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SPONSOR OF THE WEEK
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EDITOR'S THOUGHTS
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WHICH PROMOTIONS WORK AND WHICH DON'T
I'm of the mind, these days, that ninety percent of promotional efforts are wasted. The world is choked with books, writers, people fighting to make a living with their words. Anyone can write a book, and anyone can post one for sale. After years of promoting novels, even from a platform such as FundsforWriters, I've learned a hard lesson: Most promotional efforts do not work.
We read blogs and ask for advice, trying to figure out which marketing tools work best. Well, guess what? Any tool being touted as the best, any trick being shouted as effective, or any method being taught as the way to sell the most books . . . does not work. Why? Because everybody wants to do what works, and if everybody is doing it, then it becomes white noise and it quits working.
Those people telling you the best way to sell are making more money telling you how to sell than selling their own books, unless they are selling how-to-sell books. Who wants to be a party to feeding that monster?
Twitter is clogged with people shouting to buy their book. Sit back and watch your Twitter feed. It's been proven that saying "buy my book" never works, yet thousands continue to spew it.
Facebook has groups that do nothing but post books for sale, and a zillion people keep posting their books on those groups like they are going to sell those books to all those other authors trying to sell their books.
Goodreads is noisy with readers and authors trying to figure out what to do with Goodreads. Nobody has been able to say they've made tons of sales via Goodreads. Do the Google search if you don't believe me.
The bottom line is there is no one way to promote yourself, but you better be sure of the following no matter how you go about marketing:
1) Whatever you do has to be original, or originally implemented.
2) You better write a lot of books, because for someone to like you, they have to know they can binge on you if they find you interesting (a la Netflix Syndrome). Having one book only pisses them off.
3) You best be genuine in whatever you do.
It's just so sad to see writers travel from event to event, sitting at lines of tables, in a room of several dozen authors, thinking they will stand out. They might as well be hiding.
Quit asking others what they did, because it's already been done. Quit following the crowds.
Write your books. Promote in a manner that makes you feel good about yourself. And finally, be yourself. Readers are hungry for fresh and real. That's hard to find because everyone is struggling so hard to be like everyone else.
Get real.
P.S. TOTAL FundsforWriters is the extended version of this newsletter, with 70 markets, contests, grants, etc. and still at the ten-year-old cost of $15 for 26 issues. A great way to find opportunities to make money, without the hours of searching. Some subscribers have been around since TOTAL's origin a decade ago...they swear by it that much.
-Hope Clark
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Upcoming Book Signings and Classes!
May 29, 2015 - Meetup Savannah Book Club, Savannah, GA - 6 PM
June 25-27, 2015 - Freelance Writing, Midwest Writing Center, Davenport, IA
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WORDS OF SUCCESS
"Someone has defined genius as intensity of purpose: the ability to do, the patience to wait. Put these together and you have achievement."
~ Leo J. Muir
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MURDER ON EDISTO
A big city detective
A Lowcountry crime
When her husband is murdered by the Russian mob, Boston detective Callie Jean Morgan suffers a mental break and relinquishes her badge to return home to South Carolina. She has no idea how to proceed with her life, but her son deserves to move on with his, so she relocates them to the family vacation home.
But the day they arrive on Edisto Beach, Callie finds her childhood mentor and elderly neighbor murdered. Her fragile sanity is threatened when the murderer taunts her, and the home that was to be her sanctuary is repeatedly violated. Callie loses her fight to walk away from law enforcement as she becomes the only person able to pursue the culprit who's turned the coastal paradise into a paranoid patch of sand where nobody's safe. But what will it cost her?
Purchase any of Hope's books and receive a one-year subscription to TOTAL FFW free. Send receipt to hope@fundsforwriters.com |
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SUCCESS STORY
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Hope,
I want to thank you for FundsforWriters. Because of your gentle nudging I finally looked up Chicken Soup for the Soul. When I saw all their different categories I pulled out several stories that I had written years ago, polished them up and submitted them. I just learned that two, yes two, of my stories have been accepted and will be published in Chicken Soup for the Soul: Inspiration for Nurses.
