Nonfiction Ink

By Susan Gilbert, America’s Focus Expert. Reprinted from “The Book Marketing Expert newsletter,” a free ezine offering book promotion and publicity tips and techniques. http://www.amarketingexpert.com

Becoming an accepted Google news authority is not an easy thing to accomplish – and – it is a very worthwhile effort when successful.

In order to become a Google News Partner the site has to pass a review with Google, and this is done by a real person. There are currently about 25,000 websites approved for Google News Syndication Partner.

The rewards for making the cut are extreme.

You can expect to have your article indexed in Google News in under 10 minutes. You can also expect your site to get traffic from the primary news sites that draw from Google News. You can also expect inbound links from all of the sites that pull from Google news within your topic or theme.

How to Qualify for Google News Partner

1. Provide news and updated news-worthy industry information.

2. Provide news-worthy material in at least TWO TOPICS OR CATEGORIES on the same site.

3. Have a site layout that seems like a magazine style or news-tone site. Google does not like a normal blog layout.

4. Your site cannot be overly “pitchy” or have a sales agenda that outshines the news-worthy information.

5. Your site must have a high quality standard of writing.

6. Content needs to be original, high-quality articles.

7. You will need to use a special site map and mark-up language that is specialized for Google News.

8. You need to have more than one editor and/or author that is actively on your staff or working on the site.

Again, keep in mind that Google will personally review the site to make sure it matches the standards expected. This quality control is important to Google because so many networks and sites draw upon Google news in order to provide content for various topics and themes.

This weekly list covers prescriptive nonfiction books. For more details on publishing deals – including agents, editors, publishers, and book descriptions – visit PublishersMarketplace and subscribe to the Deals Report

COOKING

SUNDAY ROASTS!
Betty Rossbottom

MASTERING THE ART OF INDIAN COOKING
Sanjeev Kapoor

MAKE THE BREAD, BUY THE BUTTER
Jennifer Reese

A NEW TURN IN THE SOUTH
Hugh Acheson

HEALTH / FITNESS / DIET

PERSON FIRST, PATIENT SECOND
Elizabeth Bailey

THE NEW EVOLUTION DIET
Arthur De Vany

WHY WOMEN NEED FAT
William Lassek, M.D. and Steven Gaulin, Ph.D

THE HEALTHY HABIT PLAN
Wes Cole

BUSINESS / INVESTING / FINANCE

BUSINESS BLACK BELT
Burke Franklin

BUSINESS MODEL GENERATION: A Handbook for Visionaries, Game Changers, and Challengers
Alexander Osterwalder and Yves Pigneur

ADVICE / RELATIONSHIPS / SELF-HELP

NEVER FALL IN LOVE AT THE JERSEY SHORE
Jenni Farley and Ronnie Ortiz-Magro

MAKE LOVE LIKE A ROMANCE WRITER
Amelia Grey

RELIGION / SPIRITUALITY / METAPHYSICAL

A YEAR OF MIRACLES
Dr. Bernie Siegel

HOW-TO

HEX CRAFTS
Alexandria Olick

PARENTING

YOU CAN TUTOR YOUR OWN CHILD: The Fun, Easy Way to Help Any Student Succeed in Any Subject — with Tips, Tricks, and Techniques from a Professional Tutor
Marina Koestler Ruben

THE MYTH OF THE MIDDLE CHILD
Catherine Salmon and Katrin Schumann

SCIENCE

CHARTING THE DEPTHS: What the Science of Mood Tells Us About Depression
Jonathan Rottenberg

An establishing paragraph (inserted immediately below or a few paragraphs after your lead) helps focus intent, explain the purpose and importance of the content being presented in the chapter, and, most importantly, answers the reader’s questions, “Why should I read this?” and  “What’s in it for me?”

Here’s an example of an establishing paragraph from the book Inbound Marketing by Brian Halligan and Dharmesh Shah:

LEAD: How many times did you use Google to look for something today? Chances are, several times. In fact, Americans conducted over 13 billion searches alone in April 2009 using Google, according to ComScore. Total search activity for the same period for all search engines was over 22 billion searches. It’s likely that amongst those billions of searches, many were related to your product or service. Simply put, if your site isn’t being found in Google, you’re missing a major opportunity to generate leads for your business. In fact, you’re probably sending these leads to your competitors?

