Eat Humble Pie
It seems that during the 13th century, the members of a British family did not all east the same thing when they sat down to a meal. When a stag was killed, the tenderest meat went to the hunter who had brought the beast down, along with his eldest son, and his closest friends. The wife and other children ate what was left over, the stag's "umbles"-- heart, liver, tongue, brain, kidneys, and entrails. To make these more palatable, the wife seasoned and baked them into an "umble pie." Eventually, after the use of this dish was discontinued and Americans added an "h" to the word, "to eat humble pie" became an allusion to a humiliating drop in social status, and later, to any form of humiliation.
Saturday, March 17, 2012
Small Publisher Series: Dog Ear Publishing
Dog Ear Publishing http://dogearpublishing.net/
Okay, what the heck does Dog Ear mean? Well, according to the Dog Ear Publishing website, it's a term for something worn from frequent use, a familiar term for most people. Dog Ear adds that it is also something that often indicates a reader's FAVORITE portion of a book is called "dog eared". They want to be that "favorite" spot for authors on the internet.
Okay, what the heck does Dog Ear mean? Well, according to the Dog Ear Publishing website, it's a term for something worn from frequent use, a familiar term for most people. Dog Ear adds that it is also something that often indicates a reader's FAVORITE portion of a book is called "dog eared". They want to be that "favorite" spot for authors on the internet.
Dog Ear Publishing was founded in October, 2004 by Miles Nelson, who has an extensive graphic and printing background; Ray Robinson, previously a book packager for traditional publishers and a buyer for a major retail bookstore; and Alan Harris who, like Robinson, has experience as a buyer for a well known bookstore chain and performed as an acquisitions editor for a major traditional publisher. On their website, they state: "In an industry battling against venture capitalist backed goliaths, we knew that Dog Ear had to offer something unique to authors looking to self-publish. Our one-two punch has been Dog Ear’s business model (profit structure, low per unit print prices, contract terms) and our commitment to offer the best services in the self publishing industry.
"We feel strongly that authors should take a close look at factors like how much it will really cost them to produce their book, and how much they will keep from book sales. Can they get someone on the phone when they call and if they do, will that representative know anything about that author’s book? What are the backgrounds of the people they're dealing with?"
Dog Ear is a self-publishing company, also called 'book packagers' in the world of traditional publishing. This means that they provide service to authors (or, as 'book packagers' provide services to publishers) that center around the production and publishing of books. Most self-publishing companies provide a full suite of service for authors, from editing, to design and production, to distribution and marketing. Dog Ear is no exception. They offer four packages ranging from "basic" to "Masterpiece," each one more comprehensive than the one before it, and more expensive.
As an example, a basic package includes production of the client's book, custom interior and cover design, up to 30 interior images, some free copies, an author representative to provide support throughout the process, book and author webpage within Dog Ear's website, registration with all major online booksellers and national distributors, an ISBN number, copyright, inclusion in Google's Book Search program and availability in one digital format (Google Editions).
At the other end of the list, a masterpiece package basically includes all that plus availability in Kindle format, limited professional copyediting, and an aggressive marketing campaign, a website and full color print marketing materials.
I wrote to Dog Ear and held an email interview with Mark Jackson. Here are his answers to questions I posted to him:
1) Our contract is a non-exclusive contract. An author is always free to go to another publisher. The main intention of the contract is to establish that the author owns all the rights to the book. You may view our contact at the following link: http://dogearpublishing.net/agreement-author-contract.php
2) We don’t pay on a royalty system like most companies. Instead, we allow our authors to choose the retail price and wholesale discount (20%, 40%, 50% or 55%) for their books. The amount of money that can be made is really up to the author and not tied to a fixed percentage.
1) Our contract is a non-exclusive contract. An author is always free to go to another publisher. The main intention of the contract is to establish that the author owns all the rights to the book. You may view our contact at the following link: http://dogearpublishing.net/agreement-author-contract.php
2) We don’t pay on a royalty system like most companies. Instead, we allow our authors to choose the retail price and wholesale discount (20%, 40%, 50% or 55%) for their books. The amount of money that can be made is really up to the author and not tied to a fixed percentage.
4) 3) Dog Ear uses Ingram, Baker and Taylor, and Books in Print [for distribution].
