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How To Get an Agent

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Please enjoy this downloadable MP3 of last week’s Free Advice Friday. 

We discussed:  How Do I Find an Agent?  What Are They Looking For?  What the Heck is a Query? What do I Need to Do?

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May I Have the Name of The Book Buyer?

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Today an author whom I do not know called and asked me for the names of my buyers so she could follow up on the presentations with new information. She is concerned that her publisher rep is not pitching her book “properly”.  There is a lot of new information and media updates and the rep has already made the rounds to pitch her book.  If she can’t trust the rep to send the new info, what is an author to do?  How does an author know that new-late-breaking news about their book is getting to the buyer. 

Answer: You don’t know for sure until the orders start coming in.

I know how frustrating it is, but it is a normal part of the process for small presses without direct access to the buyers because they use distributors. 

You can trust your reps to distribute any and all information that will help them sell your book. They want your book to be successful. They are motivated to do a good job selling your book as they move through their territory, meeting buyers and selling the books. The problem comes when an author has 4 updates a week that, while important to them, are not at a “drop everything” level for the buyer. A good rep knows when it is important enough to take a buyer’s time with an update. An author does not usually have the experience or relationship to make the correct determination.

So can an author contact the reps and the stores directly?  No.  Nope. Nuh-uh… *
I run only a small distribution company and if I gave out the names of my sales reps, or the buyers to my clients, they would get more calls and emails a day than they could answer. The buyers would be so angry with me that I would not enjoy the same trust and access that I get now. The reps would quit. (seriously)

My reps cannot be getting personal pitches from each author, they have hundreds of books to sell each season. We already guarantee that we sell each book individually, one on  one, one by one… no group catalog pitches.  This is a huge time commitment and if they had to handle minor updates or talk to each author, they would not have any time to actually sell. That is why we have sales meetings, so that they can be taught about each book before they go out and sell it.

I promise, if an update is important enough to increase a book buyer’s order I am ALL OVER IT!  But you can trust my judgment.  I know when it is a good time to bother a buyer… and when it isn’t.
The book buyers, for the most part, only see who they want. They can agree to see a rep or not… they cannot be dealing with thousands of authors who all believe that their book is special. All books are special to the author… what the buyers need is an interpreter. They want someone who understands exactly how they work and what they need and provides them with some choice to fill those needs. That is where we come in. 

We are often the only way a buyer will ever see a book… my unwillingness to contact a buyer every time an author wishes is the exact reason the buyer will take a look at the author’s book when I present it.  We walk a fine balancing act and it is sometimes hard to keep both sides happy.

I know it is hard, but if you work on creating the demand and keep feeding your publisher the press and marketing you are doing, the demand will drive the success of your books. The reps will pass on the key information in the most agreeable manner possible. 

(* the exception being a local author contacting her local store if she has developed a good relationship with the staff there)

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EBooks. How to Make Them. How to Sell Them

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Last Friday, we had a great session with Emily Gable from http://www.publishgreen.com/

She was great at walking all of us through the process of eBooks and helping us all understand how they come to be and how they come to be profitable.

Here is the recording of our hour-long free consulting session on eBooks.  Enjoy!

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eBook sales on the rise!

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According to this morning’s PW Daily, eBook sales saw a significant jump in May 2010.

In fact, PW reports that eBook sales rose 162.8% in May to $29.3 million at the 13 publishers who report results to AAP’s monthly sales report.

With so many areas of the publishing industry in decline, this is some great news for hump day.

Happy Wednesday everyone!

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Which eReader is right for you?

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This weekend, I enjoyed a lovely evening cookout with some publishing friends. The food was fantastic and the conversation eventually turned to eReaders and eBooks and how each of us felt personally about replacing actual books in our lives.

Even my husband, non-publishing guy that he is, jumped in to the fray.