ESTABLISHING PARAGRAPH: Other than the sheer volume of potential visitors you can draw through Google, there’s another important consideration for ensuring your site ranks well: People searching on Google are actually looking for something. This may sound a bit obvious, but contrast this to getting traffic from blogs. Blog readers are often focused on learning something or being entertained. They don’t have a specific goal. Google searchers, on the other hand, are looking for something. Sometimes they are searching for a product or service. Sometimes they’re searching for information. But, they do have a specific goal. If what they are searching for is related to your business, you want to be found.

The establishing paragraph above explains why the information is important: Being found on Google generates leads for your business and being found on Google generates traffic specifically looking for what your business offers. And, the establishing paragraph provides a benefit for the reader to keep reading: To learn how to be found on Google.

Be sure to insert an establishing paragraph near the beginning of each chapter to explain the significance and importance of the content, and to engage and entice the reader to continue reading.

Need assistance or guidance completing your book project? I offer comprehensive ghostwriting, editing, and book proposal services to get your book done and land a book deal.

The Business of Books in an exceptional resource. Author Claudia Suzanne covers the entire process of getting a book to market: developing the concept, research, pitching, landing a book deal, writing, editing, book design, production, distribution, fulfillment, and marketing and promotion. Suzanne also provides an insightful explanation of the three publishing options (traditional publishing, self-publishing, and vanity presses/subsidy publishers) and an extensive and useful list of links and resources. A great book I can recommend to both clients and students to help them gain an understanding of the book industry.

Dana Lynn Smith, the Savvy Book Marketer, is a book marketing coach and author of The Savvy Book Marketer series of books for authors and publishers. She has 15 years of publishing experience and a degree in marketing.

Q: Tell us about your latest book The Savvy Book Marketer’s Guide To Successful Social Marketing.

I write and publish a series of books to help authors and independent publishers learn how to promote their books effectively. My books focus on specific how-to details in addition to book marketing strategy. In March, I released a revised edition of The Savvy Book Marketer’s Guide to Successful Social Marketing, incorporating some recent changes in Facebook and Twitter.

Q: Why did you pursue self-publishing?

I have independently published all of my books as ebooks in PDF format. Most of my books are about online marketing, so this format allows me to include lots of screen shots and to make updates as necessary. I am also able to spin off sections of my longer books into separate, shorter ebooks.

Ebooks are easier and less expensive to produce and have a higher profit margin, which is important because I am publishing a series of books on niche topics. They are also more environmentally friendly. The downside of ebooks is that they aren’t available in retail bookstores or for back-of-the-room sales, and some people think an ebook doesn’t have the same prestige as a printed book.

Q: What is your writing process?

When writing a book, I start with a list the topics that I want to cover, then arrange them in a logical order to form the chapters for the book. I make notes about what points to cover in each chapter and then write one chapter at a time. I think it’s more efficient to get all the information down and then go back and do revisions, but I have a hard time resisting the urge to revise as I go along.

I have a lot of writing experience and some journalism training, so writing comes easily to me. The hard part is finding time to do it! I have tried setting aside an hour a day to work on my books, but that doesn’t work very well for me. I find that I’m more productive if I can devote larger blocks of time so that I can really get my head into the project. I think it’s important for authors to figure out what writing method and time of day is the best fit for them personally.

Q: What advice or tips can you give other entrepreneurs and experts who are considering writing a book?

The first priority is to have a clear vision of what you hope to accomplish with your book and exactly who the target audience is. Understanding the characteristics of your audience helps you tailor the book to their needs.

As soon as you decide to write a book, start working to build or enhance your expert reputation and following. Ideally, by the time your book is published, you should have a following on online networks, contacts with influencers and bloggers in your field, and a good list of opt-in subscribers for your mailing list.

It’s important to invest some time (or hire a consultant) to gain an understanding of the publishing industry so that you can make intelligent decisions on how best to publish and sell your book.

