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Aloha from Karen Whiting
CAN offers great benefits to readers and blessings to members. It's
good to follow CAN because we post about marketing that others can adapt. It's also good to see what a group does to glean ideas for your own group.
Let's chat about to multiply efforts greatly through team efforts that benefits all the members and blesses others.
Continue reading "Power and Benefits of Groups in Marketing" »
Hi everyone!
Pamela Meyers here with another discussion on marketing your novel.
Recently, while in a discussion with a couple people from my
church, a woman asked me if I had a publicist. I replied that the publisher for
my book releasing next spring has a publicist on staff that is available to me,
but for my small press books, the marketing is pretty much up to me. At that
point the man with us spoke up and recited the old adage, “To make money, you
have to spend money.” I assured him I agreed, but with a very slim budget, most
of the marketing has been up to me and I needed to be creative without a lot of expense.
Then I added that I have a lot of input from my professional organizations as to how
to go about marketing my books.
Later, as I reflected on that conversation, I stopped to thank God for providing me with CAN and those here who work so tirelessly to help its members get the word out about their books, and also for American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) to which I’ve belonged almost since its inception. Between these two organizations I have learned a ton about marketing, and yet feel I’ve barely scratched the surface.
One of the ways I want to push the publicity for my next book is to utilize Twitter more than I ever have. During the launch of Thyme for Love I sent out Twitter posts with links to where the book could be purchased, giveaways during my blog tour, and anything else related to the book, but I keep asking the question: Can I do more?
My pastor recently reported that after posting a website link on Twitter for my church’s radio and on-line ministry website, the website received 34,000 hits in a 24-hour period. That started the wheels in my head spinning, and I began to wonder what else I could do to stir up peoples’ interest enough to go to Amazon to order my new book.
This month at CAN we are seeing first hand how a team of people can bring about positive results more effectively than just one person. I don’t have near the number of Twitter followers to generate 34,000 hits by myself, but we can help each other in this way by agreeing to publish the Twitter posts that are being gathered every week.
It takes more than saying “Buy my book by going to this link.” We need to think creatively about how to get people interested in learning more about our books. This can be done by starting out with a tease, or asking a question to which they have to go to the link to find the answer, or holding a give-away and getting people to your blog to sign up for the drawing. But there has to be even more we can be doing. I’m just now starting to noodle what else I might do so I’ll be ready when the release date gets closer.
Have any good ideas to share? Please leave a comment!
What happens when we
Continue reading "Three ways to bring color to our message." »
Greetings! Maureen Pratt here with my latest CAN blog post about the craft of writing. Today, I thought I'd steer clear of the "big picture" - that is, the major aspects of writing that we so often focus on in our work - plot and character arcs, basic personal attributes, action points. Instead, I thought I'd "sweat the small stuff" and talk about the importance of seeking, seeing and writing about the "fine print," those details that can truly make a huge difference between a piece that is okay from one that is, "Oh! Hey! [That really strikes home/makes this a truly memorable book/article/essay]"
Greetings from Sarah Sundin! Today I have the honor of interviewing Debby Giusti, multi-published author of romantic suspense, her most recent series focusing on the military. Her latest, The Colonel's Daughter, released just this month. Debby offers unique insight into the military mindset - not only is she a self-described "Army brat," but she's also an Army wife and an Army mom. That's quite a heritage!
Debby, how did you get into writing?
Growing up, I loved to read and write, but I also loved science. My mother encouraged me to have a profession, so I majored in medical technology, and following graduation from The Ohio State University, I worked in the clinical laboratory.
I married an Army guy, and after our first child was born, I turned in my test tubes and Petri dishes to become a stay-at-home mom...although I didn't really stay at home. I volunteered in my children's schools, with the Red Cross, in my church, and in various organizations that helped young military wives transition into the Army way of life.
Early on, I published a few magazine articles and later wrote for medical publications. For over twelve years, I served on the editorial advisory board for Advance Magazine for Administrators of the Laboratory and wrote articles on emerging infectious diseases. Freelancing was reward, but I wanted to write full-length fiction and eventually sold to Love Inspired.
How many books do you have published?
My tenth book, The Colonel's Daughter, is in bookstores this month. The General's Secretary will be available in January. Both stories are part of my Military Investigations series that features heroes and heroines in the Army's Criminal Investigation Division. The Officer's Secret and The Captain's Mission are still available in print and e-book.
As well as being an Army wife, I'm also an Army brat and Army mom, so writing a military series has been very satisfying. Because of my laboratory background, I enjoy medical stories as well and have used the information I researched for my magazine articles in my Magnolia Medical series, published by Love Inspired.
This week I signed two contracts with Harvest House. The first is for a women’s devotional, and the second is for a little book for parents with kids ages 3-8. Did you hear my wahoooo from Canada?
