Month: June 2010

How To Write Book Titles for People & Robots

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In advertising, it’s said, 80% of the effectiveness of your ad depends on your headline. Brian Clark of Copyblogger says

Your headline is the first, and perhaps only, impression you make on a prospective reader. Without a compelling promise that turns a browser into a reader, the rest of your words may as well not even exist. From a copy writing . . . standpoint, writing great headlines is a critical skill.

Book titles, meant to entice a reader into a purchase, need to be even more effective than headlines. But book titles often seem like an afterthought, or maybe a title the author has been carrying around in their head for many years. Titles can be chosen for any number of reasonable or completely frivolous reasons.
 
But the success of your book might well depend on your book title. Dan Poynter, the author of The Self-Publishing Manual, says
Selecting the title and subtitle will be the single-most important piece of copy writing you will do for your book. A great title will not sell a bad book but a poor title will hide a good book from potential customers. Both your title and subtitle must be a selling tool. They are the hook that help sales.
For instance, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby was originally called Trimalchio in West Egg. Don’t you wonder what the book’s fate would have been if Fitzgerald had used his original name?
 
 
The Best of the Worst Book Titles
The Bookseller runs an annual award, the Diagram Prize, for the oddest book titles of the year. Here’s a list of the finalists for the 2009 award:
  • David Crompton’s Afterthoughts of a Worm Hunter (Glenstrae Press)
  • James A Yannes’ Collectible Spoons of the Third Reich (Trafford)
  • Daina Taimina’s Crocheting Adventures with Hyperbolic Planes (A K Peters)
  • Ronald C Arkin’s Governing Lethal Behavior in Autonomous Robots (CRC Press)
  • Ellen Scherl and Maria Dubinsky’s The Changing World of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (SLACK Inc)
  • Tara Jansen-Meyer’s What Kind of Bean is This Chihuahua? (Mirror)
self-publishing, book design templates

The Winner

I’m sure you’ll be interested to know that Daina Taimina’s Crocheting Adventures with Hyperbolic Planes took home the prize. If you think the book wasn’t worthy, consider the Product Description on Amazon: “Crocheting Adventures with Hyperbolic Planes is a work of gargantuan proportions whose influence will be measured for decades to come.” So there.

Book Titles Are Serious Business
Rachelle Gardner wrote a useful post with some ideas on how to brainstorm your book titles, and she has several suggestions for practical exercises you can do. Here’s one example:
Nothing is off limits—write down anything you can think of that conveys anything about your book. Use visual words that suggest a scene. Other words that evoke an emotion. A sensation. A location. A question. You should have at least 100 words.
But here’s my idea. Once you get finished finding exactly the right title, stop and think about the world in which your book will be sold. Particularly for nonfiction books, one of the chief ways people will find your book is through search, specifically through online searches.
 
Since we know that careful study and use of keywords can be influential in how people find our books (as well as our blog posts, articles and other online writing) we can use this information to help guide us to better book titles.
 
Titles for Humans and for (Search) Robots
Here are some examples of titles that work well for both of your constituencies: the person browsing in a bookstore or at an online retailer, and the robots sent out by search engines to catalog the web. Take a look at these titles and see if you can spot the pattern, the way they were carefully crafted on both ends.
 
The Devil’s Casino: Friendship, Betrayal, and the High Stakes Games Played Inside Lehman Brothers

In Command of History: Churchill Fighting and Writing the Second World War

Black Wave: A Family’s Adventure at Sea and the Disaster That Saved Them

Bright-Sided: How the Relentless Promotion of Positive Thinking Has Undermined America

Dancing in the Dark: A Cultural History of the Great Depression

The First Tycoon: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt

Golden Dreams: California in an Age of Abundance

The Last Empress: Madame Chiang Kai-Shek and the Birth of Modern China

Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea

The Snakehead: An Epic Tale of the Chinatown Underworld and the American Dream

The Wilderness Warrior: Theodore Roosevelt and the Crusade for America
 

In each case, a punchy, evocative title grabs attention and attempts to create curiosity, suspense or interest in the reader. Then comes the subtitle. These are typically longer than the title and have two equally important roles to play:
  1. The subtitle has to adequately convey, at a glance, what the actual subject matter and scope of the book is.
     
  2. The subtitle also has to contain the one or two critical keywords that best represent your book.
While the title addresses the human browser, the subtitle has to flag the search engine robots with keywords that will turn up in any relevant search on your topic. Look through the list above again. In each case, the punchy title is followed by keyword-rich descriptions. Each subtitle is far more specific than its corresponding title. In fact, without the subtitles, many of these titles would tell you almost nothing about the book they were attached to.
 
As almost all book discovery moves to digital databases and online searches, more and more of your success will rely on your ability to alert searchers—both robotic and human—to the worthiness of your book when they search on relevant keywords for your subject area.
 
These are the same keywords to use in filling out bibliographic information for Books in Print on Bowkerlink, to incorporate in your catalog copy and any descriptions of the book you write, or any press materials, media releases or sales copy.
 
This combination of title and subtitle gives you the greatest chance of your book being found by exactly the right people. Put some really good thinking behind your choices—it will serve you well.
 
Takeaway: For nonfiction books, combine an attention-getting short title with a long, specific and keyword-rich subtitle to achieve the best discoverability for your book.

 

This is a reprint from Joel Friedlander‘s The Book Designer.

Another USPS Update

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Here we go again. When I’ve complained to others about losing two packages, I’ve heard stories about people not pursuing the insurance claims that went unanswered when the Postal Service lost their package. That’s why I started out to see how far I could get with my claim after a year of waiting to hear. Others might want to try to get their insurance claim settled, too, if I have any luck. If we pay the insurance fee and the fault of loss is the fault of the Postal Service, we have the right to be reimbursed.

