The Next 25K

Radio Show is a Go

2009-11-16T13:18:00.046-05:00

November 15, 2009 was a red letter day for me. It was my first serious step towards creating my on-line radio show. You may remember that I spoke about an opportunity for me to have my own show a few month ago. However, that did not work out as planned. However, the idea and the dream did not die.

I decided that I would go ahead with the idea, but instead I would use www.blogtalkRadio.com instead. With BTR, I can do a show for free, and just get my feet web. Check out my show at Around the Kitchen Table with Donna .

So, yesterday I did my first show. It was just a test run though, and I have since deleted it, but it gave me an idea of what I need to do in order to run a show. It was a blast. I had a few people phone in, and was able to figure out the process, as well as run music and manipulate the switchboard.

I already have a long list of ideas for future shows, topics that I think will be interesting. I named it Around the Kitchen Table with Donna because I didn't want to be fenced in talk only about Happiness, but at the same time, it will be a great tool to promote my book. I can talk about the book, how it came to be, how it has helped people, read sections of it, and so forth. I can build up an archive and material that I can rework to make audios and promos.

Blog Talk Radio has some additional features if I want to pay some money for them. I may consider that for the future, but for right now, I am just going to use the free offer until I know what I am doing and see if it does help to get me exposure and experience.

The latest with my book is that I had sold a copy and donated a copy to the Ottawa Library. Once it hit their shelfs, it became very popular. It is now up to 39 people who have requested it, not included the 2 people that presently have it out. As a result of the demand, the library has requested 6 more copies. I love the fact that people are finding out about the book and requested to read it, but the library thinks it is now worth their while to get extra copies. I am almost out of copies, and will be soon ordering more, which I hope to place in other libraries as well.

In September, I was in Sorrento, BC. I had the privilege of leading a workshop at a wonderful store called Beryl's Books and Beans. The workshop was based on the book. I recited from Dr. Suess, read a portion of the book, did a hands-on exercise and had an answer and question section. I also had prizes and gifts.

It was a great success. Many of the 10 people that attended bought a copy of the book, and one person who had purchased it earlier spoke to me to say she was enjoying it very much. I had many possitive comments about the presentation, and one gentleman told me I had a very pleasing way about me.

I hope to go back someday, either to some Biography Workshop material or maybe Laughter Yoga. Thank you so much for having Beryl.

So, to recap today's message:

A great way to promote your book is to contact me to be a guest on my show Around the Kitchen Table with Donna , or host your own show by going to Blog Talk Radio.
Get you book into you local public libraries.
Find book stores that will host a special event to feature you book.
Have fun with you publishing and check out my services at Sassy Sunflower Books .

Cataloging in Publication Program

2009-07-30T14:10:00.004-04:00

Before you publish your book in Canada, make sure to check out Cataloguing in Publication Program (CIP). ( For those publishing in the states, see below. )

This is voluntary program of cooperation between publishers and libraries. It enables the cataloguing of books BEFORE they are published, and the prompt distribution of this cataloging information to booksellers and libraries. The Canadian CIP program is coordinated by Library and Archives Canada.

They will send you a CIP description and text that should be placed on your copyright page. The one I received looks like this:


Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication 

Hedley, Donna L., 1956- 
        Strategies for happiness : how to achieve your happiness potential / 
Donna L. Hedley. 

Includes bibliographical references. 
ISBN 978-0-9811504-0-6 

        1. Happiness.  2. Self-actualization (Psychology).  I. Title. 

BF575.H27H44 2009                      152.4'2                      C2009-903898-6

Click here to see what my copyright page looks like.

In addition to the CIP, there is the New Books Service. This is an enhancement to the Cataloguing in Publication (CIP) program that assists publishers in promoting their latest titles, and helps readers to discover them. All you need to do is to complete the New Books portion of the CIP form, and they will create a record of each of your new releases featuring the graphics and promotional text you provide, along with the traditional authoritative Cataloguing in Publication data.

The website is located at http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/cip/index-e.html .

In order to register, you go to http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/cip/s15-1007-e.html and fill out the form.

Aside from the basic contact and publication information, such as publisher name and date of publication, be prepared with the following items:

Copy of title page;

Author(s), editor(s), illustrator(s), translator(s) names and functions as they will appear on the title page;

Full name, date of birth and nationality of author(s), editor(s), illustrator(s), translator(s) like in the following example;

Smith, John, 1960-04-21, Canadian

Smith, Jane, 1960-04-21, American

Any bibliography or bibliographic references the book may contain;

A summary of what is the book about;

A copy of Introduction;

A copy of Preface, if any;

A copy of Table of Content;

A copy of cover image;

A copy of a sample chapter;

Information about the author;

Information about the illustrator;

Any reviews, if any;

Any awards, if any; and

Any information about reading, if any.

