Want to send out a Halloween mailing to promote your book? Outskirts Press offers personal and customized Halloween Greeting Cards, featuring your published book!
Greeting cards are 4.25”x 6” on Premium 14 pt. gloss cover stock. These cards are full color, front and back, and scored for easy folding. The front of the card recognizes the occasion. The inside-left of the card highlights your single book, along with the title, the author name, the cover image, and the webpage address. The inside-right of the card is blank so that you can personalize each card with a handwritten message before folding and mailing them in the included white envelopes.
Greeting cards come in quantities of 250. Outskirts Press authors can also order Custom US First Class Postal Stamps to send out these promotional mailings. Both of these optional marketing products can easily and conveniently be added from the Marketing Options screen of their author’s center.
*Production, printing and shipping can take up to 3-4 weeks. Order now to allow plenty of time to receive your cards for a timely holiday promotional mailing.
** The interior image in the example features “Sell Your Book on Amazon.” Details and cover image will be replaced by the details and cover image for your book.
It’s time to get published and experience book marketing support like this.
Click here for free publishing guides to help you get started.
The annual Benjamin Franklin Awards take place tonight at the Roosevelt Hotel in New York between 6pm – 8:30pm. Outskirts Press will be on-hand in support of the self-publishing finalists.
From the IBPA Website: The IBPA Benjamin Franklin Awards, which includes fifty plus categories recognizing excellence in both editorial and design, is regarded as one of the highest national honors in small and independent book publishing. Ever since 1987, when the awards competition was established by Jan Nathan, founder of IBPA, winners have been announced at IBPA’s Publishing University, just prior to Book Expo America.
Outskirts Press is the only major self-publishing company to have even one finalist in these highly-respected book awards, much less two! Which just goes to show that award-winning authors publish award-winning books at Outskirts Press. Congratulations to the two talented authors below for their placement as finalists in the 2010 Benjamin Franklin Awards. The winners will be announced tonight. Good luck!
In the Land of Cotton, by Martha A. Taylor
Martha A. Taylor was a young white girl living in the Deep South, inundated with the racist sentiments of the times. But Martha’s natural curiosity and generous heart led her to question this racial divide. When she discovered a primitive Negro family living deep in the woods near her house, everyone’s life changed forever. Take the journey of a lifetime alongside Martha as she forges relationships that lead to self discovery and a clearer understanding of the world around her. In the Land of Cotton provides an outstanding snapshot of life in the South during those troubled times—a snapshot everyone should take a close look at, regardless of era or color.
Lost American Principles, by Steven L. Hall
Steven L. Hall is originally from Idaho and currently lives in Alaska. A graduate of Boise State University, Summa cum Laude, he calls himself “an Economist by training; an Entrepreneur by vocation (semi-retired); and a writer by avocation.” He has studied politics, governments, and economies for years and offers unique insights, not only about how they affect our everyday lives, but also in regard to our responsibilities in a democratic society, if we wish to remain free.
Are you ready to publish your award-winning books?
Now, Outskirts Press leads the way with the most awards in the 16th Annual CIPA EVVY Awards. On hand to accept the awards on behalf of our talented group of award-winning authors were:
Back Row: Karl, Brent, Shirley, Debra, Ellen, Caroline
Front Row: Jeanine, Trinity
Here are the 2010 EVVY Award Winners from Outskirts Press, where award-winning authors publish award-winning books:
FIRST PLACE
The Gate of Beautiful, by Gerald Rasmussen
Spirituality/Religion Category
The Bethlehem Scroll, by Bill Thompson
Fiction Category
Harness the Power of Exceptional Customer Service, by Gaylyn R. Williams
Business/Finance Category
The Messy Buddha, by Kate McLennan, D.Min.
