Tag: books

…if yeez LUV yer books… it’s okay to LUV yer Authors, too… let them know it!…

Seumas Gallacher's avatarSeumas Gallacher

…I’m an unashamed user of the SOSYAL NETWURKS in pursuit of my ‘business of writing’… in reflective self-honesty, I try to steer clear of SPAMMING, which I find as abhorrent and annoying as most of yeez Lads and Lassies of Blog Land… that does not preclude from time to time an acceptable amount of inclusion  in my posts, elements of my own WURK… there’s a proper way to do that… I like to think, in balance, the majority of my posts are aimed at entertaining, p’raps even educating, and certainly empathising with my fellow scribblers in support of their wee masterpieces… that balance is generally about 90% for others, 10% for my stuff… and I’m comfortable with that… when occasions arrive, such as this present period, running up to and including the launch of my latest Jack Calder  crime thriller, KILLER CITY, there will inevitably be a…

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Launch Date Reveal!

One of the most exciting aspects of Self-Publishing is being able to build up suspense for the next project at your own pace and I have (finally) set a date for the release of my next book. As many of you already know, it releases this month but I had not given an exact date. So, without further ado, please Follow This Link to view the flyer that reveals the date for the release of “Beyond The Colored Line.” The flyers came out really nice and I’m going to enjoy sending them off.

Launch week for this blog is gonna be off the chain, yaaasss. 🙂

3 Reasons I am Not a Professional Author

hospitalityClothing

I strive to implement levels of professionalism in everything that I do whether it includes monetary compensation or not. In which case people who know me are already familiar with my level of organization and from that end, professionalism. However, I do not consider myself a professional author in the traditional sense of the word. Here’s why:

I’ve heard my share of advice from author blogs, books, tweets, Facebook, Twitter, articles, the list goes on and on (and on). I’ve taken valuable advice under my wing and even incorporated some into my day to day schedule and strategic writing techniques since it is, after all, wise to consider the advice of others. But the truth is that I will never be a professional author because my writing process is not the same as what is perpetuated in the mainstream.

The professional says:

  • Use the same business name across all accounts. This is the easiest way to brand yourself and to get people used to associating you with that name.

Makes sense, but I totally transgressed this rule! My blog, author website, and social media sites, for the most part, all have different names which I heard is bad. To balance this, I have taken to using one picture to represent every account. This photo you see associated with this blog will probably never change because it’s attached to all of my accounts: My personal Facebook Page, Twitter, Blog, IG, You Tube, LinkedIn, etc. I believe images are a strong form of communication and that many people have already become used to seeing this picture and associating it with Yecheilyah Ysrayl. I have also taken to using the same email address to represent these accounts across the board (with a few exceptions).

The professional says:

  • Plan out your book before you write it. Create an outline for your new masterpiece.

Umm, I think I’ll just go ahead and skip this step. I do not write outlines before each book. I just write and organize as I go along. Once I start to build on a story idea and start to write and develop some kind of form to the story, then I know what it is I need to research or the books I need to read for better clarity of this particular genre. It only makes sense to me that you write something down first and get an idea of how the story will develop, only then will you be able to clearly see what kind of information you will need for this story and can thus move on from there. For instance, its not until I start writing the story that I am able to create a Family Tree of my characters.

I know, I just said something else different didn’t I? Yes, a family tree. I found it easiest to organize my characters (after I’ve written about them) using a Family Tree. I’ll speak more about this in a separate post, but after I’ve written the characters into the story to some extent, I sit back and think about how to better develop them as real people. Not just by way of physical attributes (ethnicity, hair, eyes, relationships, persona, etc.), but also lineage. Where did this person come from? I do this by using a Family Tree, which can be created easily using Microsoft Word. The reason I choose this method is because the one rotating around blogs and professional websites is boring to me. (You know, that long list of questions you ask yourself about the people in your story: Hair:__________ Eyes:_________ Nose Shape________ …just kill me now). Not to mention I’m a visual learner. I have to see it to better understand it and laying out the family in this way helps me to accomplish this. Far as outlines go for the entire story, the first draft is the outline.

The professional says:

  • Stick to one specific genre.

I write in whatever genre the story that just popped into my head falls in. I heard this is a no no. According to the rules, in order to brand yourself it’s important to stay within a certain genre because it’s easy to become known for it. But in my opinion, brains don’t work like that. Well, at least mine doesn’t. What am I gonna say, “Sorry totally awesome story idea, I can’t use you right now because your Sci-Fi and I only write Romance”. That’s like telling me to write one kind of poem. Yea, that’s probably never going to happen. I mean sure, every idea is not meant to be built on. Some of them should just stay ideas until it is time for that idea to be brought forward. However, because the creative mind is not one dimensional, I find it hard to believe that I can force my thoughts to only create stories that appeal to one category.

