Read this fantastic blog post by Tim Ferriss; book marketing guru, world traveler, and Author of The 4-Hour Workweek. Please pay special attention to the part where he mentions, “First off, writing books is a terrible revenue model for authors.”

His summary of the opportunities in eBook marketing are very clearly pointing to using affiliate marketing as the way to make that huge hit really happen. This is the important component that I see missing from almost every single plan that every Author has put in front of me, like, ever. If you want to make money from eBooks, learn every little thing you can about affiliate marketing, and then do it for a couple of years before you decide to get serious about the details.

I love this guy.

The adorable Seth Godin announced this week that he has created his last traditionally-published book. Here’s why his plan may or may not work for everyone.

(It’s a great post, by the way, and I strongly suggest you read it.)

Seth is brilliant – that’s not debatable. He’s a rebel, a visionary, and his writing has caused me to seriously question many things about the way I consume, and the way I conduct my own business. He has spent the last 12 years developing great books that (mostly) turned out to be bestsellers. He claims this latest book, Linchpin, is his “life’s work”. (Can’t wait to read it.) And he has decided that none of his future writings will be distributed through traditional publishing channels.

Why this works for Godin;

- He already has years of live market research under his belt, which is by his own admission, really because of his relationship with great publishers.

- He has a massive private following through his blog and social media connections.

- He really does know his stuff, and he practices what he preaches.

- He has plenty of capital, both monetary and intangible, to re-invest in his business.

- He has a staff.

Do you have all of those things? Possibly not. I know I don’t. So here are my suggested alternatives for those of us who don’t, in the same order.

- We can perform a surprising amount of market research on our own. Let’s start with keyword research.

- We can build a following by doing exactly what Seth does, such as using our own blog and social media connections, and building slowly. We don’t need it to be massive to be effective – we just need it to be loyal. Loyalty must be earned.

- Very simply, we need to do and be the same. This does not take money or even much time. Transparency sells.

- Does it really take a ton of money to make things happen? Can we adjust our expectations to take advantage of our existing resources? What is the value of sweat equity?

- Staff can be had easily and quickly using virtual assistants. Knowing what to delegate has been my big project for 2010. I think I’m finally getting the hang of it.

Does it work for everyone? Not if they don’t have the drive and imagination. But since all of us are writers, perhaps we have an advantage.

I heard of another tragic self-publishing trainwreck today. Here are some of the red flags I see regularly, and how to avoid them.

If I sound a bit frustrated in this post, it’s because I am. There are just too many good books that get crushed by the wheels of the self-publishing industry, and it breaks my heart. I won’t name any names, but there is a certain niche of company in the publishing industry that has emerged in the last few years. Let’s call this niche self-publishing service providers. (SPSP’s.)

SPSP’s often offer everything from editing of your manuscript to cover design to printing and shipping/warehousing, and especially, the Big Scary Job for any Author, marketing. Some offer to re-distribute your book for you to major retailers, both online and offline. Some offer to turn your manuscript into an eBook. Some offer to do all of this for one low price. Some offer to do everything for you except to cash your checks and feed your dog.

Many aeons ago, when the publishing industry was in its’ infancy, all publishing was self-publishing. You wrote it, you printed it, you sold it. Any modern publisher who asks you for money to get your book out there is not a publisher: they are a printing company with a great marketing plan.

I am wary of this type of printing and service company, because there is an element of deception in the way some (but not all) disguise themselves as Publishers. There is sometimes an illusion of, “Well, maybe we’ll work with you, but perhaps we won’t…”, and that you must submit your manuscript for consideration first. How ridiculous: of course they will work with you. They are selling you a service. I’ve now heard several first-hand accounts of how prices fluctuate based on how fat they think your wallet is. And I’ve heard even more heart-breaking accounts of how they fail to follow through with their promises, how their systems are difficult to use, how their offerings are not all available for Canadians, and how they convince people to give them sometimes large sums of money without explaining how that investment will pay off.

