Archive for book launch
Author Chris Scott’s Tips on Using Colour Images in Books
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Lynn Serafinn interviews Chris Scott on using imaging a colour book, working with a photographer, and how crossover authors can communicate their message.
Today, I have the great pleasure of being the host on Day 7 of Chris Scott’s Virtual Blog Tour. Chris’ book Face With a Heart: Mastering Authentic Beauty MakeUp is celebrating its big Amazon launch TODAY, June 2nd, 2015.
NEWS UPDATE June 2nd:
This afternoon, Chris’ book Face With a Heart hit #1 bestseller in “Cosmetics” on Amazon US.
CHRIS SCOTT, M.A. is the creator of San Francisco-based Makeup Gourmet®. Over his nearly 30-year career, in addition to doing makeup for top models from every corner of the planet, he has also had the honor of working for legends like Paul McCartney, US Vice President Al Gore, Shirley Temple Black, Maya Angelou and Olympic Gold medalists Oksana Baiul and Kristi Yamaguchi. He was the creator and host of the TV show Makeup Gourmet from 2008 to 2010, he was a leading Chanel Beauté national artist for over two decades, and is also the creator and guest teacher of Fashion Makeup at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco. He created his unique Makeup Gourmet line to ensure his clients and the public have access to high-quality, ethically produced, ‘green’ makeup and skincare with a low-carbon footprint. Chris is also the author of the wonderfully visual ‘how to’ book Face with a Heart: Mastering Authentic Beauty Makeup (2014), as well as Cosmetic Counter Survival Guide: How to Buy the Right Skin Care and Makeup (2003).
Yesterday, Chris visited Mali Apple and Joe Dunn at http://bit.ly/1JJYsPI where they talked about tapping into our own beauty, and why authentic beauty is unrelated to our age.
Today, I’d like to share a recent interview I had with Chris when I got to ask him some questions on how to choose visual images for a full-colour book, working with a photographer, and how ‘crossover’ authors can communicate their message to their audience. I hope you enjoy it.
*** INTERVIEW ***
Lynn: As a makeup artist, your challenges as an author are different from many of us, as your work depends upon having excellent images/visuals in your book. What tips would you give other authors about planning and selecting the right images for their books, and about choosing and working with a photographer?
Author Chris Scott
CHRIS: For original images, commit as much time to the image production and selection process as to the writing process. Be annoyingly picky. Do not waste your time with a ‘bargain’ photographer. Get a pro. Shoot it right.
I also suggest tapping into the vast online stock image libraries. Pay the royalty fee and the image is yours to use without any copyright infringement. This is a real time/money saver if appropriate for your title.
Something I also did before I released the book to the public, I made some prototype copies and handed the books to selected individuals, observing how they responded to each image as they skimmed the book.
I spent an equal amount of time working with an illustrator for this book. There is no substitute for this. If you need to illustrate a point, illustrate it to your exact specifications. Specificity and meticulousness will pay off in rewarding dividends.
Lynn: I see your book as a ‘crossover’ in the market. It’s not just about ‘how to put on makeup’ but it’s also about self-image, confidence and inner beauty. How easy or difficult was it to communicate this combination message when you were writing your book?
CHRIS: The process is about embracing my authentic message and lending it a visual and textual voice. I love to deconstruct to clarify each element. It is the breaking down and then the rebuilding that helps me (and others) grasp the authentic beauty message. This is how I teach so this is how I write.
Lynn: How easy or difficult has it been to bring this crossover message in your marketing or when you are telling other people about your book? How do you make sure people ‘get it’ and get what you are all about?
CHRIS: I do it through open-ended sound bites and questions that inspire conversation. As this is a layered philosophy, it is important to present the layers individually and then expand from where people first engage with the conversation. Here are two strong examples. For some it is all about the makeup, for others it is about wanting to stay true to themselves and not put out an air of falseness.
To be 100% corny, this is the easiest thing I have ever marketed because I have tested it so much and believe so devoutly in my message. I know it works and love finding ways to turn peoples head in my direction to see the new alternative to traditional beauty makeup.
Lynn: What advice would you give other authors who want to bring a ‘mind body spirit’ slant to something not usually associated with it, like you have done with makeup?
CHRIS: First, believe it. Second, test it.
I employed the why/how technique with this book. I first tell people why I am doing something and then tell them how. The ‘why’ informs the ‘how’ and gives it context and meaning.
By the way, two of my favorite examples of authors ‘spiritualizing’ their passions are Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert M. Pirsig and Jamming: The Art and Discipline of Business Creativity by John Kao.
My advice to mind-body-spirit authors is this: Be fearless and say exactly what you mean. People will hear you. We all find solace in something in which we excel. Deconstruct that solace and share it along with sharing your expertise. They are inseparable, so write from your heart as I did with Face with a Heart.
*** END OF INTERVIEW ***
I hope you enjoyed this interview with Chris Scott and that you’ll check out his book Face With a Heart: Mastering Authentic Beauty Make-Up during his big Amazon launch TODAY, June 2nd. When you buy the book during the launch, you’ll receive dozens of free gifts from Chris, and his friends and colleagues. You can CLICK HERE to find out more about the book and these free gifts.
One of the gifts when you buy the book is the MP3 downloads to Chris’ 3-Day Telesummit ‘The Keys to Feeling Authentically Beautiful’, with fabulous panel of 11 internationally renowned image experts.
To get the book and receive all the authentic beauty bonus gifts, go to
http://makeupgourmet.com/book-launch/pages/pre-launch.php
*** FOLLOW CHRIS ON HIS BLOG TOUR ***
If you’d like to catch more of Chris’ Virtual Blog tour, ‘visit’ him at these dates and places:
WEDNESDAY MAY 27th: Andrew Mondia’s Pear-Shaped View Blog at http://bit.ly/1Go22vZ where they will talk about how beauty is for everyone, inner beauty, and seeing yourself through the eyes of others.
THURSDAY MAY 28th: Tina Games’ Moonlight Musings blog at http://bit.ly/1nJGkuY where they will talk about authentic beauty, believing you are beautiful, and the difference between ‘classic’ and ‘authentic’ beauty makeup.
FRIDAY MAY 29th: Callie Carling’s Cancer Goddess blog at http://bit.ly/1Jv46Zf where they will talk about how light affects the way we look, and regaining confidence through authentic beauty.
SATURDAY MAY 30TH: Dana Taylor’s Supernal Living blog at http://wp.me/p1yTXR-AL where they will discuss authentic beauty for the older generation, and the keys to maintaining healthy skin as we age.
SUNDAY MAY 31ST: Michelle Galatoire’s Nourish and Bloom blog at http://bit.ly/1DBQWCI where they will talk about being seen authentically in public, and how to see ourselves the way other people see us.
MONDAY JUNE 1ST: Mali Apple’s and Joe Dunn’s The Soulmate Experience at http://bit.ly/1JJYsPI where they will talk about tapping into our own beauty, and why authentic beauty is unrelated to our age.
TUESDAY JUNE 2nd: Lynn Serafinn’s Spirit Authors blog at http://wp.me/p3cvXN-Tf where they’ll be talking about how to choose visual images for a full-colour book, working with a photographer, and how ‘crossover’ authors can communicate their message to their audience.
Thanks for reading! Please share your comments and thoughts below. I love reading your feedback.
Lynn Serafinn
Join us on the Spirit Authors Page on Facebook
Connect with us on Twitter.
LYNN SERAFINN, MAED, CPCC is a certified, award-winning coach, teacher, marketer, social media expert, radio host, speaker and author of the number one bestseller The 7 Graces of Marketing — How to Heal Humanity and the Planet by Changing the Way We Sell and Tweep-e-licious! 158 Twitter Tips & Strategies for Writers, Social Entrepreneurs & Changemakers Who Want to Market their Business Ethically. She is listed in the Top 20 of the Top Marketing Authors on Twitter by Social Media Magazine and was a finalist for the prestigious Brit Writers Awards. She also received the eLit Book Awards Silver Medal in Humanitarian and Ecological Social Affairs, as well as the Bronze Medal in Business and Sales.
Lynn’s eclectic approach to marketing incorporates her vast professional experience in the music industry and the educational sector along with more than two decades of study and practice of the spirituality of India. Her innovative marketing campaigns have produced a long list of bestselling non-fiction authors through her company Spirit Authors. Lynn is also the Founder of the 7 Graces Project, created to train, support, mentor and inspire independent business owners to market their business ethically, serve society and planet, and restore all that is best about humanity.
Twitter:
@LynnSerafinn @SpiritAuthors @7GracesMarketng @GardenOfTheSoul
Facebook:
LynnSerafinn SpiritAuthors 7GracesOfMarketing 7 Graces Global Garden (group)
NEWS – Book ‘Sleep Your Fat Away’ Soars to Number 1 Today
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Spirit Authors clients Drs. Joy & Roy Martina launch their book ‘Sleep Your Fat Away’ on Amazon today. Find out how to buy it and get some great bonus gifts.
APRIL 21st 2015: Today at Spirit Authors, we have been busy with the book launch of our clients, Drs Joy and Roy Martina. Their book is called Sleep Your Fat Away: Train Your Brain to Lose Weight Effortlessly. Published by Morgan James Publishers, the book teaches a novel approach to losing weight.
You can buy the book AND receive some very special bonus gifts at:
http://sleepyourfataway.com/book-launch/pages/pre-launch.php
The book launch started just after midnight Pacific Time this morning. Within hours, it shot up to become the #1 ‘Hot New Release’ in the Eating Disorders category on Amazon US. As of this writing at 1pm Pacific, the paperback AND the Kindle are #1 and #4, respectively, of all New Releases in Eating Disorder Self-Help. The paperback is also currently #13 of ALL books (not just new ones) in eating disorders, and #16 in Britain. I’m sure it will keep on going up over the next few hours.
Co-authors Drs. JOY AND ROY MARTINA are a husband and wife duo who, between them, have published more than 70 books on healing and self-improvement, and have trained over a quarter of a million people around the world. In Sleep Your Fat Away, Joy and Roy share decades of experience as hypnotherapists to teach what they believe is missing in nearly every popular approach to weight loss: the crucial connection between losing weight and the unconscious mind. Instead of talking about willpower, diets or long hours in the gym, the authors show how to retrain your brain to overcome addictions and change your lifestyle habits so you can attain your optimum weight and become the healthiest you possible.
When you buy the book during our Amazon launch celebration, you’ll receive a generous collection of bonus gifts from Joy and Roy’s friends and colleagues (including one from me). PLUS, as a special bonus gift from Joy and Roy, when you buy the book you’ll also receive:
- The MP3 audio downloads from the ‘BUSTING THE MYTHS ABOUT WEIGHT LOSS’ Telesummit’ with over 4 hours of information-packed insight from Joy, Roy and a panel of nine other world-class wellness experts.
If you’re a regular follower of Spirit Authors, you might remember that we launched Roy’s book Emotional Balance (Hay House) a few years ago, and it became an international #1 bestseller. I am sure they will repeat that success today with Sleep Your Fat Away.
I’ve had such a good time working these many months with Joy and Roy Martina, and I wish them every success.
I do hope you’ll check out their book at:
http://sleepyourfataway.com/book-launch/pages/pre-launch.php
Join us on the Spirit Authors Page on Facebook
Connect with us on Twitter.
LYNN SERAFINN, MAED, CPCC is a certified, award-winning coach, teacher, marketer, social media expert, radio host, speaker and author of the number one bestseller The 7 Graces of Marketing — How to Heal Humanity and the Planet by Changing the Way We Sell and Tweep-e-licious! 158 Twitter Tips & Strategies for Writers, Social Entrepreneurs & Changemakers Who Want to Market their Business Ethically. She is listed in the Top 20 of the Top Marketing Authors on Twitter by Social Media Magazine and was a finalist for the prestigious Brit Writers Awards. She also received the eLit Book Awards Silver Medal in Humanitarian and Ecological Social Affairs, as well as the Bronze Medal in Business and Sales.
Lynn’s eclectic approach to marketing incorporates her vast professional experience in the music industry and the educational sector along with more than two decades of study and practice of the spirituality of India. Her innovative marketing campaigns have produced a long list of bestselling non-fiction authors through her company Spirit Authors. Lynn is also the Founder of the 7 Graces Project, created to train, support, mentor and inspire independent business owners to market their business ethically, serve society and planet, and restore all that is best about humanity.
Twitter:
@LynnSerafinn @SpiritAuthors @7GracesMarketng @GardenOfTheSoul
Facebook:
LynnSerafinn SpiritAuthors 7GracesOfMarketing 7 Graces Global Garden (group)
The Challenge of Writing a Book on Wellness with Your SPOUSE
Posted by: | CommentsLynn Serafinn interviews Joy & Roy Martina on the challenges of writing a book on wellness, working with a publisher and co-authoring a book with your spouse.
Today, I have the great pleasure of being the host on Day 3 of Dr Joy and Roy Martina’s Virtual Blog Tour. Their new book Sleep your Fat Away: Train Your Brain to Lose Weight Effortlessly is celebrating its official launch on Tuesday April 21st, 2015.
Drs. JOY AND ROY MARTINA are amongst the world’s leaders in helping people get back into their power. Between them, they have published over 70 books (translated into more than 10 languages) and have trained hundreds of thousands of people worldwide. Their passion for natural approaches to health, longevity and fitness has led them to write their book Sleep Your Fat Away.
Yesterday, Joy and Roy visited Callie Carlings’ blog at ‘Cancer Goddess’ at http://www.cancergoddess.co.uk/2015/04/sleeping-your-way-to-wellness-and.html where they discussed emotional eating disorders and the effects of yo-yo dieting.
Today, I’d like to share with you a recent interview I had with Joy and Roy on the challenges of writing a book on wellness, the experience of working with a publisher and what it’s like to write a book with your spouse!
***INTERVIEW***
LYNN: I know you use these weight loss strategies with your clients. What were some of the major challenges you faced when trying to translate practical work into written lessons? Many of our readers are authors writing their own ‘how to’ and ‘self-help’ books, and I’m sure they’d appreciate your advice.
The biggest challenge is to keep it simple and easy to understand. As experts we are so used to doing what we do that we sometimes forget to keep it simple and that a novice might have a hard time understanding our instructions if we get too much “in our heads”. I like using my friends or kids as guinea pigs and see if they are able to follow what I am saying. If they get it, I know I am on the right track.
LYNN: Like you, many of our readers are also in holistic health and wellness professions. Are there specific things you have to look out for when writing a book on wellness? I mean, how do we avoid promising our readers ‘too much’ while also encouraging them to be the best they can be?
By keeping to real life examples and telling stories about successful interventions and clients’ experiences.
LYNN: What are you most proud of about Sleep Your Fat Away? What do you think you really communicated perfectly? What do you like most about the way it was written, laid out, illustrated, etc.?
We like to think that our book is easy to understand and an entertaining read; we like the down to earth and “real” life approach we took also by using many examples from our own lives – making it authentic and helpful at the same time.
What did we communicate well? That you don’t need willpower or diets to lose weight. That real change can only come from the inside – by understanding how we are wired in our brains and subconscious mind and so being able to become aware of limiting beliefs and destructive patterns – which can then lead to real life style changes.
LYNN: Many of our readers are self-published. Tell us about your experience working with a publisher. How easy was it to ‘land the deal’? How have they been supporting you throughout your publishing journey?
It was easy to land the deal as they approached us. We are grateful for the actual experience of working with the publisher was interesting but it is not one we want to necessarily repeat. We did not feel supported by our publisher at all.
We found that the extra team we hired (Lynn’s team and the Wasabi PR team) were far more helpful and supportive than the publisher themselves. In our eyes marketing is one of the most important keys to a successful launch and this you need to take care of yourself as the publisher will not do it for you.
LYNN: And finally, to close, I’d love to know what it was like writing a book with your SPOUSE! What made it easy/not easy? What tips can you give to others who are co-authoring a book (especially those who are co-authoring with someone close to them).
JOY AND ROY: We love writing together – we are used to working together anyway and are lucky to really complement each other in many ways. -So we thoroughly enjoyed the process and found that we got the writing done in an extremely efficient and speedy way as we kept each other accountable and were able to motivate and inspire each other along the way.
*** END OF INTERVIEW ***
I hope you enjoyed this brief interview with co-authors Drs Joy and Roy Martina. This week, I am delighted to be HOSTING a special FREE 3-Day Telesummit with Joy, Roy and their friends and colleagues:
“Busting the MYTHS about Weight Loss”
Register FREE at
http://sleepyourfataway.com/book-launch/pages/telesummit.php
Here is Joy and Roy’s line up of guest panellists for this event (in order of appearance):
- JOY and ROY MARTINA – #1 Holistic Thought Leaders, authors of Sleep Your Fat Away
- LYNN SERAFINN – Marketing strategist for authors & ethical entrepreneurs, bestselling author (and someone who has recently lost 70 pounds herself)
- ELLEN W. CUTLER – chiropractor, author, natural healing expert, creator of BioSET
- LORI SHEMEK, PhD – bestselling author, international leader in health and weight loss
- DOREEN POLIZZI – Health, wellness and lifestyle coach
- DONI WILSON, N.D. – Doctor of Naturopathic Medicine, nutritionist, midwife, bestselling author
- AMBER ROMANIUK – holistic nutritionist, speaker, healthy eating expert
- MATTHEW B. JAMES, Ph.D, – Doctor of Psychology, NLP master trainer, author of The Foundation of Huna
- ERAM SAEED – Producer of “From Heartache to Joy”; founder of Journey to Joy Foundation
- MAL DUANE – life recovery coach; transformational guide for women, bestselling author of Alpha Chick
- ADAM HILL – Triathlete; Ironman triathlon All World Athlete
Again, you can register FREE at
http://sleepyourfataway.com/book-launch/pages/telesummit.php
If you cannot make the live broadcast, register anyway so you can listen to audio replays.
