Want to Take Survey?

For those of you who saw Rebecca Irvine's great report in my previous post, she's now doing a study just for you--the authors! Follow this link and do her the favor of taking her survey:

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/588XKGK

In response, Rebecca will make up another great report that will share great information about LDS authors and the industry in general!

I know I'm looking forward to the results!

CHAPTER ONE CLUB

Cedar Fort is happy to announce its CHAPTER ONE CLUB. With so many books and so little time, Cedar Fort would like to help you find the books you’d like to read by delivering chapters to your inbox.

Starting in April, each Friday the Chapter One Club will send out the first chapter of one of our current or upcoming titles. Sure, you can read book reviews online, but nothing tells you if you want to read a book more than reading the first chapter to see if you want to read chapter 2… and 3… and 4, and more!

You are receiving this notice because you subscribe to other notices or services from CFI and we just want you to have the opportunity to receive FREE chapters each Friday.

If you are interested, email spratt (at) cedarfort (dot) com with "CHAPTER ONE" in the subject and “Sign me up!” in the body of the email. That's it! You will be added and begin to receive free weekly chapters of current and upcoming titles!

Note: As an added bonus of joining the Chapter One Club, you are also likely to receive discount coupons and other sweet goodies, so you may want to join just for that!

Happy Spring!

What LDS Authors Should Know!

For those of you who do not follow Rebecca Irvine's blog, you may have missed the report she posted last week. She surveyed over 400 LDS readers to find out their buying habits and interests. I definitely recommend all authors look this over and watch future studies to see how habits and interests evolve.

http://rebeccairvine.blogspot.com/2010/03/lds-book-reader-survey-summary-of.html

Additionally, this is a great example of having a blog of value. Generating reports like this is something Rebecca does professionally, and she's sharing the wealth of her skills with anyone willing to click on a button. Go Rebecca!

This Week's Signings

It must be Spring. Not only is Joy Bossi selling stores out of her gardening book, but authors are venturing from their homes and mingling with the public in record numbers. Next week Malcolm Leal will be touring along the Seagull Books along the Wasatch Front. It also may be the reason Rachael Renee Anderson's brightly colored "Divinely Designed" was the bestselling CFI fiction title last week. People are ready for color and life and reading books that encourage them to get out into the world and live a little!

Indeed, it's the perfect time to be active. And if you don't know how to get the ball rolling, go visit one of these authors at their signings and ask them how they get the ball rolling.

Happy Monday!


23-Mar 11-4 pm Mike McPheters Costco
23-Mar 11:30-1 Michael Young UVU Bookstore
24-Mar 11-4 pm Mike McPheters Costco
25-Mar 11-4 pm Mike McPheters Costco
25-Mar 11-2 pm Joy Bossi Costco
26-Mar 11-4 pm Mike McPheters Costco
27-Mar 10-2 pm Mike McPheters St. George Seagull
27-Mar 12-2 pm David Ridges Sp. Fork Seagull
27-Mar 12-2 pm Malcolm Leal American Fork Seagull
27-Mar 10-2 pm Racheal Renee Anderson Sp. Fork Seagull
27-Mar 12-2 pm Diana Webb Murray-B&N
27-Mar 12-2 pm Craig Manning Murray-B&N
27-Mar 12-2 pm Wendy Paul Murray-B&N
27-Mar 12-2 pm Rachael Renee Anderson Spanish Fork-DB
27-Mar 2:30-4:30 Rachelle Christensen Spanish Fork-DB
27-Mar 1-3 pm Frank Cole S. Towne-B&N
27-Mar 12-4 pm Mike McPheters Costco

Cedar Fort Authors Signing this Weekend!

If you're out and about this weekend and want to run into another author, you'll have plenty of opportunities. Following are a list of Cedar Fort signings taking place this weekend in the Salt Lake Valley.

Have fun!

19-Mar Friday 11-4 pm OTME David Ridges Costco
19-Mar Friday 11-4 pm Agent Bishop Mike McPheters Costco
19-Mar Friday 7-9 pm Hashbrown Winters Frank Cole S. Towne-BN
20-Mar Saturday 11-4 pm Agent Bishop Mike McPheters Costco
20-Mar Saturday 12-2 pm The Mark MR Bunderson University Plaza
20-Mar Saturday 11-4 pm OTME David Ridges Costco
20-Mar Saturday 12-2 pm 101 Cupcakes Wendy Paul Orem-BN
20-Mar Saturday 12-2 pm Centsible Meals Lorae Bowden Orem-BN
20-Mar Saturday 12-2 pm Forgotten Women Diana Webb Orem-BN
20-Mar Saturday 12-2 pm Fearless Mind Craig Manning Orem-BN
20-Mar Saturday 12-2 pm Joy in Your Garden Joy Bossi Murray-BN

Mario Facione: LIVE this Saturday Night!

For all you who have wanted to hear Mario Facione's fireside, the author of "Mafia to Mormon" will be speaking live this Saturday, the 20th in Murray. A signing will be held earlier that day at the Murray B&N, 12-2:00 pm.

The fireside will begin Saturday night (3/20) at 6:30 pm and last approximately an hour. The address of the church is:

450 East 5600 South
Murray, Utah

Mario is a fascinating speaker with a fascinating story to tell, so come by if you can make it. We will be meeting in the Relief Society Room.

FRIDAY FUN!