The difference between a printer and a publisher is that a publisher gives you money, and a printer asks you for money. (I still love to deal with quality printers. See the indent below.) The printer who is asking you for money is doing essentially the same job as the one calling himself a publisher, minus their extra sub-contracted editors and designers and the associated extra costs. They just do one thing, and do it very well.

I really only endorse one method of self-publishing for paper books: hire your own Editor, Designer, Publicist, Marketing Consultant, Virtual Assistant and Printer. Anything else, in my less-than-humble opinion, is only an illusion of control. And why else are you self-publishing, anyway?

If you want an honest-to-goodness book printer that does a great job for a great price, please talk to my friend Gerhard Aichelberger who represents Friesens in my local area. Gerhard himself is a wonderful human being, and I personally guarantee that doing business with him will be a delight. Friesens is a fantastic Canadian book printing company that now prints many of the books in North America, for large and small publishers alike. They do both large and small runs of soft and hardcover books, with an almost unlimited number of options. They are consistent in their pricing, they treat their staff well, they have good environmentally-friendly policies, and when you call them, an actual human will answer the phone, not a machine. (I love that last part.)

Here are some red flags to watch out for when you start your book printing project;

They offer to do everything for you.

Self-publishing is a lot of work. That’s pretty clear. All most Authors want to do is to write, and have someone else take care of the design, printing, editing, and especially, the selling. If it seems too easy, it is. Question everything, because it’s often much cheaper to administer your own sub-contractors (as I’ve described above in bold text) than to rely on them to do it for you. (Much like building your own home instead of relying on a general contractor.)

They don’t tell you anything you don’t like.

My friend and fellow Book Broad, Kim Plumley has a great expression: “Somebody has to tell the emperor he’s naked.” If you feel flattered, feel wary. Editing is a crucial part of the marketing process, and I’ve never heard of an Author who didn’t like something that happened during the Editorial work. Authors treat their books like babies, and vanity presses prey on this. They won’t tell you the harsh realities of what you’ll need to be prepared for when you launch your book business.

They tell you that they can transfer your manuscript automatically to a variety of different outlets and formats.

Ask any Author who’s tried to accomplish a printed paperback and ebook with a single upload. They will offer to buy you dinner while they spend an evening regaling you with entertaining stories about the lack of continuity in the process, the way their first format worked fine but then waited 8 months for the next format they had ordered and pre-paid (yes, I personally talked to a Canadian woman that had been waiting this long for her eBook version) and the lack of support staff available to handle complaints.

They point out that you retain all the copyright and ownership of your work.

Of course you do. You’re self-publishing. That’s like saying that not only can you buy the underpants, but you also have the right to wear them on your head. How useless and obtuse.

They tell you the books will look as good as any book on the shelf in any major bookstore.

Maybe. But know that if you’re printing books in short runs or print-on-demand (ie. one at a time) that’s not probable, although the technology is definitely catching up fast. Your options for things like paper and cover style choices will be fewer. Your design of your cover is likely to be based on a template. Your book size options will be one of the 2-5 on their menu. Your editor has 50 other books to get done by Friday. Ask what methods and machinery they use to print and bind books, and then compare it to this and this. Theirs is paint-by-number publishing, and they want to fit you into their pigeonholes, not meet your needs or ideal design options.

They say they will do all the marketing for you.

HAHAHAHAHAHA

OK Peg, there’s got to be something positive in this somewhere.

The gain here is that we learn to discern great opportunity from great risk. I’m just asking you to be cautious in your selection of companies to do business with, and to be sure that you consider your objectives for the project carefully. If one of your objectives is making money, please take the marketing and costs of your product into account before you spend a dime or type a single letter. Your easiest choice is rarely the most profitable.

Now is the right time for the discussion about SPSP’s to start. The more of us entrepreneurial publishers develop specific and discerning skills when it comes to choosing with whom to do business, the more honest and valuable companies will rise to fill the niche. And since we know that everybody has a book in them…

I’ll be speaking at Northern Voice (#nv10) this weekend in Vancouver, Canada. This is the Canadian personal blogging and social media conference that’s now in its’ sixth year, and is being held at the Life Sciences Centre out at UBC.