THEN, when you buy Sleep your Fat Away: Train Your Brain to Lose Weight Effortlessly during its official Amazon launch on April 21st, you’ll receive dozens of free gifts from Joy and Roy, and their friends and colleagues. You can CLICK HERE to find out more about the book, and these free gifts.
If you’d like to catch more of Joy and Roy’s Virtual Blog tour, “visit” them at these dates and places:
MONDAY April 13th: Tina Games’ Moonlight Musings’ blog at http://moonligtmusepress.com/blog/, where they will discuss how emotions affect our eating patterns and how to maintain a healthy weight.
TUESDAY APRIL 14th: Callie Carlings’ “Cancer Goddess” blog at http://www.cancergoddess.co.uk/2015/04/sleeping-your-way-to-wellness-and.html where they will talk about emotional eating disorders and the effects of yo-yo dieting.
THURSDAY APRIL 16th: Krystalya Marie’s Empowered Spirit blog at http://EmpoweredSpirit.com, where they will discuss childhood obesity and how we can keep weight off permanently.
FRIDAY APRIL 17th: Naturopathic Doctor Donielle Wilson ND’s blog at http://doctordoni.com/ where they will be discussing how visualisation can help with weight loss and the connection with mind and weight.
Thanks for reading! Please share your comments and thoughts below. I love reading your feedback.
Lynn Serafinn
Join us on the Spirit Authors Page on Facebook
Connect with us on Twitter.
LYNN SERAFINN, MAED, CPCC is a certified, award-winning coach, teacher, marketer, social media expert, radio host, speaker and author of the number one bestseller The 7 Graces of Marketing — How to Heal Humanity and the Planet by Changing the Way We Sell and Tweep-e-licious! 158 Twitter Tips & Strategies for Writers, Social Entrepreneurs & Changemakers Who Want to Market their Business Ethically. She is listed in the Top 20 of the Top Marketing Authors on Twitter by Social Media Magazine and was a finalist for the prestigious Brit Writers Awards. She also received the eLit Book Awards Silver Medal in Humanitarian and Ecological Social Affairs, as well as the Bronze Medal in Business and Sales.
Lynn’s eclectic approach to marketing incorporates her vast professional experience in the music industry and the educational sector along with more than two decades of study and practice of the spirituality of India. Her innovative marketing campaigns have produced a long list of bestselling non-fiction authors through her company Spirit Authors. Lynn is also the Founder of the 7 Graces Project, created to train, support, mentor and inspire independent business owners to market their business ethically, serve society and planet, and restore all that is best about humanity.
Twitter:
@LynnSerafinn @SpiritAuthors @7GracesMarketng @GardenOfTheSoul
Facebook:
LynnSerafinn SpiritAuthors 7GracesOfMarketing 7 Graces Global Garden (group)
Be a Promotional Partner on Our April 2015 Book Launch
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Hi everyone. Lynn Serafinn from Spirit Authors here. I would like to invite our Spirit Authors readers to consider being a promotional partner on our next book launch:
BOOK: Sleep Your Fat Away: Train Your Brain to Lose Weight Effortlessly
AUTHORS: Drs. Joy and Roy Martina
LAUNCH DATE: Tues, April 21st, 2015
PROMOTIONS RUN: Mon March 16th – Tues April 21st, 2015
Many of you may remember Dr. Roy Martina when we launched his tremendously successful book
Emotional Balance, which was an international #1 bestseller in US, UK, Canada and several European countries.
WHO SHOULD JOIN THIS CAMPAIGN?
Anyone whose audience is interested in:
- health and fitness
- holistic health and lifestyle
- weight loss; finding alternatives to the ‘diet industry’
- positive life changes; self-empowerment; self-esteem
- mind-over-matter; working from the ‘inside out’
- escaping addictions or addictive behaviour
- releasing past traumas
HOW CAN YOU PARTICIPATE?
There are FOUR activities for this launch:
1) A joint venture partner (JVP) campaign, where you can offer a bonus gift for the launch. This means anyone who buys the book on launch day will have the opportunity to opt into YOUR list and get your free offer.
2) A Virtual Blog Tour, where you can feature a written interview with the author on your blog, and have dozens of people promoting your blog on your ‘stop’ on the tour.
3) A Radio Tour, where you can book the authors on your radio show or podcast.
JUST SO YOU KNOW: We are also organising a 3-Day Telesummit called ‘Busting the MYTHS About Weight Loss’, with a panel of world-renowned experts (with many names I’m sure you’ll recognise). Our Spirit Authors telesummits can attract thousands of registrations, and a high percentage of them will go on to buy the book AND download YOUR bonus gift. That’s a great win-win for everyone involved in the campaign.
HOW CAN YOU JOIN THIS CAMPAIGN?
Just fill in the form at
http://the7gracesofmarketing.com/be-a-partner-on-the-book-launch-of-sleep-your-fat-away-by-drs-joy-and-roy-martina/
BY FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13th, 2015
(the earlier the better!).
Thanks for considering becoming one of our network of promotional partners. I do hope you will join us for this book launch.
MORE LAUNCHES COMING: Please stay in touch, as we will soon begin registering partners for Makeup Gourmet Chris Scott’s book Face With a Heart.
Drop me a line via the contact form on this page if you have any questions.
With gratitude,
Lynn Serafinn
7 Graces Project, CIC
Spirit Authors Book Promotions
LYNN SERAFINN, MAED, CPCC is a certified, award-winning coach, teacher, marketer, social media expert, radio host, speaker and author of the number one bestseller The 7 Graces of Marketing — How to Heal Humanity and the Planet by Changing the Way We Sell and Tweep-e-licious! 158 Twitter Tips & Strategies for Writers, Social Entrepreneurs & Changemakers Who Want to Market their Business Ethically. She is listed in the Top 20 of the Top Marketing Authors on Twitter by Social Media Magazine and was a finalist for the prestigious Brit Writers Awards. She also received the eLit Book Awards Silver Medal in Humanitarian and Ecological Social Affairs, as well as the Bronze Medal in Business and Sales.
Lynn’s eclectic approach to marketing incorporates her vast professional experience in the music industry and the educational sector along with more than two decades of study and practice of the spirituality of India. Her innovative marketing campaigns have produced a long list of bestselling non-fiction authors through her company Spirit Authors. Lynn is also the Founder of the 7 Graces Project CIC, a not-for-profit social enterprise created to train, support, mentor and inspire independent business owners to market their business ethically, serve society and planet, and restore all that is best about humanity.
Twitter:
@LynnSerafinn @SpiritAuthors @7GracesMarketng @GardenOfTheSoul
Facebook:
LynnSerafinn SpiritAuthors 7GracesOfMarketing 7 Graces Global Garden (group)
An Editor’s Insight into Writing about Personal Challenges
Posted by: | CommentsLynn Serafinn interviews Vrinda Pendred from Conditional Publications on the challenges of writing a personal life story that is accessible to a wider audience.
Today, I have the great pleasure of being the host on DAY 7 of the Virtual Blog Tour for Richard David Price, author of the brand new book Beating the Adversary: A True Story of Schizoaffective Disorder, officially released on 1st December, 2014. On its debut, it became Amazon’s #1 best-selling new release in ‘schizophrenia’.
Yesterday, Richard visited Christine Miller’s Growing Edge Blog at http://christinemiller.co/category/christine-miller-growing-edge-blog/, where they discussed about hallucinations, therapies and other elements he encounters in dealing with his condition.
Today, I’d like to share with you a recent interview I had with the editor of the book, Vrinda Pendred, as I thought it would be of particular interest to authors who write transformational books, especially those that incorporate personal memoire.
VRINDA PENDRED is the Editor and Founder of independent publishing house Conditional Publications, which is devoted to giving a ‘voice’ to people diagnosed with neurological conditions such as Tourette’s Syndrome, ADHD, autism, bipolar disorder and much more. She is also a writer and a prolific novelist.
Beating the Adversary is the third book released by Conditional Publications. It is the autobiographical account of author Richard David Price, who was diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder as a teenager, as a result of a childhood accident.
(And…not to be biased or anything…Vrinda is also my amazingly talented daughter).
Vrinda Pendred – Founder of Conditional Publications
***INTERVIEW***
LYNN: What were the challenges for you as an editor, in making a book of this kind accessible to a wider audience?
VRINDA: One of the features of schizoaffective disorder is disorganized thought. That in itself wasn’t a challenge, so much as trying to get the balance right between making the book ‘readable’ and maintaining the author’s voice. What’s the point of publishing a book with the intention of allowing your audience insight into what it’s like to suffer with such a condition, if you remove everything that demonstrates that condition?
This meant editing the book perhaps fifteen times (I lost count) before we felt it was not only accessible, but authentic. It was vital that the author still feel like it represented his struggle in an honest way, even if he understood we had to make changes to ensure the general audience would make the effort to hear his story.
The original draft also left out the whole missionary section of the book. I’m not Mormon myself, but I asked Richard to add that in. I was interested. He was concerned about coming across as ‘preachy’, but I assured him we would edit it so it didn’t feel that way. I think we managed this. The point of including it was to show how he had overcome his challenges. When I spoke to him about it over the phone, he told me his faith was what got him through it. When that wasn’t in the book, I felt we were cheating the audience.
Keats said, ‘Truth is beauty,’ and I wanted this book to be as truthful as possible. I didn’t care whether the audience was Mormon or not. I think the most fantastic thing about people is that we all come from different walks of life, yet something deeper connects us. I don’t think the reader needs to be Mormon to appreciate Richard’s transformative experience. As a non-Mormon, when Richard finally delivered to me his first complete draft, including every gritty and profound moment, I cried – because he’d finally expressed his truth, and Keats was right: it was beautiful.
LYNN: What do you think is the value of people writing about and publishing their own transformational journey / personal challenges?
VRINDA: Writing is therapy; I would hope most people in this day and age know that. Writing about your journey is some of the best medicine you will ever find, and it’s free without side effects – because it’s important to remember (and I say this from experience) that even if you have an incurable disability, there is more to that than the physical. These things have an emotional effect, and can often be traumatic. Writing may not change your circumstances, but it helps you exorcise the frustration or pain. That alone can be enough to get you through each day.
In terms of taking the time to publish that journey, that’s more about the reader. To take myself, as an example, I have Tourette’s Syndrome and one of the most important moments in my life was when I started talking to others with the same condition – when I realised I wasn’t alone. I stopped regarding myself as a ‘freak’ and started to understand I am one of a very large population of people who face the same sorts of challenges. It helped me accept myself. That’s why I founded Conditional Publications; I want to give a voice to people suffering in silence and help others realise they are not alone. In this way, I think there is great value in publishing your memoirs, whether they go on to be best-sellers or not. Even if they make a difference in just one person’s life, your work has served a purpose.
LYNN: What were some of the challenges you faced in getting this book ready for publication?
VRINDA: I think the trickiest part was trying to get everyone on the same page at the same time. I work at a distance, via email and social networking, with some long-distance telephone calls. We’re all in different time zones, so you can’t always get the immediate response you’d like, which means you have to plan ahead with everything. Once you find people you can rely on, hold onto them!!! They’re more precious than gold dust, and they will help you build something unexpected.
LYNN: Can you give tips to other authors in this category, with regard to marketing?
VRINDA: Read Lynn Serafinn’s book Tweep-e-licious! I’m following it like the Bible.
(Lynn blushes).
LYNN: What words of encouragement would you give other authors writing about their personal journey / challenges? What’s the message to authors about beating their own adversary?
VRINDA: I’ve always wanted to write, ever since I was 3. When I was 20, I told someone about this dream. They were older and wiser and asked, ‘Is this really what you want to do? Is it what you feel in your heart you’re meant to do?’ I said yes, absolutely. They said, ‘Then you will do it. All you need is to want it enough. That’s all it takes to succeed.’
I’ve always born this in mind, and the older I get, the more I see it’s true. Everything comes down to motivation and energy. If you really want to get your story out – no matter what it is – just do it.
If you get writer’s block, don’t worry. Don’t push it. If the ideas aren’t flowing, whatever you write will ring false. Just relax, do something else, and wait until inspiration strikes again. And it will; it grips you when you least expect it, and suddenly you find you can’t do anything without words flying through your head. You have no choice but to write them down, so they don’t drive you nuts. That’s when it will sound sincere. Keep at it, and trust those moments will come; they always do.
***END OF INTERVIEW***
I hope you enjoyed this brief interview with author Richard Price and that you’ll check out his new book Beating the Adversary: A True Story of Schizoaffective Disorder.
When you buy Beating the Adversary during its official Amazon launch, you’ll also receive a free novel entitled The Ladder by Vrinda Pendred, founder of Conditional Publications – an independent publisher dedicated to writers with neurological conditions.
To buy Beating the Adversary and get your free novel, go to:
http://www.conditionalpublications.com/pages/beating-the-adversary.html
Thanks for reading! Please do share your comments and thoughts below. I love reading your feedback.
Be sure to follow Richard tomorrow on the next stop of his Virtual Blog Tour, when he’ll be visiting Pippa Moye’s Silver Ray Healing Therapies blog at http://www.silver-ray.co.uk, where they’ll be talking about how spiritual beliefs can help counter depression and other topics.
Lynn Serafinn
Join us on the Spirit Authors Page on Facebook
Connect with us on Twitter.
LYNN SERAFINN, MAED, CPCC is a certified, award-winning coach, teacher, marketer, social media expert, radio host, speaker and author of the number one bestseller The 7 Graces of Marketing — How to Heal Humanity and the Planet by Changing the Way We Sell and Tweep-e-licious! 158 Twitter Tips & Strategies for Writers, Social Entrepreneurs & Changemakers Who Want to Market their Business Ethically. She is listed in the Top 20 of the Top Marketing Authors on Twitter by Social Media Magazine and was a finalist for the prestigious Brit Writers Awards. She also received the eLit Book Awards Silver Medal in Humanitarian and Ecological Social Affairs, as well as the Bronze Medal in Business and Sales.
Lynn’s eclectic approach to marketing incorporates her vast professional experience in the music industry and the educational sector along with more than two decades of study and practice of the spirituality of India. Her innovative marketing campaigns have produced a long list of bestselling non-fiction authors through her company Spirit Authors. Lynn is also the Founder of the 7 Graces Project CIC, a not-for-profit social enterprise created to train, support, mentor and inspire independent business owners to market their business ethically, serve society and planet, and restore all that is best about humanity.
Twitter:
@LynnSerafinn @SpiritAuthors @7GracesMarketng @GardenOfTheSoul
Facebook:
LynnSerafinn SpiritAuthors 7GracesOfMarketing 7 Graces Global Garden (group)
The Practitioner Author – Why Writing a Book is a Great Idea
Posted by: | CommentsLynn Serafinn interviews naturopathic doctor Doni Wilson ND about how therapists (and patients) can benefit from their writing a book on alternative medicine.
Our team at Spirit Authors have been supporting authors since 2009. Over that time, the vast majority of our clients have been what I would call ‘holistic service’ professionals, i.e. coaches, consultants, therapists, alternative medical doctors, etc. Most of them are working on a book (or have already published one) in which they share a specific area of their professional expertise.
One example is our client Dr. Doni Wilson, ND – a naturopathic doctor. Known on Twitter as @GlutenFreeDoc, Doni has written extensively about the advantages of a gluten-free diet. But Dr. Doni’s primary passion is to educate the public about the damaging effects of STRESS in our modern world, and how it is responsible for a plethora of chronic health issues.
For that reason, in 2013 Doni published a definitive 340-page manual on the subject called The Stress Remedy: Master Your Body’s Synergy and Optimize Your Health. This month, Doni also released a short eBook called Stress Remedies: How to Reduce Stress and Boost Your Health in Just 15 Minutes a Day, which she says is a ‘practical companion’ to her larger book. She’s selling it on Amazon for only 99 cents.
As so many of our readers at Spirit Authors are what I would call ‘practitioner authors’ (or are aspiring to be one), I thought I would share part of a recent conversation I had with Doni on Skype, when I asked her about why she wrote her books, and her thoughts on the value of practitioners putting their expertise into words.
LYNN: Why do you think it’s important for alternative therapists to write books?
DONI: Alternative practitioners have a unique voice and knowledge. However, busy practitioners are often so caught up in serving their patients that they don’t have time to spend writing. But unless they make the time, there is no way to bring the collective voice and knowledge of alternative medicine to the rest of the world. I believe it’s important to bring their voice into the written form, so it can help more people than they can reach through their individual professional practice.
LYNN: Apart from the difficulty of finding time to write a book, what other challenges did you face when writing your books? What encouragement can you give other practitioners?
DONI: Well, when I started, I didn’t know anything about putting a book together – writing, publishing, promoting, etc. It was all a big, daunting mystery to me. I had to find people to help me, and TRAIN myself in how to make it happen.
It’s understandable that a practitioner might feel mind-boggled at the prospect of writing a book, and thus not entertain the idea seriously. But the more alternative practitioners who publish books, the more people can access naturopathic medicine. This will give more people the tools for preventative medicine instead of one that simply focuses on treating symptoms of disease.
Dr Doni Wilson, ND
LYNN: How has writing books helped you professionally?
DONI: First of all, I want to say that some practitioners mistakenly think writing a book will result in people not needing them anymore, and patients won’t bother to come to them because it’s all explained in their book. But actually, the opposite is true. I get more patients since being an author than before I wrote my books.
And it’s not just numbers. The quality of my patients has improved because they are more educated before they even pick up the phone to book an appointment with me. Potential patients know my philosophy and professional approach before they meet with me. They come to their appointment with much more clarity about what they need and what they want. This makes communication between us easier when we start to work together, as they already understand the language and the rationale behind what we will be working on together. That makes my job so much easier.