When it came to sending a copy of sections of the book, I could not see anywhere where is specified what format to send, so I sent a pdf.

The site indicates it will take about 10 days, but I found that they are over whelmed with publications, so don't be surprised if it takes longer. Contact the office to make sure they received your application, and how long it may take. Every few weeks you may need to call back to prompt.

The first time I called was to confirm they got the application. I was told they were backlogged and to call back 2 weeks later. I was out of the country, so I actually called 3 weeks later. I was told it was still not ready. When I indicated I needed it because I was sending something out, she said she would get it to me by the end of the week, which she did.

I was not able to put the CIP in my first order of books, but I will be putting it in the next for sure.

Request for Library of Congress Preassigned Control Number

If you are publishing from the US, you need to contact the Library of Congress to get a card number. This will also need to appear on your copyright page.

It is a great way for possible customers to find you book without having to pay a search fee. There are a lot of libraries that use this number, and require it if they are going to stock your book. Here is the contact information for the program:

Library of Congress
Cataloging in Publication Division
101 Independence Avenue SE
Washington, DC 20540-4320
Phone: 202-707-5000
Web: http://pcn.loc.gov/pcn/pcn001.html
Another program is the Cataloging in Publications Program, which is only applicable to publishing companies, so you may want to see about setting up your own company. If not, you can contact an organization called Quality Books at 800-323-4241. They will set up in something called Publisher’s Cataloging in Publication (PCIP)

By the way, if want a great book to help you through the whole publishing process, check out The Complete Guide to Self-Publishing by Tom and Marilyn Ross.

Strategies for Happiness: Successful Launch

2009-07-21T14:55:00.002-04:00

As of July 17, 2009, Strategies for Happiness is successfully launched. It can be purchased at www.S4HTheBook.com.

Strategies for Happiness is now Amazon ( ). Through Amazon, the book is now available to the whole world.

I have been busy working on promoting it. My main focus is developing my presence on Amazon, which will ultimately be my bread and butter, but I am also looking into bookstores, especially independents.

One thing I have done is to approached a local bookstore here in Ottawa, called Collected Works here in Ottawa about selling it in their store. They like featuring local authors and make it available on a consignment bases. They also have offered the possibility that I might come in sometime in the fall and do a "reading" of the book. I will be approaching other bookstores as well.

I also approached the local Roger Cable station about appearing on one of their shows. So, on Aug 4, I am going to be doing a segment on a show they do called Daytime (which runs from 11-12 weekdays).

Take a look at the press release I have created to promote the book. Feel free to pass it on to anyone you think would be interested.

Another thing that am involved in is I will also be sharing a take at a book fair in Toronto called Word on the Street. This will be a great opportunity to get exposure and sell some books.

Oh yes, another great opportunity is that I am going to be writing an article that will be included in a promotional ebook for a fund raising event call The Bear Hug. If you pledge $10 or more, you will get a copies of the ebook, which will contain 4 other excellent articles from other experts in addition to me. More on that later.

So, for anyone who is wanting to promote their book, I hope I have given you some ideas. Stay tuned, I will be bringing you more ideas shortly. Or you can take a look at Sassy Sunflower Books and let me help you get your book published.

Strategies for Happiness is Ready for Purchase

2009-06-12T13:28:00.003-04:00

I finally got my permission for the quote I waiting for, and have applied a few final editing changes, so the book, Strategies for Happiness is now ready for you to buy.

Order your copy of Strategies for Happiness today! You can order your copy at Strategies for Happiness.

More Self Publishing Tips

Store Discounts

A few items to be aware of for your publishing business. When you are dealing with bookstores, they will want an up to 55% discount off the retail price of the book. From what is left over, you need to pay your printer, and you get what is left.

You might be able to get that discount down to as low as 20%, but often then, the book store will not consider you. It can be a balancing act to figure out what is your best option.

Returns

Another thing to consider is when you distribute to book stores, they will ask you if you will accept returns. If you say yes, they can return any books they purchased to you, and not only will you have to refund them the money, but you will also have to pick up the shipping charges. You can say no, and for the small publisher, this may be your best option, but then again, if you say no, the stores may not deal with you.

What some companies do is set aside some money in their budget to pay for these possible costs, or, they just say no.

Come back soon for more self publishing tips, or check out Sassy Sunflower Books for more information.

Strategies for Happiness Radio Show

2009-05-13T20:26:00.003-04:00

Thank You! Thank You! Thank You!!!

Something so amazing has happened! I have been given the opportunity to host my own talk radio show. Not only will this be an exciting experience, and something I can use to reach even more people with, but the potential for sales and promotional opportunities is mind boggling.