I’m very proud to be co-presenting with Angela Crocker and Kim Plumley as The Book Broads. The title of our talk is “Flog Your Blog“, which is all about how to turn your blog into a book. The talk is scheduled for 1:45pm on Saturday May 8th, in room 1510. (That’s a bigger room than we were originally scheduled to use.)

Topics we’ll cover include;

- traditional publishing vs. self-publishing
- how to tell if your blog is a good candidate for publishing
- examples of bloggers who’ve successfully turned their blogs into books
- what *not* to do to turn your blog into a book
- how to use social media in conjunction with traditional publicity to help market your book
- how to choose the right options for various types of publishing
- eBooks vs. print books (and other options you may not have considered)
- how to market your book long before it’s published
- what the real job of a successful Author is
- your first, second and third steps to get it happening

I’ll be following up this session with my workshop on June 19th in Langley (near Vancouver, Canada), the eBook Jumpstart: http://ebookjumpstartlangley.eventbrite.com/.

Hope to see you all there!

I’ve been saying for some time now that if you don’t start to take video seriously as a major marketing/educational medium, you and your book or other business are toast.

In this article on Biznik.com, Contributor Michael Shuett (who works with a video production company in Washington State) clearly states it yet again. “Being without a professional video will soon be equivalent to not having a website; it will be as necessary as it used to be to have a listing in the Yellow Pages.”

Shuett offers statistics from the Unica State of Marketing 2010 study, which clearly demonstrates that most organizations intend to use video (especially in mobile social media content) this year as part of their marketing strategies. We have known for some time that search results always favour video content over any other content, including text, blog updates, and even audio.

The big obstacle for most of us? We freak out when someone suggests that we should be on camera. I also have a face made for radio, but I still get up there and do video regularly. Consider these options for freaked-out video creators;

• Narrate A Slide Show: This is the least threatening and easiest way to start with video. If you do any sort of speaking or teaching, a good first video exercise might be to take one of your training sessions and simply narrate it while you flip through your slides. This way, only your voice is present, and people will see your presentation, not your face. You can use a variety of tools to create this, including Jing (free) and/or Camtasia (not so free).
• Prioritize Audio Quality: Use a good quality microphone – sound quality is essential. You can get away with crappy lighting and bad photography if people can still hear your message, but if they can’t hear you, they stop watching. A headset is my preference, and seems to get the best results, partly because it’s maintained at a steady distance from my mouth at all times and doesn’t move around. However, I recognize that this can make you look like you’re trying to launch a space shuttle. If you’d prefer a handheld (and there are cases where I prefer a handheld – see a future post about that) you can get away with a surprisingly affordable one. I paid about $160 US for my headset a couple of years ago (here’s a link to something similar – very comfortable, as I wear these a lot) and about $35 for my handheld (including shipping) on eBay. Test everything before you start shooting. (Best tip: be sure the microphone switch is turned to the ‘on’ position. No joke – I’ve done it.)
• Do It Yourself: Although Shuett suggests that video should be professionally-produced or nothing, I must say that I disagree. Video created on-the-fly with a gritty home-grown quality can provoke a better response than professional quality. I mean really, who trusts a script? (You can always tell when it’s a script and someone’s reading from a cue card.) It’s so easy to just sit in front of your webcam and make a fast recording. I’ve even created video while driving. (Safely and legally, I swear.) Homegrown is better than nothing.
• Use YouTube’s Natural SEO Benefits: The overwhelming majority of video viewed on the web these days is still ultimately hosted on YouTube.com. When uploading a video there, you’ll be prompted with a variety of fields, including one specifically for keywords. (Be sure to do your keyword research up front.) Don’t neglect all these other fields – fill them out completely! People don’t necessarily have to find your very own website to discover you. Simply searching YouTube will help them find your video, and this will lead them back to your site, because of course, your URL is clearly present there for them to click on.
• Don’t Edit: After the first few years dealing with editing video, I’m now really a one-take sort of girl. If I mess up seriously, I’ll re-take it, but I hate chopping in second cameras, voiceovers, etc. What a drag, and a delay to posting. I just shoot and post. I will vaguely outline what I want to say verbally before turning on the camera, but I rarely even write it down anymore. If you know your stuff, it comes easily anyway.
• Be Funny: This is synonymous with being real, keeping it loose, etc. Boring = viewers who leave. Funny = believability. If you’re not naturally funny, don’t try to fake it, but keep it friendly at least.

