to get to that (if you've got one of the l-less books, a cleaned-up copy should be with you soon - sorry!).  When you're getting your work into so many new hands, it's important that this be your best work. Anything less is not only a lost opportunity, but can impact on your reputation.

3.  Be prepared to get a few negative reviews (especially if you don't do #2).  If 2,000+ new people are downloading your book, your book is bound to get into the hands of a few non-ideal readers.  Take it on the chin and keep smiling.  Not everyone will like your book and not everyone is your target market.  That's just part of the game.

Overall, both books sold copies in the days immediately following the free days.  That alone was worth it, as was the opportunity to get the word out and attract a number of new readers.  So I'm definitely planning to do it again.  In fact, Carolyn and I are having another go with our book of unconventional love poetry Cherished Pulse in time for Valentine's Day. All you do is go to on Jan 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15^th and click.  This time, we've followed all 3 points above.  

Magdalena Ball runs The Compulsive Reader. She is the author of the poetry books Repulsion Thrust and Quark Soup, the novels Black Cow and Sleep Before Evening, a nonfiction book The Art of Assessment, and, in collaboration with Carolyn Howard-Johnson, Deeper Into the Pond, Blooming Red, Cherished Pulse, She Wore Emerald Then, and Imagining the Future. She also runs a radio show, The Compulsive Reader Talks. Find out more about Magdalena at http://www.magdalenaball.com.

Planning Your Story: Part 2 Big Plot Moments

Planning Your Story: Part 2 Big Plot Moments

Last month I talked about answering questions in order to establish the PREMISE of your new story. Without knowing WHERE you are headed, you might not ever get there.

Today, I want to discuss how to establish your BIG PLOT MOMENTS.

Think hard about what the major events in your story MIGHT be—remember none of this is set in stone and can and will change as you write. This is a GUIDE to get you started. So, what is the first big thing your protagonist will face? What will happen then? And next? And so on.

Once you have this list of BIG MOMENTS, list 2 complications for each of those moments.  Beneath each complication, describe how this will affect your character.

Here’s how I handled this task:

BIG PLOT MOMENT

Rayna meets her twin at Summer Festival but doesn’t know it.

And then?

1.      She is seen talking with a red-haired girl by the antag who uses this as ammo

2.      Rayna begins to question who she is because they look so much alike

Now, obviously I had more than one big moment, but if I gave them all away here, you wouldn’t need to read my book. I think you can get the idea from this example.

So what?

1.      Rayna becomes the object of the bully/antag

2.      Rayna questions who her parents were, why she has red hair and they don’t, why is it taboo

As I hope you can see, by doing this exercise for EACH of your BIG MOMENTS in the story, you will begin to see it unfold and blossom like a summer rose.

Next month, setting the scenes.

Thanks to K.M. Weiland’s Outlining Your Novel

Rebecca Ryals Russell, a fourth-generation Floridian, was born in Gainesville, grew up in Ft Lauderdale then lived in Orlando and Jacksonville with her Irish husband and four children. Due to the sudden death of Rebecca's mother, they moved to Wellborn, near Lake City, to care for her father, moving into his Victorian home built in 1909. After teaching Middle Graders for fourteen years she retired and began writing the story idea which had been brewing for thirty years.  Within six months she wrote the first three books of each series, YA Seraphym Wars and MG Stardust Warriors. The world she created has generated numerous other story ideas including two current works in progress, SageBorn Chronicles based on various mythologies of the world and aimed at the lower Middle Grade reader and Saving Innocence, another MG series set on Dracwald and involving dragons and Majikals. She is finishing a YA Dystopian Romance which has been a NaNoWriMo project for three years. She loves reading YA Fantasy, Horror and Sci Fi as well as watching movies.  Read more about Rebecca and her WIPs as well as how to buy books in her various series at http://rryalsrussell.com  You may email her at vigorios7@gmail.com

Scaling the Marketing Ladder in One Fell Swoop

Scaling the Marketing Ladder in One Fell Swoop

Guest Post by Holly Weiss

People waste a lot of time trying to decide what marketing strategy works. Are you trying to get your opinions, writing skills, or articles noticed? Do you spend hours a day reading advice from well-meaning experts on how to drive traffic to your blog? Don't waste your energy on what others tell you to do. Self-marketing begins with—that's right—you. Down deep, you know your own best marketing tactics. Find your talent and put it out in front of the public—consistently.

