How to Set Up an In-Store Author Event (AKA "Author Book Signing") - Part 1

Dianne with store owner, Ginny, at The Lighthouse, La Junta, CO
Featuring my new Christmas book,
Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus, and other books.

Some authors have asked me how to go about setting up an author's book signing in a bookstore. I've set up many of these--both in independently-owned bookstores and in national chains. I've learned a ton through my personal experiences about the how-tos and the what-to-dos and what-NOT-to-dos. So let me share what I've learned with you.

I have so much information to share that I'm going to spend two posts on this topic--this month's and next month's. This month we'll talk about how to set it up. Next month we'll talk about what to do when you get there for and during your book signing.

By the way, I'm terribly conscious that I've been talking mostly to book writers in this blog lately. That simply reflects where my career is right now. But my e-zine (which turned into this blog) started out talking mostly to article writers. (That reflected where my career was then.) My desire is to write for both and make this blog useful for both. The problem is, when I have my head to into writing books (like I do right now since I have book contracts I'm writing to fulfill), I can't think of article-writing topics or what you article-writers might need to know. So if you are an article writer and have a question or topic you'd like me to address, please put it in a comment to this blog and I'll see it. Plus, I've discovered some new writing opportunities so click on the menu tab above to check those out.

Now, let's talk about how an author can set up an "in-store author event" (also known as an "Author Book Signing"). I've stopped calling my events a "book signing" because that term seems not only to not excite anybody anymore, but actually seems to turn people off--both bookstore managers and potential customers. Think about it. A book signing pictures an author sitting behind a table signing books. It's all sedentary. There's no action. Boooorrrring. Make your signing an Event. Practice calling it that and put it on your posters and fliers, and you'll do much better.

1.) How to approach a store manager

First, make a list of the bookstores in your area. You can add to your list by moving outwardly to nearby towns and cities. Or if you're planning a trip, you might want to see if you can hold an author event in distant cities when you're traveling.

I get far better results if I stop in and talk to the store manager in person than if I call on the phone. But for those stores that are not nearby, you can contact them by phone.

If you're working by phone I strongly suggest you check out the store before you call. I once asked a friend if there was a bookstore in her small town. She said there was one, but she gave me a very skeptical look. She told me where it was. The next time I passed through that town, I checked it out. It was in an old house in the middle of the block. I parked in front and climbed the steps to the front door. I could see shelves of books through the front window. When I stepped inside there was no one in the front room, but a musty smell met me. I could hear voices coming from a back room but no one came. Books were stacked in dusty piles everywhere along with old boxes of magazines. It was awful. I would have been embarrassed to hold an author event there, but I wouldn't have known that if I had only called on the phone and had never seen the place before arriving for my event. I turned and left and as far as I know the owner of that store never knew I was there.

So when you stop by a store (or call), what should you do and say? First, you should be dressed for a business meeting, probably office-casual. (No frumpy t-shirts, ragged blue jeans, or ugly shorts or sandals.) Make a good first impression.

When you arrive, tell a store employee you'd like to ask about hosting an author event and ask who you should talk to. Usually it's the store manager. Sometimes there is an event coordinator.

Take a copy of your book(s) with you. Tell manager you're an author and you'd like to talk to her (or him) about hosting an author event in her store. Ask, "Do you have time to talk now or should I schedule a time to come back?" Be flexible, professional, and respectful of her time. Store managers will drop anything to talk to a customer, but you are not a customer--you are a fellow business person and she is on the clock. If she needs to schedule time later to talk to you, do so. If the store is not close to you and it would be hard for you to wait around or come back, ask if you can call her and have that meeting by phone. She has already seen you, sized you up, and has seen you are a professional, so doing the rest of your business by phone is not a problem.

Whether you have the discussion right then or later, here's what to do...

2.) What to expect and what you need

The first thing you need to know is that, from my experience, the store manager will most likely not be happy that you are approaching her about an in-store author event. Most managers I've met with see author signings as an imposition rather than a way to gain more sales or draw in more customers. No doubt this attitude comes from their past experiences with authors: they've done this before and it did nothing positive for their store. I'm out to change that. I hope you're with me.

When you tell her face to face that you'll like to host an author event, you'll be able to judge her attitude toward author signings in her reaction. Do her eyes light up with excitement? Or...not? She may come out and tell you that author book signings don't sell many books or don't draw in many customers. Many times I've heard, "They don't do any good." Don't let that discourage you.

You can acknowledge her concerns and past experiences. Tell her it is your aim to make your presence in her store as much of a blessing to the store as the event will be to you as an author. Tell her you will take care of everything and it won't cost her anything, other than arranging for her cashiers to be able to sell your book(s) through her check-out system. (This won't be a problem. She'll enter your book's bar code info in her system and you're set.) The one thing you need from her is a location near the front of the store where you can greet customers as they come in. Tell her you can even bring your own table if need be.

Talk with her. Work with her. By the time you finish reading this and next month's posts, you'll know what to plan and what to do, so you can speak to her with confidence that you have a plan to make your event successful.* You can talk with her about the details of what you plan--what you'll have on your table, which book(s) you'll feature, what hours you can be there. Make adjustments if she doesn't like an idea or has a better one. See what you can work out. Put on your very best office/professional manners (but don't be gushy and don't over-promise what you can't or don't want to provide). Be respectful. Remember that you are asking to be a guest in her store.

*You can even discuss what "success" would look like. Maybe it's not selling a lot of books. Maybe "success" that day will be for you to make a few more potential readers aware of your book(s) and, through your pre-event publicity and inviting your friends, draw a few new potential customers into her store. And then if you happen to sell a few books too, that's icing on the cake.

I've approached both independently-owned stores and large chains, and I've received permission to hold an event every time I've asked except for once. (And I decided that one turn-down was probably a good thing after all.)

3.) What about those large chain stores like Barnes & Noble, Mardel, and Family Christian?

Yes, it's possible for you to hold a signing in a large chain. I've heard other authors say that the chain bookstores don't let little-known authors hold author events/book signings. That's not my experience. I have held author events in all the chains listed above as well as Borders before they went out of business. How did I get in? Just like I explained above in #1.