Six years have passed since I signed my last contract with a traditional publisher, and it’s not for lack of trying. I’ve wrestled with disappointment and discouragement in the gap. I’ve questioned my call to write there. And I’ve seen God meet me in this place, using unmistakable ways to encourage me to persevere.
I’ll always remember the stranger who phoned and said, “Please don’t think I’m a whacko or a groupie. This is the first time I’ve phoned an author. I just want to tell you that I read your book, Moving from Fear to Freedom and it changed my life. Today I feel compelled to tell you, ‘Please keep writing.’”
Tears spilled. “I know why you feel compelled to deliver that message,” I said. “For several months I’ve doubted the worth of my writing efforts and wondered whether God was changing my direction. Six hours ago, I asked Him to send confirmation today if He wanted me to continue. Your call is that confirmation.’”
The woman listened quietly, and then she cried. “I heard His voice correctly!” she said. The experience bolstered her faith, and it cemented my passion and calling.
Perhaps you’ve found yourself in a similar gap. If so, consider this place—painful as it is—as precious. Here are a few suggestions to implement as you linger there:
My time in the six-year gap has given me a new personal favorite Scripture—“I know that you can do all things; no purpose of yours can be thwarted ” (Job 42:2). Meditating on it brings peace. Pondering it daily brings confidence. God knows what He’s doing. He knows what He wants to accomplish in us and through us. Let’s let Him do His job, even if it means waiting in the gap.
Hello from sunny Florida! Ava Pennington, CAN Secretary here, desperately hoping the calendar is wrong and summer is not almost over! :-)
In my previous career as a human resources executive, one of my areas of responsibility was the management of our quality control programs. Phrases such as “Quality First,” “Do it right the first time,” and “Quality means doing it right when no one is looking” (Henry Ford), pervaded our corporate culture.
But corporate America did not invent the concept of working with excellence. God has always required excellence from His people. First Corinthians 10:31 tells us, “Whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”
How is this related to our writing?
Hi from Gail Gaymer Martin at www.gailmartin.com who has been traveling in Europe, but who is here through the magic of the Internet. I always enjoy sharing some writing tips with you.
The question, "What is texture in writing" was asked in one of my writing groups, and many floundered to answer it. Texture is something desirous and yet it is one of those illusive craft details that most people can’t define. They just recognize it when they see it, but editors look for it and readers relate to it so texture is something to understand and develop in your writing.
Greetings from Sarah Sundin! Today I have the joy of interviewing multi-published mystery author Nancy Mehl, 2009 recipient of the American Christian Fiction Writers Book of the Year Award for best mystery.
Nancy, how did you get into writing?
Many years ago, I heard a message that encouraged people who were confused about their calling to think back to their childhood. Looking at what comes naturally to us as children can give us definite clues to the gifts God has given us. I loved to read and began writing poems in second or third grade. Remembering that made me wonder if I was supposed to be a writer. I went to God and asked Him to show me. Once I knew His answer was yes, I began writing and never looked back. I'm blessed to say I know I'm exactly where God wants me to be.
That's the best place to be! How many books do you have published?
I've had thirteen books published so far. I'm under contract for two more that will release next year.
What are a few of your latest titles?
My latest titles are Inescapable (Bethany House, July 2012), Book One in my Road to Kingdom series; my Harmony Trilogy (Barbour, June 2012), and several cozy mysteries which were recently released as e-books. All four of my Ivy Towers's mysteries are available, and two books from my Curl Up and Dye series have found new life after going out-of-print about a year ago.
The Deliverer picks up just months after Special Delivery leaves off, continuing with the stories of Mara, freed from slavery but still struggling with scars and memories from the past; Jonathan, attending Bible college but strongly drawn to Mara, despite her past; and Lawan, having escaped the brothel in Thailand and miraculously reunited with her younger sister in the US and adopted by the same family. Will Mara be able to move past the pain and hatred that bind her, even if it means traveling back to the place where her parents betrayed her and sold her into sexual slavery? Will she allow The Deliverer to set her free—once and for all?
Kathi Macias is a multi-award winning writer who has authored 40 books and ghostwritten several others. A former newspaper columnist and string reporter, Kathi has taught creative and business writing in various venues and has been a guest on many radio and television programs. Kathi is a popular speaker at churches, women’s clubs and retreats, and writers’ conferences. She won the 2008 Member of the Year award from AWSA (Advanced Writers and Speakers Association) and was the 2011 Author of the Year from BooksandAuthors.net. Kathi “Easy Writer” Macias lives in Homeland, CA, with her husband.
Purchase The Deliverer from Amazon or Christianbook.com
This book review was uploaded by Cecelia Dowdy. Happy reading!
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