Blessings,
Debbie Sistare
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FEATURED ARTICLE
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Building Your Email List:
Part 2: How to Keep Your Readers Engaged
By Amanda Moon
Last week I gave you tips for setting up your email list, whether starting from scratch or dusting off an old one. This week we’ll talk more about what to do with that list and how to create content that will keep your readers engaged.
First, if you didn’t do it last week, sign up with an email management system (EMS). (I have used MailChimp, Constant Contact and MyEmma and recommend all three. Hope Clark uses Aweber.) Besides managing the data, they help you comply with privacy laws by giving fans an easy way to update subscription preferences. Their templates make your communications look more professional, and, because they have relationships with the major email services (Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc.) your message is less likely to end up in SPAM folders.
Next, you need to decide, and share with your list, how often you’ll be communicating. The two big factors in determining frequency are your audience and your ability to create material. A fiction author may want to have once-a-month check-ins, while a non-fiction author may easily fill a weekly newsletter. For more frequent schedules, offer your audience the option of a “Digest Version” —once a week for daily emails, once a month for weekly. You’d much rather send them less than have them unsubscribe entirely.
Exceptions to the schedule: If you have something big and exciting to share and it’s out of cycle, that’s fine, as long as these random mailings don’t become the norm. If it’s timely, send a special email. If it’s going to be just as cool when it’s time for your next email, hold on to it.
When deciding what to write, remember that each person on your list has given you two valuable things: their email address and their time. Content should be exclusive. Perhaps a deleted scene, or information about your research. Tell your readers about sales, events or promotions related to your writing, but also give them insight about your life. They want to “know” you. Don’t recycle blog posts verbatim; most of your subscribers probably read it. A short, hyperlinked list of blogs you’ve written recently with a summary no longer than a tweet (140 characters) is okay to draw attention to anything they may have missed.
Draft your newsletter in whatever word processor you chose, then copy and paste the text into your Email Management System. Once you’ve found a layout template you like, stick to it. It’ll make formatting future emails much faster, and readers like a familiar feel. Also, try to avoid writing/formatting and sending all in one day. You’re much more likely to catch mistakes if you let the material sit for a day or two between draft and distribution.
Things to consider while writing and formatting:
•Write a greeting and ending (it is a newsLETTER, after all.)
•Keep blocks of text short and to the point.
•Lists (bulleted or numbered) make scanning easier.
•Make use of formatting (bold, italics, underlining) only as appropriate.
•Use proper grammar/spelling/etc. and have at least one proofreader.
This may seem hard for the first couple of weeks or months, but eventually you develop a rhythm. When you provide engaging content on a regular basis, your fans sh
BIO-
Amanda Michelle Moon is Author Relations and Creative Coordinator for NoiseTrade.com, and author of the Ruby Slippers Mysteries, fiction based on a real-life unsolved mystery. Find out more at www.amandamichellemoon.com.
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COMPETITIONS
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ARRAN THEATRE POETRY COMPETITION
http://www.arrantheatreandarts.org/index.php/poetry-competition
£5 ENTRY FEE.
Poems should be no more than 80 lines and can be in any style and on any subject. Each poem should have a title. You may enter any number of poems. This is an international competition, open to all. First prize £1.000. Second prize £300. Third prize £100, Six Commendations of £25. Deadline June 30, 2015.
RICEPAPER'S FICTION CONTEST
http://ricepapermagazine.ca/contests/
$25 ENTRY FEE.
Ricepaper’s Annual Secret Ingredient Fiction Contest is a 500-words-max flash fiction contest. The piece of work must include the mystery ingredient selected by Ricepaper’s editorial staff. What’s the secret ingredient topic? RAMEN. When is the deadline? July 1, 2015. You also get a one-year subscription upon entry. First place $250, publication in issue 20.4 winter 2015, online publication, contest winner announcement at and free registration for the 2015 literAsian Festival. Second place Asian Canadian literary prize pack and online publication. Third place online publication.
FAUST SONNET CONTEST
http://www.sonnetcontest.org/
NO ENTRY FEE.