I've never gone through the national headquarters of a chain to set up an event. I've learned most stores have leeway for each manager to make their own decisions about what goes on in a store, to a certain extent. I've even heard statements like, "Well, headquarters doesn't like us to, but I do it anyway."

I will admit that my first time in one of these stores a fellow author got me in the door. More about that next...

4.) Strategic Planning

The adage "a crowd draws a crowd" is true for book signings. If you can draw (or create) a crowd at your book table, other people will come to see what's going on. That's a great reason to ask your friends to come to your signing, and a terrific reason to welcome them even if they don't buy a book. However if you have friends stopping by just to chat, guide them to the side of your table and chat there. Often friends stand right in front of the table and stay there. Other prospective customers will not elbow their way past them to get to your book; they'll crane their neck to see what's up, but then will pass on by. You need to keep the way to your book clear unless there is actually a line. Then people will know to get in line.

Another way to create a crowd is to have an event with multiple authors. I've done several events where multiple authors were in attendance. There are pros and cons. There is a time for group signings. And there are times when you do not want to invite your author friends. Let's talk about it:

When to hold a group event:

• When you've all contributed to the same compilation book. I've held author events with contributors to the same book on several occasions. It's fun to meet other authors and customers usually enjoy meeting them too. Plus you're only marketing one book and the same book. The crowd of authors helps draw a crowd of customers.
• Sometimes special occasion make great opportunities for a group signing. If you have a Father's Day book and so does another local author, you might use that occasion to do an event together.
• Other authors have invited me to join them at a store for a signing. As mentioned above, this has helped me get into a store for the first time and I'm very appreciative to the authors who have done this for me. Since I've now met the manager and shown them I am a professional to work with and do a good job at my author events, I feel confident I can go back ask to have a signing of my own. One signing has also led to another event in another store in the same chain. I have also invited authors to join me in a signing. If you plan to add authors to your event, be sure to make sure this is okay with the store manager! (See below.)  

When NOT to hold a group event:

• When I was scheduling an event for one of my own compilation books, I thought it would be great to invite the local contributors to join me. A crowd draws a crowd, right? I was thinking of the extended reach of each of them inviting their friends and family. I was also thinking it would be a good experience for them, since most of them had never done such an event. But when I ask the store manager if this would be okay, she said, "More than three authors at the same time makes it too crazy." I had more local contributors than that, so I decided I couldn't invite them. I did invite them to come to the signing as customers, however. Make sure you ask the store manager before you extend invitations for other authors to join you as part of your event.
• Earlier I mentioned authors with books on similar themes might get together for a group signing. There are times, however, when I simply don't want the competition. I want the customers' attention focused on my book. Do the math. You have a certain number of customers walking in the door on any given day. A certain percentage of them will buy a book. You can split that number between two or more authors, or not. Doesn't it make more sense to set up your own even, and let the other author set up another event at another time? You're reaching twice the customers and marketing a different book to 100% of the customers who come in that day.
• Another time when I may not want the competition is when I'm selling a seasonal book. Last year when my Christmas book launched, I didn't even put my other books on the table. It was Christmas season and I wanted all the attention on my new Christmas book. I did well with sales. And that's another point...
• Too many books equals too much confusion. I call it "choice fatigue." Have you ever stood at the pickle section or the cereal aisle in the grocery store and just stared because there are so many different kinds you can't figure out which to choose? Too many books (and authors) creates too many choices and too much eye-confusion on your table. Take it down a notch and you'll make more sales. (Schedule another event for other books.)
• Finally, another time I do not invite my author friends to join me is when I'm in a store for the first time. Face it, what other authors do reflects on you. When I don't know a store manager well, I want to do an event by myself. I want to establish myself as a professional and build a relationship with that store manager. I've had some challenges working with managers. I have also had some challenges working with other authors. If I'm setting up the event, anything the other authors do (even unintentionally) reflects on me also. I remember one particular occasion when I had a challenging situation with a manager I was working with for the first time and I was so glad I hadn't invited another author to join me because if they had responded even slightly negatively, even with a facial expression, it would have escalated the situation. By myself, I was able to handle the situation to a satisfactory outcome. The bottom line is, I refuse to put myself in a position where my business reputation might be damaged by someone else. (You should too.) 

5.) How to get the word out about your Author Event

Now that you have an event scheduled at a store, you need to get the word out. How? Here are some ideas:

• Ask the store if you can supply some "bag stuffers," which are small fliers the employees put in each customer's bag in the days and weeks previous to your event. Ask how many you should provide. I usually get these to the store two weeks before the event. Check back a week later to see if the store needs more.
• Ask if the manager will make a poster to put in her store or if she'd like you to do that. A simple poster in MS Word can be printed and delivered or mailed or e-mailed if you've already asked if the manager would be willing to print and hang it. Put your book cover on it and the standard who, what, when, and where information. Save it on your computer as a template and next time you'll just need to change the details and you'll have it  done.
• Of course you can hand fliers to your friends.
• Hang fliers in other business also, with their permission.
• Find out if the store has an events calendar on their web site or Facebook page and make sure you'll get posted there.
• Finally, post the event online. I listed five places you can do that in my January 2013 post "5 Ways to Get the Word Out About Your Author Event."

Now that you have your event set up, next time we'll talk about what to do while you're there and how to make it a success.

If you're anxious to get going on setting up your in-store author event (AKA "author book signing) and are impatient for next month's post, don't worry. I recently learned the hard way (the way I usually learn things) that summer is not the best time to hold an author event. The store is slow! Sales, like customers, are few. Better to wait for a busier sales season, like the fall or Christmas season (starts in October) to schedule your event.

Tweetables:

@DianneEButts How to set up an #author's #book signing in a bookstore. http://ow.ly/nvqF5  Click to Tweet

@DianneEButts How to set up an in-store #author event. http://ow.ly/nvqF5 Click to Tweet

@DianneEButts Tips for making your #author event a success! http://ow.ly/nvqF5 Click to Tweet

@DianneEButts Should you invite your #author friends to join your #book signing? http://ow.ly/nvqF5 Click to Tweet

PS: Don't forget to click on the "Writing Opportunities" menu tab above to check out some new opportunities.

In-Store Author Event in La Junta, Colorado

For those of you in the La Junta, Colorado, area, I will be at The Lighthouse on Friday, July 26, with my newest book, Prophecies Fulfilled in the Death & Resurrection of Jesus.