The denials I’ve received have been easy to dispute because I kept my paperwork for over a year. If I hadn’t I wouldn’t have been able to pursue my claim, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to get satisfaction. The Postal Service has the intention to wear me down until I quit and must have a long list of denials that they can throw at me yet.

I received two letters at once from the Postal Service Claims Department in St Louis. The first one was the $55 check, settlement from my insurance claim, that I refused and sent back. I was told to go ahead and cash the check. If I was to win my appeal the rest of my claim would be sent to me. I’ve got a year to cash that check so I’m not cashing it for awhile. I’m afraid doing so would make it look like I’ve accepted the Postal Service decision. This is one of the things I stated in my reply to Washington DC.

The second letter was a denial to send me any more money. Reason this time was their payment reflects the limit of insurance I purchased. I’ve lost count of how many copies of my insurance claim I’ve sent to the Claims department, but on the form it states that I paid $2.80 for the insurance on $135. I was told I was allowed to get back my postage and tracking fee so that is the $141. Now another employee has told me the Postal Service never refunds postage. I’d just be happy to see the $135 at this point, but a Postal employee did fill out the insurance form to show that I could claim postage and tracking fee.

How could I have not paid enough to cover the value of my package? When is the last time any of you have taken a package to the post office, asked to insure it and decided to pay a lower amount that wouldn’t cover insurance on the package especially when the insurance fee is so cheap. That didn’t happen. When I filed the insurance claim, a postal employee filled out the claim form for me and signed it. So the proof that I paid the right amount is down in black and white and still this latest denial says I didn’t pay enough insurance fee. Post Offices have a rate sheet for insurance. In one office, it was a small sheet that was out of sight. In another I just visited, the insurance rate was on the wall above the counter. Tell me the St. Louis Claims department has a different rate sheet with higher fees, and see if I believe it.

I was given an address to write for my FINAL appeal and that was stressed so that I am to know that I am about to end my fight. I think it would be wise from now on if I need to appeal any other claim to write directly to this address and get it over with. Here it is if anyone needs it.

Vice President & Consumer Advocate

US Postal Service-Domestic Claims Appeals

475 L’Enfant Plaza SW, Room 10343

Washington, DC 20260-0343

The letter I received said I was to appeal focusing only the basis of the last claim denial about the insurance fee not being enough. I take it to mean I’m not to digress about any other correspondence with the St. Louis Claim Center. I went to the post office and asked to see the insurance rate. Turns out $100 – $200 is a fee of $2.75. I paid a nickel too much according to the chart. Also, the employee said that a machine determines the fee. I was charged what ever the machine said. That I didn’t go in to. It was enough for me to see the rate sheet.

In my DC letter, I explained what the employee said and mentioned that I saw the fee chart so I know the fee to be accurate. Plus the fact that not paying enough to cover the value of the package didn’t make sense. Going on the premise that there might be a reason why I wasn’t suppose to bring up ALL my correspondence with St. Louis when I wrote Washington DC, I went into the history of how the first package was lost, then I insured the next one, thinking I’d be compensated if it was lost. I suggested if whoever reads my letter needs anymore information than what I’ve provided, the Claims Center in St. Louis has a file full of documentation from me that can be fax to Washington DC. I stated that if there had been a mistake in the rate charged me it would have been a postal employee’s error not mine since I wouldn’t have any idea what I was suppose to pay, but I’d have paid any amount I was asked and did.

The fact that Autria Finley from the Postal Claims Center kept apologizing to me at the end of her letter didn’t matter. I had lost a valuable customer because of the 10 week delay in shipping a shipment of books. Since I should be considered a valuable customer, I again sent a customer site map and business card to prove I was a business and used the Postal Service all the time.

While I was at it I said I know the Claims Center is busy, but their PR is lacking. I waited patiently a year to hear from them about my claim. I wouldn’t have heard if I had not wrote to ask the status. When I received the check there wasn’t any explanation of why the amount was only a third of what I had coming. I had to write again. I suggested better communication with their customers would be a good thing. I’ve certainly been communicating with them.

　

　

　

　

　

　

　

　

　

　

　

　

　

　

　

　

　

Server Updates

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Due to server updates to be applied the evening of 6/21/10, no new content is scheduled for posting to Publetariat until the evening of 6/22/10, 6pm Pacific Standard Time. The site will remain online and will be otherwise unaffected. Members can still post to their site blogs and to the Publetariat forum during this time.

We apologize for any inconvenience, and will see you right back here on the 22nd. (No need to click through – there’s no more to this announcement.) 

Attention

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What kind of attention do you want, as a writer?
 
Your first instinct, if you’re someone I hang around with, is to say you’d like any and all attention, just to get your writing some visibility. You are so confident in your work (hopefully) that you are anxious, eager, and bursting at the seams to get more eyeballs on your work.
 
[Editor’s note: strong language after the jump]

 
 
You are willing to throw it all in for that attention. You’ve blogged exhaustively. You’ve been nice to people you don’t know and don’t so much care about all over the internet. Your Twitter life is overtaking your own, all for the sake of gaining fans, followers, readers.
 
You are reading every piece of shit and every mark of brilliance you can get your hands on so that you can raise your own bar for your work product. The book review process is painful for you, with little feedback or responses. You feel like you’ve built the only platform you can, but…
 
You admittedly whore yourself all over the blogosphere, commenting everywhere and trying tactfully to get your plug in wherever you can.
You hang on opportunities to get a  reading, or a mention on some notorious blog.
 
You study those stats, analyze the analytics, and query to death your traffic. You’re doing everything you can, in between your day  job, your kids, your mortgage, your in-laws, and the goddamned lawn that needs to be mowed. Fuck.
 