If you aren’t an experienced writer or don’t have time due to the demands of your business, get help from a writing coach or ghostwriter. If you are submitting proposals to agents or publishers, learn the proper format and what these folks are looking for in a proposal. If you are publishing independently, be sure to have your book edited by a professional book editor.

Q: Are you working on your next project and can you tell us about it?

I’m working on my fourth book right now:  The Savvy Book Marketer’s Guide to Blogging for Authors. It’s designed to help authors plan for a successful blog, choose the best blogging platform, write great content, and promote their blog. I’m a big fan of blog-based websites, so the book will also explain how to create an author website using a blogging platform.

YOUR TURN: Leave your comments and questions for Dana in the comments section.

Here’s how you can connect with Dana:

Book website: www.SavvyBookMarketer.com

Blog: www.TheSavvyBookMarketer.com

Twitter: @BookMarketer

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/DanaLynnSmith

By Penny Sansevieri. Reprinted from “The Book Marketing Expert newsletter,” a free ezine offering book promotion and publicity tips and techniques. http://www.amarketingexpert.com

For many of us, Twitter is a good news/bad news social networking site. The good news: it’s super popular and it seems like everyone is using it. The bad news is that for the newbie Twitter person (and even if you’ve been on this site for a while) it can be confusing to know what is working, what isn’t and what’s actually making a difference.

After almost two years on Twitter, I’ve learned a lot of lessons – both in using Twitter to maximize your marketing goals as well as learning how to turn your Twitter tribe into engaged Twitter buyers. The list I’ve culled here isn’t new information, but I tried to present it in such a way that it will show you how to monetize Twitter and maximize it towards your Twitter efforts.

1) Be helpful first: believe it or not, the first piece of selling isn’t to sell, it’s to be helpful. As a guide for your market, you should be a “voice,” an opinion maker, and also – offer helpful insight, tips, guidance. By being helpful, you will build trust and people buy from someone they trust. Be helpful first, and a salesperson second.

2) Ask for what you want: when followers are inundated with messages, you need to ask for what you want. If you want a sale, offer them a special buy-in, offer them something they can’t get anywhere else, then offer this in a shorter period of time. Meaning, only make the offer for a day, an hour, or a few days – depending on the sale. This dials into #3 but bears repeating anyway.

3) Offer exclusives: this is possibly one of the biggest keys to Twitter. If you don’t offer your followers something they can’t get anywhere else, they may not take your sales pitch very seriously. Offer specials and select offers exclusively to your followers. Not only will they be getting something unique, but you will make them feel special.

4) Follow your customers: be sure and follow the people who are your customers or those you’d like to engage in your product or services. This is key: to know who they are and what their needs are. You’ll gain this insight by following them.

5) Ask for help: if you need help, insight, whatever – ask for it. The best way to engage on Twitter and to build your following and enhance the trust factor is to converse, which leads me to point #6:

6) Create Community! Don’t broadcast, communicate. If you want to turn a follower into a buyer, they’ll need to feel like more than just a number on your Twitter-counter. Communicate with your Twitter-peeps and make them feel a part of your community. When someone feels a part of your community, they will be more likely to buy from you. People buy from people they trust. You build that trust factor by not just being a megaphone for information, but by conversing with your community.

7) Become a filter. People buy from people they trust, that’s point #1. The second piece to this is that people buy from people who seem to be the experts. When you become a filter, i.e. the go-to place for all things related to your topic, you’ll build strong, engaged followers who will be inclined to buy from you. Being a filter can take a lot of forms. You might comment on news topics, share interesting blog posts, or tweet on a new book or product review. Again, become the expert in your field and people will view you as such.

The key to selling on Twitter is not to sell per se, but to build trust and community with your followers. It’s really not that different from your corner store. Maybe you go there because it’s close, but more than likely you go there because you trust them. You know they’ll have everything you need and you trust what they have is good, quality product. The same is true online, in fact, even more so. Your followers don’t have the luxury of meandering into your “store,” so you have to build that trust another way. You build that through engagement, interaction and the quality of information. Build the pathways, build the trust and the sales will follow. But, if you try to capture the dollars before you build your foundation you’ll find that your followers will leave you and sales will fall short.