This is the sequel to my first in the series, Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus.

I'll be at the store today from 10:00 to 5:00. Please stop by for a snack and to say hello!

The Lighthouse is at 215 Colorado Ave.



What is AWSA and the International Christian Retail Show (ICRS)?

Signing my book at ICRS 6/24/2013.
Publisher Tracy Ruckman helping me.

I know this question has been burning in your soul: What is AWSA and the International Christian Retail Show (ICRS)?

Some of you know. Some of you have no clue. Since I recently returned from both, let's talk about these two events. Even if you haven't heard about these events and would never attend, I hope learning about them and how they work might be enlightening for you in your own circles. And if you know what they are and have attended or want to some day, I hope learning how they work will be helpful to you also.

I'll start with AWSA since it come first on the calendar, followed by ICRS. These are two separate events and are in no way officially related at this point.

 

What is AWSA?

AWSA stands for the Advanced Writers and Speakers Association. Founded by author Linda Evans Shepherd, this is an organization for women who are experienced speakers and writers in Christian publishing.

To be a member of AWSA, members must be active in at least two forms of communication including having at least two books published. So one form of communication is in book publishing. The second is often speaking to a certain number of people in multiple states each year, but could also be hosting a radio or TV show or another type of communication. In my case, my second form of communication is my work in the screenwriting industry.

AWSA holds an annual conference, and it is always on the weekend preceding ICRS and in the same location as ICRS. This year, we were in St. Louis, Missouri. At the end of the AWSA conference, AWSA holds the Golden Scroll Banquet where awards are given for books of the year, editor of the year, and more. (You may recall that last year my book Deliver Me was one of four finalists for the Golden Scroll Nonfiction Book of the Year.)

This year a new feature for the conference was that we could invite our "mentees" to attend. These are women who are starting out in publishing or otherwise don't yet meet the requirements to join. We had several mentees attend and I found that very exciting because I believe they are future members of AWSA.

One more note: I am now on the board of directors of Right to the Heart Ministries, which is the umbrella organization over the Advanced Writers and Speakers Association.

If you think you might be interested in applying for membership in AWSA, you can find information here.

What is ICRS?

ICRS is short for the International Christian Retail Show. (One literary agent calls it "ickers," but I don't think that name is catching on.) This is a closed trade show that was formerly known as "CBA" or the Christian Booksellers Association. They changed the name several years ago to reflect changes in Christian retail stores: that they are selling much more than books nowadays!

The reason I emphasized the word "closed " above is because that's probably the most crucial part of this discussion that you need to know, if you don't already. By "closed" I mean that you can't go. Well, probably. What I mean is, not just anyone can go. In order to attend, you must be a member of the CBA (Christian Booksellers Association). To be a member of CBA, you must own a Christian bookstore or be a Christian publisher or a company that produces goods for sale in Christian retail outlets. Besides Christian publishers that create and publish books, other companies includes those that produce music, movies, greeting cards, jewelry, artwork, trinkets, and so much more. (Sometimes you'll even see various other goods, such as "Christian" breath mints and golf balls.)

The best way I know how to describe ICRS is to say it is a meeting of the Christian publishing companies and other producers "wining and dining" owners of Christian retail stores in order to get them to carry their products.

I'm certain other industries have similar "closed" conventions that not just anyone can attend--or would want to. So whatever your primary industry is, a convention probably just came to your mind. I've never been to BEA ("Book Expo of America") but I think it's the same thing for all the publishers (not just Christian ones).

ICRS has many events going on, such as holding seminars to help retailers become more efficient and profitable. You will also see industry celebrities, such as popular authors or musicians. Hal went with me this year and while there we got to hear well-known Christian author Max Lucado speak and recording artist Steven Curtis Chapman sing.


Signing Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus for a
Christian book retailer at the Christian Small Publishers
Association (CSPA) booth. Publisher Tracy Ruckman is
helping me. Sarah Bolme, director of CSPA in background.
 

In what many authors see as quite ironic, in the past ICRS has not been friendly to authors. The authors, those of us who write and create the very books the publishers publish, were not allowed to attend ICRS -- unless your publisher brought you to do a personality event (such as a book signing). Sounds strange doesn't it? Well that is because this trade show was intended for the sales people of publishing companies to meet with the retailers who put their goods on the shelves in their stores. Authors aren't in that equation. For those who think authors should be included, the openness to authors attending has improved in the past years.

Many authors want to attend because they want to meet with the retailers who are carrying our products, too, and we want them to love us, love our books, and carry them in their stores. Many authors also want to attend with a different agenda: they want to meet with acquisition editors to pitch them ideas for their books in hopes of getting new publishing contracts. This didn't use to be the purpose of the CBA convention, but it seems that is changing as more and more of this is happening.

I remember the first time I attended CBA/ICRS. I can't remember what year it was, but it was held in Denver. I went through a friend who owns a bookstore to get my entrance badge. And when the folks at CBA got my request for an entrance badge, I had to talk with someone on the telephone and felt like I was given the third degree. I wanted to go so I could go to "the big show" while it was in my home state, in Denver, Colorado, and see what it was like and experience it. This is, after all, my industry. The folks at CBA apparently thought I had a different agenda. I was asked if I was going to pitch book ideas to publishing company dignitaries? No, I tried to convince them. Because that is not allowed, I was informed. And if I was caught doing so, my entrance badge would be taken away and I would be shown the door, made to leave, and not allowed back in. No matter what I said I felt they did not believe that I was not an author trying to sneak in to be a pest to the publishing company people. It was not a pleasant conversation and left me with a very negative impression of the Christian Booksellers Association. I am not the only one this happened to. Thankfully, things have changed some since then and, while authors still don't seem to be very welcome unless they are doing personality events and signing their books, the are doors opening for authors at ICRS. There was even an "Author's Alley" area this year. (Unfortunately I didn't get there. Why? I'll explain later.)

Interestingly, the books that authors do sign at their personality events are not sold, but are given away for free. These are the "free samples" given away at the publisher's booths at this convention. So if your publisher takes you as their author, let's you sign your books in their booth, and pays for the give-away books, you're very fortunate. If you're on your own (and there are ways to take yourself, but that's probably a length conversation for another time), it's quite an expensive endeavor to pay for all that yourself.


