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Some Brief Advice for Indie Authors By Sharon E. Cathcart Published by Sharon E.

Cathcart at Smashwords Copyright 2012, Sharon E. Cathcart Than you !or downloading this !ree eBoo . "ou are welcome to share it with your !riends. This boo may be reproduced, copied and distributed !or noncommercial purposes, pro#ided the boo remains in its complete original !orm. $! you en%oyed this boo , please return to Smashwords.com to disco#er other wor s by this author. Than you !or your support. Contents &bout This Boo The 'e#il is in the 'etails The (or o! Being a (riter Thoughts on Being a (riter )eadership and (orld#iew (riting as an $ncome Stream *There+s Enough Success !or E#eryone,.e#er /nderestimate the 0alue o! .etwor ing Things That &uthors Should 1now 2oal Setting 3ormulas in (riting4 & Chic en5Egg Problem The 3ans (ho Count on "ou Building )elationships with 3ans "ou &re a Brand 6n The Concept o! Creati#e 7icense 8ore (or on Branding Than ing "our 8entors The Business o! (riting )ecommended )esources &bout the &uthor 6ther Titles by the &uthor About This Book Shortly be!ore my !irst boo was published, $ started an author blog. $ now, $ now. "ou+re thin ing *"ou and e#eryone else.- $t didn+t ta e me long to notice that my most popular posts were the ones in which $ wrote about either the cra!t or the business o! writing. Some Brief Advice for Indie Authors is a compendium o! those posts9 they appear in appro:imately chronological order, !rom the earliest days o! my blog until now. )ead it, s ip around !rom essay to essay, en%oy it9 most importantly, though, ta e the ad#ice that wor s !or you and discard the rest. E#eryone+s business is a little di!!erent, and that+s %ust splendid. $+#e included a list o! recommended resources at the #ery end. These are boo s and websites that $ ha#e personally !ound help!ul.

Than s, as always, !or reading. The Devil is In the Details ;ow much research should you do be!ore you start writing< That=s a hard >uestion to answer, to be honest. ;owe#er, you need to ma e sure you ha#e the details correct. "our audience may now a lot about your sub%ect matter, e#en i! it=s something that happens in the realm o! !iction. 3or e:ample, in In The Eye of The Beholder: A Novel of the Phantom of the Opera, the ma%ority o! the action ta es place in 1??@ Paris. That=s the year that 2usta# Ei!!el=s !amous tower opened9 i! $ hadn=t mentioned the Ei!!el Tower at all, it would ha#e loo ed rather peculiar to those who now their 3rench history. Perhaps you=re writing something about combat, maybe swordA!ighting< Be sure that the weaponry you describe is doing what it should. $ read an otherwise nice short story a while bac that had a !ellow using a sabre Ba cutting5slicing weapon designed !or use on horsebac C as a thrustAandAparry weapon in ground combat. The blade is not designed !or thrustAandAparry9 it=s cur#ed, and only sharpened on one edge. That=s what $ mean when $ say the de#il is in the details. $! your reader eeps pausing in your story to say D(ait a minute, that=s not how this wor s at all,D you=ll distract them and maybe e#en lose their attention. $=m researching and writing simultaneously !or In The Eye of The Storm, as well as researching !or the !inal boo in the trilogy Btitle as yet undeterminedC. The only way to ma e !iction belie#able is to now the little details o! your setting, so get to now your librarian, the internet and any other sources o! in!ormation that you ha#e a#ailable. &ttention to detail will bring your manuscript ali#e. $ promise. The Work of Being a Writer ;i, e#eryone. The !ollowing post comes !rom my personal blog o! E51050@. $ share it here to let people now some o! my e:periences as $ publiciFed the eBoo edition o! In The Eye of The Beholder. $ will share similar articles !rom time to time. GGG $ should be drying my hair, but $ %ust need to get this out. Being a writer is hard wor . Sure, there=s the actual writing ... but then what< $ was thin ing about so many things this morning, and trying not to be o#erwhelmed. Every submission requirement is different $=m in the midst o! prepping yet another #ersion o! In The Eye of The Beholder, this time !or a /1 publisher who is interested in recei#ing my manuscript !or consideration. &!ter that, yet another submission #ersion to prep !or &uthonomy. !ublicity is hard" and sometimes you make a mis#ste$ $ did already. $ submitted my boo to a re#iewer who belatedly Band $ mean belatedly9 this had ne#er been stated pre#iouslyC announced that he e:pects authors to >uery him be!ore sending him wor s. $ sent a note o! apology9 there=s nothing more $ could do.