Inspirational Category
SECOND PLACE
Tirissa and the Necklace of Nulidor, by Willow
Juvenile Category
Charlie – A Boy With Reading Difficulties and His Dream, by Vassiliki Plomaritou
Parenting/Family Category
Mr. Emotions & Friends, by Glenna S. Edwards & Karen Henriques
Workbooks Category
Let Your Innate Sing, by Dr. William A. Kriva
Legacy Category
THIRD PLACE
Emerge, by Ken Jibben
Spirituality/Religion
Virginia’s Travel Basket, by Sharon M. Harvey
Juvenile Category
Harness the Power of Exceptional Customer Service, by Gaylyn R. Williams
How To Category
Khan in Rasputin’s Shadow, by Chad Huskins
Fiction Category
Life Against All Odds, by Alfred Cave
Legacy Category
Merit Awards
The Reluctant Survivor, by Kathy Ferrell Powell
Legacy Category
Mickey Mantle Is Going To Heaven, by Fritz Peterson
Memoirs Category
The Transition, by Dennis Niewoehner
Self-Help Category
Rainbow Bed, by Glenna S. Edwards
Juvenile Category
Congratulations to all our award-winning authors!
It is now easier than ever to promote your award-winning book with the Award Recognition Cover Enhancement, which puts a permanent award-winning seal on every new printed copy of your book. Published, award-winning Outskirts Press authors can order this option conveniently from their Marketing Options screen by clicking here.
Ready to publish your own award-winning book? Click here for free publishing guides to help you get started.
In the continuing effort to further support self-published authors, here are four recommended book marketing strategies:
1. Add an Amazon Kindle Edition
No matter where you publish, or in what genre you write, you must have a Kindle edition of your book. This is especially true if you write and publish fiction. Finally, the Kindle has resolved the age-old concern that non-fiction is easier to sell.
Want proof? Right now, the top 2 best-selling books published by Outskirts Press are fiction books:
New:Now with a Kindle edition, your book can be available on the iPhone! Is the iPhone the “killer-app” the e-book market needs? Perhaps, and in the 4th quarter of 2009, Amazon took a big step in that direction by providing the free Kindle App through the iTunes store. With your Kindle Edition, your book is immediately available for sale on the #1 best-selling product on Amazon (the Kindle) and on the #1 best-selling mobile phone (the iPhone). How valuable is that?
Bonus for published Outskirts Press authors: You keep 100% of your profitsfrom Amazon for your Kindle edition, even if you have us create and submit your Kindle edition for you. You can add the Kindle edition (with iPhone availability) conveniently by clicking here (and save 10% with the Promotion Code: RELAUNCH10).
2. Create a Book Video Trailer
Enter the 21st Century with Book Video Trailers, which are like Hollywood-movie trailers for your book. Depending upon where you publish, a book video can cost anywhere from a few hundred to many thousands of dollars, so do your research when you are picking your publisher.
Equally important is the level of online social networking and video distribution that comes with your video package. Yes, having a book video trailer is important, and uploading it to your author webpage is nice. But to really leverage the power of the Internet, your book video needs to be linked and viewable from all the major social and video networking sites, like:
YouTube
MySpace
Facebook
Twitter
…to name just a few…
It doesn’t matter how you go about getting a book video trailer made, and how you go about distributing it, just as long as you make it a part of your overall book marketing strategy. The Outskirts Press Book Video Trailer & Distribution option for our authors includes the creation of a Hollywood-style book video along with distribution to all those video venues listed above, plus others. Here’s an example of a book video trailer for a full-color, fully-illustrated book from Outskirts Press:
Bonus for published Outskirts Press authors:You can save 10%on the Book Video Trailer option by clicking here and entering the Promotion Code: RELAUNCH10 in your shopping cart.
3. Add an Audio Excerpt to iTunes
Speaking of the iPhone and iTunes, it is equally important that you have an audio file distributed through iTunes that either discusses your book or features an audio sample of someone reading from your book. By submitting the audio file through RSS distribution and iTunes with keywords, you increase the chances of potential customers learning about your book (or even stumbling accidentally upon it) in a wide variety of venues and platforms.
For example, select Outskirts Press authors have the option of adding the Enhanced Audio Excerpt with iTunes Distribution. This optional marketing service offers a two to three minute audio recording of a section from the author’s book, recorded by book marketing guru and Blog Talk Radio host Sally Shields. Not only is this option ideal for authors who may not like the sound of their own voice, but the Enhanced Audio Excerpt is distributed and syndicated just like a Podcast, which includes availability on multiple content sites, including iTunes.
