Publishing Poynters

Book and Information-Marketing News and Ideas from Dan Poynter
May 1, 2001. Copyright Para Publishing. ISSN: 1530-5694
DanPoynter@ParaPublishing.com; http://ParaPub.com; 1-800-ParaPub

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IN THIS ISSUE

1. ParaNews
2. ParaTips
3. ParaResources
4. ParaThoughts
5. ParaFreebies
6. ParaCalendar
7. ParaHumor
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ParaNews

A. Book Marketing Works schedules seminar series.

Brian Jud announced a number of book writing and publishing seminars beginning with two in the fall. The first will be at the Philadelphia Airport Hilton, September 14-16 and the second will be in San Antonio, November 16-18. Venues for 2002 include Jacksonville, Seattle, San Francisco and Chicago. The three-day events are co-sponsored by Publishers Weekly and Writer. s Digest. For details, contact Brian Jud at 800-562-4357 or iMarketBooks@aol.com

B. New contact information for the ISBN Agency. The toll-free number is 877-310-7333; the 800 and 908 numbers have been discontinued. For the current fee structure, see http://www.bowker.com/standards/ or http://www.isbn.org The Agency no longer mails cards with the publisher. s prefix. Now they mail or email the log sheets listing the numbers. To list your books with Books in Print, see http://www.BowkerLink.com.

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C. The new Supplier Pricing Tables are out, and they. re bigger and better than before. Each of these books list the high, low, and average price for a wide range of services including writing, editing, scanning, graphic design, DTP layout, digital photography, prepress, multimedia, and Web design and development. Nine regional books cover the United States and Canada. Fmi: Brenner Information Group, Tel: 800-811-4337,

Brenner@BrennerBooks.com; http://www.brennerbooks.com.

D. Over 1,300 energized publishers have graduated from our weekend workshops here in Santa Barbara since 1984. Four times a year, 18 people pay $695 to learn more about book marketing, promoting and distributing. The January-April-July-October events are held at Dan Poynter. s home offices, high on a hill overlooking the Pacific. See the ParaCalendar below and

Document 167 on our web site: /accessreport.cfm?report=167&refpage=edutrain.html&userid=10013582


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ParaTips

A. You may not want to use Caller ID to greet callers. When

American Express used Caller ID technology to identify and

greet incoming callers by name, they received numerous (privacy-related) complaints. It may be better to just answer with your company name and your name.

Source:  Markus Allen's $10,000 Marketing Tip of the Day
Subscribe FREE at: 
http://www.markusallen.com



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ParaResources

A. Resources for Professional Speakers. To find out about being paid to speak on your book. s subject, see http://www.walters-intl.com/sharinghome.html

B. Publisher wants to sell her line of books on cliff-dwelling Indians of the Southwest. These children. s books have been sold successfully for 11 years. Interested publishers should contact Jodi Freeman, jFreewoman583@cs.com or 678-344-6866.

C. Evaluate the services of the DotCom publishers/service providers: POD, PQN and eBooks. Compare the services offered by Bookzone, iUniverse, 1stBooks, Xlibris and more. See the comparison chart at http://www.u-publish.com/compare.htm

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Please forward this (entire) newsletter to other book writers, publishers and promoters in your address book. They will thank you for thinking of them.
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D. Find newspaper websites with usnewspaperlinks. Find out where to send review copies and news releases plus local news, local broadcast stations and more. See http://www.usnewspaperlinks.com/

E. Screenwriting: Fiction (theatricals) & Nonfiction (documentaries) by Gail Kearns is jammed with tips, ideas and resources on writing screenplays from Movies-of-the-Week to sitcoms. She also tells you how to protect your work. Document 638, 8 pages, $7.95. See /getpage.cfm?file=resource/writing.html and scroll way down.

F. Getting it Printed, How to Work with Printers and Graphic Arts Services to Assure Quality, Stay on Schedule and Control Costs by

Mark Beach. An extraordinary text for anyone who plans, designs or buys printing. Avoid costly mistakes by learning the processes of type, layout, color, design, halftone, printing, binding and much more. Updated with details on electronic design and prepress. Good glossary, resources. You will treasure this beautiful and useful book. ISBN 0-89134-519-8 Softcover, 8.5 x 11 200 pages $29.95. To order, call Para Publishing at 800-PARAPUB.


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ParaThoughts

Gathering Information for Your Book.

How much material is available?

Before you set off on your writing journey, you must conduct some research. You want to know how much information is available on the subject, if this book has been done before and whether there is a market for it. Once you see what is out there, your approach, angle, hook, direction or niche may change. Research will provide material and help you quantify your project.

