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 The Dreaded Book Description You breathe a sigh of relief when you type the last page of your novel. But that lovely feeling is soon quelled by the fact that you now must write a synopsis. And if that isn’t challenging enough, if you’re an indie author, you also have to write a brief description; a sales pitch that will entice a potential reader to buy your book. Here are a few tips I’ve learned that will help you write a great book description: 1) Go to a bookstore or library and read the back cover blurbs on books like yours. Make notes on the ones you like and why you think they’re good. Pay particular attention to the emotional power words used (you can Google “emotional power words” to get a list). 2) Keep it short and to the point – not more than 150 words. Don’t include every detail of the story. You’re trying to hook the reader and compel them into wanting to know more. 3) Write it in third person and in present tense, as though you were telling someone in person what your book is about. Remember you’re going to use this blurb repeatedly, not only on the back cover but on your website, on Amazon and all the social media sites. It will be your main marketing tool, so make it good which means, edit, edit, edit. Run it by friends and fellow writers and ask them if it would make them want to buy your book. The time you spend crafting the best possible description will be well worth it in sales.
Some of the results of the survey are surprising and some are silly, but all are interesting. You can view the slide show Smashwords founder, Mark Coker, presented at the recent RT Booklovers convention here. You can also download a free copy of his ebook, “The Secrets to Ebook Publishing Success,” from his post.
Where are you from? Even though I was born in Grosse Pointe, Michigan, I spent several years growing up in Sciacca, Sicily. Now I live in Richmond, Virginia with my husband and four daughters. Tell us your latest news? My oldest daughter, Amanda, will be getting married this spring to a wonderful young man she’s been dating for the past seven years. Joy of joys, she will wear my wedding gown, a pure silk dress designed by Pricilla of Boston. She looks so much like an angel it brings me to tears. How did you come up with the title? Three white swans are a permanent fixture at the Deverow Manor. Therefore, I originally called it Three White Swans. When I decided to turn it into a short story series instead of a full-length novel I knew I wanted the series to be known as White Swans. An author friend, Jennifer Donohoe, suggested the title for this particular short. She also designed the book cover for me. How much of the book is realistic? Since the book is a fantasy, the only things I tried to keep real are all the Regency Era elements in the world I created. Everything else is pretty fantastical. Are there any new authors that have grasped your interest? A.D. Trosper grabbed my attention with her novel Embers at Galdrilene. I’m impatiently waiting for the second book in the series to come out. I’ve enjoyed a few books by Rachelle Ayala, especially Broken Build. I’ve also had the pleasure of reading The Infinite Within by Michael Drakich. And yes, they are all Indie Authors and excellent writers. What are your current projects? My pet project is the White Swan series. To keep teens interested I’ll be publishing a short story every month. I’m also working on an adult, urban, fantasy novel I hope to publish in the summer. Name one entity that you feel supported you outside of family members. A friend who has helped me a great deal whenever I’ve had to write war scenes or interrogation scenes. He has always been there even when I needed someone to read an excerpt, or to brainstorm ideas. If you had to do it all over again, would you change anything in your latest book? My latest novel, Trapped in a Nightmare, is going through a facelift. I’ve changed it from first person to third person and inserted into the book the point of view of the villain to create greater depth in the story. That’s the major reason the novel hasn’t been published. Can you share a little of your current work with us? I’ve completed book two for the White Swans series where I introduce a new character who will be a great contrast to Kendíka. The reader will also discover reasons why the mysterious, hazy eyes bring people into this Regency world they created. What is the wisest thing anyone has said to you? The wisest words came from Mother Teresa during a private audience I had with the holy nun at the age of about seventeen. She told me that to discover what path I was meant to take in life I had to experience life. If you know nothing about life, you cannot make wise decisions. Knowledge is power. Well said! What’s the next stop on your blog tour? I’ll be on Chantel Rhodeau’s blog. I hope your readers will stop by.
Also, in looking at the list of the top twenty-five Ebooks it was interesting to see the variety of prices. Everything from .99 to $14.99. Take a look at what’s selling here.