Published Outskirts Press authors can save 10% on the Enhanced Audio Excerpt option right now andreceive a free 30-minute telephone marketing consultation with Sally Shields. Order from your Author’s Center by clicking here and enter the the Promotion Code: RELAUNCH10 in your shopping cart.
4. Complete a media kit, marketing plan, and promotional schedule – Put it all on a CD that you can mail to the press
Recognizing the value and necessity of live, 1-on-1 marketing consultation, Outskirts Press has also added the free 30-minute marketing call to its CD Media/Press Kit option. The Outskirts Press Personal Marketing Assistant can now help published Outskirts Press authors complete their personalized marketing plans and promotional calendars to be included in the customized CD Media/Press Kits.
Included on the CD are a professionally written press release, an author biography and book summary, a marketing plan and promotional calendar, a high-resolution author image (if provided by the author), and a secure e-book edition of the book.
Even if you have published elsewhere, a media/press kit is an important component to an overall book marketing strategy. If you cannot produce a professional, customized CD like the one available for Outskirts Press authors, at least put the necessary elements on your author webpage.
Published Outskirts Press authors can save 10%on their custom CD Media/Press Kit and receive a free 30-minute telephone consultation with a Personal Marketing Assistant when they enter Promotion Code:RELAUNCH10 at the time of ordering the CD Media/Press Kit.
The 10% discount code for these options will expire in February, so now is the time to order from your secure Author’s Center by clicking here.
Not yet published?
Click the button below to start publishing your book with access to post-publication
marketing support like this, and to…
Save up to $110 on your publishing package
Receive The 7 Tactics of Successfully Published Authors (free)
Hear one of our satisfied authors in her own words
The EVVY Awards recognize excellence in self-published books. Each fall, approximately 5% of the books published by Outskirts Press become finalists for official Outskirts Press nomination by receiving an invitation to participate from Outskirts Press.
Exemplary Outskirts Press books are nominated by the Author Support Department and OP Executive Team for submission to the EVVY Awards in the fall of the year of their copyright. For example, this past November select books with a copyright date of 2009 were invited to participate in the 2010 EVVY Awards by receiving an invitation via email from our Director of Author Support.
All the books published with our Diamond and Pearl packages are automatically eligible for EVVY Award Nominee consideration, but not all Diamond and Pearl books receive an official nomination. What makes a good EVVY Award Nominee? The same thing that makes any good award-winning book: A fantastic cover, strong, well-written content, and copyediting. These are the cornerstones of any good book. Fortunately, Outskirts Press offers the optional services necessary to turn an average book into a good one, and a good book into an award-winning one!
So, without further ado, please join us in congratulating this year’s Official Outskirts Press EVVY Award Nominees:
The Young Guardians and the Genesis Spell
by
Grady P. Brown
The Channel
by
Susan Alcott Jardine
The Ghost Tree
by
Daphne Oberon
Let Your Innate Sing
by
Dr. William A. Kriva
Barnyard Babies To The Rescue
by
Carol Italiano-Krivinskas
Dear Sebastian
by
Bianca Tora
Queen Vernita Visits the Blue Ice Mountains
by
Dawn Menge
Pieces ‘N Bits
by
William Ison
The Messy Buddha
by
Kate McLennan, D.Min.
How I Lost Twenty Pounds N Kept It Off
by
Caren Wong
The Reluctant Survivor
by
Kathy Ferrell Powell
Heroes of Googley Woogley
by
Dalton James
Dose of Revenge
by
Rhonda Thomas McWhirt
Eddie’s Wake
by
C. A. Peterson
The Sara Chronicles
by
L. Hughes
In the Land of Cotton
by
Martha A. Taylor
The Mystery of the Moaning Banshee
by
Fritz Peterson
Mickey Mantle is Going to Heaven
by
Barbara Carroll
Compulsion
by
Jennifer Chase
Dream Chaser
by
P. Christina Greenaway
The Expedition
by
Kerry Fusaro
The Gate of Beautiful
by
Gerald Rasmussen
Privileged Information 101
by
Rayford Lynn Butler Sr.