I am sometimes frustrated by the $ublicity $rocess" to tell you the truth (e are all taught not to be boast!ul and sel!Aser#ing. $ used to wor in public a!!airs !or the &rmy, and $ wrote press releases and promotional news in!ormation all the time. 8ar eting mysel!, though, is a challenge. 8y new mar eting postcards ha#e arri#ed9 the ne:t step is getting them out to people. I have the additional burden of dealing %ith medically resistant de$ression That ma es getting out o! the house to go to my day %ob Band e#ery author o! my ac>uaintance has a day %obC di!!icult, so adding this additional Dshi!t,D i! you will, ma es things %ust a little tougher. Thrown in that my house is a disaster ... which %ust !eeds the depression. $=m wor ing on the house, but sometimes it=s all $ can do to pitch out the recycling. Those who cope with depression will understand9 those who ha#e ne#er been through it cannot possibly relate AA it=s not something you can %ust Dsnap out o!.D At the same time" I theori&e that my de$ression may be a gift 8any artists and authors throughout history ha#e been prone to bouts o! melancholia. $ e#en ga#e my main character, Claire, a tendency toward melancholia in an attempt to get across what it=s li e to li#e in that state. $ don=t now how well $ succeeded in that regard ... only a reader could tell me. $ really needed to get this o!! o! my chest. $ am trying not to get !rustrated or depressed this early in the game ... some minutes are better than others. Thoughts on Being a Writer This is another reApost !rom my personal blog, dated 8ay 2H, 200@. GGG $ did a little more editing wor on In The Eye of the Beholder today, both be!ore $ went to church and a little bit this a!ternoon a!ter $ reAwatched PS I Love You. &!ter ser#ices, )e#. 8i e ga#e me my chocolate bar Ba priFe !or correctly identi!ying the language into which one o! 8CC=s wee ly re!lections had been translated AA PolishC and the reprint o! my !irst entry in the ee!ly "eflection series. 8y article was pic ed up by another 8CC !or their newsletter. So, $=m watching PS I Love You this a!ternoon, and one o! the letters 2erry sends to ;olly tal s about how he remembers her tal ing about creating something. ;olly tal s about how creating things shows the world something about you4 something that you didn=t e#en perhaps now about yoursel!. $t seemed li e all o! these e:periences today conspired to ma e me realiFe something4 $ had stopped thin ing about mysel! as a writer. $ guess $ !elt as though $ no longer had that right a!ter getting that re%ection letter last year !rom the publisher. $ thought $ was deluding mysel!, you now< $ had a no#el AA II1 plus words, with a plot and e#erything AA but $ had stopped thin ing o! mysel! as a writer. $ don=t now >uite why. $ started the boo !our years ago, during an especially dar time in my li!e. $t too me three years to !inish it. $ am so proud o! it, e#en as $ go through this !inal batch o! edits and tighten things up once and !or all so that it can go up on the eBoo site. But other than this blog, $ had pretty much stopped writing until )e#. 8i e as ed me to write a wee ly re!lection. $ used to write !or a li#ing, !ol s. But $ stopped thin ing about mysel! as an artist o! words AA $ wasn=t ind enough to mysel! to thin $ had any business doing so. The o#erarching theme o! In The Eye of the Beholder is the importance o! compassion. $ also realiFe that it=s the o#erarching theme o! my two !a#orite boo s o! all time BThe #an ho $ell to

Earth, by (alter Te#is, and Phantom of the Opera, by 2aston 7erou:C. &nd yet $ did not ha#e enough compassion toward mysel! to recogniFe that $ was shutting down the most creati#e part o! me4 the part o! me that has, more times than $ care to admit, shown me something that $ didn=t now about mysel!. So, here it is4 $ am a writer. $ am an artist o! words. 8y greatest gi!t is my pen Bor, in this case, my eyboardC and what $ ma e come !rom it. $ am so #ery proud o! mysel! !or what $ ha#e written already, and $ am grate!ul !or !inding my way bac to that place. 'eadershi$ and Worldvie% $ read a !ascinating boo last wee 4 All #ar!eters are Liars, by Seth 2odin. .ow, 2odin doesn=t really thin mar eters are liars9 what he maintains is that they tell a story about a product that we belie#e, whether or not it is so, because it !its into our particular world#iew. & world#iew, according to 2odin, is not something that you can change with !acts, or a better product than some other guy. So, he says, you need to !igure out how to pitch your product to people who share your world#iew. $n other words, you need to !igure out how to tell the story to people who will belie#e it. $ share all o! this because lately $ ha#e been spending some time in an onAline !orum !ocused on historical romance no#els. &s you now, In The Eye of The Beholder is e:actly that. 7et me tell you something, !riends4 this group has been an education to me. 6ne o! the reasons $ wrote In The Eye of The Beholder is that $ was tired o! reading the same boo with a di!!erent co#er. $ !ound romance no#els to be !ormulaic and had really grown tired o! them. The heroine would ine#itably be a 20Asomething #irginal bluestoc ing, and the hero would ine#itably be a handsome man with a dar secret in his past. They would hate each other at !irst Bor they would lo#e each other but some horrible circumstance would eep them apart !or a good portion o! the boo C, but e#entually they would come together and li#e ;appily E#er &!ter. E#ery. Single. Time. $t was li e the publishers handed out a template to authors or something. So, anyway, there was a >uestion posted on the group about whether people e:pected or wanted a ;appily E#er &!ter in their romance no#els. (ith !ew e:ceptions, the answer was a resounding DyesD AA that they bought these boo s e:pecting certain things, and ;appily E#er &!ter was one o! them. That=s when $ grasped something $ hadn=t thought about be!ore4 people buy boo s because they !it into a particular world#iew, too. People who really li e the romance genre want to now that those elements o! the story that $ describe will be there. (hat $ !igured out, as a result, is that $ needed to !igure out how to pitch my boo di!!erently. Claire, my heroine, is in her J0s during most o! its action, and she=s no #irginal bluestoc ing, as those o! you who ha#e read the boo ha#e reason to now. She=s not a typical romance heroine, and Eri is not a typical romance hero. $ thin that there is a de!inite historical romance audience out there !or this boo , and $ thin that there are some other audiences !or whom it would be a good Dpitch.D ;ow does your world#iew help you decide which boo s you buy< $=m curious to now your thoughts.

