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May 17, 2012 By Leave a Comment

http://www.freedigitalphotos.comTo conclude this series on building a business around your book, I’d like to write about business plans. Now, I’m not a great one to spout off about business plans, since my business hasn’t had one until recently–and it’s not really quite done yet, if I’m going to be totally honest. (But I’m working on it.) I do, however, know a lot about business plans for books. Yes, I do.

In fact, the best business plan for a book has been around for ages and ages. I help aspiring authors create them all the time. Usually, those aspiring authors are wanting to approach traditional publishers to ask them to invest in their books. So, they need a business plan. Aspiring independent publishers–writers planning to self-publish–in most cases don’t bother to create a business plan for their books. Big mistake. They need one even more than their traditional-hold-out friends, so I work with many to do just that.

When you come up with an ideas for a book–blogged or other wise–rather than sit down and  begin writing, create a business plan. And use the publishing industry standard: a book proposal. Yep. That’s it. A book proposal.

Here’s the deal: Not every blogged book idea (or traditionally written book) deserves to become a book. Some ideas make better articles or essays because you don’t have enough subject matter to produce a full-length blogged book. Others might be appropriate for a book but only your friends and family  might be interested in reading that book because it doesn’t have a market beyond your immediate circle of influence. Or maybe your idea simply isn’t unique—the market is flooded with other books just like it, so it isn’t going to garner a big enough readership. You may not have a large enough author’s platform (or fan base) or be well-known enough expert to attract readers to another book on the same ol’ subject.

That’s why its a worthwhile venture to evaluate your book idea’s success potential–its marketability– prior to writing a word.  If you do this using the sections of a book proposal as your guide, you will accumulate all the information necessary to put together a top-notch business plan for your blogged book. Why? Because you will be looking at your book through the eyes of an acquisitions editor and producing the type of document a publisher requires before moving forward with a new book venture. You need that document as well. That document–the book proposal–serves as a publishers business plan, and it can–and should–serve as yours. So use the publishing industry standard—the book proposal—as your guide to creating a business plan for your book. Take your idea and look at it through the lens of a book proposal, and you’ll know soon enough if your idea has the ability to make it as a print or ebook. Evaluate your idea as any agent or acquisitions editor might if they were to read your book proposal. And you’ll end up with very specific information about who you will market your book to, how you will promote your book and how to position your book in the market so it is unique and relevant to your readers.

If you don’t plan on ever approaching a publisher, your business plan can be less formally written. Just go through what I call the “proposal process” and accumulate the information necessary for a proposal and place it informally in a document.  (To learn more about this process and all the parts of a proposal, read the appropriate blogged chapter on this topic.)If you do want to do approach a traditional publisher, go through the process and then place the information in a document that you have professionally edited. You will later submit this to an agent and publishers after you have sent a query letter.

Book proposals contain a variety of sections. Some of them are:

  • Markets: This section asks you to describe your book’s markets—large groups/numbers of people who might be interested in and purchase your book. These are the people who will find your book relevant for some reason.
  • Competing Titles:  In this section you look at the previously published books and compare your book idea to them.
  • About the Author: In this section you write a bio of yourself and discuss why you are the best person to write this book. This is a chance to compare yourself to the authors of the competing books and ask yourself if you can compete with them. Are you unique? Do you have the credentials necessary?
  • Mission Statement:  Do you have a reason to write this book? Is it your purpose or mission? Will your book serve a purpose, too? Will it add benefit and offer value.
  • List of Chapters: Create a table of contents for the potential book. Does it look like you have the makings for a book? Can you see an actual structure and imagine content for a full book?
  • Chapter Summaries: Describe each chapter’s content.
  • Promotion Plan: This is the real business section (or sales plan). How will you promote your book prior to publication and after? This plan ensures your book will sell over time. It’s how you build a fan base of readers and how you create a continuous flow of buyers (readers) for you book.
  • Author’s Platform: This section describes everything you have done to create a base of potential readers for your book. If you have nothing to place in this section, normally you would wait to write your book. However, by blogging a book you build platform (pre-promote your book)–create a platform. This is about getting known before the book deal or before the release of your self-published book to ensure that it sells.

A book proposal has more sections, and all of them help you create a sound business plan for your book. Going through this process helps you see the Big Picture of your book. If you want to explore more about the book proposal process, check out my workbook, How to Evaluate Your Book for Success. If you want more information on how to write a book proposal, check out the two books below.

 

 

Don’t forget to join me and the guest bloggers who joined me this month at
Expert Platform Building 101 + Entrepreneurial Fundamentals 102
on May 19-20 in San Jose, CA. Get the details here. Please register prior to coming (if possible). I have 2  Speaker’s Special discounted tickets left… Contact me directly at nina(at)ninaamir.com, if you are interested.