The truth is that I will probably never do exactly as the professionals say do. If the world says this is how it is to be done, you can rest assured that chances are Yecheilyah’s over here doing something completely different…and maybe even a little weird. 🙂

Word to the Wise

how-to-self-publish-your-book-pop_8319

As we approach the month of August, when teachers return to work and students go back to school, I couldn’t help but to get excited that in just a few short weeks (mid August) I will be publishing another book. I’m really excited about this one and this excitement led me to a thought which in turn led me to something I think all Self-Publishers should take into consideration. I know that finances are a big deal to Self-Publishers and we are always looking for the most cost effective, yet professional, way to produce so here goes:

Never use POD (Print on Demand) services like LuLu and Createspace for anything other than Printing your books. Do not use POD editing services, POD promotional services, or POD book cover design services. Why? Because you can save a lot of money not doing so.

The most effective and creative action we can take as Self-Publishers is to use Print on Demand Companies as Printer Companies for our books, and then sell them from our own Author websites. Let people buy your books from YOU and you take a percentage of that income to pay the Printing Company (Createspace) to print the book AND if you don’t have the funds to buy your books in bulk from the POD, you can still send it to the buyer directly from the POD service. Remember to apply wisdom to everything that you do, so remember that you still have to pay the POD to print the book and to ship it so set your prices high enough to actually reap a profit but low enough to be reasonable. When people have to go to YOUR website this helps build you as an Author brand.

LOL

However, there are some exceptions  to be understood when considering these methods:

  • You’ll never make Amazon’s Best Sellers List using this method because your buyers are not buying from Amazon they’re buying from you. If making Amazon’s Best Sellers list is important to your writing goal (which is understandable) I suggest you ignore this post, carry on and not use this method. (It would be wise to use Amazon to sell your e-books and your Author site to sell your print books, kill two birds with one stone).

*Here’s another secret*

Amazon, Createspace, Kindle Select etc., is extremely popular right now. When people hear your book is on Amazon they go and inquire, they get excited and you feel like you’ve accomplished something great, AND YOU HAVE. But, it’s not really that big of a deal. If you really want to build yourself as a Self-Publisher, invest in your own Self-Publishing Company and make YOUR name the one people get excited about. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy, just your name alone will do. (I will draft another post for another day on building a Self-Publishing Company and creating a name brand in the most cost effective way possible).

  • If you don’t buy in bulk and are shipping directly from your POD, you won’t have the chance to include promotional products with the book since it ships directly from the POD, which doesn’t help you with promotion.

BUT …

(OK so I’m really letting all the cats out the bag, gonna have to get a dog)

…you can send readers a separate gift with the money you saved AHEAD of the books arrival with these special offers (bookmarks, flyers, business cards, gifts etc.). Make sure to expedite the mail so that it gets there BEFORE the book for a professional outcome. Include a little note that thanks them for the purchase and that you hope they’ll enjoy the free gift. Don’t forget to include your contact information (business card) and to also inform them that their book is on the way! Readers will appreciate this, trust me. Why? Because, who doesn’t like to get mail filled with free goodies? Plus, if your readers are anything like yours truly, they’re extremely anxious for the book’s arrival and a little something ahead of time will help calm their nerves while they wait .

I hope this information has been helpful. Now, get off the internet and back to writing :).

An Easy Way to Prepare Your Book’s Table of Contents for E-Book

sample e-book properly formatted (not just converted!)
sample e-book properly formatted (not just converted!)

 

One of the most challenging aspects of Self-Publishing for me, in the beginning, was preparing my book for e-book conversion for proper viewing as an e-book on electronic devices. Of course, formatting and conversion slightly differ (anyone can use the method I am about to show to make ePub and Mobi files, but unless you format the underlying HTML and CSS properly, the result will not look as professional as we all intend as authors like the image above. Often there will be blank lines between paragraphs, no indentations, no TOC (table of contents), links that don’t function, and everything left aligned including headings that were meant to be centered hence, the difference between conversion and actual formatting…. but that’s another post for another day).