Helping Vicki Tiede at her signing. Hal, my loyal helper,
is behind me in line, holding our yummy
fresh-squeezed lemonade.

This year I attended with my new publisher, Pix-N-Pens Publishing. Five PNP authors banded together with our publisher to make it possible for us to attend this year. We each had book signings. I signed my book Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus, because the retailers are ordering for the Christmas season at this time.

PNP did not have its own booth. We signed in the Christian Small Publishers Association booth (as I did two years ago with my Deliver Me book). Part of our agreement with the CSPA booth is that we volunteer to work the booth for a couple hours. We do this by talking with retailers walking past about the book that is being signed that hour and giving out CSPA catalogs, which our books are included in.



Helping with Vicki Tiede's signing of Parenting On Your Knees
and handing out CSPA catalogs to passersby.

Doing this kind of volunteer work involves taking off the "creative, author" hat and putting on the "sales person" hat. Like it or not, this is a good experience for any author.

While all those books are given away, a lot of authors and publishers hope to see a bounce in sales to retailers after the show. We hope they will see the brilliance of our books and order a slew of them to sell in their stores, especially for the Christmas season which many of the retailers are now buying for. From my experience and also from talking with others, that doesn't really happen. (Often what seems to happen to those free books is they are taken back to the retailers' stores and are put on the shelf and sold--meaning no income for the publishing company and no royalties for the author--but the retailer keeps the profit. I guess it helps pay for their trip to ICRS.)

Even so, we still go. Authors and publishers alike attend ICRS because we must make the retailers aware of what we have to offer. And we're always hopeful that letting them know will pay off with increased sales in the long run.

ICRS now rotates between three cities. This year we were in St. Louis. Next year, in 2014, it will be in Atlanta. In 2015 it will be in Orlando. The following year it will be back in St. Louis. Denver has been taken out of the rotation because attendance declines steeply when the show is west of the Mississippi. Apparently most of the Christian retailers are east of the Mississippi and don't want to travel this far west (which sounds just a tad crazy to those of us who love it here and think others would love to visit the beautiful western U.S.).

If you ever get the opportunity to go to the International Christian Retail Show, of course I recommend that you should go. That's because I'm always in favor of experiencing what we can of our industries. But go with a realistic understanding of what the show is for, who will be there, and what you hope to gain from attending so you're not disappointed.

Here are three other articles you may enjoy written by others about their experiences at ICRS:

Highlights of ICRS at my publisher's blog.

Thursdays with Amanda: ICRS Recap at literary agent Chip MacGregor's blog

Is ICRS Still Important? by Mary Keeley, Books & Such Literary Agency

Just a Note...

You may note that the article by my publisher mentions that I was involved in an accident prior to ICRS. On June 9th I was riding my motorcycle when my front tire went flat and I went tumbling down Interstate 25 at about 60 mph. I was wearing a full-face helmet, which no doubt saved me. Gratefully I have no major injuries. I have a chipped bone in my ankle, deep bruises, two swelled ankles, some pretty severe road rash, and had some stitches in my elbow. It has been three weeks since the accident and I'm still recovering, but I'm going to be okay. This is why Hal drove me to ICRS and he was able to attend with me and help me get where I needed to go. I had to cancel some of my plans, and I couldn't walk the entire convention floor or visit Author Alley as I would have liked to do, but I'm so glad I was still able to attend for my book signing, although signing my books with a pretty severely bruised hand was challenging. (If you look closely at all the photos, you might see bandages covering the road rash on my arms. Swollen ankles are out of sight, I think.)

PNP Authors and husbands out to dinner at Bailey's Range in St. Louis.
L-R: Hal, Me (Dianne E. Butts), Vicki Tiede, helper and AWSA mentee Suzy Moore,
publisher Tracy Ruckman, Peggy Cunningham, Marie Wells Coutu and Ed Coutu,
and Peggy's husband Chuck Cunningham.
Not pictured: Fay Lamb (behind the camera).

In closing, let my accident spur you on to good things. The unexpected can happen at any time. What do you want to do that you haven't accomplished yet? What steps to do you need to take to get there? List them. Plan when to accomplish each and get on the road to making your dreams come true.

Tweetables

I'm adding a new feature to my blog posts, which I hope to remember to include from now on. These links below are called "Tweetables" and if you like what you read here in this blog post and would like to share it on Twitter (which I hope you will!), all you need to do is click one of these:

What is AWSA (Advanced Writers and Speakers Association)?

What is #ICRS? Why go to Interna'l #Christian Retail Show?

Photos from #ICRS.

If you want to add this feature to your own blog, find it here: http://clicktotweet.com/

Next month(s):

I've had some people ask so let's talk about how to go about setting up a book signing at a local bookstore and how to make your signing a success.


What are your thoughts about the International Christian Retail Show? Have you been there? Leave a comment and let us know.

Highlights and Helpful Tidbits from the Colorado Christian Writers Conference



Me and AWSA members during CCWC.

 From May 15th to 18th I enjoyed participating in the Colorado Christian Writers Conference. I saw some of you there. That conference has become, to me, like a family reunion. I've made some of my best friends at that conference, and it is fun to get together once a year. This month I thought I'd share some highlights and helpful tidbits from the Colorado Christian Writers Conference.

First, let me say that I was extremely busy while at the conference. That happens when you're on faculty--which is part of the fun. However this year, more than once, I found myself in a position to think, "Where O where is a pen and a piece of paper?!" I would have loved to take notes, but I was often sitting on a panel when I heard something fantastic and I couldn't just get up and run for my briefcase to write it down. Therefore, this is all from my memory. I hope I got it right!

1. One Highlight for me was being a member of the "Teens Write" panel.

This year the director, Marlene Bagnull, asked me to sit on the panel at Teens Write on Saturday. This was a new one for me. For years I've known about the meeting for teenagers, called "Teens Write," meeting up there on the mountain on Saturday. However this is the first time that I got to attend. I was amazed at how many teenagers were in that class. Wish I would've got a count. I'd guess maybe thirty.

As a matter fact, one of the young writers, Kaylie Hathaway, is sixteen years old and already has two novels published. There was a lot of talent in that room. I'm expecting to see great things from them in a few years.