Filed Under: Book Proposal, Build a Business Around Your Book, The Proposal Tagged With: , , ,
May 15, 2012 By Leave a Comment

http://www.flickr.com/photos/30189909@N08/2928546233/sizes/m/in/photostream/Once you’ve blogged a book, promoting it becomes essential. Social media is a critical component to any marketing plan, but it’s easy to get bogged down in your social media efforts. You know you need to keep the content fresh, relevant and interactive, but producing quality content day in and day out can be challenging.

Not all social media content needs to be specifically from your book. You should talk about other things that might be related to the overall content or theme. In fact, I recommend following the 80/20 rule of social media, which dictates that 80 percent of your content should be “infotainment,” “edutainment,” tips, tricks, articles, quotes, questions, polls, helpful information, etc. Then 20 percent of the content can be self promotional, where you talk specifically about your book and its content. No one wants to be sold to all the time when they’re engaged in social media. By following the 80/20 rule, you’ll be sure to have compelling content that keeps your audience engaged and still get the message out about your book.

Here are 5 tips to help you keep your social media audience engaged with fresh content.

  1. Be timely. The calendar is your friend. Keep an eye on what’s new, not just in your world but in the world of your audience. Are you writing a book for children? Keep an eye on story times at your local library, share information about an upcoming event at the zoo or let your audience know when Sesame Street on Ice will be in town. Stay attuned to school holidays and time special events for days you know parents will be looking for amusement for their little ones.
  2. Be relevant. Ask yourself what your audience is looking for. Why do they follow you on Twitter? Why do they like you on Facebook? If you’ve written a fitness book, your followers likely have a shared interest in good health. Share a favorite healthy recipe or send out a “move of the day.” Highlight a local park that’s great for hikes, or let your audience know about an upcoming 5k run.
  3. Be interactive. Don’t just post and run – social media is supposed to be a conversation. Read what your friends, colleagues and competitors are writing. Comment on their posts and share interesting information. Bring something to the table!
  4. Keep a list. Inspiration strikes at the strangest times, so be prepared and make a note of ideas whenever – and wherever – you have them. If you overhear something funny on the bus, write it down! If someone gives you a great quote, ask if you can use it. Don’t forget to take pictures at every event you do to promote your book – perfect for Pinterest!
  5. Be Funny. Let’s face it; we all love a good laugh. And if the occasional funny video or silly picture isn’t exactly relevant, we forgive you – as long as it makes us laugh! Spend a few minutes now and then surfing for amusing clips or photos that might brighten someone’s day.

Savvy social media marketers know that while planning ahead is essential, you also have to stay on top of your social media efforts to keep them effective. Be flexible and ready to change course according to what’s going on in your business, your community or in the news, and let social media work for you.

Social media is an important marketing component to building a business around a book. Learn more about best practices for the various social media platforms and how you can truly maximize it for your business at the upcoming Expert Platform Building 101 + Entrepreneurial Fundamentals 102 event on May 19-20 in San Jose, CA. Get the details here.

About the Author

Erika Taylor Montgomery, CEO/Chief Publicist and Founder of Three Girls Media & Marketing Inc. (www.ThreeGirlsMedia.com) enjoyed an 18-year broadcasting career in the San Francisco Bay Area before transitioning to Public Relations. In 2005, Taylor Montgomery launched Three Girls Media & Marketing Inc., a public relations and social media agency that specializes in working with small and emerging businesses and authors.

Taylor Montgomery is also a sought-after public speaker and published author, providing invaluable insider know-how into working with the media, and how business owners can best utilize the press to promote their companies. She is the co-author of the bestselling book, The Spirit of Silicon Valley – Journeys & Transformations Beyond Technology, available on Amazon.com. She is the author of the forthcoming book, PR for the 21st Century – A Step-by-Step Guide for Small Business, Non-Profits & Entrepreneurs.

Join Nina Amir and Erika Taylor Montgomery at
Expert Platform Building 101 + Entrepreneurial Fundamentals 102
on May 19-20 in San Jose, CA. Get the details here.
Filed Under: Publicizing Your Blog Tagged With: , , ,
May 10, 2012 By Leave a Comment

public speaking, giving a speach, business around a bookCongratulations on blogging a book or even considering writing and publishing a book. You gain a lot of credibility as a published author. But now the real hard work begins. Unless you are a celebrity with a large publicity and marketing staff—and a huge following of fans, the burden will be mostly on you to get the word out about your book. Most publishers will announce your book to the world and then move onto other projects. If you self-publish, you don’t even get help with that initial launch

The burden of marketing always settles onto the author. Book signings are a great way to reach out to the public, but people want to actually hear what you have to say. Enter the world of public speaking. Verbal communication is what sets us apart in the animal world, and writing and speaking are the longest arrows in your quiver. I often tell youngsters that regardless of what they major in at college, if they can speak and write competently they will be far ahead in the business world. Most universities offer many writing classes, but when have you heard of “Speaking” being an elective course?

Many people are born communicators. I grew up in an American German-Italian heritage household. With four siblings, if I were not vocal I was left behind. Some of us are hams and thrive in situations where we can speak and perform. Others need some help to become proficient speakers. I’ve even kissed the Blarney Stone; the Irish legend has it that if you visit the Blarney Castle and kiss a certain stone in the structure you will be endowed with the “gift of gab.”

