Alternatives Federal Credit Union Featured Business of the Month in March
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March 3, 2013

It is both an honor and a privilege to be the featured Business of the Month at Alternatives Federal Credit Union. Alternatives (AFCU) is a regional Community Development Financial Institution. This isn’t your ordinary credit union. Member-owned, locally controlled and self-supporting, AFCU works to meet the financial needs of the members of the community. They believe that by controlling the flow of funds within a small… [Read More]

Comparative Title Analysis for your Book Proposal: The “How-To”
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January 29, 2013

Last week here, I spelled out the reasons why a comparative title analysis is so important to a book proposal. Today, the “how to” complete your research on the competition in the marketplace of ideas will be presented. This step-by-step process involves research, reading, and a critical market assessment. 1. Identify the genre, even the sub-genre, of books you will be searching for in your… [Read More]

Synopsis: Key document in your book proposal
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January 12, 2013

Planning to write a non-fiction book in 2013? Do you have a work-in-progress memoir? And your goal is to publish? Then start the New Year with a timeline and plan to write a book proposal. Now that you’ve updated your biographical profile, write a synopsis of your book concept before the end of this month. In less than 1,000 words, write an essay in third… [Read More]

Time to update your bio. It’s January, Authors.
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January 8, 2013

Now is a good time to update your biographical profile. January starts a new year and every author needs a short (i.e., 250-500 words) description of themselves in addition to a good head shot. The Bio is a big part of an author’s brand. Your book is the product, but you are the brand. And to keep your brand fresh and current, it’s time to… [Read More]

The Rules of (Facebook) Engagement
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November 20, 2012

When you first sign in to Facebook, your newsfeed automatically defaults to Top Stories – but how do these items get ranked? What makes your aunt’s status update rank higher than your soccer coach’s new car photos? And more importantly, how can you find yourself consistently ranked in the top stories? First off, take a deep breath, because you can’t control everything – if one… [Read More]

New strategy for authors to use Facebook cost effectively
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November 17, 2012

You’ve been told that as an author you can’t afford to ignore Facebook with its 3 million followers. So you created a Page and worked hard to gain those “Likes” with compelling content.  You stopped complaining that you had to do double duty with both a personal profile and an Author Page to maintain. You even accepted the changes with the new timeline without much… [Read More]

DRM – The Acronym that’s Deleting (or Saving?) Books
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November 3, 2012

DRM is an acronym that readers may not associate with good experiences – you’ll encounter it a lot in articles about the woman who had her digital library remotely wiped from her Kindle by Amazon  or ones about the poetic deletion of George Orwell’s 1984 from hundreds of e-reader devices. DRM is a topic that gets people in flames – and as a future author,… [Read More]

Johnny Depp’s Imprint Infinitum Nihil makes the heart pitter patter
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October 16, 2012

10/17/2012 UPDATE: In Publisher’s Marketplace I just discovered Michael Signorelli is the acquisitions editors for Harper Collins new imprint Inifinitum Nihil and their publication of folk singer Woody Guthrie’s 1947 Dust Bowl novel. I remember 20 years ago when Michael used to cut my lawn. That’s right. The boy next door on W. Enfield Center Road at the edge of the Tompkins County line. Now… [Read More]

Copyright Permissions: 5 Myths debunked for authors
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September 18, 2012

Do you have a song lyric you plan to use as your epigraph? Is there a piece of artwork you’d like to see between the pages of your book? Do you want a poem to be inserted into the narrative? Have you excerpted a long passage from another book? Do you use trademarked brand names? Are there tables or diagrams, schematics or sketches that are… [Read More]

Growing the seeds of ideas: books for small farmers
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August 4, 2012

The small farm book business grows organically. Growing the seeds of good ideas into books, is akin to farming in some respects. In publishing, like in farming, there are large multinational multimillion dollar corporations dominant in the industry. Yet, the groundswell of good books about small scale farms, seasonable cuisine, and sustainable living reflects the growing market for good ideas. You may have noticed more… [Read More]