11th September 2008
When I mention to people that I am an author, I often get the response, "I want to write a book someday." I then ask, "Why someday? Why not today?"
The reason, of course, is because most people don't know where to start with writing a book. I'm going t...
12th March 2007
Traditionally, fiction authors have found it very difficult to get publicity outside of media that reviews books. That's because they've been focusing on their book, rather than the topic.
The way novelists can get publicity is to highlight their exper...
12th March 2007
Let’s face a couple of facts: 1. Writing a book will take a chunk of time and energy. 2. Your life is already full, and you have no extra time.
Given these two facts, how can you make the time to write the book you have inside your head, the book tha...
12th March 2007
Have you ever wondered how publishers go about deciding whether to publish a manuscript?
I recently talked to Andrea Mullins, the publisher of New Hope Publishers (who just happen to be the publisher of my book, Abundant Gifts). Andrea outlined the pro...
12th March 2007
If you want to paid to publish your book (through a traditional publisher, as opposed to self-publishing and paying all the costs yourself), it helps a lot to get a literary agent. The Big Six New York publishers won't even consider a manuscript unless it...
06th January 2007
I must have been seven or eight when the dream was born ... and almost killed on the spot. Perhaps it was after I taught myself to play "Silent Night" on my aunt's organ. I thrilled to hear my fingers producing music and to figure out the notes by ear. Th...
06th January 2007
My son borrowed a book from the library called Eye-Illusions. In the olden days, artists drew 3-D pictures by hand. It took them a long time to create even one simple image. Maybe you remember the pictures and the little glasses that would allow the pictu...
06th January 2007
I love to receive gifts. Especially when I am not expecting them.
One day I received a large box in the mail. Mystified, I checked the return address. Who could be sending me presents, and why? I hurriedly opened the box. Inside were several small, ind...
06th January 2007
I was frustrated, not for the first time, by a particular person. Someone who does things very differently than me--in my opinion, too slowly, or without enough regard for reality. This person was unconcerned, in my mind, about what was important, and foc...
06th January 2007
It was almost like a fairy tale.
Growing up as a missionary kid in Africa, Catherine Palmer began writing stories. But it wasn't until years later, after shed married, earned a Masters degree in English, and had a child, that she began writing with int...
06th January 2007
If you want to establish and boost your status as expert
you must stay on top of what's in the news about your topic.
One great way to do this is by signing up for Google alerts.
Here's how:
1. Go to www.google.com. On the top bar, above the search
...
06th January 2007
One of my book coaching clients sent me an amazing story of how a friend of his got on Oprah & Friends, Oprah Winfrey's XM radio show.
I know other people who have been called to be on Oprah's show as well. Sometimes it works out and the crew actually ...
06th January 2007
Have you ever noticed that when you log on to Amazon.com,
one of the first things that comes up is "AmazonConnect"
and your "plog"?
The "plog" is a personalized web log that appears
on your customer home page. When you buy a book via Amazon,
and th...
06th January 2007
When a book or magazine publisher agrees to publish your work, you must sign a contract. In this contract there is a very important area concerning rights.
Be very careful about which rights you retain, and which rights you hand over.
For a magazine a...
06th January 2007
There are two schools of thought on this.
One is that you should never talk about your book idea. There are two reasons for this viewpoint. One is that if you talk too much about your book, you will dissipate the energy it takes to actually write your ...