Some highlights from our discussion:

iPad – Let’s face it, we all think the iPad is pretty cool. The bells and whistles, the 4-color screen, the portability. We even love the presentation aspect of it. Take it to a meeting with agents and buyers and you can present a title or series or imprint. Fantastic! In terms of an eReader, however, we think Apple missed the boat. Yes, it’s fancy. Yes, we can get the books we’re looking for from their store. But, reading in the sun is out. The glare makes it impossible to bring this fun new toy to the park or the patio to enjoy a good book with a cup of coffee. Outdoor summer months are hard to come by in Chicago and we all want to spend this season outside. This feature, alone, kills the iPad as an eReader for our group. We didn’t even address the subscription service to get access via 3G network. This is an added expense for convenience that helps price the iPad out of the competition for book lovers.

Kindle – Love it. Perfect for reading anytime, anywhere. The 3G connectivity makes it possible to download a book while a plane is boarding and just before the flight attendant tells me to shut it off. If you’re out of 3G network, you can download books directly to your computer and push to the Kindle. In terms of bells and whistles, however, the Kindle is seriously lacking as compared to the iPad. For the first time, the screen looks small and dirty as compared to the slick facing of the iPad. The lack of color means no 4-color books for the consumer. It’s difficult to get photos, images, charts and graphs to really translate well to the Kindle format. Even if you blow up the text on the Kindle, you can’t compete with the full-screen size of the iPad. But, if someone is in it for just reading books, the Kindle was the clear winner.

The Nook – I’d be remiss if I didn’t acknowledge that the Nook was mentioned. But, that’s about all it got, a mention. It has a touch screen and some color but isn’t particularly intuitive to use. To be honest, none of us had spend more than 2 minutes playing with it in-store at a Barnes and Noble. It didn’t leave much of an impression on anyone at our cookout.

And there you have it. A casual conversation among friends and some insights in to how we feel about some of the fancy new toys in our industry. How about you? Do you have a Kindle? An iPad? A Nook? Some other reader that didn’t come up during our weekend discussion?

What do you like about it? What don’t you like about it?

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Vocabulary Friday

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We’ve had several questions from friends, clients, and colleagues about what all this publishing “lingo” actually means.
So, in honor of a beautiful spring Friday morning, we thought we’d put together a list of terms that are frequently used and sometimes misunderstood.
Digital Printing – A form of printing technology that uses smaller machines and makes short runs more cost effective. Typically more expensive per unit, anyone can hire a short run printer.  Digital printing gives self-publishers more options. (This is a great option for small print runs and the quality is top-notch!)

Offset Printing
– Traditional way of printing using big presses for big print runs. Offset printing makes sense for non-traditional trim sizes or any printer run of over 1,000 units. The cost per unit is a lot cheaper but the upfront investment is much higher. (Inventory must be managedmake sure you have a warehouse!)

Print on Demand (POD) – POD uses digital  print technology to print just in time inventory (JIT). All publishers have some form of POD program. POD is only to manage inventory. (If small press or self-published author decides to POD, it should be an inventory decision not a financial decision!)

Vanity Presses – Vanity Presses are companies that specialize in self-publishing programs. In recent years they have co-opted the term POD term to give themselves more credibility. Most Vanity Presses will provide your ISBN and have the capability to take your book from manuscript to finished book.

Co-Publishers – Co-publishers design their programs so they are “sharing costs”. For most Co-publishers, the term “co-publishing” is actually just a fancy way of not calling themselves a vanity press. However, there are several quality co-publishers out there that can help a new author get their book packaged and ready for sale.

Distributor – Distributors are companies hired by publishers that will warehouse, fulfill and sell your book. They will take a percentage of your sales and a percentage against your returns. Most distributors have a sales team that actively sells your title (IPG, NBN, etc.)

Fulfillment House – A fulfillment house will pick, pack and ship your book. They will also ensure your book is available at the major wholesalers (Ingram, Baker & Taylor) and Amazon as well as the .com sites (bn.com, target.com, wal-mart.com, etc). They will also handle all of your billing and collections.

Warehouse
– A warehouse picks, packs, and ships your book only. Some warehouses handle billing but many do not. Major publishers tend to have their own warehouse services.

Wholesalers
– A company used by retailers and libraries to supply books in a timely and efficient manner.  The number one place any self-published author needs to be! If you’re not listed at Ingram and Baker & Taylor, you cannot be ordered easily by bookstores and libraries.

Happy Friday everyone! 
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The “New” Importance of the Book Cover

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If you’ve been following our blog over the past year or so, you’ll remember our post Your Spine Is Your Cover.