This weekly list covers prescriptive nonfiction books. For more details on publishing deals – including agents, editors, publishers, and book descriptions – visit PublishersMarketplace and subscribe to the Deals Report

ADVICE / RELATIONSHIPS / SELF-HELP

LOVE, LUST AND FAKING IT
Jenny McCarthy

IS HE LYING TO YOU
Dan Crum

THE BREAK UP BIBLE: Your Guide to Healing, Understanding, and Transformation
Rachel Sussman

BUSINESS / INVESTING / FINANCE

HOW COMPANIES WIN: Capturing Profitable Demand
David Calhoun

THE NEW SOCIAL LEARNING
Tony Bingham and Marcia Conner

HYPER-PERFORMANCE: Using Competitive Intelligence to Improve Strategy and Execution
T. J. Waters

IT’S THE PEOPLE, STUPID!
Sean O’Neil and John Kulisek

SELF-EDUCATED BILLIONAIRES
Michael Ellsberg

WINNING IN THE ZERO-GROWTH DECADE AHEAD: How to Make — And Protect Money — In Sideways Markets
Gary Kaminsky

THE HEART AND SOUL OF A COMPANY
Robert Shook

THRILLED
Mark Stevens

GROW: How the World’s Best Businesses Use the Power of Ideals to Outshine the Competition
Jim Stengel

HEALTH / FITNESS / DIET

THE SMALL CHANGE DIET: 10 Small Change Plans
Keri Gans

The MENOPAUSE RESET DIET: Reverse Weight Gain, Speed Fat Loss, and Get Your Body Back in 3 Simple Steps
Mickey Harpaz, PhD with Robert

FLAVOR FIRST
Cheryl Forberg

RELIGION / SPIRITUALITY / METAPHYSICAL

SYDNEY OMARR’S DAY-BY-DAY ASTROLOGICAL GUIDE
Trish MacGregor and Rob MacGregor

WHAT YOUR BIRTHDAY REVEALS ABOUT YOUR SEX LIFE
Phyllis Vega

JESUS DOJO: A SIMPLE PATH TO ACTION, COMMUNITY, AND CHANGE
Mark Scandrette

SCIENCE

THE GIFT OF THE CROW: A Scientific Journey into Seven Human Characteristics Revealed by These Cerebral Birds
John Marzluff and Tony Angell

COOKING

SYLVIA’S TABLE
Liz Neumark with Carol Lalli

PARENTING

FOR THE LOVE OF MATH: Helping Your Child Enjoy and Succeed at Math
Jo Boaler

The title of The Complete Idiot’s Guide To Writing Business Books is misleading, since the book doesn’t actually teach the reader how to write a business book. Only 10 pages of the book (in the brief chapter “Voice, Point of View, and Style”) deal with any aspect of writing a book.

Instead the author provides material (divided into six sections) on:

1. Testing your business book idea
2. Writing your proposal and sample chapter
3. Finding an agent and other helpers
4. Finding a publisher and negotiating a contract
5. Writing and publicizing your book
6. Using your published book to enhance your career

And while the content is well presented, I am left wondering, “Where is the material promised by the book’s title?” There are much better, and more thorough, books on the topics of:

Developing book proposals: Bulletproof Book Proposals by Pam Brodowsky and Eric Neuhaus, Michael Larson’s How To Write a Book Proposal, or Nonfiction Book Proposals Anybody Can Write by Elizabeth Lyon

Finding a literary agent: How To Get A Literary Agent by Michael Larson, and my own The Complete Guide To Hiring A Literary Agent

Publicizing and marketing your book: From Book To Bestseller by Penny Sansevieri, Steve Weber’s Plug Your Book, and 1001 Ways To Market Your Books by John Kremer

Too bad The Complete Idiot’s Guide To Writing Business Books doesn’t deliver on the topic of writing business books – I’m sure many entrepreneurs aspiring to write business books could use a good business book-writing manual.