Writing as an Income Stream ;i, e#eryone. $ ha#e good news to report, and that brings me to the concept o! writing as an income stream. $=#e been chosen by E:aminer.com as their museum correspondent in my area. $t=s a paying gig that allows me to incorporate my %ournalistic s ills and li!eAlong lo#e o! museums into some additional money !or our household. $t=s hard to say how much that will be9 payment is based on tra!!ic to my page, and $ need to generate some interest in museums. 8y plan is to include the big tra#eling e:hibits that come through, o! course, but $ also want to generate some interest in the smaller, lessAtra#eled establishments. $t doesn=t hurt that $=#e been a #olunteer docent at two di!!erent area museums and ha#e some insider nowledge, either. $ ha#e been !ortunate enough, in the past, to ha#e a !ullAtime %ob as a newspaper %ournalist and editor4 $ got to write !or a li#ing. $t was my sole income stream. Those %obs are !ew and !ar between nowadays9 many newspapers see !reelance contributors and pay accordingly. .o no#elist o! my personal ac>uaintance writes !ullAtime9 we all ha#e day %obs Be#en i! that day %ob is being a homema erC. &s with many people, my boo is not my sole source o! income. $=m not going to get rich %ust because my name is on the co#er. $ thin that=s a big misnomer. $n a 2ood)eads discussion group, we tal ed about how many o! our !riends thin we must be rolling in wealth because our boo s are a#ailable !or sale. The days when you could ma e a decent li#ing as a writer are in the past, and li ely to stay that way Bunless you=re Stephen 1ing, but that=s a whole other storyC. $ o!ten say that you should write because you lo#e it, not because you e:pect to become a household name. There are paying gigs out there !or writers, but you need to eep your e:pectations realistic. 7oo at what is a#ailable to you and consider how you can use your s ills to bring in a little e:tra money. "ou ne#er now where it will ta e you. (There)s Enough Success for Everyone*( $ too ad#antage o! a wonder!ul and une:pected opportunity this past Sunday. $ attended a 0ision Binder Playdate wor shop by li!e coach 8olly Bur e, Kueen o! Con!idence. The theme was DSuccess,D and we all wor ed on maps to show what success was li e !or us in #arious parts o! our li#es Bhealth, relationships, etcC. (e then wor ed on collages that showed images that related to our concepts o! success. (e used lots o! colors, magaFine ads, words4 whate#er seemed right. The idea was to appeal to the childli e subconscious that resides in all o! us. There was a great deal o! synergy in the room once we bro e our silence. E#eryone had been diligently wor ing away on their maps when 8olly said D$t=s o ay to tal about it.D That=s when we started sharing our dreams, and disco#ered that people in the room with us had sources and ideas that would help on our dreams, $t was splendid. $ am a!raid that 8olly will, at some point, begin to thin $=#e turned into a sycophant. $nstead, $ !eel more li e an e#angelist. $ %ust can=t say enough about her wor . The blog on her website is choc !ull o! great ideas !or ma ing your li!e better, and that=s %ust out there !or anyone to read and use.

8e< $ can=t wait to ta e another class. $=m planning !or 8olly=s course on ma:imiFing 3aceboo !an pages. +ever ,nderestimate the -alue of +et%orking ;i, e#eryone. $ am practically %umping up and down in my seat with e:citement4 $ ha#e a /S publisher !or In The Eye of The Beholder: A Novel of The Phantom of the Opera. &s all o! you now, $ ha#e an eBoo publisher, as well as a regular publisher in the /1. ;owe#er, lots o! people in the /S are BunderstandablyC reluctant to order a boo !rom &maFon /1 or a publisher abroad gi#en the current e:change rate, and many people are not een on eBoo s !or whate#er reason. So, here=s what happened. $ wound up %oining a boatload o! author websites and starting to po e around here and there, post where $ !elt led to do so, and got to now some people. 6ne o! those people is 7inda Boulanger, who runs Treasure7ine Boo s. (e started getting to now one another and, a!ter a while, she sent me a pretty interesting proposal about publishing my no#el in the /S. $ won=t lie9 $ wasn=t sure what to thin . $ as ed a lot o! >uestions AA and boy, am $ grate!ul !or 7inda=s le#el o! patience with me. She clari!ied e#erything $ wanted to now, and $ am con!ident that this will be a #ery good wor ing relationship as a result. So, $ too a deep breath and said D7et=s do this thing.D $=ll be retaining Lames Courtney=s beauti!ul artwor !or the /S edition9 it=s practically part o! the branding !or the boo at this point. 6! course, we need to get the manuscript ready to go and then the issues with /S &maFon that $ ha#e lamented so many times Bthey continue to insist the boo is out o! print, despite my /1 publisher=s protestations to the contraryC will be at an end. People in the /S will be readily able to obtain what $ am con!ident will be a niceAloo ing boo , and at a reasonable price. $=ll eep you all updated as we progress. Things That Authors Should .no% 8y !irst boo , Born of ar %%% &edicated to Peace, was published in 1@@I. $ was a newspaper editor at the time, ha#ing already wor ed my way up the ladder as a reporter. Since then, $=#e sold a no#el in two di!!erent mar ets B/S and /1C, sel!Apublished two #olumes o! essays, and ha#e a publisher waiting !or a memoir. 3ran ly, $=#e been writing !or as long as $ can remember. $ ha#e ne#er !orgotten some ad#ice gi#en to my !irst %ournalism class by the pro!essor4 D$ cannot ma e you a good writer9 you either are one, or you aren=t.D ;al! o! the class dropped out a!ter that. $=m not idding. ;ere are some o! the things $ learned along the way that ha#e helped me as an author. $ share these to help my !ellow writers along the way. /rammar matters $! you aren=t sure about a word, loo it up in the dictionary. $! you aren=t sure about grammar, get a good primer. There are a lot o! them out there. 2et a good proo!reader, too9 don=t rely on your spell chec ing so!tware. Boo publishers don=t ha#e time to

