Authors on the Move!

So many of you are so active and doing such great things for your books, it's hard to keep up!

Rachelle Christensen is launching a huge book tour for her first novel, "Wrong Number," which many of you are participating in.

Wendy Paul is holding a cookie recipe contest where the winner's recipe will be included in her next cookbook "101 Gourmet Cookies for Everyone" plus she was featured on Blog Talk Radio in an hour interview with Megan Sillito on 2/24.

Mike McPheters continues his avid touring and is currently in St. George, Utah where a fan created this interview post for him.

Malcolm Leal is touring Idaho and Northern Utah, hitting the radio waves, making friends, and creating signings so successful that The Ogden Deseret Book chose "Faith Among Shadows" as their featured title of the week!

Ken Knapton is teaching Cyber Safety classes in his community and showing parents how to keep their children safe from online predators.

So many good things going on! Click on the links above and maybe you'll get an idea of how to make your book more visible!

BYU Women's Conference

The time has come to see which authors are interested in participating in the BYU Women's Conference this year!

Anyone is free to nominate themselves, with the final decision--of course--being made by BYU.

All authors who are interested, PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT on this post so that anyone who needs to see the list of eager authors can all come to one place and see it!

Happy February and keep up the great work!

Christmas Contest in February!

Calling All Writers!

Are you missing Christmas yet? The potpourri, the lights, the presents?

Okay, maybe not. But if you can believe it, Cedar Fort is already looking forward to next Christmas and what would be the perfect Christmas pamphlet for friends and family to give each other. We know it’s out there—hiding away in someone’s mind or hard drive, so we are presenting you with the:

Cedar Fort One-Week Christmas Pamphlet Contest.

What we’re looking for: THE BEST CHRISTMAS PAMPHLET EVER!

It might be 100 words long, it might be 10,000, but it’s out there just waiting to be shared this upcoming Christmas season.

This isn’t a contest with strict rules, it is a search for a heartwarming story that will help everyone get into the Christmas spirit and remember the real reason for the holiday. Maybe you have it. Maybe you know someone who should be reading this instead of you. Pass it on! This contest is open to all, but it does close on FEBRUARY 19, 2010.

It is a great opportunity for current authors or those trying to break into the publishing industry to get a foot in the door, so don’t delay.

Send your submissions via email to submissions@cedarfort.com
Subject: Christmas Story Contest
Please include contact information, including name, address, and telephone number.

Looking forward to reading all your stories!

UVU Wants YOU!

...but only for a couple of hours.

Here's the story: Starting in March, from 11:00-1:00 pm on every Thursday Cedar Fort will be hosting signings at Utah Valley University in their bookstore. This is great way for your book to gain exposure among a college crowd!

The books they are looking for are:

National Fiction/Non-Fiction
Juvenile Fiction (targeting elementary school students)
Children's Picture Books

If your book falls in this category and you live in where you can do a lunch-time signing at UVU, please leave your requested dates for signing in the comments section. In this case, all authors will be considered on a first come, first served basis, with UVU ultimately choosing the authors they fill to be good fits.

So, to repeat, make sure your title fits with those UVU is requesting, find dates that will work for you in the next several months and post them in the comment section. When something is firmly scheduled I will email you in addition to posting your signing in the comment section so other authors can see what days are taken.

Remember, all your signings should be publicized on your personal website so that fans know you'll be there. Also, remember to invite FB friends and others a minimum of 3 times with your status updates or by creating an event.

Are you ready?

On your mark, get set, go!

Whitney Award Finalists Announced!

This year’s Whitney Award Finalists are listed below in alphabetical order by author. Congrats to all nominated authors.

Who do you think should win? ;)

BEST ROMANCE:
Counting the Cost, by Liz Adair; Illuminations of the Heart, by Joyce DiPastena; All the Stars in Heaven, by Michele Paige Holmes; Santa Maybe, by Aubrey Mace; Previously Engaged, by Elodia Strain.

MYSTERY/SUSPENSE:
Lockdown, by Traci Hunter Abramson; Methods of Madness, by Stephanie Black; Murder by the Book, by Betsy Brannon Green; Lemon Tart, by Josi Kilpack; Altered State, by Gregg Luke.

