Spring’s in full swing! It’s always an exciting time in self-publishing, with many self-published authors taking advantage of promotional opportunities such as spring book fairs and ramping up for a summer of selling.
Outskirts Press knows that stocking up for the big book-selling push can get pricey. We want to ease the burden so you make the most of a season of sales. So, through the end of May we’re giving all currently published authors FREE SHIPPING on orders of 50 or more within the continental U.S.
Chances are you’ll need extra books for upcoming promotional events. By combining free shipping with our bulk order discounts, you’ll be well-stocked for summer promotions – without depleting your bank account!
Here’s how free shipping works:
1. Login to your Publishing Center and place an order for 50 or more copies of your book(s) in a single format before May 31.
2. Select normal ground shipping with a delivery address in the continental United States.
No promotion code is necessary. You will see the free shipping reflected once you place your order. It’s a snap!
If you’re not sure how to approach marketing your self-published book and haven’t yet taken advantage of Outskirts Press’ many promotional services, consider contacting a Personal Marketing Assistant to come up with a solid action plan for this summer.
It’s true that April showers bring May flowers. We have a special flower for you: For the entire month of May, authors who have published with Outskirts Press can get FREE SHIPPING on book orders of 50 or more with UPS Ground shipping within the continental United States.
If you’ve been wanting to order some books for events or save more money by ordering in bulk for your direct sales efforts, now is the time to take advantage of our most popular promotion for published authors.
Here’s how it works:
1. Login to your Publishing Center and place an order for 50 or more copies of your book(s) in a single format before May 31st.
2. Select normal ground shipping with a delivery address in the continental United States.
No promotion code is necessary. You will see the free shipping reflected during your order. Easy, right? Click here to place your order.
AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT & SUCCESS STORY
“This was my first experience publishing a book, and I’ve learned a lot! Outskirts Press made the experience as painless a possible for me, and my author representative was great! The greatest lesson I learned was to edit, edit, edit BEFORE starting the process. That way, the publishing experience can be most efficient and there will be few, if any, surprises. Thanks, Outskirts Press!”Bill Taylor has been an ordained Primitive Baptist minister for twenty years, serving churches in Alabama and Tennessee as a pastor. This is his first published book, and it is the result of his having written and distributed daily meditations on various Bible subjects for many years. This is not a heavy theological commentary; instead, it is a practical approach to understanding God’s word and how it is still, “quick and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword.” - Bill Taylor, author of Men Of Like Passion
We all know how important marketing is to the success of a self-published book. Part of achieving that efficacy is getting the most bank for the few bucks you have to spend on publicizing your works. One of the most vital elements of this is target marketing.
Bookmarks Magazine, a subscription magazine for lovers of literature, offers authors advertising that does just that. (You can purchase ad space conveniently through Outskirts Press.) Each full-color issue of Bookmarks includes a synopsis of a number of the latest and greatest literary works and is targeted specifically to avid readers looking for the next great tome. To date, Bookmarks has 40,000 subscribers.
Each ad page in Bookmarks spotlights several authors with a full-color book-cover image and synopsis, providing each author a cost-effective way to showcase his or her work before an appropriate and very specific audience. The magazine’s Co-op Advertising Program provides authors high-profile — and most importantly, inexpensive — ad space. It’s exceptional, targeted visibility at a fraction of the price of a full-page ad.
Imagine publishing a fully-formatted, professionally-designed
volume of your poetry. Imagine simply “cutting’n'pasting”
your poems into designated areas of an already-formatted
document. Fast. Easy.Imagine, still, that elements like justification, centering, page spreads, margins, page numbering, graphical elements, and title drops were already taken care of!That’s how easy it is to publish with the Poetry Publishing Kit. Each kit comes with two files:Use the “Easy” file…
as building blocks to add more pages
move poems around
add or replace included graphics
further customize your book however you want
Or use the “Easier” file…
to simply cut n paste 30 poems directly into the file
add each respective title above each of your poems
accommodates a wide variety of poetry lengths
Both files are included in the Kit. Start with the “Easier” way and then as you become comfortable, move to the “Easy” file to add more poems for a second volume.
Then when you’re ready to publish your book of poetry, you will have a beautiful, professionally-formatted manuscript to submit, as-is, for high-quality black/white printing.