clean up a!ter you. $! your story is good, but your grammar is horrible, you=re going to get a nice, generic re%ection letter and that=s about it. Detailed re0ection letters are %orth their %eight in gold $! you get a re%ection letter that tells you e:actly what=s wrong with your manuscript, ta e it to heart. $t means that someone too the time to tell you something besides Dthan s, but no than s.D Chances are %ust about 100 percent that the ad#ice will ma e your manuscript stronger. 1acts matter" too Someone in your audience will now i! you got it wrong. Trust me. +ot everyone %ill like your story. $! we all li ed the same things, there would only be one boo , one painting, one symphony, etc., in all o! the world. 2row a thic s in. (rite because you lo#e it, not because you e:pect uni#ersal praise, laud and honor. )eaders= tastes are sub%ecti#e9 there are plenty o! people out there who li e boo s that ma e me groan in agony. $=d be willing to bet that some o! my !a#orite boo s do the same to others. If you %ant to be a good %riter" become a voracious reader "ou will start to see what wor s, and why. &!ter you !inish a particular boo , or e#en as you are reading, as yoursel! what is wor ing !or you. 'o you belie#e what the author is telling you about a particular character or situation< ;ow are they drawing you into the story< ;ow is language used to create an impression< To show you what is going on< )ead with a critical eye so that you can understand how to ma e your own writing better. Take a %riting %orksho$ or course .ot only will you ma e contacts, but you will learn !rom others. People will criti>ue your manuscript and help you impro#e it. &gain, don=t get into this loo ing !or uni#ersal praise, laud and honor9 you want people to show you where the plot holes, continuity problems and yes, grammatical issues lie. !ublishing is a business &s my coAauthor on Born of ar said to me a while bac , it=s not about whether your writing is brilliant or not. $t=s about what the a#erage person will buy at the store. $! an ac>uisitions editor has one or two Ddogs,D they=re loo ing at a pin slip. So, no, the ac>uisitions person is not going to Dgi#e you a brea D because you=re a teenager, ha#e a disability o! some ind, couldn=t a!!ord a proo!reader, or anything else. They care about whether your boo is going to ma e them money. Period. +o one gets rich as an author $t ta es a long time to cash out an ad#ance Bmeaning that the amount o! royalties coming into the publisher ha#e now paid o!! the company=s initial in#estment in you and you get a royalty chec C. 8ost new authors sell !ewer than 100 copies o! their boo s, and publishers now this. Self#$ublishing is no guarantee of success &gain, most new authors sell !ewer than 100 copies o! their boo s. 2ou need a $latform ;ow are you mar eting your boo s< (here are you pitching them< E#en mainstream publishers seldom put money into promoting new authors nowadays9 they e:pect you to do it. Be prepared to use social media Be.g., 2ood)eads, 3aceboo , etc.C to pitch your wor . There is enough success out there for everyone $ thin that says it all. /oal Setting $ disco#ered something #ery interesting last year4 $ didn=t get as much done as $ wanted to. 6h, $ tal ed about how $ hoped to ha#e In The Eye of The Storm ready !or publication at the end o! the year. B$t didn=t happen.C But $ didn=t ma e an actual plan.

This year, $ decided to do better. Preparation is not lost time, right< So, $ got a poc et calendar and started putting in what li!e coach and author Stacia Pierce calls D!aith datesD on it. $ put in the months in which $ anticipated royalty chec s !or each >uarter. $ put in the dates o! a seminar $=m attending. $ put in my ne:t dental appointment Today. $ put in the months in which $ will ha#e my ne:t two eBoo s a#ailable to the public. $ don=t ha#e a !aith date yet !or In The Eye of The Storm+s completion, but what came out o! this preparation process and goal setting was a recognition that $ need to go into that manuscript !or a ma%or reAwrite AA and $=m only at about the hal!way point. /nless and until $ get that reAwrite done, $ can=t pro%ect how long it will ta e to !inish. So, $ set goals !or the pro%ects that $ now $ can ha#e done soon, and will put the ne:t bunch o! !aith dates together when $ ha#e a better idea o! how much $=m biting o!!. (hat goals ha#e you set to ad#ance your dreams< 1ormulas in Writing3 A Chicken4Egg !roblem 'I (ot a story ain)t (ot no moral* let the +ad (uy ,in every once in a ,hile%' -- ' ill It .o "ound in /ircles*' Billy Preston & discussion on another !orum where $ participate went a little a!ield when someone brought up !ormulaic boo s. $ responded by citing romance no#els Bwhich, $ ha#e admitted time and again, $ ha#e pretty much stopped reading, with the e:ception o! those by Laimey 2rant, because $ li e her community o! characters who cross o#er among the storiesC. $ e#en cited what $ saw as the !ormula. & romance author told me that $ was wrong9 that my DperceptionD Bher termC did not match reality. (hat=s ind o! interesting is that it=s no secret that there are !ormulas !or all genres o! no#els. $ see it as a ind o! chic en5egg problem, and $=ll get to that in a moment. 3irst, let=s loo at some sources that show my point. The )omance (riters o! &merica lays out their re>uirements !or what constitutes the romance genre in !airly broad terms. Then, they lay out the !ormula !or the many subgenres. That seems pretty straight!orward to me. There=s a great blog post by romance author Brenda Coulter, in which she compares the romance no#el !ormula to ma ing chic en soup. &uthor Stephanie 8ittman has a slightly di!!erent ta e on the secret !ormula, but she also admits that it=s there. ;ow about some other genres< Elements that ma e a no#el steampun #ersus other types o! science !iction are pretty clear. 7i ewise mystery no#els. "ou see my point, so $=ll not belabor it !urther. .ow we come to the chic en5egg part o! the >uestion4 how did we get here< (hen $ !irst sought a publisher !or In The Eye of The Beholder: A Novel of The Phantom of the Opera, $ got a long and detailed re%ection letter !rom the !irst house to which $ submitted it. B.ow, those letters really are a treasure9 they=re an opportunity to ma e your story better because they gi#e you in!ormation. 8y manuscript was much better !or ta ing ad#ice !rom that note.C

