Emily M. Akin» emilyakin

Marketing Your Writing: The Chicken or the Egg?

emilyakin — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 09:29:00 +0000

What comes first? The writing or the marketing? Many writers, especially those new to publishing, think they need to get their books or articles written. Only when the projects are complete do they begin to wonder about marketing. Like a farmer with extra chickens, they start looking for a place to sell their work.

Selling your writing is not exactly like selling chickens, but there are some parallels. Bear with me! You may be trying to sell chickens when your readers would prefer the eggs. Of course, to get the eggs, you have to raise the chickens, gather the eggs, and package them for transport before you can sell them to your customers. To sell your writing, you need to know the answer to three questions.

1. Who needs your information? In other words, “Who is your customer?” Have you already written a book on home-schooling? Do you have an idea for an article or series of articles on Internet safety? Get your market guide and look for publishers who cater to readers interested in your topic. Be specific. “Home-schooling mothers” is a specific target. “All adults” is not. If you have a group of devotions written, you can tweak them for a specific age group like grandparents or teens.

2. How will you package it? Book or articles? Most beginning writers think they must write a book. But, I’ve heard editors say that most “first” books would be better presented as a series of articles. If you are an unpublished writer, it’s not likely that you will land a book contract. If you are truly motivated to get your work published, you’ll be willing to package your message in a format that sells. More people will read your work if it is published in a magazine. Devotional magazines and Sunday School papers are good starting places. You might find a devotional magazine at your church that is open to freelance submissions. The Christian Writers Market Guide contains information on such publications and where to find writers’ guidelines (see below). Your final decision on packaging your message will depend on the specifics in the publisher’s guidelines.

3. Who will publish it? Make a list of potential publishers based on the guidelines you’ve collected. Most publications have websites where you can download the guidelines or find out how to get them. For example, the guidelines for The Secret Place devotional magazine are found online here. Some magazines require query letters. Book publishers usually want a written proposal rather than your book manuscript. Here’s an earlier Blog4Writers post containing general information on how to write query letters and book proposals (and a wealth of other information on writing and publishing).

Then, send it in! Whether you’ve decided to try to sell your chicken (book) or you’ve opted to re-work your material and sell the eggs (articles), the next step is: start submitting!

Market Guides:

Sally Stuart’s Christian Writers’ Market Guide
Writers’ Market Online: http://www.writersmarket.com/

On Blog4Writers:

Other Online Resources:

Marketing Your Writing: The Chicken or the Egg?

What comes first? The writing or the marketing? Many writers, especially those new to publishing, think in terms of getting their books or articles written. Only when their projects are complete do they begin to wonder about marketing. Like a farmer with extra chickens, they start looking for a place to sell their work.

Selling your writing is not exactly like selling chickens, but there are some parallels Bear with me! You may be trying to sell chickens when you should be cultivating the chickens so that you can sell the eggs instead.

Who needs your information?

Have you already written a book on home-schooling? Or maybe you have an idea for an article or series of articles on Internet safety. Get your market guide (see below*) and look for publishers who cater to readers interested in your topic. Try not to be too general in identifying your reader. For example, don’t say, “Targeting all adults.” Be more specific. “Home-schooling mothers” would be a more specific target. If you have a group of devotions, you might need to tweak them for a specific age group like grandparents or teens. The approach would be entirely different depending on which group you choose.

How will you package it?

Most beginning writers think they must write a book. However, I’ve heard a number of editors say that most “first” books would be better presented as a series of articles. If you have never had any work published, you will be waging an uphill battle to get a book contract with a royalty publisher. You could publish your book yourself, but that is expensive, and you’ll have to handle the selling of your book.

If you are motivated to get your work published, the most effective way to do that is with articles and short pieces. More people will read your work if it is published in a magazine. For Christian writers, devotional magazines and Sunday School papers are good starting places. Look around your church. You might find a devotional magazine that is open to freelance submissions. Or, there might be a Sunday School paper that is used regularly in your church. Sally Stuart’s market guide contains information on such publications and where to find writers’ guidelines (see below). Your final decision on how to package your message will depend on the specifics in the publisher’s guidelines.

Who will publish it?

Make a list of potential publishers based on the guidelines you’ve collected. Most publications have Web sites where you can download the guidelines or find out how to get them. For example, the guidelines for The Secret Place devotional magazine are found online here. Some magazines require query letters. Book publishers usually want a written proposal rather than your book manuscript. Go to my Wired to Write blog for a post containing general information on how to write query letters and book proposals (and a wealth of other information on writing and publishing).

