Friday's Odds and Ends

Another week has flown by, and I keep wondering where the time went. I remember when my grandmother told me how the days and weeks and months seem to shrink as you get older, I didn't believe her. But then, I was just a 12-year-old girl. Days were endless to me then, and I was sure they would always be.

Now I have to often remind myself to stop. Enjoy this moment. Make this moment count. This morning there was another spectacular sunrise. As I was walking with my dog, I stopped and admired the cloud formations, some looking like wisps of cotton pulled so thin the color of the sky could be seen through the threads. Colors that ranged from a deep orange to a light yellow, blending into a pale blue.

Beautiful.

Of course, I did not have my camera. But I do have a picture I took last year that I can share. We do have beautiful sunrises and sunsets here in Texas.

How many of you cheered when news of the settlement between Congress and President Obama was announced? I didn't cheer. I just said, "It's about damn time." Throughout this prolonged mess, all I could think of was two junkyard dogs facing off to protect their part of the domain.

Sad, and enough said.

On Monday I said I would report today on how the book promotion went, offering Boxes For Beds free for a few days. I'm going to put that off until next Friday so I can include some information from a couple of other authors on how their promotional events have worked. I found out that Stacy Juba had a special this past week also, and she has agreed to share some of her results with us.  I first met Stacy when she invited me to write an essay for her book, 25 Years in the Rearview Mirror, a collection of stories from a number of authors looking back to 1985. Stacy is a terrific writer and a great supporter of other authors, and I am looking forward to hearing how her promotional efforts went. She is so good at marketing, too.

 It's been a while since I shared a Literary Lesson, and I thought this one appropriate considering the mess our government is in. This is the Stage Manager in Thornton Wilder's play "Our Town" speaking. The play was written in 1938, but not much has changed.

"Whenever you come near the human race, there's layers and layers of nonsense."

And lets finish with a joke. Can't end on a downer:

What did the math book say to the other math book? 
Boy do I have problems.

Book signings can be fun

The business part of my trip was almost as much fun as the personal part. It is always great to meet new bookstore staff and spend time sharing what kinds of books we like to read and why. Sometimes I am even tempted to buy a book the staff recommends and expand my reading habits.

At The Book Rack in Moline, IL, I had a chance to visit with some customers who enjoy mysteries and had a pleasant afternoon. The store specializes in used books and only carries a few new ones. It works much like Half-Price Books and is a good way to recycle paperbacks when you run out of room on your bookshelves.

Our daughter, Dany, took her role as my assistant seriously and helped get tables set up at each store. She also took books and flyers to other stores in the strip mall in Moline, to generate some interest in my appearance. She talked one man who was putting up a sign for a new business into coming in to buy a book.

In Cadillac, MI at Horizon Books, the staff welcomed me for my third visit to the store and were very gracious. I got a complimentary scone and coffee from their coffee shop, and both were delicious. The store is very busy on Saturdays, so I got to meet a lot of people. One lady bought one of my books, then told me about a book she had just read that she loved. Copies happened to be on the table right next to mine, so she handed me one. The title is Thrift Store Saints, Meeting Jesus 25c at a Time, and was written by Jane Knuth, who had spent years working at a St. Vincent de Paul thrift store in Kalamazoo MI.

I bought the book for several reasons. First because the writing was engaging.  Second because I thought it would be a nice gift for my husband, who had spend a number of years working in a St. Vincent de Paul thrift store in Omaha NE. And lastly because it was published by Loyola Press, a Jesuit Ministry. I have a special affinity for the Jesuits and anything they endorse is good for me.

In Ann Arbor, MI, I got to visit Aunt Agatha's Mystery Bookstore. I had heard about the store for a long time and always wanted to visit. Who wouldn't want to see a store that shares a name with the awesome Agatha Christie. I didn't have an event scheduled there, but, Jamie, one of the owners, had ordered some copies of my book for me to stop by and sign. That's called a drive-by signing, which is much nicer than the other kind of drive-by's we read about.

