Tag: books

 
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Simple Steps Lead To Successful Books

Like most first time authors, I figured that once the word was out that I’d written a book, the world would beat a path to my door wanting to buy it. I’ll admit I gave little thought to marketing until the day my first printing of Handbook To A Happier Life was delivered. In a panic, I called a published author I knew and asked, “What do I do now?” She suggested several books about book marketing, which I bought immediately. I was on my way.

Success in book selling is a three step process: 1. Write the book. 2. Print the book. 3. Sell the book. That last one can be bit tricky:-)

Space does not permit me to go into all the details of my process or to list the many people who helped, however, there are a couple of very important points I learned early on which made all the difference.

The most important thing I learned was to identify my reader. As much as I hated to admit it, not everyone would buy my book. My early feedback told me entrepreneurs, network marketers and salespeople were buying my book. I began to ask myself focused questions as to how I could best reach these people. I set goals. After all, if you don’t have a goal, how will you know when you’ve succeeded? I took specific actions daily. That’s important. Consistent action will make all the difference.

There were days when I was ready to give up but I kept taking action. I refused to give up. Another important point. Never, never, never give up! One day, a door opened. I had located a distributor who was selling to the market I wanted to reach. They reviewed “Handbook To A Happier Life” and it was put on a recommended reading list. It went into eight printings with almost 100,000 copies sold and was translated into several languages, and then sold to a big publisher. I knew all along that once people saw this book, they would want to read it.

I firmly believe most books will sell once you have taken the time to clearly define your market, set your goals and commit to taking daily action. And more action – keeping in mind that there are many places you can sell books besides bookstores. Go for it!

The Best Business Card You Ever Had

“Keep in mind Jim, this is a great business card.” That was my first lesson as a new author and it has served me well over the years. On a lark, I sent 20 copies of my new book to the presidents of several big direct sales companies. The result was a glowing testimonial from the president of one of the companies, along with an order for 250 books. Was it worth the cost of giving away the 20? You bet it was! I like to think of giving away books as planting seeds. You never know which ones will spout or when.

Many professional speakers and coaches willingly give away their $12 paperback book (with a cost of a $2-$4) and attract clients and bookings worth thousands of dollars from it. Others obtain high priced consulting contracts using the book as a door opener.

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June 30, 2018 , , , , , , , , , , Infoproduct, Public Speaking, Visitors No Comments »
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Profit From Effective Public Speaking

Developing and utilizing presentation skills can result in increased income for you. Here are a few ways that you can turn your public speaking experience into business profits.

1. Free Speeches to Promote Your Business

A lawyer might make a speech to a group of business persons, free of charge, about the advantages of incorporating their businesses. This could result in obtaining new clients. It could also cause existing clients to purchase additional services, such as incorporations, minute book work, income tax election filings, and so on.

2. Paid Seminars, Workshops and Teleclasses

You could charge admission fees to attend a seminar entitled “How To Incorporate Yourself Without a Lawyer”. This seminar could detail the considerations and mechanics of incorporating your own private corporation.

3. Sell Information Products

The information presented during a speech or seminar could form the basis for information products such as books, courses, special reports or folios, audios, videos, DVDs, electronic books, and so forth. For example, you could write a book entitled “How To Incorporate Yourself Without a Lawyer”.

Including such products as handouts at your seminar would increase the value for the attendees (which you could charge for). Even if you gave a free speech to a group, you could still receive back-end income from the sale of such information products.

Obviously, your public speaking skills will be especially important when producing an audio or video cassette. Your listeners and viewers will make certain judgments based on your personal appearance, poise, audience contact, use of gestures, enthusiasm, how informative the material is, and many other factors.

Your information products establish your credibility as an expert, resulting in even more business. As well, you can market those same information products through mail order, direct mail, Internet marketing, and other methods.

4. Consulting and Other Opportunities

As your reputation as an expert in your specialized field grows, you will become more in demand. Clients may seek you out for lucrative speaking engagements. You may be invited to write magazine articles, consult for large corporations, act as an expert trial witness, become a syndicated columnist, et cetera.

Therefore, whether you are a novice or an experienced public speaker, it pays to increase and utilize your public speaking skills.

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June 14, 2018 , , , , , , , , , Infoproduct, Public Speaking, Visitors No Comments »
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Information at What Price? Exploring fee-based e-content

In pursuit of a paid model for content, many businesses offer newsletters for a fee or ebooks. These models offer pros and cons. Some organizations send out two newsletters: fee and free. The free version has the basic, watered-down contents found in the fee version to entice readers into wanting more and paying for it. But is it worth the time and energy to do this?