YOUTH FICTION:
Princess of the Midnight Ball, by Jessica Day George; Fablehaven IV: Secrets of the Dragon Sanctuary, by Brandon Mull; My Fair Godmother, by Janette Rallison; Bright Blue Miracle, by Becca Wilhite; The Chosen One, by Carol Lynch Williams.

SPECULATIVE:
Servant of a Dark God, by John Brown; The Maze Runner, by James Dashner; Wings, by Aprilynne Pike; Warbreaker, by Brandon Sanderson; I Am Not A Serial Killer, by Dan Wells.

HISTORICAL:
Tribunal, by Sandra Grey; The Undaunted, by Gerald Lund; Alma, by H.B. Moore; The Last Waltz, by G.G. Vandagriff; In the Company of Angels, by Dave Wolverton.

GENERAL FICTION:
Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, by Jamie Ford; No Going Back, by Jonathon Langford; Gravity vs. The Girl, by Riley Noehren; The Route, by Gale Sears; Eyes Like Mine, by Julie Wright.

This ballot now goes out to members of the voting academy, a select group of LDS publishers; bookstore owners, managers, and employees; LDS authors; print and online magazine publishers; reviewers; and others working in the field of LDS literature.
Unlike previous voting, this year the academy can choose from any of the thirty finalists for the overall award, Best Novel by a New Author, and from any of the eligible finalists for Best Novel by a New Author.

Winners will be announced at a gala banquet on Saturday, April 24 at the Marriott
hotel in Provo, Utah. Tickets are now on sale at www.WhitneyAwards.com.

Special awards will also be presented that night to two persons whose bodies of works and tireless efforts have made a significant impact on the field of LDS popular fiction. Gerald Lund will receive a Lifetime Achievement Award, and Dave Wolverton will receive an Outstanding Achievement Award.

For more information on the Whitney Awards, visit www.whitneyawards.com.

South Towne AUTHORPALOOZA!!!

For those of you in the Salt Lake Valley looking for a great store to stop by tomorrow (Saturday), check out the South Towne Barnes & Noble's Authorpalooza where 40 authors will be signing from 1:00-4:00 pm.

Yes, you read right: 40! It's inevitable that you will find a book or an author there that will make the trip worthwhile :)

Need directions?

If you're an author, be sure to introduce yourself to Michelle and let her know what a great job she is doing and how much you would like to be part of the event next year!

Titles in DB's Mother's Day Catalog

Hello All!

Just got word of which titles have been accepted into the Deseret Book Mother's Day catalog. They are as follows:

Life's Alphabet Soup
Mother's Daze
Diet Rebel's Cookbook
101 Gourmet Cupcakes
Always Remember Him
The Mark
Wrong Number
Tombs of Terror
Taming the Wind
Canticle Kingdom
He Knows You

Congrats! This is great exposure and, consequently, a great time to bust a move with any personal marketing efforts and signings.

This is going to be a great year!

Got Articles?

Writing articles for publications is one great way to expand the readership of your books. It allows you to provide valuable information you specialize in to a magazine or other publication. In return, you nearly always get to mention your book in your bio and you might even get paid!

There are some great online magazines that would be a great fit for many cfi authors. A few include:

www.ldsmag.com
http://desertsaintsmagazine.com/call-for-writers/
http://www.jenmagazine.com/contents.php
http://ldslivingmagazine.com/
http://www.mormonchic.com/

This, of course, is just a start of online magazines targeted towards an LDS audience, but each is a valid communitee that may be where your target audience is gathering.

Research online magazines you think would be interested in what you have to offer and see what they're looking for. The Desert Saints Magazine tells you the theme of each month so you can better craft your content for them. Maybe you can let them print a chapter or reapproach a chapter in your book to make it a stand alone article that will be exactly what the magazine is praying for. If you do that a couple times in a row, you may jut find yourself with a fun, easy part-time job that continuously exposes readers to your book.

This week's challenge is to find a magazine that needs your content and send them an article (finding a few images they can print, as well). Good things start with small steps!

If you have questions about article writing, a CFI author has recommeded "An Idiot's Guide to Writing Magazine Articles." It helped her and it could help you, too!