8y coAauthor on Born of ar %%% &edicated to Peace tal ed me down o!! the ledge by e:plaining that boo publishing really was about what sells Bas he put it, Dwhat 8rs. &#erage will buy at (alAmartDC. 6ne or two Ddogs,D and an ac>uisitions editor is loo ing at a pin slip. 8y boo is deliberately written against !ormula in many ways. The heroine is not an earlyA 20s #irgin9 the hero is not handsome and per!ect. That was part o! the issue, and one on which $ was unwilling to compromise. But $ digress. So, here=s the >uestion4 i! all that=s a#ailable to 8rs. &#erage at (alA8art is what the ac>uisitions editor thin s she wants, how do we now where the !ormulae originated< 'o they really come !rom 8rs. &#erage=s buying patterns, or do they come because that=s the only choice she=s got than s to ac>uisitions editors who belie#e that=s the choice she wants< "ou see the dilemma, $=m sure. &nd the truth is, no one really nows the answer to that >uestion. (hat we do now is that !ormulae !or certain genres ha#e de#eloped o#er time and that, as a result, readers ha#e come to e:pect certain things !rom those boo s. Some people li e the Dsure thing,D and there=s nothing wrong with that. The 1ans Who Count on 2ou '&on)t focus on countin( the num+er of fans you have0 focus on the num+er of fans ,ho count on you%' -- $rom the $ace+oo! fan pa(e of Puerto "ican a cappella (roup NOTA $n the past 2H hours, $=#e had cause to thin about this >uote !rom a couple o! di!!erent perspecti#es. $ am occasionally guilt o! trying #ery hard to DgrowD my !an page o#er on 3aceboo . $ had a contest !or the person who brought in the most new members4 the priFe was ha#ing a character named a!ter the winner in my no#el, In The Eye of The Storm Bit was a threeAway tie, so there are three new charactersC. $ share the page on my personal pro!ile now and then, in#iting new people to %oin. .one o! this is bad, really. $ also spend relati#ely little time on DbillboardingD4 promoting my wor . $nstead, $ ha#e regular, wee ly !eatures to engage my readers, speci!ically because $ want to !ocus on the !ans who count on me. /n!ortunately, there are a number o! e:amples out there where businesses don=t get it. 3or instance, my husband moonlights a couple o! e#enings a wee at a hobby store where he once wor ed !ull time. $t=s a momAandApop place which, li e many small businesses, is struggling in today=s economy. 3or many years, the shop has had arrangements with local school districts9 the students get a discount on materials they need !or certain pro%ects. The original owner=s son is now running the shop and his roommate buddy is now the manager. The manager decided it would be a great idea to tear out many shel#es to install an indoor remote control car trac Bhe and the owner=s son are big into this hobbyC. &nd where did the shel#es come !rom< "ou guessed it4 the part o! the store where the pro%ect supplies were housed. &ll o! those supplies were literally thrown into a storage area, with no organiFation whatsoe#er AA unless, o!

course, the manager threw them into the 'umpster, !rom which my husband rescued se#eral per!ectly good, unblemished items. So, now the students come, loo ing !or the things they need !or their pro%ects. They are counting on this store. (hen my husband proceeded to root through the storage area to !ind things !or the ids, he was chastised. ;e was told to lie and say that $tem M was no longer a#ailable, and to say that Bmore costlyC $tem " could be obtained in the model trains department. The manager doesn=t care about the people who are counting on that store, in other words9 he %ust cares about !orcing them to spend more money. 8y husband re!uses to lie to people. &nother e:ample is much bigger4 the Borders ban ruptcy. $ remember when Borders was a boo store. .ow they sell mo#ies, music, tAshirts, stationery4 you name it. They lost trac o! the !ans who were counting on them in their rush to get more !ans. The Borders near my o!!ice was added the list o! stores to be closed under the company=s ban ruptcy proceedings. $ wasn=t e#en surprised, gi#en how !ar they=#e gone !rom their boo selling mission. 3or crying out loud, when $ as ed an employee there whether they carried boo plates, he responded that they didn=t sell dishes, $n the mean while, the tiny Boo s, $nc., store across !rom another Borders location Balso slated to closeC is thri#ing. (hy< Because their business is selling boo s. The shop owner said in a recent tele#ision news inter#iew that his !ocus was on his customers, nowing what they li e, being able to ma e recommendations !or other titles accordingly and so on. $n other words, Boo s, $nc., is !ocused on the !ans who count on them. 3ocus li e that is way di!!erent !rom !iguring out ways to part your customers !rom their discretionary income AA and earns customer satis!action that no amount o! money can buy. Building 'elationshi$s %ith 1ans $! $ had a subtitle, it would be4 Or* Some Thin(s I Learned Alon( the ay% The other day, $ dropped someone !rom my personal 3aceboo page. She=s a pro!essional author whom $ new casually !rom another website, and she sent me a !riend re>uest AA which $ accepted. 2i#en the way that authors tend to networ , $=m sure you=re wondering why $ dropped her. 6ne hundred percent o! her posts were billboarding about where to buy her boo s, sent #ia Tweetdec . $ started to !eel as though the only reason she=d in#ited me to be her 3aceboo !riend was so that she would ma e a sale, There are lots o! ways to roc on 3aceboo Bin !act, $ too a class by that name !rom 8olly Bur e, Kueen o! Con!idenceC. The main thing comes down to building relationships. So, $=m going to share some things $ learned !rom 8olly AA and some $ learned !rom trial and error AA when it comes to de#eloping relationships with your !ans5readers. .ee$ your $ersonal 1acebook and your fan $age se$arate AA and don=t post identical material in both places. $n#ite all o! your personal !riends to %oin your !an page, sure ... but ma e certain you aren=t spamming !ol s with duplicate in!ormation. The same thing goes !or your personal blog and your pro!essional blog.