Ebooks are also a way for businesses to make money. But do they sell when it’s been proven that people prefer reading printed copy to electronic text? Read on to hear from several experts in the field about what people are willing to pay for and whether or not offering fee-based content is right for your organization.

<strong>Too much information!</strong>

Considering there are so many free newsletters and information out there, why should readers shell out the dough for these premium newsletters? Reading online is harder on the eyes because of the light emitted from the monitor. People overcome this by printing out the newsletter.

I can’t hazard a guess on how many free newsletters are out there. So why would a person pay for a fee-based newsletter? Jenna Glatzer, editor-in-chief of AbsoluteWrite.com, says, “You have to offer something different and better than what the free newsletters are doing. Personally, I wouldn’t pay for newsletters that are just for entertainment, but I do have paid subscriptions to a handful of newsletters that are specific to my line of work and appropriate for my level (not beginner). A paid newsletter that has all the same sorts of free-reprint articles that all the other sites have won’t work. You must find a corner of the market that no one has claimed yet and be the most reliable source of information on it.”

Joan Stewart, publisher of The Publicity Hound, started her subscription newsletter seven years ago, long before there was as much information on the Internet as there is today. She says, “Content must be king. If you can supply good content that can’t be found elsewhere, and it’s well-written and easy to read, and leads readers in other directions where they can find even more info than they could possibly need, you will keep your customers happy.

“If I had it to do over again, I would have never started my subscription newsletter. It started as an 8-page print newsletter, but the postage and printing costs were killing me,” she says. “About two years ago, I reverted from a print newsletter to a PDF document. It’s in the same format, but it’s now emailed to customers. My free ezine, The Publicity Hound’s Tips of the Week, is still far more profitable, several hundredfold, than the subscription newsletter.”

<strong>Charging for ebooks</strong>

Considering there are no printing and paper costs to the publisher for ebooks, how can they charge as much as they do for them? Higher prices equal higher perceived value. However, I’ve seen many ebooks cost more than a paperback, and the content isn’t always better quality than print. Yet, they sell.

What justifies the higher cost of ebooks when there are no printing costs involved with them? Christopher Knight, publisher of Ezine-Tips, says, “What justifies the higher cost of ebooks when there are no printing costs involved with them? Christopher Knight, publisher of Ezine-Tips, says, ‘That would be a fallacy in perception logic because the printing cost is not relevant to the market perception of a paperback versus an ebook. In fact, I’d be willing to bet that some people even value an ebook as higher value than a paperback because they can take their data with them on a personal notebook computer, whereas it’s hard to travel with a pile of paperback books.'”

Glatzer points out that whether a piece is written in print or ebook format, it is the same amount of work for the writer. “Of course, ebooks have a smaller market, so the problem is that if the ebook is priced very low, it won’t be worth it for the writer to spend the time writing and promoting the book.”

If it is worth it, however, ebooks provide many benefits to those who download them: The readers aren’t taxed, don’t incur shipping costs and don’t need gas money to go to the bookstore. As soon as people buy your ebook, they instantly download it and have it in their “e-hands.”

Stewart says, “The biggest justification is that the information is immediate. If a customer wants information NOW, they can get it NOW, and they’re often willing to pay the hefty price. My ebook, How to Be a Kick-Butt Publicity Hound, sells for $97. The most I could expect to get for the same book in hardcover is about $25. Another justification for the higher priced ebooks is that live links in the ebooks take visitors directly to Web sites with related content.”

<strong>E-format versus print format</strong>

Research on ebooks indicates people still prefer paper over ebooks. What’s the point of pursuing ebooks and fee-based newsletters? Glatzer shares her experience.

“I’ve written two ebooks and 14 print books, so that shows you where my bread and butter comes from. However, I had my newsletter first. It was thriving, yet I had nothing to sell my readers. I was barely breaking even with advertising costs and often paying hosting fees out of pocket. I’d received so many letters from readers asking for advice about how to do what I had done — make a living writing for magazines — and finally decided to write a book about it. I knew I had a built-in audience among my subscribers. The ebook sold well, but my goal was to take it to print. When a publisher made an offer on it, I took it out of circulation as an e-book and expanded it for the print publisher. That became Make a Real Living as a Freelance Writer, and the print book has far outsold the ebook.

“The second was a niche book for greeting card writers and artists. It contained market info for just that field, so it was such a specialized book that I didn’t go after conventional publishers for it. Plus, the time factor was crucial: contact info changes so often that I wanted to get the book out ASAP, and I wanted to be able to update it when needed. I briefly had it out as a print-on-demand book, but I took it off the market as soon as it became dated and just continued selling it as an ebook.