The next stop was in Bloomington, IN at Howard's Books, located in the square around the Monroe County Courthouse. It was a slow night at the store the Thursday I was there, but we had fun meeting the cats. There is something about bookstores and cats. I know a number of store owners who have cats that wander freely at the stores, and some cats even live there.

Joie Canada, the owner of Howard's, said that since cats don't like to be moved from place to place, her cats stay at the store. People stopped in that night just to visit the cats, and I wasn't sure if I should be insulted, or just join in the fun.

There was Merlin, above, who Joie guessed was about 22 years old, and Lulu, who is much younger. Lulu was quite fascinated with my books and then she discovered the kitty that travels with me to every signing event. Lulu decided that the kitty would be good to eat, and even tried to get it out of my bag when I put it away.

There were no cats at Davis-Kidd Bookstores in Memphis, but I enjoyed meeting the staff there when I did another drive-by signing. The girls who assisted me were very gracious, and if I closed my eyes I could pretend I was Sue Grafton being given the royal treatment. No, wait, there would have been a line a mile long to meet her.

But, I have never measured the success of events by the number of books sold. Good thing, too, says my husband who reminds me that I never come out ahead when you figure all the expense of a book tour. What makes it a success for me is meeting new readers and new store owners and staff, which down the road may lead to more sales. 

As expected, I did come home with a lot of books that I had purchased, but my husband didn't complain too much since most of them were for him.

Where to Find Me Today

Well, one place is here in my office, except when I go to the art center this afternoon to put the set back together for "Scrooge."

The other place is at Louise Wise's blog "Wise Words." This is a terrific site for authors to share a bit about themselves and their books, and she was kind enough to do an interview with me that is posted today.

Louise also interviews publishers and is involved in other promotional endeavors. Her latest is: Authors On Show (AOS) is a website for writers and readers - anyone with a love of books. It promotes writers and offers advice: book reviews, author features and interviews.

The new site is also fun for readers who can come and meet new authors and promote blogs about books. One of the things I have always enjoyed about being interviewed on blogs such as "Wise Words" is that I get to meet people who love books as much as I do. And I have found new authors to read.

So, without further ado, here is the link to my interview   Stop by for a visit if you get a chance.

I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles

The buzz in publishing is all about marketing, branding, establishing a platform and promoting. It's enough to make a writer's head spin.

Thankfully, there are a lot of resources to help us as we try to navigate our way through an area we are not familiar with, nor particularly comfortable in. Just like there are reasons that only younger women have babies, there are reasons that writers should write and marketers should market.

Since that is not the case, we have to do as much as we can, when we can, and learn from people who are doing it successfully.

Just a few of the helpful resources that can be found Online are: Writer's Write.com -- Book Promotion.com -- PumpUpYourBook.com Help with virtual book tours can be found at BlogBookTours.com

For everything you could ever want to know about promoting books, just do a Google search for "book promotions". More sites will pop up than you can look at in one day.

One of the things that I have learned by reading and listening to marketing experts is that the hard sell does not work. I thought I was the only one turned off by "you've simply got to read my book." But apparently I'm not.

At a recent marketing seminar given by Jeff Crilley who has a PR firm, Real News, he said that selling is about connecting to people on an emotional level, which is what I have been hearing from other marketing experts. He said the best way to create buzz about a book is to talk to people. He encouraged authors to arrange speaking engagements at Rotary Clubs, Kiwanis, and any other civic or church organization. "When you talk to people in person, that's where hearts and minds are converted," he said.

When his presentation was finished I realized what was probably the most important part of his workshop. Not once did he push his book. He did talk about the book. How he came to write it. How he has used his marketing strategy to sell it. But not once did he directly invite the audience to buy the book.

The other thing that has stayed with me since attending his workshop last week was how much fun we had. He was quite entertaining and frequently made everyone laugh. And... now I'm getting to the bubbles... to make his point on how ineffective press releases can be, he gave everyone a little jar of bubbles. He had us all stand up and blow bubbles and then he said that the bubbles represented the hundreds of press releases that might be received by a newsroom of a major television station or newspaper.

