Book Review: Publicity From The Trenches by Sherri Rosen

ONE WORD BOOK REVIEW - INTEGRITY

Title: Publicity From The Trenches

Author: Sherri Rosen

Publisher: Sherri Rosen Publicity Int'l NYC

Date: May 1, 2015

Length: 125 Pages


About The Author
Sherri Rosen came to New York City in the 60's and never left. She has her own publicity firm and has created her own niche of inspirational publicity.

What is a Publicist and Do You Need One?
Sherri Rosen is a professional publicist and owner of Sheri Rosen Publicity Int'l, NYC. She has written this book to inform published and self-published authors about the benefit of hiring a publicist.

The author provides a list of nineteen things to look for and some questions to ask when seeking a publicist. She explains what a publicist can do for an author, but makes it clear that there are no guaranteed results.

What distinguishes a great publicist from a mediocre one is getting the word to the right people, in the right venues, at the right time. 

Ms. Rosen believes that publicity must be based on honesty and integrity.  She has coined a term, "inspirational publicity", to describe publicity that isn't about making big money but is instead honest and real.

My Thoughts
Self-publishing has opened the door of opportunity to many new authors. This is an informative and inspiring guide to help authors choose the kind of professional support they need to get the word out.

This book is illustrated with beautiful color illustrations and sprinkled with motivational quotations.

Ms. Rosen describes the high standards that she holds herself and her associates to as they work with authors. Publicity must be custom designed for each client and honesty is emphasized in all communications.

If you are an author, I think you will find this book very helpful. If you are going to invest in publicity, you need to know how to find the best professional service available.

MY RATING: 5 STARS OUT OF 5

FYI ~ I received an advance digital copy of this book from the author to read and review.

Please share your thoughts in the Comments Section below.

Book Review: The Day I Met Dr. Seuss by Anne Emerick

The Day I Met Dr. Seuss

Author: Anne Emerick

Publisher: Amazon Digital Services

Date: September 8, 2012

Print Length: 22 Pages



About The Author
Anne Emerick is a self-published author of 10 books for the Kindle e-reader. She writes a blog that helps other authors with self-publishing and marketing issues.

A Dream to Meet Dr. Seuss
This ebook began with an "Author's Note" that told about Ms. Emerick's admiration and strong desire to meet Dr. Seuss when she was a child. She actually wrote a letter to Dr. Seuss in 1989 and asked for an appointment and interview. She received a polite letter from a secretary saying that Dr. Seuss was not available for an interview.

This is a rhyming fiction story about a girl who met Dr. Seuss.  The girl in the story was named Annie G. Magee and she had her heart set on meeting Theodor Geisel (Dr. Seuss).

Annie traveled to California and did not give up until she met Dr. Seuss and asked him to reveal his secret for coming up with the ideas for his stories.

The author listed some interesting facts about Dr. Seuss at the end of the story.

My Thoughts
I am a HUGE Dr. Seuss fan and I loved reading his books to children when I worked as a school librarian. I could never go wrong with a Dr. Seuss book!

"The Day I Met Dr. Seuss" was a delightful story with rhyming words and a very believable plot. The girl in this story displayed persistence and perseverance in her quest to meet and interview her favorite author.

The Author's Notes at the beginning and end of the story were very interesting and showed that Ms. Emerick also displayed persistence and perseverance in her quest in getting this story published.

This would be an excellent story to share with children and encourage them to think about questions they would like to ask their favorite author.

I recommend this short story to readers of all ages. 

My Rating: 5 Stars Out Of 5

FYI - I downloaded this ebook during a free promotion on Amazon.Com. Please check the current price before purchasing.

Thank you for reading this book review. Please share your thoughts in the Comments Section below.

Kindle Books For Kids: Eville, USA by Julia Dweck

Eville, USA (KiteReaders Monster Series)

Author: Julia Dweck
Illustrator: Fian Arroyo

Publisher: KiteReaders

Date: September 30, 2012


About The Author

Julia Dweck writes children's stories for digital and traditional publication. Her stories span the spectrum of humor, fantasy, and edutainment in rhyme and in prose. Julia's background in elementary education affords her the opportunity to be in touch with what children want to read about and what makes them giggle.

Monsters On Vacation 

Question: Where do monsters and zombies go to play?

Answer: EVILLE, USA!
 

Monsters and zombies need a vacation just like the rest of us.

"Evil-doers cross the nation
take a sinister vacation,
away from plotting, planning, lurking,
These villains need a break from working".