“Since then, I’ve stuck to conventional publishing and just a few giveaway ebooks for publicity. But I think the market for ebooks is decent if you have a specialized topic and a built-in audience.”

Based on Glatzer’s experience, when you have a free newsletter, you already have an audience … unless you try to sell a book on home makeovers to your audience that subscribes to your pets newsletter!

<strong>Timely matters</strong>

Ebooks have an advantage over print in that their content is up-to-date and piping hot. If something changes, it’s quick and easy to modify the ebook and put the new version up for sale. The publishing process for printed books can be a lengthy one.

Time can impact content depending on the topic. Some industries such as sports and history have experienced little or no change in over a decade, while others like technology are moving at megahertz speed.

By the time an author of a book related to software writes it, and the publisher prints it, a new version of the software is available, rendering the brand-new book outdated. However, many users don’t upgrade every version, as this stings the cash flow. Often, tips and steps given in books covering earlier versions of software are applicable to the newer version.

Knight suggests selling in both formats (print and ebook); that way all your bases are covered and you reach more channels for the same product.

<strong>eContent = lower quality?</strong>

M.J. Rose, Wired columnist and author of both print and electronic books, has commented that people thought she wasn’t a real author when she published her ebook. For some, ebooks are “bottom-feeders” in the world of publishing. They see such content as lower quality and without prestige.

I have a folder of all the books I’ve collected through reviewer duties and as free downloads. I haven’t read 10 percent of them. However, it could be a different story when you pay for an ebook. Knowing that you bought the book might force you to read it. But then again, I have shelves of printed books that I have yet to read.

Why would I want to buy ebooks and let them rot on my hard drive where I naturally save them after downloading them? Same reason for printed books? I don’t think so, because you can see and touch them. It’s easier to scan printed pages than to scroll electronic books.

<strong>Fee-based newsletters</strong>

Most of the fee-based newsletters I’ve seen have a free newsletter distributed by the same people. Organizations use the free newsletter to entice readers into subscribing to the fee-based newsletter. Like Glatzer says, you’re establishing credibility with your audience through the free newsletter, and when they see another offering from you, they might jump at it. Glatzer publishes Absolute Write, free Absolute Markets and Absolute Markets Premium Edition newsletters. Free Absolute Markets comes out every other week and the premium edition comes out in between those issues.

Glatzer explains the difference between the free and premium editions. The free markets contains a small sampling, about 10 markets covering mainly magazine-related work plus contest listings or an article in alternating issues. The premium edition has many jobs and lists markets for various types of writing including international markets. It also includes interviews with magazine editors and an in-depth look at a high profile magazine on a monthly basis. She also lists calls for writers from editors who know her and those calls won’t be found anywhere else online.

Glatzer decided to offer the fee-based newsletter because there wasn’t anything like the Absolute Markets Premium Edition with its 50 pages of markets. She believed that a $15 fee for a yearly subscription more than pays itself if writers land one assignment from the newsletter’s resources. Furthermore, it saves the writers’ time spent searching for job listings. In determining what to charge, Glatzer and her colleagues researched what publishers charged for similar newsletters in other fields such as casting calls for actors.

In determining how much to charge for her fee-based newsletter, Stewart asked herself, “How much would I be willing to pay?” The Publicity Hound, her eight-paged, bi-monthly, fee-based subscription newsletter costs $9 per issue or $49.95 for a one-year subscription (six issues) and has more single-copy buyers than subscribers.

<strong>Selling ebooks and fee-based newsletters</strong>

If you decide to sell ebooks and newsletters for a fee, Glatzer recommends getting lots of reviews and interviews for ebooks. For newsletters, she says, “I think you need to establish credibility by offering free samples first. Make it easy for people to subscribe by offering multiple payment options.”

Joan Stewart promotes articles in the fee-based newsletter in almost every issue of the free ezine. She also uses auto responder messages for people who buy single copies. About a week after the purchase, they receive a message thanking them for their order and asking if they would like to subscribe. Stewart shares her list of what works and what doesn’t work when selling ebooks and fee-based newsletters:

<b>What works:</b>
<ul>
<li>The product must be content-rich.</li>
<li>It must include lots of links to other resources.</li>
<li>Even if it includes hotlinks to other products, it must cover topics that readers would be interested in.</li>
<li>The product must be top-quality, which means free of typos, and it must be easy to read. (16-point type for ebooks.) </li>
</ul>