Whether you’ve decided to try to sell your chicken (book) or you’ve opted to re-work your material and sell the eggs (articles), the next step is: start submitting! Be prepared for rejection. A writer I met at conference said she had an acceptance rate of 40%. That means that, out of every 10 submissions, only four were accepted. If your work is rejected, send it to someone else. Send it to the same publication in a few months. It could be that your timing was the only reason it was rejected. If you persist in submitting, you will be published.

Resources:

*Market Guides:

·Sally Stuart’s Christian Writers’ Market Guide

·Writers’ Market Online: http://www.writersmarket.com/

(Print editions of both books may be available at your public library.)

*Other Online Resources:

·www.wired2write.wordpress.com

·http://www.right-writing.com/

·http://www.marketingforwriters.com/

·http://www.absolutewrite.com/

Networking with Online Writers’ Groups

emilyakin — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 09:27:54 +0000

Networking, getting to know editors and other writers, is absolutely necessary for getting your work published. The more contacts you have, the more likely you will get a lead on a market that fits your work. In my last online marketing class, one of the students lived in a northwestern state, far from any writers’ conference or writers’ groups. Her only opportunity for networking was the Internet. So, what are the options?

CWFI: Christian Writers Fellowship International (CWFI) Yahoo group was established by Sandy Brooks for subscribers to Cross & Quill. After the magazine ceased publication, the group was opened to non-subscribers. Weekly discussions are based on a Question of the Week, moderated by Donna Clark Goodrich. Overt promotion is discouraged on the group, but members are encouraged to report publishing successes. Apply for membership in the group at the link above.

CWGI: You must fill out an application form for Christian Writers Group International (CWGI), also a Yahoo group. There is no fee, so this is a much larger group. The last time I checked there were about 800 members worldwide. Discussions are made more interesting by input from members in places like Australia and South Africa.

TWV1: the Writers’ View 1 is for “advanced and professional writers in the Christian market. Topics are advanced and explore the entire publishing process.” Owned by Mary DeMuth, this group requires a membership application and there are a number of panelists covering a wide variety of genres.

TWV2: The Writer’s View 2 is “for beginning/intermediate Christian writers serious about taking their writing to the next level.” Membership application required for this one, too. You must choose which TWV you want to participate in, because you are not allowed to participate in both. Mary also owns this group, but the list of panelists is different.

ACFW: The groups mentioned in this blog are ones that I have participated in or investigated for myself. If you are a fiction writer, check out American Christian Fiction Writers. Member benefits include forums that might be helpful to you.

These groups not only help you improve your writing, but they help you get to know people who can introduce you to others in the industry. I invite comments on this post from people who have participated in other writers’ groups.

Should You Write for Free?

emilyakin — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 13:31:55 +0000

Should you take any opportunity to get your work published, even if it means submitting to non-paying markets? My answer would be sometimes “yes,” and sometimes “no.”

Yes, because non-paying markets give you:

Bylines to use when marketing to other publications. (You can sell reprints after the piece is published.)
A chance to establish yourself as an expert in your subject matter and showcase your writing.

No, non-paying markets will not get your submissions because:

It’s just not fair for publications not to pay their writers. (The Bible does teach that the laborer is worthy of his/her wages.)
You need some income from your writing in order to justify spending time on it.

Maybe, if:

I’m just not getting published, and I’m ready to try anything.
I’ve had a lot of work published recently, and I want to “give back” to the community.

How do you feel about this? I’d love to hear your comments. Instructions on how to comment are in a previous post here.

Note: After last week’s article using the Four P’s of the marketing mix to analyze your writing effort, I decided to check and see how many of the articles on Blog4writers fit into the four categories (Product, Promotion, Place, and Price). I could not believe that I had not one single article dealing with Price. This article fills that gap, and I plan to add more this year.

And I need your assistance:

I’m planning subject matter for Blog4Writers 2011. Please help my participating in my one-question survey. Just click on the “Take Our Survey” button and go where it leads.

Conferences: A Must for Aspiring Writers

emilyakin — Mon, 17 Jan 2011 10:42:54 +0000

Conference attendance is necessary for writers wanting to get published. In fact, conferences are a critical component of your marketing strategy. Conferences give you access to published writers and editors who can help you learn the craft and the industry. Whether you have anything to sell or not, networking opportunities provided by conferences are invaluable to you in promoting yourself as a writer. People are more likely to work with you if they have met you or if you are recommended by someone they know.

If you haven’t planned to attend a conference this year, now’s the time to consider it. If cost is a factor, look for a conference nearby to keep travel expenses down. If you have never attended a conference before, choose one of the smaller ones to “get your feet wet.” So, how do you go about finding the right conference?

