Set up a Pinterest Board for each of your titles. Then post pictures related to your book. The locales especially. When I am reading a book I especially enjoy, I Google (or Bing or Chrome) to get some visual references, history, or facts about the era or real people mentioned. You could accumulate the same on a Pinterest board. Then use the link to the Board everywhere, such as your email sig, on your book website etc. Be sure to include a pin of your book’s cover with a link to Amazon so people can buy it at once.

By Carolyn Hayes Uber

Eleven years ago, the craziest idea was suggested to me. Any sane person would have said “no” but somehow, I said “yes.”

My life was going really, really good — I’d achieved a long-held dream and purchased my own office building. This wasn’t any office building, either. It was a 1926 two story Tudor-style mini-mansion next to City Hall on the main street of Upland, California. I spent months refurbishing to its original glory. The steep slate roof, the wavy glass multi-paned windows, the fireplace in the library, the hardwood floors. We moved our marketing firm into the building and planned a party to end all parties to show it off and celebrate.

As I unpacked boxes on my desk, I cradled the phone in my neck, talking with the COO of Stephens Media who asked me to come to Las Vegas the very next day for an “important” talk about the book business. Reluctantly, I agreed.

Somehow, someway, 24-hours later, I had agreed to start a book publishing company for the parent company of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. IN Las Vegas. I figured I’d give them a year, commuting, and then I’d likely be sick to death of Sin City, driving or flying back and forth, and the extra demands on my time. Still, publishing books somehow seemed a higher calling than advertising and I did have experience producing books.

I didn’t give them a year. I gave them eleven. Eleven good years publishing books of which I’m inordinately proud of and meeting smart, fascinating, and insightful people, many becoming treasured friends. I found I loved working with journalists and living in the desert. I bought a house (a great investment, it seemed at the time). I still “commuted” back and forth and my Hubby-Honey was able to spend a lot of time in Vegas with me, as well. But we joked, when people asked how we’d been married 45 years, that our secret was living in different states!

In those same eleven years, the book (and newspaper) business changed dramatically. With the advent of e-books, POD (print on demand) books, and so-called self-publishing, the floodgates of new books being published each year increased literally ten-fold. Meanwhile, the number of buyers/readers didn’t really grow at all. Thus the number of copies of any one title purchased was greatly reduced, making printed books a risky venture indeed.

To complicate matters, three-and-a-half years ago, I was diagnosed with leukemia. Multiple extremely long hospitalizations, chemo and radiation treatments, and a stem cell transplant followed. It has been a challenging journey and impacted my work at Stephens Press.

Given current circumstances, Stephens Media has determined Stephens Press will cease publishing activities in 2013. We are in the process of notifying authors and corporate/institutional sponsors, making arrangements for inventory, and an orderly transition of copyright and publication rights back to authors. We are also completing projects that were in our pipeline, including the Nevada 150 Sesquicentennial book that will be out early next year.

It was, like I said, an unlikely choice for me to create Stephens Press from the ground up, but also one of the very best decisions I ever made. I have absolutely no regrets and am filled with gratitude and appreciation to the management of Stephens Media, and most especially the creative vision of Mike Ferguson (now CEO of Stephens Media).

I will be staying in the book biz in ways known and yet undecided. My best friend and partner in all things books, as well as the best sister one could ever hope for, Sue Campbell, will be working to help authors navigate the waters to become “self-publishers.” We’ll also be working on independent custom book projects. Many know that what we do best are magnificent pictorial “coffee table” type books and we’ll continue to work on those as well.

If you have any questions, please feel free to email me at cuber@stephenspress.com. Keep writing … and reading!

Carolyn

While the adage “April showers bring May flowers” may apply in many areas, it will be raining manuscripts in Las Vegas!

For the ninth consecutive year, the Las Vegas Writers Conference brings together fledgling writers, veteran authors, literary agents, editors, and publishers for a wonderful weekend of words …

And Las Vegas – surprisingly – is the perfect backdrop. Lots of energy, lots of excitement, a veritable plethora of characters! The 24-hour town provides writing “prompts” not found anywhere else.

If you’ve ever contemplated writing – or been curious about the writing community, here’s your opportunity to check it out. Even if you can’t spend the whole weekend running amok, please join us at the Stephens Press sponsored author “meet and greet” from 7-9 p.m. Thursday, April 18th. Who knows? You may end up staying all weekend!

Reprinted from the March 28, 2013 posting on Redpengirl’s Blog:

While writing the great American novel is not easy  - if it were, everyone would do it –  getting published is no longer impossible, as there are a variety of options these days, from traditional to boutique to “self” publishing, from hardback to paperback to ebook. (The pros and cons of these options – and the status of publishing in general – is for another discussion.)

The real difficulty is in figuring out how to get an audience for your great American novel among the plethora of titles out there. How do you spread the word? Schedule book signings? Attend book clubs? Build a website – write a blog? Tweet?

Bestselling author John Grisham posted an idea that I think is pretty cool. Granted, he probably doesn’t need any help getting readers, but still, it says that even well-known writers need to spread the word. He posted the following on his Facebook page:

Grisham fans: Post a picture of you in your favorite reading spot with your favorite Grisham book and tag it as “John Grisham” to put it in the Grisham album. Then we’ll shout out our favorite photos.

Wow.  The reader gets acknowledged and “rewarded” for being a fan, Grisham gets free advertising,  it’s simple … and from
the look of the images posted, it’s fun!

I wish I’d thought of it.

Jami Carpenter, aka Redpengirl, is an editor who works with independent writers as well as traditional and boutique publishers, including Stephens Press, Hardway Press, and Trapdoor Books. She is the co-author of Education in the Neon Shadow and hosted the Vegas PBS talk show, Book Club. Jami can be reached through her website: http://www.redpengirl.com/ and followed on her blog: http://redpengirl.wordpress.com/

… or vice versa? A recent article in the Las Vegas Review-Journal by reporter Laura Carroll features an iconic establishment that was actually used for the cover of one of our newest works of fiction, Vegas Knockout. Perhaps author P Moss sat at this very counter when he wrote his stories …

New market may boost long-time Las Vegas locals cafe

Seven days a week, Teddy Pappas wakes up at 2 a.m.

In the early morning hours he prepares the daily soup, meats and sauces for his restaurant, so they’re fresh and ready to go when customers place their orders. At 73, Pappas has owned Tiffany’s Cafe for 10 years, but he’s worked in the restaurant for more than three decades.

On a Wednesday morning the restaurant’s counter slowly filled to capacity, with hungry customers trickling in off Las Vegas Boulevard. But it’s not that way every day.

“The last two or three years, it’s been very bad,” Pappas says of his restaurant’s business.

He cites the economy as the main reason because he says, as tourists tip less in cabs, bars and casinos, the cabdrivers, bartenders and dealers who eat at his place have less discretionary income to spend.

The closing of the adjoining White Cross Drugs in 2012 also has had its effects.

The "real" cafe

“People don’t know if I’m here or not,” Pappas says. “But I’m here to stay.”

His 10-year lease agrees with him.

The adjacent White Cross Drugs closed last March, but White Cross Market is slated to open soon in the same space at 1700 Las Vegas Blvd. South. The latest incarnation is owned by brothers Jimmy and Naseem Shoshani, who also own the Bells Market convenience store across Las Vegas Boulevard and the Bells Market gas station at Owens Avenue and H Street.

Construction on White Cross Market is mostly finished, and the Shoshanis plan to start ordering product within the next few weeks.

Pappas says he’s hopeful the opening of the market will help boost his business.

Tiffany’s has been open for 65 years, catering to a largely local clientele. Pappas never uses any preservatives or additives in his food, which he says is the reason his customers are loyal and why he’s been able to stay afloat through rough times.

Pappas says the restaurant can be extremely busy sometimes, or not busy at all, depending on the day.

At the 1,200-square-foot Tiffany’s Cafe, breakfast is served any time, with classics such as biscuits and country gravy, hotcakes and corned beef hash and eggs on the menu. Dinner offerings include New York steak, chicken-fried steak and trout. A dessert case holds homemade chocolate cake, pie and cheesecake.

On St. Patrick’s Day, Tiffany’s will serve corned beef and cabbage.

The book cover

When White Cross Market opens, its owners have said they plan to stock it like a traditional grocery store. The new store will have a deli with Boar’s Head brand products, fresh produce with items from local growers and a craft beer section.

Jimmy Shoshani says he expects to hire 15 to 20 employees for White Cross.

The Shoshanis bought the nearby Bells Market, which had been Mighty Mart, three years ago.

“We took a place that was hurt, businesswise, and remodeled it,” Shoshani says.

The convenience store sees about 600 to 800 people come by every day, and its owners stock about $60,000 in inventory to keep up with the walk-up customers who patronize Bells.

“We have a good feel for what’s needed in the neighborhood,” Shoshani says.

And a 6,400-square-foot grocery store, Shoshani adds, may be just what the doctor ordered. The new White Cross is taking more time and money to open than anticipated, but Shoshani says it should be worth the effort in the long run.

“So far we’ve spent over $400,000 and we haven’t purchased inventory yet,” he adds.

Pappas got into the restaurant business after coming to the United States from Greece. He started out by washing dishes, then transitioned to cooking. He’s owned a dozen restaurants between New York, Arizona and Nevada during 53 years in the restaurant industry. He came to Las Vegas to open a pizza shop with a friend, but decided it wasn’t for him.

Then he found Tiffany’s, which he affectionately calls “my baby.”

“It’s my life. I love it,” Pappas says.

Reposted from - Sue Campbell, the book designer, February 25, 2013:

Stephens Press continues its venture into audiobooks with the publication of their bestseller, My Brother’s Voice by Stephen Nasser. This true story about a young boy surviving the Holocaust has been a perennial favorite since its first printing in 2003. The book debuted in hardcover, followed by trade paperback and there have been numerous reprintings in the intervening 10 years. It came to Kindles and iPads everywhere in 2012. And in all those venues it continues to sell well, and spread its message.

Mr. Nasser is the dynamo behind the lasting impact his story has had on his many audiences of students and adults, alike. He has spoken to groups upwards of 800 times all around the USA, and the world. He continues to do so almost on a weekly basis. Soon, the story will come alive in a stage play.

When Stephens Press first decided to venture into audiobooks, My Brother’s Voice was high on the list of books that publisher, Carolyn Uber, (and myself as the newly dubbed “audiobooks coordinator”) wanted to hear in audio. We knew that this book would need a special voice, to bring the story to life. So I began the audition process on ACX (audiobook creator’s exchange) a division of Audible.com. I knew that I wanted a younger voice and one that could convey the emotion and drama of this story, but without going overboard toward maudlin or melodramatic.

I listened to many sample “reels,” and chose a few narrators and sent requests for a “sample” reading. Most all of them obliged me with a five minute reading from our book. What struck me was how different the interpretations all were. They were all good, in different ways, but the one I knew I wanted stood out for me right from the start. That one was Maxwell Glick.

Max had exactly the right tone, and a balance of drama and matter-of-factness. His clarity and pronunciation, superb. He also portrayed just the right amount of youthful “naiveté” that I felt suited they young “Pista” Nasser of the story. And, Max is an actor—that was also something I felt we needed for this story—because only an actor would “get” how to convey the emotional component. He does and boy did he ever!

I was thrilled when Max agreed to work with us on narrating this book. We’re lucky enough to have an interview with Mr. Glick, and following that an audio sample of his work on My Brother’s Voice. Please read on for your reward!

Would you tell us a little bit about yourself?
I’m Maxwell Glick from Long Island, NY. Live in Los Angeles, CA, and I’m an actor!
What inspired you to get into audiobook narration?
As an actor you’re constantly on the lookout for as many opportunities to work as possible. I started doing some voiceover work, and then heard about the website ACX, where authors search for narrators for their books. I love books and I love doing voiceover work, so I thought this was something I could do!

How long have you been doing audiobooks?
Since starting over a year ago, I’ve narrated almost 20 books now. It’s been great.

Do you also do other kinds of voiceover or narration?
I’ve done many voiceovers for all different kinds of things. I’ve done a bunch of commercials, cartoons, and e-learning guides. I’m currently working on a new cartoon where I’ve become the voice of a blue elephant named Bubbles. We’ll be hearing more about that soon once the show really gets underway. (Sue: Max is too modest. He’s also guested TV shows since he came to L.A., including appearances on The Office and, more recently, on Castle.)
What attracted you to My Brother’s Voice?
Stories from the Holocaust are so important for everyone to read and listen to. Holocaust survivors are some of the most brave and inspirational people this world has known. Their stories need to live on forever, and getting the opportunity to tell Stephen’s story was one of the most rewarding experiences I’ve had.
What was the experience of recording this book like for you?
This was such an incredible experience for me. It definitely was not easy at times. Throughout the recording process, I’d have to pause and regroup because some of the scenes are so emotional that I’d get choked up during the reading. When I finished the recording, I just wanted to tell everyone all about it because it was the best audiobook experience I’ve ever had. I just want the world to hear Stephen’s story. It really was an honor to get to tell it.
Tell us a little bit about the process of narration?
Audiobook narration is a very unique gig! It takes a long time and you need to keep your voice in good shape for the duration of the book.
Where do you record, how long does it take, etc.
It depends on the length of the book how long it takes me to record. I can usually finish it in 1-2 weeks. I record from my home! I have a home studio literally in my walk in closet. I’ve transformed it into a space where I can work!
Do you do any sort of preparation to get yourself ready for it?
My preparation for a book is to read it, and look up anything I don’t know the meaning of. For this, I got to talk to Stephen and actually have him pronounce all of the Hungarian words I didn’t know which made my life much easier going into the book.
Is it just like acting?
Audiobook narration is like acting, but a very different kind of acting. You’re all the voices!

(You can follow more about Max’s career on www.maxwellglick.com and follow his twitter feed @maxwellglick. He also has his own YouTube Channel and is a regular on the popular Lizzy Bennett Diaries on YouTube. What a busy guy!)
Listen to a sample of My Brother’s Voice. The audiobook is available at Audible.com; iTunes; and Amazon.com. We expect the book to soon be available on Amazon’s Whispersync which will let you listen or read on your Kindle device and it will sync your place in both formats! Even if you’re read the book before hearing it narrated by a consummate performer like Max is a totally new experience, and one you won’t want to miss.

Sue Campbell’s novella, “Shadows of Dreams” can be found in Witch Hunt: Of the Blood. She designs award-winning books and jump-off-the-shelf covers from her Colorado studio, assisted by her standard poodles, Pepper and Bella.

The following is reposted from the Redpengirl’s blog of February 23, 2013:

~

Good writing doesn’t always have to be serious!

A paraprosdokian is a figure of speech in which the latter part of a phrase or sentence surprises the reader (or listener) to rethink the beginning of the phrase/sentence. It can be used for humorous or dramatic effect.  Stand-up comedians call ‘em punchlines, political pundits know them as zingers, mystery writers might use them for a “twist.”

Regardless, they keep our readers (or listeners) on their toes. A  few examples …

• Change is inevitable, except from a vending machine.
• Nostalgia isn’t what it used to be.
• There’s a fine line between cuddling and holding someone down so they can’t get away.
• Always borrow money from a pessimist. He won’t expect it back.
• The voices in my head may not be real, but they have some good ideas!
• Why do Americans choose from just two people to run for president and 50 for Miss America?
• I didn’t say it was your fault, I said I was blaming you.
• The last thing I want to do is hurt you. But it’s still on the list.
• If I agreed with you, we’d both be wrong.

Got any of your own?

Jami Carpenter is an editor who works with independent writers as well as traditional and boutique publishers, including Stephens Press, Hardway Press, and Trapdoor Books. She is the co-author of Education in the Neon Shadow and hosted the Vegas PBS talk show, Book Club. Jami can be reached through her website: http://www.redpengirl.com/ and followed on her blog: http://redpengirl.wordpress.com/

Reprinted from the Redpengirl’s February 3, 2013 Blog:

Writers often ask how long their novel should be … if there is a magic number of words or pages -

Unfortunately, there is no set “rule”; a classic work of literature can run an astounding 1424 pages (War and Peace)  or can be told in 96 pages (The Old Man and the Sea). So it’s not the page – or word – count that counts. 

What really matters is that the words chosen tell the story the writer wants to tell. I ran across an exercise a while ago that helps us strip away all the excess verbiage and get to the heart of our stories. The goal is to tell a story in six words – no more, no less.

A great example is:“For Sale. Baby shoes. Never worn.” (Often attributed to Hemingway, this most likely originated from a  a 1921 newspaper column in which Roy K. Moulton reprinted a note from “Jerry” about  an ad in the BrooklynHome Talk that read, “Baby carriage for sale, never used.”)

But that’s beside the point. The concept – six words and only six words – is not as easy as it sounds, and much more telling than you might think. Here is another one that came out of one of my writing workshops: Fat. Thin. Fat. Thin. Fat. Thin.

Your turn.

Jami Carpenter is an editor who works with independent writers as well as traditional and boutique publishers, including Stephens Press, Hardway Press, and Trapdoor Books. She is the co-author of Education in the Neon Shadow and hosted the Vegas PBS talk show, Book Club. Jami can be reached through her website: http://www.redpengirl.com/ and followed on her blog: http://redpengirl.wordpress.com/

You’ve written the great American novel and have sent it off to one publisher after another, getting rejection letters again and again. Well … you’re in good company.

