Mad-Money-promotion Archives - Self-Publishing News for Self Publishing Authors

Last Day to Claim $300 of Mad Money for Self-Publishing Services

There’s still time to make September your most productive month with $300 of Mad Money from Outskirts Press. It’s time to finish that book and decide how you want to spend that $300 in FREE big bucks from Outskirts Press!

Custom cover design?
Copy editing?
Custom interior formatting?
Amazon Kindle or Barnes & Noble Nook edition?

Whatever production and marketing options you choose, the first $300 worth are FREE if you start publishing right now! Just order your ultimate Diamond or full-color Pearl publishing package and enter the following promotion code during secure shopping cart check-out: Promo code: MADMONEYSEPT15

And when you combine this promotion with the $400 of FREE upgrades already included with the Diamond package (standard press release distribution, Spring Arbor Christian distribution, streaming audio excerpt on your author webpage, cover photo from our image library) you’re looking at $700 worth of stuff!

Get that book finished so you’re published by the busy holiday season! Start publishing today!

Promotions, Publishing Packages, Uncategorized

Start Publishing Today … and Have Your Book in Hand by Christmas!

Halloween is nearly upon us, and Thanksgiving and Christmas are close on its heels. Where did the year go?

Perhaps you had plans to roll out a book over the summer and life just got in the way. Now the year is speeding to a close and it feels like 2015 will pass by without you realizing your self-publishing dream. Not so! Incredible as it may seem, it is absolutely possible to still have your new literary work published, printed and in-hand in time for gift-giving!

While publishing with traditional publishing houses can drag on for months, even years, before the book rolls off the press, authors who publish through Outskirts Press can see the finished product in a mere matter of weeks. That means a manuscript you submit to us in October could be nestled into a loved one’s stocking by Christmas.

Outskirts Press recognizes the value in moving your project through the publishing process while your passion for the work is high, so you can start marketing and selling — and get going on your next project. We offer self-publishing authors a variety of products, services and packages to make that process as quick, simple and easy as possible:

Writing Services — Even if you still have some finishing touches to do, we can help you finish your book in no time. Use professional ghostwriting services to wrap up a work in progress (or start a new one for next year), or get a copy editor to help clean up your draft before it goes to print.
Publishing Services — These services include everything you need to complete the self-publishing process, from Barnes & Noble NOOK book formats, Amazon Kindle and iPad formats.
One-Click Publishing — Whether you’ve written a novel, a children’s book or a non-fiction, there’s a One-Click package that includes publishing and marketing options that are specially selected for your chosen genre.
Instant Self-Publishing Gift Certificates — If you know an author who is ready to publish, get them started with an early Christmas stocking stuffer: Gift certificates they can use to purchase publishing services.

During September, receive $300 of “Mad Money” with the promotion code MADMONEYSEPT15 when you choose to publish with our industry-leading Diamond publishing service or our full-color Pearl publishing service.

You can apply your $300 of “Mad Money” toward any optional production or marketing option we offer during the pre-production process. Apply it to options such as a Custom Cover, Cover Scribing, Editing, a Kindle Format, or choose from many others.

What are you waiting for? Get your book wrapped up by Christmas with help from Outskirts Press!

Book Spotlight, EVVY Book Awards, Promotions, Uncategorized

Snow Men Receives the 2014 Best Book of the Year Award from Outskirts Press

Every year, Outskirts Press officially nominates a small percentage of the books we published during the previous year for submission to the Colorado Independent Publishers Association EVVY Awards. A nomination to these awards is the first step toward receiving the Outskirts Press Best Book of the Year Award. The standards for winning this award are exceedingly high; we nominated fewer than 5 percent of the books we published in 2014. Next, three finalists are selected from among the EVVY Award winners for the Best Book of the Year Award contest. We feature each of the finalists on the Outskirts Press blog and conduct a public vote for the grand prize of $1,500.

Outskirts Press is proud to announce that Snow Men, by Andrew Ceroni, was this year’s winner of the Outskirts Press Best Book of the Year Award. Andrew’s work was voted the top honor from the three finalists. Andrew received the $1,500 Grand Prize from Outskirts Press, as well as receiving recognition through social networks and a widely distributed press release.

Andrew Ceroni served a distinguished career as a special agent conducting global counterespionage and antiterrorism operations. He is a graduate of numerous federal intelligence and criminal law enforcement training forums. He received his B.S. degree from the US Air Force Academy; M.A. from Case Western Reserve University; and studied several foreign languages at the University of Maryland. He has authored several short stories and two novels, and his poetry has also been published in several magazines.

