“How do you find a publishing company you can trust?”

“How do I choose the right publishing company to professionally edit, print and market my novel? There are many scams out there and I don’t know who to choose. Who is legit?”

These are a few of the questions submitted for the recent Virtual Book Tour I did with Mark Levine on self-publishing and how to choose a good self-publishing company. (Ask your question or listen to the replay.)

Happily, I have an answer!

First, any of the companies on Mark’s “Outstanding” or “Pretty Good” list in The Fine Print of Self-Publishing: The Contracts & Services of 45 Self-Publishing Companies–Analyzed, Ranked and Exposed are solid choices.

However, there is one company that is not reviewed in this book, but merits your serious consideration if you’re thinking of self-publishing.

After Mark did his research and published The Fine Print of Self-Publishing, his company, Click Industries, decided to invest in a company that agreed to do self-publishing the way Mark believed they should be done. Mill City Press is not reviewed in The Fine Print of Self-Publishing (which marks the book a genuine reference book rather than blatant self-promotion), but I want you to know about them.

Their package is very affordable. (Note especially that they give you at-cost printing–one of the areas other self-publishers often mark up).

They offer extras at very reasonable rates, such as marketing and editing.

They even offer a free book marketing strategy session.

Overall, this is one of the best self-publishing companies I’ve come across. Since it’s not explicitly covered in The Fine Print of Self-Publishing, I definitely want you to know about it. Check it out.

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We had a lot of great questions and Mark shared a lot of important information.

Here are just a few of the questions he answered:

• “What exactly do we mean by self-publishing and self-publishing companies?”
• “How is a self-publishing company such as you analyze in your book different from a ‘vanity publisher’-or

is there not always a difference?” (Mark’s answer to this was very eye-opening to me.)

• “How does self-publishing compare with traditional way in terms of rights, services, quality of the finished book, and distribution?
• “What are the biggest mistakes authors make specifically when they choose a self-publishing company?”
• “How do I get the most exposure for my book while keeping all rights and making a decent profit?”

Listen to the replay here.

If you have a question of your own, you may still ask it.

On the audio, Mark reveals how you can not only get your question answered, but also how to get a 60-minute consultation with him. (Anyone else, who doesn’t listen to this audio, only gets a 30-minute consultation. Still generous, but you’re special!)

So … give a listen to the audio, and be ready to take notes! Mark covered a lot of ground.

You’ll also want to check out the resources at Mark’s site.

When you get in touch with Mark, make sure that you mention you came from the VBT. Again, that gives you a bit of extra special treatment.

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That’s because my site was hacked again, and I had to have that fixed and then upgrade to the latest version of WordPress.

I don’t know what I would have done without Cathy Perkins, “the WordPress Wizard,” to help me. One of her weekly teleseminars gave us a “preflight checklist” to go through before upgrading. I followed that, but neglected one significant kind of backup and my header got messed up. Cathy helped me get it back, as you can see.

Cathy does blog audits to show you how to optimize your blog, weekly free teleseminars that are extremely useful (two of my friends thanked me profusely for telling them about this resource), and she’s about to start a new course on “Blogging with WordPress in a Web 2.0 World.”

If you want to get the most out of your blog, I highly recommend you take this course. I’m going to–can’t wait!

Check it out now, because the first 24 people get $100 off, and I just heard, it’s filling up.

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Click here to get right to the webcast page with call-in information. It starts at 8 pm Eastern/7pm Central/5 pm Pacific.

One question I thought I’d answer here, because it applies not just to self-publishing but to any author, came from Pam.

Pam’s question:

“I have an endorsement for my book from the former Mike Huckabee, should this go on the front or the back? I’m almost ready to go to print, then [your email about the Virtual Book Tour] came!

My answer:

You want to use the most powerful endorsement you can on the front cover. Certainly Mike Huckabee is a powerful name (kudos to you for getting his endorsement!). I’m assuming that his endorsement is glowing, and that it actually fits your book and audience and is believable to your audience.

I’m convinced that one of the biggest reasons that The Shack did so well–and it’s a self-published book–is

the endorsement from Eugene Peterson. Many people in the Christian community have huge respect for Peterson as an fine author in his own right (he wrote the Bible paraphrase called The Message and numerous other works) and Christian thinker.

His endorsement on the cover of William P. Young’s The Shack reads,”This book has the potential to do for our generation what John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress did for his. It’s that good!” This endorsement got me, and many others, to read the book. Then, because the book really is “that good,” (at least to a lot of people), it took off via word of mouth.

