Special Edition, All Marketing Week
May 8, 2008

Sharing with Writers
A newsletter that is also a community. Share your ideas. Learn from theirs!

From the Desks of
Carolyn Howard - Johnson
And Authors' Coalition Friends
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Sharing with Writers is the official newsletter of Authors' Coalition,
http:/www./authorscoalitionandredenginepress.com
an organization of writers who help writers.

To read this letter in plain vanilla text, scroll down. To read this newsletter with a bit more pizzazz (not much, though!) at Authors Den go to:
http://www.AuthorsDen.com/adstorage/1713/SharingwithWriters_AllMarketing_2008.doc

In the spirit of the advice I give in the Frugal Editor - - that is to use an extra pair of eyes whenever possible - - this newsletter is voluntarily copyedited by Authors' Coalition member, Mindy Phillips Lawrence ~ mplcreative1@aol.com
www.freewebs.com/mplcreative
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Note from Carolyn:

Dear Subscribers and Authors' Coalition Members:

Time Magazine (p. 53, March 24, 2008 issue authored by John Cloud) listed a marketing idea in their top ten ideas that is changing the world. Here it is in a nutshell, angled a bit for writers.

 This info comes from a discipline called "behavioral economics."
 Consumers today make some really stupid decisions.
 Don't worry about blanketing everywhere with ads or publicity. Target it. (Mmmm, isn't that what I've been saying all along! And isn't the Net just MADE for that kind of marketing!). In other words, "gunshot bad; take fullbore aim with a rifle instead."
 People are buying for authenticity. Or they are buying what they think is authentic, natural, etc. Now here's where it gets tricky. If you try to utilize this branding and there is a single aspect of you or your product that doesn't come off as authentic - - say you espouse green but then travel around the world as I do (which takes up ships and airline fuel like crazy!) then you'll have to incorporate a sense of humor in your promotion. A little recognition of your own weakness (self - deprecating humor) can't hurt. People will then see you/your book as authentic but realize nobody's perfect because you recognize it in yourself.
 One way to realize authenticity is to let your customer base (reader) experience it. It's a little like our show - don't - tell rule in writing. Workshops are better than signing, as an example. In my case, I can't just recommend using the banners and stands featured on the home page of Authors' Coalition (www.authorscoalitionandredenginepress.com), as an example. I have to use them myself (and I do!).
 The book to find information on this concept in is written by master consultants James Gilmore and Joseph Pine II. It is Authenticity and the Experience Economy. Watch for it to be a bestseller.

Now the big news. There is nothing in this book you wouldn't have found in The Frugal Book Promoter: How to Do What Your Publisher Won't and you could have been utilizing these principles all along. The good news - - another thing I espouse in both the Frugal books - - is it is never too late to start doing things better. As consumers, we may all make stupid, emotional decisions but I'm here to remind you that as writers we can continue to get better and better. As writers. As editors. As promoters. And we will. And that's all to the good.

Happy writing, promoting and, yes, editing, too!

Carolyn Howard - Johnson
Websites: http://carolynhoward - Johnson.com (literary)
http://HowToDoItFrugally.com (all things about writing)
Authors' Coalition: http://www.AuthorsCoalitionandRedEnginepress.com
For the Frugal Editor, Amazon - direct: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0978515870/
Blogs: http://AuthorsCoalition.blogspot.com, a blog focused on book fairs
http://www.SharingwithWriters.blogspot.com, a blog on all things publishing
http://www.TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog focused on YOUR reviews
http://www.TheFrugalEditor.blogspot.com, a blog focused on editing, formatting and craft

PS: Oops. Some are saying that the Squidoo links I gave you last week aren't working. Member Allyn Evans found the pages anyway using the search engine but the URL that worked for her is http://www.squidoo.com/HowToDoItFrugallyforAuthors
and http://www.squidoo.com/carolynhoward - johnson
Leave a message in the guest book while you're there. Vote. Rate. Add your own Squidoo page! And watch for more tips on Squidoo coming up.