Author John Peragine has a Master’s and PhD in Natural Health and worked as a social worker in child protective services before becoming a full-time writer in 2007. He has written for a number of magazines, including Precognito, and Winemaker Magazine, he also ghost writes ebooks, articles, and blogs, and is a work-for-hire author of more than 10 nonfiction books.

Q: Tell us about your latest book “How To Open and Operate a Financially Successful Personal and Executive Coaching Business”.

This book has actually been two years in the making. It is about how to set up a lucrative and successful coaching business. Now there are all types of coaches and I try to mention as many as I can, but the field is expanding every day. It is not so much about the techniques of coaching, but rather how to create a business that will succeed. It includes information about accounting, IRS, marketing, and everything else that will make the business more financially sound. There is even a CD that comes with the book with plenty of extra goodies and forms that can be used.

I did this book for two reasons. First I had done other small business start up books – one on wedding planning and the other about how to start a successful personal trainer business. So I already had the foundations about how to create a successful small business.

The other thing that sparked my interest in this project was that I have been working with coaches worldwide, providing them marketing copy, ghost writing articles and writing eBooks and print books with them. So I already had an insider’s understanding of coaching and I had a number of contacts- coaches from every walk-of-life circling the globe. I did the logical thing and included them and their insights in this book. So readers will hear directly from the mouths of successful coaches how they propelled their business.

Q: How did you land your book deal?

It was a work-for-hire arrangement with a small nonfiction publisher.

Q. What is your writing process?

First I create two outlines- one that is a basic skeleton and the next a detailed outline with content about each of the chapters. I gather all my research materials – both in book form and online form. The first thing I do is to begin to create the bibliography. This way I will not forget any of the resources I am using.

I contact experts in the field and create a questionnaire or a list of questions I will ask them in an interview. In the meantime as I am collecting interviews I begin writing the book.

I work about 6 days a week, about 5-6 hours a day. For me, I cannot work much more than that, before my writing begins to suffer. In between I walk, exercise and move around. I have a small office in the top of my 100-year-old house to get away from everyone while I work. Everyone knows when I am there – unless someone is on fire they do not disturb me.

The books I have written take between 3-4 months on average, some like this latest one can take longer.

Q. Are you working on your next project and can you tell us about it?

Right now I have two books in layout ready for print: The Complete Guide to Making Your Own Wine at Home: Everything You Need to Know Explained Simply (Back-To-Basics) and Ebay Income: How Anyone of Any Age, Location, And/Or Background Can Build a Highly Profitable Online Business With Ebay (co-written 2nd edition)

I have two projects that will take me until probably the fall or winter to complete. They are both about beer making. The first one deals with making beer using materials you can grow in a garden. This one is fun because I have made beer for years and even won some competitions. In my two wine books I got to visit wineries, do taste testing and talk to some of the most influential people in the wine world.  So this time around- microbreweries.

The second book will about more of the how to of the actual process of beer making and will contain many different recipes that people can use to create awesome beer in their garage or kitchen.

Q. What advice or tips can you give other writers?

Follow your dream about writing. Put your all into it, because it pays you back in so many ways. Write every day. Keep a notebook handy for ideas, because the great ones I have had were on the fly. If I did not write it down on the spot I may have forgotten them.

Put yourself out there. You will get one acceptance for a pile of rejections, so never give up. Keep plodding through, and believe in yourself.

Finally, have your work proofread by professionals. Before submitting manuscripts or any other material have someone with a keen eye look it over. Nothing looks more amateurish than bad copy.

YOUR TURN: Post your questions for John Peragine in the comments section.

You can connect with John Peragine via his Website, Blog, or Twitter @JohnPeragine.

By Susan Gilbert, America’s Focus Expert. Reprinted from “The Book Marketing Expert newsletter,” a free ezine offering book promotion and publicity tips and techniques. http://www.amarketingexpert.com

1. Make sure your page on Squidoo looks its absolute best. A polished page gets more results.

2. Don’t be afraid to promote and market your business and website through your profile or content.

3. Title your lenses effectively and use keywords to get attention.

4. Make the introduction and description captivating and helpful so people want to read more.

5. Add photos for visual interest in the description.

6. You can set up multiple lenses for multiple keyword phrases. This is highly recommended.

7. Use tags to your advantage, and do so by making the most effective tags possible using powerful wording and linking to the best sites that will get you real results.

