By Terry Whalin @terrywhalin Some publishing experts estimate 1,000 new books are published every day. This estimate includes the self-published books and it can be overwhelming when you consider the volume of print material which is entering the world.  How can an author standout, be different and sell books? In this article, I want to give some strategy ideas and action steps. Upfront, I will tell you each of these methods are not quick and easy. They require effort and work to sell books.  As you read and study the path of other authors, you need to understand success le ..read more

By Terry Whalin @terrywhalin When writers begin to submit to book publishers, they are often surprised with the questions about social media and their specific numbers on various platforms. Isn’t social media a waste of time? I often hear this waste of time push back from writers about social media. In addition, I’ve read other articles from those inside publishing who say social media does not sell books. In this article, I want to give a series of reasons and insights why every writer needs to be on social media yet also control their time on it so it is productive and not wasted. A ..read more

By Terry Whalin @terrywhalin I love the freshness of spring. Baseball season starts. We freshen up our place from the trials of winter and plant flowers for spring along with other activities. The darkness of winter fades and we celebrate the newness of life with new growth and flowers. As I ask in this article, is it time for spring cleaning? I’ve found that the more I’m organized and block different parts of my schedule, then it increases my productivity and output. As I’ve mentioned in past entries, almost daily books pour into my mailbox. In general, I unpack them and put them on ..read more

By Terry Whalin @terrywhalin Change is the only constant in the publishing world. It’s like playing the childhood game of musical chairs. The players are constantly in motion and change positions and roles. It’s one of the reasons for writers to read the trade publications which report significant personnel changes. Editors become literary agents. Literary agents change and work for a publisher or they become a freelance editor. These examples are just a couple of the continually shifting landscape.  As a writer, you have a dream and a desire to publish your words. It takes a lot ..read more

By Terry Whalin @terrywhalin From the opening sentences, the workshop looked like a disaster. The speaker began with a story about their computer and how it crashed on the way to the conference. They had a detailed presentation but could not get their laptop and their powerpoint to work. It was disappointing and the content of the workshop went downhill from that moment. As a member of the audience, it was painful to see this workshop leader struggle with their topic. Throughout my years in the publishing community, I’ve been in a number of these types of sessions with technology issue ..read more

By Terry Whalin @terrywhalin It may be strange to make this admission. As a writer, I don’t enjoy getting editorial feedback--especially the most helpful kind. The most useful feedback is when your manuscript isn’t published and is still being improved and refined but will often take a lot of work on my part to adjust it.   When I work with an editor, they often use the tracking changes feature of Microsoft Word, which in general is a standard program within the publishing community. Yes, there are other programs like WordStar and WordPerfect but in general writers who use t ..read more

By Terry Whalin @terrywhalin Within the publishing process, there are a number of critical decisions such as which story to write, what market or audience to reach, and many other details. Today I want to write about an aspect that I’ve not seen discussed very often: cover selection.  In Ecclesiastes 12:12, King Solomon had it right when he said, “Of making many books, there is no end.” Recently in the publishing community, I’ve read that over 8,000 new books enter the market every day. This large number includes the self-published books but it shows that many authors are go ..read more

By Terry Whalin @terrywhalin Whether we like it or not, the publishing world is constantly in motion and changing. As an example, recently I had lunch with a long-time friend who years ago led a communication team but now is retired. I told him about a few hours earlier when I recorded a podcast interview. He asked, “What is a podcast?”  I explained a podcast is like radio yet online. With the massive numbers of people podcasting and guest podcasting or listening to podcasts, his question surprised me. Podcasting began twenty years ago. I include this story to remind us the tools ..read more

By Terry Whalin @terrywhalin As writers and others involved in publishing, I believe we live in one of the greatest times in human history. Markus Dohle, the former CEO of Penguin Random House wrote a couple of years ago about books are now enjoying their biggest renaissance since Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press in the fifteenth century. I was on a webinar listening to Dohle where he made this statement and gave his reasons. If you follow the link, you can see a webinar where he talks about the explosion in book publishing around the world.   In my own life an ..read more

By Terry Whalin @terrywhalin Many editors and agents are difficult to reach. These gatekeepers play an important role in the publishing community. This aspect of publishing is rarely discussed but your connection to this person is important aspect of publishing. As I’ve written in these articles, every author needs a champion for their submission.  As a new writer, how can you connect with these important gatekeepers? Many publishers don’t take electronic or mail submissions which is sometimes called a slush pile. They are not on LinkedIN or interested in developing new connection ..read more