My show will focus on Happiness of course. I can do whatever I want with it. I can have guests, take callers, read emails, play clips, chat, and promote both my books and the books of my authors, and of course, Sassy .

The possibilities are truly profound!

My book is almost ready to go to print. It was such a thrill to open the box and see a copy, even if it was just a proof copy. Then I got inspired to start my own publishing company to help promote my book. This is a thrilling experience as well, it is such a perfect fit for me. I feel so right, so real, so perfectly suited to do this. I even have two author's that call me their publisher.

I have been busy the last few days with family things, so I have not had any chance to work on the book or Sassy. Tomorrow, I will back at it, preparing for June, when I will be publishing the book.

I will be putting together a list of radio shows and tv stations I can contact in order to get promo's time for the book. I will be providing this information through Sassy if anyone is interested. Keep an eye on Sassy for further information.

Bulk Sales of Your Book - A Big Step to Getting Your Book a Best Seller.

2009-05-04T14:16:00.004-04:00

One of the ideas I have come across to help promote your book and make it a best seller is to find organizations that are interesting in purchasing large amount of books up front. Book stores may do this, but when you are self-publishing, they are not as interested in you, especially the big stores.

Finding organization that would like to co-publish a book with you, and therefore buy or sponsor your book is a good idea. You give them a few pages in your book to talk about them, and in return they purchase a large quantity of the finished product. You can ever work out an arrangement that makes it look like the book comes directly from that organization, with you being the author of course. They may do this for promotion of their business, or to use as training tools. With each organization, you can change the cover to suit their corporate needs. Since the book is yours, you can do this with as many companies you want, though I would think that each one would need its own separate ISBN number.

Another idea is to contact book clubs, like Double Day and see if they are interested in selling your book to their membership. I believe that if they do, they will purchase a lot of books up front.

Double Day looks a bit difficult as they require you go through a literary agent. Here is some information about what they require.

http://www.ehow.com/how_4494052_sumbit-books-doubleday.html

Book of the Month Club looks a little more promising. Here is some information about what they require.

http://www.ehow.com/how_2320177_get-book-book-month-club.html

Another link with some promising ideas:
http://www.ehow.com/how_4494420_get-book-accepted-read-book.html

I will let you know more as I find out more. I am open to hear what anyone else has experienced.

Follow Your Passion, and Everything Else Will Fall Into Place

2009-05-02T12:26:00.011-04:00

I haven't posted for a few days, because I have been busy working on Sassy. Yes, that is what I am going to call her from now on, Sassy. The more I work on this project, the more excited I get. Ideas are exploding in my brain all the time of things I can do with this company.

I can use it to promote my book, to help and inspire others to write and be published and self-publish, to create new products, to sell domain names and web design/development services, to sell Sunflower themed products. To help charities raise funds.

So many possibles!

However, the main purpose of this blog is to keep you posted about my progress with my book. I am still waiting on some final permissions. I almost decided to remove some of these final quotes and when I got permission, put in a future edition. Then I decided to bite the bullet, go through the proper channels and wait for the permissions, even if it takes 6 weeks. These final quotes are important, and I would really like to have them in there.

This is another service I plan to offer through Sassy. If authors are wanting to put a quote into their book, I will track down a permission for them. If I can't find the permission, then there will be now charge.

In the meantime, I will work on the corrections and re-writes that I have found as I did another read through the book.

Once the book is published, I will be actively contacting radio stations and cable stations to set up interviews. I will use this time to start to pull together a list of such stations, so I will be ready to rock and / or roll.

I am having so much fun. What are you waiting for? Find your passion(s) and go for it. There are no excuses!!

Build It and They Will Come -- OKay, I'm Ready !--Where are They?! -- Wait, I See Them Now!!

2009-04-28T22:19:00.006-04:00

It has been three days since I got the idea to create my own publishing company. I started it originally to be able to publish my book, but since then it has evolved into an exciting business opportunity.

Aside from my books, I want to help others publish their books. As an added feature, I also figured I could create a quote permission service. I know from experience it is somewhat tricky to track down permission, and as far as I know there is no one offering this service, so I am going to offer that as a service.

I also realized I could use my new company to find budding authors and make collections of short stories and poetry. People could submit these, I could put it together as a book and promote it, and then they can buy copies at a reduced rate so they can sell copies themselves and make some money.

What is great about all of this is I can do most of it on the web, so I can do it if I am on a trip.

As to the book, I spend a good chunk yesterday doing a final read. I am almost done with the read, and then I will need to incorporate the changes. I am still waiting on the final three quote permissions, but fear I will have to remove two of them all together. I am planning to be ready to go to print within 2 weeks.

I registered my Sassy Sunflower Books company, and have a few more steps to finalize my application with Lightning Source.

