I'm guessing writers and authors should also be avid readers, right? I hope my assumption is correct. Since this is the digital age, a Kindle would be in order, correct? Well, I want a kindle but I have not been able to acquire one. It's on my list but since I thought I had to pay for it, I hadn't quite gotten to it yet on my scale of preference. I just found out this morning that there are FREE applications that can be downloaded to your phone or pc to enable you to purchase kindle books from amazon.com. That makes me want to jump for joy or scream. All these are available:
FREE Kindle App for Blackberry
FREE Kindle App for iPhone
FREE Kindle App for PC
and more...
To download any of the FREE Kindle Apps available so far, click the following link.
FREE Kindle App for iPhone, Windows PC, Mac, Blackberry and iPad
Hope this helps. This is the real FREE. If you want to carry the proper Kindle device itself around however, you still need to buy it. I can't help you there!
If you like my post, please order a copy of The Only Way is Up on kindle. It's only $2.99 for a limited time. If it still says $5.99, give it a day or two to update please. And do leave me a review as well will you? That's all I ask.
Much appreciation.
PEACE.
Sunday, May 16, 2010
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
AE Call for Submissions...
Author Exposure has an interesting list of suggested topics for the next few months. Please visit the AE website directly for the full information.
Thank you.
Folake.
Thank you.
Folake.
Friday, April 9, 2010
LSI Manuscript Formatting for Print Ready PDF Files
Why am I blogging about this? I thought I had everything down. I was ready for my revised edition through both Createspace (CS) and Lightning Source (LSI). I got a rude shock. LSI kept sending my interior files back. Initially I had sent the pdf file the same way I always did for CS and they had said the text was centered from left to rigth and not top to bottom. Ok. So I sent another that was set to the postscript size of 6 X 9 and not the standard letter size the pdf will usually default to. Rude shock. They sent that back as well. Now the words were running off the edges on their printer because I didn't have space around it. I could not figure out how to fix it. I asked around and couldn't find any answers immediately or anyone who could help or who understood. I finally did get help however (yes there are still good people in this world) but there was also an answer already waiting...
I love Google. Finally, I did a Google search and there it was: an article with the answers from someone who had encountered a similar problem along with another friend of his. The article is titled Step by Step Formatting for Your Manuscript and is posted on the website for Independent Authors Guild. This lifesaver article led me to a page on Self-Pub.net where I was able to purchase a pdf conversion service for $15! It's called the pdf creation service. Kudos to Selp-Pub.net for doing their thing and to the person who posted the information about it. They are the same people I bought the Book Design Wizard from to format my revised edition and it actually looks professionally done now.
This is definitely a good deal, considering I have the revised edition published through CS and dated for a few days back! My Ingram distribution and subsequently being carried by big bookstores hinges on LSI.
I love the internet. Someone out there has had the same issue you are having. You just have to play around with the search terms on Google till you find a post about it. Go Google!
Have a great weekend y'all.
Folake.
I love Google. Finally, I did a Google search and there it was: an article with the answers from someone who had encountered a similar problem along with another friend of his. The article is titled Step by Step Formatting for Your Manuscript and is posted on the website for Independent Authors Guild. This lifesaver article led me to a page on Self-Pub.net where I was able to purchase a pdf conversion service for $15! It's called the pdf creation service. Kudos to Selp-Pub.net for doing their thing and to the person who posted the information about it. They are the same people I bought the Book Design Wizard from to format my revised edition and it actually looks professionally done now.
This is definitely a good deal, considering I have the revised edition published through CS and dated for a few days back! My Ingram distribution and subsequently being carried by big bookstores hinges on LSI.
I love the internet. Someone out there has had the same issue you are having. You just have to play around with the search terms on Google till you find a post about it. Go Google!
Have a great weekend y'all.
Folake.
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Atlanta Black Book Expo
I just found out about the 1st Annual Atlanta Black Book Expo. I am excited. It sounds like a winner. I live in Atlanta and that is obviously a plus for me that it's taking place in my city! But I just thought I'd put it out there for anyone who has not heard about it and is interested. I will definitely be getting a table. I wonder if we can share though? Hmmm. That's the cheap part of me speaking. Please click here for a link to the website for Atlanta Black Book Expo and do check them out on facebook and twitter as well. Authors, I hope to see you there. But it is also for vendors and a host of others.
Have a blessed week.
Folake Taylor.
PS: We cannot share table! It is addressed in their FAQs section.
Have a blessed week.
Folake Taylor.
PS: We cannot share table! It is addressed in their FAQs section.
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
A word of caution about Book Distributors...