It also helps attract the ‘right’ kind of patient to me, as it establishes a link between us. Let’s say someone reads the book and they feel it validates their intuition about their health AND it backs it up with science and informed advice. Well, that person will already be pre-disposed towards my professional approach. They will be more likely to reap the benefits of treatment, as they will be more committed to it at a personal level.
Finally, having a book makes it easier for the practitioner to speak with patients without having to explain every little thing. If a patient reads my book, it means I won’t have to say the same thing over and over again!
LYNN: Why did you write this shorter eBook Stress Remedies? Didn’t you cover it all already in your larger book The Stress Remedy?
DONI: I see the two books as complementing each other. They are both about stress, but they approach the subject from different angles.
The Stress Remedy goes into great detail on topics such as diet, supplements, cortisol testing, etc. But what I didn’t cover in much depth were ‘daily stress remedies’, which are part of what I call my ‘Stress Remedy Master Plan’.
Rather than make The Stress Remedy longer than it already was, I thought it would be a great idea to write a short (and hopefully ‘stress-free’) practical, activity-based guide to balancing stress that didn’t involve changes in diet or supplements. So, in Stress Remedies, I help people understand the health benefits from specific activities, so they can choose the ones that work best for them and optimise the natural rhythms of their own healthy body and mind.
Some people might wonder what having a 99-cent eBook could possibly bring a practitioner from a business perspective. They might wonder why they should bother to put effort into something that has little promise of high profit. Well, I believe a small eBook is more likely to encourage those who do not know me or my work to read what I have to say on the topic. They will be more willing to take a chance on me, as spending 99 cents to read a short eBook is a much smaller commitment of time and money than buying (and reading) a 340-page book. Hopefully, if they like what they read, they might visit my website or check out my book The Stress Remedy. If they continue to follow my work, perhaps one day they will also contact me as a patient or make another purchase on our website.
Basically, the Stress Remedies eBook is another doorway to meeting and greeting new people, and sharing my passion for the naturopathic lifestyle. I strongly recommend other practitioners to build their own doorways by sharing their wisdom in a book.
Dr. Doni’s eBook Stress Remedies
is available on Amazon Kindle for only 99 cents at
http://doctordoni.com/dr-donis-new-kindle-ebook-stress-remedies-just-99-cents
If you’re a practitioner who has a book (or you’re hoping to write or publish one in the near future), feel free to contact our team here on Spirit Authors to see how our platform building packages, business mentoring and other packages might suit your needs. Just drop us a line via the contact form on this site and request a free 30-minute consultation.
9 Dec 2014
Lynn Serafinn
Join us on the Spirit Authors Page on Facebook
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Lynn Serafinn, MAED, CPCC
LYNN SERAFINN, MAED, CPCC is a certified, award-winning coach, teacher, marketer, social media expert, radio host, speaker and author of the number one bestseller The 7 Graces of Marketing — How to Heal Humanity and the Planet by Changing the Way We Sell and Tweep-e-licious! 158 Twitter Tips & Strategies for Writers, Social Entrepreneurs & Changemakers Who Want to Market their Business Ethically. She is listed in the Top 20 of the Top Marketing Authors on Twitter by Social Media Magazine and was a finalist for the prestigious Brit Writers Awards. She also received the eLit Book Awards Silver Medal in Humanitarian and Ecological Social Affairs, as well as the Bronze Medal in Business and Sales.
Lynn’s eclectic approach to marketing incorporates her vast professional experience in the music industry and the educational sector along with more than two decades of study and practice of the spirituality of India. Her innovative marketing campaigns have produced a long list of bestselling non-fiction authors through her company Spirit Authors. Lynn is also the Founder of the 7 Graces Project CIC, a not-for-profit social enterprise created to train, support, mentor and inspire independent business owners to market their business ethically, serve society and planet, and restore all that is best about humanity.
Twitter:
@LynnSerafinn @SpiritAuthors @7GracesMarketng @GardenOfTheSoul
Facebook:
LynnSerafinn SpiritAuthors 7GracesOfMarketing 7 Graces Global Garden (group)
TODAY: New Novel by Milan Ljubincic Takes You on a Journey to the Soul
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Lynn Serafinn from Spirit Authors announces the launch of the new spiritual, psychological novel ‘Island of Souls’ by author Milan Ljubincic.
TODAY on Amazon, an inspiring new novel is making its debut. It’s called Island of Souls: light within the dark by internationally renowned psychologist and speaker, Milan Ljubincic.
I’m pleased to be the campaign manager for the launch of this refreshing and illuminating book.
Written much in the tradition of other metaphysical authors like Paulo Coelho (The Alchemist) and James Redfield (The Celestine Prophecy), author Milan Ljubincic uses the powerful vehicle of fiction to weave a rich, allegorical story that illustrates how every one of us can find harmony and joy when we learn the language of our own hearts, and reawaken the wondrous spirit that already lies within us.
To buy the book AND receive dozens of free bonus gifts, go to:
http://islandofsouls.com/book-launch/pages/launch.php
Many of us have a library of self-help books on our shelves that ‘tell’ us how to transform our lives. But in Island of Souls, we simply step into the story of lead character, Lucas, and experience that transformation along with him. Set on a mysterious, uninhabited island, Island of Souls is a modern-day parable that blends real-life events with depth psychology, metaphors, archetypical figures and mythical symbolism to convey the underlying message of connection, aliveness and meaning. As much a guide as it is a story, Island of Souls is an invitation for you to reflect on your own life journey, its teachings, and the meaning it holds for you.
Island of Souls: light within the dark is celebrating its big Amazon launch TODAY Tuesday May 13th, 2014. When you buy the book during the launch, you’ll receive DOZENS of beautiful bonus gifts from Milan’s friends and colleagues.
To buy the book AND receive these bonus gifts, go to:
http://islandofsouls.com/book-launch/pages/launch.php
And as a special gift from Milan, when you buy the book you’ll also receive:
- The MP3 audio downloads from the ‘Soul Awakening Telesummit’ with over 4 hours of inspiration and information from Milan and 10 other world-class speakers including Dr. Eric Pearl, Chloe Taylor Brown, Gregg Levoy, Lynn Serafinn, Karen Erlichman, Emmanuel Dagher, Cari Murphy, Frederika Roberts, Wendy Kennedy, and Anna Sienicka.
- A FREE 1-hour online class with Milan, where he will share the fascinating ‘story-behind-the-story’ along with an in-depth discussion on the underlying insights and lessons within Island of Souls.
I’m sure all those gifts will make you feel pretty illuminated even before you read the book! I do hope you’ll check it out on Tuesday May 13th, 2014.
Lynn Serafinn
Join us on the Spirit Authors Page on Facebook
Connect with us on Twitter.
LYNN SERAFINN, MAED, CPCC is a certified, award-winning coach, teacher, marketer, social media expert, radio host, speaker and author of the number one bestseller The 7 Graces of Marketing — How to Heal Humanity and the Planet by Changing the Way We Sell and Tweep-e-licious! 158 Twitter Tips & Strategies for Writers, Social Entrepreneurs & Changemakers Who Want to Market their Business Ethically. She is listed in the Top 20 of the Top Marketing Authors on Twitter by Social Media Magazine and was a finalist for the prestigious Brit Writers Awards. She also received the eLit Book Awards Silver Medal in Humanitarian and Ecological Social Affairs, as well as the Bronze Medal in Business and Sales.
Lynn’s eclectic approach to marketing incorporates her vast professional experience in the music industry and the educational sector along with more than two decades of study and practice of the spirituality of India. Her innovative marketing campaigns have produced a long list of bestselling non-fiction authors through her company Spirit Authors. Lynn is also the Founder of the 7 Graces Project CIC, a not-for-profit social enterprise created to train, support, mentor and inspire independent business owners to market their business ethically, serve society and planet, and restore all that is best about humanity.
Twitter:
@LynnSerafinn @SpiritAuthors @7GracesMarketng @GardenOfTheSoul
Facebook:
LynnSerafinn SpiritAuthors 7GracesOfMarketing 7 Graces Global Garden (group)
The Hows and Whys of Writing a Spiritual Book
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Lynn Serafinn from Spirit Authors interviews author Daniel Parmeggiani about how and why he wrote his book The Magnificent Truths of our Existence.‘
Today, I have the great pleasure of being the host on Day 11 of Daniel Parmeggiani’s Virtual Blog Tour, whose new book new book, The Magnificent Truths of Our Existence, is currently celebrating its official launch.
Daniel Parmeggiani is a modern-day spiritual teacher whose approach is unaligned with any particular religion or tradition. Driven by intense psychological turmoil when he was younger, Daniel discovered within himself a deeper reality that he says not only saved his life, but also showed him the way to permanent happiness and inner peace. Those revelations became the foundation of his book, The Magnificent Truths of Our Existence.
Yesterday, Daniel visited Jennifer Lyall’s ‘Your Soul Connection’ blog at http://yoursoulconnection.ca/topics/articles/ where she asked about the one thing that everyone in the world wants, and the importance of community on our spiritual path. Today, I’d like to share with you a recent interview I had with Daniel when I got to ask him to share a bit about the process he used to write his book, and the advice he would give to other authors who may be thinking about writing a book on spirituality.
***INTERVIEW***
LYNN: What were your original reasons for writing a book about your spiritual experiences? What was happening in your life that made you want to share them in this way?
DANIEL: Ever since I had my first spiritual breakthrough at age 17, I’ve felt a deep sense of responsibility to share the simple, clear vision of our true innocent nature that I was blessed with. The recognition of my own absolute innocence rescued me from a seemingly hopeless state of obsessive-compulsive behaviour and self-loathing, and brought me self-forgiveness and peace within myself. I’ve always known that my perspective is unique in its clear logic and rationality, and I have no doubt that this book will greatly benefit all those who read it with a positive, receptive attitude.
LYNN: Why do you think it took you 8 years to finish your book The Magnificent Truths of Our Existence?
DANIEL: I quickly found out that writing an ordinary book is easy, but writing an extraordinary book is very hard. When I set out to write this book in 2006, I was determined to create something extraordinary, something different and practical that would really help people. I was willing to take all the time that was necessary for this to happen, and that turned out to be 8 years!
LYNN: How did you finally manage to get focused to get the book done? What kinds of things did you have to do or change to move the process forward?
DANIEL: After my breakthrough at age 17 that started it all, it took me almost 20 years to finally feel ready to begin putting my ideas down on paper. I knew I needed to help myself first before I could effectively help others. I also wanted to be sure that I fully represented my own spiritual teachings in my personal life. Then when the writing process began, I only wrote when I felt inspired to do so. I didn’t want to force any of it, because I wanted everything to be as genuine as possible. This meant that sometimes there were long periods of inactivity. But the importance of my mission always kept bringing me back to the desk.
LYNN: What advice you can give other authors who are thinking about writing a book on spirituality? What things should they watch out for? What tips can you give them?
DANIEL: I once heard Dr Wayne Dyer say, “Don’t die with your song still in you.” I think those words were the ones that finally got me started on this journey. Writing your first book can be very frustrating at times. It is a marathon that takes great endurance and perseverance. It is a trial and error, learning experience that requires lots of patience and the willingness to grow and change. There will be dry periods when the task will seem unsurmountable. But through it all, just keep plugging away. Try to do a little bit each day. And when you feel like you just want to say, “The hell with it!” and quit, remember the words of Dr Dyer. The payoff is great in the end, and worth every sacrifice.
*** END OF INTERVIEW***
I hope you enjoyed this brief interview with Daniel Parmeggiani, author of The Magnificent Truths of Our Existence.
In Daniel’s words, “this book provides deep spiritual insight about who we really are, the cause of our suffering, and how to transform our lives.” If you are intrigued to find out more about Daniel’s approach to achieving the highest spiritual aspirations of happiness, love and inner peace, pick up a copy of The Magnificent Truths of Our Existence at:
http://www.MagnificentTruths.com/order
AND…when you buy the book now during the official launch, you’ll receive dozens of beautiful free gifts from Daniel and his friends and colleagues. It’s their way of saying ‘thank you’ for supporting Daniel in this important spiritual work.
Thanks for reading! Please share your comments and thoughts below. I love reading your feedback.
Be sure to follow Daniel tomorrow on the next stop of his Virtual Blog Tour, when he’ll be visiting Ana M. Bruckner and Antonia Daniek’s ‘Inspired Planet’ Blog at http://blog.inspiredplanet.co/where they ask about the 5 existential needs of life, and the logic against guilt.
Lynn Serafinn
10 May 2014
Join us on the Spirit Authors Page on Facebook
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LYNN SERAFINN, MAED, CPCC is a certified, award-winning coach, teacher, marketer, social media expert, radio host, speaker and author of the number one bestseller The 7 Graces of Marketing — How to Heal Humanity and the Planet by Changing the Way We Sell and Tweep-e-licious! 158 Twitter Tips & Strategies for Writers, Social Entrepreneurs & Changemakers Who Want to Market their Business Ethically. She is listed in the Top 20 of the Top Marketing Authors on Twitter by Social Media Magazine and was a finalist for the prestigious Brit Writers Awards. She also received the eLit Book Awards Silver Medal in Humanitarian and Ecological Social Affairs, as well as the Bronze Medal in Business and Sales.
Lynn’s eclectic approach to marketing incorporates her vast professional experience in the music industry and the educational sector along with more than two decades of study and practice of the spirituality of India. Her innovative marketing campaigns have produced a long list of bestselling non-fiction authors through her company Spirit Authors. Lynn is also the Founder of the 7 Graces Project CIC, a not-for-profit social enterprise created to train, support, mentor and inspire independent business owners to market their business ethically, serve society and planet, and restore all that is best about humanity.
Twitter:
@LynnSerafinn @SpiritAuthors @7GracesMarketng @GardenOfTheSoul
Facebook:
LynnSerafinn SpiritAuthors 7GracesOfMarketing 7 Graces Global Garden (group)
11 Spiritually Awakened Authors and Speakers Come Together
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Lynn Serafinn from Spirit Authors talks about Milan Ljubincic, author of the spiritual novel ‘Island of Souls’, and about the FREE 3-Day ‘Soul Awakening Telesummit’.
The secrets to achieving happiness and inner peace are highly sought after. But this desirable state can sometimes seem impossible to achieve in a world that turns faster with each passing day. In this digital information era, we often find ourselves getting confused about what we should listen to, and the right path to take. In such a world, things can sometimes seem very black and white: they are this or that, one way or another. The secret, however, lies not only in the beauty of the light, but also the depths of our shadow.
My client, psychologist and author Milan Ljubincic, understands that it is within the shades of grey that the richness of life unfolds. While many people put the study of psychology and the mind in one box, and the world of soul and spiritual experience in another, Milan sees them as working together, as one integrated whole. His work in the field of spiritual psychology can be seen as a return to the ancient origins of the ‘psyche’ where psychology interfaces with spirituality, to reawaken the spirit within each one of us. He has come to understand that true happiness and inner peace is attained when our mind and our spirit cease tugging in opposite directions, and when the two begin to dance harmoniously together. For that to happen, we must listen to the voice of our heart, and recognize that our emotions carry our teachings. When we tap into this new way of hearing, we begin to heal and rediscover the joy in all those wonderful shades of grey – as we embrace the light as well as the shadow within.
The desire to share this simple but profound truth is what led Milan to write his illuminating new novel Island of Souls: light within the dark, which is launching on Amazon on Tuesday May 13th. Much in the tradition of metaphysical authors like Paulo Coelho and James Redfield, Milan uses the powerful vehicle of fiction to weave a rich, metaphoric story that illustrates how every one of us can find joy when we embrace our whole-self – light, dark and all shades in between.
To share these insights with you, and to celebrate the launch of his book,
Milan is hosting a panel of 11 world-renowned spiritual speakers on his
FREE 3-Day ‘SOUL AWAKENING’ Telesummit
Tuesday May 6th to Thursday May 8th, 2014
I am delighted to tell you that Milan has asked me
to co-host this beautiful event,
which will feature 11 international guest speakers..
To join us, you can book your place FR*EE at
http://islandofsouls.com/book-launch/pages/telesummit.php
Over these 3 days, we will explore:
- CONNECTION: How to find deep, intimate connection with Self, Life-Force and other people
- ALIVENESS: How to feel fully alive; how to manifest miracles in everyday life
- MEANING: How to align to the soul; how “going with the flow” unlocks our purpose in life
When you register, you’ll have access to 3 days of LIVE round-table discussions from these dynamic speakers (in order of appearance):
- MILAN LJUBINCIC (host) – Psychologist, speaker and author of Island of Souls: light within the dark
- LYNN SERAFINN (co-host) – Coach; marketer; author of The 7 Graces of Marketing, Tweep-e-licious and The Garden of the Soul
- WENDY KENNEDY – Channeler, public speaker, media personality.
- ANNA SIENICKA – Homeopathic medicine and kinesiology expert; certified personal trainer with mind-body connection.
- KAREN ERLICHMAN – Faculty, teacher, mentor at Sofia University, et. al., social worker, psychotherapist, spiritual author
- DR. ERIC PEARL – The Reconnection® founder; top media speaker, author international bestseller The Reconnection: Heal Others, Heal Yourself.
- GREGG LEVOY – Human Potential expert, keynote speaker, author of Callings: Finding and Following an Authentic Life, featured in upcoming film, Openings.
- FREDERIKA ROBERTS – “The Happiness Speaker”, presenter, coach, author of Recipe for Happiness: 9 essential ingredients for a happy life.
- EMMANUEL DAGHER – Personal growth catalyst, transformation specialist, speaker, host of ‘The Miracle Cafe’ radio show
- CARI MURPHY – Soul success coach, speaker, bestselling author of Treasures of Heaven, Create Change Now and others, host of “The Cari Murphy Show: Straight Talk for the Soul”.