The monsters have all kinds of fun in Eville, USA. They relax by a swimming pool with a refreshing beverage, they attend a monster's convention and they compete in athletic contests. 
 
This rhyming story with colorful full-screen illustrations will have children laughing out loud and begging for more. 

My Thoughts 
I worked as an elementary school librarian for 30 years and read many, many, many monster picture books. This ebook is right up there with the best of them! 

Ms. Dweck writes original, entertaining and humorous text that will delight young readers. The monsters in this story have unique personalities that children will find playful and even lovable. These are NOT frightening monsters. 

Mr. Arroyo has done an outstanding job with the illustrations. Children will be captivated with the details in these monster drawings. I spent an extra 20 minutes looking at these pictures after I read the book.

I read this book on my Kindle Fire HD. The formatting is superb and a perfect fit for the Kindle. There are four lines of rhyming text with each full-screen color illustration. The text is bright and an appropriate size for easy reading.

Kudos to Julia Dweck! She is one of the bright shining stars in the digital publishing revolution. She is taking children's book publishing to the next level and I applaud her.

My Rating: 5 Stars Out of 5

This book is available as a FREE Kindle book at Amazon.Com TODAY! These promotions don't last very long so grab your copy NOW.

I would love for you to FOLLOW this blog. You may use either the Google Friend Connect or the Networked Blog widget to show your support and encouragement.

Please share your thoughts in the Comments Section below.

  

Book Review: APE: Author, Publisher, Entrepreneur - How to Publish a Book

APE: Author, Publisher, Entrepreneur-How to Publish a Book

Authors: Guy Kawasaki and Shawn Welch

Publisher: Nononina Press

Date: December 10, 2012



About The Author
Guy Kawasaki is the author of Enchantment: The Art of Changing Hearts, Minds, and Actions. He is the co-founder of Alltop.com, an "online magazine rack" of popular topics on the web, and founding partner at Garage Technology Ventures.

Author, Publisher, Entrepreneur
Are you an author or future author?

Are you thinking about self-publishing your book?

Do you have a gazillion questions about what to do and how to do it?

This is the book you have been waiting for.

Guy Kawasaki and Shawn Welch have written a 300-page book about "artisanal publishing." The thesis of APE is simple but powerful: when a self-publisher successfully fills three roles...author, publisher, entrepreneur...the potential benefits are greater than with a traditional publisher.

This book is a comprehensive handbook for authors who want to take complete control over the writing, publishing and marketing of their book. The authors provide technical instructions for formatting your digital files for ebook publication as well as sharing very helpful information for printing your book.

The marketing advice covers "guerrilla marketing" techniques and how to build a platform to promote your book online. The authors offer excellent free resources on the book's web site.

There is a lengthy glossary at the end of the book that defines many of the terms that are used in the book.

My Thoughts
I was absolutely blown away by the amount of NEEDED information that is presented in this book.

This book offers authors a great deal of value for a relatively small investment. This book informs, instructs, motivates and inspires.

The authors share all the steps they used to APE (author, publish, entrepreneur) this very book!

You can view a video book trailer HERE.

Self-publishing is not easy. It takes hard work, determination and perseverance. If you have been dreaming about writing and publishing a book, this book will be a very wise investment. Highly Recommended!

My Rating: 5 Stars Out Of 5

FYI ~ I received a complimentary digital copy of this book to read and review from Net Galley.


I would love for you to FOLLOW this blog. You may use either the Google Friend Connect or the Networked Blog widget to show your support and encouragement.

Please share your thoughts in the Comments Section below.

Book Review: What Reviewers Want; Get Inside One Reviewer's Mind

What Reviewers Want: Get Inside One Reviewer's Mind

Author: D.L. Graham

Publisher: Twisted Rose Publishing

Date: October 9, 2011

Length: 24 pages



About The Author
D.L. Graham is a book reviewer and self-published author.

Book Reviews Are Subjective Opinions
This booklet was written by an author/reviewer to help self-published authors  make informed decisions on how to spend their money wisely, in order to produce a quality e-book and avoid costly mistakes.

There are several things this book reviewer advises a self-published author to consider before publishing their ebook.  Good editing is at the top of the list of requirements for a quality product that will attract reviewers and readers. Grammatical errors, typos and poor writing style is a big turn-off to any reader and should be avoided like the plague. This might seem like common sense but it is a fairly common problem in self-published books.