Okay, some of you are just having fun out there. I'm seeing great websites pop up like this one:

http://www.becomethasachild.com/

Some of you are composing your own soundtrack to your book:

http://berinstephens.com/48205.html (click on "Havoc Stomp")

Giving out mammoth prizes for blog tour reviews:

http://nicholegiles.blogspot.com/2010/03/book-review-wrong-number-by-rachelle-j.html
http://tristipinkston.blogspot.com/2010/03/book-review-wrong-number-by-rachelle-j.html
http://www.queenoftheclan.com/2010/03/book-review-wrong-number-by-rachelle.html
http://annebradshaw.blogspot.com/2010/03/my-review-of-rachelle-j-christensens.html
http://blog.annettelyon.com/2010/03/author-interview-rachelle-j-christensen.html
http://www.wendypaulcreations.com/2010/03/book-review-wrong-number-by-rachelle-j.html
http://camicheckettsbooks.blogspot.com/2010/03/author-interview-rachelle-christensen.html
http://authorjennijames.blogspot.com/2010/03/book-review.html
http://alvor-daretodream.blogspot.com/2010/03/wrong-number-book-review.html
http://alicross.blogspot.com/2010/03/interview-with-wrong-number-author.html

And more! Remember, there are very few wrong ways to market your book (although wrong ways do exist, don't be fooled), there is only the right way for you! Feel free to try new things, experiment, learn and move forward.

Happy Weekend!!!!!

Illustrators Wanted!

Click on the image below to read the contest details in full size:

This Week's Signings

Hey there! Until I find a public calendar for all of you to have access to, I will post the weekly signings I have on my radar each Monday. If you see I'm missing yours, feel free to get on my radar.

Also, I know several of you are anxiously waiting to have access to the Author login site on cedarfort.com. There's just a little thing that needs to be done on the IT side and it should be up. I will send out a massive author email when that is ready to roll out.

Penultimately, UVU has started scheduling authors. All authors have been confirmed with by email, but check that blog for dates. As you can see, UVU has decided not to stick to Thursdays, which is just fine :)

Last of all, this week's signings:

3/8- Mike McPheters: St George Costco, 11-4 pm
3/9- David Ridges: Orem Costco, 11-4 pm
3/9- Mormon Mishaps: Santa Quin Library Fund Raiser
3/10- Wendy Paul: Baking Class
3/11- Frank Cole: Channing Hall, South Towne BN 6-8 pm
3/12- Mike McPheters: St George Costco, 11-4 pm
3/12- Frank Cole: UVU Bookstore, 11-1 pm
3/13- Berin Stephens: Provo Deseret Book, 12-2 pm
3/13- Rachelle J Christensen: Orem BN, 12-2 pm
3/13- Michael Young: Orem BN, 12-2 pm
3/13- Frank Richardson: Orem BN, 12-2 pm
3/13- Guy Galli: Murray BN, 12-2 pm
3/13- Kerstin Daynes: Murray BN, 12-2 pm
3/13- Joe Evans: Murray BN, 12-2 pm
3/13- Terri Ferran: Murray BN, 12-2 pm

Articles... the Other Form of Publishing

With the average attention span approximately the length of a TV commercial, how do you get people to keep seeing you the day after they find out your book has come out?

It's the million-dollar question, right?

Think of all the authors you like to read and all the ways you've looked them up online. What did you want to find when you googled their name? An interview? A site? Reviews? An article? A blog? Images? (Hint: there is no correct answer.)

Now hold on to the answers you thought of and that's your next assignment! And don't think of excuses why you shouldn't do it, because you never know what will stick.

EXAMPLE: This is a multi-million-dollar industry: http://lanyardsupply.com/

And someone out there is cashing in on it by making book-themed lanyards for book-store clerks. I was just in BN where one of the employees was giddily raving about having this particular lanyard: https://www.mightybarnacle.com/proddetail.php?prod=ashlanyard

Now, I'm not saying to go out and make lanyards, but that is just one way this particular author is making herself visible in bookstores. PRETTY SMART.

As mentioned in a previous post, a great way to stay visible and find your audience is to write articles. This allows strangers to find you and get curious. One ad I walked past today asking for content writers is:

http://www.utahstories.com/

Check it out... but only after you plot out the idea you had at the beginning of this post ;)

Uh, it's March...

Anyone else taken unawares?

The sun's out, it's 50 degrees, Spring is in the air, and I'm voting on Christmas books. Weird.

I just want to take a moment here and thank you all for what you do! Publishing is such a strange beast. We never think (before entering the biz) that writing the books is the easy part--it's the getting thousands or millions of strangers to buy it that's the real pickle.

But just for today, March 1st, I'm going to choose to think on only the good this industry has to offer. None of the stress, none of the labor--only the joy of storytelling. The miracle of sharing of information and visions with each other through streams of connected letters and pages. Really, when you think about it, writing is as big of a miracle as telephones--we've just gotten used to it. Maybe it's even more of a miracle since written words can last through the eons of time, whereas a phone call is gone when it is finished.

So, yes, while there are signings to set up, speaking engagements to garner, articles to write, reviews to generate, parties to plan, invitations to send, events to attend, workshops to learn from, connections to be made, reporters to contact, bloggers to follow, videos to script and so much more--for a single moment, just take a deep breath and remember the optimism and vision that started you on this whole journey and the personal legacy your written words leave behind.

And once you remember why you started on this path, feel free to jump back on the 'to do' list that brought you here. Good luck!