Since your new nonfiction book offers written testimony that you are an expert in your field. Now you need to build the confidence to let others hear similar verbal confirmation. We’ve all heard of the classic “elevator speech,” where in  three minutes you need to tell the essence of your passion, product or service. Can you talk for an hour to relate the thrust of your book?

If you don’t feel comfortable speaking in public, no worries. Speaking in public can be learned.

  • Many corporations offer public speaking classes for their employees.Take advantage of them.
  • If you are a true entrepreneur without access to corporate resources, try the Toastmasters organization. It has made a nice business out of teaching people how to speak in public.
  • The Dale Carnegie Program is another program I recommend.
  • Practice makes perfect.

We all need to remember that public speaking is NOT about you – it’s about the audience. Here are some thing to remember when developing a speech to go with your blogged book:

  • While you may walk on water, but they will soon tire listening to you boast. Keep in mind that it’s not about you.
  • You are the band-aid for their pain. Give them solutions for their problems, answers to their questions.
  • They are trying to find ways your topic can benefit them. Offer added value.
  • Your mission is to do one of three things: inform them, persuade them or entertain them.
  • Establish yourself as the expert and the most qualified person to be speaking – then you relate your ideas in ways that apply to them. For example, climbing Mt Everest is an exciting story. The key is to relate how this experience taught you teamwork, responsibility, goal setting etc. and how the audience can apply the same principles.
  • Ever since Neanderthals huddled around a campfire, humans have loved to hear stories. Nothing has changed. If you can develop stories that create visual images in the minds of the audience, they will remember them way more than just facts.

I hope you can see that public speaking is a big subject, worthy of your study. We haven’t even talked about delivery techniques, eye contact, body movement, PowerPoint, and many other topics for successful speaking. Our current president is a master speaker. He can inform, persuade and entertain all in one forceful talk. You can, too.

Most of my training was received in the Air Force, Company programs, classes from the Mandel Communications Company, and Dale Carnegie. I have written two books on Yosemite National Park and managed to sell 10,000 copies. To support this, I write a daily blog and give close to 50 talks a year. I am a member of the National Speakers Association and get paid for my expertise. I also lecture on cruise ships – free cruises for my wife and me. You can, too. On May 19 at the Expert Platform Building 101 program, I will be providing the tools to begin the speaking facet of your book business – an important platform building and promotional tool for all authors. Speaking is fun and it can be profitable. Click here, if you’d like to find out more and register.

About the Author

Rick Deutsch, San Jose, is a veteran of the Cold War and of Intel and Sun Microsystems. He lives the Carpe Diem Lifestyle – Seize the Day. As an author, speaker and adventurer, he has visited every inhabited continent. He’s become “Mr. Half Dome,” having written the only hiking guide to the signature landmark of Yosemite and has done this extremely strenuous hike 31 times. He speaks at museums, outfitters, companies, civic groups and on cruise ships. He’s also a certified Nordic Walking instructor and introduced this fitness program onboard Crystal Cruise lines.  His extroverted style displays his subject expertise while delivering a highly entertaining presentation. MrHalfDome@gmail.com

 Join Nina Amir and Rick Deutsch at
Expert Platform Building 101 + Entrepreneurial Fundamentals 102
on May 19-20 in San Jose, CA. Get the details here.

Filed Under: Build a Business Around Your Book, Increasing Traffic, Publicizing Your Blog, What to Do When You Complete Your Blogged Book Tagged With: , , ,
May 8, 2012 By 7 Comments

Whether you want to be a part writing, business, blogging, blogging a book, business around a booktime author or to build a writing empire, you need to be able to think like an entrepreneur. Thinking like an entrepreneur and not just a “writer” will help you pull the right levers when you need to give yourself a “cost of living” raise or help you live the lifestyle you most desire. As a writer and business owner, you need to learn to make decisions that allow you to not second guess what you are doing while creating consistent income.

In my research I found that most successful writers also think like entrepreneurs as they approach their businesses. And hands down there are two key perspectives you want to consider when building your business: 1. Your desires 2. The desires of your market. It is the blend of “You” and “Who” that allows the most successful writers stay ahead of the game.  It also allows them to rise when things may be less than favorable and to bounce back when they missed the mark.