Search online for conferences in your area at Shawguides.com. For Christian conferences, go to Sally Stuart’s conferences page. Sally has not updated the list for 2011, but the list includes links to conference websites.
Agent Steve Laube offers a conference list on his site here.
Ask for recommendations from fellow writers. Members of online groups are happy to make recommendations if you don’t have local contacts to help you.
Visit author John Vonhof’s WritersConferenceGuidelines.com and browse the wealth of information he provides about how to choose a conference and prepare for attendance.

I can answer questions about Kentucky Christian Writers Conference, Indianapolis Christian Writers Conference, and Southern Christian Writers Conference, as I have attended all three numerous times.

See my previous post on conferences, Writers Conferences: Why-to, How-to.

Free “Ask Sally Stuart” Teleseminar

emilyakin — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 19:39:22 +0000

In my last post, Start the New Year with Sally Stuart, I hope I convinced readers that Christian writers must own a copy of the latest edition of Sally Stuart’s Christian Writers’ Market Guide. Near the end of the post, I provided a link to the “Ask Sally Stuart” teleseminar hosted by Terry Whalin of Intermedia Publishing.

I missed the live event, but I listened to the whole recorded session this morning. Sally answered basic questions like, “Why should you get a new guide each year?” She gave hints on how to get started in the Christian market as well as tips on how to lay the marketing groundwork for your nonfiction book. She spent a few minutes on the children’s market. After a brief discussion on agents, Sally dove into questions about self-publishing. She briefly touched on social marketing for fiction and nonfiction writers.

After 25 years of producing the market guide, Sally knows a thing or two about what you need to do to get published. Primarily, she said, good writing will sell. Work to improve your craft, know your audience, and strive to become “the best writer you can be.”

I learned so much, but I don’t want to spoil it for you. It was like being in a conference workshop with Sally Stuart. The teleseminar took place yesterday (January 20, 2010). If you missed it, you can still listen to the whole thing by going to www.asksallystuart.com. Then, fill in your first name and e-mail address and click “Here’s my question, Sally.” You will receive an e-mail with a link to a Web location where you can download the entire teleseminar.

I encourage you to do the download now. It’s free! It takes about an hour to listen to the whole thing. Once you’ve got it on your computer, you can listen to it any time.

Starting the New Year with Sally Stuart

emilyakin — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 12:20:24 +0000

Just this week, I received my copy of the 25^th anniversary edition of Sally Stuart’s Christian Writer’s Market Guide, compiled and edited by Sally Stuart. What a great way to start the New Year and to jump-start my planning for my writing this year. I haven’t subscribed for the entire 25 years, but, since I received my very first copy, I realized that this is a must-have resource for Christian writers.

Some say that Sally’s guide is not necessary now that so many publishers offer their guidelines on the Web. However, it’s often hard to find the guidelines or even a publisher’s site unless you have the details offered in Sally’s guide listings. Sometimes the publication title will show up in a search, but you have to hunt around for guidelines. Also, Sally gives information that you’ll never find in guidelines. For example, in the magazine listings, you’ll find details like what percentage of their articles are written by freelance writers and what percentage is written by in-house writers. If the percentage of freelance is, say, 10%, then you might not want to waste your time submitting to that publication. Conversely, if the percentage is 90%, then your chances of success would be much greater.

I’ve also heard writers say that the Stuart guide is outdated because it needs to be online. Recent editions have included a CD with the entire guide in Word format. It’s not as efficient as a database, but you can do searches on the CD. The CD also includes 70 pages of resources that are not included in the printed guide at all. Stuart has changed publishers this year, and she states that the new publisher intends to have an online version in the future.

And—writers new to publishing want to buy or borrow an older version to introduce themselves to the Christian market. Especially for the beginner, the market guide is a critical tool. It costs less than $30, about the same price as a year’s subscription to many magazines, so save yourself a lot of time by using the newest guide. At a conference session, Sally was asked if an older version was suitable for beginners. She stated that, if there were not so many changes each year, she would not bother to put out a new guide each year. So, don’t waste your time trying to update and use old information when Sally has already done it. Stuart posts regular updates to the printed guide in Christian Communicator and on her blog at http://www.stuartmarket.blogspot.com/.

See sample of the guide, including table of contents, introduction and how-to info at Google Books.

Don’t spin your wheels in 2010 trying to succeed in the Christian market without Sally Stuart’s guide. Order your copy direct from Sally on her Web site. You may find the book in your local bookstore, and you can also order from Amazon or ChristianBook.com.

See also:

See Lettie Kirkpatrick Burress’ review of the 2009 edition on my book review blog. Lettie teaches beginner classes in how to write for publication in the Christian market.

5 Minutes for Books

Teleseminar featuring Sally Stuart at http://www.asksallystuart.com/.

