Resources

2 July, 2008

Glossary and Definitions of Publishing Terms

By |2023-06-09T11:40:24-07:00July 2, 2008|Publishing, Resources|Comments Off on Glossary and Definitions of Publishing Terms

If you are not familiar with some of the common publishing terms, check out this glossary of publishing-related words and phrases.

Acid-free paper: Alkaline paper, free from chemicals that destroy paper. It lasts longer, but costs more and is generally used for library books.

Advance copies: First books sent to those who ordered, requested or were promised a book, generally before the book goes into distribution.

Alignment: The position of text lines on a page. Left alignment means that the left margin of each line down the page is even, and that the right margin is ragged or uneven; right alignment means that the right margin is even down the page, and the left margin is ragged or uneven. Alignment can also refer to margins being justified, which refers to both left and right margins being even down the page, causing extra spacing between words when necessary. Center alignment means that the lines […]

23 June, 2008

Dialogue Dilemma

By |2023-06-09T11:40:28-07:00June 23, 2008|Resources, Writing|Comments Off on Dialogue Dilemma

As a Wheatmark book editor, I’ve noticed that one of the most common hindrances to good writing happens in dialogue. In many cases, dialogue comes across sounding unnatural, stilted, and sometimes even downright corny (jeepers, Mr. Wilson). The dialogue dilemma seems to challenge even the best writers I come into contact with. So I thought I’d add my two cents worth into the pot on how to improve dialogue.

As a former reporter, I used to rely on dialogue (or quotes, as we newspaper people like to call it) to help break up a story and bring more personality into the news. I usually tried to put a good, catchy quote right after the lead paragraph as a “hook after the hook.” If the quote was good enough, I sometimes even led with it. Of course, there’s a huge difference between newspapers and books, but some of the same principles still […]

21 April, 2008

Nonexclusive Publishing Contract: What It Means to You

By |2023-06-09T11:40:37-07:00April 21, 2008|Publishing, Resources|Comments Off on Nonexclusive Publishing Contract: What It Means to You

Wheatmark’s publishing agreement is nonexclusive. What does it mean to you, the author?

In short it means you are not locked into an exclusive contract; you are free to cancel or publish elsewhere at the same time.

Let’s say you have been publishing your book with Wheatmark for a while, and you have an opportunity to get thousands of copies of your book printed cheaply by a different printer, say, a printer in Hong Kong or even one in the United States. You still want to keep selling your book on Amazon and Barnes & Noble using Wheatmark’s book distribution system, but you just don’t want to pass up the opportunity to get thousands of copies for a better price. The good news is that you can do both: publish your book with Wheatmark and have extra copies printed by different printers. Because our publishing contract is nonexclusive, you have the freedom […]

28 February, 2008

BusinessWeek Wants You to Get Published

By |2023-06-09T11:41:06-07:00February 28, 2008|Publishing, Resources|Comments Off on BusinessWeek Wants You to Get Published

This just in: publishing a book is a smart move for your business. Yesterday, BusinessWeek ran a nice article about how to get a book published to help you grow your business.

To summarize:

1. You could try getting an agent and selling the book to a publisher of business titles.

2. You could publish the book yourself by getting an ISBN and marketing it online.

3. You could use a “transitional” publisher. (This, apparently, is a new way of referring to a “self-publishing service.”)

It all sounds so simple!

All sarcasm aside, however, the article is a good introduction to the broad strokes of how book publishing works.

To read the full article, click here.

14 February, 2008

A New Era in Book Publishing

By |2023-06-09T11:41:14-07:00February 14, 2008|Publishing, Resources|Comments Off on A New Era in Book Publishing

As president of the Arizona Book Publishing Association for the last two and a half years, and as head of the self-publishing firm Wheatmark, www.wheatmark.com, for the last eight years, I’ve talked to hundreds of publishers and authors, and read countless articles and studies on the publishing industry. This experience has made it clear to me that a significant transition is taking place in the book publishing industry. The era of the major publisher and the bestseller is ending, and the era of the independent publisher and the micro market is beginning.

Major publishers’ titles account for an ever decreasing portion of overall book sales in the United States, while independent publishers’ titles and self-published titles account for an ever increasing portion. Similarly, bestsellers constitute an ever smaller portion of the total publishing pie, while books selling in the few thousands or hundreds account for an ever larger portion.