As writers and business owners, thinking like an entrepreneur ensures you will be happy and make the kind of money you most desire. So if you are ready to learn to think like an entrepreneur, start by refering to these 5 quick tips as a foundation:

  1. Get inside the head of your ideal reader, or client or customer. Start talking to people, finding out what they want and learn how they think. This information is invaluable for talking to your ideal clients or customers via blogs, articles and books. In addition, it will help you better market these products, ensuring high sales. It is also great information as you create posts, articles or concepts for your next book. Consider yourself a Cultural Anthropologist studying a little known society. Even if you think you know your ideal customers, think again.  They change just like you do, so never sit on your laurels.  Keep on studying and course correct as you go.
  2. Be clear on what’s truly important to you in a business and as an author. Do you want to travel or stay put? Do you want to hire people or go solo? How much money do you want to bring in? The list goes on and on. The point is to get clear about what you want and to stick to your guns! Think of this as the rules for your business that will help you make better business decisions. When you evaluate opportunities, do so with your criteria clear in your mind.  This will also allow you to not get sucked into the “next best marketing technique” or business workshop that you don’t need. Also keep in mind, the success of your business is dependent on you actually liking it and how it is structured.  Be honest with yourself about what you’d like it to be.
  3. Make your business decisions by thinking about the short term and long term consequences. Often I see clients not invest in themselves because they are afraid of parting with money in the short term, when sometimes that investment can yield 10 fold or more in the medium to long term. Any time you need to make a business decision, take a few moments.  Really step back and ask yourself: What will I gain short term? What will I gain medium to long term? What are the tradeoffs both short and long? And most importantly:  Is this aligned with where I want my writing business to go?  Will this help me get there?  By asking yourself these questions you will get a bigger picture of what truly needs to happen. This also helps control the impulsive decision making that often is extremely short sighted.
  4. Surround yourself with people who desire to achieve the same level of success you want. It has been said that you are the average of your 5 closest friends; consider that to be the same with your business. If you are hanging around writers and business owners that aren’t going where you want to go, it’s time to find some that are! This is where events like Expert Platform Building 101 + Entrepreneurial Fundamentals 102 are extremely beneficial.  In addition, workshops like this allow you to learn from other attendees by using the compounding effects of masterminding.
  5. Choose your tasks wisely. Whatever you work on in your business needs to be the 2-5 things that will absolutely move you closer to your financial and time goals. If you are doing things that aren’t producing results that directly impact your financial or time goals, then you are doing the wrong things and, therefore, spinning your wheels. Remember Pareto’s Principle, 20 percent of the effort yields 80 percent of the results.  This is where you need to be honest with yourself and determine what your 20 percent is! Living by this rule will help you get all sorts of time back on your calendar. In fact, this is one of the keys to helping me keep my business hours under 30 a week and allows me to take multiple vacations a year.  It is a leap of faith, but try it for 1 week and see what happens.

Now, here is your challenge.  I encourage you to assess yourself and your writing business against these 5 entrepreneurial tips.  Which of these are you doing consistently? Where can you use a bit more work?  Be honest with yourself about what you are doing to help move your writing business forward.

Bonus Tip: The most successful entrepreneurs often do quick assessments of their business and then determine how to make the appropriate course correction.  Get in to practice by assessing yourself against those 5 tips above. You will be happy you did!

About the Author

Silvia Johnson is the founder of Outside The Cubicle, LLC, and the creator of the Thriving Business Model™. She has over 10 years experience in the areas of personal and business transformation. Having a knack for modeling success and an ability to walk others through the steps to achieve their own goals, she has transformed hundreds of lives and businesses on an international scale. Learn more at: http://OutsideTheCubicle.com

Join Nina Amir and Silvia Johnson at
Expert Platform Building 101 + Entrepreneurial Fundamentals 102
on May 19-20 in San Jose, CA. Get the details here.

 

Filed Under: Build a Business Around Your Book, What to Do When You Complete Your Blogged Book Tagged With: , , ,
May 3, 2012 By 2 Comments

business around a bookEconomists say that when the economy takes a dive, it is common for people to turn to their inner entrepreneur to try to create their own work. The task of finding a job is daunting and, therefore, encourages many entrepreneurs to make work for themselves. If you’ve already blogged your book, or if you plan on writing or blogging a book, you feel the entrepreneurial spirit and the “can do” attitude to begin a business that revolves around that expert platform created by a blog and a book. Therefore, its time to change your life and the economy along with it.

The Benefit of Building a Business Around Your Book

The life purpose of the true entrepreneur is to change the world. In the case of authors, you are doing so one book at a time. But you can make this change about more than a book, and, indeed, you have done just that when you decided to blog a book. At the moment when you created a blog, you also developed an online platform. You became a blogger, and then you became an author. Now take it a step farther: Become an entrepreneur.  As an entrepreneur you provide products and services–books, other information products, coaching, consulting, etc.—that benefit the community. You can also benefit your own life, creating the lifestyle you desire.

Go Inward To Go Forward

People become entrepreneurs for four reasons:

  1. Passion: They want to be their own boss or control their destiny.
  2. Purpose: They want to do what they love.
  3. Prosperity: They want to create a lifestyle they prefer.
  4. Power: They want the individual power to change their community and the world.

No matter whether you write your book and build a business around it or write a book to support your business, to succeed once you enter into business you must put passion and purpose together. Chasing passion often leads to a greater income because the quality of your output is so much higher. If you are passionate about what you do and love your work, you are more likely to work hard and persevere until you achieve success. So choose the books you write and blog carefully based upon your passion and your purpose. Or  choose your area of business based on your passion and purpose and then blog a book to support that business. If you don’t know what to write about, ask yourself:

  • What do I love?
  • What am I passionate about?