Sidney J. Smith, happily married for many years, was deeply troubled by the high rate of divorce. So, he developed a number of key questions a couple contemplating marriage should ask each other. Then he realized he could reach more people if he put the questions into a book.

He visited a large bookstore and could find only one book like the one he contemplated, and it was rather dry and clinical.

A Web search found several sites on preparing for marriage so he concluded that there are a lot of people interested in the subject. Encouraged, he charged ahead on Before Saying Yes to Marriage: 101 Questions to Ask Yourself.

Research has a stimulating effect. Your book will take shape in your mind as you figure where each new fact will fit in.

"Never skimp on your research. So-called writer's block is invariably the result of too little research. If you know enough, you won't have trouble filling as many pages as you want to." . Louise Purwin Zobel, author, The Travel Writer. s Handbook .

(Excerpted from Successful Nonfiction by Dan Poynter.

For 108 more inspirational tips, See /getpage.cfm?file=resource/writing.html#successful_nonfiction)


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ParaFreebies

A. Use the Encyclopedia Britannica, Free. This is a great research resource. See the button at the bottom of the page at http://ParaPub.com

B. Free writer. s seminar scheduled for Santa Barbara. Get straight answers to questions about: agents, self publishing, Print-on-Demand, design and layout, e-books, book proposals, marketing, rights, permissions, royalties, internet sales, sales promotion ... everything you ever wanted to know about writing, producing, selling, and marketing your book. A major part of the day long session is Q & A that runs throughout the day to get writer's questions answered.

The semi-annual writer's seminar offered by Richard F. X. O'Connor at Santa Barbara City College, Schott Center, is scheduled for Saturday May 19 between 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. in Room S14, Tannahill Auditorium This is a free seminar, part of SBCC's Continuing Education offerings.

Guest Speakers this year will be Lisa Lenthal, Art Director, Renaissance Books and author Fred Klein, former Executive Editor at Bantam, Dell, Doubleday. Contact: O'Connor, 805-964-9660; fx@worldnet.att.net.

C. Getting the Web is a free thoughtful discussion of the scope and impact of the Internet and how it affects the way in which we communicate and exchange. ISBN 0-9679456-9-0, (softcover price

$14.95), 176 pages. FREE PDF download.
http://www.duomopress.com/getting.html

D. How to Merchandise Books at Events is a free report from Eric Gelb, CPA, MBA.

Request your copy: Caradvctr@aol.com

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ParaCalendar

A. Dan Poynter is criss-crossing North America to spread the word on eBooks, pBooks and The New Book Publishing Model.

Authors and publishers are discovering an innovative way to write, produce and promote their books and the new way is faster, easier and cheaper. New software accelerates typesetting, new machines automate printing and the Internet streamlines promotion. These technological improvements have spawned a fresh way to look at book publishing. The New Book Model covers all the bases and is a refreshingly innovative route for anyone with a manuscript.

Today, books are written in page-layout format instead of double-spaced courier typeface. Then the pages are converted into Adobe Acrobat (PDF) format for printing and conversion.

Just 500 books are printed using computer-driven high-speed laser printers. The softcover and hardcover books are indistinguishable from traditional ink-printed books. Prices are just slightly higher, per unit, but the quantity (and invoice) is much lower.

PDF and LIT files are generated for reading on eBook readers such as the Pocket PC.

Then finished books are sent to two or three selected agents, a few more are sent to publishers with a track records for that type of book, 3-400 are sent for review to genre-specific magazines, four or five are sent to specialized book clubs, about ten are sent to foreign publishers suggesting translation and a handful are sent to opinion molders in the author. s field.

If an agent or publisher comes in with a good offer, the author sells out. If not, all the bases are covered: the book is out for review and the orders are starting to come in.

Most of the book promotion is done via email; the author. s web site replaces brochures. The media kit is replaced by a Press Room on the web site. For an example, see/getpage.cfm?file=pressroom/pressroom.html. Avoiding printing and postage reduces promotion costs tremendously.

So, the New Book Model is a way to conserve time, inventory space and money while testing the market. More books are not printed until after they are sold. It is no longer necessary to tie up a lot of money and inventory in printed books.

More specifically:

1. The New Book Model: Writing. How to set up and build your book rather than just write it. Discover how to qualify the project, research on the Net, organize the project, draft the content and convert it into a PDF file for printing.

2. The New Book Model: Producing print and electronic editions. Typesetting, layout, book design, PDF files and POD/PQN (pBooks) printing. eBooks: Downloads, CDs and handheld readers.

3. The New Book Model: Promoting. Getting your books into bookstores, book clubs and making nontraditional sales (catalogs, premiums, fundraisers, specialty stores). Using broadcast email. Radio/TV interviews, autographings, review copies and other promotion.