Very effective illustration of the point he was making; a point that might have gotten lost if it had just been part of a Power-Point presentation.

Random Thoughts For a Sunday

I didn't plan to do much work today, as Sunday is supposed to be a day of rest, but I usually do a quick update of news on WinnsboroToday.com on Sundays. Then I will often to a little bit of promoting for my books and taking care of tasks like updating my Web site.

Today I decided to check statistics for my Web site. I like to see if I can figure out what promotional efforts might be paying off in terms of driving traffic to my site. It was quite a surprise to find I had a huge spike in hits the week of January 3rd. I'm talking a jump of 500 percent.

As far as I can recall, I did not do anything special that week in terms of promoting, so I have no idea what caused the increase in hits. I'm just thrilled that it happened.

But, back to my random thoughts...

The clouds have gathered over East Texas for the fourth or fifth day in a row. I've lost count - can't even remember when I saw the sun last.

It's a good day to read a book. So maybe I will. And maybe I'll just find a nap hiding in the sofa.

All my cats are napping, so why can't I.

Author Spotlight

A fellow author, Chris Redding, has graciously hosted me on her blog as the guest author. She did a wonderful interview and I am so grateful to her. One of the things she asked was about the first book I ever wrote and it was fun to go back and remember. Here is a LINK if you are interested in reading the interview.

This kind of opportunity is one of the neat things about the Internet and using it for promoting. And we can meet some of the nicest people along the way. I have known Chris from several author loops, and she is a generous supporter of her fellow authors.

Thanks, Chris.

Promotion

Sylvia Dickey Smith is a Texas author and also the hostess of an Internet radio show Murder She Writes where she interviews women who write mysteries. I'm going to be her guest this evening from 5-6 Central Time.

Previous guests have included Betty Webb, Elizabeth Gunn, Linda Faulkner and a whole list of ladies who make me proud to be in their company.

If you are interested and have time, come on by and give a listen. I've listened to other shows there and Sylvia is really good at keeping the show interesting and fun. I will be talking about all my books, as well as what is coming next for me. And maybe we'll even talk a little bit about music, theatre and acting.

This show will be archived on the blogtalkradio site for several months after today, so you can always catch it later if you are busy tonight. Here is a link to the show: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/MurderSheWrites

Book review - Red Hot Internet Publicity

In this revised edition of Red Hot Internet Publicity: An Insider's Guide to Marketing Your Book on the Internet, Penny C. Sanservieri gives the author all he or she needs to successfully network and sell in the virtual marketplace.

The book is packed with useful information such as:
* The secret to getting thousands of hits on your web site and then converting them into sales!
* Top internet promotion techniques that won’t cost you a dime!
* The Virtual Author Tour™, how you can “tour” yourself on the net
* How to get print media from your Internet campaign
* Learn how to expand your platform and sell more books!
* How to create a campaign that will last for months, not days
* How to create a web site that sells your book
* Podcasting and blogging demystified!

In fact, there is so much information, it can be a bit overwhelming for an author who has not done very much Internet marketing. And I'll admit that I was beginning to feel an "information overload" as I continued to read. The smart thing to do, I decided, was create a marketing plan and calendar for promoting my next book, and plug in the tips and resources from this book where they apply.

When I mentioned that to my husband, he laughed. "You? Making a plan? Writing it down? Sticking to it?"

As you might have guessed, I am not a great planner. I don't even outline my books. But the business side of publishing has gotten so demanding, an author does have to be organized, have a marketing plan of some sort, and schedule time during the work week to carry out the plan.

And this book is going to be of tremendous benefit to any author wanting to increase sales through Internet marketing. It is very well organized, written in a comfortable, easy to read style, and has helpful blocks with bullet lists of important reference points.
Particularly helpful are the links. When Penny makes a suggestion, such as checking to see how your Web site ranks in popularity, she provides a link to do so. And should you find your site is not highly ranked, she offers ways to improve the standing.

