Terry Cordingley

Top 10 Tips for Successful Public Speaking

2012-01-25T08:17:00.000-08:00

Top 10 Tips for Successful Public Speaking Top 10 Tips for Successful Public Speaking By Julie Kelly Did you know that many people fear public speaking more than death? This is a very common fear and one that needs to be addressed if you are to be a successful career woman. It takes time, exposure and practice to become well versed in something new, and public speaking is no different.

Book Signings of the Rich and Famous

2012-01-22T21:31:00.000-08:00

Every new author has an expectation of their book signing events. It usually goes something like this: they will be held in a major bookstore, with huge banners on display and a line of people out the door. The bookstore will have ordered hundreds of copies of the book and have them on display in the front of the store where they can be seen as soon as customers walk in the front door. In

Guest Post: Get Out There!

2012-01-18T09:11:00.000-08:00

This article is primarily aimed at women starting their own businesses, but I think there are a lot of great points here that would be very useful to authors. Networking is crucial to the success of any business venture. As I always say, "your book is your business." - Terry Get Out There! Get Out There! By Pat Mussieux Are you hiding behind your computer and thinking you can grow your

What Publishing Can Learn from Netflix

2012-01-16T22:09:00.000-08:00

Nearly every day, I receive an emails from publishing industry newsletters touting the surging sales of ebooks, and all but writing the obituary for the printed book. The newsletters contain news of the latest independent bookstore to close, along with a quote about how bookstores are having a hard time competing with the likes of Kindle. This is true, to a point. The Apple ITunes store made

The Book Marketing Snowball

2012-01-12T09:07:00.000-08:00

I was recently speaking on the phone with a new author whose first book was just getting ready to go to print, explaining how book signings work, why authors do them, the importance of niche marketing, how distribution works, etc., when I got this question: "Well, that's all well and good, but how do we get my book into Walmart? They would sell a million copies of my book!" I then explained

Guest Post: Personality and Book Selling

2012-01-10T12:07:00.000-08:00

It is said personality counts. And it does as well on the book front. Whether at a bookstore, art or craft fair or promoting your book on Facebook are you not drawing people in with your personality? Without one-to-one contact, would you have made that sale? I doubt it. Even your family or friends bought your book because they knew you. Keep in mind whether selling your wares online or in

Ten Things All New Authors Should Know About Publishing

2012-01-09T10:09:00.000-08:00

There are a lot of misconceptions about the publishing industry. New authors publishing their first book usually have an idea of how things "should" work, but these are ideas that typically are rooted in how the publishing industry used to work, or are based upon things they may have read online that just aren't true. With that in mind, I thought I would address the Top 10 things new authors

An Important Marketing Tool: The Business Card

2012-01-06T09:49:00.000-08:00

An Important Marketing Tool: The Business Card An Important Marketing Tool: The Business Card By CJ Heck When it comes to marketing your book or your written work, don't overlook one very important tool - the business card. It's one of an author's most important tools, and they're not expensive, considering the many ways a business card can help you. If you have a website, have your

Are You Prepared for Opportunity?

2012-01-04T09:12:00.000-08:00

The secret of success in life is for a man to be ready for his opportunity when it comes. ~Benjamin Disraeli A couple of incidents this week reminded me of this quote, and led me to write this blog post. Authors are always scrambling for opportunities to promote their books, but most expect it come when they want it to, not when it actually does arrive. Many think that all of the major

Guest Post: Which Books Sell Best At Which Times of Year

2012-01-03T09:13:00.000-08:00

Which Books Sell Best at Which Times of Year Which Books Sell Best at Which Times of Year By Irene Watson Promoting your book means taking advantage of any opportunity that will be relevant to it. In general, book sales are very low in winter, following the Christmas rush, but summer and the holidays are good times to sell books. Being aware of what events or holidays will help your book

Are You Afraid To Sell Books?

2011-12-20T20:07:00.000-08:00

Today's guest post comes courtesy of one of my fellow marketing reps at Tate Publishing, Travis King. - Terry Your hand trembles as you reach out for the phone. You’ve done signings at the big bookstores, cafes and craft fairs. There are only a few venues left for promoting the book. You know you must set up events through the churches and schools, and try to lecture to large groups. Your

How "Book Thief" Made Out Like a Bandit

2011-12-16T14:59:00.000-08:00

I came across an interesting article today in Publisher's Weekly. It was about Markus Zusak's 2006 novel "The Book Thief" surpassing more than two million copies sold. For the author that is slogging away at book signings, two million seems like an incomprehensible number. So, how did he do it? According to the article, Zusak's publisher, Random House, credits " book clubs, community read