<b>What doesn’t work</b>:
<ul>
<li> Information that’s outdated. Special reports and ebooks must be updated at least once a year. I have a special report called “Fly High with Publicity in In-flight Magazines.” It includes contact info for 30 in-flight magazines. It’s a real pain to update this annually, but readers will jump down my throat if I don’t.</li>
<li> Products that are little more than sales pitches for other things the author sells (consulting services, etc.).</li>
<li>Products that don’t promise what they deliver.</li>
<li>Lousy customer service. Buyers expect a human being to reply to their email messages or answer the phone if they have problems downloading the product, or other concerns. I have bought ebooks from some well-known Internet marketers who refuse to return my phone calls when I call them for help. I no longer buy from those people. </li>
</ul>

Steer clear of joining discussion groups solely for spamming the list about your ebook or newsletters. “It irritates the heck out of people,” Glatzer says.

She promotes her fee-based newsletter through advertising in other writing-related ezines and some paid Google ads; she also advertises it in her own free newsletters, and she sponsors writing contests and conferences in exchange for newsletter mentions. Glatzer says, “We do a lot of promotion for the site and all newsletters in general; people subscribe to our free newsletters for a while, so they can determine we’re worth the bucks!”

Fee-based newsletters are out there and won’t go away soon. Authors churn out ebooks every day in spite of data supporting that people heavily prefer print over electronic versions. Ebooks prices continue to equal or surpass printed books.

Knight ends the discussion. “The best will survive and rise to the top as they always naturally do, while those who don’t step up to the plate and innovate like mad will get left in the digital dust.” Amen.

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June 2, 2018 , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , Ebook, Infoproduct, Visitors No Comments »
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Ebooks Are Raking It In

Have you always wanted an unlimited income that you didn’t have to leave the comfort of your own home for? Have you ever thought about becoming a writer, and publishing books? Well, many people have become well-known authors, and have made quite a bit of money writing books, but it seems that even more are making a lot more money writing ebooks.

Ebooks can be a very valuable asset. Let me just list a few of the reasons why they have become so popular. First of all, paper books take what seems an eternity to get published, not to mention that it costs quite a bit of money in printing, and postage, and handling, and stuff. Ebooks do not have a publishing cost, plus ebooks are digital. They can be emailed to your client directly, or they can download the ebook from your website, giving them instant gratification, which everyone loves. They are also digitally stored, so you don’t have all kinds of books cluttering up your house.

Ebooks also stay there, on the internet, indefinately, if you will, making money for you, while you sit back, on the beach, contemplating what you will be writing your next ebook about. That’s right, you can just relax while your ebook sits on your website, making you money. Many people are just raking in the dough from ebooks today. But, you will need to use some tools (there are links on my website to access these tools) to make sure that there is enough traffic being directed to your site.

There are all sorts of ways to bring traffic to your site, like writing articles, (like the one written here), using autoresponders, and buying mailing lists. My mentors, whom I have links to on my website, offer many tools and tips for driving traffic to your site. One tip is to build the customers trust, by offering plenty of free stuff. Free PDF files are a hot item to offer for free, because people can pass them around freely, appealing to more of a mass market. And any computer with Adobe Reader, (which can be downloaded for free), can read these types of files.
PDF files are also considered valuable to search engines, thus making it easier for customers to find your site.

There are many other ways to get traffic to your site, and many other methods of making money online, but writing ebooks is one of the easiest, and most profitable ways. For more information, please go to my website, and check out my links. If you register with my site, I will send you some simply amazing reports, with tons of invaluable information, all for FREE! Go there now! Take the step, learn something new. Learn something proven to make money!

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June 2, 2018 , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , Ebook, Infoproduct, Visitors No Comments »
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How to Write a User-Friendly eBook

Right now, someone, somewhere will be embarking on the writing of an eBook. Why? Some do it to make some money; itís one of the easiest ways to start an online business.

Others do it to share information they may have for those in similar financial, social or medical situations; maybe you want to share how you beat cancer or how you got out of debt.
Whatever your reason, there are some basic rules to consider that will make the final product more professional and. So, let look at some of them.

Anyone that embarks on writing an eBook will undoubtedly have read many as well. You will know from this that you must write in an appealing way that maintains the readerís attention. After all, you want them to read ALL your eBook donít you? Plus, youíll want them to come back for more if you are building an online business.

There are many tricks you can use to keep your readersí attention.

Anecdotes give practical examples of what you are trying to explain. These give readers confidence that what you are saying really does work. They are also a great way of explaining complicated topics.

Images are also a powerful tool. They can make topics clearer and they will stick in a readerís mind longer than 5000 words of text. They also break the eBook up and give the reader ìmarkersî to parts that interest them.