This booklet contains two chapters that deal with how to get a reviewer to read your book and how to respond to a review. There is good advice for contacting and communicating with reviewers. The reviewer has many opportunities to read good books and they must make a choice. The author must "sell" their book in a short query email that grabs the reviewer's attention and makes them want to read this book more than the others.

The last section of this book contains an "Author's Toolbox" that provides links to resources that will be helpful to self-published authors.

My Thoughts
This booklet gives some good advice to authors who are seeking reviews for their self-published book.

There is really only one chapter in this booklet about how to get a reviewer to read your book. I would like to see more information about choosing reviewers, writing query letters and communicating with the reviewer. There are many resources available that deal with good writing, editing, etc., but few books advise authors on how to work with book reviewers and get the kind of reviews that will persuade others to read the book.

As a book reviewer, I enjoyed reading this booklet and I agree with everything that was written. I just wish the author had gone a little deeper into the subject of how to get reviewers to read your book.

My Rating: 4 Stars Out Of 5

FYI ~ I ordered this ebook from Amazon when it was offered as a free download. Please check the current price before purchasing.

I would love for you to FOLLOW this blog. You may use either the Google Friend Connect or the Networked Blog widget to show your support and encouragement.

Please share your thoughts in the Comments Section below. 

Book Review: Smart Self-Publishing

Zoe Winters details her first-hand experiences with self-publishing in "Smart Self-Publishing: Becoming an Indie Author". She shares the secrets of her success and she tells of difficult lessons learned the hard way. Her writing is candid, honest and entertaining.
This book will serve as a blueprint for self-publishing from beginning to end.

About The Author
Zoe Winters has sold over 50,000 ebooks independently. She's taught self-publishing techniques along with April L. Hamilton at Publetariat.com with their Vault University series.
Zoe independently produces a series of quirky paranormal romance books, called The Preternaturals Series. The first book, Blood Lust, is a compilation of her three previously-released novellas: Kept, Claimed, and Mated. Blood Lust is available in ebook and print. The second installment in the series, Save My Soul, is now available.

The Life Of An Indie Author
This book is a crash course on self-publishing. It begins with discussing the meaning of self-publishing and determining if it is going to be right for you. Ms. Winters lists the following "success predictors" in indie authors;

• You need to be a good writer.
• You need to have the ability to separate yourself from your work.
• You have to be a self-starter.
• You have to be organized.
• You have to be in it for the long haul.
• You need the ability to blaze your own trail and forget the naysayers.
• You need to be a good money manager.
• You need the ability to determine the difference between quality and crap.
• You need to have passion.
• You need to be a self-promoter.
• You need to know what you hope to gain from all of this.

If you are still interested in self-publishing after reading this chapter, the rest of the book explains the steps that you must take to get your book into the marketplace. She explains her method of writing and editing. The information that she provides about finding critique partners, beta readers and editors is very good.
She provides valuable information about choosing the correct format for your book. Ms. Winters tells of her personal experiences with producing books in print, ebook and audio formats. The author states that "digital is where the money is for indies." She explains the process of publishing ebooks at Smashwords, Barnes & Noble and the Amazon Kindle Store.
Ms. Winters offers detailed information about creating the cover art for your book. She gives advice for working with artists and also explains how you can do-it-yourself (if you have to).
Ms. Winters provides step-by-step details on formatting your book and publishing it. She offers many tips that will help the newbie self-publisher succeed. She is not shy about warning authors to avoid expensive and non-essential services.
The final part of the book deals with marketing. The author provides details on platform building and Internet marketing. She discusses blogging, social media sites and forums. She advises authors on how to approach book reviewers and how to interact with readers. She also offers good advice on contests, giveaways and book trailers.

My Thoughts
I saw this book mentioned in several book reviews on Amazon. The reviewers all noted that this was "one of the best" books on self-publishing.  I purchased the book and was not disappointed. This book is a "must read" for indie authors.
This author is the real deal. She writes about experiences and processes that she has actually done...and her unique personality comes shining through. Great reading!

Please share your thoughts in the Comments Section below.

Indie Book Reviewer Yellow Pages

This is an exciting time for authors who are looking for publishing options. Self-publishing has become very popular for authors who want to get their books into the hands of readers quickly and economically. Promotion and marketing of self-published books are critical. The author of a self-published book must find book reviewers to read and post reviews of his book. The Indie Book Reviewer Yellow Pages: A Reference Guide for Self-Published Authors and Small Publishers, by Christine Pinheiro, is a reference for independent publishers and self-published authors who need free publicity and promotion for their books.