The answers to those questions will guide you.

Then, focus your energy on investing in your core strengths. This will help you reap rewards. If you don’t know what your core strengths are, ask yourself:

  • What am I best at?
  • What are my skills?

Focus your energy on these areas. And create a mindset that is positive so your thoughts and actions support your passion and purpose.

I think about what Steve Jobs once said, “Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” When you wrote your book, you followed your heart and intuition. Now you need to take that one more step further and do the same with your your business. Put the same passion that made you want to write (or blog) a book into your writing and publishing business or into the business you build around your book. Or, possibly build a business around your expertise and support it with a blog and a book. As Sir Richard Branson said, “Ideally, since 80 percent of your life is spent working, you should start your business around something that is a passion of yours.“ 

As an entrepreneur, if you build a business based on your passions and core strengths, you will gets more from life—more fulfillment, more excitement, more pleasure, more peace, more self-assurance, more satisfaction, and more happiness. Plus, you will make a difference in the lives of your readers as well as in the economic stability of your community and in the American economy.

About the Author

Roger Palmieri is a Human Behaviorist and Mind-Set Performance Expert who is an internationally acclaimed speaker and trainer since 1978. He has spoken to more than one million people around the world on LifeStyle Entrepreneurship as well as Sales and Management Performance. He shows people strategies and insights to dramatically increase their performance and mine every hidden asset to create explosive profits creating a life-time of value. He can be reached at Roger@ThePalmieriGroup.com or 408-685-8161. Or come learn from him at the Make America Prosperous Conference on May 19-20. Attend Expert Platform Building 101 on May 19th, with Nina Amir, and get the second day, Entrepreneurial Fundamentals 102 FREE on May 20, when Roger Palmieri speaks. For more information, or to register, click here.

Join Nina Amir and Roger Palmieri at
Expert Platform Building 101 + Entrepreneurial Fundamentals 102
on May 19-20 in San Jose, CA. Get the details here.
Filed Under: Build a Business Around Your Book, What to Do When You Complete Your Blogged Book Tagged With: , , ,
May 1, 2012 By Leave a Comment

We live blogged book success, publishing business, writing businessin a period of history when the lines between technology, information access, business expertise and customer expectations have blurred or been obliterated. This unprecedented confluence has enabled individuals to tap into their creative side and become bloggers, writers, authors, and speakers. It’s enabled you to not only write a book but to blog  a book. But to paraphrase a Tale of Two Cities, “It is the best of times and the worst of times.”

I am a serial entrepreneur with 30+ years of comprehensive business experience. I’ve participated in the creation of the personal computer industry, the advertising information industry, the online music industry, and democratization of information in the real estate industry. I’ve seen how the deployment of technology has radically changed these industries– from vendors to suppliers to producers to distribution to consumption.

This type of radical change has come to the publishing industry and, consequently, radically changed your responsibilities as an author. Let me explain.

In the past, the business rules for authors were owned by publishers and agents. Individuals created the content, and these organizations controlled editing, printing, financing, marketing, sales, and distribution. The book business world was essentially a “funnel” wherein aspiring writers submitted their passions to publishers through agents. They controlled thee fundamental elements in the process: access to production (printers); access to distribution (book stores); and access to customers (marketing, advertising).

Today the business rules are different. To have a financially successful, long-term career as an author it is no longer “enough” to have a great book. Successful authors needs to think of themselves as entrepreneurs and of their books is their products. You don’t have to master all the elements, but you need to know how to navigate the waters of this unfamiliar sea.

To help you do so, let me identify the 8 categories of entrepreneurship with which you should become familiar. Doing so ensures that you will have a financially successful blogging, writing and publishing career:

  1. Development – The tools of the trade. What tools should you use to effectively use your time?
  2. Human Resources – The best ways to select the people with whom you will surround yourself. Without others, you can’t succeed.
  3. Finance – The business models have changed (and are continuing to change). You need to stay abreast of these to maximize long term residual income.
  4. Operations –  As the demands of your time grow, you need a plan to keep yourself on track to accomplish your goals.
  5. Production - The tools to research, author and publish your passion. For example, blogging a book.
  6. Marketing – You now have the responsibility of understanding the ways of getting people to know about you and your book.
  7. Sales – You now have the responsibility of deploying the tools necessary to sell your product in “non-traditional” ways: social media and website sales.
  8. Support – The mechanisms for staying in touch with your readers and keeping them interested in books or other services you might want to produce.

But here are the two BIGGEST tips I can provide to help you to be a successful author-entrepreneur. These are the foundation upon which you can build the “ship of your dreams” – a sustainable business with residual income:

  • Define and own your “why” – Your “why” is the organization of your values, your vision and your mission. Together, they are the rudder that will guide you on your voyage to success.
  • Create a mindset of success – As the boat of your writing and publishing business sails, the waves of fear, uncertainty and doubt will throw you. To navigate these swells properly, you’ll need to identify and repeat your personal affirmations of success.