I was especially excited that Marlene asked me to represent screenwriting. It was great fun. I hope those of us on the panel encouraged this group of young writers.

2. Great workshops on E-Books.

While on faculty, I didn't have time to attend many workshops. But when it did, I sat in on Brian Schwartz's continuing sessions called "Pixels to Profits." His continuing session workshops were all about how to publish your e-books. Brian is the president of the Colorado Independent Publishers Association. He is also the owner of KindleExpert.com. If you want help getting your materials turned into e-books, check into Brian's websites including EPubConversions.com.

For a long time I've been wanting to make my line of pamphlets for writers into e-books. I'm thinking I might get Brian to help me when I get to that point.

3. The Next Big Thing

Brian Schwartz said it in class and again on at least one panel: the next big thing is audio books. He says people want to read but they're so busy. With an audio books you can listen while you drive or while you're on the treadmill. He could be right.

As a side note, I've heard many authors say they want to read their own book for an audio book. Or they want to be the reader for other audio books. Just so you know, this is a huge industry with a lot of competition. You may be able to make the decision to reach your own book, especially if you publish independently. But if you have dreams of making a lot of money as a reader doing other people's books, especially famous authors, you need to check into it because there are associations, and training, and a lot of competition for those jobs. I know because I've taken the training, I have a demo track, and I've seen how much competition is out there to be the reader for audio books.

4. Why Create Space books will never be on the shelves of brick & mortar stores

If I'm quoting Brian Schwartz a lot, keep in mind that his were about the only workshops that I went to. I believe it was also Brian Schwartz who said on a panel that books printed by the Amazon.com company, Create Space, will never be on the shelves in brick & mortar stores. That's because Create Space does not allow or offer a deep enough discount that the stores require to make their profit margin.

If you are self- or independently-publishing, I suggest that you use Lightning Source Inc. That is who I used to print my book Deliver Me. Through LSI you can offers the discount stores require.

5. Repping a Publisher

For the first time, I represented a publisher at this conference. I represented my own publisher, Pix-N-Pens, and its sister publishing company, Write Integrity Press. I met with authors, listened to what they had to offer, and recommended many of them to my publisher.

Meeting with these authors was encouraging and amazing. I met so many diverse, creative people. All were polite and professional and honored me with their ideas and their time. I have to tell you it was an encouragement to hear all the diverse ideas that these authors have in ways to communicate the truth of God and the gospel of Jesus Christ. I came away absolutely amazed at how God is reaching different audiences with his grace and truth.

One surprise: Not one author talked to me about the book contests. If you haven't heard about the book contests, click the "Writing Opportunities" tab at the top of this blog and read about them, or visit the "Books of Joy Contest" for details. You still have time to enter these contests. There are three. The deadline for the first is June 15. The other deadlines are July 20 and July 31. Winners receive contracts for their books. If you have a book about joy, whether fiction or nonfiction, put your pitch together and send it in. I entered all their contests last year for their "Books of Hope Contest" and received three different book contracts, each for a 3-book series! Needless to say this year, I'm working very hard. But what a joy!

One more thing: I did meet with one writer who pitched me his book. I wasn't sure if the publisher would be interested, so I texted her and asked. She wasn't. The next morning I caught this writer and let him know the news. He let his disappointment show. There's nothing wrong with that. Believe me, I understand. He wasn't rude about it. But I could see how disappointed he was. I know he's having a hard time finding a publisher for his military story. I thought of this much later, and I wish I would've thought of it in time to tell him. I did share it with some other writers there. Let me share it with you. Here's my best advice: start by finding your list of "target publishers." This your best, top-of-the-line dream list of publishers for your book, the list that you will approach. How do you crete that list? Do your homework. Here's how:

1. First, check the Christian Writers Market Guide. Make a list of all the possible publishers for your story. Be sure to check out the topical lists that tell what topics different publishers are looking for or regularly publish. 
2. Second, visit one or more brick-and-mortar bookstores. I'm directing you to brick-and-mortar stores this time, and not online stores like Amazon, for a specific reason. Anyone can get their book on Amazon. But only a select few get on the shelves of a brick-and-mortar bookstore. Those select few are either big-name authors, large established publishing houses, or both. So if you see them on a shelf in a brick-and-mortar bookstore, you know it's a large traditional publishing house. Now find the section of the bookstore that carries the type of book you're writing. Find as many books as you can that are similar to yours, and make a list of who the publishers are. You now have a target list of traditional, large publishing houses that publish the type of story or nonfiction book you are writing to approach with your book idea. Good luck!

6. Sad news

 It was the second night of the conference when word came that Cecil Murphey's beloved wife, Shirley, had suffered a stroke. The next morning we learned it was a major stroke. I know many of us spent the rest of the week praying for her and for Cecil. It was after I got home, on Sunday evening, when word came that Shirley had been ushered into the presence of the Lord. I know it was and still is a sad time for our good friend Cecil, a prolific author who has frequented the Colorado Christian Writers Conference and has invested his time and treasure and many of us as writers, me included. We continue to pray for Cecil, and look forward to meeting Shirley one day when all those who belong to Jesus get where Shirley is now.

7. Your turn

Those are just a few of the highlights that I remember from the Colorado Christian Writers Conference. Are you sorry you missed it? Well you have another opportunity. Register now for the Colorado conference's sister event, the Greater Philadelphia Christian Writers Conference. This conference is also directed by Marlene Bagnull. You can register now for the GPCWC that is coming at the other end of summer, from July 31- August 3. Register now for the best price.

SuzyQ and me showing off our author's banners.



BONUS: Oh yeah, one more thing:

I was having so much fun doing everything else a faculty member gets to do, that I almost forgot to tell you that I also got to teach two workshops, both on screenwriting. The first was "Beginning Screenwriting" and we talked about the actual format of a screenplay. We talked about the three main elements of a screenplay. And we talked about a lot of other details that go into screenplay.

The second workshop was "How to Shape Your Story for the Screen," and we talked about story structure, the 3-Act structure, and how and why I believe the "shape" of story is embedded on our souls. Here's a hint:

“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”   Hebrews 12:2 

The story of the gospel, which God wrote and we are living out, is the shape of a story that satisfies our souls. All great stories mimick that same shape. Any other shape just won't do, meaning it won't leave us satisfied. We talked about that, and it was great fun.