What makes your magazine different from others on the market? When people think of book magazines they typically think of the New York Review of Books, the Millions, Plough Shares, or one of the many other great literary magazines. We really enjoy dipping into these magazines here and there, but feel that Bookkaholic is going to cover some new ground while also taking in the old ground as well. We’ve created new columns to help authors spread the word about their books. Creating book trailers and what we are reading columns will really let authors work spread quickly and easily. Beyond this we have gone into some fun main stream things to keep bringing readers back. We’ve created book quotes, book blurbs, and What’s your mission at Bookkaholic Magazine? Our mission is to create new content that challenge the traditional view of books, reading, and book news while spreading information about new books. It isn’t going to be easy, but we’ve got together an amazing group of 10 writers to get us there! Where do you get article ideas? We get lots of ideas for our articles from our readers. In fact, we’ve created an article series for helping to solve our readers book related problems. We call it: Help Me, Bookkaholic! This is where readers can send us a book problem and we attempt to solve it with humour and a book prescription. How should writers contact you? Currently, we aren’t looking for regular writers, but we always welcome guest articles and guest book debates. We’d like to know a little bit more about the person and their debate topic before we decide yes or no though. If someone is interested we’ve love an email to main (at) Bookkaholic (dot) com with the subject as ‘Guest Post Pitch’. What are you most excited about? I think I am honestly most excited about our launch date of March 11th. Book magazines are something that seems to be fading away instead of growing, but more and more are appearing as time moves forward. Book stores are closing and people are throwing away their paperbacks, but books are still being read and people need a place to find these books. We hope to help them with that. Is Bookkaholic Magazine country specific? The magazine is really writer focused. I mean wherever our writers are from is where the magazine is focused. Thus far the magazine is really American, Canadian, and UK focused, but as time moves forward the focus can completely change. It is interesting to get the perspectives from so many different cultures on books. What is the relationship between Bookkus Publishing and Bookkaholic Magazine? Bookkaholic was created as a way for Bookkus Publishing to reach out to readers and help them find Bookkus’ books. That is what the original purpose was, but now I think that Bookkaholic is a little uncontrollable and is going to move where it wants when it wants no matter what Bookkus wants it to do. It is really going to be a fun and interesting ride. Best of luck in your new venture, William.
I’m offering Husbands May Come and Go but Friends are Forever (optioned for the big screen) for a whopping 50% off! Now, go enroll your book.
1) Start tweeting before your book is published. Talk about your writing process. Things like, “Cranked out two exciting pages today,” or “Got a fabulous idea for my book cover. Will ask your opinion soon.” You may also periodically quote some catchy dialogue from one of your characters. Use humor, be creative, anything that will help engage your followers early. 2) Share your publishing process. When you’re ready, whether you are querying agents, sending out book proposals or researching self-publishing options, talk about it. Tweets such as “Received request for first 25 pages from publisher. So thrilling!” or “Got another rejection letter 3) Once you are published share your excitement. The key word here is excitement. Tweets may be, “Held the proof copy of my book in my hand. Yippee!” or “Received my first 5-star review on Amazon.” Remember, enthusiasm is contagious. If you’re excited about your book, potential readers will be also. Even after your book has been out for a while, keep tweeting about it. Tweet each time you get a new review or when you’re asked to speak somewhere. You’re more apt to keep the followers you have and attract new ones by staying connected throughout your entire journey. And followers can turn into fans who buy your book.
Today I’m honored to present Susan Pace-Koch, the author of five innovative and beautifully illustrated children’s books. 1. Where are you from? Originally from Sitka, Alaska, raised in Washington state, currently reside in the San Francisco Bay Area. 2. Tell us your latest news? a.) Get Out Of My Head, I Should Go To Bed, illustrated by Jeremy Kwan, is included in the 24th Annual Children’s Book Illustrators Exhibit. This was the first book from Get Out Books, written by Susan Pace-Koch. b.) Two of our books are now included in the Arne Nixon Center for the Study of Children’s Literature. 3. What inspired you to write your first book? Waking up at the Grand Canyon, from a trip, when my son graduated from college and thinking…on to the next adventure! 4. Do you have a specific writing style? Rhyme is sublime! 5. How did you come up with the title? Titles for our books usually pop into my head at 5am. I wake up with the title, then start the work. 6. What books have most influenced your life most? Where‘s the Dragon by the Jason and Richard Hook.
7. What are your current projects? A Pie for a Pig is at the printers with deeelicious art by Jack Wiens. Twelve different Pigs with Personalities and twelve delicious pies, based on the season and the month. This ends with a Piglicious Mud Pie Recipe. Our new ‘work in progress’ is Papa Bear Works Wonders – a tribute to all the fathers, uncles, coaches, group leaders who have mentored children. 8. Who designed the covers? I design the covers in collaboration with the artists we work with and Menagerie Design. 9. Do you have any advice for other writers? Decide on your goal. Chop it up into bite-size pieces, lay it in a line and get to work. It is okay to change paths, or try a new one, but keep going forward. “Plans make dreams reality.” 10. What would you say is your most interesting writing quirk? I prepare my work in ‘tables’ so it has structure to better aid our artists to understand the concept that I’m trying to achieve. For example, if I’m requesting a drawing of a pie (A Pie for a Pig) I would not assume that the artist knew that I wanted different types of crust for each pie, or even knew anything about pies! I would include that in the table. Also that I might want mixed ethnic groups, indoor and outdoor locations, equal numbers of boys and girls, kids with glasses, etc. I am respectful of the artist time and talent, that I don’t want them to waste energy by not being clear in my vision.