Note-boxes or sidebars are also good for summarizing a point or providing additional information. Like images, they break the text up and make the reading experience more enjoyable.

Write in a conversational style so the reader feels that you are talking just to them. This way they feel that they are the only one benefiting from your information and that makes it more valuable to them.

Donít write long sentences or paragraphs. They become difficult to read and detract from the experience. Your eBook is more likely to be put down and not picked up again.

You should also change the length of your paragraphs and sentences so you donít send your readers to sleep. Blocks of text that are all the same length will lose the readerís attention and youíll be lucky of they are awake by Page 10!

We mentioned earlier the use of images as a way of breaking up text. It may be that you canít use images to any great extent; but there are other tricks.

A very powerful one is the use of numbered and bulleted lists. Even with the most basic of word-processing programs you can include different types of bullets and even use custom pictures as bullet icons. These make your topic easier for the reader to absorb and also to give them a mental break from blocks of text.

Finally, think about the design of your eBook. Select a font that’s easy to read, and stick to it. You may be tempted to change fonts as a way of trying to make it more interesting. Donít. All it does is confuse your readers and they will switch-off.

I recommend either one and a half or double line spacing. Spacing the lines too far apart make it difficult for the reader to track where they are. Too close makes it dull.

Also, choose a font size that is in proportion to the line spacing you are using. You can get away with a larger font (say 14 point) with 1.5 line spacing but 8 point will look weird. Experiment with different combinations to find one that suits you but remember – what looks OK on the screen may look dreadful in print. Think about how your readers are probably going to read the final eBook (most print PDF eBooks ñ the idea of the paperless world is myth!).

Lastly, add page numbers and a header to each page with the title of your eBook. Iíve lost count of the number of times I have been infuriated by the number of eBooks that donít have page numbers. Also, adding a title in the header is a good way of reminding the reader what they are reading and who wrote it. Donít overcrowd headers and footers but use them wisely to give branding to the eBook (your company name or web address if you sell online).

Most importantly, don’t forget to do a proper spelling and grammar check. You can even go to somewhere like elance.com and get someone to proof read it for you (for a fee). Itís worth it to end up with a credible eBook.

Like it or not, you and your topic will be judged by the standard of spelling and punctuation. Donít shortcut on quality for fear of some criticism. Itís better to find out before it is published.

That’s it! By following the simple steps above you have just written your eBook. All that is left for you to do is publish it online and get visitors to your website so they can read it. But those topics are a whole new ball-game and best left for another day.

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June 1, 2018 , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , Ebook, Visitors No Comments »
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How To Write Lightening Fast Ebooks

The quickest way the write you own eBooks is by using the expert interview process. What I mean by this is, approaching some experts in the field your writing the book on and asking them to agree to do an interview.

If you approach these experts correctly, they will provide you with expert responses to all your questions. You will find these experts by checking search engines or related niche forums.

The easiest way to contact these experts, is by email with a list of questions. Before you submit questions or contact your expert, do your research on him/her. You need to approach these experts correctly therefore you need to consider the following points.

Keep your questions short and too the point: You will turn the person off if you are asking long winded questions, long questions lead to long answers and you donít want your expert to spend too much time.

Give a good introduction of yourself at the start of the email. You will have a better chance of reply because the respondent can evaluate you.

Take care of spelling and grammar: One spelling/grammar mistake could destroy your chances of getting the interview.

Have a deadline: You must have a deadline. This will help you plan your writing better and it will force your respondent to reply quicker.

Object of the interview: You must let the respondent know what the interview is for. For example is it for an ebook to resell or a free bonus to give away.

Appreciate the respondent: Let the expert know that you are a fan of his/her business or website etc. This helps get a much more positive response.

Something in return: The responder has to get something in return. He/She is not going to give time to do the interview for nothing. An example of an offer would usually consist of offering to share the profits of the ebook.

So believe me when I say this, if you approach these experts correctly you could get a huge volume of feedback and enough material to combine a best selling eboook

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June 1, 2018 , , , , , , , , , , , , Visitors No Comments »
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Old Reference Works Revived

Why are people so interested in outdated and outmoded reference, typically rendered obsolete by subsequent research?

There is no source of reference remotely as authoritative as the Encyclopaedia Britannica. There is no brand as venerable and as veteran as this mammoth labour of knowledge and ideas established in 1768. It numbered the likes of Einstein and Freud among its authors. Dozens of classic articles written by such luminaries are available on the Britannica’s Web Site and included in its CD-ROM and DVD editions.

This is the tip of an iceberg of revival of old reference works.