I was pleased that I had a good crowd at each workshop. Again, I was so busy I didn't have time to count! But I think there were at least a dozen people in each class. Not bad for early-bird workshops when most of the people are still arriving at the conference.

I hope you've learned something here that is helpful. Or found a new resource that will help you in your writing. I always enjoy sharing highlights and helpful tidbits from the Colorado Christian Writers Conference. Next year I hope to see you there.

Register Now for the Colorado Christian Writers Conference May 15 - 18

Learn to write for the Christian Market at the
Colorado Christian Writers Conference

The Colorado Christian Writers Conference starts one week from today! Hooray! I hope you're as excited about it as I am. If you're not yet registered, it's not too late to make plans to attend.

If you've ever wanted to write books for the Christian market, or write Christian-themed books for the general market, or write for Christian magazines, you can learn what you need to know at the Colorado Christian Writers Conference. Launch your career, or further your career. Or simply fulfill your ministry on the side of your current career. It's all here.

This year there will be eight awesome continuing sessions on topics from how to get published to writing nonfiction books to publishing your e-books.

In addition to all those, there are stand-alone workshops on many other topics, including this sampling:

• The Battle for Your Mind by Rusty Wright
• The Business Side by Larry Lawton
• Building Your Message Into a Ministry by Linda Evans Shepherd
• Integrating Scripture & Life Experience by Les Stobbe
• Author/Editor Collaboration by Dave Lambert & Bill Myers
• Devotional Boos by Rick Marschall
• Secrets of Successful Humor by Rusty Wright
• Writing Articles by Major Allen Satterlee (Salvation Army)
• Trends by Dave Lambert
• Negotiating Book Contract by Les Stobbe
• Working with Bookstores by Eric Grimm
• Ghostwriting by Les Stobbe
• Writing to Reach Unbelievers by Terry Burns
• How to Writer for Christianity Today by Allison Althoff
• Citizen Writers by Rick Marschall
• Heading Home with a Plan by Karen Whiting
• and many, many more...

I will be teaching two earlybird workshops on Wednesday, May 15. My workshops are:

• Beginning Screenwriting
• How to Shape Your Story for the Screen

I'll be sitting on the Teens Write panel Saturday afternoon to talk about screenwriting. Are you, or do you have, a teenager? Be sure to check out Teens Write, a special segment on Saturday especially for young people.

You can network with other writers and authors, and make appointments with editors and publishers. I will also be representing my publisher Pix-N-Pens and Write Integrity Press, looking for manuscripts for this publisher to consider.

The Colorado Christian Writers Conference is still, in my opinion, the best value for your dollar. So sign up now! Register here.

Your lodging includes your meals. Make your room reservation here.

Please share this with your contacts by using the Share buttons below to Tweet, Facebook, and Google+ this. Thank you! Here are some suggested Tweets and Facebook messages:

• Register now for the Colorado Christian Writers Conference: http://colorado.writehisanswer.com/ #CCWC
• Write for the Christian Market now! http://colorado.writehisanswer.com/ #CCWC #writers #Publish

I hope to see you next week at the Colorado Christian Writers Conference. If you come, please be sure to look me up and say hi!

7 Keys to (SEO-Successful) Blog Posts

from www.Morguefiles.com

I had a feeling if I put "SEO" in the title of this month's post your eyes would glaze over and I wouldn't see your lovely face here reading my post. I tried to sneak it past you by putting "SEO-Successful" in parentheses. It seems like many writers I know don't want to deal with SEO. But really, if you're blogging or if you're the guest on someone else's blog talking about your book or if you're writing online, don't you want people to find your post and read your stuff? That's what SEO is all about. So let's talk about 7 Keys to making your blog posts more SEO-successful so you can draw more readers.

I don't claim to be an expert on SEO. But I've learned some and, as usual, this e-zine-turned-blog is all about sharing what I've learned in the hope it will help you in your own writing journey.

Probably, nowadays, most writers know what SEO is. But I can see some of you still have glazed-over eyes, so let's talk about what SEO is. SEO doesn't have to be complicated. There's a boon of books written on the subject, but those are for people who are interested or who do marketing or publicity for a living. Writers need to know some about SEO to promote their own writing and make the most of every opportunity for their online writing, but we don't have to get overly complicated. Let's keep it simple: SEO stands for "Search Engine Optimization" and that phrase doesn't have to be intimidating. It simply means there are simple things you can do to optimize (make the most of) search engines and help them find you and your writing. That brings more readers to whatever you write. And that's a good thing. After all, that's what we're in it for, right?

So, let's get started and look at 7 Keys to making your blog post more search-engine friendly (also known as search engine optimized):

Key 1: Write Only One Topic Per Post

Seriously, only one topic per post. This sounds easy, doesn't it. But I find it's harder than it looks. Take today for example. I have so much I want to tell you! Besides writing on the topic of the month, I also want to:

1. Tell you that I have a new book out. How exciting is that?!
2. Encourage you to attend the Colorado Christian Writers Conference coming up later this month.

Now see? While I'm dying to tell you all this stuff in my once-a-month post, those are really two different besides the writing topic of SEO for blogs. If I include these other two thoughts in my post, the search engines won't know where to "file" this post. And you know what happens when something gets filed when nobody really knows where it should be filed: it's never seen by anyone again.

So what should I do? Answer: Stick to ONE topic per post so the search engines can figure out where to file this and then when someone comes asking for it, those lovely engines will know right where to send them.

What about those other topics? I have some options so I'll need to make some decisions. I could:

1. Write them in separate posts. They would each need to be in their owns post because they are different topics. The drawback here is that I've agreed with my subscribers, when this was an e-zine, to only put something in their in boxes once a month unless it's really, really important and couldn't wait til the next month's post. I don't want to raise the ire of my subscribers by sending two more posts in the next few days. Still, when this blog was in the form of a newsletter, I could put this "extra" information in a sidebar and deliver all this information to in one newsletter. I can't do that so well in a blog since it will scramble the brains of the search engines.
2. I could write about my new book and CCWC on other Pages on this blog (the tabs at the top). The drawback here is that I don't know if you'll see it.