The author sent out questionnaires asking the book reviewers to give detailed descriptions of their blogs. There are approximately 100 book blogs featured in this book. This is the second edition of the book and it was updated in April, 2011.

The following information is given about the book blogs featured in this book;

• Formats accepted (Physical copies or ebooks)
• Genres that are accepted (fiction, non-fiction, children's, erotica, young adult, etc.)
• Blog URL
• Email contact information
• Number of followers
• Approximate turn-around time for reviews
• Frequency of posts
• How long the site has been active
• Overall blog rating
• Comments from the reviewer

The author frequently updates her list of book reviewers on Step-By-Step Self-Publishing. The reviewers are listed on the web site but the detailed information about each site is available only in the book.

This book inspires me because...it provides detailed information about many of my fellow book bloggers. I am not the author of a self-published book, but I have spent many hours visiting each of these review sites. I have learned some great ways to improve my own blog by checking out the book blogs listed in this book.
I purchased the Kindle edition of this book for $2.99. If you are an author looking for book reviewers, I recommend taking a look at the web site first. The book is a fantastic resource if you would like detailed information about the book review blogs.

Never Give Up

Have you ever faced rejection? Do you feel like giving up? Arthur A. Perkins has written Stop Writing, Fool to vent his frustrations about his writing career. This is a short story about Mr. Perkin's (known as AA) painful addiction to writing.
AA has had the writing virus for over 30 years. He got his first rejection letter at the age 22. Twenty years went by without further literary temptation.
Then, a co-worker encouraged Mr. Perkins to enter a short story competition that was sponsored by a local television station. He sent off a 5000 word story but he never got a reply from the competition, nor was his manuscript returned. This experience led to many literary ups and downs during the next ten years. AA acquired a literary agent and even tried his hand at writing plays, but it seemed like he was destined to failure.
This story is almost funny...if it were not so sad. At first it appears that this man is completely defeated...prepared to finally give up this addition to writing that has caused him so much pain.
But wait. AA has not given up...he is not defeated after all. On the last page of this memoir, he states "if you wish to read a low-cost novel by the same writer, the following two full-length novels can be found among the thousands of ebooks in the Kindle store."
AA no longer has to deal with those dreaded rejection letters from publishers, he has SELF-PUBLISHED his novels and he is on a roll! He will never give up!

This is a short read that many people will identify with. The book is currently being offered as a FREE Kindle ebook.  Read it today....and check-out AA's other books on Amazon.

Please share your thought in the Comments section below.

How To Publish Your Article On The Kindle

The Amazon Kindle has made it so much easier for an author to self-publish their book. How to Publish and Sell Your Article on the Kindle: 12 Tips for Short Documents, by Kate Harper, provides helpful information about how to publish an article on the Kindle. Many of these tips are also applicable for publishing on the Barnes and Noble Nook and for Amazon "Singles" (short books ranging from 30-90 pages long).

This is a 43-page article for beginners on how to publish and sell short documents for the Amazon Kindle, such as magazine articles or instructional materials. An article is considered a written piece between 3,000 and 30,000 words. Ms. Harper has learned that a writer does not have to publish an entire book in order to receive royalties from their work. She believes articles are the new secret "sweet spot" of the e-Reader publishing market.

The author shares information that she has learned from first-hand experience. She has published the following articles for the Kindle; 20 Steps to Art Licensing: How to Sell Your Designs to Card and Gift Companies, Unusual Ways to Market Your Greeting Cards and 22 Places to Get Your Designs Featured, 7 Mistakes Greeting Card Writers Make and Kid Quotes: Advice for the Office

The author offers readers the following 12 tips for publishing short documents on the Kindle;
1. Selling articles vs. Books
2. Pricing
3. Length
4. Formatting
5. Front Matter
6. Covers
7. Samples
8. Tutorials
9. Links
10. Conversion
11. Previewing
12. Images
Resources

My Thoughts
This article offers a wealth of information. I was especially interested in the formatting. A simple article can be easily formatted on your word processor. The author also explains how to add pictures and links to your article. I plan to follow the guidelines in this article and publish my own article within the next few weeks.
I like this article because it is written specifically for short documents. Ms. Harper provides links in this article and the Resources section at the end is easily worth the price.
Speaking of price, the price of Publish and Sell Your Article on the Kindle: 12 Tips for Short Documents is $0.99!  If you are an article writer and have never published on the Kindle, this article is a MUST READ.

Please let me know what you think in the comments below.