Sonnets may be written in Shakespearean, Petrarchan, Spenserian or Non-traditional form. Only previously unpublished sonnets are eligible. There is no entry fee and each entrant may submit one to three sonnets, maximum, with sonnets to be received no later than June 1, 2015. Cash prizes total $2,000.
MOTION POEMS CONTEST
http://www.motionpoems.com/big-bridges-terms/
$7 ENTRY FEE.
To inspire future engineers, Motionpoems and Target Studio at the Weisman Art Museum of the University of Minnesota invite poets to dream big about bridges. We want poems to inspire our nation’s designers, engineers, and architects to reimagine the future of America’s big bridges. You might send us a poem that imagines a physical bridge of the future or one that conceptualizes the idea of bridging in a big way or you might send us a poem that reinterprets bridge-crossing for a new age. Five winners will receive $1,000, see their poems turned into short films, see those films at the Weisman Art Museum, receive airfare/accommodations to attend the premiere in Minneapolis (date to be announced). Deadline May 15, 2015.
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GRANTS
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TAIPEI ARTIST VILLAGE
http://www.artistcommunities.org/residencies/taipei-artist-village
Artist-in-Residence Taipei is managed by the Department of AIR, Taipei Culture Foundation and operates in two places, Taipei Artist Village and Treasure Hill Artist Village. Deadline June 4, 2015. Artists-in-residence must be able to converse in English. Students are not eligible to apply. Location Taipei: Taiwan.
MENDOCINO COAST WRiTERS CONFERENCE SCHOLARSHIPS
http://mcwc.org/mcwc_schol.html
"5 UNDER 25" scholarships for free tuition to the conference for writers under 25 years of age. Several other scholarships for authors working on MG or YA fiction or nonfiction, for an author over 60 who lives locally, for a woman over 60 who lives outside the area, and for exceptional manuscripts. Location Fort Bragg, CA. Deadline May 15, 2015.
CAREY INSTITUTE FOR GLOBAL GOOD NONFICITON RESIDENCIES
http://careyinstitute.org/nonfiction-residency/
The pre-application questionnaire is due three months in advance for residencies starting October 15, 2015 through May 2016. The full application is due one month thereafter. Documentarians, journalists and nonfiction writers working at the professional level in their fields are eligible to apply once each calendar year. Particular areas of emphasis relate to the most pressing issues of our day, including, but not limited to: war and conflict; social justice and human rights; science, health, agriculture, environment and technology; biographies, histories and government; education; journalism and the media; and, economics and business. The minimum stay is two weeks; the maximum stay is three months.
THE WRITER'S CENTER EMERGING WRITER FELLOWSHIP
http://www.writer.org/page.aspx?pid=928
Deadline: June 20, 2015. Welcomes submissions from writers of all genres, backgrounds, and experiences in the following genres: fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. Emerging Writer Fellows will be featured at The Writer's Center as part of a special celebration and reading. Fellows living within a 250-mile radius of the center will receive a $250 honorarium, and all others will receive $500. Location Bethesda, MD.
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FREELANCE MARKETS
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PROUD TO BE: WRITING BY AMERICAN WARRIORS
http://www6.semo.edu/universitypress/Contests/PTB_Contest.htm
NO ENTRY FEE.
Deadline June 1, 2015. Created by the Missouri Humanities Council, the Warrior Arts Alliance, and Southeast Missouri State University Press, this series of anthologies preserves and shares military service perspectives of our soldiers and veterans of all conflicts and of their families. It is not only an outlet for artistic expression but also a document of the unique aspects of wartime in our nation's history. Pays prize of $250 and publication for each of five categories: short fiction, poetry, interview with a warrior, essay, and photography.
ONE STORY
http://www.one-story.com
Deadline May 31. ONE STORY is seeking literary fiction. Because of our format, we can only accept stories between 3,000 and 8,000 words. They can be any style and on any subject as long as they are good. We are looking for stories that leave readers feeling satisfied and are strong enough to stand alone. Pays $500 and 25 contributors copies for First Serial North American rights.