Thousands of readers and writers in our writing and publishing community were invited to vote for the Best Book of the Year Award. The Outskirts Press Best Book of the Year Award recognizes not only the author with the writing talent to compose an award–winning book, but also the marketing prowess to promote it. Andrew ultimately collected the highest number of votes.

It’s never too late to publish your own award-winning book. Perhaps you will find yourself in the running for next year’s Best Book of the Year Award! Get started today.

START PUBLISHING TODAY AND GET $300 SPENDING MONEY!

Get $300 of “Mad Money” with the promotion code below when you choose to publish with our industry-leading Diamond publishing service or our full-color Pearl publishing service.

You can apply your $300 of “Mad Money” toward any production or marketing option we offer. And with many of our optional services beginning at just $99, you can get quite a few! Use it to enhance your book with a Custom Cover, Cover Scribing, Editing, a Kindle Format, or choose from many other options. The only question is . . . How are you going to spend it?

Enter the promotion code MADMONEYSEPT15 and start publishing today!

In addition to receiving $300 in Mad Money, you’ll also receive the following with your Diamond package:

Standard Press Release. $99 value included FREE when you order your Diamond publishing service today.
Audio Excerpt. $99 value included FREE with your Diamond order today and a great way to share your voice with your readers, literally!
E-Book Edition (pdf). $99 value included FREE with your Diamond publishing service.
Cover Image. $99 value included FREE and a great way to enhance your cover.
Spring Arbor additional distribution. $99 value to complement the Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Ingram availability already included FREE with your Diamond publishing service.

All in all, you’re looking at over $800 of FREE stuff in September!

TOP 5 PUBLISHING HEADLINES

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT & SUCCESS STORY

“As a first-time author, I was overwhelmed with the publication process, but my research paid off: My choice of Outskirts Press is one of the best decisions I made.”

Alexandra Goodwin was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and came to the United States as a student. She lives with her husband, Craig, and their two poodles in Coral Springs, Florida. Exchange at the Border is her first novel.

Mexican agave farmworker Porro Camorra never meant to do anything wrong. He is in love with his girlfriend, but when she becomes pregnant, his life is in danger. Fleeing the vindictive wrath of her enraged brothers, who have sworn to kill him, Porro runs for the border. But when he reaches the barrier between Mexico and the United States, he finds more than the safety he seeks. As he is thrust into a mystical realm, he must agree to a fascinating but dangerous bargain in order to reclaim his place in the world. Vivid, inventive, and suspenseful, Exchange at the Border is a thrilling and colorful exploration of the timeless battle between good and evil, with a story and characters that will keep you spellbound.
– Alexandra Goodwin, author of Exchange at the Border

Promotions, Publishing Packages, self publishing news, Uncategorized

Last Chance! 4 More Days to Claim $300 of Mad Money for Self-Publishing Services

There’s still time to make February your most productive month with $300 of Mad Money from Outskirts Press. It’s time to finish that book and decide how you want to spend that $300 in FREE big bucks from Outskirts Press!

Custom cover design?
Copy editing?
Custom interior formatting?
Amazon Kindle or Barnes & Noble Nook edition?

Get that book finished so you’re published by the busy summer season! Start publishing today!

Advice, Author Spotlight, Book Spotlight, Promotions, Publishing Packages, Uncategorized

3 Elements to Creating the Best Book Possible

Writing and self-publishing a book can feel overwhelming to new authors, but it doesn’t have to be! Wherever you are along your writing or publishing journey, we’d like to help simplify things for you.

We’ve broken down the many steps along that journey into the three elements you need in order to create the best book possible – and they’re elements anyone can implement. Keep the following essential elements in mind as you write, polish and publish, and you’ll soon be on your way to self-publishing success:

Commitment. There is no great finished work without a small start. If you’ve determined to write that great American novel, step 1 is to commit to the writing in the first place. Every day. For now, don’t focus on making everything you put down in black-and-white brilliant – just focus on creating daily. The real brilliance comes with the next element.
Content. Want to know the real secret to creating a great book? Hint: It’s not the writing. It’s the rewriting. It’s the hours you spend revisiting that raw material and reshaping it. Often, the revision bears little resemblance to the original manuscript – and that’s a good thing! Take the essential step of enlisting a professional editor to view it with fresh eyes and the benefit of invaluable experience in the publishing industry.
Cover. It may seem trite to focus on such seemingly banal things as how you choose to “decorate” the book, but a great cover is far from trivial. Cover art is far more important – even more important than your content – to getting readers to consider your book in the first place. A good cover attracts attention, specifically from the type of reader you wish to capture, all while lending credibility to your book, and giving the reader important cues about the content. For these reasons, it’s just as import to seek professional assistance with the cover as it is for the content.