The audience for T%itter is different from the audience for 1acebook AA or your blog. The good thing about Twitter is that each tweet has its own searchable /)7. $ admit that $ was a reluctant adopter, but $ ha#e !ound Twitter to be a use!ul plan in my plat!orm. .ee$ things engaging )eaders already now that you=d li e them to buy your boo 9 they don=t need constant commercials. The theory goes that the ratio o! content4billboarding should be appro:imately @41. So, what can you do< $ de#eloped regular !eatures !or my !an page. $n 2010, $ had $acts $rom #y $iction Bin!ormation about historical people, places or e#ents that were discussed in my no#elC, $ood $rom #y $iction Bdocumented period recipesC and Saturday Ni(ht #usicale Ba #ideo or recording, usually a classical piece, pertinent to a writing pro%ectC. This year, $ switched it up. $ ha#e Location* Location* Location, where $ share in!ormation about a place discussed in one o! my boo s. E#ery 3riday, $ as what people are reading o#er the wee end. Saturday Ni(ht #usicale occasionally turns into Saturday Ni(ht Sin(-Alon( when $ pro#ide music and lyrics. $n between, $ pro#ide >uotes o! the day, lin s to blog posts li e this one AA and sometimes $ let people now where to get my boo s. /ive things a%ay "ep4 gi#e it away. $ ha#e two !ree eBoo s and $ gi#e the others away periodically. $ participate in a couple o! annual promotions, li e D)ead an eBoo (ee ,D and $ also gi#e eBoo s to deployed ser#ice members #ia 6peration eBoo 'rop. (hen it comes to the promotions, $=#e learned by trial and error that it=s best to gi#e boo s !or !ree. $t dri#es your wor up the bestseller list, which gets it more attention !rom new readers. $=#e also gi#en away paperbac s in contests, donated them to charity auctions and more. $t=s de!initely worth the goodwill to ha#e !reebies out there. 6ne o! 8olly=s e:cellent suggestions is to ha#e a !reebie that people get in e:change !or %oining your mailing list. (ell worth considering. $ say all o! that to say this4 you need to de#elop a relationship with your readers that is about more than their poc etboo s. 1eep them engaged and interested, and they=ll eep coming bac . 2ou Are a Brand Can $ let you in on a secret< $=#e been e:perimenting. Since midA'ecember 2010, $=#e been trying to thin o! mysel! as a brand. $t=s easy to thin o! our boo s and stories as a brand, but sometimes $ thin we authors lose trac o! where we !it into the picture. Some o! this e:periment was an outgrowth o! the wor $ tal ed about in 1232 4indsi(ht: A Year of Personal .ro,th* In Spite of #yself. $ !ocused on sharing positi#e, philosophical >uotes and a!!irmations on my 3aceboo page. $ ept my eye on my mission statement BD$ intend to write truth!ully and power!ullyDC. $ wor ed on associating with purpose AA e#en when it was #ery di!!icult to ma e those choices. Then $ loo ed at the pac aging part. People come in all shapes and siFes, and $ heartily embrace that. "ou won=t !ind me dispensing diet or e:ercise ad#ice9 $ try not to be a hypocrite. (hat did $ do about pac aging, you=re wondering< (hen $ dress !or the day, $ try to present an image that says Dsuccess!ul author.D

$ dressed !or my Bbusiness casualC day %ob as though $ had a boo signing right a!ter wor . $ didn=t buy many new items4 three tops and a pair o! earrings were it. $nstead, $ combined pieces in new ways, started wearing accessories $ hadn=t touched in ages ... you get the idea. $n other words, $ stepped up my game. $=m not !lawless9 $ had a horrible =!lu during this time and didn=t wear anything snaFFier than yoga pants and a clean tAshirt when $ made brainAaddled #isits to the pharmacy. 8y hair was combed and $=d bathed AA e#en though the e!!ort seemed enormous. B$=d be aw!ully happy i! the cough $ de#eloped at the time would go away already, but that=s a tale !or another occasionC. People Byour potential customersC li e to now that you loo li e the product you represent. "ou don=t ha#e to be on the cutting Band e:pensi#eC edge o! !ashion to loo crisp and put together. B$! you=re in the !ashion industry, this ad#ice is out the window.C 8aybe you can pic a signature piece that you lo#e and loo !or reasons to wear it. $ swanned around town during the cold months in a muchAlo#ed cloa wo#en !rom blac (elsh wool. $=d ept it D!or specialD !or !ar too long. The greyAbrown color went with e#erything and it loo ed great. $ got compliments about that cloa e#ery time $ wore it AA which made it e#en more !un. $ also wore a lot o! my hats, which spend !ar too much time languishing in their bo:es. BKuic note about hats4 i! you wear them !or your author photo, ma e sure they don=t shadow your eyes. &#oid wearing ball caps !or this reason.C ;ow would your li!e change i! you tried this e:periment !or thirty days< Treat yoursel! as a brand AA as part o! your mar eting plan. $ suspect you=ll !eel better about yoursel! AA and sell more boo s. 5n The Conce$t of Creative 6icense Than s to a number o! con#ersations lately, $ !eel inspired to write a bit about the idea o! creati#e license, speci!ically where it applies to historical !iction. 3or the sa e o! this discussion, let us say that you are going to set your no#el during the reign o! EliFabeth $. "ou create an imaginary nobleman Blet=s call him the Earl o! BurblesnurbleC. The Earl o! Burblesnurble is an e:ample o! creati#e license9 he doesn=t e:ist in the pages o! history, but he can certainly e:ist in the pages o! this imaginary boo . .ow, let=s imagine that you ta e him !rom Burblesnurble ;all Balso imaginary, and thus another e:ample o! creati#e licenseC to the court. ;ere he will interact with, let=s say, 7ord Burleigh Bcreati#e license in#ol#ing an actual historical personC. (e=re still in the realm o! historical !iction here, and we=re doing !ine. ;ec , we can e#en ha#e Burleigh recommend him !or the Pri#y Council and still be on the right trac . .ow, the good Earl sees one o! the >ueen=s !etching ladies in waiting, 8istress 3libbertigibbet Balso imaginary and another e:ample o! creati#e licenseC. ;e is in!atuated with her, but 8istress 3libbertigibbet cannot see him !or dust because she is dallying with the Earl o! 7eicester Banother actual historical personageC. (e=re still in the realm o! historical !iction here, and doing >uite well with the creati#e license. Considering 7eicester=s reputation with the ladies, such a dalliance is well within the realm o! possibility. ;ere, howe#er, are some places in our imaginary tale where creati#e license stops dead in its trac s and you are in the realm o! alternati#e history4