Christmas Treena
by
Carol A. Hanzl Birkas
Murdock Mystery #1
by
Sandy Zaugg
As Long As He Needs Me
by
Mary Verdick
Life Against All Odds
by
Alfred Cave
The Paradise Puzzle
by
Ed Jones
Mysterious Magical Circus Family Kids
by
R. Hawk Starkey
A Bridge of Doom
by
Kurt Paul Hotelling
Khan in Rasputin’s Shadow
by
Chad Huskins
Empire of Peace
by
Don L. Johnson
Virginia’s Travel Basket
by
Sharon M. Harvey
To Rhyme Is Not A Crime
by
Walter Brandenberg
The Smile of a Man Lost
by
J. Evan Johnson
Unlocking the Poet’s Realm
by
Matt Wiebusch
Charlie – A Boy With Reading Difficulties and His Dream
by
Vassiliki Plomaritou
Both Ends Burning
by
Craig Juntunen
21 Bizarre Short Stories
by
Jose Cepeda Garcia
The Student Prophet: Initiation Rites
by
James Nicholas Logue
Burnarounds: Unlocking The Double Digit Profit Code
by
Steven L. Blue
The Wedding Palace
by
M. Abdelsalam Elemary
The Transition
by
Dennis Niewoehner
Bobby and Troubador’s Great Adventure
by
Ronald Raver
Robbobell
by
Dr. Robert F. Hill
Through The Triangle
by
C.P. Stewart
Ribbons and Roses
by
V. M. Wolter and Joseph A. Zapalac
Aurora of the Northern Lights
by
Holly Hardin
Rainbow Bed
by
Glenna S. Edwards
Mr. Emotions & Friends
by
Glenna S. Edwards & Karen Henriques
From an Otherwise Comfortable Room
by
Roger Sakowski
Life and Times of a Ragamuffin
by
Russ Freeman
Looking Glass
by
Max Boneta, MA
Holly Hill
by
Scott Dahm
The Adventures of Magellan
by
T.L. Mann
Emerge
by
Ken Jibben
It’s in the Eyes
by
Charles Toftoy
The Breakout Year
by
Vicki Williams
The Bethlehem Scroll
by
Bill Thompson
Cash in on the Obama $3 Trillion Spending Plan!
by
Ed Benjamin, Colonel, USAF (Retired)
Ribbon Falls
by
Brad Anderson
Tirissa and the Necklace of Nulidor
by
Willow
Exploring the Sixth Sense
by
Dr. James E. Jones
The Awards Ceremony and Banquet is held in March by the Colorado Independent Publishers Association. Award-winners are announced at that time and soon thereafter our EVVY-Award winning authors are notified. Winners will also be featured on this blog.
We have an extra special announcement coming in 2010 that will involve next year’s EVVY Nominees, so now is the time to publish with Outskirts Press.
Ed Benjamin, a retired Air Force Colonel and currently a consultant to industry, knows how to win contracts. In his 19-year career he has led proposal teams to win over $12 billion in US, foreign, state, and county government contract awards, and now he’s sharing his expertise in a new book, Cash in on the Obama $3 Trillion Spending Plan! How to make large amounts of money by conducting business with or receiving grants from federal, state, and local governments. The book, published by Outskirts Press, is a complete, step-by-step guide to winning government business and receiving grants. With the passage of President Barack Obama’s historic stimulus bill, there’s never been a better time to do business with the government.
According to Benjamin: “This book is designed to help both the beginner in the government contracting process and the experienced business development professional.” The author further states that this book “represents a distillation of my 19 years of experience writing and managing proposals and my service in the Air Force, where I served on acquisition teams to buy major weapons systems.” He points out that the proposal alone does not guarantee a contract award, but a well-written proposal that meets government requirements goes a long way toward influencing the government to award a contract or grant.Cash in on the Obama $3 Trillion Spending Plan offers those businesses seeking government contracts a step-by-step guide toward obtaining government business; it also provides those companies that are already in the government business arena with secrets to writing winning proposals. As a bonus, the book contains detailed information on selling to state and local governments, and information for those applying for government assistance.
