the fast path to getting published

The fast (& profitable) path to publishing

Brian Schwartz • [email protected] • 970-215-1078

www.50interviews.com

Agenda short break from 7:15-7:20

• Uncover your true unique niche• The movie exercise• Exercise : 4-UP• Still stuck? Try 8-UP!• Make it impersonal / A foundation of community• An Obligation• Your online identity / Your future self• From pixels-to-print / The fast path to publishing• Author workflow / The 4 phases of a writer• An author’s marketing mindset• Generating traffic


• Converting Traffic to Leads• Offering relevant content• Titles & Taglines• Covers & Banners• eBook Distribution / Multiple routes to monetization• Fast path to e-publishing• Fast path to print publishing• Getting your blog on Kindle• Getting your book on Kindle• More channels to sell your eBook• From blogger to author (Emulate to Learn Segment):• Leo Babautu / ZenHabits blog



• From blogger to author (Emulate to Learn Segment):• Josh Kaufman / Personal MBA.com• Scott Belsky / ActionMethod.com• Brian Halligan & Dharmesh Shah/ Hubspot.com &

Onstartup.com • Laura Bradenburg /bridging-the-gap.com• Impact Lab / Impactlab.com• Twitter to best selling author• wine.about.com• Millionaire Mommy Next Door



• New age journalists• Building it all on Google & doing it all for free!• Publishing 1 tweet-at-a-time• Publishing 1 tweet-at-a-time ( Justin Halpern Model )• Ideas to action• Exploring New Markets


“What looks complex is really just the accumulation of

simple ideas added over time.”

-Gary Keller


Uncover your true unique niche

• The more you share, the more powerful it becomes.• It’s worth more to you than a million bucks. • You’d be doing it whether or not you were getting

paid to do it.• When you are doing it, you lose track of time. • It feels like an addiction (you truly miss it when it’s

not there).• You wake up early to do it before anything else and it

gives you energy, it doesn’t drain you.• You notice things in the world others don’t.


The movie exerciseYour unique view of the world

• Your favorite movie, TV show, or play• Your favorite character• The challenges that character was facing or

purpose of their role:• The characteristics, distinctions, and attributes

that character exhibited, which you most admired?

• Identify those you admire (& who probably share traits with the movie character).


Exercise : 4-UP

What part of your current job would you do, even if you

weren’t paid to do it?

What would YOU be doing if money wasn’t

a factor?

When doing this, you lose track of time.

What’s the first thing you go

back to after being gone for an extended period of time (ie.

vacation)

• It gives you energy when you do it, and you could do it for hours on end.• When it’s not present, you miss it and it might even feel like it’s an addiction.


Still stuck? Try 8-UP

What magazines do you subscribe to? What blogs do you read?

Who’s job do you most admire? Your favorite TV shows

What did you collect as a kid? What do you like to do on the weekends?

What events are you willing you to pay to attend?

Where do you vacation/retreat most often? What do you do when you get

there?


Make it impersonalA foundation of community

• It’s not about you.• You are serving a purpose greater than

yourself and others know it.• Teachers and pastors are great examples.• Others join you despite the money.• It gives you the strength to overcome

adversity.• It’s more exciting to see the benefit to others

(It’s all about the IMPACT you can have).


An Obligation

“There is vitality, life force, energy that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one of you, your expression is unique. If you block it, it will never exist through any other medium and be lost forever. It is not your business to determine how good or valuable it compares with other expressions, it is your business to keep the channel open.”

- Martha Graham


Your online identityYour future self

• Make yourself easy to find and connect with– Facebook / Linked In / Twitter

• Sharing your passion, showcasing your expertise, & inviting others to join you!– YouTube & Podcasting– Wordpress & a personal URL– Squidoo & Hub Pages– Examiner.com & About.com

Focus your touch points.


From pixels-to-printThe fast path to publishing

• First create your content online. Blog, Linked In, Facebook, Twitter, etc.

• Second, create a manifesto or downloadable ebook (does anybody else care?)

*If nobody is willing to download your book for free, what makes you think you will be able to get them to pay for it?

• Third, create your ebook for sale. The reasons to create an ebook instead of print have to do with freedom of endless revisions and ease of rapid distribution.


Author workflowThe 4 phases of a writer

Research

Writing

Editing

Promoting

• Speaking / Teaching• Social Media• Traditional Media• Workshops• Webinars

• Interviews• Reading• Classes / Workshops• Conferences• Internet (podcasts, etc.)

• Blogging• Editorials• Guest articles• White papers /

Manifestos• Commenting

• Publishing• Revising• Presentations• Creating Class

Materials• Reorganizing ideas


Constant & Never Ending Improvement

VISION

PLAN

ACT

TRACK

Plan Implement Evaluate

Easy as P.I.E.

Write/Edit

Research

MonitorAnalytics

Find the Muse


An author’s marketing mindset

Offers

Lead Capture

Traffic

• Seek to build TRUST. • It can take up to 7 impressions to get noticed.


Generating traffic

• YouTube• Facebook• LinkedIn• Squidoo/Hubpages• Commenting on others blogs• Wordpress.com community• Forums• Affiliates• Adwords / Facebook Ads

Offers

Lead Captur

e

Traffic


Converting Traffic to Leads

• Free offer• Free subscription (value)• Free membership• Free trial• Low cost product• Reason to act now• Don’t make me think

Offers

Lead Captur

e

Traffic


Offering relevant content

• Free offer / discount coupon• Free subscription (value)• Free membership• Free trial• Low cost product• Reason to act now• Don’t make me think

Offers

Lead Captur

e

Traffic


Titles & Taglines

• Does the title offer a benefit to the reader?• If your book title was the title of a workshop,

would it pull in attendees? Would they be willing to PAY?

• It must benefit the reader. Consider we want to be:– Entertained– Educated– Offered more to buy


Titles & Taglines

Covers & Banners

• Less words. More art.• Will it look good as a thumbnail?• 3D or Shadow = Subtle but powerful


eBook DistributionMultiple routes to monetization

Amazon Others

•Print books•Kindle books•Kindle Blogs

Apple & Droid

•*iPad/iTunes• Google Books (coming soon)

Other eReaders(B&N / Borders)

• Nook• Kobo• Sony Reader

• Straight from your site! (Clickbank, PayDotCom, e-junkie)• Smashwords• Scribd• LuLu Marketplace (WeRead)• Feedbooks• Diesel eBooks (via Ingram)

Two paths:Direct OR Indirect (aggregators )


Fast path to e-publishing

1 •Setup a blog – publish online•Create compelling content•Create compelling cover/banner

2 •Offer a free download•Create a following (leverage social media)•Add your blog to Amazon’s Kindle

3 •Write your ebook in MS Word, optimize, and upload to Amazon•Publish ebook to Amazon & offer pdf on your site.•Giveaway free excerpts on various epublishing aggregators


Fast path to print publishing

1 •Setup layout in InDesign•Create Professional cover

2 •Upload to CreateSpace or other self-publishing service•OR: Get a publisher to back your project (like 50 Interviews)

3 •Explore distribution options•Decide if (or when) you want to fulfill directly


Getting your blog on Kindle

Setup a wordpress blog &

setup RSS feed

Polish the look & feel

1. Create Blog2. Create FeedburnerAccount

Write some great content!

Go back to your 4 up & 8 up worksheets.

Set your account Amazon &

Publish!

https://kindlepublishing.amazon.com

Get professional looking banner & cover

1 2 3 4


Getting your book on KindleThe largest ebook marketplace

Start with a well formatted Word

Doc.

Create an account & upload

1. Create Blog2. Create FeedburnerAccount

Create a good cover. Polish the

look & feel.

Go back to your 4 up & 8 up worksheets.

Promote your book!

1 2 3 4

• Dtp.amazoncom• Confirm clean conversion with preview.• Consider hiring a professional if the formatting is wrong.

Drive traffic throughSocial media & your blog.


More channels to sell your eBook

ClickBank E-JunkiePayloadz

$49 setup fee.Largest affiliate network.Doesn’t offer a secure download page.

PayDotCom

Payloadz is free (up to $50/mo.) then $14.95/mo.

AppleiBookstore

1 2 3 4

E-Junkie is only $5/mo.

Try bookbaby.com?$49 setup fee.

First product free.$29 setup for more than 1 product.Provides secure download page.

B&N and Google are both due to release a publishing platform this summer. Until then, you can get your content on the nook when you publish to smashwords.com


From blogger to author

Amazon Ranking:Steffan #47,361Creator #210,009

Amazon Rankings:#12,086 #36,421 #47,943

Began blogging in 2002.

…From marketer to author:


Emulate to Learn

Leo Babautu• ZenHabits blog (top 100 blogger)• Zen To Done $9.50 ebook sold through

affiliates (e-Junkie)• Self-published via CreateSpace• Book deal with Hyperion (The Power of Less)Keys to success:

• Had a following (top 100 blogger)• Created great content.• Great cover art.• Great Endorsements (Seth Godin & Tim Ferriss)

• Simple site.•Uses ‘Uncopyright’ for all posts & now applies to his book as well!• Great artwork for affiliates (widgets)• Easy transaction (e-junkie). • Leveraged affiliates


Emulate to Learn

Josh Kaufman• Personal MBA.com• Started blog in Apr-2005• 1st book (Portfolio) – Dec ’10

Keys to success:

• Built loyal community on NING• Offers one-on-one coaching• Notice how the URL become the title of his book? Lesson: Pick you URL carefully!