See /getpage.cfm?file=newbook.html Come to meet Dan and hear his vital book writing-publishing-promoting message. See the props and get the handout.

2001

April 27: Magnificent Marketing Symposium, Queen Mary, Long Beach, CA. The extraordinary annual Dottie Walters Soirée.
Fmi:
dan@Walters-Intl.com

May 9: Writing & Publishing Nonfiction, a seminar by Dan Poynter at the Learning Annex, Los Angeles. 6:30 to 9:30 PM. fmi (310) 478-6677.
http://www.LearningAnnex.com

May 12: Turning Speeches into Books. Oklahoma Speakers Association. Fmi: John Irvin, 918-583-4308.

May 30-31: Publishing University. Publishers Marketing Association. Chicago. Dan Poynter on Non-Traditional Sales, Catalog Sales, Spin-offs, Selling Directly to your Customer and Building a Web Site that Sells. Fmi: 310-372-2732.

June 12: Writing & Publishing Nonfiction, a seminar by Dan Poynter at the Learning Annex, Los Angeles. 6:30 to 9:30 PM. fmi (310) 478-6677.
http://www.LearningAnnex.com

June 28: Santa Barbara Writer. s Conference. Fmi: Barnaby Conrad 805-684-2250.

July 11: Writing & Publishing Nonfiction, a seminar by Dan Poynter at the Learning Annex, Los Angeles. 6:30 to 9:30 PM. fmi (310) 478-6677.
http://www.LearningAnnex.com

July 21-22: Book marketing/promotion/distribution seminar in Santa Barbara with Dan Poynter. For details, contact Para Publishing, PO Box 8206-896, Santa Barbara, CA 93118-8206. Tel: (805) 968-7277, Fax: (805) 968-1379.
Workshop@ParaPublishing.com

July 30-August 1: BookTech West, San Francisco. Dan Poynter speaking on Book Promotion in the Digital Age and Managing Your Freelance Resources in a Changing Environment. Fmi: Rebecca Churilla, rchurilla@napco.com

August 16: Writing & Publishing Nonfiction, a seminar by Dan Poynter at the Learning Annex, Los Angeles. 6:30 to 9:30 PM. fmi (310) 478-6677.
http://www.LearningAnnex.com

August 31-September 3: Maui Writers Conference. Dan Poynter on the New Book Model.
Fmi:
http://www.MauiWriters.com

September 6: Writing & Publishing Nonfiction, a seminar by Dan Poynter at the Learning Annex, Toronto. 6:30 to 9:30 PM. fmi 877-277-1240; 416-964-0011.
http://www.learningannex.com/default.taf?

September 11: Writing & Publishing Nonfiction, a seminar by Dan Poynter at the Learning Annex, Los Angeles. 6:30 to 9:30 PM. fmi (310) 478-6677.
http://www.LearningAnnex.com

September 15-16: Book Publishing Seminar. Philadelphia or Washington DC; site TBA. Fmi: Brian Jud iMarketBooks@aol.com

October 6: Turning Speeches into Books. Minnesota Chapter of the National Speakers Association. Fmi: Dan Janal.
Dan@ShowStoppers.com

October 10: Writing & Publishing Nonfiction, a seminar by Dan Poynter at the Learning Annex, Los Angeles. 6:30 to 9:30 PM. fmi (310) 478-6677.
http://www.LearningAnnex.com

November 10: Turning Speeches into Books. Heart of Texas Chapter of the National Speakers Association. Fmi: Ann Fry:
Ann@HumorU.com.

November 14: Writing & Publishing Nonfiction, a seminar by Dan Poynter at the Learning Annex, Los Angeles. 6:30 to 9:30 PM. fmi (310) 478-6677.

http://www.LearningAnnex.com

November 16-18: Book Publishing Seminar. San Antonio.
Fmi: Brian Jud
iMarketBooks@aol.com


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ParaHumor

Here is something funny we have found on books, writing, publishing, authors and/or words. If you have a laugh to share, please send it to DanPoynter@ParaPublishing.com

Definitions from George Morrisey.

Avoidable \uh-voy' -duh-buhl\
What a bullfighter tries to do

Baloney \buh-lo' -nee\
Where some hem lines fall

Bernadette \burn' -a-det\
The act of torching a mortgage

Burglarize \bur' -gler-ize\
What a crook sees with

Eclipse \e-klips'\
What an English barber does for a living

Eyedropper \i' -drop-ur\
A clumsy ophthalmologist

Heroes \hee' -rhos\
What a guy in a boat does.

J


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