Government evaluators have consistently rated Benjamin’s proposals as being complete and thorough. He has helped his clients win contracts worth over $12 billion—including the contract to build the presidential helicopter fleet. This book is a compilation of his years of experience and accumulated wisdom in dealing with the government. It explains:
• How the government awards contracts
• How to register for government business
• How to read and analyze a government solicitation
• How to position your business in the government marketplace
• How the government buys goods and services
• How to prepare a proposal or grant request that meets all government requirements
• How to navigate through bureaucratic red tape normally associated with government contracting
Cash in on the Obama $3 Trillion Spending Plan is professionally written, well organized, and easy to navigate, with 200 pages of valuable information for individuals and companies alike. It is available online through Ingram Book Wholesalers, Amazon, and Barnes & Noble.
About the Author:
Retired Air Force Colonel Ed Benjamin is a 27-year veteran of the Air Force, with years of experience in major military weapons-systems procurement. As a civilian, he has helped clients win over $12 billion in contract awards, including the multibillion-dollar contract to build the presidential helicopter. He has also published several articles and short stories for local, regional, and national publications, and Cash in on the Obama Plan is his first book. Benjamin lives in Bulverde, Texas.
This author purchased the Book Blast package, saving 25% on 5 powerful marketing services to blast the book into the stratosphere! The Book Blast package includes the following options: Custom Press Release, PR Publicist Campaign, Book Review Submission Service, Book Video (shown above) and Personal Marketing Assistant. Outskirts Press authors can easily and conveniently add this package at any time from the Marketing Options screen of the author’s center.
Is it time to get published and receive marketing support and services like this?
Book marketing is an important component to successful self publishing. Outskirts Press is an industry leader in providing post-publication support, products, and services to its growing family of published authors.
Even if you have published elsewhere (sorry to hear that), our list of Top 10 Book Marketing Options can help you prioritize your book marketing efforts by providing you with the most popular and effective book marketing and promotional tactics as determined by our authors. These are tactics that are strongly recommended for successful book marketing after publication.
These are the marketing products and services determined to be most popular by our authors for the month of November, 2009, listed below in alphabetical order:
Amazon Extreme Package
Save 25% on 3 amazing marketing tactics centered around Amazon: The Amazon Kindle Edition, Search Inside the Book, and the Keyword Search Submission Service. Plus a free copy of the Amazon best selling book, Sell Your Book on Amazon.
Amazon Keyword Search Submission
Participating books are “tagged” with applicable terms and keywords on Amazon’s Product Detail page. Then 10 specific keywords or phrases are submitted to Amazon’s Search Engine on the author’s behalf.
Amazon Kindle Edition
Only books that have been submitted to the Amazon Kindle via the required process and in the required format are available for Kindle readers to purchase and enjoy. Kindle editions of books appear on Amazon and in Amazon search listings just like any other format (such as a hardback edition).
Amazon Search Inside the Book
Amazon claims that books participating in this program enjoy “significant” sales improvement, on average, over books that do not.
Barnes & Noble See Inside
Barnes & Noble’s answer to Amazon’s “Search Inside the Book” program. Books that participate in this program receive a “See Inside” icon next to their Barnes & Noble cover image, which invites potential customers to electronically “flip” through a small section of the book.
Book Award Submissions Package Save 25% and enjoy maximum convenience by allowing us to submit your book to 6 recognized, vetted, and legitimate book award contests, some of which offer major cash and prizes (Writer’s Digest and Foreword) and all of which offer the chance for extra exposure, recognition, and the chance to claim “award-winning” during your marketing efforts.
Book Blast Package
Save 25% on 5 of our popular marketing services that can blast your book into the stratosphere: Custom Press Release, PR Publicist Campaign, 60 Second Book Video Trailer, Book Review Submission Service, and 5 hours of Personal Marketing Assistance to put it all together.
Custom T-Shirt
Due to popular demand, you can now customize a high-quality t-shirt with your book (front cover on the front and back cover on the back).
ForeWord Magazine Co-Op Advertisement
Co-op advertising allows you to secure premium, full-color exposure for your book in a high-quality trade publication for a minimal amount of money.
Press Release – Standard
The standard publication press release includes information about you and your book taken directly from your webpage and then distributed electronically to a database of approximately 100,000 media contacts, newsrooms, industry analysts, and freelance writers.