8aybe you want 8istress 3libbertigibbett and the Earl o! 7eicester marry. ;mm. (hat will you do about &my )obsart and 7ettice 1nollys B7eicester=s wi#esC AA to say nothing o! incurring the Kueen=s wrath as her !a#orite marries a lady in waiting< BBy the way, that=s treason9 i! you=re not sure, loo up the marriage o! the Earl o! 7eicester to 7ettice 1nollys and see,C "ou=re well into the realm o! alternate history that re>uires an e:planation. (hy< Because people li ely to read a no#el set at EliFabeth $=s court now what happened to people who married without the Kueen=s consent AA and about 7eicester=s two wi#es. ;ow about this e:ample< "ou ha#e the Earl o! Burblesnurble marry Kueen EliFabeth AA who was wellA nown to ha#e remained unmarried until her death. &gain, alternati#e history re>uires an e:planation !or e#ery single thing that results !rom this decision. "ou can=t %ust say D(ell, it ma es a great story i! Burblesnurble and the >ueen marryD and lea#e it at that9 it raises !ar too many >uestions, to say nothing o! ma ing it loo as though you didn=t do your homewor . BCan Burblesnurble and the >ueen ha#e a !ling< 6h, most de!initely. That=s bac in the realm o! creati#e license AA but the >ueen has to initiate the !ling. $t=s a protocol thing.C $n other words, once you ma e these sorts o! plot decisions, you need to be prepared to e:plain your reasoning in the conte:t o! the story Bnot %ust in con#ersation with !riendsC. $ read a boo earlier this year that did alternate history #ery well. Lord Protector got three stars !rom me due to some other issues, but ma e no mista e AA author Clayton Spann not only did his homewor , but !igured out how e:actly to brea the rules in order to tell his story. The boo begins with the disappearance o! the princes in the Tower o! 7ondon during )icardian times Ba true incidentC. (e ha#e all o! the usual players in#ol#ed, including 8argaret Beau!ort, and a nonAhistorical character who is there to !igure the whole damned thing out. &lternate history ensues once we learn that Beau!ort has !igured out how to smuggle the princes into modern times Bthus tying alternate history to an actual e#ent AA creati#e license, aha, AA #ia an e:planationC ... and when ne:t we see )icardian England, it is entirely di!!erent !rom what we now !rom our history boo s, because Beau!ort eeps bringing bac in!ormation about modern technology and it a!!ects e#erything. $ say all o! that to say this4 "ou can=t %ust play !ast and loose with !acts Bor ignore them entirely because you thin it ma es a better story o! Burblesnurble is 1ing o! EnglandC and still call it historical !iction. $t %ust loo s li e you didn=t do your homewor . $! you want Burlblesnurble to be ing, that=s wonder!ul. Lust remember that you=#e le!t the realm o! historical !iction at that point and should probably rethin your genre selection. )eaders o! historical !iction pic up boo s about time periods that interest them and are li ely to be #ery wellAin!ormed readers o! related nonA!iction. The wise !iction author will ta e that into account when de#eloping plot points and proceed accordingly. 7ore Work on Branding $=#e been listening to Stacia Pierce=s .et "elevant* .et "ich wor shop C's !or the past couple o! days, learning new techni>ues !or branding and business de#elopment. 6ne o! the things she tal s about is de#eloping a brand statement, or Dele#ator speech,D that gets across who you are and what clients can e:pect !rom you. $n a nutshell, the !ormula is something li e this4 (ho you are5what your product is N who your clients are N your claim Bin other words, what clients get !rom your product or ser#icesC O brand statement.

So, here=s what $=#e de#eloped !or mysel!4 Boo s by internationally published author Sharon E. Cathcart pro#ide discerning readers o! essays, !iction and nonA!iction with a power!ul, truth!ul literary e:perience. $=#e been adding this branding statement to my #arious websites5resources today. The more $ read it and write it, the more real it becomes !or me. Thanking 2our 7entors ;i, e#eryone. $ wanted to ta e a moment to tal about than ing our mentors. .ow, a mentor does not ha#e to be someone you ha#e met personally Bat least, not in my opinionC, although being in their personal space is actually the best thing. "ou can be mentored by someone=s boo s, C's, '0's, etc. $ am !ortunate enough to ha#e three women whom $ thin o! as my mentors, one o! whom $ am around in real li!e4 8olly Bur e, 8artha Bec and Stacia Pierce. $t was than s to Stacia Pierce that $ had an enormous brea through %ust yesterday. $n !act, it was so big that $ sent her a than Ayou note to e:press my appreciation. $ would li e to belie#e that our mentors li e to now when they=#e made a di!!erence, and $ thin it=s important to put that appreciation in writing. "ou may recall a blog post where $ tal ed about de#eloping a brand statement. $ used a !ormula e:plained by 'r. Pierce in one o! her wor shops to create something meaning!ul and accurate. $ thought it would help in terms o! mar eting my wor , but it helped in a way $ didn=t e:pect. The easiest way !or me to e:plain it is to share a paragraph !rom the than Ayou note that $ sent4 D(hich brings me to the second thing !or which $ wish to than you. $ listened to your .et "elevant* .et "ich wor shop !or the !irst time a couple o! wee s ago, and $ de#eloped a brand statement because o! the !ormula you e:plained. $ had ne#er done that be!ore. This turned out to be more help!ul than $ imagined it would be. "ou see, yesterday $ recei#ed a re#iew o! my no#el that was so de#astating that in past days it might ha#e had me in tears. .ow, with all o! those copies sold, you=d thin $=d cease ta ing it personally by now ... but $ hadn=t, up until yesterday. $ read that re#iew in light o! my branding statement and thought, P(ell, $ guess this person wasn=t really the audience !or this boo .+ $t was such a radical mental shi!t that $ spent a lot o! time thin ing about that instead o! the re#iew. That=s when $ realiFed that $ needed to write to you. $t may seem li e a small thing, but belie#e me AA it was huge.D "es, it was huge. $ now it=s illogical to e:pect that e#eryone will lo#e my boo s. &!ter all, $ don=t lo#e e#erything $ read. "et, it was not until $ !ormulated a brand statement that said who my audience was that $ could really stop ta ing those re#iews so personally and mo#e on to the ne:t thing. Than s to my mentors, and also to my readers and !ans. "ou are all appreciated more than you now. The Business of Writing ;i, e#eryone. $ now that $ still owe you all a metrics report on the Summer5(inter promotion $ did. ;owe#er, $=#e been !eeling led Bthan s to discussions in #arious onAline groupsC