So anyway, as I ventured on this Self-Publishing endeavor, I was practically pulling my locs out trying to prepare my manuscript to be accepted by retailers for electronic devices. As we are familiar, manuscripts that are prepared for an e-book has to be done in a way where the electronic device can easily navigate the book. The electronic device easily accomplishes this by utilizing the navigation functions built into an EPUB file to move around the e-book. This is done by properly creating a Table of Contents section or in technical terms, a Navigation Control File. Basically, because your device is not going to be printed like in the old days, it needs guidance on how to move around. Your Kindle or Mobile phone needs to know where each section begins and ends. It does this by looking for Header Styles in your document. While you can either pay someone else to do this or let your POD (Print on Demand) service do it for you, an easy way to learn to do it yourself is to format your manuscript using Heading Styles. Heading Styles are at the top of your Word Document and looks something like this:

styles MS Word

So Below I’ve listed how each section should be properly headed using these Heading Styles to create the TOC. To make this simple, I am only going to assume your book has a few main levels: Title Page, Copyright, Chapter, Sub-chapter, Preface, Body, Epilogue, and Sections:

1. Apply Heading 1 style to the Title and to each line containing a Section name (copyright, prologue, etc.) or section (Part 1, Section II, etc.). Heading 1 style will always appear at the top of the next page.

2. Apply Heading 2 style to each line containing a Chapter name or number

3. Apply Heading 3 style to each line containing a sub-chapter / subtitle or subsection.

That’s it! Pretty simple huh? I know most of you already know how to do this, but you never know who else may be pulling their hair out :). In most cases, your POD distributor will not reject your manuscript if you use this format.

(Don’t use additional Heading styles (Heading 4, Heading 5) to denote chapter or section breaks, as these will not generate most TOC *Table of Contents* entries. Most readers will not be able to navigate to these chapters resulting in retail distribution partners, such as Amazon Kindle and B&N, to reject your e-book).

4 Common Sense Reasons It Can Benefit You to Self-Publish

Crazy Woman Drinking Wine

Twenty years ago, a book followed a routine process: You poured your heart and soul into a manuscript, and when you finished it, you started calling agents and editors who most likely told you to send them a query letter. 

The next step is the book proposal and a few sample chapters. Then the waiting game started, usually ending with disappointment. 

On the other hand, the option to Self-Publish was there, but it had a certain stigma that, thankfully, has waned in this digital era. That stigma can be identified by statements such as, “Your book isn’t really published because you couldn’t get it accepted by a ‘real publisher.'”

However, being a Self-Publisher only means you are in charge of the direction of your book. The publisher (in this case, you) is the one who puts up the money. If you invest in your own printing, you are a Self-Publisher. If you begin to take in manuscripts, you are a small publisher. If you grow, you become a large publisher. Still, many Self-Publishers still wear this “badge of shame” for choosing not to go the traditional route, as if they were the scarlet woman or something.

This list can help clarify and simplify things for you.

4 Common Sense reasons it can benefit you to Self-Publish

• Ownership

Self-Publishing can be the road to your independence. Do you dream of being your own boss? Do you desire more personal freedom? You can turn that dream into a reality. You own all rights to your book as a self-publisher, whereas a traditional publisher would likely own the rights. If they lose interest in your book, you cannot print additional copies unless you purchase those rights. Traditional publishers often require you to purchase your book from them to do any promotion you choose to do for your book. As your own publisher, you print as many books as you need. Here is a dynamic, proven way to shape your own destiny.


• Timing

Traditional publishers work on a long production cycle. They often plan a year to a year and a half—or even longer—to get a book out. As a Self-Publisher, you can do it in a fraction of that time. It’s your material, your career move – you can take control of when you want to publish.


• Increased Income

Self-Publishing offers the potential for huge profits. When you use creativity, persistence, and sound business sense, money is there to be made. Most publishers require their authors to do their own promotion, but if you have to do your own promotion, why not Self-Publish it anyway and make more money? Even if you don’t make much, Self-Publishing allows you to get back what you put in. If you set a plan and work hard at it, you’ll be “making it rain” in no time. Or, you can work hard for some big-time publisher to tell you that you’re just not good enough.


• Control

Self-Publishing gives you the final say on the direction of your book. It reflects your vision and not someone else’s. You can personally guide every step or hire professionals to be on your team. You can choose the cover you like, the typeface, and the title you want. You maintain absolute control over your own book.

Whether you publish Traditionally or Self-Publish, completing a book is a great accomplishment. As to whether or not you’re making money from it, that’s up to you. So go ahead, finish that masterpiece, self-publish if that’s what you want to do, defy the stereotypes, and live happily ever after.