So which decision should I make? I'll admit it's a tough one. Right now I'm thinking I will send additional posts, one on each topic, in a few days. My thinking here is that those who read this blog, and who read the e-zine this used to be, know me (or have gotten to know me). And when we get to know someone, aren't we interested in what's going on with them? So wouldn't you be interested in knowing I have a new book out? I'll give myself some time to get my pages updated to reflect the new book, and then I'll send a post to tell you all about it.

Also, because the Colorado Christian Writers Conference is coming up in only a couple of weeks, if I'm going to encourage you to go I need to do it soon.

If my subscribers aren't interested in these topics, that's what the delete key is for.

Another advantage of writing only one topic per post:  busy readers can see at a glance if they're interested and they don't miss important announcements because it's one topic per post. On the other hand, if they're not interested, they can simply press delete.

Key 2: Discover Your Key Words

Now that you know what your one topic for your post is, determine what  your key words are. Key words are important. If you want to increase your readership, if you want to reach more people with your message, then you need to pay attention to key words.

Your key words are those words your potential reader is going to type in to a search engine when he or she is trying to find the very information you're writing.

In other words, imagine your future reader: that person who needs what you're writing about. But they don't know you are writing just what they need. How are they going to find you? Here's how: They are going to access a search engine (Google, Bing, or other) and then type in some words. What words are they typing in? Whatever those words are, they are your Key Words.

Make a note of them. Write them down. Type them somewhere. Learn to choose really good key words. You're going to need them.

Now, how can you know if you picked good Key Words? Or do you have that feeling that you haven't quite nailed down your key words and you wished you had some suggestions for alternate words or phrases? You can get some help with your Key Words at the free Google's AdWord: Keyword Tool. With this tool you can put in your key words and get a whole list of related words and phrases.

Google's AdWord Keyword Tool also tells you how many searches were done for those key words or phrases and the level of competition for those words. In other words, are you competing with a lot of other blogs that are also using those key words? A high rating might mean a popular topic but a lot of competition. Medium competition might mean a significant number of people are searching for that topic but not that many people are writing about it, which might be very good for you.

Considering number of searches and the competition, write down the most promising words and phrases for your blog post topic.

Key 3: Use Your Key Words in Your Blog Post Title

Now that you know your key words, use them in your blog post title. For example, this blog post is about helping you create your own blog posts that attract new readers through SEO, it's about helping you create successful blog posts, and it gives you 7 keys. All of those thoughts are reflected in this post's title.

Since I have learned this much about SEO, and since good SEO techniques have started to become familiar enough to me that I recognize them or, better yet, I recognize when they are missing, I have to tell you that sometimes I see blog post titles that make me cringe. Honestly, I'm not trying to pick on anyone here. I'm only trying to help. So if you see yourself in what I'm about to say, please know I'm not picking on you personally. I see these things a lot, and I just wanted to call your attention to it so you can do better in the future. I cringe only because I know it's a lost opportunity.

I've seen (and actually I've been guilty of this myself) blog titles like:

• Great News!
• Announcing...
• Exciting Stuff!

Ah hem. Blog post titles like that tell us NOTHING. If you think people will click on that post title to see what it's about, think again. They won't. And the search engines will only bring people to your blog post who are searching for "great news," "announcing...," or "exciting stuff." Can you see how that doesn't work?

Practice being specific. If your great news is that your book just won an award, give the title of your book and/or the name of the award. If you're announcing your new book, use the key words of what your book is about to attract people who are searching for information on your book's topic. If your exciting stuff is that you're going to be a guest on TV, say which program.

If you're blogging about writing or publishing, put those key words in your title. If you're writing an online article on a current event, use the key words for that event. If you're teaching on your favorite topic, that topic which is the passion of your heart, put that topic in your post title. You get the idea...

Key 4: Use Your Key Words in Beginning, Middle, and Ending of Your Blog Post

Now take those same key words that you used in your title and use them:

1. in the first sentence of your post, or at least in the first paragraph.
2. in the body of your post, in a way that is natural and organic (not stacking or forcing those words unnaturally). You can use them more than once, but use them at least once.
3. in the last sentence of your post, or at least the last paragraph.

This takes discipline, but it makes a huge difference in your search engine optimization.

Try this: I'm now writing the first and last paragraph of my posts at the same time, and then I fill in the middle. That's helping me more easily get those key words at the bottom of the post without forgetting.

Sometimes this feels awkward and forced. That's okay. Do it the best you can. It will get easier. And it's really, really important for your SEO.

Key 5: Include Links

Two things here:

First, it's very helpful to your SEO to have links in your post that actually link to something helpful that you're talking about. So always, always, always put at least a couple of links in your posts.

Second, you must make the words that form your link count. Another thing that makes me cringe is links that use words like:

• Click here
• More info
• Find it here

Another lost opportunity.

Those words don't count for anything! Make your link titles count by actually stating, using key words, where that link will take you. For example the above link I gave you actually takes you to Google's AdWord: Keyword Tool, so those are the words I used for the title of the link! Not hard. Just do it. It will make you points in the SEO department.

Here's another example. This morning, when I was already planning to write about SEO in blog posts, I saw in a Paper.li I subscribe to a blog post by author and speaker Mary DeMuth titled "25 Best Blog Practices That'll Rock Your Blog!" Though her post isn't about SEO, it is about blogging and I thought her post might help you, too, so I wanted to share it.

Take note that the words I made into the links actually tell where that link is taking you. The Paper.li link takes you to a post I wrote about that Twitter-fed Paper that you can create. Putting words in the link that go with the link score you many more SEO points than a link that says "Click here."

Key 6: Include a Photo

Honestly I don't know if a photo helps out with SEO or not. But I do believe a picture helps your article gain attention, so I included it in this list.

I don't know a thing about Pinterest. I haven't joined that one yet. But I have heard that in order to "pin" an online article in Pinterest there has to be a photo with the article. (If you know Pinterest, you can leave a comment and let us know if I've got that right.)

I do know that sharing a post on Facebook gets a lot more attention if it has a picture with it. So do find a photo to go with your post. You can use one of your own photos if you want to, if you don't mind your face on the internet, or use the image of your book cover or award--whatever goes with your post's topic.