Online Bible Resources

emilyakin — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 17:22:38 +0000

Part of observing the passing of the old year is looking back, sometimes with nostalgia and sometimes with thanksgiving. This year, as I made my writing plans, I looked back to how we used to get our writing done—with a typewriter, paper, and an eraser. A writer had to be truly dedicated to persist with those tools. Today, my job as a writer is so much easier with the technology available to me.

It’s hard to say which of the computer-based tools are the most useful, but for Christian writers, I have to say having numerous online Bible versions has to be near the top of the list. For my writing, I’ve tried to find one online source that offers all popular translations. I submit regularly to publishers who use the New International Version (NIV) or the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV). In addition, I like to use The Message on my devotional blog.

All sites below offer numerous translations as well as search by keyword or by Bible passage. Let’s take a look at the details.

Blue Letter Bible

No NRSV or The Message,
Several commentaries including John Calvin, Martin Luther, Matthew Henry, and Charles Spurgeon,
Study tools page features charts, outlines, encyclopedias, and dictionaries.
Images link takes you to several maps.

Bible Gateway

In addition to search, there’s a topical index,
Features a number of English translations, including The Message,
Does not have NRSV,
Allows you to put the verse of the day on your site,
Commentary and dictionaries available under Additional Resources.

Bible Study Tools

Has more English translations than the others, including NRSV, NIV, and The Message,
Parallel Bible lets you compare two versions on one search,
Numerous resources including commentaries, dictionaries, encyclopedia, and interlinear Bible.

It can be overwhelming when you try to absorb what’s offered on these sites, so I suggest choosing one and exploring it before going to another. I like Bible Gateway, but, since it doesn’t have the NRSV, I often go to Bible Study Tools instead. Most of the time I don’t need all the stuff that’s on BST, but it does come in handy when research is needed.

I invite readers to comment on these Bible study sites and to offer suggestions on other resources not mentioned here.

Elements of Style: Strunk & White

emilyakin — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 21:45:30 +0000

This little book has been recommended to me by numerous writers and editors since I began writing for publication in 1999. Since it has been around for a long time, there are several editions, my copy being the Third Edition. The 50th anniversary edition was published in 2008 and is available at retailers.

In the beginning, the book was developed by William Strunk, Jr., as a teaching aid in college classes at Cornell University. E. B. White was a student of Strunk, and, in 1957, he was asked to revise the book for publication after Strunk’s death.

Strunk’s motto was, “Omit needless words.” A timeless truth. Why muddy the waters with words you don’t need? Express your thoughts as succinctly as possible to keep your reader’s attention.

Elementary rules of usage are covered in Part I, followed by Elementary Principles of Composition (Part II). Matters of form, commonly misused words, and a section entitled “An Approach to Style” complete the book.

As mentioned earlier, this book has been recommended in numerous writers’ workshops I have attended. However, I’ve discovered that Elements of Style does not enjoy universal endorsement. See a collection of articles criticizing this venerable reference on the New York Times site. Don’t stop there, though. Read the comments on that article. I think, to say the least, the value of Strunk & White for writers is up for debate.

I suggest that you buy or borrow a copy and read it for yourself. To have lasted to long and to be recommended by so many people, there must be something of value between the covers! Buy it on Amazon: The Elements of Style, Fourth Edition

Marketing Article Roundup

emilyakin — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 09:25:55 +0000

Check out these great marketing posts on other blogs:

Marketing Lessons from the World of Retail (by T. L. Higley on Christian Author Network blog). This one offers some specifics about Facebook. Higley has other posts by the same title here and here.

Marketing Principles: Agent Rachelle Gardner features writer and marketing consultant Jim Rubart in a three-part series. Scroll to the bottom of the link to read the first article and work your way back to the top.

Twitter Bible

emilyakin — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 14:56:00 +0000

I’m working on an article about the various online Bible study tools, but I’m not ready to post it yet. However, I recently discovered Twitter Bible, and I think it’s something everyone needs to see.

The Twitter URL is http://twitter.com/WWGT (What would God tweet). The writer’s moniker is Holy Ghostwriter, and the location is listed as “heaven.” The Twitter page shows a link to an article on a Web site named Not the LA Times. Huh? And, God Himself is supposed to be the writer.

The writer attempts to craft Bible verses in the latest modern language while keeping it under the 140-character per-tweet limit. Spiced with humor, the writing is very creative. On the Twitter venue, the writer is sure to reach some people who don’t know or have lost interest in the Bible.

Check out this example of the Twitter “translation.”

“Jesus foresees Twitter, shortens 10 Commandments to under 140 characters: Love God 110%, love neighbor like self. (Mark 12.30-31)”

OK, so I should have called it a paraphrase instead of a translation. I’m going to follow WWGT for a while and see where it goes. Check back next week for my article on the online Bible study tools.