GRAIN MAGAZINE
http://www.grainmagazine.ca/submit
An internationally acclaimed literary journal that publishes engaging, surprising, eclectic, and challenging writing and art by Canadian and international writers and artists. Deadline May 31, 2015. Pays $50 per page to a maximum of $250, plus two copies of the issue in which their work appears.
NEW MEXICO MAGAZINE
http://www.nmmagazine.com/guidelines
New Mexico Magazine is about the power of place — in particular this place: more than 120,000 square miles of mountains, desert, grasslands, and forest inhabited by a culturally rich mix of individuals. The magazine is an enterprise of the New Mexico Tourism Department, who strives to make potential visitors aware of our state's multicultural heritage, climate, environment and uniqueness. Pay is roughly 35-40 cents per word.
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JOBS
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WRITER/STORYTELLER
Location San Francisco
http://jobs.autodesk.com/jobs/view/Writer-Storyteller-Americas-United-States-California-San-Francisco-15WD17982?lang=en
As a writing resource for high-level, high-visibility content, balance strategic insights, fresh ideas, and creative skills to build the corporate and flagship product brands. Develop a broad range of content that informs, clarifies and inspires, including feature articles, interviews and video scripts. Work effectively with cross-disciplinary internal teams in a complex, matrix organization. Drive a creative vision on complex projects with stakeholders from a broad range of divisions – from marketing to engineering.
COPYWRITER
Location New York
https://www.velvetjobs.com/sh/featuredjob/media/guest/179708
The copywriter writes compelling copy and book descriptions for digital catalogs and online retailers for two or the larger Simon & Schuster imprints
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AGENTS / PUBLISHERS
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HUDSON WHITMAN PRESS
http://hudsonwhitman.com/about/submissions-policy/
Hudson Whitman/Excelsior College Press (HW/ECP) currently welcomes unsolicited, electronic submissions for well-written nonfiction books and other projects that are both relevant to contemporary readers and align with the college’s academic strengths. Acquisitions areas include: health care/ nursing, military interest, alternative higher education, cybersecurity, American culture & society.
MOTIVATIONAL PRESS
http://www.motivationalpress.com/submit-your-manuscript/
Motivational Press is looking for manuscripts in the following genres: business, leadership, personal development, transformational, health and wellness, personal finance, youth, teen, and success.
WARREN PUBLISHING
http://www.warrenpublishing.net/call-out-for-manuscripts-2015.html
Currently, we are accepting the following manuscripts for our 2015 publishing list:
Specialty subject matter that can be presented in hard cover format, such as photography, travel, cook books, health and fitness, inspirational and motivational; Fiction, suspense and historical; and Children's for ages 2 up through Young Adult.
GREENBURGER ASSOCIATES - FAITH HAMLIN
http://greenburger.com/agent/faith-hamlin-2/
Her love of children’s books has brought her some major talents, whom she has happily nurtured. In the adult area, Faith also represents non-fiction authors of psychology, psychiatry, the arts, biography, science, sports, self-help, women’s issues as well as mystery writers and whatever else interests her.
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SPONSORS
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David R. Collins Writers’ Conference, June 25-27, 2015
St. Ambrose University, Davenport, Iowa
Presented by Midwest Writing Center
Celebrating the 10th anniversary with special events in addition to the three-day workshops on novel, poetry, freelancing, and more, along with pitches and critique sessions. Faculty includes C. Hope Clark and award-winning novelists and poets. Early bird and volume discounts offered. For details and registration, visit http://bit.ly/collinsconference
NOTE: 30 percent off for FundsforWriters readers for a short time. Click here.
Grammarly sucked me in and owned me after only ten minutes of using it on my latest manuscript, Edisto Jinx. Though my grammar skills are solid, Grammarly pointed me toward flow issues, awkward wording, repeated wording, and yes, the occasional grammar oversight. I caught myself changing sentences and enjoying the second set of eyes. Grammarly is truly one of the simplest and most useful editing tools I've ever experienced. ~C. Hope Clark, award-winning mystery author, www.chopeclark.com, and editor of FundsforWriters.com
Transform your unique story or book into a quality motion-picture screenplay. An experienced screenwriter & theatrical producer will ghost-write your screenplay for $1495. The standard Screenplay Ghost-Writing Service gets you a feature length screenplay in .doc and .pdf formats. Pitch and submission services are available in select cases.