Guest Post: Holiday Author Events

2011-12-07T09:21:00.000-08:00

Holiday Author Events: How to Increase Holiday Book Sales Holiday Author Events: How to Increase Holiday Book Sales By Irene Watson Book sales are typically highest for most authors during the holidays so authors should take full advantage of the holiday season. Many avenues exist during the holidays to increase book sales and a little extra imagination can always help, while a lot of the

Guest Post: Start Marketing Your Book Even Before It's Done

2011-11-07T06:08:00.000-08:00

Start Marketing Your Book Even Before It Is Done Start Marketing Your Book Even Before It Is Done By Lisa Shultz Ideally, one should plan and implement a marketing campaign many months before the actual launch of your book. Lay the foundation for success early and then be consistent with ongoing marketing well after your book has been released. Here are seven tips to do while you book is

Do You Suffer From Google-itis?

2011-11-04T11:19:00.000-07:00

Photo credit: Urban Dictionary Anyone who uses a computer at work knows what a time drain it can actually be. It's not the actual work on the computer than can eat up portions of your day; it's the other web sites you visit that can lower your efficiency as an author. I am often contacted by authors who complain to me that they would do more to promote their book, but they just "don't have

And Now, A Word About Walmart

2011-11-03T09:08:00.000-07:00

The subject of selling books in Walmart has come up in this blog a few times in the past. Walmart does sell a lot of books, and as a result most authors ask their publishers to stock their books in Walmart stores. The problem is, it doesn't work that way. During my previous blog posts, I have mentioned Walmart, but have never fully gone into the nuts of bolts of what it takes to work with the

Guest post: Increase Book Exposure Through Author Speaking Engagements

2011-10-31T21:18:00.000-07:00

Increase Book Exposure Through Author Speaking Engagements Increase Book Exposure Through Author Speaking Engagements By Sarah Bolme One surefire way to spread the word about a book is for the author to embark on a public speaking campaign. Authors who pursue speaking engagements gain more attention for their books. Some authors have single-handedly propelled their books to bestseller

What Happened to Those Old Borders Store Locations?

2011-10-27T11:36:00.000-07:00

When Borders filed for bankruptcy and closed, it vacated almost 400 of its remaining storefronts across the U.S. So, what has happened to all that retail space? In some cases, it looks like those buildings will continue as bookstores. Books-a-Million has been taking over the leases of some of the closed Borders stores and plans to open 41 new stores in eight states. A number of other

Why Authors Should Do Book Signing Events

2011-10-26T08:11:00.000-07:00

Photo credit: YourHoustonNews.com One of the hottest tickets in the author book signing world right now is for rock star Ozzy Osbourne's latest book, Trust Me, I'm Dr. Ozzy: Advice from Rock's Ultimate Survivor. Each of his book signing events has been met with readers camping out in line, lines going around the block outside the bookstores and bookstores issuing wristbands to guarantee

How to Deal With Bad Reviews

2011-10-24T18:55:00.000-07:00

Any fool can criticize, condemn and complain, and most fools do. - Benjamin Franklin Every now and then, not often, but a few times a year, I receive a panicked call or email from an author which goes something like this: "I just noticed that someone left a terrible review of my book on Amazon.com (or some other online bookseller). How can we get it removed?" Well, the short answer is: you

Guest Post: What Should Your "Promotional Tagline" Be?

2011-10-19T08:19:00.000-07:00

In my role as the head of a PR firm, one of the most common misconceptions I see has to do with the superlatives people choose to describe themselves. Now, I'm not referring to how the media positions someone, but rather how someone seeking publicity wants to refer to him or herself.I once overheard my senior strategist, Tony

Guest Post: 10 Things You Need to Know About Virtual Book Tours

2011-10-12T20:56:00.000-07:00

10 Things You Need to Know About Virtual Book Tours 10 Things You Need to Know About Virtual Book Tours By Dorothy Thompson By now, most authors know what virtual book tours are or at least have heard of them. They're that wonderful marketing tool that should be a must have in every new book's campaign. With each new book I write, I'm making a game plan before the book is even published

Most Popular Posts of the Week 10/2

2011-10-02T14:58:00.000-07:00

In case you have missed some of the book promotion and marketing information from the blog recently, here is a list of the most popular posts of the week. I hope you find them helpful! How to Optimize Your Amazon Profile Making Your Radio Interviews Count Have You Read My Book? How To Sell Books in Bulk Seven Simple Steps to Getting Your Book Reviewed