*** Do you feel that writing should be non-competitive? You could be right, but if you want to get your work out into the world, entering contests will help. If you polish your submissions and pick the right contests for your genre and subject, you’ll be setting yourself up to be a winner. Remember, you have to enter before you can win. Here are some reasons to enter contests.
When I won one honorable mention I got a certificate and when I won a different one I got a lovely goody bag, filled with things I wanted. One of my early writing teachers had her job at UC Extension because she’d been a contest winner. In Writer Advice’s contests winners earn cash and the opportunity to judge the following year. Sometimes I invite finalists to submit additional writing to Writer Advice. Contests can help you build your resume and network.
Because contests have deadlines, you’re forced to push yourself beyond your writer’s block. If necessary, write in the morning, set it aside during the day, and rewrite at night. Submitting means you’re getting your work out in the world.
Not all contests offer feedback, of course, but it’s one of the perks of some. When contest submissions come to Writer Advice, www.writeradvice.com, I skim a paragraph or two as I’m downloading them. If the writing’s so powerful that I keep going, I tell the author. If there’s a clever hook or a title that works, I say so. Praise opens ideas, and that’s a gift I give to those who submit. Those who are finalists receive both positive comments and suggestions from all judges.
“Send your best work” means revise, proofread, read it aloud, share it with a trusted friend or writing partner, listen to advice, take what works, and when you are satisfied, send it out. You’ll learn from doing that, but you’ll also learn from reading at least an excerpt or two from any periodical you’re submitting to.
Try writing to contests that send a theme. See what you have to say on a particular subject. Try writing in a genre you have not explored. See how well you can express yourself on subjects that are new.
Here are three resources. They will undoubtedly lead you to more:
Resubmit to a different contest, or an e-zine, or a blog. Do it the day you’re rejected. Remember that tastes vary and reactions are subjective. Every time you send your work to a contest, you’re guaranteed that the judges will read it, and that increases your audience. Every rejection brings you closer to your next acceptance.
An old saying from the sixties says, “If you love something, let it go. If it was yours, it will come back to you.” Let go of your draft and if it comes back consider that this might not appeal to the judges. If it doesn’t appeal to lots of judges, the last article on http://www.writeradvice.com/writingadvice.html may give you some revision ideas. Never abandon your work because it was rejected. If it’s become boring, give it a rest and see how you feel later.
Most contests ask you to pay for administration time, reading time, and responding time. The money also offsets the cost of prizes. NOTE: If you feel that you should not pay for contests, don’t enter…or broaden your thinking for six months or even three. Give it a try and see if your writing improves.
You have a lot to gain from entering contests and reading the work of the winners. You don’t lose until you quit trying, so keep putting your work into the world. No one can tell your stories but you, and a good place to start is at Writer Advice, www.writeradvice.com. We are now running our 8th Flash Prose (fiction & memoir) contest. During the last eight years we’ve able to give a lot of positive feedback along with cash prizes. If you write short-short stories or mini-memoirs, I hope you’ll share it with us. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ BIO: B. Lynn Goodwin is the owner of Writer Advice, www.writeradvice.com, and the author of You Want Me to Do WHAT? Journaling for Caregivers, available on Amazon. Her stories and articles have been published in Voices of Caregivers; Hip Mama; the Oakland Tribune; the Contra Costa Times; the Danville Weekly; Staying Sane When You’re Dieting; Small Press Review; Dramatics Magazine; Career; We Care; Thickjam.com, Friction Literary Journal, and The Sun. A former teacher, she conducts workshops and writes reviews for Story Circle Network, www.storycircle.org and InspireMeToday, www.inspiremetoday.com/. When she’s not reading contest entries, she’s working on a YA novel and a memoir. |
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This week, Amazon has two titles in the top ten and three in the top twelve. Also, self-published author, J. Lynn’s Wait for You is number three. Woohoo! Let’s hear it for indie authors.
Do you tweet? Do you say things like, “Please buy my book,” or “Check out my book on Amazon?” Probably not the most effective use of Twitter. The idea is to attract followers who will be interested enough in you to buy your book. Here are some ideas:
” keep your audience interested.
I often see this question posted by authors on social media sites. The bigger question is have you done your homework on DIY e-book publishing? For instance, do your target readers prefer print or digital? Is your book highly illustrated? Do you know how to reach your readers online? Writer’s Digest posted an excellent article today entitled 
Today, I’m pleased to welcome guest blogger, B. Lynn Goodwin, owner of Writer Advice, 
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