Using these tools, put yourself “out there” and sail the sea to your success.

About the Author

Jim Herrera is a serial entrepreneur with 30+ years of business experience working in world-class organizations like Apple, Creative Labs and Arbitron. He has also started six entrepreneurial ventures in various industries including: computer technology, entertainment, advertising information, and real estate. Jim works with entrepreneurs to define their vision, purpose and goals and provides ongoing strategic decision-making and marketing mentoring.

Jim is also executive producer of a series of educational symposiums called “Make America Prosperous: Empowering Entrepreneurs to Rebuild Our Economy” (MAP). MAP is a practical, hands-on education service that employs entrepreneurial expertise to growth-oriented entrepreneurs. The next 2-day education symposium is on May 19th and 20th. Day 1 is Entitled “Experts Platform Building for Entrepreneurs” and will teach you how to  easily write your book, become a well-known expert in your field and build your expert platform online and off. Day 2 is entitled “Entrepreneurial Fundamentals” and will guide you through the steps necessary to build an on-going, successful business around your book. For more information about the MAP conference visit MakeAmericaProsperous.com or to register, click here.

For more information about entrepreneurship and building your powerful “Why” visit PerceptiveInsights.com.

Filed Under: Build a Business Around Your Book, Selling Books and Information Products, What to Do When You Complete Your Blogged Book
April 26, 2012 By 2 Comments

blog, author, expert author, expert industry, business of booksAll my posts during April, National Book Blogging Month (NaBoBloMO), have helped you blog a book fast—in just 30 days. Blogging a short book fast provides you with something you may not have had before if you take the manuscript you created with your blog posts and actually get it edited and then publish it as a printed book, ebook or both—author status. Not only that, if you blogged a book on a topic related to your area of expertise, you have now catapulted yourself into the expert industry arena. This is the place where experts in their fields make a lot of money by having an online presence, speeches, consulting or coaching services, and information products. They build businesses around their ability to take their expertise and communicate about it from the podium, the page and beyond. To accomplish this, however, you need some business acumen.

I often write and speak about wearing more than just a writer’s hat; I say you need a businessperson’s hat as well. If you want to create a successful book—one that sells, you have to know something about promotion, sales and marketing. If you want to become an independent publisher and self-publish your book, you have to know how to run a publishing company. If you want to land a traditional publishing deal, you have to be the kind of businessperson in which a publishing company wants to invest their money. If you want to become a professional blogger, you need to know how to make money with and run a blogging business. If you want to develop a new entrepreneurial venture around your blog and your book, you must know what it means to be a successful entrepreneur, how to get that venture off the ground and possibly how to get yourself out of your current job and into your new business.

In other words, you need more than an idea for a book and the ability to get it written—or blogged—and published. You need to become an entrepreneur and a savvy business person. Next month, this blog will host five experts who can help you go from author to expert author, thus making it possibly for you to enter the expert industry, and who will give you some of the foundational information you need to succeed in this business. They will help you form a business around your blogged book.

After all, don’t you want your book to be successful? And don’t you want to make some money as an author? Of course, you do. So do I.

Most of us begin writing and blogging because we are passionate about our topics or we feel we have a purpose to fulfill—or both. And that can be enough to sustain us, but it’s even nicer if we can earn a living in the process and maybe even create a lifestyle around our business.

Hmmm. A business and a lifestyle built upon our passion and our purpose. Sounds pretty nice.

So, how do you get started? Here’s what you need to know (and what my expert guest bloggers will be telling you about over the next five weeks):

  1. How to connect your personal values to essential business processes—vision, mission, strategy, marketing, and operations so you achieve entrepreneurial successful.
  1. How to use your mindset and passion to build a business that fulfills your needs, desires and dreams as well as those of your clients and customers.
  1. How to do quick assessments of your business goals and then determine how to take the appropriate course of action to get your business moving forward.
  1. How to add “expert speaker” to your “expert author” status, thus accelerating your ability to bring in readers, customers, and clients.
  1. How to raise your company’s brand awareness and name recognition online and off.

To get you started thinking in the direction of building a business around your book, I’m going to ask you to think about the following:

  • If you were going to blog two or three more books, what would you write about? (Write a 50-word or less pitch for each of those books.)

Publishers like to invest in writers who are not just one-book authors. That’s why book proposals, the business plan used in the book publishing industry, includes a spin-off section. So, you want to consider what other books you can write to build your business.

Also, answer these questions:

  • What do you feel you are an expert in (and this doesn’t necessarily have to be something you learned in school)?
  • What are you most passionate about?
  • What’s your mission or purpose in life?

The answers to these questions are definitely important as you begin to consider how to focus and direct your entrepreneurial venture, whatever that might look like or encompass. It begins with a blogged book, but it could take you almost anywhere.