Both files are Microsoft Word 2003 files, so be sure that is a compatible format for your computer before purchasing the Publishing Kit.
Important Delivery Details: Once you click the Add to Cart button and complete your purchase,
your Poetry Publishing Kit will be available for instant download within the “My Toolkit” area of your
Publishing Account. Each file is approximately 50 MB. This is 100 MB of instant publishing support!
If you’ve been on the fence about starting (or completing) your e-Book offerings, now is the time to take action while publishing a high-quality paperback or hardback edition at the same time.
Today you can save over $200 when you publish with the Diamond or full-color Pearl package and then add the iPad/iPhone Enhanced E-book edition to your services.
Here’s what you get when you start publishing to the iBooks bookstore today with this exclusive offering from Outskirts Press:
• Greater exposure for your book. The more outlets where your book is available for sale, the greater the chances that your book will be discovered by potential readers.
• 100% profits. Apple will take 30% but you keep the remaining 70%.
• Full control over your retail price. Frustrated with your hardcopy pricing? E-book pricing is more flexible.
• Your own Private Label Imprint and Bowker-Approved ISBN. You become your own publisher with a unique ISBN and Publishing Imprint for your iPad/iPhone e-book edition.
• Publishing freedom and independence. Your iPad e-book edition exists completely independently of any hardcopy versions of your book published with Outskirts Press.
• Royalties are not split with Outskirts Press. Just like with our Amazon Kindle and Barnes & Noble Nook e-book options, authors receive ALL the profit of their sales directly from the source (in this case, Apple).
• You receive the final EPUB converted file. It’s yours to pursue other distribution channels independently of Outskirts Press.
Are you ready to take advantage of this growing market? Choose your package below to get started right away. Don’t forget to enter the promotion code: iPad2012PP at checkout to take advantage of your 20% limited-time savings when you add your iPad/iPhone Enhanced edition to your package. Your consultant can help you do it.
“You gave me an outstanding book cover and interior, which I love so much. I also liked the pace at which my author representative worked. Thank you for a job well done!”Kathy-Ann Bamkefa lives with her family in California. She is married with two children and is an evangelist at their ministry, Worldwide Prophetic Evangelical Ministries. She has been writing poetry since 1999 in her leisure and also writes articles, which she posts to her blog monthly. She is multi-talented and loves to use her gifts and talents to encourage others. Kathy, has a bachelor’s degree in Psychology of Christian Counseling and Theology, and was born in Trinidad. This is her first published book.- Kathy-Ann Bamkefa, author of Inspirational Poems & Psalms Especially for You Collection I
To keep you productive, we’ve compiled a list of 31 book marketing tips that you should find valuable… and with the new a la carte marketing options available through Outskirts Press, no matter where you may have published, you can start your book marketing efforts the right way.
Mar 1 – Make a goal to set up your author platform. The first start can be with social media. If you aren’t familiar (or comfortable) with social media and need a bit of assistance, our Author Platform Set-up Through Social Media Option is a good way to start.
Mar 2 – Contact other independent published authors in your area (through local associations you may belong to) and combine your resources to fully exploit the opportunities during this month. There’s a lot to do, and four hands are better than two. With the advent of social networking sites, this is easier than ever. In fact your publisher may already have a group on such sites as MySpace or FaceBook or a following on Twitter to help you connect with other writers. Here is the Outskirts Press Facebook community.
Mar 3 – Contact your local bookstores and suggest they offer discounts on Small Press books this month (since March is Small Press Month). Bring in yours and offer it to them at a discount to get them started. Show them the rest of this calendar as a way of indicating your commitment to making their event successful. Offer to leave a free copy with them along with a sales sheet. Here’s a link to the ABA Bookseller directory.
Mar 4 – Make a 60 second book video trailer and distribute it to video and social networking sites like YouTube and Facebook. Don’t know the first thing about how you would do that? Outskirts Press can do it for you, affordably and professionally – just click here.
Mar 6 – Follow-up on your press release from yesterday with the local media via telephone. Reiterate Small Press Month, your planned events in the community, and your Small Press book. Send them a review of your book that they can use as a foundation. (Less work for them). Outskirts Press can perform a PR Publicist Campaign for your custom press release which includes additional distribution, phone-call follow-up, and more.
Mar 7 – Consider taking your book on a Virtual Book Tour. You can save 15% on this option through the rest of March when you check out using the promotion code VBT15PCT.