The full text of the venerable 1911 edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica is now available online and is in the public domain. Regrettably, there is no CD-ROM or DVD to be had of this opus magnum written by the best minds at the turn of the 20th century. Nor can one download the Encyclopedia as separate compressed files. Additionally, the transcription is far from perfect with many an article either truncated or mysteriously divided. Still, it is a grand and welcome undertaking.

Another sorely needed contribution is the Jewish Encyclopedia online. The only other project of this scope, the Encyclopedia Judaica on CD-ROM will be withdrawn from the market by January 2006 and is anyhow incompatible with any operating system later than Windows ME.

Exactly like the Britannica, the Jewish Encyclopedia was compiled at the turn of the previous century and, therefore, lacks any coverage of the important events that took place in the life of the Jewish people – from the Holocaust to the State of Israel. But, with 4000 years of history to go on, the Jewish Encyclopedia is still a vast, indispensable, and deeply researched resource. It is also better adapted to the technological constraints of the Web. Still, it, too, offers no way of acquiring the whole work: no CD-ROM or DVD, no downloadable compressed files.

By far the best among the three is the Catholic Encyclopedia. The 1904 edition of this magnificent work of reference is fully and freely available online. The commercial CD-ROM includes all 11,600 articles (which I found to be surprisingly objective and free of religious bias). But both the Web site and the CD contain reams of additional material: from the writings of the Church Fathers to numerous foundational texts in the history of Catholicism.

The Web site itself is rich, easy to navigate, expertly done – but not cluttered or cutesy. The CD is a faithful rendition of the Encyclopedia’s Web presence – yet not a mere mirror. It takes advantage of search and other CD-only features and is user-friendly, not resource-hogging, easy to install and to run even on the Windows 98 SE 1996 laptop I used as a worst-scenario test bench.

Why are people so interested in outdated and outmoded reference, typically rendered obsolete by subsequent research?

Nostalgia is part of the answer. These works of reference are refreshingly direct, politically incorrect, opinionated, and innocently naive. They are reminiscent of another, more promising, age. Curiosity is another reason. What did our forefathers know or thought they knew about heredity, nationalism, the atom, the Jews, and germs? It is startling to discover both how far we have progressed and how much we have forgotten.

Then there is the trivia. Mountains of little-known facts about long-forgotten people, countries, politics, arts, and crafts. It is the closest we can get to time-travel and, so it seems, equally exciting. By exploring our roots, we get to know ourselves and in this narcissistic age and civilization – who can resist such a proposition?

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May 31, 2018 , , , , , , , , , , , , Ebook, Visitors No Comments »
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Today's Entertainment Encompasses Digital Videos, E-Books, and Audio

Today, we can get virtually of the information and entertainment we need with a few clicks of our mouse.

The digital revolution has transformed the way we receive information and indulge in entertainment. We no longer have to listen to the radio, watch TV, go to the movies, or pick up books at our local bookstore. Instead, we can get virtually of the information and entertainment we need with a few clicks of our mouse.

Digital videos, e-books, and audio products are appealing for two primary reasons: they’re affordable and they’re instantly downloadable. Because there is no manufacturing process per se, you don’t have to pay for tangible goods or packaging. Plus, those providing informational products and digital entertainment don’t have the high overhead costs of a brick-and-mortar retail outlet, such as leasing a storefront and paying salaries of sales associates. As a result, digital downloads are a fraction of the price of the similar items you’d buy at a store.

Similarly, digital information and entertainment offers the ultimate convenience. Because digital products are instantly downloadable, you can easily find what you want, pay for it, and download it in a matter of minutes. You never have to traipse to the store, face online backorders, or wait for your books, music, and videos to arrive in the mail.

Because the technology to create digital videos, e-books, and audio products is widely available, you have a greater choice than ever before. Indeed, you can find excellent sources of information and entertainment that mainstream publishers might overlook. Moreover, many sources of entertainment and informational products allow you to sample the wares before you buy, by enabling you to listen to a portion of the audio or read a few pages of the ebooks.

That’s not to say that, for example, bestsellers aren’t available on audio. You can find audio versions of James Patterson and Michael Connelly crime novels as well as non-fiction bestsellers like “Freakonomics” and “Preacher and the Presidents.”

But you can also find e-books on a wide range of topics written by experts who may never publish a bound book. For example, perhaps you love to garden and want to learn the secrets of bonsai gardening or how to do companion planting and design an organic, sustainable food system.

Because of the lead-time involved in publishing a book, e-books also allow you to get up to the minute information on timely topics. Take the current housing market, for example. If you’re a homeowner who wants to sell or an investor looking to take advantage of the increase in foreclosures, you can’t afford to wait a year or two for a book to be published to learn the best strategies for reaching your goal. E-books allow you to get the information you need right now.