- CHLOE TAYLOR BROWN – Transformation & Lifestyle enhancement expert, author, speaker, radio host, entrepreneur.
Attend the Soul Awakening Telesummit
at absolutely no cost by registering at
http://islandofsouls.com/book-launch/pages/telesummit.php
If you cannot attend the live broadcasts, register anyway, so you can access the audio replay.
I’m delighted to be participating in the SOUL AWAKENING Telesummit on May 6th, 7th and 8th. I do hope you’ll join us. I know you’ll find it to be an uplifting, informative and enlivening experience.
See you there!
Lynn Serafinn
2 May 2014
Join us on the Spirit Authors Page on Facebook
Connect with us on Twitter.
LYNN SERAFINN, MAED, CPCC is a certified, award-winning coach, teacher, marketer, social media expert, radio host, speaker and author of the number one bestseller The 7 Graces of Marketing — How to Heal Humanity and the Planet by Changing the Way We Sell and Tweep-e-licious! 158 Twitter Tips & Strategies for Writers, Social Entrepreneurs & Changemakers Who Want to Market their Business Ethically. She is listed in the Top 20 of the Top Marketing Authors on Twitter by Social Media Magazine and was a finalist for the prestigious Brit Writers Awards. She also received the eLit Book Awards Silver Medal in Humanitarian and Ecological Social Affairs, as well as the Bronze Medal in Business and Sales.
Lynn’s eclectic approach to marketing incorporates her vast professional experience in the music industry and the educational sector along with more than two decades of study and practice of the spirituality of India. Her innovative marketing campaigns have produced a long list of bestselling non-fiction authors through her company Spirit Authors. Lynn is also the Founder of the 7 Graces Project CIC, a not-for-profit social enterprise created to train, support, mentor and inspire independent business owners to market their business ethically, serve society and planet, and restore all that is best about humanity.
Twitter:
@LynnSerafinn @SpiritAuthors @7GracesMarketng @GardenOfTheSoul
Facebook:
LynnSerafinn SpiritAuthors 7GracesOfMarketing 7 Graces Global Garden (group)
How Many Followers Do You Need Before Doing a Book Launch?
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Spirit Authors is well-known for its ‘bestseller’ book launches. So why is book marketer Lynn Serafinn advising an alternative plan for marketing your book?
A couple of weeks ago, a new client sent me an email asking, ‘How many social media followers would you consider “enough” for me to move onto planning a full book launch?’
My reply to her was that there was no simple answer to this, as there were so many variables. As I was explaining these variables in some detail in my email, it occurred to me that my readers here on Spirit Authors would probably also like to know the answer to this question. So today, I’ll be looking at the factors that I believe contribute to a successful book launch, as well as an alternative to the big ‘bestseller launch’, which I believe is a viable, economical and more sustainable book marketing option for many new authors.
The Golden Era of Launches
My first exposure to ‘bestseller book launches’ (also called ‘Amazon launches’) was in 2008 when I attended a seminar in London with Janet Switzer, one of the marketing brains behind the book Chicken Soup for the Soul. That was the first time I had ever heard of ‘joint venture partners’ and the idea of collaborative Internet marketing campaigns. It was clear that the key to success was in the strength of your network. One person even naively asked Janet if she would share her partner mailing list with us (!). Of course, she gracefully declined, explaining that this was not only a breach of confidentiality, but that she had spent years cultivating and nurturing the relationships with these partners. The people on that list would have no relationship with the new person. Thus, without relationships, the list would be of no value whatsoever – even though, for Janet, it was THE most valuable asset she had.
(As an aside, in hindsight I realise that what Janet did NOT talk about was the fact that the ‘Chicken Soup’ books themselves are collaborative projects, as they are comprised of dozens of different authors. That’s a whole different subject I won’t delve into here, but it is a major defining factor in the success of these books.)
I had attended the seminar because I was just about to self-publish my book The Garden of the Soul, and wanted to get ideas for how to give it a good ‘birth’. While the seminar opened my eyes, it also raised more questions than it answered, and I embarked on a quest to research everything I could find on the subject. I incorporated ideas I liked, and discarded those I didn’t. But the one thing I could see would be the biggest determining factor in my success would be my network. I started a radio show. I created free Garden of the Soul audio meditations. I made Garden of the Soul video poems for YouTube. I started blogging on a special site just for the book. But the most effective thing I did was set up a Garden of the Soul network on Ning. Sadly, no longer a very popular social media platform, many of my closest network partners today originally came from my Ning network. It was a lovely ‘micro-universe’ where I made close connections with a few hundred people who were 100% committed to helping me when my book came out a few months later. As a result, I was able to get the book to #18 in the spirituality category on Amazon, which wasn’t bad for a one-person act who had never done a book launch before. I was able to return the favour by having many of these people as guests on my radio show. Dozens of them continue to be my book launch partners today, and a few even became book marketing clients.
Since then, I’ve coordinated dozens of book launches for clients. I have a superb team who know exactly what to do and when. It’s become ‘systematised’ to such a degree that I can pretty much guarantee a client will hit #1 (or at least #2) in one or more category on Amazon. With each launch, my network of partners grows, and our relationships become stronger. Now my own circle of partners (along with my team) has become my most valuable business asset.
To Launch or Not to Launch?
So far, you might be thinking, ‘Great. All I need to do is find a person like Lynn or Janet who has a strong partner list and I can do a bestseller book launch.’
Well, when I was just starting out doing these launches as a business, I also made that assumption, thinking my clients could ‘ride on my coat-tails’ so to speak. But let me tell you from experience, this assumption is completely WRONG.
After a year or so of doing book launches, I started to see some patterns:
- CLIENT A: Those clients who depended primarily upon my partner network might get to #1, but it was harder to get them there and it didn’t necessarily result in big sales. Furthermore, once the launch was over, it was sort of like, ‘Ok, I’ve spent all this time and money. Now what do I do with myself and my book?’
- CLIENT B: Those clients who had strong partner networks of their own (which were then combined with my network) would rise to the top of the charts more quickly, and stay there longer, resulting in more book sales overall. However, as books are cheap, it was only on rare occasions that their profits from these sales would cover the expenses they had laid out to do the launch. Thus, they’d write it off as a business expense, and just return to ‘business as usual’ after the launch, meaning the launch made no significant change to their business.
- CLIENT C: Those clients who had strong partner networks AND who had ‘spin off’ products and follow-up offers for their customers not only made better book sales, but they also made residual income after the launch. This was the only group who actually profited financially from doing a book launch.
As I saw these patterns emerging, I decided I would no longer offer book launches as an option to clients in the ‘A’ category. I felt it was unethical to ask them to commit so much time and money for something that would give them ’15 minutes of fame’ and then a big crash and burn (if not a credit card debt) at the end of the tunnel. Instead, I worked with them to build their marketing platforms and their networks – sometimes for as long as a year. Some would go on to do a book launch, but many didn’t feel the need, seeing the platform building as a steady and sustainable alternative to business growth and book sales.
Clients in Category C, obviously, had the greatest potential to benefit from doing a book launch, and I am happy to do a launch project with them.
Clients in Category B are ‘borderline’. What I tend to do with these clients is work with them for a while to create their follow-up offers so they can ‘ascend’ to Category C before their launch.
Back to the Question of the Day
OK. Now, taking all that context into consideration, let’s get back to my client’s question: ‘How many social media followers would you consider “enough” for me to move onto planning a full book launch?’
What you might notice is that, so far, I haven’t even MENTIONED social media followers. When I referred earlier to ‘strong partner networks’, I was NOT talking about big mailing lists or large numbers of followers on Twitter or Facebook.
That’s not to say that large social networks are not important. The fact is that your partners will appear from these networks. Of course, it’s up to you to recognise potential partners and cultivate your relationship with them (I talk a lot about this in my Twitter book Tweep-e-licious).
Numbers have to be looked at in context. For one thing, the number of ‘followers’ that is considered substantial will vary from one social media network to another. While 2,000 Facebook friends is a lot, it’s not particularly exceptional on Twitter. Also, low numbers in one network can be offset by exceptionally high numbers elsewhere. For example, one of my clients has a minimal presence on Twitter, but has over 60,000 fans on his Facebook fan page.
But most of all, it’s not just about quantity, but about quality. Things I would assess before considering someone for a book launch are:
- The level of engagement they have in their social networks (quantity and quality)
- The amount and quality of informational content they have created and shared online
- The degree to which that content reinforces their overall brand message
- The amount and consistency of traffic they are driving to their website every day
- Their mailing list size AND the consistency/relevance of their communication with that list
- And, as already mentioned, the level of connection they have to potential PARTNERS who have equally solid platforms as them
Closing Thoughts
I hope you can see that making the decision to embark on a book launch cannot be reduced to a numeric equation. The decision comes from looking at a combination of factors, including your marketing platform, your partner network and your business/brand development. Think of a finely crafted watch. The only way it works is: 1) for all the parts to be of good quality; 2) for them to be assembled and working together as a unit correctly and; 3) for them to be maintained regularly.
Frankly, I think the ‘golden era of book launches’ is dying out. I believe building a solid platform and making a plan for how your book marketing will support your business growth is far more important that the ephemeral ‘rush’ you’ll get from being #1 for a day. It’s like winning the X-Factor and then not being able to make a career out of singing.
This is why we at Spirit Authors (now a branch of the 7 Graces Project CIC) have been focusing more and more deeply on developing a range of platform-building packages for our clients. We feel, for the majority of clients, these options give greater long-term value and are more sustainable than a book launch.
If you’re writing a value-rich book, you run an independent ethical business, or you’re planning to launch a new product in 2014, have a look at our platform-building packages and then drop us a line via the contact form on this site to set up a free 30 minute consultation to discuss your needs.
Lynn Serafinn
11th December 2013
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Now you can have access to the latest tips in writing, publishing and book marketing everywhere you go. Get our Spirit Authors articles delivered once a week directly to your Kindle for only 99 cents a month (77pUK). Instead of reading someone else’s book on your way to work, get information on how to make your OWN book a success.
Take a 14-day free trial at:
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Join us on the Spirit Authors Page on Facebook
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LYNN SERAFINN, MAED, CPCC is a certified, award-winning coach, teacher, marketer, social media expert, radio host, speaker and author of the number one bestseller The 7 Graces of Marketing — How to Heal Humanity and the Planet by Changing the Way We Sell and Tweep-e-licious! 158 Twitter Tips & Strategies for Writers, Social Entrepreneurs & Changemakers Who Want to Market their Business Ethically. She is listed in the Top 20 of the Top Marketing Authors on Twitter by Social Media Magazine and was a finalist for the prestigious Brit Writers Awards. She also received the eLit Book Awards Silver Medal in Humanitarian and Ecological Social Affairs, as well as the Bronze Medal in Business and Sales.
Lynn’s eclectic approach to marketing incorporates her vast professional experience in the music industry and the educational sector along with more than two decades of study and practice of the spirituality of India. Her innovative marketing campaigns have produced a long list of bestselling non-fiction authors through her company Spirit Authors. Lynn is also the Founder of the 7 Graces Project CIC, a not-for-profit social enterprise created to train, support, mentor and inspire independent business owners to market their business ethically, serve society and planet, and restore all that is best about humanity.
Twitter:
@LynnSerafinn @SpiritAuthors @7GracesMarketng @GardenOfTheSoul
Facebook:
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Behind the Scenes – Book Launch of Author Pat Honiotes
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Author Pat Honiotes
Author Pat Honiotes’ (pictured left) has written an empowering book called The Practical Guide to Figuring Yourself Out. Today we share an audio interview of how Spirit Authors helped her behind the scenes to get her book published.
Recently, my good friend Shelagh Jones of Spiritus Spiritual Marketing Directory contacted me saying she was working with a client to self-publish and launch her self-help book, and she needed some help from me to fill in the gaps. The client was a delightful woman named Patricia J. Honiotes, M.S. and her book is entitled The Practical Guide to Figuring Yourself Out – How to Go From Stuck to Star of Your Life.
PAT HONIOTES, M.S. is an internationally renowned personal empowerment coach, therapist, educator, and Reiki Master Teacher and healer. Formerly a special education teacher, Pat has a Masters Degrees in Counseling Psychology and is also a Board Certified Medical Hypnoanalyst. Since 1982, she has helped thousands of clients take ownership of their lives through private sessions, seminars, workshops and classes. Her down-to-earth honesty and non-judgmental outlook create a relaxed, safe environment for all who work with her. A firm believer in “walking the talk”, Pat’s book The Practical Guide to Figuring Yourself Out is the culmination of her personal life journey combined with over three decades of work devoted to helping clients reclaim their self-worth and experience the joy and richness of life itself.
As you can see from her bio, Pat is tremendously experienced in the personal development field, but what she had never really done before was think like a marketer. The subsidiary press she was using to publish her book asked her for a ‘book blurb’ and some copy for the back cover of her book. While Pat was an expert in her subject matter, she really didn’t have a clue where to begin with these challenges. She asked Shelagh for help, who in turn contacted me (thank-you, Shelagh!). So, I wrote both the book blurb and the back cover copy. I also wrote Pat’s bio (which you see above) AND made a 1-page media kit for her.
Pat’s book, The Practical Guide to Figuring Yourself Out, comes out this week on Friday November 8th, 2013. Shelagh has organized a Virtual Blog Tour (VBT) for Pat to help promote the launch, and because I was involved in the publishing process, she asked me if I would be a ‘stop’ on the tour. Today I am delighted to be the host on the 3rd day of Pat’s VBT. Yesterday, Pat H. visited Pat Thompson’s ‘Cultivating Balance’ blog at http://work-life-balance.blogspot.co.uk, where they explored a fascinating perspective on ‘figuring ourselves out’.
Because the purpose of Spirit Authors is to offer self-publishing and marketing advice to authors, Shelagh came up with a brilliant idea that, instead of me interviewing Pat about her book, Shelagh would do an audio interview with me about the process of creating the book blurb and back cover copy. That way, we could take you ‘behind the scenes’ of the book launch, while we also told you about Pat’s book.
Click the audio player to listen to the interview:
Shelagh Jones Interviews Lynn Serafinn about writing blurbs for your book
If you cannot see the audio player on your screen, click here to open or download the MP3.
In our 13 1/2 minute interview together, Shelagh and I touched upon these topics:
- What is a book blurb and who is it for?
- Why is a book blurb so important?
- Why do authors think they can do it themselves?
- What happens when we think TOO outside the box when writing our blurb?
- Why is it important for someone other than the author to write the blurb?
- Where do you need to start when writing a book blurb?
- What do readers need to see in your blurb before they buy your book?
- How does your book blurb differ from a sales letter?
- What is the single most important thing you need to ‘zero in’ on before writing your blurb?
- What are the 4 steps that go into a book blurb?
- How do you make your back cover copy from your blurb?
- How do you submit your book blurb so it gets distributed to Amazon, etc.?
- What are the technical considerations for your book blurb and back cover copy?
- What is the difference between a POD (print-on-demand) company and a subsidiary press (self-publishing) company?
- What are the different levels of help these companies will give you?
- Why is it worth budgeting the money to get your blurb and back cover copy written for you?
So that you see what we’ve been talking about, here’s the ‘back cover blurb’ I made for Pat’s book (you can see the complete wholesaler blurb when you check out the book on Amazon). This should also give you a feel for how all the elements we discussed in the interview come together when you write your back cover copy. I’ve put it in blue to make it easier to see where it begins and ends.
### BEGIN BACK COVER COPY ###
“Why Do I Feel So STUCK?”
You’ve played life by the “rules”. You’re a responsible person. You’re educated. You work hard. You have friends and family. But something isn’t quite right. Life is good, but not great. Things are stable, but not exciting. You like your job, but you don’t feel stretched or challenged. You’re making money, but you don’t feel abundant. You’re reasonably healthy, but not truly vibrant. Your relationships are OK, but deep inside, you crave more connection and intimacy with those you love.
The Practical Guide to Figuring Yourself Out is a book for people who feel like they’ve been ‘doing’ life instead of living it. In this book, author Pat Honiotes MS has amalgamated over three decades of professional experience in medical hypnoanalysis and personal empowerment coaching to bring you a one-of-a-kind, step-by-step handbook of techniques and practices that can help you figure out where, why and how you’re stuck in life, and create a unique, personalized action plan for change.
In this book, you’ll discover:
- How to achieve greater connection in your personal and professional relationships
- How to attain career goals you always felt were beyond your reach
- How to communicate in a more mature and empowered way
- How to detect your own ‘symptoms’ before they become major issues
- And much more
If you’re ready to get UNSTUCK now, read
The Practical Guide to Figuring Yourself Out
### END COPY ###
I hope you found this interview useful, and that you also check out Pat’s book. You can get the book at http://www.figuringyourselfout.com.
Lynn Serafinn
6 November 2013
P.S.: If you’d like to read more about writing blurbs for your book, you might find my article ‘How to Write Good Blurbs and Back Pages for Your Book‘ to be helpful.
P.P.S.: If you’d like to discuss hiring us to make a blurb, back cover copy, bio and/or media kit for YOUR book, drop us a line via the contact form on this site.
LYNN SERAFINN, MAED, CPCC is a certified, award-winning coach, teacher, marketer, social media expert, radio host, speaker and author of the number one bestseller The 7 Graces of Marketing — How to Heal Humanity and the Planet by Changing the Way We Sell and Tweep-e-licious! 158 Twitter Tips & Strategies for Writers, Social Entrepreneurs & Changemakers Who Want to Market their Business Ethically. She is listed in the Top 20 of the Top Marketing Authors on Twitter by Social Media Magazine and was a finalist for the prestigious Brit Writers Awards. She also received the eLit Book Awards Silver Medal in Humanitarian and Ecological Social Affairs, as well as the Bronze Medal in Business and Sales.