So here comes an opportunity, you think, to really blow yourself out of the water. To really shine. You need something because everyone around you is raising that bar, doing video book trailers and podcasts, and selling just a few more through the Amazon threads (or so they say), than you are.
 
And you are better. You know what will bring attention to you. You didn’t want to talk about politics, or religion, or baby-killers, whatever the hell it will take to bring attention to yourself, just to get more eyes on your work. But then all of a sudden, you think, maybe being shameless isn’t as shameless as it may seem. Everyone else is doing their thing, why are you keeping to the book and maintaining all of the integrity that you feel may be the one thing holding you back?
 
So you go ahead and make that post or you label yourself in such a way that, well, labels you. You lay it all out.
…
Have you LOST YOUR FUCKING MIND?
…
Not necessarily, but you’ve lost yourself. You lost your objective. What is your objective? You are an independent writer. You need to be proud of your work and the few readers who do appreciate your writing and art. Not that you shouldn’t aim higher because you always should. But just leave it at that, will you?
 
Indie writers are surrounded by exponentially-expanding ranks of competition for a diminishing group of readers. There are enormous opportunities, but you have to love what you’re doing because you love writing and talking about writing and reading about writing and arguing about writing to feel any glory. Or else you really have lost your integrity.

And so then what the fuck are you doing if you have no integrity? 

 

This is a cross-posting from Lenox Parker’s Eat My Book.

Comparing Ebook and Print Book Covers

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Clifford Freyman and Angela Farley were the two illustrators I was fortunate to have designing my mystery series covers. Cliff, known as @Selorian on Twitter, is a web designer and author who did my ebooks/audio covers. Angela, a freelance designer in Kansas City, has always done my print book covers. I thought you might find their work comparisons interesting.

Both are superbly creative but approach their media differently. Cliff”s, on the right,  have to standout on the screen and Angie’s, on the left,  have to catch a customer’s eyes on a book shelf.

 

      

 

      

 

      

 

 

This is a cross-posting from Bob Spear‘s Book Trends blog.

Amazon Ratchet It Up A Level For Distributors

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The US publishing industry may have another spat on the horizon to accompany the current dispute between John Wiley and The Authors Guild. Amazon is yet again flexing its muscles, this time in the direction of distributors and their publisher clients.

 

 
Amazon is introducing a new program called ‘Levels of Service’ (PDFdownload). While there is nothing unusuual about an e-tailer like Amazon introducing new programs, this one suggests access to certain services will be withdrawn if distributors do not sign up. In reality, Amazon want to introduce a system where publishers are rewarded with access to better services and promotional staff if they offer Amazon improved terms of sale. Of course, distributors have to pay for these services already and their are many small and midsized companies fearing the costs will become prohibitive.
 
As yet, no publishers or distributors were willing to put their name to complaints when Publishers Weekly interviewed them in an article published yesterday.

Back in March, some booksellers reported Amazon UK to the Office of Fair Trading. We reported then:

Last week Amazon UK informed sellers using their Marketplace that they could no longer list book titles on other online retail sites, including the seller’s own site, for less than the listed Amazon retail price. The deadline for sellers to agree to this is Wednesday 31st March, and those sellers who do not agree will face delisting by the internet retail giant.

Over the weekend, the Scotland on Sunday reported that up to a dozen retail stores have complained to the UK’s Office of Fair Trading.


“Up to a dozen stores have now complained to the OFT that Amazon’s actions are unfairly restricting their ability to sell books to customers at lower prices.


Books typically sell for 10 per cent less on some alternative websites – as Amazon charges fees for its services – but the company says it has been forced to act to protect its low-price promise to readers.”

 

The Office of Fair Trading is currently considering the complaints and will make a response ‘in due course’.

 

This is a reprint from Mick Rooney‘s POD, Self-Publishing and Independent Publishing.

Symbolism in Novels

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Listen to a PODCAST of this article.

The other day I had a sudden flashback to that long ago time in English Lit 101. I had this odd little professor whose only purpose in life was to force disinterested freshmen to analyze symbolism is novels and short stories.

 
One day in class, the professor called on me to offer my interpretation of the symbolism in a short story. I saw it as an illustration of the lives of prostitutes. The professor almost laughed and asked how I had come up with that. After my explanation, he acknowledged my interpretation as valid, just wrong. The story, he said, was about politicians. How’s that for irony? In any case, that inconsequential moment in my life got me thinking about symbolism in fiction.
 
Let’s first define symbolism as it applies to literature. It is an object or creature that represents something else. Think the whale in "Moby Dick."
 
Symbolism is often employed to give greater depth or meaning to a work of fiction. In fact, symbolism  enhances the quality of literature in a way that cannot be duplicated by any other literary device.
 
Your symbols may be obvious, such as a national flag, or subtle, such as the flask a character carries in his hip pocket. For an example of an obvious symbol, consider the snake as the logo for the House of Slithering in the Harry Potter series. For a more understated symbol, look to the sled in "Citizen Kane" which represents lost innocence.
 
Should you attempt to instill symbolism into your novel? It’s not necessary at all. However, you can if you wish. The most obvious novel of this nature is "The Da Vinci Code," which is all about symbols.
 
Should you wish to incorporate symbolism in your novel, pay close attention to how others describe their symbols. You’ll most likely find enhanced descriptions and multiple incidents of use. You may find names of people, places and things that are less than ordinary. "Slithering" is a great example of that.
 
Here are some tips to get you started using symbolism in your fiction.
 
The secret to effective symbolism is to develop it before you write your story. It will appear much less contrived and make a more profound statement if you do. Symbols lose their power if they appear thrown-in or arbitrary.
 
Use symbols everyone will interpret in the same manner as you. Does an apple represent a doctor kept from your door as in "an apple a day…," or eternal sleep as it did with Snow White? If your reader misinterprets your symbol, you’ve created a big hole in your book.
 