Mar 8 – Contact your local libraries and suggest they feature Small Press titles, including yours. Offer to leave a free copy with them, along with a sales sheet. If you’re an Outskirts Press author, you can generate a sales sheet automatically in your Publishing Center here. You can even change it and update it first through your Author Toolkit by modifying and updating your author webpage.
Mar 9 – If you haven’t yet sent out review copies for book, now is the time. For published Outskirts Press authors, your Book Review Starter Kit has many book reviewers listed, and you also have the option of the Book Review Submission service.
Mar 10 – Contact local schools in your area and tell them about Small Press Month. Mention that you are a local published author and offer to speak to their assembly about the topic of your book; or, even, on how to accomplish their dreams of being published. This is particularly effective if you have a children’s book you can then sell after the assembly. Plus, you can earn affiliate commissions by recommending our full-color Pearl publishing package. In addition to cookbooks or art books, the Pearl package is perfect for children’s books (since over 30 different artistic illustration packages are available – click here to view them).
Watch the Pearl Package video…
Mar 11 – Contact local universities and colleges. Same concept as yesterday — promote yourself and your book by sharing your knowledge of how to write a book and get it published. Sell copies of your book in the back of the room, and earn 10% referral commissions by referring other authors to our Publishing Services.
Mar 12 – Schedule a seminar or tele-seminar on “How to Write and Publish a Book” and offer a “Small Press Month” discount on the registration fee. Send out a local news release about your class. GoToMeeting.com offers a free 30 day trial to create your own webinar. Give it a try!
Mar 13 – March 13th will be lucky for you when you hire a professional marketing assistant to help you complete these 31 ideas (along with other marketing tactics you may not even know about). 5 hours of personal marketing assistance is available by clicking here.
Mar 14 – Some authors put themselves into their books. Now you can do it literally, by ordering a custom t-shirt featuring your book cover on the front and back. It’s available no matter where you published. Click here to order.
Mar 15 – Advertising independently can be expensive. A single full-page ad in the New York Times costs over $40,000! But, thankfully, Outskirts Press offers its family of published authors co-op advertising opportunities in ForeWord Reviews, Spirituality & Health, Publisher’s Weekly, and theNew York Times.
Mar 16 – Contact all the local radio producers in your area and pitch them on Small Press Month. The Radio Locator website makes it easy to find a radio station’s contact information.
Mar 17 – Think St. Patrick’s Day thoughts and then “go green” by making sure you have published your book with a book publisher like Outskirts Press, who offers 30% post-consumer recycled materials in the most popular paper choices.
Mar 18 – Make sure your book is available in all formats. We offer Kindle, iPad, and NOOK formatting options to all authors.
Mar 19 – According to Amazon, books that participate in their Search Inside the Book feature sell many more copies than those that don’t, so be sure YOUR book is a part of “Search Inside.” Outskirts Press offers Search Inside Submissions for authors published with Outskirts Press and elsewhere. Order by clicking here.
Mar 20 – This may be the month to switch publishers if you have published elsewhere. Look at the publisher you chose and ask yourself: Is your retail price too high? Is your profit too low? Is your author’s copy price too high? Are your marketing options too costly? (Read this 2009 blog posting about one of our options that costs $99 for our authors and costs over one THOUSAND dollars through one of our competitors). Compare and save potentially thousands of dollars.
Mar 21 – Small Press Month is just one month out of 12. Prepare for other months by showcasing your book at international book fairs like the London Book Fair, Book Expo of America, Beijing, and Frankfurt. Or make it easy on yourself with the Global Book Tour marketing package: 4 events in 4 countries in 4 months.
Mar 22 – Get your book reviewed by Amazon reviewers. You can find a list of the most popular and prolific Amazon reviewers by clicking here.
Mar 23 – Contact the Learning Annex (or similarly themed Adult Education Program) in your area and offer to teach a class on the subject of your book. As a published author, you are qualified to teach on your subject since you are an expert. Your book may even be required reading for each student! Cha-ching! If you’re published through Outskirts Press, send them to our bookstore so they receive a 10% discount off other online retailers (and you still earn your full 100% profit royalty). Cha-ching, again!
Mar 24 – Create a social networking account on Twitter, FaceBook, MySpace, and LinkedIn. Follow us on Twitter for book marketing suggestions and news in 140 characters or less.