to tal a little bit about the business side o! what we do as independent authors, whether we are sel!Apublished, with a small press or e#en %ust getting our duc s in a row to !inish that boo and get it out into the world. &s independent authors, we need to remember that we are entrepreneurs. That means that much o! the business !alls on our shoulders4 accounting, mar eting and so on. $t=s easy to thin about what our responsibilities might be as an author, but not so much as a businessperson. (hat are some things you can do to prepare yoursel! i! you=re %ust getting started, or to get up to speed i! you=re already out there and wondering what to do ne:t< (ell, you can start with de#eloping a brand statement. Some people call this an Dele#ator speech.D $t=s something you should ha#e ready to share when people as you about your wor . $t=s also something that should be on your website Byes, you need oneC, your 3aceboo !an page Byes, you need one o! these, tooC, your 2ood)eads pro!ile ... you get the picture. Branding doesn=t %ust apply to your writing4 you are a brand yoursel!. "ou ne#er now when you=ll run into a potential customer5reader, so loo the part o! a pro!essional author. Build relationships with your readers and potential readers. 'on=t treat people as wal ing wallets9 let them get to now some things about you, and #ice #ersa. They=ll be much more interested in your product as a result. $t=s DpullD mar eting instead o! push mar eting. &t the same time, don=t be hung up on the number o! !ans you ha#e. $t=s an easy trap to !all into4 DSoAandAso has ele#entyAba%illion 3B !ans and $ ha#e 100.D Continue to wor on building relationships and your !an base will grow. &nd now !or the Dnot so much !unD part4 actual business. 8aybe you don=t now too much about running a business ... and that=s absolutely !ine. The good news is that other people do, and write wonder!ul boo s about how you can do the same. 6ne $ highly recommend is The .ood Life .uide to Entrepreneurship. $t=s an easyAtoAread, plain language guide to running a small business. .ow, it doesn=t get into superAduper detail. 3or that, $ suggest Small Business for &ummies. The D3or 'ummiesD series is outstanding in its nonAnonsense approach and $ cannot say enough good about them. (hich brings me to the ne:t point4 do read boo s about business and do so regularly. Some $ particularly en%oy are Leadership Secrets of Attila the 4un* Lead ,ith Luv: A &ifferent ay to /reate "eal Success, and $nspired to Succeed. $t=s important that you read up on business and stay abreast o! trends and ideas. The authors o! these boo s can become mentors to you, without you e#er meeting them. $=m honored to call authors li e Stacia Pierce, 8artha Bec and 8olly Bur e my mentors ... e#en though 8olly=s the only one $ now in person, &nd when you !ind a mentor< Be sure to than that person. $t only ta es a moment to let someone now that you appreciate their help. 7ittle things li e this matter !ar more than you might imagine. (ell, $=#e gassed on !or !ar longer than $ planned to do. $=ll probably write more about the business side o! things !rom time to time. Than s, as always, !or being such great !ans. $ appreciate each and e#ery one o! you. 'ecommended 'esources Boo s on Success4

The Success Secrets of a "eader: 4o, Ordinary People /an Live an E5traordinary Life A 'r. Stacia Pierce Inspired to Succeed A 'r. Stacia Pierce $indin( Your O,n North Star: /laimin( The Life You ere #eant To Live A 8artha Bec , Ph' Acres of &iamonds A )ussell ;. Conwell Boo s on Sel!A$mpro#ement4 The Little Boo! of /onfidence A 8olly Bur e Pursue Your Purpose and Live Your &reams A 'r. Stacia Pierce Boo s on Business Q 8ar eting4 O,n Your Niche: 4ype-$ree Internet #ar!etin( Tactics to Esta+lish Authority in Your $ield and Promote Your Service-Based Business A Stephanie Chandler The .ood Life .uide to Entrepreneurship - 'r. Stacia Pierce Lead ,ith Luv: A &ifferent ay to /reate "eal Success A 1en Blanchard and Colleen Barrett The &isney ay: 4arnessin( the #ana(ement Secrets of &isney in Your /ompany R Bill Capodagli and 7ynn Lac son All #ar!eters are Liars A Seth 2odin Boo s on (riting Q Publishing4 The Successful Author)s 4and+oo! A Patricia 7. 3ry Are You Still Su+mittin( Your or! to a Traditional Pu+lisher6 A Edward C. Patterson The Secrets to E+oo! Pu+lishin( Success A 8ar Co er Be the #on!ey - E+oo!s and Self-Pu+lishin(: A &ialo( Bet,een Authors Barry Eisler and 7oe 8onrath A L.&. 1onrath (ebsites4 8olly Bur e, Kueen o! Con!idence4 http455www.>ueeno!con!idence.com 'r. Stacia Pierce4 http455www.li!ecoach2women.com 8artha Bec 4 http455www.marthabec .com Business $n!ormation 2uide4 http455www.businessin!oguide.com 6rganiFations4 Small Publishers, &rtists and (riters .etwor A http455www.spawn.org Bestseller Bound &uthors Community A http455www.bestsellerbound.com About the Author

Boo s by internationally published author Sharon E. Cathcart pro#ide discerning readers o! essays, !iction and nonA!iction with a power!ul, truth!ul literary e:perience. Sharon li#es in the Silicon 0alley, Cali!ornia, with her husband and an assortment o! pets. She+s been writing !or as long as she can remember and always has at least one wor in progress. To learn more about Sharon+s wor , #isit her website at http455sharonecathcart.weebly.com. "ou can also !ind her on 3aceboo , http455www.!aceboo .com5sharon.e.cathcart. 5ther Titles by the Author 3ullAlength 3iction In The Eye of The Beholder: A Novel of the Phantom of the Opera Short 3iction Around the orld in 92 Pa(es Bestseller Bound Antholo(y* :ols% 3 and ; BContributorC hispered Be(innin(s BContributorC Live Life: A &aydreamer<s 7ournal BContributorC Born of Essays and .onA3iction ar = &edicated to Peace: A 4istory of Si5th >S Army Les Pensees &an(ereuses Sui .eneris

You 4ad to Be There: Three Years of #ayhem and Bad &ecisions in the Portland #usic Scene 1232 4indsi(ht: A Year of Personal .ro,th* In Spite of #yself

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