Penny C. Sansevieri is the founder and CEO of Author Marketing Experts, Inc., a company that offers marketing and publicity services for authors. She has also written other books on marketing, and shares tips freely on the Web site and via a newsletter.

I am really looking forward to using this book and the newsletter for future online promoting.

Join us in the Blog-A-Thon

There's a Blog-A-Th0n going on at Ginger Simpson's Dishin' It Out blog, where a bunch of us writer-types are talking about promoting. Some good tips being shared there, as well as little touches of humor.

The blog is running all day today, so stop by when you get a chance and see what all the talk is about.

Hope you find something of interest there.

Promoting For Pennies

I am pleased to announce that I will appear on The Author Show on WNB NetworkWest.com, an Online radio and television station on May 29, 2009. This is a wonderful site that hosts authors of fiction and non-fiction, and a good place for authors to promote their work, fiction and nonfiction. The interview will run all day, so stop by at your convenience if you have a chance

Online marketing via virtual book tours and guest spots on Internet radio shows is an effective way to reach readers all over the world. And the real beauty of it is that you don't have to travel any further than to your home computer.

I did a virtual book tour in September 08 and saw the hits to my Web site double for several weeks, so I know this is an effective way to reach people.

I should also mention that I have purchased a number of books after following someone for a while on a virtual book tour. As Don McCauley of Free Publicity Group says, marketing it is all about building trust, and through a virtual book tour I have come to know authors well enough to become interested in their books.

Don McCauley is the host of The Author Show, and in addition to conducting a great interview, he offers writers a lot of free material to help them with their marketing efforts. It is a connection well worth making for any author who wants to promote for pennies.

I Once Was Bummed, but Now I'm Not

Had one of those really crappy days when nothing seemed to work right. Wanted to do an article proposal first thing this morning - one that I have been putting off for weeks. Stared at my blank screen for about a half hour, then said, " Phooey!" Well, actually, something a bit stronger than Phooey, but I want to keep this "G" rated.

So then I thought I'd do some book promoting. Pulled up an old list of e-mail addresses from folks who had contacted me about one thing or another and sent out some cheery little messages about my new books. Most of them came back because the e-mail addresses were out of date. And most of them were just a year old. Guess not everyone hangs on to the same e-mail addy as long as I do. Sigh.

Then I ended up doing invoices for advertisers on WinnsboroToday.com. One of the least fun aspects of my job there. I had the invoices all neatly stacked up with the corresponding envelopes, when I dropped the pile and they fell all over my office floor. I like jigsaw puzzles, but I really have to be in the mood.

I picked them all up to sort later and decided I'd do a quick blog before I go take care of my animals. Came here and saw that I have a follower. My very first. I'm so excited. Somebody loves me even though I'm a klutz and have some days when I'm better off knitting than writing.

The Wonderful World of Promoting and Marketing

This past weekend was a busy one for me. Saturday I was at a street fair in a small town in Texas where several East Texas authors had a booth to promote our books. Unfortunately, we were off the main street of vendors, sandwiched between a booth selling Mexican food and one selling corn dogs and funnel cakes. Not exactly a prime position. Plus it was hot and humid, with little or no breeze. But we toughed it out and had a few nice conversations with people who enjoy books as much as we do. Even sold one or two.

Later that afternoon, I went to speak to a writing class at a community college about the benefits of book tours online. It saves gas. I don't have to dress up. I can reach thousands of people. Not to mention how much cooler I am in my air-conditioned office as I do this virtual book tour.

The downside is that I don't have easy access to a funnel cake, but, hey, one a year is plenty for me.

So today, my virtual tour starts up again. An excerpt of One Small Victory is here http://theplotline.wordpress.com/ Tomorrow I will be at the same blog for an interview, and will have a stop also at http://lumorgan.blogspot.com/