Lynn’s eclectic approach to marketing incorporates her vast professional experience in the music industry and the educational sector along with more than two decades of study and practice of the spirituality of India. Her innovative marketing campaigns have produced a long list of bestselling non-fiction authors through her company Spirit Authors. Lynn is also the Founder of the 7 Graces Project CIC, a not-for-profit social enterprise created to train, support, mentor and inspire independent business owners to market their business ethically, serve society and planet, and restore all that is best about humanity.
Twitter:
@LynnSerafinn @SpiritAuthors @7GracesMarketng @GardenOfTheSoul
Facebook:
LynnSerafinn SpiritAuthors 7GracesOfMarketing 7 Graces Global Garden (group)
Author Spotlight: Stroke Survivor Erica Tucci
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Pictured left: author and stroke survivor Erica Tucci. Erica’s beautiful book Radiant Survivor is coming to Amazon on November 19th. To celebrate this launch, Erica and I are co-hosting an uplifting 3-day telesummit featuring world-renowned author and medical doctor Bernie Siegel MD. Find out how to attend (fr*ee) below.
One of the things I love most about my job is that I get to work with wonderful people. As I only work with authors in the self-help, mind-body-spirit and social reform genres, they tend to share some very special qualities. They have a devotion to personal and social transformation. They want to help people. They want to create a better world.
Another thing many (if not all) of them have in common is that they have experienced some sort of major transformation in their own lives – often a traumatic one that turned their lives upside down – which gave them insight and wisdom that would not have been accessible to them otherwise.
That’s what happened to Fortune 500 business manager Erica Tucci in 2011 when she collapsed to the floor on her way to work one day. Erica had a profound stroke that totally paralysed the right side of her body.
But something remarkable happened to Erica as she went through her 2-year process of rehabilitation and recovery. She discovered the trauma she had experienced was actually the BEST thing that had ever happened to her, and the wisdom and life-lessons she was learning were completely transforming her life for the better.
That revelation prompted Erica to write her powerful book, Radiant Survivor: How to Shine and Thrive through Recovery from Stroke, Cancer, Abuse, Addiction and Other Life-Altering Experiences. The book includes Erica’s story and the stories of 14 other survivors and caregivers, along with exercises for healing and a wealth of wisdom and life-lessons.
Radiant Survivor: How to Shine and Thrive through Recovery from Stroke, Cancer, Abuse, Addiction and Other Life-Altering Experiences is a book about healing. It is a wellspring of hope, inspiration and encouragement to anyone facing trauma in their life.
The book contains stories from author Erica Tucci along with 14 other everyday heroes who, against all odds, survived and thrived after tragedy shook their lives to the core. It also contains a wealth of life lessons and practical exercises that will show you how to:
- Believe in yourself and never give up
- Understand the limiting beliefs that hold you back
- Be grateful and have the right attitude
- Surrender and let go
- Establish your support system
- See recovery as a transformative process
- Get “real” about the possibility of not recovering
- Understand the impact of trauma on families, friends and caregivers
But most of all, Radiant Survivor will help you understand how your experience is part of your sacred contract with the Divine, and how trauma can help you find out what is really important in life.
I’ve had the great pleasure of working with Erica for the better part of a year now, and I’ve been continually amazed at how she really does shine and thrive, even on days when she struggles with her physical recovery. Her devotion to her work has resulted in her becoming an official Online Ambassador for the American Stroke Association. She has also received these endorsements from some names you will undoubtedly recognise:
“Erica Tucci touches on a subject I am all too well aware of. Her story is mine. She brings the reader through the realities and frustrations of suffering a life threatening illness but adds that ray of light at the end of that dark tunnel as hope is always there if you believe and find your own true strength.”
– KEVIN SORBO (aka Hercules on TV series)
Actor, stroke survivor, author of True Strength“Survivors have common qualities and are an excellent resource for all of us. They become our life coaches and help us to learn from our experiences and be guided by them. Erica’s experience can help us all to learn about survivor behavior and thriving in difficult times.”
– DR. BERNIE SIEGEL, MD
Medical Doctor, author of Book of Miracles and The Art of Healing
Radiant Survivor is having its big Amazon launch on Tuesday November 19th, 2013. To celebrate the arrival of this special book, Erica and I are co-hosting a special FR*EE 3-day telesummit…
Radiant Survivor Telesummit
Nov 12th, 13th and 14th, 2013
3pm EST, 12noon PST, 8pm UK
with a panel of 11 international speakers
exploring what it takes to shine, thrive and grow
when trauma effects our lives
Book Your Place at
http://bit.ly/1edsUmy
Here’s the complete line-up:
- Erica Tucci – Life coach; Reiki Master; stroke survivor; author of Radiant Survivor
- Lynn Serafinn – marketer; domestic violence survivor; author of The 7 Graces of Marketing
- Bernie Siegel MD – World-renowned surgeon; author of A Book of Miracles and The Art of Healing
- Allison Maslan – Entrepreneur; near-death trauma survivor; author of Blast-Off!
- Mal Duane – Alcoholism survivor; certified Life Recovery Coach; author of Alpha Chick
- Sue Frederick – Author of Bridges to Heaven, I See Your Dream Job, and I See Your Soul Mate
- Deb Scott – Author of The Sky is Green and The Grass is Blue; host of “The Best People We Know Show”
- Delanie Stephenson – Stroke survivor; author The Calm before the Storm; Online Ambassador for the American Stroke Association
- Suzanne Rose Lubkowski – Energy healer; intuitive life coach; her care-giver story appears in the book Radiant Survivor
- Callie Carling – Cancer survivor; Laughter Yoga teacher; creativity coach; contributing author for Radiant Survivor
- Barbara Techel – Speaker; author of Through Frankie’s Eyes; her care-giver story appears in the book Radiant Survivor
I do hope you’ll join us for what promises to be a truly rich, uplifting and revitalising event. As I said earlier, it’s completely free to attend.
If you can’t make the live broadcast, register anyway because you’ll be able to listen to the replay anytime until the launch on November 19th.
PLUS when you buy Radiant Survivor on the day of the launch, you’ll receive the MP3 downloads from the event, plus dozens of other bonus gifts, as a special ‘thank-you’ from Erica and her friends.
Book Your Place on the
Radiant Survivor Telesummit at
http://bit.ly/1edsUmy
NOW You Can Get The Spirit Authors Blog
Delivered Directly to Your Kindle!
Now you can have access to the latest tips in writing, publishing and book marketing everywhere you go. Get our Spirit Authors articles delivered once a week directly to your Kindle for only 99 cents a month (77pUK). Instead of reading someone else’s book on your way to work, get information on how to make your OWN book a success.
Take a 14-day free trial at:
Amazon US: http://amzn.to/ZlW7HT
Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/131495j
Join us on the Spirit Authors Page on Facebook
Connect with us on Twitter.
LYNN SERAFINN, MAED, CPCC is a certified, award-winning coach, teacher, marketer, social media expert, radio host, speaker and author of the number one bestseller The 7 Graces of Marketing — How to Heal Humanity and the Planet by Changing the Way We Sell and Tweep-e-licious! 158 Twitter Tips & Strategies for Writers, Social Entrepreneurs & Changemakers Who Want to Market their Business Ethically. She is listed in the Top 20 of the Top Marketing Authors on Twitter by Social Media Magazine and was a finalist for the prestigious Brit Writers Awards. She also received the eLit Book Awards Silver Medal in Humanitarian and Ecological Social Affairs, as well as the Bronze Medal in Business and Sales.
Lynn’s eclectic approach to marketing incorporates her vast professional experience in the music industry and the educational sector along with more than two decades of study and practice of the spirituality of India. Her innovative marketing campaigns have produced a long list of bestselling non-fiction authors through her company Spirit Authors. Lynn is also the Founder of the 7 Graces Project CIC, a not-for-profit social enterprise created to train, support, mentor and inspire independent business owners to market their business ethically, serve society and planet, and restore all that is best about humanity.
Twitter:
@LynnSerafinn @SpiritAuthors @7GracesMarketng @GardenOfTheSoul
Facebook:
LynnSerafinn SpiritAuthors 7GracesOfMarketing 7 Graces Global Garden (group)
Should I Do a Bestseller Book Launch? 5 Criteria for Authors
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Book marketer Lynn Serafinn has managed Amazon launches for dozens of #1 bestselling authors. Today she tells why doing a launch is NOT always the best choice.
I’m an independent marketing consultant for non-fiction authors. I started specialising in this area in 2009 because authors were asking me to develop ‘Amazon Bestseller Launches’ for their books, having seen the success I’d had launching my own publications. Over time, this developed into my company Spirit Authors. I no longer work alone, but have the pleasure of working with an experienced and organised team. Together, we have delivered full-service book launches to dozens of clients, the majority of whom attained #1 bestseller status. Our team have fine-tuned our launches into a system we could probably do in our sleep by now (and, yes, I do sometimes dream about launches).
A successful book launch can rapidly inject a business with a zing of energy not easily attainable by other kinds of marketing strategies. For example, one of my recent launch clients, Morgana Rae, says that the launch of her book Financial Alchemy, which became a #1 bestseller in 4 countries on Amazon, bringing her ‘3000 new mailing list subscribers, over 6,000 new Twitter followers’ and made her ‘a quick $30,000 in sales.’ When Morgana says ‘quick’ she means it; these benefits came to her over the course of 48 hours.
These kinds of statistics make bestseller book launches look like candy in the candy shop to authors. BUT (and there is always a ‘but’), it’s important to put it into context: such results can only come at the end of an intense 6 months of planning, organising and promotion. To the outsider the launch might look fast, exciting and glamorous, but behind the scenes it’s a lot of hard work and long work weeks for both the author and the marketing team. And, of course, employing an experienced team of 6 or more people to work hard for you over the course of half a year incurs a significant financial investment.
When I started Spirit Authors, I used to offer our book launch services to anyone who asked for them. Not any more. The more I do book launches, the more I have become a firm believer that they are NOT appropriate for everyone. While it is true that hitting #1 can be the ‘ultimate high’ for an author, if you and your business are not ready to take on the time, expense AND the follow up after a launch, you are unlikely to reap the benefits. I’ve seen some authors (not my clients!) feeling lost, depressed, broke, resentful and even ashamed after their book launch—even apparently ‘successful’ ones.
For that reason, it’s vital for authors to know whether or not this is the ‘right’ time for them to do a launch. To that end, I’d like to share what are, in my experience, the 5 most important criteria for deciding whether to go down the bestseller launch route, or to invest in a different approach to marketing your book.
Criterion #1: You must have the freedom and willingness to block out the TIME
Even ‘full service’ launches require a significant time investment from the author. There are things only the author can do such as show up to radio interviews, write or record virtual blog tour interviews, interact with fans and followers, engage with their audience through regular blog posts/newsletters and meet with the project manager to do the planning. Also, if the author is still in the throes of preparing their book for publication, there might also be many other creative or mechanical things they need to attend to, such as working with their editor or designers.
If you are employed in a full-time job or have many family obligations, trying to ‘squeeze’ in the time for all these things is going to be extremely challenging for you (and you risk serious burn-out).
Even if you are self-employed and you notionally have the flexibility to give time to the project, if you routinely have dozens of plates spinning in the air at a time, as so many creative people do, you might find it challenging to GIVE UP some of your business activities to the project. If you are used to having a chock-a-block daily calendar, you will only be able to manage a book launch if you are willing to let go of some of your obligations. A good consultant should be able to pick up on this habit and help you address it, but ultimately you have to create the time you need for the project; there’s no such thing as ‘finding’ time.
Criterion #2: You must have an established online PLATFORM
An Amazon bestseller book launch is an online marketing activity. Therefore, if you don’t have a good online presence, there is really little point in doing an online launch (unless you happen to have some sort of fame/celebrity in mainstream media). By ‘established’ online platform, I mean:
- You are blogging at least once a week or can get started doing this right away
- You are set up on all the major social networks (Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+ and possibly YouTube or other niche networks)
- You are regularly using social networks to promote your business
- You are ‘influential’ on at least one of these networks (i.e., have several thousand followers/contacts)
- You have a current and targeted mailing list of at least 1000 subscribers
- Your web traffic and page rank are healthy (a complex subject that I cannot go into here)
- That all of the above is speaking to the SAME audience as the readers of your upcoming book. For example, if you’re known widely as a business coach and you’ve decided you want to write a young-adult sci-fi novel, you’re going to have to start working on a new platform!
If you cannot tick ‘yes’ to most of these criteria, you really should spend a minimum of 6 months to bring yourself up to this level before considering doing a book launch.
Criterion #3: You must have an established BRAND
Some people ask me whether or not being a first-time author is an important consideration in deciding whether or not to do a launch. In my opinion, being a first-time author is not an issue if the client has a well-established brand. For example, Financial Alchemy was Morgana Rae’s first book, but her brand had already been around for 10 years. People already knew who she was and what made her approach unique. But what’s more, SHE understood her ‘USP’—her unique selling point—the quality that made her brand different from others.
Having an established brand is possibly the biggest distinguishing factor between authors who fizzle out after the temporary euphoria of reaching #1 and those who truly benefit from attaining this status. A bestselling book makes a strong brand stronger. Conversely, if you have a weak, generalised or newly formed brand, your book is likely to reflect its lack of clarity, and a launch will do little if anything to make it clearer.
Those who do best with their launches are those who relate to their brand as something beyond themselves—as an entity in its own right, with its own character, personality and life-force. When your relationship with your business is clear and well-defined, and your book will be a clear, outward expression of that relationship. This is the perfect time for a book launch, even if some ‘gaps’ in your platform need to be filled before kicking off the launch planning.
Criterion #4: You must be a seasoned and spirited entrepreneur
Doing a bestseller book launch is an entrepreneurial venture. You MUST see it as part of your business and marketing budget, and know that the ‘return’ you receive from it may not be immediate, and may not even be financial (at least at first). A true entrepreneur knows this, and is prepared emotionally and financially for it.
Being an entrepreneur is something of the ‘middle way’:
- You cannot be too rigid, always looking at the balance sheet, unwilling to invest what might seem to be a disproportionate amount of money in something that won’t necessarily pan out quickly, if at all. Panicking over every penny spent during your launch will shut you down. It will limit your creativity and deprive you of your joy, even if you DO hit #1. I’ve seen this happen many times.
- Conversely, you cannot be too reckless, TOO willing to drive yourself into debt, spending more money than you are able to repay on something that won’t necessarily yield quick results, if any. When authors get swept away by the elusive ‘high’ they imagine they will feel by becoming a bestselling author, they can easily convince themselves that maxing out their (personal) credit cards is justifiable. This can ruin you unless you have an income stream to pay this debt back. Please don’t imagine your book sales will do this for you. Only a few #1 bestsellers make enough in royalties to cover the expense of a launch. And even if they do, it takes a good 6 months to receive your first royalty cheque.
The only way to enter into a book launch is to understand the risks, and use the influence you curry from your launch to help grow overall business. And that brings us to the fifth and final criterion…
Criterion #5: You must have a plan for building upon your success
A successful launch can result in a surge of business growth and increased media presence. But this can ONLY happen if you ‘spin it’ and make it happen. My very first launch client, Allison Maslan, took her #1 status and ran like crazy with it. Four years down the line, the woman has multiple multi-million-dollar companies and her own TV show. The expression ‘Ya gotta work it, baby!’ is an essential post-launch mantra.
Have a plan for what you want this launch to DO for you. When I wrote The 7 Graces of Marketing, I already knew I wanted to host a conference and build a community, training programme and certification programme upon it. I didn’t exactly know how that would look, but I knew that ultimate purpose of my bestseller book launch would be to set the wheels in motion for my bigger business vision.
Closing Thoughts
These days, if I feel an author is not ready for a bestseller launch, I tell them. But unfortunately, not all companies are as transparent. Many authors have written to me over the years, sharing their stories of how they were disappointed by the level of guidance, care and service they received by companies that were only out to make money from them. Use these 5 criteria to assess yourself before you call a marketing company about a book launch. Understand your own strengths and weaknesses; understand your brand and your business goals. But most of all: understand that a big book launch is NOT the only way to promote and sell your book, and that maybe your time for a big launch is when you publish your NEXT book.
Take the time to create space in your diary, build your platform and establish your brand. Get to know what kind of entrepreneur you are and who your audience is, and how you can ‘spin’ and develop your message into something bigger.
Then, when you’re ready for a book launch, drop us a line at http://spiritauthors.com/contact, at least 6 months before your proposed launch date. And if you’re NOT ready for a launch, contact us too. We can help you prepare for self-publishing and have a number of platform-building and branding packages that can help you get ready.
I hope you found this article to be helpful, and I wish you the very best of luck in your publishing adventures!
Lynn Serafinn
12th June 2013
NOW You Can Get The Spirit Authors Blog
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Now you can have access to the latest tips in writing, publishing and book marketing everywhere you go. Get our Spirit Authors articles delivered 1-2 times a week directly to your Kindle for only 99 cents a month (77pUK). Instead of reading someone else’s book on your way to work, get information on how to make your OWN book a success.
Take a 14-day free trial at:
Amazon US: http://amzn.to/ZlW7HT
Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/131495j
Join us on the Spirit Authors Page on Facebook
Connect with us on Twitter.