Whatever stage you’re in with your writing, editing or publishing, there is always help available to ensure that your book is the best it can be when it hits the shelves. Contact Outskirts Press to find out more about how to get your project finished and perfected so you can start selling!

Ready to self-publish that book you’ve been writing?

START PUBLISHING TODAY AND GET $300 OF FREE UPGRADES!

Get $300 of “Mad Money” with the promotion code below when you choose to publish with our industry-leading Diamond publishing service or our full-color Pearl publishing service.

You can apply your $300 of “Mad Money” toward any optional production or marketing option we offer during the pre-production process. And with many of our optional services beginning at just $99, you can get quite a few! Apply it to options such as a Custom Cover, Cover Scribing, Editing, a Kindle Format, or choose from many others.The only question is, how are you going to spend it?

Enter the promotion code MADMONEYFEB15 and start publishing today!

In addition to receiving $300 in Mad Money, you’ll also receive the following with your Diamond package:

Standard Press Release. $99 value included free when you order your Diamond publishing service today.
Audio Excerpt. $99 value included free with your Diamond order today and a great way to share your voice with your readers, literally!
E-Book Edition (pdf). $99 value included free with your Diamond publishing service.
Cover Image. $99 value included free and a great way to enhance your cover.
Spring Arbor additional distribution. $99 value to complement the Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Ingram availability already included with your Diamond publishing service.

All in all, you’re looking at over $800 of free stuff in February!

TOP 5 PUBLISHING HEADLINES

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT & SUCCESS STORY

“Very responsive and timely. My thanks for making this an excellent experience for a novice author.”

Will Ottinger is a Houston resident and life-long enthusiast of World War One aviation. He previously published a non-fiction work in England on the art of painted military miniatures where he gained the recognition of Grand Master painter. His interest in the history and lore of First World War aviators began as a boy, and now includes a large collection of original documents, letters, autographs, and photos as well as an extensive personal library on the subject. The collection proved invaluable in researching “A Season for Ravens” to ensure its accuracy and feel for the period.

The year is 1918, during the final chaotic months of World War One where three pilots must each confront their personal demons in the skies over France and Belgium. Nathan Fleming, fleeing from Chicago’s slaughterhouses, is a volunteer officer in the Royal Flying Corps, struggling to overcome his working-class origins. His newfound friend, Billy Teal, is a wealthy Southerner and gifted pilot who cleverly conceals his insanity and murderous intent. Across the lines, they face Lieutenant Stefan Dietzel, a disillusioned ace of the Imperial German Air Service, separated from his dying wife and tasked with molding a forgotten group of young pilots. The three fight to survive in the high arena-where the average lifespan is three weeks-and on the ground, where they touch the lives of those whose paths they cross.
– Will Ottinger, author of A Season For Ravens

book marketing, Promotions, Publishing Packages

4 Smart Ways to Make the Most of “Mad Money” When You Self-Publish in February

Have you figured out how to spend your “Mad Money” yet?

The exciting self-publishing promotion, “Mad Money” gives back $300 to authors who begin publishing a book with either the Diamond or Pearl book publishing services from Outskirts Press in February. (Authors who purchase the Diamond or full-color Pearl book publishing packages in February with the promotion code: MADMONEYFEB15 are rewarded with a credit of $300, applied to their Outskirts Press shopping cart accounts, to spend any way they wish.) But Outskirts Press offers so many valuable publishing, customizing and marketing services, how does one choose ones that provide the most bang for the buck?

Don’t worry, they all do! However, if you find yourself overwhelmed with the choices, we’ve narrowed down the list to four book publishing, customization and marketing services that will have the greatest impact on the quality of your book and your ability to sell it today:

Professional Copy Editing. Of all the services Outskirts Press provides, professional copy editing represents one of the most impactful investments you can make in your book. An experience copy editor can take any book from good to amazing — well worth every penny.
Custom Cover Design. What’s an amazing book if no one notices it? Many publishing pros consider the cover even more important to selling than the content, and it’s an extremely cost-effective option. Capture readers’ attention and have them craving more with an eye-catching custom cover.
eBook Publishing. As you move through the self-publishing process don’t forget the millions of bookworms who instantly download books to their eReaders. It’s a growing segment of the book-buying market, and one that could have a huge impact on your success as an author.
PR Publicist Campaign. Get the news out about your book where it counts — in newsrooms! A professional press release and distribution disseminates the essential information about your book to thousands of editors and news programmers across the nation. With this service, important decision-makers will know precisely what makes your book special, how it’s distributed, where to order and how to contact you for interviews.