8. Understand the link flow on Squidoo, so you know how people find you, and how your links get distributed from the source page.

9. Make a “lens of the day” to keep people interested in your page and they’ll want to see what you have to say more often.

10. Find your voice on Squidoo. Think about who you are and what you’re trying to accomplish. Brainstorm some content ideas and think about your plans in advance before setting up your profile and lenses.

11. Be sure you are not only knowledgeable about your content, but that it comes across that way to others.

12. As always, watch spelling, grammar, and use of language.

13. Patience is the key with this website as with any other, so do things right the first time, and don’t expect results overnight.

14. Use the forum to your advantage to get advice, see what others are doing, and ask and answer questions.

15. Do not spam your pages or lenses, as people will run away from your profile. Members can tell spam a mile away.

16. Make a lens solely about you, so people have a place to start.

17. Co­branding is popular and a great way to get more income. Find some other companies or brands you can partner up with.

18. Use the Squidoo Answer Deck if you have any questions or need help.

19. The Squidcast feature lets you promote your lenses, so definitely use this to your advantage.

20. Make sure all of your links work. You should check them periodically to ensure they still work.

21. If time goes on and you find better links, don’t forget to update them!

22. Add a table of contents to your lens. People really like this feature.

23. Spell check, spell check, spell check.

24. Update your profile to allow people to contact you so that you are available to your customers, potential clients, and anyone who wants to ask you something. Being accessible is a great way to gain a good reputation.

25. Twitter is a great tool for promoting your lenses, so use it to your advantage.

26. Edit your modules so they are not just the ones generated from Squidoo. Tailor them to each lens, so it looks more through and professional.

27. The more high quality lenses you have, the better so make up as many as you can. Just be sure each one has a purpose and will get results.

28. Think of ways to spin your company’s mission statement into a lens title.

29. Charities play a big role on Squidoo. Find a few you believe in, and work with them on your pages.

30. Don’t just limit lenses to links. Have them point to your RSS feeds, Twitter, Fickr page, and tons more.

31. If you’re a fan of other companies or products, make a lens for it. See if the place you’re a fan of will reciprocate the favor.

32. Use referrals to your advantage and recruit as many people as you can.

33. Don’t hesitate to make a lens about your own affiliate program.

34. Have your affiliates make some lenses of their own promoting your website.

35. Don’t forget that spam is NOT welcome on Squidoo, and your account could be canceled if you spam. Find out about their guidelines before publishing anything.

36. Use Google AdSense in conjunction with Squidoo, since they work hand in hand.

37. Max your lenses for optimum exposure. Simply check this option on the edit pages of your lenses for the maximum view and exposure.

38. Aspire to earn the Giant Badge so people will see you’ve been a long­standing member who produces quality content.

39. Try to get gold stars for your lenses, as this means you’re the best of the best.

40. Use the Flickr module to incorporate cool photos. Visually appealing lenses and modules typically have the most success.

41. Add your Squidoo links to your blogs and website.

42. Add your lenses to Squidoo groups. Look into the many different groups available and then add your lenses accordingly.

43. Introduce yourself in the Forums, and on other websites dedicated to Squidoo users.

44. The longer you’re on Squidoo, the better your reputation, so remember it takes a while to become established.

45. The more lenses the better, just make sure each is unique in its own way.

46. Make sure you have a Paypal account, because that is how Squidoo makes payments.

47. Your content should be thorough and high quality. Don’t skimp on well written content just to get more lenses published.

48. Do not just use Google as a resource for information when creating content. Look into more in depth resources and you content will be much better.

49. It’s up to you how often you want to update your lenses. As long as they remain relevant, it’s okay to leave them alone.

50. You can use popular hot topics for lenses aside from your own company or business related topics. It still gets hits!