Yes, that’s still true for those authors who aspire to brick and mortar stores and traditional retailers.

But in the eight months since we posted that blog, the publishing environment has continued to change.

Small publishers’ interest in testing the market by just making their books available online (their own websites, Amazon.com, etc.) or as eBooks has continued to increase. POD programs offered by a variety of different companies have drawn a large group of publishers who are willing to save money on big offset print runs, warehousing and fulfillment and who say let’s “throw it up online” and see what happens.

Publisher’s beware. “Throwing it up online” does not mean cutting corners on quality. If you just make your book available online, your number one marketing tool has changed. Your book cover just increased in importance over just about any other single piece of the publishing process.

For those of you who have been there, you understand. Search Insides, excerpts, and sample chapters for downloads are great. But, you’ve got to get the consumer to commit to taking that step.

How so?

A dynamic, professionally designed, top-notch book cover.

If your budget demands that you only make your book available online, take the time to do your research. Look carefully at other book covers in your category – both online and in stores. See what’s working.

Is there a particular font, photo treatment, author treatment, color, design that’s consistent across your category? If so, make sure your cover stacks up against the best of the best.

Budget might drive your decision to start online, but budget can’t drive your decision to put up a mediocre cover and hope for the best.

Trust us, it won’t work.

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The Whys of Self-Publishing

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This week New Shelves is thrilled to host Carl Johnson of Boyd Printing.  Carl has been experiencing and riding the changes in the publishing industry for over 30 years.  With R.R Bowker’s announcement that self-published titles have surged to over 700,000 titles a year while traditionally published titles have declined, we are going to spend this week looking at the world of self-publishing.

The Whys Of Self-Publishing by Carl Johnson

In the past decade or so the publishing world has witnessed numerous changes. In the past, an author had to make the necessary rounds of publishing houses and often, a lot of time would pass before the manuscript was approved by the publisher.

Today, the way a book gets published and the way in which a writer gets compensated has completely changed.

One of the major changes in the publishing industry is consolidation, due to the shrinking marketplace. Over past decade, this change of the large number of smaller or independent publishers being consumed by larger publishing houses has caused many publishing houses to avoid taking any kinds of risks in terms of financial gains.

Today, publishers are much more hesitant to publish something that does not guarantee a good ROI. Any publishing house worth its name will only entertain writers who have an established name or who can, in some other way, guarantee successful sales of the book.

This brings in the phenomena of self publishing; no longer does the writer have to spend days and months trying to get their manuscript approved, only to get a percentage of sales as a royalty. With self-publishing, they publish, promote, and sell their book all by themselves with the benefit of retaining all the profits in the process.

I want to give you a brief description of why you should consider self-publishing along with the benefits, advantages, and disadvantages of self-publishing.

The Advantages of Being Published

Let’s begin by considering the reasons why people like being published, which can be many besides the fact that everybody likes to have their share of fame, however short-lived it might be.

As an independent business person or practitioner in a field, the main motive behind getting published is that it establishes you as an author and expert in your field. There are, of course, many personal reasons for getting published as well. As an author, you take a step ahead of the crowd and your credibility is increased immeasurably.

Being published gives you tremendous marketing leverage; you can literally become a desired quantity in the marketplace. Those who publish and write on subjects relevant to your work will now wish to engage you for interviews, articles, and other opportunities that give you visibility you would not otherwise receive.

Business people who haven’t yet been published frequently underestimate the power and value of having a book and all it brings. The rewards are far greater than the commitment necessary to get published.

The Benefits of Self-Publishing

Self-publishing is the short-cut to attain all of the above.

With the consolidation of the book publishing industry, publishers are far more reluctant to award book contracts to an unknown who can’t show that their book will sell.

In fact, it is often virtually impossible to get a major publisher to take you on if you are not established as a writer or can show that you’ll generate book sales. You should be established as a writer and must have a following of readers for the publisher to be ready to take on your manuscript.

The internet has also adversely impacted the profit margin of the publishers, as more and more is being published on the internet. Also, people prefer reading news and all other information online, as this usually does not cost them.

When it comes to getting published there are mainly two kind of motives on which people function- personal and professional. Let’s consider the personal reasons first.