Now is the time to self-publish that book you’ve been working on, and also get some additional options for free. Authors can use their ‘Mad Money’ toward the production or marketing options of their choice, and an additional $300 to spend on self-publishing services results in a higher-quality, more marketable book.”

For more information about Mad Money Month, click here to receive $300 in publishing money.

Promotions

Last Chance! 3 More Days to Claim $300 of Mad Money for Self-Publishing Services

It’s not too late to make August your most productive month with $300 of Mad Money from Outskirts Press. It’s time to finish that book and decide how you want to spend that $300 in FREE big bucks from Outskirts Press!

Custom cover design?
Copy editing?
Custom interior formatting?
Amazon Kindle or Barnes & Noble Nook edition?

Get that book finished so you’re published by the busy holiday season! Start publishing today!

Author Inspiration, Promotions

3 Ways Investing in an Editor Pays for Itself

A professional editor is your last, best hurdle before sending your book off to publish. While it may seem an optional service, there are compelling reasons why you may not want to think of it as “optional” – not when your reputation and product quality are at stake.

It’s humbling to submit a highly personal work to someone we imagine gleefully buying red ink by the barrel. However, in this case, red ink is your best friend. Here are three ways your investment in a professional editor will pay for itself:

An editor is your best beta tester. Your book is your product, and there’s no better way to “test” your product before it goes to market than with a professional editor – more than one editor, if it’s feasible. A test run of how your product might perform in the marketplace more than pays for itself, allowing you to tweak your writing and marketing to reach the right readers and keep them hooked once you do. In a perfect world, every publishing author would have the luxury of both an editor and a team of beta readers, but if you have to choose, hire a pro.
Editors help you get your point across. You know what you mean to say – but will readers understand the ideas you’re trying to get across? There’s no way to know until you get someone “outside your head” to view your work from the perspective of a potential reader. This is one of the main missions of the editing process, and one that ensures that your words have the intended effect on the intended target audience so you can resonate with readers – and sell more books!
Editors see “invisible” problems. By the time a book is close to finished and nearly ready for publication, most publishing authors have gone through it with a fine-toothed comb, often multiple times. But no matter how thoroughly and how often you review your own work, even the most conscientious authors can become blind to errors in their own prose. Even a couple of minor errors in your book can destroy your credibility and hurt your sales, making the services of a professional editor well worth a modest investment.

Remember, editors are, like you, avid readers and writers with the added advantage of having expertise in their field. Use that expertise to your advantage to get the most polished product possible. You’ll never regret it.

Are you ready to publish the best book possible?

GET $300 OF FREE UPGRADES WHEN YOU START PUBLISHING!

Get $300 of “Mad Money” with the promotion code below when you choose to publish with our industry-leading Diamond publishing service or our full-color Pearl publishing service.

The only question is, how are you going to spend it?

Enter the promotion code MADMONEYAUG14 and start publishing today!

In addition to receiving $300 in Mad Money, you’ll also receive the following with your Diamond package:

Standard Press Release. $99 value included free when you order your Diamond publishing service today.
Audio Excerpt. $99 value included free with your Diamond order today and a great way to share your voice with your readers, literally!
E-Book Edition (pdf). $99 value included free with your Diamond publishing service.
Cover Image. $99 value included free and a great way to enhance your cover.
Spring Arbor additional distribution. $99 value to complement the Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Ingram availability already included with your Diamond publishing service.

All in all, you’re looking at over $800 of free stuff in August!

TOP 5 PUBLISHING HEADLINES

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT & SUCCESS STORY

“I was afraid coming into the publishing process due to the fact that I didn’t know what exactly to expect. I researched for weeks looking for a self-publishing process that would meet my expectations of what I wanted. Once I clicked on Outskirts Press link, I was sold! Everyone that was assigned to my team was absolutely outstanding. I love Outskirts Press because they made my publishing process fun, most importantly that made my dream come true!”

Demetrius Zeigler, the composer of this book, is a fatherless son himself. Through his desire to bring his story to others in the same situation, he has found a way to forgive his own father for not being there in his life, and he has realized that the people who remained there for him are truly the people who are worth his love and gratitude-for they made his fatherless life complete!