Here's what you do.

•    Pick one marketing skill you are good at.
•    Discipline yourself to do it on a regular basis.
•    Plug away at it for six months before expecting big results.

Simple? Yes. Easy? No. Effective? You bet.

Let's say you want to increase traffic to your website. The standard advice usually goes like this. Write a blog and ask everyone on your twelve social networks to read it and write comments. Would you have the time or patience to do that in return, even for a good friend? Other tired advice includes—watch this webinar, download a transcript for that interview, and read ten newsletters a week. Who has time for that?

When I was young and trying to gain some financial wisdom, I buried my nose in the stock pages of the newspaper. One day my uncle gently took the newspaper away from me and said, "Learn just one thing each day. But do it every day." I did it. Guess what? I'm pretty financially savvy.

Tired of scrambling all over advice blogs and posting empty responses on social networks just to get noticed? Try this plan.

•    Find out what interests you and what you are good at.
•    Make sure it fulfills you.
•    Do it consistently.

We only have so much energy. Don't spend hours a day with a scattered brain seeking the best marketing tool out there. Look inside yourself. Feed your purpose with your passion. Not only will you ultimately gain Internet recognition and website traffic, you will be a happier, more productive person.

~~~~~

Author Holly Weiss (www.hollyweiss.com) released her award winning historical fiction debut, Crestmont, in 2010. One voice led to another when she transitioned from professional singing to writing. Her literary experience and love of reading have turned her into a cutting-edge reviewer of books. In addition to reviewing for Feathered Quill Book Reviews, she reports on pre-release books for The Book of the Month Club, and is a featured writer at EzineArticles.com. Weiss is a vocal instructor and member of the National Association of Teachers of Singing. She holds an MM from Northwestern University. A polio survivor, Weiss is an advocate for Eradicate Polio Now.

~~~~~
MORE ON ONLINE MARKETING

KDP Select – Good Marketing or Gimmick?
Do You Really Need an Author Website?
Social Networking the Linkedin Way

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To keep up with writing and marketing information, along with Free webinars, join us in The Writing World (top right top sidebar).

Query Letters: An Essential Writing Skill For Now and the Future

As I was working with my husband on the promotion for his book What Foreigners Need to Know About America From A To Z (http://amzn.to/ForeignersAmericaUS) I realized how much I’d forgotten about my American history, but it also made me aware I should be reminding you all of the format to use for your query letters.

I noticed that many authors believe query letters are only necessary when they're trying to interest an agent or publisher, but learning to write and edit an effective one is a skill that you will continue to use all during the marketing campaign or your book--and the one after that.

Query letters are the introductory letters you use for every kind of request you make. When you request a review of your book. When you ask to partner with a retailer for and event, workshop, or book signing. When you pitch a feature story to an editor of your local newspaper. Or guest spot on a radio station. The list is endless.

Yep, it may be time to review the section on writing and editing query letters (page 27 in your paperback edition) in The Frugal Editor (http://budurl.com/TheFrugalEditor). It starts on page 27 of your paperback edition.

It includes query letter pet peeves direct from the mouths of famous agents and sample letters in the Appendix like avoiding making judgements of your own work. For agents "awesome" is a four-letter word!

If you have The Frugal Book Promoter (http://budurl.com/FrugalBkPromo), jump back to the Index and look up “query letters” to learn everything you’ll need to know about them.

Here's tip number one to get you started. A query letter asks something of the person it's addressed to. Don't avoid that question. Nike says "just do it." The query letter rule is "just ask." Your contact needs to know what you want from them. They may wear more than one hat, but in any case, you'll want to be clear just because that's what professionals aim for.

-----
Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of This Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of poetry; and how to books for writers including the award-winning second edition of, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher; The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success; and Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers . The Great First Impression Book Proposal is her newest booklet for writers. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog where authors can recycle their favorite reviews. She also blogs at all things editing, grammar, formatting and more at The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor .