Ghostwriter "Highly Recommends" How-To Book on Getting Reviews

Title: How to Get Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically
Subtitle: Reviews as part of a viable and ongoing campaign for self-published and traditionally published books
Series: The Multi Award-Winning Series of books for writers

Author: Carolyn Howard-Johnson
Genre: Nonfiction: How-to/Writing/Marketing 
ISBN: 13: 978-1536948370
Available as Paperback and E-Book at http://bit.ly/GreatBkReviews

Reviewed by Karen Cioffi, originally for her WritersontheMove blog and Goodreads

How to Get Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically is another powerhouse tool from Carolyn Howard-Johnson for authors to be used as part of their book marketing strategy. 

From Section I on through the Appendices and with her tons of experience, Carolyn has created an invaluable book to help authors not only get reviews but also make the most of them. As a bonus, it includes lots of information on how to write reviews for other authors (she tells you the marketing benefits in doing this).

In addition to getting and writing reviews, there’s information on how to ethically use an excerpt of a review, dealing with criticism, how to boost your Amazon ranking (hint: reviews are a part of it), what to do when your book sales get musty, and so much more.

Here’s one eye-opening tidbit in Chapter Two on why reviews are so important:

“Reviews grow footprints on Google, Bing, and Goodsearch. You can use free services like Addme.com to get your Web site listed on these and other search engines.”

What I especially liked about this Frugal book is Carolyn has included her own helpful quotes at the beginning of each section and chapter. The one in Section 1 is my favorite:

“Experience is a very good teacher, but contrary to belief, perhaps not the best. Learning what we need before we fail has obvious benefits.” 

Another tidbit from the book in Section III that I love is:

“I wish all authors knew--deep down in their bones--that marketing tools are the magic that makes bestsellers.”

As an author, ghostwriter, and online marketing instructor, I have and truly appreciate all of Carolyn Howard-Johnson’s ‘Frugal’ books. I found How to Get Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically jammed-packed with usable information that I’ll taking advantage of. I highly recommend it.

MORE ABOUT THE REVIEWER

Karen Cioffi is an award-winning children’s author, ghostwriter, and online marketing instructor. For tips on writing for children or help with your story, visit http://karencioffiwritingforchildren.com Check out the DIY Page also.

MORE ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Carolyn Howard-Johnson brings her experience as a publicist, journalist, marketer, and retailer to the advice she gives in her HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers and the many classes she taught for nearly a decade as instructor for UCLA Extension’s world-renown Writers’ Program. The books in her HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers have won multiple awards. That series includes both the first and second editions of The Frugal Book Promoter and The Frugal Editor won awards from USA Book News, Readers’ Views Literary Award, the marketing award from Next Generation Indie Books and others including the coveted Irwin award. How To Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically is the newest book in her HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers.

Howard-Johnson is the recipient of the California Legislature’s Woman of the Year in Arts and Entertainment Award, and her community’s Character and Ethics award for her work promoting tolerance with her writing. She was also named to Pasadena Weekly’s list of “Fourteen San Gabriel Valley women who make life happen” and was given her community’s Diamond Award for Achievement in the Arts.  Her Web site is http://HowToDoItFrugally.com and she tweets @FrugalBookPromo. 

MORE ABOUT THIS BLOG

 The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.

Jan Peregrine Reviews How to Get Great Reviews Frugally and Ethically

How To Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically

Subtitle: The ins and outs of using free reviews to build and sustain a writing career

By Carolyn Howard-Johnson

Nonfiction: Writers/HowTo/Marketing

ISBN: 978-1536948370

Available on Amazon as E-book and Paperback 

Reviewed by Jan Peregrine originally for Facebook

The title and subtitle of this book live up beautifully to their claims! Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi-award-winning How to Do It Frugally Series of books for writers, emphatically reminds me of yesteryear book titles with that nonfrugal use of words in her title/subtitle! The generous text carries on this theme with six sections, appendix, and close to 300 pages. This ARC e-book, free until it's print-published, is my introduction to the author and it won't be the last book of hers that I read. We're FB friends now and she published my White Trash book review on her blog. Not only a cool lady, but a very helpful one!

Howard-Johnson's latest e-book is the kind of self-help book that serious writers need. I sure do. While I have the book-writing part down, nary a writer's block to dog me, I unfortunately am messing up big time on the promotional part. Maybe I should blame the former dysfunctional review site I wrote for. Not making much money for my writing has become second nature to me...or something like that.

First she shows us the ropes to build the backdrop of our artistic performances to the reading/listening public That means getting to know who's out there who may help us to promote our books. There are lists we can make of people, reviewers, and publishers who are potential interested parties, especially if we hook them with a blurb about our book. I'd never thought of that. Also she encourages writers to review books where other similar authors will likely read them. That's a great suggestion and Howard-Johnson knows of review opportunities I've never heard of.

She really has a lot of useful tips and links, but I have one for her. Recently I read a young adult novel by Sonya Sones and since she included her email address on the back flap, I emailed her about my concerns regarding her story. I was thrilled to hear back from her right away! She had the erroneous impression that I hated it and would give it a bad review. While I did email back and clarified my impressions, I'll be more careful the next time I email an author. Brief reviews via email don't seem like a good idea.