I don't know exactly what I am doing with all of this, but more then ever, I am feeling good about it all, empowered, taking it a step at a time, and determined to learn whatever I need to learn. Whatever happens, I will learn and grow and am so thankful for.

Does anyone have any suggestions or thoughts to help me proceed?

Three More Things to Do... Then I Publish

2009-04-26T17:05:00.004-04:00

I was tempted last week to consider getting back into the workforce, with a "Real" job. I wrestled with the possibility of having a regular paycheck, working for a few years, then after two years, quitting again. I wondered if I was stupid to give up on a wonderful opportunity to do so, just because I wanted to be free. I almost gave in.

I am so glad I didn’t give in. I am excited about the possibilities of making my Publishing company work, as well as spending the time necessary to make my book a best seller. I would be giving up on so many exciting experiences, just to have a regular pay.

Like, when I got the draft copy of my book earlier this week. It was such a feeling of exhilaration and joy. Since then, I have been busy marking it up and making more changes to last minute mistakes and rewordings. One particular mistake was I had the ISBN number wrong. I’m glad I found that.

I have also added some pictures to the first chapter which I think will give it more interest and flavour. They are just pictures of me when I was very young. I was pretty cute.

In additions to the changes I need to make, I have 3 more important quote permissions to get. I may break down and just remove them from the book, or take a chance on them, but it is gratifying to almost have that obstacle out of the way. A few weeks ago, I was overwhelmed at the idea of contacting all of these people and now it is almost done.

One more thing I need to iron out is how Lightning Source works. I am waiting for them to approve my application, and once they do, I will see what is involved in getting the book up on their site, and ordering another proof copy.

Once these three things are done 1) last minute changes, 2) quotes and 3) proof copy form Lightning Source, then I will be ready to unleash my book on the world. Then the real fun begins.

Today has been all about my publishing company, Sassy Sunflower Books! I have spent the day working on the website. So, it is not directly about my book, but it is something that in the long run will help to promote it.

I started this blog because I wanted to chronicle my journey towards making my book, Strategies for Happiness a number one best seller. My plan is that it will help me to focus on what I am doing and give me direction, and I am also hoping that others with share with me ideas that will help. In addition to that, it is my hope that this blog will help others toward fulfilling their dream of publishing a book.

Little did I know that when I started this process, I would also create my own publishing company. And the more I work on it, the more I realize that I can use Sassy Sunflower to help others, as well as create another source of income.

When I started working on the site for Sassy Sunflower Books I was not happy with how it looked. It was very clumsy. I got some great inspirations this morning, sat down at the computers and got to work. Check out the results: Sassy Sunflower Books.

Sassy Sunflower Books

2009-04-25T17:40:00.003-04:00

I am my own publisher! I am calling it Sassy Sunflower Books. I have done this because I found out about a company called Lightning Source that I can use to do my POD. From what I understand, I can get them to distribute my book, save money, and allow more people in the world access to the book.

This got me thinking. If I start this micro publisher for the purpose of distributing my book, I could also use it to help others who are also wanting to self publish. So, I intend to develop my publishing company to other anyone who wants to self publish.
I am working on the website, which should be up and running soon. Check it out at Sassy Sunflower Books. Actually, today I also decided to call the company Sassy Sunflower Books and Things, so I can sell other books as well.

I got this information from the following site Aaron Shepard’s Publishing Page where you can download the book Aiming Amazon in PDF. I am planning on buying the book as well.

Great things are happening.

My Journey to Making a Best Seller

2009-04-25T16:46:00.000-04:00

Welcome to my journey.

I’m just about to self publish my book Strategies for Happiness. I’m going to very proactive in doing whatever I need to do to promote the book. My first goal is to sell my first 25,000 copies. Once I sell that, I will work on the next 25,000 and so forth.

For those of you who say it can't be done, well, I say, Why not?! I know this can happen if first of all I choose to make it happen, and then take actions to make is so. This first post is my declaration of my intention to make my book a best seller.

Here is a list of a number of ideas I have for promotions:

1) Website (S4HTheBook)
2) Contact radio show to get phone interviews
3) Get spots on local cable stations
4) Get spots on big shows like Ellen Degeneres
5) Contact book stores and do book signings
6) Do Virtual book tours
7) Make bookmarks and posters
8) Give copies of my book to key people
9) Promote my book through book distributors such as Amazon etc.
10) Create trailers to promote the book on post on Youtube, etc.

The purpose of this blog is to chronicle my journey to make my book a best seller. I want to share my journey to inspire others to do the same, and give them ideas of how they can do it. Also, if you have any additional ideas of how to promote my book and help me sell more books, let me know. Join me on my journey toward the next 25K.