4) Promotion is included in our Professional, Professional Plus and Masterpiece Publishing Packages. These packages include items like an author website, press release service and print marketing materials.
5) Yes, we offer editorial services. Our standard copyediting costs two cents per word.
6) Our e-book package consists of distribution on Kindle, Nook and iPad. These are the three main e-retailers.
7) An author has complete input into the cover process. You may view samples of our work at the following link: http://dogearpublishing.net/the-results.php
8) Our publishing process takes three to four months. During that time we will be sending the author proofs of their book. It is up to the author to view the proofs and provide feedback on them.
I checked out their book covers and was quite impressed. Dog Ear Publishing appears to have a great deal to offer to the author interested in self-publishing. To learn more, go to http://www.dogearpublishing.net.
4) Promotion is included in our Professional, Professional Plus and Masterpiece Publishing Packages. These packages include items like an author website, press release service and print marketing materials.
5) Yes, we offer editorial services. Our standard copyediting costs two cents per word.
6) Our e-book package consists of distribution on Kindle, Nook and iPad. These are the three main e-retailers.
7) An author has complete input into the cover process. You may view samples of our work at the following link: http://dogearpublishing.net/the-results.php
8) Our publishing process takes three to four months. During that time we will be sending the author proofs of their book. It is up to the author to view the proofs and provide feedback on them.
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Beginnings; How Traditions Began
How did your mother explain the appearance of babies? Did she tell you a stork brought you when you were born? Is your ancestry Scandinavian? Well, it was Scandinavian mothers who first began telling this tall tale. To explain why they needed to stay in bed for several days after the stork delivered the baby, children were told that before it left, the bird bit the mother's leg.
Why a stork? It seems that throughout their long, seventy years of life, storks return to the same chimney year after year to nest. They are monogamous and unusually affectionate. Not only do they take great care of their young, they also lavish attention on their elderly and infirm parents, feeding them and offering their wings for support.
The Romans were so impressed with the stork's altruistic nature that they passed the "Stork's Law," Lex Ciconaria, to compel children to care for aged parents. The Greek word storge, from which "stork" originated, means "strong natural affection."
So, the stork's gentleness and its habit of nesting on chimneys made it appear ideal to ancient Scandinavians as the deliverers of babies. The old Norse legend was popular throughout Scandinavia. It was Hans Christian Andersen who immortalized the myth by using it in his fairy tales.
Why a stork? It seems that throughout their long, seventy years of life, storks return to the same chimney year after year to nest. They are monogamous and unusually affectionate. Not only do they take great care of their young, they also lavish attention on their elderly and infirm parents, feeding them and offering their wings for support.
The Romans were so impressed with the stork's altruistic nature that they passed the "Stork's Law," Lex Ciconaria, to compel children to care for aged parents. The Greek word storge, from which "stork" originated, means "strong natural affection."
So, the stork's gentleness and its habit of nesting on chimneys made it appear ideal to ancient Scandinavians as the deliverers of babies. The old Norse legend was popular throughout Scandinavia. It was Hans Christian Andersen who immortalized the myth by using it in his fairy tales.
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
2011 World Book Awards
The 2011 World Book Awards has chosen my friend and fellow critique group member, Ann Chamberlin, to receive their prestigious Gold Award For Literary Excellence for her book The Woman At The Well, a fictional work set in early Islam.
Having heard much of this book read at our critique group meetings, I'm not surprised it won this honor. I've never known another writer who spends as much time and effort as Ann Chamberlin does in researching her stories to make them as historically authentic as possible. Out of curiosity I checked Amazon.com to see how many of her books were available there and discovered that they have a good selection. However, they have only one copy of The Woman At The Well left, so go online asap if you want a copy of your own. If you miss out, they do have a Kindle version available.