LYNN SERAFINN, MAED, CPCC is a certified, award-winning coach, teacher, marketer, social media expert, radio host, speaker and author of the number one bestseller The 7 Graces of Marketing — How to Heal Humanity and the Planet by Changing the Way We Sell and Tweep-e-licious! 158 Twitter Tips & Strategies for Writers, Social Entrepreneurs & Changemakers Who Want to Market their Business Ethically. She was recently named one of the Top 100 marketing authors on Twitter by Social Media Magazine and was selected as a finalist for the prestigious Brit Writers Awards. Her eclectic approach to marketing incorporates her vast professional experience in the music industry and the educational sector along with more than two decades of study and practice of the spirituality of India. Through her company Spirit Authors, her marketing campaigns have produced a long list of bestselling self-help and mind-body-spirit authors. Lynn is also the Founder of the 7 Graces Project, a budding social enterprise whose aim is to help grow a new generation of passionate entrepreneurs who want to serve both people and planet through innovative, ethical, independent enterprise.
Twitter:
@LynnSerafinn @SpiritAuthors @7GracesMarketng @GardenOfTheSoul
Facebook:
LynnSerafinn SpiritAuthors 7GracesOfMarketing 7 Graces Global Garden (group)
How to Kick Start Your Book Sales – Part 2
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Lynn Serafinn’s book marketing advice for authors getting ready to launch, including tips for ensuring your book gets into the right categories on Amazon.
Last week, I shared the first part of an interview I did with Kristen Eckstein of Ultimate Book Coach, where she asked me these 5 questions about book marketing:
- When in the book publishing process should an author start promoting their book and planning their book launch?
- Should all authors consider doing an Amazon “bestseller” launch?
- What are some of the activities you help authors with in the 6 months leading up to their launch?
- You told me that you always recommend “kick starting” an author’s book sales before an Amazon launch. What do you mean by that? What benefits does it give the book and author?
- What other book launch tips can you share?
In part 1, I shared my answers to questions 1 – 3. You can read those is ‘How to Kick-Start Your Book Sales – Part 1’.
Today, I like to share my answers to the last two questions, where I also reveal my ‘secret sauce’ tip.
KRISTEN: You told me that you always recommend “kick starting” an author’s book sales before an Amazon launch. What do you mean by that? What benefits does it give the book and author?
LYNN: By “kick starting” I mean ordering 2 or 3 copies of the paperback AND Kindle version of the book in each of the Amazon websites (or at least the English language sites in US, Canada and UK). You can send them to people who live in those respective countries. To make it practical, you could send it to people you have asked to review or endorse your book.
There are three reasons for “kick starting”. The first one is to ensure your book is listed as being in stock on Amazon. The only way Amazon will purchase a quantity of your books is if they see that it’s selling. Some people use pre-sales for this, but I prefer to use the kick-start method. When authors do not do this, they may get to launch day and Amazon says the book is out of stock, which can put buyers off from buying it.
The second reason is so that your book will appear in the sales rankings. Until your book has sold at least one copy, it will show no sales ranking at all.
And the third reason has to do with placement. Most of my authors either use Lightning Source for printing and distribution, or they are published by major publishers. All of these channels use either Ingram or Baker and Taylor for distribution to retail outlets, including Amazon. When you submit your title for distribution, you have to choose the categories into which your book may be classified (they call these “BIC categories”). Unfortunately (and inexplicably), Amazon’s categories don’t quite “match” the BIC ones and your book can end up catalogued in some pretty arbitrary categories. The only reliable way to find out where your book is placed is to order a few copies of your book a few weeks before your launch date.
Hopefully, by doing this, your book will appear somewhere in the “top 100” in at least one category, even if only for an hour. This should give you an indication of where Amazon has placed the book. If the category is way off, you can write to them via Author Central, and give them suggested changes. As an example, a few weeks before my book The 7 Graces of Marketing came out, I discovered they had placed it in the “accounting” category. Wow, what a mismatch that was! Fortunately, the kick-starter strategy ensured it was all sorted out before the launch.
KRISTEN: What other book launch tips you can share?
LYNN: Oh, I’ve got plenty! Here are just a few:
- A launch is a business investment. Invest wisely. Having an international #1 bestselling book can open up many doors to you and your business. But don’t go into it with “rose-coloured glasses” and no plan of what you want this status to bring you.
- Don’t expect to put together a launch in less than 6 months. If you suddenly get the idea to call a marketing company like mine one or two months before your book comes out, thinking they can “do it fast” for you, you’re wrong.
- Your launch doesn’t have to coincide with your publication date. Some of my most successful launches happened 6 months AFTER a book came out. Just because your book is coming out next month does not mean you have to launch next month.
- Don’t try to do it on your own. Hire an experienced team to do it for you, and focus on doing the things only you can do—writing, doing interviews, creating your business products, etc.
- Don’t expect your Virtual Assistant to be able to run a book launch for you. I’ve seen that fail time and again. An Amazon launch is a specialist skill, and you’ll only frustrate yourself and your hired help if you ask the wrong people to do a launch for you.
- Don’t cut corners. Do it right. You won’t get the results you want if you try to save money by eliminating any of the essential components.
- Don’t feel hopeless if you’re not ‘ready’ for a big launch. If you’re not ready for a launch, there are still many things you can do to market your book and build your long-term platform. That is why Spirit Authors offers alternative packages for authors who many not be quite ready to invest in a big launch. Then, when their 2nd book comes out, they’ll be in a much better place to invest the time and money a successful launch requires.
- SECRET SAUCE: Your 1st book will very often increase in sales as a result of a successful launch of your 2nd book. Every time you launch a new book, it has an impact on past titles IF they are written for the same audience.
I do hope these two articles gave you some useful information.
Please share your comments and questions below!
If you are thinking about having an Amazon book launch OR you’re just getting started building your book promotion platform and would like to see how our team at Spirit Authors can help, send us a SHORT email describing your project and where you are in your marketing so far using the contact form at http://spiritauthors.com/contact.
AND…if you’d like to get PRACTICAL tips on building your online marketing platform using Twitter, you can get a free 90 minute Twitter marketing class at http://tweepelicious.com. You also find out about my award-winning marketing book Tweep-e-licious, which was written very much with authors in mind.
Lynn Serafinn
1 May 2013
PLEASE SHARE YOUR QUESTIONS & COMMENTS BELOW!
Like this blog?
Then please subscribe using the form at the upper right side of this page, so you can receive our articles on writing, publishing, book promotion and new mind-body-spirit book releases.
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Now you can have access to the latest tips in writing, publishing and book marketing everywhere you go. Get our Spirit Authors articles delivered 1-2 times a week directly to your Kindle for only 99 cents a month (77pUK). Instead of reading someone else’s book on your way to work, get information on how to make your OWN book a success.
Take a 14-day free trial at:
Amazon US: http://amzn.to/ZlW7HT
Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/131495j
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BOOKS BY LYNN SERAFINN
The 7 Graces of Marketing: how to heal humanity and the planet by changing the way we sell
Find out how traditional marketing negatively impacts our health, economy, communities and natural environment, and how to turn it around with a new paradigm called the 7 Graces of Marketing.
Brit Writers Awards Finalist
eLit Book Awards Silver Medal in Humanitarian & Ecological Social Issues
Learn how to create meaningful content and build powerful collaborations through Twitter and other social media ETHICALLY.
eLit Book Awards Bronze Medal in Business and Sales
Get instant access to a free 90-minute Twitter marketing class at http://tweepelicious.com
The Garden of the Soul: lessons from four flowers that unearth the Self
A metaphoric and poetic journey about finding your voice, receiving the blessings of life, overcoming trauma and becoming whole.
An Amazon spirituality bestseller 2009. Kindle version coming later in 2013.
Read excerpts and buy the book at http://give-receive-become-be.com/
LYNN SERAFINN, MAED, CPCC is a certified, award-winning coach, teacher, marketer, social media expert, radio host, speaker and author of the number one bestseller The 7 Graces of Marketing — How to Heal Humanity and the Planet by Changing the Way We Sell and Tweep-e-licious! 158 Twitter Tips & Strategies for Writers, Social Entrepreneurs & Changemakers Who Want to Market their Business Ethically. She is listed in the Top 20 of the Top Marketing Authors on Twitter by Social Media Magazine and was a finalist for the prestigious Brit Writers Awards. She was also a eLit Book Awards Silver Medalist in Humanitarian and Ecological Social Affairs and a Bronze Medalist in Business and Sales.
Lynn’s eclectic approach to marketing incorporates her vast professional experience in the music industry and the educational sector along with more than two decades of study and practice of the spirituality of India. Her innovative marketing campaigns have produced a long list of bestselling non-fiction authors through her company Spirit Authors. Lynn is also the Founder of the 7 Graces Project CIC, a not-for-profit social enterprise created to train, support, mentor and inspire independent business owners to market their business ethically, serve society and planet, and restore all that is best about humanity.
Twitter:
@LynnSerafinn @SpiritAuthors @7GracesMarketng @GardenOfTheSoul
Facebook:
LynnSerafinn SpiritAuthors 7GracesOfMarketing 7 Graces Global Garden (group)
How to Kick Start Your Book Sales – Part 1
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Recently I was interviewed by Kristen Eckstein who runs a site called Ultimate Book Coach. She had read something I wrote in a Facebook comment about ‘kick starting’ your book sales and asked if I would do an interview with her for her readers.
I thought I’d share it here on the Spirit Authors site too, because many of you might find it useful.
The questions Kristen asked were:
- When in the book publishing process should an author start promoting their book and planning their book launch?
- Should all authors consider doing an Amazon “bestseller” launch?
- What are some of the activities you help authors with in the 6 months leading up to their launch?
- You told me that you always recommend “kick starting” an author’s book sales before an Amazon launch. What do you mean by that? What benefits does it give the book and author?
- What other book launch tips can you share?
Today, in part 1 of this interview, I’ll be sharing my answers to questions 1 -3.
KRISTEN: When in the book publishing process should an author start promoting their book and planning their book launch?
LYNN: Really, an author should start promoting their book the minute they have landed the title for it! When I say “promoting” it, I don’t mean trying to sell it, but rather, building an online platform for themselves through blogging, YouTube and social media. This helps grow their network and mailing list, and starts to establish them as experts in their chosen field. If an author already has a good network, they should start to create content on the specific subject of their upcoming book and “name drop” their title at the end of articles, indicating a book is coming out soon (e.g., “This article was an adaptation of ideas from my upcoming book My Book Title coming autumn 2013.”)
KRISTEN: Should all authors consider doing an Amazon “bestseller” launch?
LYNN: I don’t think big launches are a good fit for all authors. Back when I was a new marketer, I used to take on any author who wanted a launch. But these days, I never take on a client for a full book launch unless (or until) I can see their online platform is solid. Big book launches are expensive and they require a substantial number of systems to be in place before they can be pulled off successfully. Also, if you have no platform, you are unlikely to attract very influential partners to support you. So you owe it to yourself to spend at least a full year building your online platform before you even consider approaching partners for a launch.
I have observed that the books that sell the best in bestseller launches are the ones by people whose business/brand is well established. They may be first-time authors, but people already know who they are and what their message is. Because the business is already well-established, the book tends to be more useful to the public, for the simple reason that the author knows what works and what doesn’t work for their own clients, customers or readers. These kinds of launches also tend to attract the best partners and have the most focus. Finally, the author tends to have an integrated business plan for what this book will do for them, and the expense of the launch brings a good return on their investment not just through book sales, but also through business growth.
I have also observed that first-time authors who are also brand new business owners tend to struggle. The author may be very passionate about their work, and they may be willing to pour their last dollar into a launch, but I really don’t recommend this. While they SHOULD develop a modest launch and a long-term marketing plan for their book, they absolutely should not put themselves into financial difficulty to do a bestseller launch when they do not yet have the systems in place where a) they can attract a strong network of partners and b) they already have an audience of buyers for their book AND their business products and services.
Q3: What are some of the activities you help authors with in the 6 months leading up to their launch?
If their platform is already pretty solid, I first look for the “gaps” in their online platform and fill them. Then, I work with them to create a blogging and leads generating strategy to increase their following while we do the mechanics of the actual launch. Then, over the next 6 months, we work with my team of 7 people to plan and deliver a telesummit, coordinate a Virtual Blog Tour and a radio media tour and coordinate and mobilise a team of network partners who will help promote them. We also design the graphics, make all the web pages, autoresponders and marketing copy, make a video book trailer, invite high profile guests to speak at the telesummit, create intake forms, collect and manage data, get endorsements and reviews and get systems going on Amazon, including book categories and author profile and lots of other bits and bobs. All this takes a tremendous amount of work from our team and the author. Fortunately, I’ve got a highly experienced team and can depend upon them to do the job splendidly.
Behind the scenes, a lot is going on in terms of motivating and communicating with partners and crisis control. As the project manager, it’s my job to deal with all the possible worst-case-scenarios that will arise in a CALM, efficient manner. My clients are “allowed” to freak out, but I cannot.
Then, on launch day, there are a lot of things to do around tracking sales, capturing screenshots and motivating partners. I really focus on developing a proper “team” with my network partners, so they get behind the client, and vice versa. It’s my goal to ensure everyone (not just the client) benefits from the launch.
*** END OF PART 1 ***
Please be sure to subscribe to this blog so you can receive Part 2 of “How to Kick Start Your Book Sales”, where I (finally) talk about what I MEAN by “kick-starting” your sales, along with how and why to do it. I also give 8 additional bonus tips that can help you stay sane during your book launch.
If you are thinking about having an Amazon book launch OR you’re just getting started building your book promotion platform and would like to see how our team at Spirit Authors can help, send us a SHORT email describing your project and where you are in your marketing so far using the contact form at http://spiritauthors.com/contact.
AND…if you’d like to get PRACTICAL tips on building your online marketing platform using Twitter, you can get a free 90 minute Twitter marketing class at http://tweepelicious.com. You also find out about my award-winning marketing book Tweep-e-licious, which was written very much with authors in mind.
Lynn Serafinn
24 April 2013
PLEASE SHARE YOUR QUESTIONS & COMMENTS BELOW!
Like this blog?
Then please subscribe using the form at the upper right side of this page, so you can receive our articles on writing, publishing, book promotion and new mind-body-spirit book releases.
NOW You Can Get The Spirit Authors Blog
Delivered Directly to Your Kindle!
Now you can have access to the latest tips in writing, publishing and book marketing everywhere you go. Get our Spirit Authors articles delivered 1-2 times a week directly to your Kindle for only 99 cents a month (77pUK). Instead of reading someone else’s book on your way to work, get information on how to make your OWN book a success.
Take a 14-day free trial at:
Amazon US: http://amzn.to/ZlW7HT
Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/131495j
Join us on the Spirit Authors Page on Facebook
Connect with us on Twitter.
BOOKS BY LYNN SERAFINN
The 7 Graces of Marketing: how to heal humanity and the planet by changing the way we sell
Find out how traditional marketing negatively impacts our health, economy, communities and natural environment, and how to turn it around with a new paradigm called the 7 Graces of Marketing.
Brit Writers Awards Finalist
eLit Book Awards Silver Medal in Humanitarian & Ecological Social Issues
Learn how to create meaningful content and build powerful collaborations through Twitter and other social media ETHICALLY.
eLit Book Awards Bronze Medal in Business and Sales
Get instant access to a free 90-minute Twitter marketing class at http://tweepelicious.com
The Garden of the Soul: lessons from four flowers that unearth the Self
A metaphoric and poetic journey about finding your voice, receiving the blessings of life, overcoming trauma and becoming whole.
An Amazon spirituality bestseller 2009. Kindle version coming later in 2013.
Read excerpts and buy the book at http://give-receive-become-be.com/
LYNN SERAFINN, MAED, CPCC is a certified, award-winning coach, teacher, marketer, social media expert, radio host, speaker and author of the number one bestseller The 7 Graces of Marketing — How to Heal Humanity and the Planet by Changing the Way We Sell and Tweep-e-licious! 158 Twitter Tips & Strategies for Writers, Social Entrepreneurs & Changemakers Who Want to Market their Business Ethically. She is listed in the Top 20 of the Top Marketing Authors on Twitter by Social Media Magazine and was a finalist for the prestigious Brit Writers Awards. She was also a eLit Book Awards Silver Medalist in Humanitarian and Ecological Social Affairs and a Bronze Medalist in Business and Sales.
Lynn’s eclectic approach to marketing incorporates her vast professional experience in the music industry and the educational sector along with more than two decades of study and practice of the spirituality of India. Her innovative marketing campaigns have produced a long list of bestselling non-fiction authors through her company Spirit Authors. Lynn is also the Founder of the 7 Graces Project CIC, a not-for-profit social enterprise created to train, support, mentor and inspire independent business owners to market their business ethically, serve society and planet, and restore all that is best about humanity.
Twitter:
@LynnSerafinn @SpiritAuthors @7GracesMarketng @GardenOfTheSoul
Facebook:
LynnSerafinn SpiritAuthors 7GracesOfMarketing 7 Graces Global Garden (group)
7 Keys to Writing Great Ezine Copy for Your Book Launch
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Campaign manager Lynn Serafinn shares a simple formula to give power to your words (this is an updated version of an aritlce orginally published on April 5, 2010).
If you are planning an Amazon campaign for your book launch, you will need the help of a great network of personal and professional friends to help you. But something you might not have thought about is the fact that you will need to provide some “ezine copy” for them to use to help promote your book. That’s right: YOU will have to provide the article or articles your “joint venture partners” (JVPs) will send out to their lists.
The reason for this is two-fold. First of all, your JVPs are probably pretty busy, and if you ask them to write an article for you, it is less likely they will have it ready in time to meet your timetable. Secondly, YOU are the person who knows best what you want to say about your book. Those are the two most important reasons why you should write the “copy” (article) for your JVPs’ newsletters when they offer to promote you. And you’ll need to write several over the course of the campaign, in order to speak to the different audiences your partners represent.
I know this might sound a little daunting to some of you, especially those of you who don’t like the idea of “selling” (which covers just about 99.9% of the mind-body-spirit authors I know), so I thought I would give you a little formula to get you started, so you could see it is not so much about selling at all, as it is about connecting and inspiring the reader.