PSS: This letter is all - marketing but I was interviewed last minute and, because the interview deals at least in part with marketing, I thought I'd slip this in. Roger C. Parker says, "Let Carolyn Howard - Johnson help you put your best book forward." http://www.publishedandprofitable.com : Listen Friday, May 9, at 11:00 AM. (218) 486 - 1616. The access code is: 513391#

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Please pass this letter on to others. Unlike many others, I do not mind if you use only portions of it as long as you credit the writers and include this subscribe information. "To subscribe to 'Sharing with Writers' send an e - mail to HoJoNews@aol.com with 'subscribe' in the subject line."
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Psychology of Marketing In the News

More About Nudging People to Make Better Decisions (Or Toward Making a Decision Toward Buying Your Book)

Barbara Kiviat reviewed Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth and Happiness in Time (April 14, 2008). In it she expounds further on the premise in my letter to you (see "Note from Carolyn" above). She takes up ways you can help people to act more logically (say eating their greens rather than what they tend to eat - - like greasy hamburgers - - which they do even though they know greens are better for them). Her suggestion is to organize food in school cafeteria so that healthy, good foods are presented first where they are likely to choose them because they are hungry.

Nudge, written by University of Chicago professors Cass Sunstein and Richard Thaler, calls this "libertarian paternalism." They say that when the public is nudged to make better choices, they are more likely to do that than when they are forced to make better choices by laws or rules or even when they are asked to opt into an action. One gets a higher rate of participation, as an example, by including them in the better option and then letting them to opt out instead. Corporate retirement/savings plans are an example of this, er . . . mmmm. "libertarian coercion." That term, by the way, is mine. Still, it works so we should pay attention.

So, how can the information from this book help an author? Here are some things I am considering.
When I speak or teach I may ask everyone for their e - mail addresses and tell them they will be automatically enrolled in this newsletter and that they can opt out if they wish. (You know, that just makes it so much easier for me and I know how much they will get out of it so I am really doing them a favor - - a little nudge, if you will.)

If you have two related books you might try the same thing on your website. Sell your visitors both books at a special price, but allow them to opt out and only buy one at the full price if they wish. If I should do that, I would feel no guilt at all. After all, I know how valuable authors will find both Frugal books.
Using methods like the above when getting people to be organ donors, according to the studies cited by the authors, boosts participation from 42% to 82%.

The second most effective way to boost participation is by forcing people by design to make a decision - - they must say "yes" or "no" - - rather than just letting them avoid making any decision at all. That would raise participation to 79%.

If you are giving books away at a workshop, you could make this work for you quite well. Hold a drawing. They sign up to win your book at the end of the seminar. The forms must be completely filled out to win. You say, subscribe to any one of my blogs. The choices are:
 www.warpeacetolerance.blogspot.com
 www.thefrugaleditor.blogspot.com
 www.authorscoalition.blogspot.com
 www.sharingwithwriters.blogspot.com
 www.thenewbookreview.blogspot.com
 none of the above.

By the way, you see this kind of thing on websites all the time. Many of the big software companies use it, presumably to great effect.

How else might you make "libertarian paternalism" work for you? And by doing so, help lure your readers to decisions you truly, honestly and heartfeltedly feel are right the right ones. ( - :

CHJ
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New members will help Authors' Coalition serve all its members better! Ask your writing friends to join at http://www.authorscoalitionandredenginepress.com/. Paid members get a favorite review posted, consideration for an interview or review in Yarnspinners and Wordweavers, ditto for The Fiction Flyer and Betty Dobson's Inkspotter. Membership is reasonable, too.
Tell friends to visit our blog. There they'll learn how to spark generally insipid book fairs by using value - added promotions. www.authorscoalition.blogpsot.com.
http://authorscoalitionandredenginepress.com
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TIP: Businessweek magazine reports that reproductions of famous paintings sell products better than even celebrity endorsements and that the a photo of Vermeer's "Girl With a Pearl Earring" got even better results than a photo of Scarlett Johansson as the "Girl With a Pearl Earring!" I'm thinking that authors might consider this when considering artwork for their book covers, their websites, etc., especially if the branding goal is a feeling of luxury and if the author is looking for images that are in the public domain. The studies were done by the University of Georgia in three separate surveys

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I just added my fifth blog to blogspot.com. Yes, I love blogging. This one is called War, Peace, Tolerance and Our Soldiers and it is where I get to nag and rag to try to make things better for our troops and maybe for the world. I'd love to have you leave a comment for its inaugural. www.warpeacetolerance.blogspot.com
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Tip: One large publisher began a subscription program where visitors to their website could sign up to receive a link to one f r ^^ e - book copy from their regular catalog a week. I bet they got lots of people signing up and that promotion doesn't c ^ st anything. And the f r ^ ^ books out there are sure to create a buzz - - especially if they are really good books.