Mar 25 – Contact the public libraries in each state and mention your involvement with Small Press Month. Send them information about your book. Here’s a link that will get you started: http://www.publiclibraries.com/
Mar 26 – Start preparing for April (National Poetry Month), especially if you have a book of poetry. We publish high-quality, award-winning volumes of poetry all the time. In fact, Outskirts Press authors swept the Poetry Category in the 2009 Reader’s Views Literary Awards. See how we do this year when all the finalists are announced on this blog tomorrow.
Mar 27 – Help other writers you know get published and earn a 10% commission for the referral after their book is published. Register for the exciting Outskirts Press affiliate program by clicking here.
Mar 28 – Start a blog and keep it active and up-to-date. Register it with blog directories so others start reading it and participating. There are many blog programs to help you get started. Conduct a search on Google for the one that works for you. We use WordPress.
Mar 29 – Submit your published book to the Google Base listings. It’s free. http://base.google.com
Mar 30 – Publish a “Large Print” edition of your book. With the world’s demographics growing older, “large print” editions are becoming more and more popular. Featuring 14 or 16 point fonts, these editions appeal to the aging community because they are easier to read. You’ve already written the book, now re-publish a new “Large Print” edition to increase your revenue and double the effectiveness of your marketing initiatives. It’s easy to get published here.
Mar 31 – Relax! It’s been a busy, productive month. Fortunately, Outskirts Press makes publishing and marketing a book easy. Check out our most popular Diamond publishing service by kicking-back and watching the video below:
One of my fellow bloggers wants to publish a book but she has three hurdles to overcome:
1) She doesn’t want to worry about interior design, cover design, and all that stuff required by those DIY places.
2) She already has a full-time job. She just wants her book published.
3) She doesn’t have the spare cash to pay for full-service book publishing and marketing expenses.
Maybe you are facing the same situation?
Chances are that many of you could use the option of publishing your book now and paying for it later.
Outskirts Press has now included Paypal’s Bill Me Later service on their checkout page as a payment option. Bill Me Later services allow you to make a purchase now and pay later, and can be used at various outlets, including eBay.
In this recessionary economy, many retail companies are providing a simple solution to a typical problem faced by consumers – lack of liquid cash. Most customers that are interested in purchasing necessary long-term products and services do not have the required cash for it. For authors falling into this category, Outskirts Press provides the solution.
What does this mean for you as a writer?
You can now purchase high-quality, full-service book publishing and book marketing options without paying anything upfront. Outskirts Press has incorporated this facility into their secure online shopping cart, along with the already available options of paying securely by credit card or by check or money order. With Paypal’s “Bill Me Later” funding option, you can order now and pay later, via installments orchestrated via PayPal.
So you can get full-service, high-quality self-publishing and book marketing services today without any upfront costs. Does that sound like a good deal?
(As with any other purchase now and pay later services, you might have to pass the first credit check, as suggested on Bill Me Later page and as conducted securely by PayPal, so please consult their FAQ before using this option)
So, are you ready to self-publish the easy, full-service, high-quality way?
Winning book awards is one of the best ways to build credibility as an author and increase exposure of your book. If your book has won one or more awards, you should highlight those wins on your author webpage. Here are three reasons why you should consider enhancing your author website or webpage with book award graphics:
Instant Recognition – When readers visit your author webpage, you will instantly be recognized for your achievement. This builds credibility and establishes expertise.
A Perfect Complement – If you have already added a seal or graphic to your book cover (and you should once you’ve won an award) adding the same graphic to your webpage complements the Award Recognition Cover Enhancement on your cover. In addition to having the award graphic on all your printed books, you will have a matching graphic on your author webpage.
Stand Out – Readers are often bombarded with potential books to read. You need to stand out in order for readers to choose your book. Award recognition is a great way to set yourself a part from the competition.
With the new Award Recognition Webpage Enhancement option, Outskirts Press will format an Award Graphic directly into your Outskirts Press author webpage so you can proudly display your status as an author of an award-winning book. This is exclusively available for all Outskirts Press published authors.
Have your book recently (or not so recently) won an award? Did you know that entitles you to “bragging rights?”