As a Hobby

People who have financial stability may want to make a name for themselves, as most writers are venerated and so, they may like to be known as a knowledgeable person. One advantage of this is that the writer is not really interested in generating sales as a source of income.

Writing a book as a hobby or about something that is your hobby may actually prove to be lucrative and may be a smart way of making money from a hobby. You may eventually find that something that was merely a hobby has turned into a career.

For Family
People also write about their family history or their personal story. Occasionally they want to share their life story or their success story with others. I knew a very well to do woman who wrote her story and spent a few thousand dollars to have her story printed as a hard bound book which she later distributed at a family reunion.

As an artist or a photographer you may like to showcase a collection of your works and, hence, publish them.

Let us now consider what drives people to publish at a professional level:
Money

Money, of course, is a big motivation. Most people who self publish do so with an aim to make what they expended and hopefully some profit.

Also, you are likely to establish a reader base and make profits in the future when you write and publish more books.

An indirect and effective way of making money from a book is to use the book to promote your company, organization, or professional practice. A senior partner in a large local law firm wrote a book on estates and trusts. He then gave the book away at seminars. The book, plus the aura of being a published expert, lent creditability to the seminar he conducted. All of this drove many clients to the firm and they prospered and grew significantly.

You can use your e-book version to establish yourself as a marketable author as well. If you sell a thousand copies of one book you establish a readership base for your next work. With a couple of published works under your belt and proven sales, you are more likely to be signed by a major publisher where you have an ability to develop greater sales.

? Having a book published is a tremendous marketing asset.

? Visitors to a website are greatly attracted by e-books.

? Books offer you immense marketing options.

? Free chapter giveaway is a teaser to gain readers.

? Joint sales venture options with other experts or products where your book becomes part of a package deal are also possible.

Passive Income

Most of the alternatives suggested earlier are, actually, ways of earning a passive income.

You can further enhance your source of income by enhancing certain features of the book. You could enable audio readings of the book and other resources for the reader. You could even create some kind of a course for the reader.

Prestige
I made a statement earlier which calls for reiteration, that a published and successful author gains respect and is considered as an expert. He is invited to preside over functions and acts as judge in TV shows – generally his name and fame grow.

A published author has the opportunity to secure academic credentials, as most academic institutions desire some published works.
Career Advancement

A person who has a published work to his credit will more easily move up the ladder of success, will likely get better job offers and will enjoy more opportunities to succeed in general.

Simply put, being published gives you an “expert” status above the crowd. Though, it really is not that difficult to get self published, most people have a very high perception of someone that is.

For those seeking a career in the field of academics, a published work is a pre-requisite.

On Monday, we will discuss the DO’s of Self-Publishing.

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Things I wish aspiring published authors said every day

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“Well, I like it, but I’d better find some independent opinions.”

“I am reading some wonderful authors right now”

“Better go, my writing group/class starts soon!”

“Yes, Ms./Mr. Editor, I do trust you…. let’s work on your suggestions.”

“Not everyone is going to want to buy my book.”

“Now, where is that list of agents I have been researching to find out exactly how I should submit my book?”

“ 4 agent rejections? Let me see what they said….”

“Huh, 14 agent rejections…. I’d better send out more queries.”

“Darn it, I haven’t talked to anyone about my book since yesterday.”

“I can’t wait to give/send copies of my book to a bunch more people today.”

“I know I was just at my local bookstore a few days ago, but I think I’ll shop there again today”

“I have no idea how my local library chooses books, I think I’ll stop down there tomorrow and ask the librarian.”

“I’d better get moving; I have to participate in several online discussions today.”

“I find so many other author’s and publisher’s blogs so very interesting. I should comment on them.”

“I’m going to find out if I can participate in a least one or two local book clubs this year.”

“I think my manuscript is completely done. I’m going to send it to a copyeditor.”

“I should make sure I have subscribed to as many book industry websites, blogs and trade publications as possible.”

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Great article in Publisher’s Weekly

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The Cadence Group’s distribution arm, New Shelves, got a fantastic mention in PW today.  Thank you Judith Rosen for your great work!

http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/454267-Distributors_Stay_Upbeat.php

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