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Word For The Day
blue norther n Also infreq blue Texas norther, blue-tailed norther [blue adj 3 + norther a northerly wind] TX See Map See also norther Cf blue blizzard, blue darter 1, blue whistler 2 A cold wind from the north that brings rapidly falling temperatures.c1856 in 1947 AN&Q 7.144 TX, On page 187 of the second volume of Ordeal of the Union, Allan Nevins, treating of the cattle country of Texas, refers to a record (from the University of Texas Archives) written by an early cattle driver. The driver speaks of a “blew-tailed norther,” which he encountered on a cattle drive sometime around 1856. Such winds, he says, were “very common in Texas 40 to 60 years ago.” 1873 Morrell Flowers & Fruits 234 TX, A blue Texas norther whistled around my ears. 1942 Perry Texas 90, Even more Texan are the blue northers that sweep out of the Panhandle under a blue-black sky and sometimes slam the temperature down thirty or forty degrees in a single night. 1965 Teale Wandering Through Winter 160 TX, During one of our last days at Rockport, a blue norther struck. 1967–70 DARE (Qu. B18, . . Special kinds of wind) 16 Infs, TX, Blue norther. 1970 Tarpley Blinky 58 neTX, A strong cold wind from the north. . . Blue norther. 1980 AZ Highways Feb 2, Missing too [from the cowboy legend] are references to . . the icy grip of a “blue norther.”
Small Publisher Series: Champagne Book Group
Champagne Book Group, http://www.champagnebooks.com/, is an independent small press located in Calgary A.B., Canada, and was established in 2004. Their books are available in both electronic and trade paperback format (PDF/PRC/HTML/EPUB) formats, although paperbacks are not widely distributed. Digital versions can be found through such sites as Amazon, B&N, Kobo, Apple, Sony Ereader, Fictionwise, CoffeetimeRomance and others. Champagne Book Group pays royalties. They also pay advances to returning authors but not to new authors.
The Champagne imprint is for mainstream fiction. Currently they are looking for contemporary romance with high degrees of sensuality (no sweet romances), vampire romance, fantasy romance, historical (western/highlander) romance, science fiction/futuristic/fantasy/urban fantasy and steam punk romances.
Carnal Passions is their erotica line -- BDSM, alternate lifestyles, gay/lesbian, and combinations thereof.
BURST is their Sci/Fi and fantasy imprint, seeking paranormal, fantasy, science fiction/futuristic, fantasy/urban fantasy, and steam punk.
Word counts are to be approximately 25,000 words for novellas, 70-80,000 words for full length novels. Manuscripts should be double spaced, use Times New Roman 12 point, and one-inch borders. No footers or headers. They do want contact information on the top line of each attachment so they can contact you. Simultaneous and e-mail submissions are not accepted at this time. Send only completed works.
Submissions must include the following:
1) A professional query letter which includes the title of your novel, word count, genre, a brief biography and your contact information. Include this in the body of your email.
2) A synopsis of your book that describes the story from beginning to end. Please keep it to 2-3 pages in length. Attach it to your email in RTF format. Please give your synopsis an appropriate title, not simply 'synopsis'. ie: Synopsis-The Winner.
3) First three chapters, saved in RTF format and attached to your email. Please name your partial manuscript appropriately, ie: Partial-The Winner.
4) A promotional plan, showing short term and long term goals. While your submission won't be won or lost on the basis of this 'plan', it will get you thinking about what you can do to help promote your novel. Saved in RTF format and attached to your email.
Go to their website for additional submission guidelines.
Email queries to:
submissions@burstbooks.ca
Monday, March 12, 2012
Why Amazon’s KDP Select Is God’s Gift to Authors
After reading this excellent article on The Creative Penn, http://www.thecreativepenn.com, I felt compelled to share it with my friends in the writing world--namely you (BTW, this is a great site for information on writing).
Why Amazon’s KDP Select Is God’s Gift to Authors
Last week I shared my results from direct marketing to Kindle readers through advertising and KDP Select. I came down against the program overall based on my experience, but in today’s guest post, Jeff Bennington shows us the opposite point of view and shares some brilliant results. We are all experimenting in this new world of publishing. There are no rules and what works for one book, won’t work for another, so it’s important to listen to all sides before trying something yourself.
It’s no secret that Amazon’s KDP Select offers free promotion to authors who enlist in the program. But what many authors don’t realize is how effective this promotion can be.