If you are serious about building a business around your book, join me at Expert Platform Building 101 on May 19 in San Jose, CA. During this all-day intensive, you’ll learn the three “must haves” for your platform: competent speaking, a powerful published “calling card” and a robust online presence. That means a speech, a book and a blog. (I’ll be teaching the section on writing and publishing books.) But…but…there’s more. If you register, for Expert Platform Building 101, you get a second day free: Entrepreneurial Fundamentals 102.  During this all-day intensive, you’ll learn how to become your own CEO and successfully build your entrepreneurial venture. By attending both days, you’ll learn how to create a business as a recognized expert in your niche—a business around your blogged book. Click here, if you’d like to find out more and register.

Remember, if you blogged a short book fast this month of 7,500 words, send me the manuscript, the table of contents, a 50-word pitch, and an overview of the book (synopsis). It must arrive by 12 p.m. 4/30/12 Pacific Time.  Email it to me at nina (at) ninaamir (dot) com. One lucky person will win a signed copy of How to Blog a Book, the book.

Filed Under: Blogging Short Books, Build a Business Around Your Book, National Book Blogging Month, Professional Blogging, Selling Books and Information Products, What to Do When You Complete Your Blogged Book Tagged With: , , , ,
April 24, 2012 By Leave a Comment

A lot of blog-to-book deals have fallen into the hands of bloggers who haven’t necessarily written great content. Let me qualify that statement: They asked others to contribute to their blogs, and sometimes that content wasn’t even in the form of blog posts. It might have been videos or photos or little snippets of copy rather than superb stories or information.

Some great examples of this include Postcards from Yo Mamma and The Fail Blog. Check them out. Both landed book deals. Why? They were, and are, hugely popular. They are entertaining. Yet, the blog “authors” actually just compile the submissions. And you can do the same—but I wouldn’t necessarily call it blogging a book. You are compiling a blogged anthology.

You can take a cutesy or silly approach to some topic and then ask for submission. These could be videos or photos or short phrases.  Or you can take a more serious approach and ask for guest posts on a particular topic. For instance, each year on my blog Write Nonfiction in November, the sister blog to Write Nonfiction NOW!, as ask 25+ expert bloggers to write about how to write, publish and promote nonfiction of all sorts. You could do something similar and then ask the guest bloggers’ permission to include their posts in a published anthology prior to publishing the pieces on your blog. Once you have their permission, publish them on your blog, and then later publish them all in a book.

I would suggest taking the same approach I recommend with other blogged books and provide an incentive to blog readers to purchase this previously published material. Add a few extra posts of your own to the mix that do not appear online. In other words, edit and revise and add an introduction and a conclusion, possibly even a few extra chapters.

Here’s a great way to organize this whole project: Run what author and marketing expert John Kremer calls a Blog Palooza. This is a bit like a blog tour, except you invite the bloggers to come to your blog instead of you going to theirs. If you have bloggers of some renown participating, your blog definitely will see an increase in traffic. Fans of these experts will follow them to your blog to read what they have written, and you will get traffic from these posts for a long time to afterward. In addition, if you ask these expert guest bloggers to promote their posts to their lists, the traffic you gain from their participation in your Blog Palooza will be even greater. That said, if you end up with lesser-known guest bloggers, if they promote the event to their fans and followers, you should see a rise in traffic even from their smaller fan base. (To find out how to run an effective Blog Palooza or blog tour, check out John Kremer’s Blog Palooza course.)

After gaining some extra blog readers, get that book produced, maybe even as an inexpensive ebook, and market it to all your fans—new and old. They’ll be happy to be able to have the advice from all those experts in a form that isn’t stuck online. And you’ll have a book you didn’t even have to write.

Anthologies are harder to sell to publishing companies, however. But this is a great way to create a self-published book in 30 days (or less), in particular a free book to promote your business or service.

Another Two Days to Grab Your Free Coaching Sessions!

I am offering a 15 minute FREE blog-to-book coaching session for all those who preorder before April How to Blog a Book. (Books have still not started shipping from Amazon, which means you can still preorder today, April 24. They are shipping from the Writer’s Digest Shop.) Just email a copy of your Amazon receipt to namir(at)copywrightcommunications.com to schedule.

For those who purchase a copy ON May 25 , which is when I am now assuming books will ship, send me a receipt (at namir(at)copywrightcommunications.com). On that day I am giving away 2 FREE blog-to-book coaching sessions!

Filed Under: Building a Better Blog
April 23, 2012 By Leave a Comment

I can’t believe it! Copies of How to Blog a Book, the book, are starting to ship! Well, not everywhere as planned, but in some places.

I’ve been checking Amazon.com ever hour since Saturday morning…nothing. No status change. However, How to Blog a Book is now shipping from the Writer’s Digest Shop! (Their system is down today, but you can locate it here: http://www.writersdigestshop.com.)  That means books are arriving in the online stores, and my publisher assures me the other stores have received shipments as well. It’s just a matter of how fast they process them.