When you write your copy, make sure it meets the following criteria:
- It is between 400-700 words.
- It is written casually in the 3rd person as if the JVP is writing about you.
- It arouses curiosity in the title and opening line.
- It inspires the reader by sharing something meaningful about you and your book.
- It has a specific place where the JVP can (and should) personalise it.
- It’s NOT a sales letter but…
- It has a short, clear call to action at the end (i.e., it tells people when, where and why to get your book).
Ways to Keep it Real
- Remember that the primary purpose of your copy is to arouse curiosity, and not to “sell” your book (yes, I thought you’d be happy to know that!).
- The other thing to remember is to write it in the third person about you, as if your JVPs were writing the article. There is tremendous power in your partners’ saying, “I found this book to be inspiring.”
- Make sure you have places in the article where partners can personalise it to make it more their own. And if “keeping it real” means that you need to send a copy of your book to your partners (at least a pdf version of it), BE GENEROUS and do so. It will help them say (nice) things about you in a much more authentic way.
- Don’t make your ezine copy just about the book. Make it also about YOU. Audiences like to know the person behind the book. Talk about how the book came to be. Bring the reader on a personal journey. Let them into your world. If you only talk about the book, a vital human connection will be missing.
- Your ‘call to action’ should be consistent with the character of the article. In other words, do NOT make it schmoozy and salesy. Make your call to action short and INVITING rather than hitting people over the head with ‘you’ve gotta get this book because it will change your life’ kind of attitude. Let it emerge naturally from the body of the article instead of jumping out like an attack!
See an example of this in action
If you want to see an example of this in action, have a look at the article I wrote called “How to Have a Life Well Lived”. I was the campaign manager for Patrick Ryan’s book campaign, so I made this copy (and several others) for the JVPs on his Amazon campaign. If you analyse it carefully, you will see 7 key elements I mention above. It must have worked, because his book went to #1 in spirituality in Canada and #2 in the US on the day of his launch in April 2010. 🙂
Are YOU Planning a Book Launch?
If you are seeking a manager for your mind-body-spirit campaign, give me a shout via the CONTACT FORM on this site and we can set up a FREE 30 minutes Skype chat to see if I can help in any way. Please note I only accept a limited amount of clients per year and require a 6-month lead in time for a full-service launch.
Please DO leave your comments below. I LOVE hearing from you!
AND DON’T FORGET to subscribe to the Spirit Authors blog for more tips on writing, publishing, book promotion and new mind-body-spirit book releases.
Lynn Serafinn, MAED, CPCC is a certified, award-winning coach, teacher, marketer, social media expert, radio host, speaker and author of the number one bestseller The 7 Graces of Marketing: How to Heal Humanity and the Planet by Changing the Way We Sell. Her eclectic approach to marketing incorporates her vast professional experience in the music industry and the educational sector along with more than two decades of study and practice of the spirituality of India. In her work as a promotional manager she has produced a long list of bestselling mind-body-spirit authors. She is the of Spirit Authors, a site dedicated to providing information on publishing and book promotioin for and about mind-body-spirit authors, both established and aspiring. Lynn is also the Founder of the 7 Graces Project, a budding social enterprise whose aim is to help grow a new generation of passionate entrepreneurs who want to serve both people and planet through innovative, ethical, independent enterprise.
Twitter:
@LynnSerafinn @SpiritAuthors @7GracesMarketng @GardenOfTheSoul
Facebook:
LynnSerafinn SpiritAuthors 7GracesOfMarketing 7 Graces Global Garden (group)
Invitation – 3 Tips When Seeking Partners for Your Book Launch
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I first shared this story in my newsletter Creative Spirit in June. I thought it deserved to go on the blog as well, in case you missed it. Also, things changed since first publishing this story (you’ll find out in the ‘kicker’ below). Hope this gives you some useful tips on how to invite partners to your next marketing campaign.
Many of you, especially you authors, are probably familiar with the term ‘joint venture partner’ (JVP). My entire business depends upon the support from JVPs, as they are the people who help to promote my clients’ books. JVPs are the life-blood of any online business, and being a JVP can also bring a lot of business back to you. I’ve written articles in the past about the advantages of being a JVP, and how to support your JVPs. But earlier this month, something happened that proved to be a valuable lesson to in how to INVITE people to be your Joint Venture Partner on your online book launch…and how NOT to do it.
It all happened when an author named Diana Young wrote to me back on May 7th of this year (2012). Just so you know, I asked Diana for her permission to share this story with you, and to my surprise, she even told me to use her real name. Diana didn’t know me personally, but she saw my name in connection with another launch. She sent me an email that was nearly 2000 words long, asking me to be a partner on the upcoming launch of her book Financial Fitness for Beginners. While she was very polite, there were many things about the letter that just didn’t ‘work’ for me and I felt were quite ‘schmoozy’ (a word I use to describe most formulaic sales letters). In her opening paragraph I felt really put off when I read the words:
‘I wanted to let you know about another
excellent opportunity that you can benefit from…’
The next 1000+ words of the email described how she wrote the book, the many benefits of the book, and a long list of endorsements. The letter seemed especially long because it was text only, with no images or special formatting to make it easier for my eyes to scan and get to the key points.
Diana had obviously invested a lot of time and thought into this email. But if I’m honest, the letter felt invasive and seemed full of overblown sales clichés. My gut reaction was to send a short reply saying I was too busy at this time to participate (which I was), and put it off my radar.
But then, my inner voice of compassion started speaking to me. The voice said, ‘Maybe you’re reacting too hastily. Maybe this Diana person isn’t a schmoozer at all. Maybe she’s just doesn’t know how to invite people to be partners. Or worse, maybe she’s been taught to do it this way, like so many others have been.’
So, I took a few minutes to read her letter again. This time instead of reacting with my gut, I let my head and heart guide me to see if I could help Diana in some other way. When I did this, I could easily identify the problem with the letter: it lacked the 7 Graces, most specifically the very important Graces of Directness and Invitation. Each of these comprises its own chapter in my book The 7 Graces of Marketing, but in a nutshell:
- Directness is the Grace of simplicity and getting to the point. It means we avoid using hyped up or flowery language that blurs what we are actually saying, with the intention of impressing or misdirecting others.
- Invitation is the Grace of courtesy, respect, generosity and engagement. While sales letters are always invasive, they are especially so when sent via email. That’s why it’s very important to remember that when we send an email, it is no different from knocking on the door of someone’s house.
After seeing the key areas I thought could help, here’s what I wrote back to Diana:
Hi there Diana,
Regretfully, I’m not really in a position to commit to any new partnerships or promotions until after the summer is over, as I am focusing 100% on a conference I am organising in London and live stream and will need a long break after that is over!
While I can’t help you on this promotion, as I work as a marketer on collaborative campaigns all the time, can I give you 3 small tips when you “cold call” someone in an email like this?
Tip 1: Never tell people you are giving them an “excellent opportunity that you can benefit from”. It is not wise to try to “sell” your launch to your potential partners. To say it is an “opportunity” is risky, as very often people who approach others for a collaboration are doing to because want to benefit by tapping into their networks, which are often substantially bigger than the network of the person making the proposal. It is much better to approach people humbly, by asking for their help and telling them how you hope to help them back.
Tip 2: Never try to “sell” the book to your potential partners. This is the biggest mistake I see authors do over and over again. If you are writing to someone you don’t know, it’s best to start by “breaking the ice” with a very short and very direct email that says something like:
Hi [name],
I met you through [explain how you met or know about them].
I’m launching a book called [name of your book] on [date of your launch]. I am writing to you today to see if you would be interested and available to be a promotional partner for the launch. This would entail offering a bonus gift and helping me out with promotions through your newsletter, blog and/or social media.
We’re aiming to reach [put a number] of readers through the promotions. The ideal readers for this campaign are [here describe your target audience]. Some of the features we will have on this campaign are [here if you are doing a special event or something unusual for the launch, or you have a high-profile person backing you, mention it here].
May I send you more information about the book and the launch campaign so you can see whether this might be a good match for you?
I look forward to hearing from you,
[signature]
Tip 3: The goal in contacting people should NOT just be to get them to help you with your promotions on this particular book campaign, but to establish an ongoing professional relationship with them. For example, I cannot be your partner this time around, but what about on something in the future? If you come across like you are trying to “sell” me something and that you’ve got a “great opportunity” for me, it is very likely I will switch off and not pay attention to future correspondence. Fortunately, I am dedicated to helping marketers understand that these strategies don’t work, so I thought I’d write to you with tips that (I hope) might get a good response from your future partners.
I hope you don’t take this as a criticism, but rather as some guidance from someone whose entire business is based upon building collaborative relationships. AND I wish you great success in your book launch. Keep me posted on the next project.
Warm wishes,
Lynn Serafinn
I hit “send”, not knowing how Diana would react.
But the very next day on May 8th, I received this email from her:
Hello Lynn.
I can’t thank you enough for your in-depth and thoughtful email regarding my June 12th launch. I will take all your advice to heart and re-write my “sales” email. I did just graduate from a $2,500 course with XXX on how to write these letters [Diana cited another well-known marketing coach, but I don’t think it’s fair to mention their name here], however, since my response has been less than stellar, I will incorporate all your ideas (and send you a copy if you don’t mind).
I’m glad my email prompted a new blog posting for you. If there is anything else I can do to benefit you, please let me know. Thanks again for taking so much time and giving me such expert insight – I can’t tell you how much I truly appreciate that!
Wishing you great success at your London Conference…I looked through your website and it looks excellent.
Cheers and a big “thanks again”!
Diana Young
Well, that was nice.
But THEN, on May 10th, Diana sent me this email…
Hi Lynn,
I know you are busy… I just wanted to touch base with you again to say THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU. I got 6 yes’s yesterday using your advice (and the revamped email I did). I also got two more “maybe’s”.
Thanks for being so generous with your expertise. Can’t tell you how much I appreciate it!
Have a wonder-filled day!
Diana
And THEN…
on May 11th, Diana wrote yet again!
Hi Lynn,
I can’t thank you enough. Now, I’m tempted to go back to the original 200 that I got ZERO response from and say something like…oops…I blew it and then try again with the new email. I am very happy for you to share this story with your readers so that they can avoid the bad results I got. I was following a “formula” that obviously didn’t work for me. I would like you to add this paragraph from me though if that is okay?
“As Lynn has described I am a newbie at launching my book which is on schedule for June 12th. My original JV email was a bust – however, Lynn took the time to respond to me personally and provide me with valuable advice. After I revamped my email, the yes’s started flying in to my inbox. After I thanked Lynn again she asked if she could tell this story without using my name, or details just so she could help her readers avoid the same mistake. Of course, I am so thrilled with the results that Lynn can do as she wishes, however, I asked her to use my name, for the sake of full disclosure, but most importantly, I wanted to publically thank her for being so generous and giving in her advice. We have never met and my JV email to her was my first contact. I was overwhelmed with her help – she is certainly “paying it forward” and I can’t thank her enough. This is all I asked of her to tell my “learning” story, so I could share with her readers how grateful I am that our paths crossed”.
Of course Lynn you don’t “have” to include this thank you…but I think it is important that your readers know how giving you are.
Thanks again.
Di
P. S. I got interrupted while writing this email and I went out for a walk. When I came back in I got two more yes’s!!!!!!!!
(yes, she really did put 8 exclamation points)
And here’s the kicker…
Wait for it…
When Diana’s book came out on June 12th it went ballistic! Not only did she have an amazing array of partners including Peggy McColl and Bob Proctor, but her book SHOT to #1 in more than once category on Amazon and was also extremely high in Amazon’s overall rankings.
What is so inspiring to me about this is that
this is a prime example of the 7 Graces of Marketing IN ACTION.
The 7 Graces are not merely lofty principles, but good, honest guidelines that can start to transform the world of business and marketing and bring us back together as people. I might not be able to be a partner on Diana’s book launch, but I’ve made a new friend.
So, after being so gracious for letting me tell this story, I really do think it’s only fair you take a moment to check out Diana’s book Financial Fitness for Beginners on Amazon:
(Gosh, I guess I ended up helping with promotions after all!)
And if you haven’t yet read The 7 Graces of Marketing, you might want to pick that one up in paperback or Kindle, too. 7 free MP3s await you when you do at: http://the7gracesofmarketing.com/book-launch/pages/launch.php
AND…
Spirit Authors are currently seeking partners for the big book launch of
Financial Alchemy by the exuberant and totally delightful Morgana Rae!
This book launch is happening on Wednesday January 23rd, 2013. If your audience is aimed at financial wellness, prosperity, Law of Attraction, business mindeset, success, etc., you might be interested in joining us. Morgana has a massive network and she’s soooo hilarious when she’s on the air (I can’t wait until our telesummit). I know it’s going to be an launch that is bubbling with fun and energy.
Partners can offer a bonus gift, be on our Virtual Blog Tour or book Morgana on your radio show or podcast (or a combination of the above). I don’t have the official sign up form for this yet, but if you would like to be on our partner list, drop me a line via the CONTACT FORM on this site and our team will contact you with details very soon.
If you don’t know what you could gain from being on someone else’s book launch, please read my Spirit Authors article 7 Reasons to Partner on Someone Else’s Book Launch NOW.
AND DON’T FORGET to subscribe to the Spirit Authors blog for more tips on writing, publishing, book promotion and new mind-body-spirit book releases.
Lynn Serafinn, MAED, CPCC is a certified, award-winning coach, teacher, marketer, social media expert, radio host, speaker and author of the number one bestseller The 7 Graces of Marketing: How to Heal Humanity and the Planet by Changing the Way We Sell. Her eclectic approach to marketing incorporates her vast professional experience in the music industry and the educational sector along with more than two decades of study and practice of the spirituality of India. In her work as a promotional manager she has produced a long list of bestselling mind-body-spirit authors. She is the founder of Spirit Authors, a site dedicated to providing information on publishing and book promotioin for and about mind-body-spirit authors, both established and aspiring. Lynn is also the Founder of the 7 Graces Project, a budding social enterprise whose aim is to help grow a new generation of passionate entrepreneurs who want to serve both people and planet through innovative, ethical, independent enterprise.
Watch for Lynn’s new book Tweep-e-Licious: 160 Twitter Tips and Strategies for Writers, Social Entrepreneurs and Changemakers Who Want to Market Their Business Ethically (coming October 2012).
Be a Partner on Some Great Upcoming Book Launches
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Get seen & build your network by partnering on book promotions from Spirit Authors. Reach your target audience and gain valuble insight into how others market their books. Mind-body-spirit, self-help, health & wellness, ethical business & marketing.
As most of you know, I create and manage book launch campaigns for mind-body-spirit authors. Over the past 18 months or so, I’ve coordinated more than a dozen campaigns. All of my clients reached bestseller status. In fact, most were in the top 3, and five of these hit the coveted #1 bestseller spot.
Creating a book launch is a LOT of work, and cannot possibly happen without the help of many dozens of network partners. Being a partner on someone else’s book launch has great rewards, even if you are not an author. Among other things, it helps you expand your professional network, gives you more visibility, and can also help to grow your mailing list. A well-crafted book launch has the potential to reach millions of people by dint of our collaborative efforts. If you’ve never participated in a book launch before, read my article “7 Reasons to Partner on Someone Else’s Book Launch NOW”.
Below is a list of upcoming launches. If they tickle your fancy and you’d like to join us, send a note to me by the dates listed below at http://spiritauthors.com/contact
BOOK LAUNCH 1
Why Wait? The Baby Boomer’s Guide Preparing Emotionally, Financially and Legally for a Parent’s Death
AUTHOR: Carolyn A. Brent, M.B.A
LAUNCH DATE: November 15th, 2011
PROMOTIONS RUN: October 10th through November 15th
WHO SHOULD JOIN THIS CAMPAIGN?
Anyone whose work has to do with Baby Boomers, family relationships, end-of-life issues, death and dying, grieving and loss, life transitions, health care, advocacy groups, elderly care, human rights, financial or legal planning, etc.
TO JOIN THIS CAMPAIGN:
Express your interest by filling in the form at http://babyboomersguide.org/pages/book-launch/join-the-book-launch-for-why-wait.html no later than Friday September 16th, 2011.
Visit Carolyn’s “Baby Boomer’s Guide” blogsite: http://babyboomersguide.org
BOOK LAUNCH 2
The 7 Graces of Marketing: how to heal humanity and the planet by changing the way we sell.
AUTHOR: Lynn Serafinn
LAUNCH DATE: December 13th, 2011
PROMOTIONS RUN: November 7th through December 13th
WHO SHOULD JOIN THIS CAMPAIGN?
Anyone whose work has to do with marketing, business, entrepreneurship, new economy, healing, self awareness, environmentalism, consumer culture, social media, social responsibility, connection, transparency, abundance, ethics, communication, community, spirituality, connection the Earth
TO JOIN THIS CAMPAIGN:
Express your interest by filling in the form at http://the7gracesofmarketing.com/book-launch/pages/join-the-book-launch-for-7graces.html no later than Monday October 10th, 2011
Visit “The 7 Graces of Marketing” blogsite: http://the7GracesOfMarketing.com
I am also working on several other launches coming in the New Year, including:
- The Destiny Discovery: Find Your Soul’s Path to Success by Michelle L Casto (January 17th, 2012)
- Alpha Chick: 5 Steps for Moving from Pain to Power by Mal Duane (February 7th, 2012).
I will be sending you more information about these, including how you can join us for these uplifting campaigns, in the very near future.
I look forward to working with many of you on these great launches!
And, as always, don’t forget to subscribe to the Spirit Authors blog for regular tips for authors, both established and aspiring.