It’s only natural to want to share your accomplishments with the reading and writing community. Sharing these accomplishments publicly can often mean the difference between “okay” book sales and “amazing” book sales. Statistically few published books win awards. If your book has won an award, shout it from the roof tops, add it to your cover, and showcase it on your webpages.
Speaking of which, now Outskirts Press authors can take advantage of our new Award Recognition Webpage Enhancement option. With this new option, we will format an award graphic (just like the ones we use for your award-winning printed book cover with our Cover Recognition option) into your Outskirts Press author webpage.
This comes just in time for winner announcements in recent book awards, as most contests will be announcing winners soon (if they haven’t already). However, this is also a nice way to spruce up your author webpage if you’ve already won an award in the past.
Click here to learn more about this option and prepare your webpage for this year’s readers.
TOP 10 DIAMOND BOOKS FROM OUTSKIRTS PRESS AUTHORS
“This is my second book published by Outskirts Press. If my future should include a third, I would definitely choose OP once again! Colleen was always prompt and clear in answering my questions!”
Linda M. Hanahan is a graduate of Western Illinois University and a retired elementary school teacher. Her first book, Touched From Above, was published in 2009. She and her husband Bob currently live in Florida. They have two grown children. - Linda Hanahan, author of The Journey Continues
Fandemonium, the first anthology from Outskirts Press to exclusively feature work from its Facebook friends, was a hit among fans of the publisher. Royalties from the sale of this anthology all went to benefit the American Red Cross – the charity chosen by both contributing and non-contributing fans on a Facebook poll. Because the initial anthology was such a success, the publisher is opening their “doors” for submission again, for Fandemonium Volume 2.
Authors with a poem, short story, joke, recipe, or any form of writing they would like to share with the world can visit the Outskirts Press Facebook page at facebook.com/outskirtspress to submit their work. The entries must be five thousand words or less and the writer must be the sole copyright holder for the piece they submit.
Submissions can be voted on by Facebook members with a click of the “Like” button to help Outskirts Press determine which contributions will be selected for the anthology.
“We’re excited to once again offer this free publishing opportunity to writers around the globe,” said Outskirts Press Vice President Kelly Schuknecht. “The support and philanthropic spirit of our fans makes all of the effort worthwhile. And besides, it’s a great way for authors new to Outskirts Press to see just how fast, fun, and satisfying it can be to publish.”
Writers who are ready to publish their work for no cost should visit and “Like” the Outskirts Press Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/OutskirtsPress for more details and to submit their work.
If you don’t see all your Production Team members, don’t worry. Only about 20% of us are in the photograph above, but we ALL wish every one of our published, in-progress, and soon-to-be-published authors a happy, safe, and wonderful holiday season! And from all of us, thank you for choosing Outskirts Press to help you meet your book publishing and marketing goals.
“This was my first experience publishing a book, and I’ve learned a lot! Outskirts Press made the experience as painless a possible for me, and my author representative was great! The greatest lesson I learned was to edit, edit, edit BEFORE starting the process. That way, the publishing experience can be most efficient and there will be few, if any, surprises. Thanks, Outskirts Press!”Bill Taylor has been an ordained Primitive Baptist minister for twenty years, serving churches in Alabama and Tennessee as a pastor. This is his first published book, and it is the result of his having written and distributed daily meditations on various Bible subjects for many years. This is not a heavy theological commentary; instead, it is a practical approach to understanding God’s word and how it is still, “quick and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword.”
If you’ve been on the fence about starting (or completing) your e-Book offerings, now is the time to take action while publishing a high-quality paperback or hardback edition at the same time.
“You gave me an outstanding book cover and interior, which I love so much. I also liked the pace at which my author representative worked. Thank you for a job well done!”Kathy-Ann Bamkefa lives with her family in California. She is married with two children and is an evangelist at their ministry, Worldwide Prophetic Evangelical Ministries. She has been writing poetry since 1999 in her leisure and also writes articles, which she posts to her blog monthly. She is multi-talented and loves to use her gifts and talents to encourage others. Kathy, has a bachelor’s degree in Psychology of Christian Counseling and Theology, and was born in Trinidad. This is her first published book.- Kathy-Ann Bamkefa, author of Inspirational Poems & Psalms Especially for You Collection I
“This is my second book published by Outskirts Press. If my future should include a third, I would definitely choose OP once again! Colleen was always prompt and clear in answering my questions!”
