Archive for publishing coach
Find Your Best Publishing Path
Posted by: | CommentsAs I was thinking through the most valuable things I could give you as “your book publishing coach,” what hit me was that the most important thing you need to know is which of the three publishing paths is right for you.
What, you don’t know what the three publishing paths even are?
Don’t feel bad, few do. Until recently, there weren’t really more than one publishing path.
But as you know if you’ve been reading me at all, things in publishing have changed tremendously.
Now there are three pretty distinct paths of publishing, and if you don’t know what they are and which one you’re on, Read More→
Cutting Edge Author Promotion Strategies Revealed
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I am so excited about the next Great Author Promotions teleseminar!
My guest will be Noah St. John, author of The Secret Code of Success, the book published by Harper Business books that got him a six-figure advance.
Noah is a pioneer in what I call “New Era Publishing” strategies, and tomorrow he is going to reveal what he’s done in two specific areas: the media, and building a community.
I will also reveal some tidbits about what I’ve been learning about what big publishers are looking for now, from my ongoing dialog about one of my client’s books.
Learn too what Noah is doing to try to get on the Oprah Winfrey show–and how you can participate.
And of course, ask your question! If we have time, we’ll get to it.
http://www.greatauthorpromotions.com
Update on Membership Sites–A Way to Protect Your Intellectual Property
Posted by: | CommentsRecently, I wrote a Publishing Coach Weekly article about membership sites. If you think your content is valuable enough (and there’s enough of it) for people to pay for access on a monthly basis, please read this article for what to consider. It’s a bit long, but it does coach you through what to think about in terms of membership sites–pros and cons.
One of the resources I review is Wishlist Member. I’ve been doing more investigating into this means of making a WordPress blog a membership site, and the more I learn, the more impressed I am.
There is tremendous flexibility, it’s easy to use, and most of all, it solves a HUGE issue for those of us who are trying to be paid for the information we provide.
Namely, Read More→
Email Overload & New Era Publishing Strategies: Publishing Coach Weekly Replay Ready
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Listen to the latest Publishing Coach Weekly teleseminar replay to find out how many emails I had in my inbox (before I started using Randy’s book, Taming the Email Beast), how to conquer YOUR email overload, and what common practice brings your IQ down by 10 points–that’s part 1.
Part 2 reveals the fascinating (and encouraging) story of how Randy got published, how his amazon campaign went for the launch of his book, the “new era publishing” strategies that are working for him, and more.
http://www.wordstoprofit.com/tamingemailbeast.html
Free Coaching Session on Membershp Sites–One Way to Be Well Paid for What You Know
Posted by: | CommentsIf you’ve heard the buzz about membership sites and wondered whether it’s right for you, read my latest Publishing Coach Weekly article.
It started off as a simple article on the pros and cons of membership sites, but ended up as, essentially, a whole coaching session on how to decide if it’s the best way for you to be “well paid for what you know.”
So I invite you to read “Membership Sites: One Way to Be Well Paid for What You Know” and learn how to make a membership site work for you.
I’ve included 5 action steps, which essentially become your coaching session for the week.
You know I’m always looking to help you be both well heard and well paid for what you know, and this is one very good way to make sure the latter happens. This mini coaching session will help you think through what’s involved, and whether it’s right for you.
Marketing Your Idea–”What’s the Most Cost-Effective Way to Develop a Global Audience?”
Posted by: | Comments“What is the most cost effective way to develop a global audience?” Star asked. (To ask your question about writing, publishing, or promoting your book or information product, go here.)
Aside from taking the “Develop Your Audience” class (which you can still do, it’s all recorded–hint hint <g>), the best way is to start a blog and then point to that through the MPOW technique, developed by Internet marketing expert, Bonnie Dillabough. (Bonnie’s techniques snag more than a quarter of a million hits on her Yaktivate.com podcasting network–per month You can attend her Internet marketing classes for free on Saturdays; details here.)
MPOW stands for
Who Might Steal Your Idea?
Posted by: | Comments“How do I protect my book idea from being stolen?” is a question I’m often asked.
My answer is usually two-fold.
First, once you have your words down on paper, you are protected by copyright law. So if you sent me (or a literary agent or an editor) your manuscript, you are already protected from anyone stealing your idea. If someone put out your exact words with their name on it, you’d have a pretty strong case for their plagiarizing your work.
However, remember that copyright law protects only your expression–the exact words-not the ideas. (Note too: You cannot copyright book titles. So someone can use your exact book title.)
Second, you have to realize that people you would send your book to–a publishing coach like me, or an agent, or an editor at a publishing house–have no reason to steal your ideas. We are way too busy doing our work (if we’re reputable, and most of us are), to take your work and run with it–especially if you’ve already developed it and are known somewhat for your idea. (There’s that platform thing again. If you already have a following around your idea, how on earth could I or someone else compete? Why would we want to?)
Also, we do have our reputations to protect. What’s in it for us if we take your idea?
Seth Godin, in his recent blog post, makes another excellent point. Book publishing is an industry based on buying ideas. “A company that likes buying ideas has a process,” Seth says. “They make it relatively straightforward and they have no upside in stealing from you. A company that isn’t in that business puts up barriers. They troll around trade shows looking for ideas to take.” (Seth adds that he doesn’t think there’s anything wrong with that, legally or morally.)
The people who might steal your ideas are not those in publishing, but people in your own industry. If your idea is complicated, patent it, Seth says. If it’s simple enough to dream up in a week, Seth says “the only way you’re going to protect it is to build it, fast and well.”
That is, develop it, get it out there to your following (through ezine articles, blog posts, or podcasts, for example), and get known for it. Then you can organize it into a book format you can publish (either by convincing a traditional publisher to publish you, or by self-publishing).