* A manuscript, draft screenplay, detailed outline, or treatment is required at this price; may not be available for research intensive projects. Additional compensation is contingent upon production financing. Credits and biographical information are available on request. J.C. Foy. For more information, visit http://21stcenturyfoy.blogspot.com/
Here's a free checklist of tasks and tools for successfully marketing your book. This site is full of cool tasks, tools, lists, and instruction to make this crazy writing gig work. Highly recommended. ~HOPE
Are you looking for a great writing workshop?
Join us at the Southeastern Writers Workshop, Epworth-by-the-Sea, St. Simon’s Island, GA
on June 19-23 (Fiction June 20-21 & non-fiction June 22-23). Attend both for maximum benefit!
Get the details at southeasternwriters.org. Register today.
NOTE: I'll be teaching fiction on June 20-21. Any chance I'll see you there? ~Hope)
Click here to visit Book Design Templates.- Instead of trying to decide what your books should look like, we've made all the decisions for you. Just follow our friendly instructional guide, pour in your text and your book will be ready to go. All your styles and formatting needs are coded into our templates for easy use. Enthusiastically endorsed by Hope!
Joel has created coupon code FFW35 for FFW readers. When you use FFW35 at BookDesignTemplates.com shopping cart, it will give you a 35% discount on anything on the site.
NOTE: This is my web designer, and I recommend Shaila highly. ~Hope
Winner of several AEP and Marcom design awards, Shaila Abdullah has over 20 years of experience as a graphic and web designer. She has assisted over 50 authors and writers with their design needs ranging from websites, books, marketing materials, social media banners, ads, to email campaigns (newsletters and announcements). Being an award-winning author herself, Shaila understands the industry, and will provide you with designs that reflects your unique style, genre, and personality.
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“After months of collaborating on my vision of a website as a place to showcase my published essays and offer writing and editing services, Shaila Abdullah turned out a site design that is my dream come true. —Kate Meadows, writer and author
"Superb work, excellent customer service. Just marvelous overall.” —C. Hope Clark, FundsforWriters
“Nothing stands in Shaila’s way. From my design requests to technological needs–Shaila had a creative solution to offer at every turn. I value her design services as a trusted part of my business plan.” —Yvonne Pesquera, writer
"Shaila helped us redesign the website for our writers' conference. She went above and beyond, looking through thousands of our pictures to choose the best, and often wrote chunks of content for us to fill in gaps. Shaila was wonderful to work with and it was worth every penny." —Amanda Murphy, Managing Director of the Winter Poetry & Prose Getaway
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Fine print
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Please forward the newsletter in its entirety. To reprint any editorials, contact hope@fundsforwriters.com for permission. Please do not assume that acknowledgements listed in your publication is considered a valid right to publish.
C. Hope Clark
E-mail: hope@fundsforwriters.com
140-A Amicks Ferry Road #4 Chapin, SC 29036
Copyright 2000-2015, C. Hope Clark
ISSN: 1533-1326
**Note that FundsforWriters.com places paid advertising in this newsletter, ALL ads being related to writers and the business of writing, screened by FundsforWriters to make sure the information is suitable for writers and their endeavors to improve their careers. But the mailing list is not sold to third parties. You will not receive this newsletter without your permission. It's physically impossible since recipients must opt-in, giving us permission to send the newsletter. If at any time you no longer wish to receive the newsletter, click the UNSUBSCRIBE link at the bottom of each newsletter. We want you to enjoy this newsletter at your pleasure, not be forced to read anything you do not wish to receive. The website is not advertised using unsolicited messages by Aweber, affiliates or other third parties. Direct any complaints, suggestions, and accolades to Hope Clark at hope@fundsforwriters.com. We are an anti-spam site.
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