With that said, ensure your symbols are not clichés.
 
One type of symbolism that has yet to lose its flavor is color. Red still means heat, anger or passion, whites represent innocence and so on.
 
Ensure your symbols represent what you want them to represent. A skull and death is a pretty sure bet but a shoe and manhood? Well, that’s a bit too deep for most readers.
 
Have your symbols represent something of value to the character to whom the symbol is tied.
 
Use them with care. Don’t have too many or you may slip into the category of allegory. A couple should do you just fine.
 
A good time to reintroduce your symbol is at the climax of your story. Let’s say you’ve used the aforementioned flask to symbolize a character’s inability to control his vices. Then, on the day he finally overcomes his weaknesses, he might drop and break the flask.
 
Consider using a symbol in a contrary fashion. Maybe the good guy really does wear black.
 
Now, would you care to share the symbols you’ve used in your novels?
 
Until we meet again, know I wish for you only best-sellers.

 

This is a reprint from C. Patrick Shulze’s Author of Born to Be Brothers site.

Hello fellow authors

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My name is Cliff Feightner; I am an internationally acclaimed invited public speaker and published author.  My topics cover a wide range of Business, Information Technology, and Project Management subjects.  My writings have been published in Europe and in the United States.

My first hardcover book published was "Lynn’s Story".  It is dedicated to my late wife’s fight with with Renal Cell Carcinoma;  a fight that we eventually lost.

I am currently completing a book tentatively titles "Views from Sandhausen" – Experiences From a Foreign Service Assignment.  It is scheduled to be published prior to the end of 2010.

Making a Comic Book on Your Computer

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This post, from Luke T. Bergeron, originally appeared on mispeled.net on 6/14/10.

I’ve posted about the comic I’m making a few times before. I don’t really know what I’m going to do with it once I’m done with it, but it’s so much fun making it that I plan to worry about that later. I know I’ll probably have a print version and a digital version available in some form, but right now I’m focused on finishing it.

Making the comic has been a multi-step process I’ve learned through trial and error (by wasting lots of digital PDF ink – luckily it’s free). I don’t know all the ropes – I only know what works for me – but what works for me might work for you, too. So I thought I’d take a few minutes and explain my process:

The Script – Microsoft Word

comic book script picture

Tune Comic Script page 20

The first thing I did, before anything else, was write the comic book. In my case, I adapted a script I’d written for a video game, since it was largely visual anyway, but I imagine that starting from scratch would be similar.

I wrote in a Word document, with each page in Word devoted to a page in the comic book. At the top of each page was a line telling me the page number and how many panels the page needed. Here is the actual top line from page 20 of my script:

20 Page – 6 Panels – 4 same sizes, 1 long bottom wide panel, one small shot at the bottom

I did it this way to make it easy to lay out later – because of my layout process, knowing how many panels I had on each page (before diving into the content) was easiest for me – it made the layout faster.

 

Read the rest of the post from Luke T. Bergeron on mispeled.net.

Are Kindle Customers and Agency Model Publishers Approaching a Compromise at the $12.99 Price Point?

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Have Kindle store customers and agency model publishers arrived at an unspoken compromise that could make $12.99 a viable new price point for bestsellers and new releases in the Kindle Store?

Although I want to resist drawing firm conclusions until we’ve seen more of the effects of coming changes in the Kindle royalty structure, there are some interesting patterns in our latest breakdown of prices in the Kindle Store and on its paid bestseller list. It’s deadline day for the weekly Kindle Nation email newsletter digest, so I’m going to try to keep the commentary brief, but here’s what I am seeing:
 

  • There have been slight increases during the past three weeks in the overall percentage of titles in all but one ($5 to 9.98) of the price ranges that we track from $.01 up to $9.99.
  • There have been slight decreases during the past three weeks in the overall percentage of titles in the price ranges from $10 to $12.99, $13 to $14.99, and $15 and up.
  • There are increasing signs that suggest authors and publishers may be able to make promotional prices in the $0.79 to $2.99 range work as "the new free" in the Kindle Store, now that such prices tend to stand out in the overall terrain of the relatively new "paid" bestseller list. 13 of the top 100 paid bestsellers are $2.99 or less, compared with just 7 on May 22.

But most significantly, here’s the buried lead: At the other end of the price spectrum, the number of titles priced between $10 and $12.99 among the Kindle Store’s top 100 paid bestsellers has jumped from 17 to 26 since May 22. Despite a strong current of commentary against $10-and-up pricing on this and other blogs and in various online forums, it is beginning to appear that many Kindle store customers are willing to pay up to $12.99 for newly released titles.
 

  • Nine of those 26 titles are among the top 23 bestsellers, and the prices for all 26 have been set directly by agency model publishers. 
  • It may be that trying to organize the world’s most motivated readers into boycotting books priced over $9.99 is a lot like herding cats, and there should be no surprise in that. On the other hand, readers continue to stay away from most of the 14,105 titles whose Kindle prices range from $13 to $14.99. The number of those titles appearing in the top paid 100 fell from 5 to 4 since May 22, and none of those are among the top 30.
  • Of all 30 titles priced over $9.99 among the Kindle Store’s top 100 paid bestsellers, all are agency model titles save one. The one exception is Aimee Bender’s The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake: A Novel, a Doubleday/Random House release currently priced by Amazon at $13.65 in the Kindle Store, while Amazon has discounted the hardcover from $25.95 to $14.27.

It’s too early to say with any certainty that Kindle owners have accepted a $12.99 price point, but my anecdotal reading of reader comments around the web suggests to me that some readers might be willing to pay for an occasional bestseller at $9.99 to $12.99 — still a measurable savings compared to most discounted hardcover prices — if they could be assured that publishers would back off the $14.99 price point.