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No part of this newsletter is paid advertising. If you would like to advertise to subscribers, display ads are available at www.howtodoitfrugally.com at less per year than most sites charge for a single month (see the advertising tab at the top of the page). Authors' Coalition www.authorscoalitionandredenginepress.com is also accepting ads. So is Yarnspinners and Wordweavers. Contact katieseyes@aol.com.
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Marketing Books Is Like Marketing Cars

Avoiding Dirty Words Other Than the Four Letter Kind
You may have heard about this but you may not have related it to marketing your books. So here goes. The January business section of the LA Times ran a First Column (that feature situated on the left of a front page) by Ken Bensinger explaining how station wagons are back but nobody is using the "W - word." (Jan 26, P. C1)

"W" standing for wagon, of course. The images it elicits are just, too, too, 70s. I, for one, am fine with it. I still keep a Volvo wagon, circa 1985, carrying more than 300,000 miles under its little not - too - rusted - out hood after two paint jobs in more than 20 years to keep it from being totally humiliating. For me the "W" stands for "Wonderful." I couldn't love my wagon more when I have to haul something or take a sick Great Dane to the vet.

Amercian car - makers and their assorted international competitors are realizing that, too. Plus there's that gas situation and station wagons guzzle gas at about the same rate as the other workhorses we drive (in the case of my old Volvo, much less).

But, being savvy marketers, the car people aren't calling them "wagons." They view that word as a death knell. 70s yuck, you know? They're even crossing over the designs between wagons and other cars giving them a hatchback look or whatever it takes. Toyota is calling theirs a "crossover sedan."

You see they want a different image. They want something that that markets, well . . . cool. Something that doesn't have a stigma. Something that blurs the reality with the perception, if you will.

Those who need a station wagon - - the proverbial soccer moms as an example - - aren't necessarily dowdy, behind - the - times types. They might choose a Porsche if they had the money and didn't have 2 and 1/2 children under 12. In fact, these buyers are quite the opposite and if they aren't, they sure don't want to think of themselves as dowdy, behind - the - times types. Detroit is playing not only to its audience but to what its audience wants to be.

It's the same for books. You want to carefully consider your title, your cover, your subtitle, your book design.

I reviewed a book recently (names shall be changed to protect the innocent). It was a mystery, the quirky protagonist perfectly drawn. He was smart, tough, prone to violence, and had a cute sense of humor. He had a yukky nick name, drawn from his personality - - his ability to take a joke - - and a real name that was similar. You know, the way kids do. "Howard the Coward." Let's call this character in the novel "Yukky." (The name is also changed to protect the innocent, but it's close!)

Well, that was the name the author had chosen for his title as well. At first glance it seemed like a pretty good idea. One word. Memorable. Catchy. Colloquial.
Let's think about the audience for that book. Mystery fans. Action fans. Probably more male than female but still some of those girl - types. Not 12 year olds with penchants for jokes about body parts.

The lesson here is that we have to think not only about what fits the item - - in this case a book - - but what fits the audience. It should not only fit what the audience wants but also what the audience thinks it wants. Let's carry that a step farther, what the audience thinks it is.
And then we have to reexamine how we've used words that work. If a person opens your book and finds something other than what the title (or cover) promises, they may not keep reading. If they don't, they may mention that to others. That can be deadly for keeping a buzz about your book going.

Here's some recommended reading on the subject for you: Dr. Frank Luntz's Words that Work. You may hate his politics but he tries very hard to be even - handed. You may love his politics. It really doesn't matter. You are going to understand your branding and marketing techniques a whole lot better when you're done.
Part of your editing process is letting people in the know (a good editor!) scrutinize it. That's true of titles, too.

Eric Noble, president of a consulting firm Car Lab, says ". . . perception is reality and the key buyers in the market do not perceive these vehicles to be wagons." That's it! See how it works? You've always go to be true to your audience or what your audience perceives itself to be.

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Subscribers who have websites or newsletters of their own may be interested in the Free Articles 4 Readers and Writers on my site, www.howtodoitfrugally.com. I try to add new articles to it each week. If you don't see what you need for your blog, or newsletter, just ask. HoJoNews@aol.com.
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Alternative Publishing and Marketing

How Does Indiana Jones Compare with Publish America?
It's amazing but it appears that alternative publishing models have influenced other industries.

On April 21 the front page of the business section of the LA Times (www.latimes.com) noted that Harrison Ford, George Lucas and Steven Spielberg will take their money on the backend of the new Indiana Jones sequel, rather than the front.

That's like an author not taking an advance but putting it off in favor of profits to be made later. In fact their model reminds me of that pioneered by Publish America www.publishamerica.com years ago. PA takes on all the expenses of production (just like Paramount will in this contract that protects them from giving out huge salaries/advances).