Perhaps the best feature of downloadable products is flexibility. For example, you can download audio books without any special software, and then either listen to them, transfer them to an MP3 player, or burn them onto a CD.

Digital videos, e-books, and audio products are the wave of the future – and the future is today!

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May 30, 2018 , , , , , , , , , Ebook, Visitors No Comments »
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When all else fails, give the gift of books

My mother used to tell me, “When all else fails, give the gift of books.” When I was growing up, a book was a big deal. By today’s standards, less than half of Americans consider a book a big deal. The truth is, that many people don’t think much about books throughout their life. Between working, the kids’ soccer games, taking care of home, and the nine hundred and seventy two other things that sit patiently on a list waiting for their due attention, books do not cross the minds of many these days. That is, at least, until they receive the perfect book as a gift.

The perfect gift giving book isn’t a title, it’s about paying attention to the recipient and knowing instinctively what they enjoy and what they crave. Many stay at home parents state that they crave one of two things, intellectual stimulation or more passion in their lives. There you have it. You can either get the craving stay at home parent an intellectual masterpiece that gets their brain function kicking in high gear or you can grab them up a steamy romance novel that will knock their socks off. This little principle applies to giving books as gifts to every man, woman, and child out there. And if you do it well, you might even be able to inspire a book worm in the making to delve into the world of books they have forgotten about.

So, how do you pick the perfect books as gifts for those who aren’t so vocal about their potential reading interests? Gift giving books come in two categories. The reading category is buying a book that they will read cover to cover and hopefully enjoy the opportunity to delve into someone else’s life for awhile. Emotional or inspirational books are usually hard cover (although the trend toward soft cover is shifting) that are filled with something unique such as poetry, inspirational sayings, or other creative forms of “life’s greatest gifts” notions. Knowing which category to gravitate toward can be a challenge, especially when giving books as gifts to men.

Simple coffee table books that enlighten, inspire, or make someone laugh can be excellent gift giving books. They are usually not gender specific and can introduce someone to a new concept or thought process without any heavy reading. By using basic interests as your guide, giving books as gifts that send a message (such as inspirational coffee table books) can allow you to say things to someone you care for without ever having that awkward uncomfortable moment that makes people stumble. For instance, if someone is struggling with a significant loss in their life, it is very difficult to find the right words to offer comfort. An inspirational coffee table book as a gift can offer that comfort without being direct. Your point, however, will be well taken.

Giving books as gifts to children is always a joy and a pleasure. Hunting out the perfect book that teaches them something new or offers them a new perspective is always fun. Kids don’t always get all that excited about receiving a book as a gift initially, but usually appreciate it later on when they open it up and start reading it. Whether you’re looking for gift giving book for a three year old or a ten year old, hunting down something new and creative along the children’s books section is almost as much fun as coloring Easter eggs with them. It allows you to consider them carefully, to think about how they relate to the world and what interests of theirs are really starting to develop. You don’t have to hit it perfectly on the head when it comes to kids books as gifts. Most kids will find books engaging as long as there some meat to the story line. Very few children are too terribly picky about topics. After all, so much is still brand new to children.

Often, something as simple as giving books as gifts can open up someone to the forgotten joys of sinking into a great novel and escaping the world for awhile into a land of their choosing. The greatest successful measure of giving books as gifts is knowing that they went out and purchased another book when they were finished with the first. Reading offers something that television, DVDs, and other forms of electronic entertainment can’t even begin to offer. Books stir the imagination in ways that are healthy and long lasting. We imagine that characters, we can imaging their surroundings and their lifestyle, and we can imagine the way the story unfolds. When it is not done for us via electronic imagery, the imagination becomes so much richer.

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May 29, 2018 , , , Ebook, Visitors No Comments »
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— How to Write an Ebook —

The hardest part of writing is the first sentence. When you look at the whole project, it seems like an impossible task. That’s why you have to break it down into manageable tasks. Think of climbing a mountain. You are standing at the foot of it and looking up at its summit vanishing into the clouds. How can you possibly scale such an immense and dangerous mountain?
There is only one way to climb a mountain ? step by step.

Now think of writing your ebook in the same light. You must create it step by step, and one day, you will take that last step and find yourself standing on the summit with your head in the clouds.

The first thing you have to do, as if you actually were a mountain climber, is to get organized. Instead of climbing gear, however, you must organize your thoughts. There are some steps you should take before you begin. Once you’ve gone through the following list, you will be ready to actually begin writing your ebook.