Over time, many of us believe that the default new release price will return to the $9.99 level, and it is clear if you look at the books that get the prime real estate in the Kindle Store that Amazon remains committed to that price point. It’s also good to see that publishers themselves are getting the benefit of sound thinking from advisors like Mike Shatzkin, an industry consultant who wrote on his idea Logical blog this weekend:

 

I posit that the price of content must go down because of the laws of supply and demand. Even though digital delivery does actually increase “demand” (because people can consume more media if they have the means to do so always at hand), it increases supply much more. You used to need a publisher to spend some money and to commit an organization to get content into “supply”. Now you just need an internet connection. So I see downward pressure on the selling price of content going far into the future. This does not mean that eventually all content will be free, but it does mean that everybody will consume more and more free content and, therefore, be generally less willing to pay money for content to augment what is free.

I’ve been a bit critical of Mike and some of his colleagues in the past, probably even unfairly in some instances, when I have felt they were telling publishers what they wanted to hear rather than what they needed to hear. But it is clear from this post that he is not guilty of that kind of pandering.

Even Steve Jobs (and Apple), who can be held largely responsible for the increases in ebook prices this year, has been getting that other side of his mouth working lately with "price aggressively and go for volume" remarks that could support an inference that Apple may ultimately move to push ebook prices lower. Jobs may be the target of a price-fixing investigation, but he’s not in any trouble with iBooks customers. Many of them apparently wear an "i Paid" badge of honor judging from a quick analysis of the iBooks "Top Charts" list, where 58 of the top 100 paid bestsellers are priced over $10.

Here’s a price breakdown of the 609,975 book titles in the Kindle Store as of 5 p.m. EDT on June 14, 2010:
 

Here’s where we stood with the 587,104 book titles in the Kindle Store as of 5 p.m. EDT on May 22, 2010:
 

  • 20,584 Kindle Books Priced "Free" (3.51%)
  • 4,830 Titles Priced from a Penny to 98 Cents (0.82%)
  • 55,901 Kindle Books Priced at 99 Cents (9.52%)
  • 76,054 Kindle Books Priced from $1 to $2.99 (12.95%)
  • 109,706 Kindle Books Priced from $3 to $4.99 (18.69%)
  • 151,509 Titles Priced from $5 to $9.98 (25.81%)
  • 56,059 Titles Priced at $9.99 (9.55%)
  • 7,700 Titles Priced from $10 to $12.99 (1.31%)
  • 13,803 Titles Priced from $13 to $14.99 (2.35%)
  • 90,958 Titles Priced at $15 and Up (15.49%)

Here’s where we stood with the 511,759 book titles in the Kindle Store as of 9 a.m. EDT on May 7, 2010:
 

  • 20,601 Kindle Books Priced "Free" (4.03%)
  • 4,857 Titles Priced from a Penny to 98 Cents (0.94%)
  • 53,936 Kindle Books Priced at 99 Cents (10.54%)
  • 73,987 Kindle Books Priced from $1 to $2.99 (14.46%)
  • 101,014 Kindle Books Priced from $3 to $4.99 (19.74%)
  • 91,871 Titles Priced from $5 to $9.98 (17.95%)
  • 54,342 Titles Priced at $9.99 (10.62%)
  • 7,434 Titles Priced from $10 to $12.99 (1.45%)
  • 13,489 Titles Priced from $13 to $14.99 (2.64%)
  • 90,257 Titles Priced at $15 and Up (17.64%)

Here’s where we stood with the 487,715 book titles in the Kindle Store as of 9 a.m. EDT on April 7, 2010:
 

  • 20,620 Kindle Books Priced "Free" (4.23%)
  • 4,709 Titles Priced from a Penny to 98 Cents (0.97%)
  • 46,360 Kindle Books Priced at 99 Cents (9.51%)
  • 69,846 Kindle Books Priced from $1 to $2.99 (14.32%)
  • 94,891 Kindle Books Priced from $3 to $4.99 (19.46%)
  • 86,924 Titles Priced from $5 to $9.98 (17.82%)
  • 53,705 Titles Priced at $9.99 (11.01%)
  • 7,537 Titles Priced from $10 to $12.99 (1.51%)
  • 13,124 Titles Priced from $13 to $14.99 (2.69%)
  • 90,011 Titles Priced at $15 and Up (18.46%)

Here’s where we stood with the 480,238 book titles in the Kindle Store on April 1:
 

  • 20,620 Kindle Books Priced "Free" (4.29%)
  • 4,706 Titles Priced from a Penny to 98 Cents (0.98%)
  • 43,993 Kindle Books Priced at 99 Cents (9.16%)
  • 68,807 Kindle Books Priced from $1 to $2.99 (14.33%)
  • 93,706 Kindle Books Priced from $3 to $4.99 (19.51%)
  • 85,612 Titles Priced from $5 to $9.98 (17.83%)
  • 53,124 Titles Priced at $9.99 (11.06%)
  • 5,952 Titles Priced from $10 to $12.99 (1.24%)
  • 14,158 Titles Priced from $13 to $14.99 (2.95%)
  • 89,525 Titles Priced at $15 and Up (18.64%)

Here’s where we stood with about 463,000 Kindle Store titles on March 10:

 

  • 20,125 Kindle Books Priced "Free" (4.34%)
  • 2,588 Titles Priced from a Penny to 98 Cents (0.56%)
  • 39,095 Kindle Books Priced at 99 Cents (8.44%)
  • 64,105 Kindle Books Priced from $1 to $2.99 (13.84%)
  • 90,580 Kindle Books Priced from $3 to $4.99 (19.55%)
  • 84,055 Titles Priced from $5 to $9.98 (18.15%)
  • 53,697 Titles Priced at $9.99 (11.56%)
  • 5,793 Titles Priced from $10 to $12.99 (1.25%)
  • 13,731 Titles Priced from $13 to $14.99 (2.96%)
  • 89,448 Titles Priced at $15 and Up (19.31%)