In other words, in both cases the artists/authors are sharing some of the risks by not taking their advance but by putting if off and hoping the movie/book is successful. That encourages everyone to give the project their all in terms of marketing. The difference, and it IS a big difference, is that on the backend, these powerhouse names will reap even larger percentages that they would have doing it the old way.

You say, "Yes, but these are big names and most of the PA authors are pretty much unknown." Still, if PA upped the discount they give to authors on their books (after they'd made back their expenses), they'd be looking like leaders in not only the publishing industry but others as well. They already do offer a slightly larger royalty after so many books are sold. (Of course, that is nothing new. Publishers have done that for eons.)
And about that marketing? Do Hollywood names need a nudge to partner as marketers? Sure they do. It's probably not an occasional scenario that big stars take their money and then try to duck out of the talk show tours, which - - we all know - - are lots of work. Authors do it, too. They'd rather be writing.

So, maybe this a model to be emulated by both more publishers and more movie studios. Everyone becomes a team working together to make the end product successful.
CHJ

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Fun and F r * *: If you purchased the Frugal Book Promoter or the Frugal Editor, I'd love for you to review it on Amazon or BN.com. Make it simple; just tell what part of it you found most valuable. If you do, send me the review link (URL) and I will send you a handout from one of my UCLA classes. As a thank you, of course. HoJoNews@aol.com
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Got a Shopping Cart on Your Website? I don't but we all should. Random House has a new program where they sell six individual chapters and the epilogue to one of their releases, Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die, as e - chapters for $2.99. The hardcover is $24.95. The e - book - by - the - chapter approach allows people to read a chapter or two and test it. It also gets the buzz out about a book that has great sales potential.

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Don't suffer with book proposals. You can be a pro with and investment of only 20 minutes and 49 cents with my Great First Impression Book Proposal Short.
http://www.amazon.com/Great - First - Impression - Book - Proposal/dp/B000YG6O5U
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Tip: Speaking is the best marketing of all. If you speak as part of your promotion campaign, increase your chances of getting asked to do paying gigs by listing yourself on a speakers' bureau. Authors' Coalition is starting a new one at a very reasonable price. Check it out at: http://www.authorscoalitionandredenginepress.com/join_our_speakers'_bureau.htm

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A general marketing rule is that a product must be seen seven times before it is purchased. That is just as true for books (because they are products, like it or not!). Let people see that book cover image! To do that, you are invited to advertise as a site sponsor at www.howtodoitfrugally.com for only $25 to $30 a year. Yep, the frugal way! Click on the Advertising tab at the top of the page or contact me personally at hojonews@aol.com.
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Borders is now marketing online, too. They started a concept store in Ann Arbor Michigan. Computer kiosks offer online activities, e - books, etc. Everyone is getting smart. Even traditional chain bookstores. ( - :

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Available: Audios from Audio Divas on many aspects of building a writing career are published by Double Dragon Press. Here is the page where you'll find the full list (http://www.double - dragon - ebooks.com/eAuthor.php?Name=Carolyn%20Howard - Johnson ) including one on "Do It Yourself Indexing." The first audio, "Promoting Easy and Cheap!" is a F R ^ ^ sample you can download. Each comes with a resource guide. Here is an example of a guide for the audio - lesson Your Divas did on "Contests": http://www.derondouglas.com/audiosample/AwardResourceGuideContests.pdf
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In the News

"Sneak Peek" and "Browse Inside" Becoming the Norm

Publishers are learning to compete by marketing just as authors have learned to do. HarperCollins is taking a cue from online stores like Amazon and offering "Sneak Peek" and "Browse Inside" programs, just like Amazon has been doing. In fact, the huge publisher is now offering full online access to a selected group of its books. SPAN Connections (the official newsletter of Small Publishers of North America) says, "They are removing the digital shrink wrap." When it comes to marketing, service is the name of the game. And customers want a taste of what they'll be buying.

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Authors' Coalition members! For credibility, use the AC logo on your promotional materials. Ask for it by sending an e - mail to HoJoNews@aol.com or download it with a click from the AC site http://authorscoalitionandredenginepress.com.
You know you want it on your website! Be sure to link it to the AC site, too!
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So What's With All the Online Marketing Talk?