Fatherless Sons is a poignant collection of stories told by a group of men who grew up without fathers in their lives. They all have a different story, but the theme is the same-a boy without a father. You will learn how each of these men, who were hurt badly by the absence of fathers in their lives, learned to grow into the men they are today. As their stories are all different, so are the outcomes. Some of them were successful and some were not. The moral of this story is that no child should ever be deprived of having both parents in his/her life. But both parents have to be the best parent they can be to their children. Every child deserves the best.

– Demetrius Zeigler, author of Fatherless Sons

Marketing Options, Outskirts Press News, Promotions, self publishing news, Uncategorized

Mad Money is Back!

The most exciting self-publishing promotion of the year gives back $300 to authors to begin publishing a book with either the Diamond or Pearl book publishing services from Outskirts Press in August.

Outskirts Press, the fastest-growing full-service self-publishing and book marketing company, announces the return of “Mad Money”. During the month, authors can get an extra hand in fulfilling their dreams to publish a book with the return of the company’s popular “Mad Money” promotion. Authors who purchase the Diamond or full-color Pearl book publishing packages in August with the promotion code: MADMONEYAUG14 are rewarded with a credit of $300 applied to their Outskirts Press shopping cart accounts.

The $300 “mad money” credit can be applied toward any production or marketing option offered by Outskirts Press, including custom cover design, professional copyediting, cover scribing, an Amazon Kindle edition, or many others.

For more information about Mad Money Month, click here to receive $300 in publishing money.

Marketing Options, Outskirts Press News, Promotions, self publishing news, Uncategorized

3 Tools for Promoting a Book Visually (and How to Use Them)

In this age of electronic publishing and marketing, it’s easy for the self-publishing author to get so wrapped up in building a website or cultivating a social media presence that we forget about “the real world.”

As you go about setting up your visual presence, don’t overlook printed marketing materials as a valuable tool in building your image in the community. Readers, book sellers and book lenders still want and need physical (as opposed to virtual/online) informational materials. Here, we address three of the most popular and effective tools authors can use to promote their books, and how to get the most mileage from them.

Bookmarks. It’s perhaps the most obvious yet overlooked book promotion tool available: a glossy, full-color bookmark with your book cover image, synopsis and all the information a reader needs to order. Bookmarks are ideal for promoting your book at book fairs, signing events, or even non-book-related public events where there’s a large concentration of people eager for freebies and samples (think festivals, home shows, county fairs, etc.). It’s easy to keep a stack of bookmarks in your pocket to hand out when the opportunity arises.
Postcards. A postcard is perfect for announcing your new book, along with publicizing book awards, positive reviews or sales milestones. To make the most of this stand-out marketing tool, gather a top-notch mailing list of TV, radio, newspaper and magazine editors and programmers, library and bookstore contacts, schools, colleges and universities, and other book-related organizations. By mailing out 200 or more pieces at once, you’ll get the best postage rates and hit all your potential targets in one fell swoop.
Book Posters. Bookstores and libraries display attractive book posters all the time, beckoning readers to find your book while they’re in a place where they can buy it or check it out. It might also be a good idea to speak to owners of local coffee shops and cafes in your area to see if you can display your poster there – in places where casual diners often like to curl up with a good book.

Of course, there are several other options for promoting your book – including press releases, which are invaluable in announcing your book, positive reviews and sales benchmarks to news outlets – so get to know all your options. That knowledge will help you better target your audience as each marketing/promotional opportunity arises.

GET THE PROMOTIONAL MATERIALS PACKAGE!

Book promotion is an essential part of the publishing process. Readers and sellers must be aware of your book before they can make the decision to purchase it. The Promotional Materials Package provides authors with all of the print materials necessary to successfully market a book. Here are five of the most popular print materials and how they can launch your author platform above all of the rest:

1,000 Bookmarks – Though small, bookmarks are rather valuable and very few people throw them away.
500 Business Cards – These are good for handing out at events, brand building opportunities. They are both convenient and traditional with full-color dimensions of 2″ x 2.5″.
500 Postcards – These make for a quick and easy mailing that not only promotes your book but also allows you to share a quick hand-written note with family, friends, and acquaintances.
250 Publication Announcements – In this day and age of email, receiving a notice in the mail has a high perceived value.
25 Posters – These 11 x 17 posters are great ways to promote current events.

This package can help with achieving promotional goals. A solid author platform can encourage readers to purchase your book. Click here to find out more about the Promotional Materials Package and learn how to realize your true marketing potential by aiding in the building of that platform.

TOP 10 DIAMOND BOOKS FROM OUTSKIRTS PRESS AUTHORS