And here’s where we stood with about 447,000 Kindle Store titles on February 25:
 

  • 19,795 Kindle Books Priced "Free" (4.42%) 
  • 3,023 Titles Priced from a Penny to 98 Cents (0.67%) 
  • 36,370 Kindle Books Priced at 99 Cents (8.12%) 
  • 62,275 Kindle Books Priced from $1 to $2.99 (13.9%) 
  • 87,722 Kindle Books Priced from $3 to $4.99 (19.58%) 
  • 81,230 Titles Priced from $5 to $9.98 (18.13%) 
  • 55,269 Titles Priced at $9.99 (12.34%) 
  • 5,139 Titles Priced from $10 to $12.99 (1.15%) 
  • 9,331 Titles Priced from $13 to $14.99 (2.08%) 
  • 87,771 Titles Priced at $15 and Up (19.59%)

 

This is a cross-posting from Stephen Windwalker’s Kindle Nation Daily.

The Artist's Date: Take Time To Refill The Creative Well

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I’ve been pretty hammered over the last few weeks with the day job. It has sapped my creativity and taken my precious time away from my novel writing and this blog.

I sorely needed a day off so I went to the brilliant Eumundi markets and then on to Noosa, SE Queensland for an Artist’s Date. I also listened to business audios on the 4 hour round trip as I feel the need to keep my entrepreneurial side fed.

This idea comes from Julia Cameron’s “The Artist’s Way” which is a fantastic book. It is basically some time alone absorbing and refilling your creative well. It can be something entirely different, like a pottery class or a show, or could just be a walk or a new gallery exhibition. Anything that gives your brain some new stimulation and takes you away from your work in progress and your ‘normal’ life. It should be alone so you have time to reflect and can be an hour, a day or longer. (I am hankering after a writer’s retreat one of these days!)

I made this short video on the beach (1:24). You can hear some wind noise, but you get the idea! What do you do for your Artist’s Date?

 

This is a reprint from Joanna Penn‘s The Creative Penn.

Opening My Eyes And Tuning In

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I took the earphones out and shut off my music. Then I opened my eyes, as I grabbed a seat on the downtown 4 train at about 5pm last Friday. It’s the New York City subway and oddly, there was a sense of lightness, content, and connection. I’m not sure I know how else to describe it. I made eye contact with several people, instead of looking at the floor, reading, or gazing into a parallel universe.

Two older women stepped on and there was a friendly fuss over seats given up for them. Then one lady began to hum and sing. At first I thought my ears were deceiving me. Then I looked right over at her and she leaned back in her seat and smiled as she sang what sounded to be hymnals, in French. I thought she might be Haitian. Within moments there was banter–the aloof high schooler who put down her summer reading to listen and observe leaned over and smiled. The guy who looked like he just busted out of Riker’s peered over and smiled, glancing around at others to engage them in this woman’s unprompted muse.

Anyone within earshot had pulled out their headphones. And interestingly this woman wasn’t singing to be heard, necessarily, as subway performers often do. She was singing out of pure joy.

I don’t know, or remember, what pure joy is. The hours and days after giving birth to my two kids was pure joy; and then later seeing each take their first steps. But I don’t otherwise have joy. So the next best thing is to witness someone truly bursting with joy to the point of song.

This sounds entirely sentimental, I know, and very much out of character for me. But I learned just a little bit about the benefits of connecting with the environment–as hostile as it sometimes may be–and by observing the emotions and expressions of others, even strangers.

Can I inject a little of that sensibility into my writing? I hope so, since much of [my] writing is drawn from personal experience, but more realistically, that experience may just be second-hand. Witnessing expressions of a range of emotion and having the sensibility to observe and document is important. Then the beauty of writing is to take those snapshots and articulate them so the reader is right there with you observing and feeling, whether it is a fictional or true experience.

 

This is a cross-posting from Lenox Parker’s Eat My Book.

Writers Helpful Sites & Vacation

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I’ve signed up for newsletters at these sites and appreciate the information that is emailed to me.

http://www.guidetoliteraryagents.com
Writer’s Relief
Writer’s Digest – has a great article titled 10 Simple Steps to Handselling Your Book which explains how an unknown author gets the attention of buyers at a book signing so they buy her book.
 
Some of these sites list agents looking for clients, publishers, and magazines looking for stories. There are grammar lessons like when to use who or whom. Also, helpful tips about using the internet to sell your books.
 
Publetariat is a website that is filled with articles and blogs about how to publish your book, self publishing, and the publishing industry. I blog on that site and sometimes I wind up on the front page as a contributor.
 
Book Marketing Network is made up of groups looking to discuss many subjects about writing and publishing. You can advertise an upcoming book, book event or give other authors useful tips and read about their tips. There are blogs. One of them is mine. 
 
Authonomy is a website you can put chapters of your book on and get reviews from other authors. In return you will be asked to read other authors works and send them a review. This is a competitive site where each contributor tries to get to the top of the heap so Harper Collins Publishers will look at their work. I enjoyed the site and loved the responses to my work but found the return reading time consuming. Agents watch this site. I know because I had one contact me after reading five chapters of each of my Amish books.
 
Now for the fun stuff. I’ve been gone on a vacation to Northern Arkansas to visit my husband’s relatives. I went with my husband’s sister. We had the most enjoyable time. The countryside from Iowa to Arkansas is so beautiful this time of year. We’d drive between rock ledges up to the top of a hill and look down at rolling, timbered hills, shrouded in blue mist and see the winding pavement twist through the valleys. The views were breath taking.
 