Learning from the Big Boys and Girls and Vice Versa

In this AllMarketing edition of Sharing with Writers you're seeing lots of talk about e - books and online marketing. I hope you aren't still giving e - books the squint - eye. I'm pretty sure I've convinced you that online marketing is as important, if not more important (because of its reach and because of its no - c ^ ost or l ^ w c ^ost)) and if I haven't, all this news from the likes of Borders, HarperCollins, and more should be convincing you. They should have been the leaders, these big guys. Instead books like The Frugal Book Promoter (first published in 2004) have been. That's OK. At least we're all getting onto the same page!

So, even if you're not convinced yet that you should publish your book as an e - book if for no other reason than that some people WANT to buy it that way and that one person who passes your book because it's not available on Sony Reader or Kindle or just as a plain old .pdf on your publisher's website, might be a director or producer who would have read your book on a plane, fallen in love with it and decided to offer you a contract. If that doesn't sound good to you, far be it from me to try to convince you - - even those of you who write literary novels or short stories.

Click here or copy and paste to read the rest of this article with four more e - ideas that you may have never seen before, all f r ^ ^: www.sharingwithwriters.blogspot.com.

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Authors' Coalition: No Hum - Drum Book Fair Promotion Allowed is a blog where you can watch how Authors' Coalition members make book fairs successful with cross - promotion, value - added promotions and a good assessment process. Find it at www.authorscoalition.blogspot.com. It's time to sign up for 2008's LA Times/UCLA Festival of Books.
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Ranting Around

Hating the Term "Self - Promotion"

I've about had it. That term, "Self - Promotion" - - often uttered with a lip skewed to the side or a stink - eye as punctuation - - has to go or it has to be used correctly. And by "correctly," I mean without the sneer.

If we use "self - promotion" to mean a do - it - yourself approach to promotion (be it promoting one's book or anything else) the process is certainly nothing to be sneered at. It's a time - honored tradition in our culture (going way back to the Puritans) that frugality is a trait to be revered. "Waste not, want not," and all that.

If "self - promotion" means to promote yourself rather than a product, the sneer is only half - earned. It is true that when promoting a book (and many products) the individual behind the commercial goods being promoted is very important. Perhaps more so than the product itself. Witness Newman's Best. These food products started with just Paul out there pumping his gorgeous self from the labels of his salad dressings. Now his daughter is in on the act. Good for them. Using their images and names is a great way to give their product credibility.

The Newmans also tie their efforts into that important concept of benefiting the customer. Heck, since its inception as a respectable (and profitable) profession, publicity has aimed at putting forth the benefits of whatever is being promoted. The Newmans also tie their product to a charity and haven't I always said that this is a darn good idea. You can substitute "good of the community" for charity and do almost as well. Cynthia Brian (Be the Star You Are!) and Terry Doherty (The Reading Tub) have long done that and so have dozens of other subscribers to this newsletter.

The downside of promoting yourself is that it can be misinterpreted. Thus, authors will want to use one of the methods above to mitigate that. The other way is to let it be known that you are promoting yourself out of passion for your work. We are all fervent about our subjects. We know our writing will help others at some level. It will entertain them. Teach them something. We all are sharing our core with others when we write. So let your audience know what you want them to know and then tell them - - passionately - - why are you letting them know!

The other thing about this self - promotion thing is that even if we hire someone else to do it for us like a marketing king or a PR person it is still self - promotion. Come on! We're spending our hard - earned dollars to have someone else do it. Who are we trying to fool?

Ditto if we are lucky enough to have a publisher assign us a publicist who does it for us! One way to view that is that the author is paying for that publicist out of royalties he or she might be earning but isn't because the publisher doesn't have those funds available because he is paying the publicist. That this concept goes in a circle doesn't make it less true!

Then there's the idea that, in order for said assigned or hired publicist to do his or her job well, the author must be a partner in the process. The author must be able to spot a new tie - in to his or her book. The author must be willing to do the footwork. The author should be happy to do a whole lot more promotion than either of those publicists would even think of doing, no matter how much they were paid.

Here's what I'd like to see happen. Forget getting rid of the sneer. I'd like to see the term "self - promotion" abolished because it isn't accurate! Promotion is promotion. Marketing is marketing. It is never something someone does in a vacuum. Everyone does it. You do it when match your shoes to the outfit you're wearing that day (you do consider "brown or black, formal or informal", don't you?) The President does it. Bush has Dr. Frank Luntz, author of Words that Work, and a press secretary (they're still using the old - fashioned word "press" rather than "media" in spite of all their expertise). And frankly, it looks as if they could do a better job if The Pres himself would jump in and make it easier on those who are getting paid very good taxpayer dollars to do it for him.

So, if you write to me with a question on promotion, please don't use the term "self - promotion." You might end up with a lecture instead of an answer.