Powerful endorsements can not only sell books, but can help you attract a traditional publisher. It sounds like Pam is ready to go to print, and I assume she’s self-publishing, but Huckabee’s endorsement could possibly help her land a “traditional” publisher (depending on other factors, of course).

When I was looking for a publisher to reprint my book, Abundant Gifts, having an endorsement from Jan Karon helped me land two offers from publishers. Jan had written in her newsletter, “God speaks to me through Diane’s pen.” Even though she would not let me put the endorsement on the book because of her standing policy about endorsements (”it opens the floodgates,” she told me), it was okay with her for me to quote her newsletter. That was enough of an endorsement that the publishers wanted to publish me.

Endorsements do sell books. Do whatever you can to get the best, and yes, put the strongest on the cover, and others on the back cover.

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You can ask your question and sign up here.

One of the most-asked questions was, “What are the biggest mistakes authors make when self-publishing?”

I answered that in my recent article. (There are five to avoid.)

Some of the other questions we will answer tomorrow night include:

• What exactly is self-publishing, and what can I expect from a self-publishing company?
• How much does it cost to self-publish (and how can I be sure I won’t get ripped off)?
• What kind of distribution does a self-published book get? (I.e., will the book show up on a Barnes & Noble bookshelf?)
• How do you distinguish the best self publishing companies

If these are your questions, sign up for the call!

If you have another question you would like to see Mark Levine answer, now is the time to ask it.

You’ll get all the details, plus “The Author’s Bill of Rights” and Mark’s PowerPoint on “Why Self-Publish?” when you sign up.

If you can’t make the live call, you will get the replay link–if you sign up!

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His recent post affirms that as his motivation. He writes, “I smiled a bit when I saw a few posts from people who suggested I started the Triiibe group as some sort of grand scheme to sell books. I’ve gotta tell you, there are far easier ways to sell a few thousand copies of a book than to build and run an online community.

“No, people (most people) don’t do things only for money….”

Seth, I agree! (Even though my earlier post might have implied you were starting TriIibes to sell books.) Most authors don’t write a book only for the money, because frankly, most authors don’t get a lot of money from their books (at least, not directly. As I mention in my Special Report, “14 Ways a Book Will Boost Your Business,” there are lots of indirect ways a book can increase your revenue stream.)

What authors do get from publishing a book is

the opportunity to share their unique vision, their specific knowledge, their hard-won lessons with the world, to better other people’s lives. They get the honor and prestige of having pushed through all the obstacles to actually write and publish a book.

Some polls indicate that as many as 82 percent of people say they have a book in them. Most get no further than that.

Others do. According to Susan Driscoll and Diane Gedymin in Get Published!, some 14 million adult Americans engage in some form of creative writing in a year. Finished manuscripts for an estimated 8 million novels and 17 million how-to books are lying in desk drawers all over the country, waiting to be published.

Those who actually get published have made it through “the Dip” that Seth Godin talks about in another of his books, and are worthy of the prestige awarded to authors.

Influence, and the honor of being an author (”authority”) on a subject, are the real payoffs for us authors. And truly, these things have more power to motivate than money.

(Agree or disagree? Please share your comment!)

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In my recent interview with Mark Levine, author of The Fine Print of Self-Publishing: The Contracts & Services of 45 Self-Publishing Companies–Analyzed, Ranked and Exposed, we discussed 5 mistakes authors often make that can cost them lots of money, not to mention time and frustration.

I thought I’d write it up in a new article on mistakes to avoid when self-publishing.

Actually, only Mistake #4 is unique to self-publishing. The other 4 mistakes are made by most authors, no matter what publishing path they seek.

Read the article, and feel free to come back and comment here. I’m very interested in hearing your publishing experience … positive or negative … with a self-publisher or “traditional” publisher. Thanks in advance!

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I am doing this for Mark Levine simply because I believe his book is extremely important for anyone who has ever considered self-publishing.

And nowadays, that might be most anyone.

Self-publishing is often THE only way to get a book out there–at least if it’s your first book.

The stigma against self-published books is slowly disappearing.

In fact, traditional or commercial publishers are increasingly looking to successfully self-published books in their search for books THEY want to publish.

So, self-publishing is a serious option for many authors, for many reasons.

That’s why I encourage you to attend the upcoming Virtual Book Tour with Mark Levine, author of The Fine Print of Self-Publishing , next Tuesday at 8 p.m. Eastern, 5 p.m. Pacific.