This shift […]

16 November, 2007

How to Spot a Phony Book Reviewer

By |2023-06-09T11:41:21-07:00November 16, 2007|Marketing, Resources|Comments Off on How to Spot a Phony Book Reviewer

Guest article by James A. Cox

I’ve been a book reviewer and a keenly interested observer of the publishing industry since the fall of 1976. My more than 20 years of experience as a reviewer, an editor of a monthly book review newsletter, a producer of radio and television weekly book review programs, and editor-in-chief of the Midwest Book Review (supervising the work of 37 volunteer book reviewers across the United States and Canada) has taught me a great deal about reviewing books, editing the reviews of others, and recognizing the needs and problems of the independent small press publisher with respect to being reviewed.

The main reason for a publisher to seek reviews is to collect quotes that can be used in publicity and promotional materials, which could result in increased sales for the book. The principal hazards facing the publisher with respect to reviews are being panned by an honest […]

26 October, 2007

8 Ways to Build Your Author Platform

By |2023-06-09T11:41:25-07:00October 26, 2007|Marketing, Resources|Comments Off on 8 Ways to Build Your Author Platform

Guest article by Patricia Fry

If you’ve been poking around at writing and publishing sites, attending writers’ conferences and reading about authorship, you’ve heard/read the term platform. You may even know what it means. It’s your way of attracting readers for your book. It’s your following, your level of notoriety and the power of your personal and professional contacts. The extent of your platform can be the defining factor in landing a publisher for your memoir, novel or self-help book. But the scope of your platform will also determine your book’s ultimate success.

You hear experts say, “The best time to start establishing your platform is before your book is ready to make the rounds of agents and/or publishers.” I maintain that hopeful authors should start building a platform before they write the book. Here’s how:

1. Build promotion into your book before it is a book. For fiction, choose your setting carefully. […]

2 October, 2007

How to Promote a Book Signing

By |2023-06-09T11:41:32-07:00October 2, 2007|Marketing, Resources|Comments Off on How to Promote a Book Signing

Guest article by Tami DePalma and Kim Dushinski

Work with the bookstore. Your book signing coordinator, often called a community resource coordinator, has probably conducted many more book signings than you have. They usually have a good idea of what works and what flops in organizing an event. Rely on their expertise to get more people to your event and to buy books when they get there.

Tell the book signing coordinator what marketing efforts you are putting forth to attract people into their bookstore. Ask them what advertising and publicity they will do to get people to the event. Make sure that between the two of you, you’ve found ways to reach your targeted audience repeatedly. Ask to see the materials they distribute, and check for accuracy.

When sending releases to the media, remember, the media likes free events, especially when the event directly applies to their audiences. They don’t like what […]

17 September, 2007

Wheatmark Publishing Glossary

By |2023-06-09T11:41:35-07:00September 17, 2007|Publishing, Resources|Comments Off on Wheatmark Publishing Glossary

The following terms will prove helpful to you before and while publishing with Wheatmark. These terms are specific to the way Wheatmark operates and may not apply to other publishers.

Adobe PDF: The file format read by the Adobe Acrobat Reader. PDF is the file format for presenting documents independent of the original software they were created in. Wheatmark uses the PDF file format to show authors the exact page layout of their book as it will be printed. You must have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed on your computer to open and print a PDF file.

Author copies: The initial set of free books an author receives upon the book’s publication.

Back matter: Printed material found in the back of the book after the main section of the book. This includes the appendix, the bibliography, the index, and other related matter.

Baker & Taylor: One of the largest wholesalers of books […]

31 August, 2007

How the Book Review System Works

By |2023-06-09T11:41:40-07:00August 31, 2007|Marketing, Resources|Comments Off on How the Book Review System Works

Guest article by James A. Cox

A good review placed in the hands of the reading public by a competent reviewer is the most effective and least expensive publicity/promotion instrument available to the independent publisher. But the chances of getting your book reviewed can be drastically reduced if you do not understand what you are up against and do not take steps to improve your odds.

The Midwest Book Review receives approximately 50 books a day, Monday through Saturday. That works out to around 1,500 titles a month. I encourage PMA members to identify themselves as such when they submit their titles for review because Midwest Book Review has a policy of bumping small presses and PMA members to the top of the review list – a significant step when the line is 1,500 titles long!

Other book review publications or programs (with the possible exception of The Independent Publisher) do not have […]

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