- - - -
This article is available as f r ^ ^ content for newsletters, websites, blogs or whatever. Go to the F R ^^ Articles4Writers,Editors page at www.howtodoitfrugally.com or contact me at hojonews@aol.com.

========================================================Learn more about tips booklets and how to make them work for you. Paulette Ensign was one of the first master promoters I came in contact with. She'll teach you to make promotional booklets work for you with a variety of programs. http://www.kickstartcart.com/app/?af=696843
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Where Do People Buy More Books?

SPAN (Small Publisher's of North America) reports that everywhere in the world online shoppers buy more books than any other product. More than 41% of online users have purchased books online. By percentage, South Koreans, Germans and Austrians buy the most but that can be misleading because of their smaller populations. 57.5 million Americans have bought books online but that's only 38% of the Internet users. Here's the lesson I'm taking from that. Authors need to be in every online bookstore they can. Not only the real bookstores like Amazon and Fatbrain but also the bookstores that lead to them like the at the Authors' Coalition's "Buy Our Books" feature.

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"AC is the current that powers your writing career." http://authorscoalitionandredenginepress.com
Carolyn Howard - Johnson, Authors' Coalition Founder
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Tip for Marketing at Book Fairs

The lovely Y Word

This tip comes from Kathe Gogolewski (www.tri - studio.com) and may be related to "libertaian paternalism" cited above. Teachers like Kathe have know about paternalism (or maternalism) for years! ( - ;

When presenting your book to a potential buyer, ask questions that lead them to say "yes." The moment they say "no," they are ready to leave. The word "yes" is powerful, and whether people know it or not, they love to say it. It makes them feel good because it's a positive word. For example, do not ask "Have you seen (heard about) my book?" The answer will likely be "no," unless you're Tom Clancy, and from that moment, you've lost your buyer. Instead, ask a question like, "Do you enjoy a little down - time reading?" Most people will nod or say "yes" to that one! It's okay to ask a question that filters out those who would never buy your book, such as, "Do you like short stories?" if you're selling a book of short stories. Or..."Do you like historical fiction?" "Humor?" "Biographies?" "Adventure?" You fill in the blank. My children's book has scary parts, so I used that to entice kids. I asked the parents (they don't like their children approached without their permission!) if their son or daughter enjoyed scary stories. Every parent I asked deferred to the question to the child: "Do you?" they'd ask. Most children do and love to admit it, so I'd get a "yes." Then, I'd put the book in the child's hand and say "Then you'd love this book! If you're sure you don't get too scared." Putting the book in the potential buyer's hand after they've answered a question with a positive response is also very powerful.

This is when I start talking about some of the exciting or scary parts of the book with the child and his or her parent(s). "There's a part where a boy fights a giant spider. How do you feel about that?" Let them talk, too. When people start sharing, they become more invested. It's all good news, and it's fun to share what you do with others. That's what writing is all about, after all!

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Reciprocal Links: Many subscribers are in a position to cross - promote. Let me know if you would like to trade some recommendation or promotion for any of my books - - from the HowToDoItFrugally series to my chapbook of poetry - - for a place on my Resources for Writers or Resources for Readers pages on www.HowToDoItFrugally.com.
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In the News

What Authors Can Learn from Wal - Mart

Wal - Mart sometimes gets it right. The LA Times (April 1, 2008, page C2) reports that the National Advertising Division of the council of Better Business Bureaus didn't exactly approve of their latest ad that appeared to claim that the giant chains "saves the average family $2,500 per year." Actually, figures show that it does but for the population at large, not necessarily for its shoppers. It does because it is so competitive and efficient (and big!) that it holds retails prices in check across the board in the US. Its ads did not make that clear. They showed their shoppers spending their 2500 bucks on vacations or buying a car and the NAC said the implication was that they were spending money that they saved by shopping at Wal - Mart only.

So what did Wal - Mart do? They thanked the bureau (NAD). Said they were glad that they pointed it out but also that they were "glad that the claim that "Wal - Mart saves the average family $2.500 per year, which was the intended message, was substantiated." Then they promised to make the claim clearer in their future ads.

Smart?

I'll say. They probably paid a big publicity firm lots and lots of money to advise them on a basic tenet of public relations. It goes:

When you're wrong admit you're wrong.
When you're wrong, admit you're wrong fast.
When you're wrong, see if (after admitting you're wrong) you can turn opinion in your favor in an honest and fair and sympathy - garnering way.

So, if an author ever finds themselves fighting against the current with some bad publicity, don't remain silent. Jump in with an apology and a carefully worded reappraisal of the situation.