Thankfully, I am a very careful person. I have not fallen prey yet and hopefully I won't. But I remember that I have heard of several cases of Indie Authors being burned by Book Distributor deals. I heard of a story of a lady whose distributor went bankrupt and she lost her money.
I had looked into a few opportunities and last week, I actually got offered a deal. I was sent a contract and a lot of information about how it would all go down and let's just say it wasn't looking like what I had imagined. I'm not going to mention the name of the company but the marketing packages started from about $1,900 all the way up to $9,000. Automatically I knew I wasn't having them do any marketing for me. Unless I am sure of becoming a # 1 New York Times Bestseller, I'd never make my money back! Let us not forget I cannot afford it either!!! The first 3 or so of the packages (going up to $4,200) were all marketing efforts I have either made or am currently making by myself. It made me feel good that my effort on my laptop on a part-time basis everyday was seemingly worth so much.
Then I looked at the distribution contract itself. It went from a set up fee of about $500 to monthly admin fees and palet fees for storing my books. As a wise author advisor of mine just pointed out, it defeats the purpose of POD when I have to now pay for them to store my books. Let's not even start to talk about the kind of percentages that you stand to part with if you go this route.
They say they are affiliated with Ingram, Baker and Taylor and will get my book into the big three stores: Barnes and Noble, Borders and Booksamillion. I know of Indie authors who have done that by themselves and I am in the process of doing the same.
So, except for the prospect of spending less time in front of the laptop and more time with my family and in the kitchen cooking, I really do not see what they can do for me. Any distributorship they are able to pull off still depends on my marketing since their marketing packages are not affordable.
In fairness to the distributors, their services are probably worth what they charge as they have salaries to pay and overhead costs too. It just makes me feel good about myself to know that the efforts I have been making to promote my book are actually worth several thousand dollars. The real question is this: "Do I need their services however?"
I do not have all the answers yet but I seem to smell a rat! More importantly, I just need to trust myself and what I can achieve with my own efforts. All I will say is, be careful before getting into those deals. I have found one very comprehensive article about this on the net and you can click here to access Apples and Oranges: An Analysis and Comparison of Distributor Agreements by Ivan Hoffman. Please click here for Articles for Writers and Publishers which contain a long list of articles that help writers in general with legal issues as well as two more articles on issues with book distribution, also by Ivan Hoffman.
Whatever I do decide concerning Book Distribution however, I hope it's the right decision.
Peace.
Folake.
I had looked into a few opportunities and last week, I actually got offered a deal. I was sent a contract and a lot of information about how it would all go down and let's just say it wasn't looking like what I had imagined. I'm not going to mention the name of the company but the marketing packages started from about $1,900 all the way up to $9,000. Automatically I knew I wasn't having them do any marketing for me. Unless I am sure of becoming a # 1 New York Times Bestseller, I'd never make my money back! Let us not forget I cannot afford it either!!! The first 3 or so of the packages (going up to $4,200) were all marketing efforts I have either made or am currently making by myself. It made me feel good that my effort on my laptop on a part-time basis everyday was seemingly worth so much.
Then I looked at the distribution contract itself. It went from a set up fee of about $500 to monthly admin fees and palet fees for storing my books. As a wise author advisor of mine just pointed out, it defeats the purpose of POD when I have to now pay for them to store my books. Let's not even start to talk about the kind of percentages that you stand to part with if you go this route.
They say they are affiliated with Ingram, Baker and Taylor and will get my book into the big three stores: Barnes and Noble, Borders and Booksamillion. I know of Indie authors who have done that by themselves and I am in the process of doing the same.
So, except for the prospect of spending less time in front of the laptop and more time with my family and in the kitchen cooking, I really do not see what they can do for me. Any distributorship they are able to pull off still depends on my marketing since their marketing packages are not affordable.
In fairness to the distributors, their services are probably worth what they charge as they have salaries to pay and overhead costs too. It just makes me feel good about myself to know that the efforts I have been making to promote my book are actually worth several thousand dollars. The real question is this: "Do I need their services however?"
I do not have all the answers yet but I seem to smell a rat! More importantly, I just need to trust myself and what I can achieve with my own efforts. All I will say is, be careful before getting into those deals. I have found one very comprehensive article about this on the net and you can click here to access Apples and Oranges: An Analysis and Comparison of Distributor Agreements by Ivan Hoffman. Please click here for Articles for Writers and Publishers which contain a long list of articles that help writers in general with legal issues as well as two more articles on issues with book distribution, also by Ivan Hoffman.
Whatever I do decide concerning Book Distribution however, I hope it's the right decision.
Peace.
Folake.
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