Guest post: Making Your Radio Interviews Count

2011-09-28T18:42:00.000-07:00

Making Your Radio Interviews Count Making Your Radio Interviews Count By Mari Selby One of the quickest and easiest ways for your book to be noticed is to be a guest on a radio show. People still listen to the radio at work, while driving their cars, or as background at home. Most radio interviews happen on the phone, so you can sell books while in your robe and slippers. In 1999, prior to

Guest Post: How to Optimize Your Amazon Profile to Market Your Book

2011-09-23T18:55:00.000-07:00

How to Optimize Your Amazon Profile to Market Your Book How to Optimize Your Amazon Profile to Market Your Book By Phyllis Zimbler Miller Having your book on Amazon is a very exciting prospect. You can tell all your friends "you can buy my book on Amazon." But what about all the people who don't know you and who are on Amazon looking for books to buy? Published and self-published authors

Have You Read My Book?

2011-09-21T18:27:00.000-07:00

Authors don't just want to sell books, they want people to read them, too. After pouring their heart and soul into their book, they want some affirmation from people that their hard work has paid off, and that people enjoy something that took a lot of creative effort to produce. So, of course, they ask the inevitable question: "Have you read my book?" This can be an awkward question for some

Guest Post: As Easy as 1,3...wait...

2011-09-16T08:29:00.000-07:00

Today's guest post comes courtesy of Mark Mingle, Executive Director of Marketing for Tate Publishing. Mark also writes his own blog about book marketing and the publishing industry. Working with Tate Publishing authors everyday, it is not uncommon to hear someone new to the industry exclaim that his or her book will instantly "sell millions" and "take the industry by storm." While I will

Guest Post: How to Know What to Charge for Public Speaking

2011-09-15T07:42:00.000-07:00

How to Know What to Charge for Public Speaking How to Know What to Charge for Public Speaking By Meredith Liepelt So you're a business owner who is interested in spreading your message through public speaking. Good for you! Public speaking is arguably one of the best ways to promote your business. The problem is that you don't know if you should or should not charge for your speaking

Ten Things All Authors Can Learn From Amanda Hocking

2011-08-25T19:26:00.000-07:00

You may have heard of Amanda Hocking. She is the 20-something-year-old author from my home state of Minnesota who self-published some novels as e-books and sold more than a million copies. According to Wikipedia, about 9,000 copies of her novels sold each day earlier this year. Many of her e-book novels were priced at just 99 cents, but supposedly she has earned 1-2 million dollars from her

Guest Post: Make The Best Use Of The Book Marketing Tools You Already Have Available

2011-08-07T16:11:00.001-07:00

Make The Best Use Of The Book Marketing Tools You Already Have Available By Lynnette Phillips Writers aren't usually marketers. Writers want to write and marketing interferes with writing schedules; unfortunately, if want to make a living writing, getting your books seen and talked about is essential. Make marketing less painful and time consuming. Here are a few tips for using tools you

How to Market Christian Books to Churches

2011-08-03T17:46:00.000-07:00

Since I work for a Christian publishing company, churches have always been an important marketing and promotional opportunity for our authors. They can also be some of the most difficult venues at which to market and promote books, despite the message the books contain. Many authors with Christian books make the mistake of contacting every mega-church they can think of right out of the box.

Newspaper Book Reviewers on the Chopping Block

2011-07-27T15:37:00.000-07:00

It's not just bookstores that are struggling in today's economy. Newspapers are having a tough time of it, too. As they look to cut costs, one of the positions they are putting on the chopping block is that of newspaper book reviewer. According to Publisher's Weekly, the L.A. Times gave the ax to all of their freelance book reviewers. In addition, some long-standing book review columns will

Are Paper Books Dead?

2011-07-25T19:16:00.000-07:00

Since the news broke that Borders is closing its remaining 399 stores and firing 11,000 employees, authors, publishers and many in the news media are asking the same question: "Is the printed paper book dead?" After all, Borders couldn't make a go of selling paper books, and lost market share to Barnes & Noble and Amazon, which sell their own ebook reading devices. Then there is the news that

Have You Really Done "Everything" to Market and Promote Your Book?

2011-07-24T19:05:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, authors hit a brick wall when it comes to marketing and promoting their book. "I have tried EVERYTHING to market my book," is a phrase they might use. But, have they REALLY tried "everything?" Probably not. What they really mean is they aren't sure how to move forward. The author may be out of ideas, may not know what the niche market for their book is or maybe they identified the

Guest Post: Harry Potter Just Made $476 Million – And How is YOUR Business Doing?

2011-07-21T07:48:00.000-07:00