So, that’s why I’m publishing an extra post this week. (I normally only post on Tuesday and Thursday.) I want to remind you of the great presale and release day offers and events.

It seems you still have today to get in on the presale offers: How to Blog a book, Write, Publish and Promote Your Work One Post at a Time, has more than double the content found here on the blog and two forewords, one by Chris Garrett, coauthor of ProBlogger, and another by Christina Katz, author of Get Known Before the Book Deal. Thus, it will be well worth the purchase even for loyal blog readers.

FREE Coaching Sessions:

I am offering a 15 minute FREE blog-to-book coaching session for all those who preorder before April 24. (Notice the change in date to reflect the fact that the book did not release today anywhere other than at the Writer’s Digest Store.) Just email a copy of your Amazon or B & N receipt to namir(at)copywrightcommunications.com to schedule.

For those who purchase a copy ON May 24 and send me a receipt (at namir(at)copywrightcommunications.com), I am giving away 2 FREE blog-to-book coaching sessions!

FREE Teleseminar:

Participate in my book release by registering for my free teleseminar on April 23 (tonight) at 5 p.m. PT!  Register here: http://bit.ly/BookLaunchTeleseminar

During this teleseminar you’ll learn why you should be blogging your book, how you can do it easily and quickly, and how to get started today.

Win a FREE 30-minute blogging or blog-a-book coaching session. One session will be given away during the teleseminar!

Also, 2 FREE SIGNED COPIES of How to Blog a Book will be given away during the telesminar.

And don’t forget about the April Challenge–National Book Blogging Month (NaBoBloMo):

In April the blog is focused on blogging a short book in 30 days. Here’s my challenge: Write a post a day and get at least a 7,500-word manuscript completed in a month. That’s a 250-word post per day (or a longer post 5 days per week). You can win a FREE, signed copy of How to Blog a Book, the book.

Here are the rules: Send in your 7,500-word manuscript with a table of contents, a 50-word pitch, and an overview of the book (synopsis). It must arrive by 12 p.m. 4/30/12 Pacific Time.  Email it to me at nina (at) ninaamir (dot) com.

Get in the fun! Buy a book. Get a coaching session. Join the call tonight. Blog a book…

Filed Under: News About How to Blog a Book Tagged With: , , , ,
April 19, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Collections of short stories and essays make great fodder for blogged books. Why? Because they are…well…short. Seems obvious. A short story does not run the length of a novel. And an essay tends to be shorter than a full nonfiction book.

Let’s start with fiction. I don’t write a lot about blogging fiction because it’s not my forte. My area of expertise lies in nonfiction, and, truth be told, less people are blogging fiction than nonfiction. However, there’s lots of room to blog fiction.

When you blog full length fiction, you have to worry about where to break your chapters into posts. This can prove difficult if you write long scenes, since breaking your chapters at the end of scenes makes most sense. (You can break them in other places, too.) When you blog short works, as in during National Book Blogging Month (NaBoBloMo), you might want to think about blogging short stories. If you write very short stories, these will easy to publish one at a time. Now there’s a real challenge: blog 30 short stories in 30 days. You could also post one story over a three- or four-day period, and this way blog several in a month. In both these cases, you’d end up with a collection of short stories. An easier challenge lies in blogging one short story over the course of 30 days.

On the nonfiction side, you could pick a topic and write 30 short essays related to that topic. This would make a nice collection—kind of like the Chicken Soup for the Soul series, only blogged from your own perspective and based upon your own experience. That said, you could also invite guest bloggers to your submit essays that you feature on your blog over a 30-day period. These would all be written on a certain topic. You could then publish these in an anthology. John Kremer, author of 1001 Ways to Market Your Books, would call this a Blog Palooza. It’s a great way to drive traffic to your blog while you blog your book.

You might also try some interactive elements along with your fiction. Maybe add in some video or cartoons. If you are tech-minded or know someone who is, you might be able to start on the elements of an interactive novel or book right on your blog.

Participate in my How to Blog a Book: Write, Publish, and Promote Your Work One Post at a Timebook launch by registering for my free LAUNCH DAY teleseminar on April 23 at 5 p.m. PT! Register here: http://bit.ly/BookLaunchTeleseminar Win a FREE 30-minute blogging or blog-a-book coaching session or a  FREE SIGNED COPY of  How to Blog a Book.
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You can win a free, signed copy of How to Blog a Book: Write, Publish, and Promote Your Work One Post at a Time by participating in NaBoBloMo. Here’s how. Write a post a day and get at least a 7,500-word manuscript completed in a month. That’s a 250-word post per day (or a longer post 5 days per week). Here are the rules/requirements: Send in your 7,500-word manuscript with a table of contents, a 50-word pitch, and an overview of the book (synopsis). It must arrive by 12 p.m. 4/30/12 Pacific Time.  Email it to me at nina (at) ninaamir (dot) com.

 

Filed Under: Blogging Short Books Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,
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