Ditto if someone disagrees with you in the crowd that gathers at your seminar at a bookstore or in a classroom. Listen. Tell the person that you appreciate his or her input. If you were wrong (or could conceivably be construed to have it wrong) admit it. Fix it when and if a fix will work without being defensive, maybe with a little humor. Then move on.

And, yes, good publicity is also good marketing.
CHJ

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I use Vista Print for lots of my promotional materials. Be aware that shipping prices may fluctuate, depending on the deal of the moment. Please use this link: http://www.vistaprint.com/frf?frf=815651421184
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TIP: Learn about the challenges of selling to the huge boomer and senior market at www.fresheyes.squarespace.com/my - weekly - column where Robert Gray examines how you'll want to appeal to seniors' "strong sense of individuality." The column says they don't want to be treated like teenagers. We have 78 million baby boomers and the number is growing as more enter that demographic each year. What does a good marketer take from this? Well, at least that you might want to be thinking about printing in larger print or offer a large - print edition.

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The New Book Review is a service of this newsletter and Authors' Coalition. It allows authors to get more exposure from their favorite review and reviewers a chance to have more readers see their reviews - - with links, of course. Please check the guidelines on the blog site to see how a review of your book can appear there. www.TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com.
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Interesting Use of Branding:

It seems the term "branding" is moving from marketing jargon into the nation's general vocabulary. In an article in Time that looks at the Pope's "long fascination with America and how it is shaping his vision for the world,” they refer to "the democratic, pluralistic values that constitute (on our good days) the American brand."

While we're talking about branding, I might mention that in bad times (say a recession) it is often a product's or business's successful branding that helps carry them across the dangerous economic times to even greater loyalty when better days return. YOU, the author, are what you brand. Your book is only a sub - brand for you may write many books, many different kinds of books. So, now is the not the time to let down your branding efforts. Luckily, we have the Internet now so we can continue to brand ourselves very inexpensively.

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Endorsement:
"www.HowToDoItFrugally.com , by Carolyn Howard - Johnson [is] a top website for writers . . . I'd say my ROI is over 1,000%. The advice is particularly strong in addressing the new author where they are in learning the publishing/selling process. Very practical. The site is excellent."
~ Hill Kemp, author of Capitol Offense, and contributor to Secrets, Fact or Fiction? I, ISBN 0 - 9737282 - 5 - 6 and Secrets, Fact or Fiction? II, ISBN 1 - 59594 - 062 - 6, LOC 2006904627, http://www.secretsfactorfiction.com
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Tip: Editing is branding. It's putting your best book forward or your best query letter up front. Do you have an editing question? Use www.TheFrugalEditor.blogspot.com to get the answers. The guidelines for submitting are in the left column. This blog can be useful to your in several ways.

1. You can get answers to your questions. Yep.
2. You can support your friends who blog (it's called networking!).
3. You can get your name out there because blogs get read by others (so always include your website or blog address with your signature when you ask questions or you make comments).

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Sign up to receive a copy of my Sharing with Writers blog in your e - mail box. It is a focused blog on all things related to writing and publishing. Go to www.sharingwithwriters.blogspot.com. Sign up in the left hand column. Find related resources by scrolling to the bottom of the blog.
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Carolyn's Appearances and Teaching:

