Should You Be Writing Kindle E-Books?

"Should You Be Writing Kindle E-books?" is the title of Lee Jackson's talk, host of our upcoming meeting 7 pm, Tuesday, August 22. We will meet on the third floor of the First United Methodist Church, Maryville. Anyone with an interest in writing is welcome to join us.

Lee has published two e-books and a number of print books. Lee began publishing in the 1980s. Lee spent her working life as a family and consumer sciences high school teacher. She continues to enjoy and write about subjects related to home and family life. Her early sojourn into the world of independent publishing has been an added plus to her life. Cookbooks and children's books are the areas of focus.

Following are a few of Lee's publications and awards:

My apple cookbook, "Apples, Apples Everywhere - Favorite Recipes From America's Orchards" received an award from Mid America Publishers Association.

"Careers in Focus - Family and Consumer Sciences" textbook published by Goodheart-Willcox received the Missouri Writers Guild Major Award.

Books I have published for other authors, Amy Houts and Robert Bohlken, Ph.D., have received awards from Midwest Independent Publishers Association and "Mom's Choice Award" from The Just For Mom Foundation.

Her book, "The Littlest Christmas Kitten", has received great reviews from parents and children, as well as reviewers and the School Library. It received 1st Place Award in Children's Picture Books from Midwest Independent Publishers Association.

Hope to see you there!

#amwriting #Kindle #ebook #author #literature #nonfiction #fiction #MissouriWritersGuild 

Marketing and Reviews

There was much discussion at last night's meeting of the Maryville Chapter of the Missouri Wrtier's Guild. The topics included reviews, obtaining them and how they affect sales positively or negatively. Targeted marketing and social media marketing options for writer's were also discussed, including local print, radio, and television.

As a follow-up, here is a link to the Poets & Writer's Review Outlets database for any authors interested in finding reviewers for their books. This is a great magazine, too, for anyone looking for addition information.

Be sure to read their submission criteria. There are many who will not accept self-published books for review. There are some who will, like The Washington Post and Bookreview.com and others.

Don't Forget the Marketing

There are many ways that indie authors can market their books today, reaching out to hundreds of millions of potential readers with a small investment of cash, as little as $10 in some cases, and some requiring $100 minimum or more. It depends on how prominent you want your ad to be and how long you want it to run. Per-click ads on sites like those noted below are the best marketing friend an indie author can have.

If you've been wondering what options are available to you, in addition to those trusted standards like magazines and newspapers, you may want to consider online ad campaigns on sites like Goodreads, and on social media sites like Facebook. There are also high-impact options like Google Ad Words that can get your books in front of hundreds of millions of people. And don't forget to talk to your local newspaper about an online ad for their website. They may cost a bit more, but they are key to reaching local as well as more distant readers.

Check into advertising on sites and in groups that are focused on your target audience. Most sites offering advertising options will permit you to select your daily budget amount, the price to be deducted from your prepaid advertising budget amount, and the duration you want your ad to run. And, most sites providing paid advertising options also provide data that can help you target your future ads more effectively. And, you may want to approach other indie authors and consider swapping linked ads on their space for placing an ad for their book(s) on yours.

And, most importantly, don't forget to put ads for your books on your own website and link those book covers back to where those books can be purchased, i.e., your Createspace e-store, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books-a-Million, etc.


Here are a few articles that will provide some insights into online advertising. Remember, producing the book is only one part of a successful outcome in the whole writing + publishing equation.


Publishers Weekly Articles
Google Ads 101: A Guide for Indie Authors
Facebook Ads: A Guide for Indie Authors
Goodreads Ads for Indie Authors

Bookworks.com
Targeted Book Advertising Strategies for Indie Authors

Regardless of what means you choose for advertising your books, it's important to do your homework, and don't feel locked in to just one site. Spread the word about your book by doing ad campaigns on a variety of sites. You'll be surprised what increased sales you may see from a very small initial investment.


Happy advertising - Susan.

Upcoming Writer's Meeting

The Maryville Chapter of the Missouri Writers Guild will meet at 7:00 p.m. September 27, 2016, at the Alumni House. Hostess Irene Alexander has invited Diane Goold, author of the books "Diane's Daily Devotions" and "Treasured Words of God," to speak at our meeting. Come to hear not only how Diane wrote the books, keeps up with a daily blog, and writes the "Newspaper in Education" column for the St. Joseph News Press, but also about her marketing plan. Diane has a history of high sales of her books. Irene will also discuss how you can write for "Young at Heart," a section of the St. Joseph News Press, where she has been published many times. Hope to see you there! See Diane's bio, following.

Visiting Author Anna Loan-Wilsey

On Saturday, November 14, 2015 author Anna Loan-Wilsey gave an excellent presentation on the subject of researching and writing the historical mystery. She is the author of the Hattie Davish historical mystery series published through Kensington Publishing Corporation.

A more detailed perspective of the event may be found in the Maryville Daily Forum article by reporter Jennifer Ditlevson-Haglund.

A Deceptive Homecoming is the author's latest release. It is set in the town of St. Joseph, Missouri. Readers familiar with the cityscape will likely recognize the locations referenced. The author is currently working on the fifth book in the series, which will take place in Washington, D.C.

The Maryville Chapter of the Missouri Writer's Guild is grateful to Anna for taking time to give this presentation and we wish her the very best success in her continuing series of mysteries.