Emulate to Learn

Scott Belsky• ActionMethod.com• 1st book (Portfolio/Penguin

Group) – 2010

• Built upon a methodology & online tool.


Emulate to Learn

Brian Halligan & Dharmesh Shah

• Hubspot.com & Onstartup.com launched June-2006

• 1st book (Wiley) – Oct ‘09

• Amazon Ranking: 1,212


Emulate to Learn

Laura Bradenburg• bridging-the-gap.com• Averaging 5 sales/week (eBook:

How to Start a BA Career)

Keys to success:

• Relevant blog posts• eMail marketing• Builds brand through volunteering for a professional organization


Emulate to Learn

Impact Lab

• Impactlab.com• Generates $2,000/mo.• Launched in 2001

Keys to success:• 23,000 posts• 600,000 page views/mo.• 10,000 subscribers• Tom & Deb


Emulate to Learn ??

Twitter to best selling author

• #9 top paid kindle book (as of 7/21/10)• #11 hardcover (as of 7/21/10)• http://twitter.com/shitmydadsays - nearly 1.5

millilon followers on twitter!• First tweet – 8/3/09– Mentioned on the daily show within 1 month– Mentioned on Laughing Squid– #followfriday (started by Boulderite Micah

Baldwin) got him his first wave of followers.• Published by HarperCollins – 5/4/10

shitmydadsays.com


Emulate to Learn

wine.about.com

• Started writing for wine.about.com in Jan ’05• 805,000 - 1mil page views/mo.• $800-$2,000/mo. ($250-$650 base)• Payouts based on YTY growth• Tight alignment with the Food Channel• Killer perks!!Keys to success• Writing about something she enjoys• Ongoing back link building*About.com has 853 subdomains (as of July-2010)


Emulate to Learn

Millionaire Mommy Next Door• Started on blogger.com

• Site Hacked• Google shut it down• Moved to Wordpress• Day she posted my video

was one of the my highest traffic days…

Keys to success• Writing about something she’s

passionate about (it’s not about the $)

…And still my highest traffic videos to date!


• Traditional media is motivated to find ‘in house’ experts first (case in point, this morning on the Today show, an iVillage blogger was the expert featured.

• iVillage is owned by NBC• About.com is owned by the NY Times• Examiner (A Denver based company) is owned

by The Anschutz Co.

New age journalists


Sour

ce: C

ompe

te.c

om


Building it all on Google& doing it all for free!

• CREATE: – Upload your book to Google Books– Create site on blogger.com– Setup Google analytics

• SELL– Use Google Checkout to sell your print books or use Google Editions

to sell your eBooks!

• PROMOTE– Run Adwords campaigns– Create a opt-in newsletter with Feedburner.– Use Google Calendar for event marketing– Create videos on Youtube to drive taffic– Use Google Groups to create readers groups


Publishing 1 tweet-at-a-time

• Create a twitter account for your book title(ie. twitter.com/50entrepreneurs)• Add twitter widget (from within twitter) to your

blogspot or wordpress page• You can either select ‘profile widget’ to include all

your posts or just ‘Favs’ to list specific tweets (that you ‘star’) – can also be tweets from other twitter users.

• Recommended: Install ‘Twitter Tools by Alex King ’ plug in to automatically generate a tweet for each post.

http://twitter.com/goodies/widgets

http://50interviews.blogspot.com/


Publishing 1 tweet-at-a-timeJustin Halpern Model

• Create an account on status.net• Create a twitter account for your book title(ie. twitter.com/50entrepreneurs)• Link the two. Your posts from Status.net go to your

twitter page.

An idea without a deadline is just a

dream.

Ideas to action

Tools• The Merlin Principle• The Pomodoro Technique• Mission Control• ActionMethod.com• 30boxes.com Do just 1 thing

each day.

List of resources mentioned at

www.kindleexpert.com(click on resources)

http://www.kindleexpert.com/


Exploring New Markets

Daisy.org

Other ideas?

the fast path to getting published

Education

fast path

fast profitable path

agenda short break

converting traffic

leo babautu zenhabits

future selffrom pixels

publishingauthor workflow

publishingbrian schwartz