Don't have a photo? I'm sure you know better than to just go take one from somewhere. Photos are copyrighted just like your words, so respect others' copyrights.

There are web sites where you can grab free photos to use in your blog. Google "free stock photos" and you'll find some.

I haven't always put a photo with my blog posts unless I was blogging about something that a photo naturally went with, like my book cover or an event I had a photo from. But I've recently come to believe having a photo is very important and I've been overlooking adding one, so I'm going to try to always include one from here on out. (We'll see if I remember!) Last month I used a free photo from Dreamstime.com. For this post I used a free photo from Morguefile.com. Be sure to read the small print to know whether you need to put a credit line on it. Dreamstime wants you to, and tells you what to put. I used that as the lable for the photo in my computer so the two would be stored together and I'd have it when I needed it. Morguefile doesn't require that, but I put their link on the photo both because I appreciate them providing me a photo and so you would know where it came from.

Key 7: Add a Video

I've learned that adding a video from YouTube really scores you SEO points, too. There are thousands of videos on YouTube so you can find a bit of teaching on your topic or an inspiring song.

You can also use your book trailer. Don't have a book trailer? Here's a post I wrote on how to make your own 30-second book trailer for free.

Bonus Key: Make Sure Your Posts are Share-Friendly

I didn't count this one as an SEO key because I don't know that it helps in optimizing your post for search engines, but it is a pet peeve of mine. (Mary DeMuth mentioned this in her article, too.) Be sure that every post you write is easy to "Share." That means installing buttons at the bottom that readers can click to share your post on Twitter, Facebook, and a bunch of other sites.

You'll see Share Buttons at the bottom of this post, and I hope you'll Tweet it and Facebook it and Google+ it. You can also use the e-mail and blog post share buttons.

On other blogs I've seen a whole bunch of other options and I'm frustrated that I haven't been able to figure out how to add those to my blog yet. I'm thinking it must be a plug-in that people get from somewhere else because I've looked on Blogspot and the ones I already have are the only ones I can find. Maybe you can do better with your blog.

Use these techniques elsewhere too

By the way, all these SEO keys can be applied to your web site, too. And to online articles you write, guest posts on other people's blogs...anywhere you write online. So start practicing and soon you'll be a natural at it.

I'm planning to make myself a checklist so I don't forget any of these steps in future posts. You might make your own checklist.

If you practice these 7 Keys to SEO-successful blog posts, you should see an increase in people visiting your blog and reading your messages. And that's what it's all about, right? You're writing because you want people to read what you write, right? Let me know if you find these tips easy or hard to implement in the comments section below. If you have other ideas for SEO success, please share it in a comment. Or if you have questions about this topic, put it in a comment and we'll see what answers we can come up with. I wish you all the success in the world in your own writing and posting!

CSPA "Book of the Year" Award and Fundraiser Need

Grandparenting Through Obstacles wins "Book of the Year" in Family/ Relationships category at Christian Small Publishers Association

I'm very pleased to announce that Christian Small Publishers Association (CSPA) has announced the winners of their 2013 Book of the Year awards and Grandparenting Through Obstacles won in the "Family/Relationships" category!

I thank everyone who took the time to go vote for my book. Obviously, this wouldn't have happened without you!

I'd also like to offer my sincere congratulations and thanks to my co-author, Renee Gray-Wilburn, and our publisher, Tracy Ruckman at Pix-N-Pens Publishing for all she has done and all she is continuing to do to make this book successful. I also wish to thank and congratulate the twenty writers who contributed their stories and to Cavin Harper who wrote the foreword in the book.

Opportunity to promote books at ICRS in St. Louis this summer

In a separate but related story, I have an opportunity to attend the International Christian Retail Show (ICRS) again this year, this time as an author for Pix-N-Pens Publishing. ICRS is a trade show where Christian book publishers get together with Christian retailers and bookstore owners. Publishers and authors get to share their books with the retailers so they can work together to get their books into the stores.

Two years ago I went to ICRS as my own publishers of Deliver Me. I was able to go through my membership in the Christian Small Publishers Association. I paid my own way, paid to use CSPA's booth to host my book signing, and supplied 75 of my Deliver Me book for free give-away. I can tell you all that was quite expensive.

Now Pix-N-Pens Publishing is doing the same for five of its authors, including me. But PNP is a small publisher and only opened in 2011. It does not have a big budget for taking its authors to ICRS. So, with publisher Tracy's usual inspirational creativity, she came up with an idea to make it happen. Tracy set up a fundraiser over at www.FaithFunder.com to raise the needed money for the entrance into the trade show, to rent the CSPA booth for the author signings, and to supply the required 60 of each book represented.

I will be representing three books:

• Grandparenting Through Obstacles: Overcoming Family Challenges to Reach Your Grandchildren for Christ
• Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus
• and the just-now releasing Prophecies Fulfilled in the Death & Resurrection of Jesus

Please note each of the authors are paying all their own travel expenses (travel, hotel, meals, etc.). This fundraiser is ONLY for the expenses of attending the trade show and holding our book signing alongside the major publishers.

If you can donate...or even if you can't

Even if you don't wish to donate, please stop by the site and watch the video Tracy made. It runs about 4 minutes and it made me laugh out loud. That's me there-- in the very first picture and in the very last.

If you feel so inclined, we would truly appreciate a donation. You can get all the details here: Going to St. Louis to promote my Pix-N-Pens books. There are only a few days left to donate, so please stop by soon.

There are some great incentives.  You can get a digital copy of any of our books for only $5. You can get a print version of any of our books for only $10. (That means if you want one of my books, you can get it at a bargain right now and save the shipping!) You can get a portion of your manuscript or screenplay critiqued, or  have an author visit your Book Club along with a dozen copies of a book for your club members. You can see all the incentives listed down the side of the Faith Funder page.

If you don't wish to donate to this cause, that's fine and I thank you for allowing me to tell you about this new adventure and our need.

So that's all the news for this mid-month update. Thank you so much letting me tell you about this wonderful new "Book of the Year" award from Christian Small Publishers Association, and about the help we need with expenses to take all my books and the books of the other authors to the International Christian Retail Show in St. Louis in June. I appreciate each of you, and I pray the best for you right now in your own writing too.