Recently, for the first time, I was recognized in a crowd at a business event, because people had seen me on video. They already trusted me and my company, because they had seen me talk about their subject, and they knew my style. I’ve always said, if a fat chick in her late 30′s isn’t credible these days, who is? It’s the one thing I have going for me. (Along with good teeth.) Find out what you’ve got going for you, and use it on video.

Watch this 2.5 minute video on YouTube.com - but don’t make assumptions until you’ve seen the whole thing.

I admit it – I didn’t see that coming.

Check out this article from iStock.com, about 6 things to keep in mind when designing a logo. These tips can also be handy to keep in mind when designing books, book covers, and typesetting books or ebooks.

I can’t stop watching the iPad video over and over. But how will this device work as an eBook reader, and what do eBook producers need to know?

The iPad is (partly) designed to elevate eBooks to the next level, and it’s really the first practical, portable incarnation of a reader designed to take advantage of what I’ve been calling “next generation eBooks”. (Despite the fact that ‘eBook reader’ is pretty far down on the list of all the apps and features of this device, long after video and web surfing.) This means total integration of my “Three M’s of eBooks”, which are: multimedia, modular, and mobile.

As eBook creators, here’s what we need to consider as we prepare to launch eBooks for this elegant new platform;

eBooks are no longer just applications, as they have been since their adoption of books into the iTunes app store in late December 2008. eBooks are managed through eBook reader applications like iBook, the fully integrated eBook reader in the iPad, (!!), which offers books in the ePub format. This format is also supported by readers like Lexcycle’s Stanza, Mobipocket, and Adobe Digital Editions. iBook will allow you to purchase, download and read books wirelessly, right from the device, without the connection of a computer.

We don’t know what the selection of books will be like in the US-only (for now) iBooks store. Will they eventually have an inventory similar to Amazon? The publishers reportedly offering books in the store include; Penguin, HarperCollins, Simon & Schuster, Macmillan, and Hachette, but who knows about others.

Neither do we know what sort of specs developers will have to deal with, but we can surmise that it will be similar to Kindle, as the iBook store will support books in the “re-flowable” ePub format.

The display of an ebook will be more like an actual book, as seen briefly in the video. Page flipping is more natural, and perhaps to take advantage of the superior screen, the format will expand to allow producers to control more things like font styles, embedded graphics and so on, but still allow the user to control things like zoom and font size. We’ll have to see the finer points of this.

We don’t know what support iBooks will have for independent publishers and self-publishing Authors. Kindle is relatively kind to self-pubs, (compared to some retailers that will remain unnamed) and Apple has a great history of inviting in independent iPod app developers, so let’s hope their relationship with independents through iBooks will also be a good one.

Kindle books will apparently still work, as the iPad claims that is will still be compatible with all the iPhone and iPod apps, including Stanza and the Kindle app. However, apps designed for the iPod and iPhone will only display as a small part of the screen, so books read through existing apps won’t take advantage of the new screen size, which is rather dumb, if you ask me.

More apps mean more eBook formats, such as multimedia PDF’s and so on. But since Flash support has not existed up until now on any Apple devices, (Apple is totally *not* buds with Adobe – like, whatever, just get over it…) we still won’t see the full potential of all that a “next generation” ebook could be without embedded flash in PDF’s. In other words, it’s still not likely to display all that a multimedia PDF would if you opened it on your PC.