Some of you may not agree with Amazon’s monopolistic tactics, and that’s okay. Some of you, however, have jumped in with both feet. As an independent author, I’m in favor of KDP Select. My first promotion brought me into Amazon’s Top 100 (#55 Paid) and completely transformed the sales of all my books. Before I signed on with KDP Select, I was selling 97 percent of my titles in the Kindle Store, so the switch was a no-brainer. I had been working on a few marketing strategies, and quickly I recognized that KDP was the spark I needed to start a fire. Now that I’ve had a chance to play with this program, I think KDP Select is the best marketing opportunity for authors, hands down. Here’s why:
The KDP Select program doesn’t care if you’re traditionally published or self-published. Enrolling your book gives you a chance to show the world what you can do, no prejudices, no preconceived notions. This is American Idol for writers at its best. You place your book on the stage, and if the cover is great and you’ve earned a few quality reviews, you’ll move to the next level of judging. There isn’t really a system of pass or fail, but if readers find your book attractive, it’ll sell in the Free Store. And I’m not talking about hundreds of readers—I’m talking about thousands, maybe tens of thousands. Where else can you jump-start the promotion of your book like that?
It takes a lot of gears to move a book up Amazon’s ranking system. Gears can be anything such as great reviews, multiple titles by the same author, a strong author platform, previous bestseller, number of copies sold, etc. All of these gears can influence a book’s rate of acceleration through Amazon’s ranking system. The more gears you have, the higher you are likely to climb. Unattractive covers, poor reviews, and badly written book samples can throw a wrench in the cogs.
The good news is, KDP Select can add gears to a book—again, as long as it is attractive at first glance. This, among other reasons, is why I strongly encourage authors to pay for a quality cover. Your cover is your first impression. Get it right.
NOTE: After your free promotion is over, your book will now appear on hundreds, if not thousands, of book pages, thanks to Amazon’s “Customers who bought this, also bought …” element of their sales pages. This translates into thousands of tiny billboards that you didn’t have before your KDP promotion.Layered marketing can enhance your KDP experience. In the past, it took weeks before a book was listed as free. Now, if you plan properly, you can schedule up to a five-day promotion that has the potential to spin your book straight to the top. Believe it or not, this promotion can build enough momentum for your book to move up the ranks when it hits the paid store. This is possible because of the quick turnaround from free to paid. Amber Scott, from The Indie Book Collective, calls this type of momentum “traction.” HINT: You can increase the traction, or torque, in your gears by scheduling a sponsorship with Kindle Nation Daily (or other book marketing site) on the exact day your book returns to regular price.
Amazon’s Top 100 Free and Paid lists are the equivalent of a billboard in Times Square. Making it into either list will not only give you thousands of readers in a matter of days but will translate into more reviews and more sales. In my opinion, an author should plan her KDP promotion with pinpoint accuracy, throwing everything she has into that two- or three-day promo, because the more gears you link to your book, the higher you’ll go. And if you can gear your book into the Top 100, it will be worth every penny!
Authors are reaching the top faster than ever before. The ability to schedule a promotion of this magnitude is absolutely unprecedented. Amazon has already leveled the playing field between self-published and traditionally published authors. KDP Select has given indies more exposure because publishers aren’t as willing to restrict their titles to Amazon alone, thereby giving us a bigger piece of the promotional pie. Although there is no doubt that the market is saturated with free and 99 cent books.
From my personal experience, and by helping other authors hit the Top 100, I believe that Amazon has created the greatest marketing system available to authors in the history of publishing. If an author’s book has nailed the important elements like a good cover, tight plot, good reviews, and professional editing and formatting, she can promote her book on an international scale like never before, all on a shoestring budget. Several factors will determine how long you stay at the top, but getting there can change everything.
Here are the facts regarding my royalties since I joined KDP Select.
Now you be the judge if this program isn’t a revolutionary program…Month Royalties
September = $442
October 2011 = $133
November 2011 = $478
December 2011 = $10,156 (KDP Select opens)
January 2012 = $2,387
These are only U.S royalties and include my royalties from the Amazon Prime rentals. Obviously December will always be higher because of the Christmas rush. Currently, February is on par to match January but if $2,300 is my new “normal” than I’d say that’s pretty revolutionary.
If you have a long list of books that are selling in multiple outlets, you can always try one of your books to see how it fares for the 90-day commitment. If you are a new author, there is no better way to reach a large audience when you are starting from ground zero. But if you’re a new author and your quest for readers is coming up dry, I highly recommend the KDP Select program—it’s God’s gift to you.
Jeff Bennington is the author of The Indie Author’s Guide to the Universe, Reunion, Creepy, and Twisted Vengeance. He is the founder of The Kindle Book Review, NexGate Press, and blogs weekly at The Writing Bomb.
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