This book is soon to be released in its Third Edition, and this edition is the best yet.

Plus, when you sign up, you’ll get a copy of both “The Author’s Bill of Rights” AND the PowerPoint presentation on “Why Self-Publish?”

Even if you can’t attend at the time, sign up anyway to get your bonuses and you’ll get the link for the replay.

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wanting to learn how to successfully market your book and/or other information online …

confused and suspicious of all the so-called gurus out there and wondreing whom to trust …

read on for one of the HANDFUL of people and courses I can recommend without reservation.

What You Really Need is

a Tested System

You’ve heard me quote MIchael Cader many times, that the Internet is the ideal medium for us authors to “connect with our customers, share our information, allow us to develop deep, targeted, meaningful, individual relationships, and sell our products with less friction all at the same time.”

However, there is a SYSTEM for doing all this effectively.

And as I’ve studied the various gurus (and as you no doubt know, there are MANY), I’ve narrowed it down to a handful who are worth listening to.

The ones who are worth listening to all teach a SYSTEM, and they teach you the WHOLE system. (The ones who only want your money teach you bits and pieces, yet charge for them. You’re left with too much information and nothing usable.)

One of my personal mentors teaches such a system, in about the clearest terms possible. His name is Jimmy D. Brown.

Jimmy is about to start his 4-week e-coaching course on Monday, August 11, in which he will personally mentor you over the next 4 weeks in his system for creating a six-figure income in only 3 hours a day.

Why I Recommend Jimmy without Reservation

I’ve taken this course (and many others), and I can vouch that it’s superb. (Remember, I only recommend things I’ve personally taken and have benefited from.)

Jimmy’s courses (along with Alex Mandossians’) have been my prime reasons for success online. Jimmy is a superb teacher who has a gift for making things very simple (not simplistic) and doable.

This particular course–Six-Figure Formula 4-Week E-Coaching–cuts through all the “information overload.” In fact, since I took Jimmy’s course, I have been able to ignore most of the emails about Internet marketing I receive. Jimmy taught me just what to pay attention to, when, and how. His course gave me the steps I need, and I can confidently ignore most of the pitches that stuff my email inbox.

In fact, Jimmy taught me exactly how to assess any pitch that comes my way!

Now you have the opportunity for Jimmy D. Brown to personally mentor you, as he did me. (Where do you think I got the idea for creating a mini-course?) His System is something I go back to again and again. It’s amazing what you’ll learn in 4 short weeks!

Check it out now.

Because you get personal coaching from Jimmy, he limits the number to 50. He has a huge list, and registration fills up fast. That’s why I dropped everything to tell you about this now. Plus it’s the last time he’ll be teaching it this year.

Please consider taking this course. If it’s right for you, you will not be sorry. (And you do get a chance to get your money back.)

As I said, Jimmy D. Brown’s teaching comes with my highest recommendation. If you can afford this, do seriously consider it. This is the last time Jimmy will be teaching this course this year.

If this is beyond your budget for now, here are some other courses of his I recommend that will get you on the right track for less. (Scroll down to the bottom of the page where it says, “Also recommended.”)

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A tribe, according to Godin, is “a group of people aligned around an idea, connected to a leader and to each other.”

Creating tribes is a natural for an author. It’s about more than selling books. It’s about creating community. What you want is for people to “come into your world,” to connect to you and each other around the ideas in your book.

Michael Masterson, of Early to Rise, is doing something a bit different but similar with a new newsletter he’s starting. It’s just for people who have been following him for a while, who are familiar with the concepts from his books and training, and who want to go to “the next level” with him. It’s not clear to me yet whether he’s planning to develop a “tribe” around him, or if it’s more of an “inner circle” kind of thing. But once you have an “inner circle,” inviting them into a “tribe” would be a natural next step.

Another Internet marketing innovator, Mark Joyner, also has a variation with his Integration Marketing Deal Board. (By the way, he’s also offering his Integration Marketing book for free–a year before it’s out as a printed book in bookstores. Another bold experiment.)

In Seth Godin’s case, you get into his tribe by invitation only. And your “ticket” to receiving your invitation is to order the book (Tribes). Three months before publication.

I bought it. Just in time to get into the “tribe.” And you know what? I’m really excited about it!

Check these things out. Think: How can you get people into your own “tribe”? (Let me know–post your comments here for some free publicity!)

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