Beginning Steps to Writing an ebook

First, figure out your ebook’s working title. Jot down a few different titles, and eventually, you’ll find that one that will grow on you. Titles help you to focus your writing on your topic; they guide you in anticipating and answering your reader’s queries. Many non-fiction books also have subtitles. Aim for clarity in your titles, but cleverness always helps to sell books ? as long as it’s not too cute. For example, Remedies for Insomnia: twenty different ways to count sheep. Or: Get off that couch: fifteen exercise plans to whip you into shape.

Next, write out a thesis statement. Your thesis is a sentence or two stating exactly what problem you are addressing and how your book will solve that problem. All chapters spring forth from your thesis statement. Once you’ve got your thesis statement fine-tuned, you’ve built your foundation. From that foundation, your book will grow, chapter by chapter.

Your thesis will keep you focused while you write your ebook. Remember: all chapters must support your thesis statement. If they don’t, they don’t belong in your book. For example, your thesis statement could read: We’ve all experienced insomnia at times in our lives, but there are twenty proven techniques and methods to give you back a good night’s sleep.

Once you have your thesis, before you start to write, make sure there is a good reason to write your book. Ask yourself some questions:

* Does your book present useful information and is that information currently relevant?

* Will your book positively affect the lives of your readers?

* Is your book dynamic and will it keep the reader’s attention?

* Does your book answer questions that are meaningful and significant?

If you can answer yes to these questions, you can feel confident about the potential of your ebook.

Another important step is to figure out who your target audience is. It is this group of people you will be writing to, and this group will dictate many elements of your book, such as style, tone, diction, and even length. Figure out the age range of your readers, their general gender, what they are most interested in, and even the socio-economic group they primarily come from. Are they people who read fashion magazines or book reviews? Do they write letters in longhand or spend hours every day online. The more you can pin down your target audience, the easier it will be to write your book for them.

Next, make a list of the reasons you are writing your ebook. Do you want to promote your business? Do you want to bring quality traffic to your website? Do you want to enhance your reputation?

Then write down your goals in terms of publishing. Do you want to sell it as a product on your website, or do you want to offer it as a free gift for filling out a survey or for ordering a product? Do you want to use the chapters to create an e-course, or use your ebook to attract affiliates around the world? The more you know upfront, the easier the actual writing will be.

Decide on the format of your chapters. In non-fiction, keep the format from chapter to chapter fairly consistent. Perhaps you plan to use an introduction to your chapter topic, and then divide it into four subhead topics. Or you may plan to divide it into five parts, each one beginning with a relevant anecdote.

How to make your ebook “user friendly”

You must figure out how to keep your writing engaging. Often anecdotes, testimonials, little stories, photos, graphs, advice, and tips will keep the reader turning the pages. Sidebars are useful for quick, accessible information, and they break up the density of the page.

Write with a casual, conversational tone rather than a formal tone such as textbook diction. Reader’s respond to the feeling that you are having a conversation with them. Break up the length and structure of your sentences so you don?t hypnotize your readers into sleep. Sentences that are all the same length and structure tend to be a good aid for insomnia!

Good writing takes practice. It takes lots and lots of practice. Make a schedule to write at least a page a day. Read books and magazines about the process of writing, and jot down tips that jump out at you. The art of writing is a lifetime process; the more you write (and read), the better your writing will become. The better your writing becomes, the bigger your sales figures.

In an ebook that is read on the screen, be aware that you must give your reader’s eye a break. You can do this by utilizing white space. In art classes, white space is usually referred to as “negative space.” Reader’s eyes need to rest in the cool white oasises you create on your page. If your page is too dense, your reader will quit out of it as soon as their eyes begin to tear.

Make use of lists, both bulleted and numbered. This makes your information easy to absorb, and gives the reader a mental break from dissecting your paragraphs one after the other.

Finally, decide on an easy-to-read design. Find a font that’s easy on the eyes, and stick to that font family. Using dozens of fonts will only tire your readers out before they’ve gotten past your introduction. Use at least one and a half line spacing, and text large enough to be read easily on the screen, but small enough so that the whole page can be seen on a computer screen. You will have to experiment with this to find the right combination.

Of course, don’t forget to run a spell and grammar check. You are judged by something as minor as correct punctuation, so don?t mess up a great book by tossing out semicolons randomly, or stringing sentences together with commas. (By the way, that’s called a “comma splice.”)

Last of all, create an index and a bibliography. That’s it! You’ve written a book! Now all you have to do is publish your ebook online, and wait for download request from your website visitors.

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May 29, 2018 , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , Ebook, Visitors No Comments »