Northern Arkansas country roads are tree lined, narrow, natural rocked clay that twist and turn, seemingly going no where but up and down like a roller coaster ride. For someone used to perfect formed mile intersections with street signs, those roads are not to be traversed alone if you weren’t born in that area. If you do, I suggest taking a survial kit. That way if you run out of gas, you can survive until you find your way out.
 
The sun was hot. The atmosphere was humid so thank goodness for air conditioning. We enjoyed the back yard view from inside, watching for deer from the relatives kitchen window. After we went to bed, in the cool dark of evening, we listened to whippoorwills call and mockingbirds mocking the crows. The dog, Zoe, waited until she was right under our bedroom window to protest the armadillos that came to root up the lawn under cover of darkness. Each time, Zoe disconcertingly startled us out of our drowsy doze.
 
My writing repetition preceded me to Arkansas. Uncle proudly introduced me as the niece that writes books. I’d get a nod and hear, "You’re the one." 
 
As usual I brought back some plant starts and clay for my mother-in-law and me. I saw old fashion climbing roses in pink and pale pink hidden in high grass in the corner of Aunt’s yard. She offered to let me add some of her bright pink climbing rose on the trellis by the carport. I confess here that I got snip happy and came home with a couple twigs off her pink crepe myrtle while I was at it. I always like adding flowers to my outdoor heritage collection. When I give my flower tour if the roses and the crepe myrtle make it, I’ll be able to say those belonged to Aunt Gladys.
 
My mother-in-law, the authority in all things green thumbed, told me roses can’t be started without putting a ball of wet clay on the stem.  Tear off the green leaves near the bottom, cover the stem with a clay ball for a ways up the stem and bury the stem in dirt in a pot. Put a jar over the plant and keep moist. The jar acts as a green house. If the plant is going to live, old leaves will fall off and new leaves will grow on the stem. Making a clay ball is harder than it sounds. First time, I added too much water to the clay and had to add more clay until I had the mud the right consistency. The wet clay stuck to my hands, the knife and scissors but wouldn’t hang on the stem. I finally got the hang of it with some practice.
 
As usual I gave my mother-in-law some of the plant clippings with an ulterior motive. She has such a knack for growing plants I always think I can get another start from her if mine all die.
 
Arkansas gardens are about a month ahead of Iowa. We were treated to fried catfish and new potatoes from the garden. Strawberry shortcake was dessert. When we left Sunday morning, we took with us ham and cheese sandwiches and strawberry shortcake for lunch. A roadside park was right where we needed it at noon. It was time to get out of the van, stretch our legs and get a breath of fresh air while we enjoyed the picnic.
 
We left Iowa when it was raining and came back to rain. Looks like more rain all this week. Our hay is still waiting for three dry days in a row to be cut, dried and baled. We’re waiting, too. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Writing The Book And Beyond

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For several weeks now I’ve been wrapped up in the world of book writing. I’ve been co-authoring a book that will end up being the second official title to be published by my company Founders House Publishing. At present, the book is still in process and going by a working title. I’ve spent my time working exclusively on this book. I’ve been covered over with all of the demands that tend to form any piece of longer writing – especially when you choose to work with someone else. I’m governed by not only my own expectations, but those of the other party.

So far, for me, this has been a good thing, because I’m anxious to get input in the material to see whether I’m on the right track. Many writers have commented on the advantages of having instantaneous input. Some receive this help from their alpha readers who get a sneak preview of what the writer has produced. At the same time, I’ve been given a large degree of freedom or autonomy on this book. It’s been a learning experience, let me tell you.

Deeper Thoughts

One of the advantages of this project has been that I have received numerous materials up front. The client had handwritten materials, newspaper clippings, and other documents that he had collected or written over the years. He provided me with plenty of ground work. What he lacked in writing skill he made up for with his passion for the subject matter. That excites me – and also humbles me. I must appreciate the  trust I’ve been given and do my very best to present a book that  honors the spirit and commitment that client has for his story.

This whole process has made me appreciate the writing process while also making me realize, again, that this is a challenging business that we’re in. Not everyone can write for living. Even the pros come to grips with this realization and sometimes come to a point in their careers where they run into walls. They can’t go on. They’ve lost their focus. Maybe they’re burned out and need a break. These are just some reasons I’ve considered and some feelings that even I have experienced.

What is difficult for me at this point balancing my genuine desire to grow as a writer with my decision to establish a publishing company that offers other writers the opportunity to share their own ideas and stories. I’m passionate about both and doing a lot of work to make sure that I’m worthy of their attentions. I have to remind myself that I’m still a newbie in the publishing business, trying to grow my little company a book at a time.

And Then…

With such aspirations both for this upcoming book and for the development of future books comes the inevitable question: How do I make ends meet? Obviously, for me the answer seems to keep freelancing. It sounds simple, but I’ve been finding it a little more complicated lately. I’m well aware of the "feast or famine" nature of this business. I’ve experienced from time to time during the last four years. It’s been a struggle; it is a struggle now to find work on a consistent basis. Part of this is my fault for not having a good plan in place to account for the changes that I was already perceiving in the markets I was using. The other was that I took on this book project with such enthusiasm that I neglected other things just as important.

I’m back to square one as a freelance writer. I’m on the hunt for enough work to make the budget requirements for my household. Even while the prospects of selling decent numbers of books is on the horizon, the proverbial ship hasn’t come in quite yet. If I’m honest with myself, I know that it will not be that simple even if the book does as well as the client and I expect. This is something I cannot expect to see for at least four months. That’s plenty of time to derail any efforts of changing our personal finances if I do not find steady writing gigs.

None of this is being stated so I can have an excuse to complain. No, I have no reason to complain. I still love this job. I’m so grateful to have the opportunity to work as a freelance writer. I hope to continue doing it for the foreseeable future. I would say this: fellow writers wish me luck and pass on any work you might have. I’d like the chance to expand my client base. (Just a bit of networking.)