Nancy Mills, founder of Spirited Woman, will be interviewing Carolyn Howard - Johnson in her 2008 Spirited Woman tele - chat series. Sign up now to be part of this exciting series, whether you want to listen to Carolyn or to the likes of Jacqueline Mitchard, author of the Deep End of the Ocean and Catherine Ryan Hyde, author of Pay It Forward. To listen live to Carolyn, circle Tuesday, June 3, 2008, 10 am (PST), 1pm (EST) on your calendar. Find the entire series at: www.thespiritedwoman.com/ spirited_woman_circle. Advance registration needed.
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Carolyn Howard - Johnson will appear on Write On Four Corners with host Connie Gotsch on KSJE FM Public Radio broadcast from San Juan College. Access the program at: www.ksje.com at Wednesday, May 14 at 10:30 am and Friday May 16 at 2:30 pm. That's Mountain Time. Pacific times are 9:30 and 1:30. Click on the website to listen live in your appropriate time zone. Connie is the author of the mystery suspense novel Snap Me a Future as well as host of Roving with the Arts on KSJE and regular contributor to The Four Corners Free Press. You can also now go to MP3 podcasts and Write on 4 Corners to pick up the program after it airs.
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Carolyn Howard - Johnson will be guest speaker for Pamela Kelly's UCLA Extension course, "Public Speaking for Professionals" on Monday, May 19th at the Public Affairs Bldg, Room 2238, 7 - 10pm. Those interested in learning the steps to exciting and effective speaking, may enroll for one of Pam Kelly's coming class or hire her as a coach. She is the author of Speak with Passion, Speak with Power!, a book on speaking that I strongly recommend for authors who want their books to succeed.
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Carolyn Howard - Johnson will be one of the featured winners of the USA Book News' booth at BEA on Friday, May 30, at the nation's premier book event, Book Expo America. She will sign her USA Book News Award - Winning book, The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success in the USA Book News booths, #835 & #837 in the PMA Pavilion at 11 to 11:30 am. Make BEA reservations and get info about the event here: www.bookexpoamerica.com .
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Carolyn Howard - Johnson will read from her chapbook of poetry, Tracings, Monday evening, Aug. 11, at 7:30 pm at the Village Bookstore 1049 Swarthmore Ave, Pacific Palisades, CA. Poets Alice Pero and Lois P. Jones sponsor ongoing featured readings called Moonday. Learn more at www.home.earthlink.net/ ~pero/moonday.html.
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The f r e ^ Muse Online Writers' Conference, sponsored by Lea Schizas and Carolyn Howard - Johnson, is accepting early registration. Nearly 2,000 attended last year and openings are limited. Learn more about this year's conference, October 13 to 19th, and how you can assure your spot in 2008. We will present an all - new program soon. Carolyn will do a seminar on "Query Letters! Editing them perfectly for a great first impression." Go to: www.freewebs.com/themuseonlinewritersconference/presentersregistration.htm

To see the growing list of presenters go to: www.freewebs.com/themuseonlinewritersconference/2007/workshops.htm
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 Carolyn Howard - Johnson will speak to the California Writers Club of San Fernando Valley at 1 pm on December 13, 2008. It's at the Encino Community Center, 4939 Balboa Blvd (just north of Ventura Blvd.), Encino, CA 91316. Learn more about the year's programs www.calwriterssfv.com and sign up to join. It's a dynamic group. E - mail is cwcsfv@gmail.com.
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Wordstuff ™

Something to Make Writers Smile

(Definitions in the next few newsletters are from http://www.butlerwebs.com/jokes/definitions.htm .You might have some favorite neologisms metaphors or similes that make you smile. If so, please contribute.)
"YAWN: An honest opinion openly expressed."
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Essential Book and Record Keeping:

This letter is an entity of Authors' Coalition http://authorscoalitionandredenginepress.com

Edited and distributed by Carolyn Howard - Johnson,

http://carolynhoward - johnson.com

Author of This Is the Place, Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered, Tracings, and the How To Do It Frugally series of books for writers,

www.howtodoitfrugally.com.

Tracings, a chapbook of poetry, published by Finishing Line Press may be ordered at
www.amazon.com/gp/product/1599240173/qid=1139084827/sr=1 - 1/

This is a place to share with others and learn from others.

Though I do attempt to verify information used within this newsletter's pages, Sharing with Writers does not guarantee entities or information. Subscribers should research resources.

To submit information articles, tips or other information, e - mail Carolyn at HoJoNews@aol.com. Please put "Submission: Sharing with Writers" in the subject line.

If you do not care to receive this newsletter, send an e - mail to HoJoNews@aol.com with "Unsubscribe” in the subject line, but please, please don't tell me you've given up writing or promoting!

To subscribe to Sharing with Writers send an e - mail with "Subscribe" in the subject line to: HoJoNews@aol.com.

Please pass this newsletter on to friends or e - groups. It needn't be pasted in its complete form, but please credit this newsletter, Authors' Coalition and the individual contributors with anything you snip and paste.

Order the Frugal Book Promoter: How to Do What Your Publisher Won't at stores like UCLA, Dayton University and San Diego State University's bookstores. Order it as an e - book at http://starpublishllc.com/id43.htm

or paperback at Amazon where it is discounted:
www.amazon.com/gp/product/193299310X/qid=1149015406/sr=2 - 1/

The second in the How To Do It Frugally series of books, The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success, is available at this link to Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0978515870/


The Great First Impression Book Proposal: Everything You Need To Know About Selling Your Book in 20 Minutes or Less, is available on Amazon as a Short for 49 cents.
http://www.amazon.com/Great - First - Impression - Book - Proposal/dp/B000YG6O5U/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1199595319&sr=8 - 1