Lynn Serafinn is a transformation coach, book promotion coach, radio host and bestselling author of the book The Garden of the Soul: lessons from four flowers that unearth the Self, as well as the upcoming book The 7 Graces of Marketing: how to heal humanity and the planet by changing the way we sell. She also works as a campaign manager for mind-body-spirit authors and has produced several #1-selling book campaigns. She is the founder/creator of Spirit Authors, a virtual learning environment and community that offers training, coaching, business-building and inspiration for mind-body-spirit authors, whether established or aspiring. As part of her work with spiritual and self-help authors, she also regularly hosts large-scale online virtual events (usually free of charge) with world-class speakers on a range of mind-body-spirit topics. Subscribe to her Spirit Authors blog at http://spiritauthors.com/category/news/ so you can receive more useful tips and news about upcoming online events. While you are there, do check out the excellent and affordable online courses for authors available.If you are an author seeking 1-to-1 support or campaign managment for your upcoming book launch, you are also invited to request a free consultation by filling in a contact form at http://spiritauthors.com/contact. Please note that full service campaigns require a 6 to 8 month lead-in time, so be sure to contact Lynn well in advance of publishing your book.
How Many Books Will I Sell? Top 10 FAQs from Authors
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As a book promotion expert and book campaign manager, I receive a LOT of requests for consultations from authors who are preparing to publish their books. Some are experienced authors who have published in the past, either self-published or through a royalty publisher. Others are first-time (and usually self-published) authors. During our initial consultation, I tend to hear many of the same questions again and again. As these questions are so key to authors before they decide whether or not to do a full-blown “bestseller launch” for their book, I thought it might be a good idea to pull together my “Top 10 Most Frequently Asked Questions” I am asked by authors on almost a daily basis.
Q1: How many books will I sell during my online book launch?
First of all, let’s define “the launch” as a 24-48 hour period of time in which we will be driving traffic to buy your book. Asking how many books you will sell during that time is really like asking “How long is a piece of string?” It depends upon so many factors that we can only, at best, give a very broad figure. I have had clients who sell as few as 50 books during a launch and others who have sold around 1000. The average self-published author tends to sell between 300 and 500 books during a launch. Those with major publishers might sell twice that amount, not necessarily because the publisher helps with your promotion, but more because people recognise the “brand identity” of the publisher and are more willing to take a chance on the title. And of course, if you are not a first-time author you will probably sell more books if people know your name already. The key to selling more books is to devote a fair amount of time well before your launch to cultivate and grow your audience. That’s why I spend the first two months of work with my clients developing strategies and systems to build their platform and mailing list before anything else.
Q2: How do I become an Amazon bestseller?
If your book sales are amongst the Top 100 in any category on Amazon, you are technically a “bestseller.” You don’t have to be in the Top 100 of all books. There are dozens of categories and sub-categories on Amazon, and if you achieve a sales ranking in the Top 100 in any of these, you can say you are a bestseller. Of course, it is always nice to hit the “Top 20” or the “Top 5” or (best of all) the #1 sales rank in one or more categories.
Q3: How many books do I need to sell to be an Amazon bestseller?
Again, this is not a question I can answer definitively because being an “Amazon bestseller” is a relative title, and it depends upon: 1) how well other books in your categories are selling on your launch day and 2) how competitive your categories are. Some categories like “Religion and Spirituality” or “Business and Investing” are extremely competitive with thousands of titles up against many famous authors for the top position on the list. Other categories, such as “channelling” or “alternative medicine” are less competitive.
Q4: How can I choose the category I will be in on Amazon?
If you were to ask this question of some of the top publishers (I have), the common answer you will receive is this: “You can’t.”However, I have found this not to be 100% true. Let me explain.
First of all, when you submit a book for publication through Lightning Source (for example), you choose 2 “BIC” (Book Industry Communication) categories, which are standard categories that are used by all publishers and distributors. Now the problem lies in how retailers interpret these categories. Think of the last time you went to look for a book in the shops. Sometimes it might be in the “self help” category, while other times it might be in the “spirituality” section, etc.
Amazon “interprets” your BIC categories according to their “virtual” bookshelf. To make things even MORE confusing, Amazon UK, Canada and US might not interpret your book at all in the same way. Even major publishers have told me they have no real control over this. Some authors find their books placed in very strange categories. BUT here’s the big secret I have found: I your book is not ranking in the right category, you CAN get Amazon to change it via Author Central in the US and the UK. Just write to them and ask them to recategorise your book. My book The 7 Graces of Marketing was placed in the “accounting” category at first (NOT!!). When I wrote to Author Central, they very quickly and painlessly put the book into the cateogries I requested: business ethics and marketing/sales.
If you are unsure of what categories to choose, your best bet to get your book in the RIGHT category is to do some market research to find out which categories other titles appear that you feel are the closest in content or message to your own book. Don’t go for a “top level” category like “Business and Finance” or “Health and Wellness””. Go for a sub, or even sub-sub category. Get it as precise as possible. That will not only help you increase your likelihood of reaching the top of the ranks (as it will be less competitvie) bit it will also increase the likelihood of people who are looking for your book will find it, because Amazon’s system will group it together with similar books.
Then, make triple sure you get placed correctly, do two more things: 1) make sure your title, subtitle, back cover copy and description use keywords that help point the folks at Amazon in the right direction AND 2) start putting some TAGS on your book page that help people find your book.
PLEASE NOTE: All of the above is mainly with respect to PRINT books. For Kindle, you can actually SPECIFY two categories via Kindle Direct. These bypass the BIC settings altogether, as Kindle is an Amazon proprietory format.
Q5: Why don’t I see my book listed in a category on my Amazon listing?
You won’t see your book listed in a category unless it is in the Top 100 of that category. Until that time, all you will see is its overall sales rank, which changes every hour. Amazon US and Canada tend change just past the top of the hour, while Amazon UK tends to change at 40 minutes past the hour.
Q6: How can I find out in which categories Amazon will place my book?
It’s not always 100% reliable, but the best way to “guess” which categories you will appear is to scroll all the way down to the bottom of the screen until you see the words, “Look for Similar Items by Category.” There you will see several suggested categories that are likely to be where your book will be placed when ranked. If these categories look range or irrelevant, refer to Q4 above.
Q7: How can I track my rankings?
So far, Amazon does not have any legacy tracking system for rankings, which means you basically have to watch the rankings yourself like a hawk during the launch, as they change every hour. Typically, my clients and I stay up for the full 24 hour period in shifts, in constant communication on Skype, to watch the rankings. The only way I have found so far to “log” your success is to take screen shots. I use the program “Jing Pro” for this. There is a free version, but the Pro version is very reasonable, and has many worthwhile features. You can download it at http://www.techsmith.com/jing/. DO take screenshots of EVERY stage of your rankings. They make great images to add to your promotions when you are sharing the success of your book with readers, media and event managers. To track your rankings for OVERALL book sales, see Q8 below.
Q8: How can I track my actual sales?
Tracking sales is another matter altogether. Of course, the most reliable method is when you receive your royalty report and payment from your publisher or printer. However, these can some to you months after your launch. There are two ways I have discovered that can give you ball-park figure of your sales during a launch. Once is to use your Amazon Associates link on your purchase page, in which case you will see the sales appear within a few days in your Associates account. Another is to use an online tracker such as Novel Rank at http://novelrank.com, which can show sales on a daily and monthly basis. They also show, in numbers and in graph format, your overall sales rankings (not category rankings) over a given period. Bear in mind, to get the best from this service, you need to start tracking your book on their site several weeks in advance of your launch.
Another option is to sign up for Amazon Advantage, although as far as I can tell, you can only sign up for this if you will be directly supplying Amazon with inventory. If a company such as Lightning Source will be printing your books on demand or you will be using a subsidiary publisher, you will need to speak to them about whether or not you can use Amazon Advantage, as they will be fulfilling the sales and sending you the payments and sales reports (of course they will also have some sort of reporting system for your sales as well, which will tell you your overall sales, not just to Amazon).
Kindle sales are updated once a week in Kindle Direct.
Q9: How much money will I make on book sales during my launch?
This depends completely upon:
- How many books you sell
- The retail price of your book
- The cost of printing your book
- What your royalty arrangement is with your publisher (if you have one)
- Whether or not you use your Associates account for sales.
Let’s say you have a 250 page book that sells for $15 and you sell 500 books on your launch day. That is a gross intake of $7500. Amazon pays you according to whatever wholesale “discount” you have agreed to sell your books to them. Let’s say you have agreed to sell your book to them for a 55% discount off the retail price (a fairly common figure, although this can vary). That means they will pay your publisher 45% of gross, which is $3375. If you are the publisher, you will receive that money from Amazon.
From that amount, you need to deduct your printing costs. The cost of printing a 250 page book through a company like Lightning Source is around $4.15 ($0.90 per unit and then $0.013 per page), which means 500 books would cost $2075. Deduct that from what Amazon will pay you, and that leaves a net profit of around $1300.
If you are going 100% self-published, you will make the whole $1300. But if you are receiving a percentage of net from your publisher, you would take the percentage from this amount. Many subsidiary presses take 50% of net, which means you would make $650on 500 books. If you are working with a royalty publisher who pays you a given percentage of retail or net, you will have to calculate it accordingly.
If you use your Amazon Associates link during your launch, you can earn between 4% and 7% of your retail sales as a commission. In other words, if Amazon were to sell 500 books at $15 (although they will tend to sell it at a lower price), you would make an extra $0.60 – $1.05 per unit. You ALSO make a commission if your buyers happen to buy other products at the same time. It all adds up, so it’s worth making sure your links are in place during a launch.
Please note that these figures are accurate as of this edit (July 26th, 2011).
UPDATE DEC 2011: I’ll be writng another article in the New Year about chosing the right royalty structure for your publication and different ways to use eBooks/Kindle to drive traffic to your print book. Be sure to subscribe to this blog to stay on top of new info articles.
Q10: What’s the real benefit of doing an Amazon bestseller launch?
I’ll be honest with you: it costs a heck of a lot more to run a bestseller launch than you will receive in immediate monetary returns. I think you have probably already deduced that doing an Amazon bestseller launch is NOT going to make you lots of money selling books. So it does beg the question why people bother to do them at all, and why people like me are continually booked months in advance to do these launches.
So here are some of the real advantages of doing an Amazon launch:
- It builds your online platform significantly, which ultimately leads to more business for you
- It establishes long-term relationships with dozens of networking partners
- It raises your credibility as a professional, which has an impact upon your income
- It establishes you as a leading expert in your field, making you a sought-after media guest and keynote speaker
- It just plain feels great to say you’re a bestselling (especially a #1 selling) author
Deciding to do a bestseller campaign should not be an impulsive decision, nor should it be entered with rose-coloured glasses. My most successful clients are those who entered our work relationship with this level of understanding. They did not have unrealistic expectations, and they took the “kudos” of their bestseller status to build stronger and more viable businesses that could only have come about as a result of their Amazon bestseller campaign. I think most of these would tell you their decision to do a launch made a positive difference in their business.
I hope this article is useful to any of you who are currently preparing to publish a book in the coming year. Please do leave comments below and feel free to contact me via the contact form at http://spiritauthors.com/contact if you have any questions about this content, or you wish to discuss an upcoming launch.
And, as always, don’t forget to subscribe to the Spirit Authors blog for regular tips for authors, both established and aspiring.
Lynn Serafinn is a transformation coach, book promotion coach, radio host and bestselling author of the book The Garden of the Soul: lessons from four flowers that unearth the Self, as well as the upcoming book The 7 Graces of Marketing: how to heal humanity and the planet by changing the way we sell. She also works as a campaign manager for mind-body-spirit authors and has produced several #1-selling book campaigns. She is the founder/creator of Spirit Authors, a virtual learning environment and community that offers training, coaching, business-building and inspiration for mind-body-spirit authors, whether established or aspiring. As part of her work with spiritual and self-help authors, she also regularly hosts large-scale online virtual events (usually free of charge) with world-class speakers on a range of mind-body-spirit topics. Subscribe to her Spirit Authors blog at http://spiritauthors.com/category/news/ so you can receive more useful tips and news about upcoming online events. While you are there, do check out the excellent and affordable online courses for authors available.
If you are an author seeking 1-to-1 support or campaign managment for your upcoming book launch, you are also invited to request a free consultation by filling in a contact form at http://spiritauthors.com/contact. Please note that full service campaigns require a 6 to 8 month lead-in time, so be sure to contact Lynn well in advance of publishing your book.
What Makes a Good Bonus Gift for an Online Book Launch?
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Photo from 123RF
When authors have a book launch, they very often gather together a group of network partners to support the launch by offering a bonus gift. Offering a bonus gift for someone else’s launch can be a great way to find new targeted subscribers for your mailing list (see more information about why you might wish to join a campaign at the end of this article).
I manage many book launches every year, and every time I do it’s necessary for me to give some guidance to network partners about what makes a good, appropriate and effective bonus gift. If you are going to be offering a bonus gift for a book launch, it is essential you choose the right kind of bonus gift AND present it properly. Otherwise, you are likely to be very disappointed with the results of all your efforts.
I thought I’d share this information with my blog readers because it is not only relevant to bonus gifts for book launches, but pretty much to any kind of special offer you might use for leads generation. These guidelines are based upon years of experience in what works and doesn’t work in YOUR best interest, and hopefully increase the probability of opt ins for you.
What IS a good bonus gift?
- It must be 100% FREE
- It must be DOWNLOADABLE
- It should be something special that is NOT routinely and easily accessible via your website (especially your home page!).
- It must be in a format accessible to most (PDF, MP3, MP4 are all recommended formats).
- Suggested gifts include eBook, special report, audio course, eCourse, templates, video series, etc.
What is NOT a good bonus gift?
- An offer of a discount for something they must buy.
- An offer of free coaching or consulting (see more below).
- An offer of a free place on a live course on a specific date.
- Something you would have to send to people via snail mail.
- Something which would cost YOU money to give (such as a printed book).
- Something in a non-universal format (e.g., an eBook in MS Word doc format would not be acceptable).
- Something anyone could easily find by visting your website.
What is an “opt in page” and why do I need it?
Your opt in page is the place where people will come to REQUEST (not receive) your bonus gift. It should include a sign up form where they are required to enter their name and email (I suggest you do NOT ask for any other information).
How do I get a sign up form?
Any email delivery or autoresponder system such as AWeber, GetResponse, Constant Contact or Mail Chimp will allow you to create a sign up form. If you don’t have any of these services, I recommend you get one. Mail Chimp is free for the first few hundred subscribers.
What should my “opt in page” look like?
It should be VERY basic with no distractions, such as outbound links, adverts, etc. It should ONLY show your bonus gift and the opt in form. It should be on a special stand-alone page that is NOT on the home page of your website.
What happens after people sign up?
The opt in form will have a function where you can tell it where to send people after they sign up. They should be taken DIRECTLY to a download page. THEN, you should also set up an automated follow up message that says something like, “Thanks for downloading my bonus gift (Title of Gift). Just in case you didn’t get the chance to download it, here’s the link to the download page again: (link to the page).
But I’m looking to get clients. Why can’t I offer free coaching (or whatever it is you do)?
Frankly, because you never will be able to fulfill the requests you will receive.What if you receive 100 requests? Are you prepared to give away 100 precious hours of your time? You shouldn’t be. If people are asking for free coaching and have no intention of hiring you, you are simply wasting both their time and yours.
Instead, give people a free downloadable gift (eBook, MP3, etc) that costs you no time to deliver, and then, if you want, put a message at the end of the eBook that you will offer a free consultation to the first 10 requests, or something along those lines.
But I want people to visit my website so they can check out my products and services. Why can’t the opt in page have info about these?
Please remember, on these launches people will be clicking to receive DOZENS of free gifts. They are not interested in checking out anyone’s site while they are doing this. It’s overwhelming enough for them (yes, it’s actually overwhelming for people to have so much choice). If you overwhelm them further with “information overload”, or it looks like you are trying to sell them something, they will CLICK AWAY from your page. Trust me, I have had many a JVP not follow my advice, and not receive but a handful of opt ins during a campaign.
Personally, I typically get hundreds of opt ins on my bonus gifts BECAUSE I make simple, not distracting pages that do not attempt to “sell” people anything. Remember: once people are on your list, you can send follow up messages with information on how to take the content further. You can also put this information IN the product itself (in fact, you should).
~ EXAMPLE ~
If you want to see an example of a bonus page that receives LOTS of downloads every week,
so you can try to model your page after it, have a look at this one:
http://spiritauthors.com/pages/bonus/why-nice-people-hate-marketing-request.html
~ JOIN A CAMPAIGN ~
If you would like to be a partner on a book launch, check out the latest campaign I am running HERE:
http://spiritauthors.com/latest-book-launches
~ NOT SURE WHY YOU WOULD WANT TO BE A PARTNER? ~
Find out 7 reasons why you would want to partner on someone else’s book launch NOW in an article I wrote:
http://spiritauthors.com/news/7-reasons-to-partner-on-someone-elses-book-launch-now/
I hope you have found this information helpful! And do check out my upcoming book launches, and come join us if you like.
Until next time, I send you warm wishes,
Lynn Serafinn
About Lynn Serafinn, Creator of Spirit Authors
Lynn Serafinn is a transformation coach, book promotion coach, radio host and bestselling author of the book The Garden of the Soul: lessons from four flowers that unearth the Self.
Her upcoming book, The 7 Graces of Marketing, is coming in June 2011.
She also works as a campaign manager for mind-body-spirit authors and has produced a long list of top-10 book campaigns, including many #1-sellers. She created Spirit Authors to offer training, coaching, business-building and inspiration for mind-body-spirit authors, whether established or aspiring. Contact Lynn about YOUR book project at at http://spiritauthors.com/contact.
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Throughout the year, Lynn also hosts large-scale telesummits with world-class speakers on a range of mind-body-spirit topics. Your subscription to Creative Spirit will ensure you’ll be the first to know how to attend these free events.