Outskirts Press published authors who are interested in any of these options can find further details and ordering information by clicking on the name (or image) of the option above. Information about additional marketing options can be found on the Marketing Options page of your Author’s Center.
Is it time to get published and start receiving marketing services like this?
Denver, CO, December 15, 2009 – Outskirts Press, the fastest-growing full-service self publishing and book marketing company today, announced the addition of a new Publishing Consultant role to its growing Author Services department. This announcement comes on the heels of the new Outskirts Press Website Version 3.0 roll-out and Inc. Magazine’s appointment of Outskirts Press to the Inc. 500.
“In our ongoing efforts to set the high bar in self-publishing excellence, I’m excited to announce the introduction of this new position and service for all our new in-coming self-publishing authors,” remarked Karl Schroeder, the Outskirts Press Author Services director.
In addition to introducing new authors to the publishing experience at Outskirts Press, the Publishing Consultant role will initiate development of the Outskirts Press Custom Publishing Profile. The Custom Publishing Profile (CPP) is a unique tool designed to identify and outline an author’s publishing ideal path based upon their book and resources.
Outskirts Press, Inc. offers full-service, custom self-publishing services for authors seeking a cost-effective, fast, and flexible way to publish and distribute their books worldwide while retaining all their rights and full creative control. Available for authors globally at http://www.outskirtspress.com and located on the outskirts of Denver, Colorado, Outskirts Press represents the future of book publishing, today.
For decades, tales of mysterious disappearances and strange phenomena in the Bermuda Triangle have captivated the public. Now, a fascinating new science-fiction novel offers a plausible explanation for this enduring enigma.
Through the Triangle, from physics educator C.P. Stewart, packs a high-energy rollercoaster of a story into a well-researched and fascinating book that might make you think twice before boarding that next flight or boat through this extensive region of the Atlantic Ocean.
Stewart’s first book takes readers through the Bermuda Triangle to the other side and, while fictional, is based on research. He analyzed writings of well-known physicists on the subject of spacetime and M (formerly string) theory, along with reports by some of the fortunate people who were caught in the Triangle and survived to tell about it. The result is Stewart’s conviction that people and objects don’t cease to exist, but rather are propelled into another time.
By purchasing the Book Blast package, Stewart also maximized his marketing ability to make sure his book doesn’t get lost in the Triangle of book sales!
He purchased the Book Blast package, saving 25% on 5 powerful marketing services to blast the book into the stratosphere! The Book Blast package includes the following options: Custom Press Release, PR Publicist Campaign, Book Review Submission Service, Book Video (shown above) and Personal Marketing Assistant. Outskirts Press authors can easily and conveniently add this package at any time from the Marketing Options screen of the author’s center.
Is it time to get published and receive marketing support and services like this?
Can offering a Kindle edition of your book help your paperback (or hardback) format become a bestseller in self-publishing?
Let’s take a look at one of the recent top 10 best selling self published books by Outskirts Press to see what contributed to its success. By seeing what works for other authors, you can take the appropriate publishing and marketing steps to chart your own course toward successful book publishing!
Genre: Fiction/Horror
Content for niche audience
Professional cover
Kindle edition
Productive marketing services from the publisher, like:
author webpage
advertising assistance
Of course, books cannot become best sellers if they’re only printed and then only sold from the publisher’s website. Books must to be available via multiple sales channels, both wholesale and direct. All Outskirts Press books published with the Diamond, Pearl, and Ruby packages fall into that category. See details about the Distribution-on-Demand Sales Channels by clicking here.
Only books that have been submitted to the Amazon Kindle via the required process and in the required format are available for Kindle readers to purchase and enjoy. Kindle editions of books appear on Amazon and in Amazon search listings just like any other format (such as a hardback edition). Outskirts Press offers a Kindle edition and submission service, which Outskirts Press authors can purchase at any time from within their Author’s Center.
Want to become a bestselling author? Begin your own self publishing journey today by clicking the button below.
The annual Benjamin Franklin Awards take place tonight at the Roosevelt Hotel in New York between 6pm – 8:30pm. 