In Closing…

Thanks for reading. I would love to receive any thoughts or comments you might have. Share your own experiences I would love to read them.  Take care…and keep writing!

 

This is a cross-posting from Shaun C. Kilgore‘s site.

Creative Commons: What Every Self-Publisher Ought to Know

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Licensing of rights is at the center of the publishing business. Publishing contracts are rights licenses, nothing more or less. People who work in publishing, and who supply the publishing industry with its raw materials—the authors—become used to dealing with the expressions of creativity as valuable products with inherent rights.

Opposed to the whole rights-as-property side of the equation is the public domain. This abstract territory is where we keep the fruits of the creators of earlier eras. The best or most durable works of our time will, in turn, join the great trove of works that forms the underpinning of our culture. Because this material is owned by the public, it is freely available to all.
 
Each of these opposing forces—strict licenses of intellectual property to enable monetezation, and the need for culture to have the fruits of its history available to build upon—has a role to play. The trick is in getting the balance right.
 
 
A New Idea in Rights for the Twenty-First Century
In 2002 Duke University founded its Center for the Study of the Public Domain. Here’s a statement from their website:
Both the incentives provided by intellectual property and the freedom provided by the public domain are crucial to the balance. But most contemporary attention has gone to the realm of the protected.
Through the support of Duke’s Center, Creative Commons was formed soon thereafter. What exactly is Creative Commons?
Creative Commons is a nonprofit corporation dedicated to making it easier for people to share and build upon the work of others, consistent with the rules of copyright. We provide free licenses and other legal tools to mark creative work with the freedom the creator wants it to carry, so others can share, remix, use commercially, or any combination thereof.
Creative Commons is run as a collaborative non-profit with a large board and an evolving series of rights licenses that they describe and make available for content creators.
 
Explosive Growth
It’s obvious there was a real need for a more flexible way to deal with licensing creative works in the everything-is-reachable-by-a-Google-search era. Rights had been very cumbersome to negotiate and police. What Creative Commons aimed to do was put the control of the rights back in the hands of the people originating the works.
At the same time, it made it much easier for publishers to get access to content because the artist could state which version of the Creative Commons license they choose to apply to their work. It both stimulates commerce and protects the artists.
 
The growth of Creative Commons-licensed works has exploded. For the last year I’ve seen statistice for, 2008, over 130 million individual works were covered by Creative Commons licenses, and I’m sure the number is much higher now. Wikipedia, for example, uses Creative Commons licenses for all of its content.
 
And Flickr.com can search its collection of millions of images based on their Creative Commons licensing, a real boon to web-based publishers (like bloggers).
 
Creative Commons isn’t perfect, and some people have made reasonable arguments against its system. However, it still seems the most balanced, easiest to use approach generally accepted in the market, and it does leave the artist in control of deciding which rights to hold and which rights to grant. This seems far better than the “all rights reserved” method in which contracts have to be drawn for each case, dividing rights and licensing them.
 
Understanding Creative Commons Licenses

Under the current 3.0 version of Creative Commons, there are four conditions from which creators can choose. This is how they are explained, with their corresponding symbols

 

creative commons, self-publishing

(Click to enlarge)
 
By combining these conditions, you arrive at the six Creative Commons licenses:
  1. Creative Commons Attribution  Attribution (cc by)
    This license lets others distribute, remix, tweak, and build upon your work, even commercially, as long as they credit you for the original creation. This is the most accommodating of licenses offered, in terms of what others can do with your works licensed under Attribution.
     
  2. Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike  Attribution Share-Alike (cc by-sa)
    This license lets others remix, tweak, and build upon your work even for commercial reasons, as long as they credit you and license their new creations under the identical terms. This license is often compared to open source software licenses. All new works based on yours will carry the same license, so any derivatives will also allow commercial use.
     
  3. Creative Commons  Attribution No Derivatives (cc by-nd)
    This license allows for redistribution, commercial and non-commercial, as long as it is passed along unchanged and in whole, with credit to you.
     
  4. Creative Commons book design, publish a book  Attribution Non-Commercial (cc by-nc)
    This license lets others remix, tweak, and build upon your work non-commercially, and although their new works must also acknowledge you and be non-commercial, they don’t have to license their derivative works on the same terms.
     
  5. book design, self-publish a book  Attribution Non-Commercial Share Alike (cc by-nc-sa)
    This license lets others remix, tweak, and build upon your work non-commercially, as long as they credit you and license their new creations under the identical terms. Others can download and redistribute your work just like the by-nc-nd license, but they can also translate, make remixes, and produce new stories based on your work. All new work based on yours will carry the same license, so any derivatives will also be non-commercial in nature.
     
  6. creative commons, book design, publish a book  Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives (cc by-nc-nd)
    This license is the most restrictive of the six main licenses, allowing redistribution. This license is often called the “free advertising” license because it allows others to download your works and share them with others as long as they mention you and link back to you, but they can’t change them in any way or use them commercially.
3 Things to Remember About Your Rights
Remember, in the United States,
  1. Your copyright in your creation is effective as soon as you fix your creative expression in a form. Although there are various mechanisms to register your copyright, it exists when your original work is created.
  2. It’s often wise to list a copyright in your work to eliminate the ambiguity caused by not having any notice at all of rights ownership
  3. Creative Commons gives you a way to share works you’ve created in a flexible way, but it is optional. Your rights are assumed to be “all rights reserved” unless you state otherwise.
Takeaway: Creative Commons rights licenses are a flexible way for artists to share some rights while choosing which ones to withhold. It can spur creativity while allowing artists to maintain control of their work.

 

This is a cross-posting from Joel Friedlander‘s The Book Designer.