From guest blogger Jami Carpenter (aka Redpengirl):

The following list of works (from ReadnSurf.com) just might make you feel better:

1. The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank
Alfred A. Knopf Inc. turned down the English-language rights to a Dutch manuscript in 1950 after receiving a particularly harsh reader’s report. The work was “very dull,” the reader insisted, “a dreary record of typical family bickering, petty annoyances and adolescent emotions.” Sales would be small because the main characters were neither familiar to Americans nor especially appealing. Knopf wasn’t alone. The Diary of a Young Girl was rejected by 15 others before Doubleday published it in 1952. More than 30 million copies are currently in print, making it one of the best-selling books in history.

2. Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach
When he sent out the story, Bach received 18 rejection letters. Nobody thought a story about a seagull that flew not for survival but for the joy of flying itself would have an audience. Macmillan Publishers finally picked up Jonathan Livingston Seagull in around 1972, and that year the book sold more than a million copies. The book contained fewer than 10,000 words, yet it broke all hardcover sales records since Gone with the Wind.

3. Chicken Soup for the Soul by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen
This book was turned down 33 consecutive times. Publishers claimed that “anthologies don’t sell” and the book was “too positive.” Total number of rejections? 140. Then, in 1993, the president of Health Communications, a small publication that was going bankrupt at the time, took a chance on the collection of poems, stories, and tidbits of encouragement. Today, the 65-title series has sold more than 80 million copies in 37 languages.

4. Notes to Myself by Hugh Prather
Hugh Prather sent novels, stories, articles, and poems to publishers but was repeatedly rejected. Finally, he sent in a collection of his thoughts, which was initially accepted by a small publishing house who didn’t even have a wide distribution reach. But slowly, through word-of-mouth publicity, it became a bestseller.

5. Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig
This book was rejected by a record 121 publishers before being published. It has sold millions of copies in twenty-seven languages and still continues its winning march. The editor who finally published Pirsig’s book said, “It forced me to decide what I was in publishing for.”

6. Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
The first title of Catch-22 was Catch-18, but Simon and Schuster planned to publish it during the same season that Doubleday was bringing out Mila 18 by Leon Uris. When Doubleday complained, Joseph Heller chose ‘22,’ because Simon and Schuster was the twenty-secondnd publisher to read it. Catch-22 has sold more than 10 million copies.

7. The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand
The book was rejected by twelve publishers, before a young editor, Archibald Ogden, at the Bobbs-Merrill Company publishing house wired to the head office, “If this is not the book for you, then I am not the editor for you.” Despite generally negative reviews initially from the contemporary media, the book gained a following by word of mouth and gained a foothold.

8. Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
Due to its subject matter, Vladimir Nabokov was unable to find an American publisher for Lolita.  First published in 1955, it was a runaway bestseller, the first book since Gone with the Wind to sell 100,000 copies in the first three weeks of publication. Today, it is considered as one of the finest novels written in the 20th century and in 1998, it was named the fourth greatest English language novel of the 20th century.

9. Books for Children by Dr. Seuss
Suess’ first book And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street was rejected 27 times before being published by Vanguard Press. The sales of Dr. Seuss’ children’s books have soared to more than 100 million now.

10. The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
This international bestseller was first published in 1988 and is the most famous work of author Paulo Coelho. It sold only 800 or so copies in its first release and was dropped by its first publisher as a result. It has now been translated into more than 60 languages, and has sold more than 75 million copies in more than 150 countries, and is one of the best-selling books in history.

Q:

I’m reviewing the page proofs for my book and the designer has eliminated the indent for the first paragraph of each chapter. Is this right?

A:

It is indeed, Dear Author.

In fine typography and well-crafted books, the first paragraph of a chapter is not indented. Ditto for the first paragraph following any heading or sub-heading.

Why?

Each new paragraph signifies a change in thought, direction or organization of the text. At the start of a new chapter, the reader already knows it’s a new paragraph. As for headings, adding indentation prevents the heading from lining up properly with the text following it.

More indenting rules: An alternative method of setting off each paragraph is to put an extra line break between each graf (shorthand for paragraphs used by editors and designers). This is sometimes called a “white line”. Indents plus white lines are never to be used together — only one or the other. Generally, books get indents. Websites and blogs usually use white lines, in part because different browsers may interpret indent coding inconsistently. Business writing, letters, and reports may use either (but not both).