We don’t yet know what role DRM will play in this new iBook universe. It’s pretty tough to imagine Apple allowing eBooks to download in a DRM-free manner, even as an option, but you never know. Apple has surprised us before. Many, many times before.

Books can possibly be more than just pages, because with a beautiful display like that available to us, we can really get creative when it comes to adding multimedia content, or adding value to book bundles with things like audio content and printable extras all zipped into a friendly package.

Yes, there are still plenty of big question marks. But, I know I’m going to seriously consider purchasing an iPad for myself. I’ve been waiting for the release of this device to make up my mind about a portable eBook reader that I can really live with.

But no matter what, I can’t wait to start developing eBooks for this thing!

The debate surrounding free content has become so heated it melts the keyboards of most Bloggers, Musicians, Visual Artists and other Creators. But does it work for Authors?

Anyone who’s published a book knows that you’re expected to give away a few things for free, including sample chapters, and of course review and publicity copies of your book. Most Authors have done free lectures in exchange for a table at the back of the room from which to sell their stuff.

But what if you gave away the entire book? All the time? To everybody?

Bloggers have been particularly frustrated by the issue of what to give away, and what to sell, at any of the conventions and gatherings I’ve been to in 2009. Most of them have written the equivalent of several books and not gained a penny from their efforts. Bloggers are getting a bit angry about this, because we’ve all seen so many promises of things like huge waves of blogging ad revenue that simply haven’t come true. In addition, people have become quite jaded by a proliferation of quality free content, and don’t seem willing to pay for information that helps them, entertains them, or even makes them money in turn.

But there are people making decent money – in fact, some making fantastic money – giving away content. How are they doing it?

According to Blogger and Podcaster Magazine, there are a few basic ways that people profit from free online content, including (for the most part) advertising, merchandise, and using the content to sell something more valuable: their consulting expertise. Like you, I was worried that this meant that if Authors wanted to learn from other industries and try giving away their books while making money in some other fashion, we might need to place completely unrelated and distracting ads alongside our books, which are now published as websites. This might work for some, but definitely not for all Authors and their creative works.

Seth Godin argues that  “…The book is a souvenir.” In the previous link, he discusses several cases where Authors – including himself, of course – who have released their books for free on the internet, are still selling paper or downloadable copies. Why? Because what people pay for is the instrument of delivery. Special leather-bound editions might only sell 250 copies, but they could sell for upwards of $250 per copy. CD’s containing eBooks, along with perhaps some bonus material, are still capable of significant digital cachet. Here’s an Author’s opportunity to partner with a graphic artist and create something elegant, beautiful, and distinctive – something irresistable.

Even 37Signals, the company who created the online project management system called Basecamp (that last one is an affiliate link), offered their ebook Getting Real for free if you read it off their website. They sell a downloadable version for $19, and a paper copy for $25. Despite offering it for free, they’ve sold over 30,000 copies of the downloadable version alone.

Examine this additional model from filmmaker Nina Paley, who created the film Sita Sings the Blues, based on the Ramayana of Valmiki. (Well, why the hell not?) Her very public accounting (see the link under her name) of the ways and how much money she’s made by not selling her film tells us something very important: this model does work, but you have to take a wholistic approach. Just one of those revenue streams is not enough – you need to present a well-rounded series of offerings.

As Paley says on her website, “There is the question of how I’ll get money from all this. My personal experience confirms audiences are generous and want to support artists. Surely there’s a way for this to happen without centrally controlling every transaction. The old business model of coercion and extortion is failing. New models are emerging, and I’m happy to be part of that. But we’re still making this up as we go along. You are free to make money with the free content of Sita Sings the Blues, and you are free to share money with me. People have been making money in Free Software for years; it’s time for Free Culture to follow. I look forward to your innovations.” (Links in previous paragraph are from Paley’s original website. I encourage you to give her money.)

Even with all the heat, I think I’m up for the challenge. Even if it melts this keyboard.