So now I feel more confident that I'll be better able to promote my own books with effort put into it, even if they're self-published, because Howard-Johnson knows of reviewers who welcome self-published books and are not book bigots, heh.

ABOUT THE REVIEWER

Jan Peregrine writes reviews for Amazon, Goodreads and her Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/jansbooks/?ref=aymt_homepage_panel. She plans to be a fequent contributor to The New Book Review.

MORE ABOUT THIS BLOG

 The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.

Review and Mini Essay from Midwest Book Review

I am doing something a little different for this review. I am reprinting with permission a review of the newest in my multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers, How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically. I was notified via Midwest Book Review's newsletter and what a surprise that was! But it also a fantastic example of what those personal contacts (like Letters-to-the-Editor and thank yous) I recommend to clients and readers of my books can do! I hope it will encourage you to do more of this kind of thing for and with your fellow authors and your readers! 

"Dear Publisher Folk, Friends & Family:

'We all know that book reviews can impact and influence librarians and the general reading public. What is perhaps underestimated is the impact and influence book reviews can have on the author. Last month I was vividly reminded of this fact while reading my review copy of "How To Get Great Book Reviews Frugally And Ethically" by Carolyn Howard-Johnson.

'Here's what I came across in the introduction on page VIII:

"We have all had disasters if we've been around very long. My book of poetry, "Imperfect Echoes" (bit.ly/ImperfectEchoes) was released just after my husband broke his back trouncing around on our roof to save $140 on solar repairs. I became a full time caretaker and part time writer and had not time to market my book. I did occasionally send out a query far a review and one was so special that it made up for the sad reality that few will read the book because few will have heard about it. So, thank you to Jim Cox, Editor-in-Chief of Midwest Book review for that memorable gift."

"I had no idea at the time who Carolyn was or anything about her circumstances. It was just another self-published book of considerable merit by an unknown author and I was trying to establish the Midwest Book Review as a champion of just such folk.

"Since then Carolyn has gone on to a career of writing 'how to' books for authors and publishers and we became 'cyber-space pen pals'. When I thanked her for her very kind words in her introduction, she noted that we first met in person at a BEA convention in Chicago back in 2001. But as I was meeting hundreds (no exaggeration) of folks at that event I didn't remember her specifically.

"But I did recall meeting Carolyn at John Poynter's ebook publishers convention in Santa Barbara, California in 2012 when I was awarded that Life Time Achievement in Publishing award.

"I think she was also in the audience for my 'workshop' at that event -- I recall that one was 'standing room only' it was so crowded in that huge room. A few folks couldn't physically get in because there was no more room -- there was even a line of people standing along the back and side walls of the room. 

"Incidentally, that John Poynter convention was also the first time I met in person my managing editor Diane Donovan who for many years prior to our meeting in the flesh had (and continues to be) the editor for three of my nine monthly book review publication: The Bookwatch; California Bookwatch; Children's Bookwatch. Up until then she was a just a voice on the phone and an email correspondent only.

"I'm now in my 41st year as the editor-in-chief of the Midwest Book Review. That means at the age of 74 I have now spent more than half my life in this position!

"Every now and then I get an email or a letter expressing heartfelt appreciation for myself and the Midwest Book Review from authors and publishers for what we try to accomplish in their behalf. It's those messages of support and thanks that give me a reason to keep doing this job for as long as my health, my wife, and my daughter will allow.

"Here is the review of Carolyn's most recent publication and the one that started me down memory lane:"

How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically

Series:3rd in the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers, 

Author: Carolyn Howard-Johnson
HowToDoItFrugally Publishing

Genre: Nonfiction: Writing/Book Marketing
www.howtodoitfrugally.com
http://facebook.com/carolynhowardjohnson
9781536948370, $17.95, PB, 340pp, www.amazon.com

In the pages of "How To Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically", Carolyn Howard-Johnson draws upon her many years of professional experience and expertise spent helping writers to avoid pitfalls, misconceptions, and out-and-out scams perpetrated on unsuspecting authors -- and helping them reach their dreams of obtaining great reviews, going on great book tours, and experiencing great launches.

Simply stated "How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically" comprises the complete, comprehensive, and core manual for obtaining reviews and utilizing them in a practical, effective, and successful marketing campaign that includes all those things and for building the readership necessary for a financially prosperous and emotionally satisfying writing career.

Covering every aspect of the book review process from solicitation to exploitation, "How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically" is thoroughly 'user friendly' in tone, content, commentary, organization and presentation.

Basically, "How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically" is classified as a "must" for the instructional reference shelf of any and all authors and publishers be they novice beginners or seasoned professionals. While an essential and unreservedly recommended addition to community, college, and university library Writing/Publishing collections, it should be noted for personal reading lists that "How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically" is also available in a Kindle format ($9.95).

ABOUT THIS BLOG

 The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.

Ways for Authors to Up Review Efforts in 2017

Title: How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically
Subtitle: The ins and outs of using free reviews to build and sustain a writing career
Series: The multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers

By Carolyn Howard-Johnson

Authors' Web site: http://howtodoitfrugally.com
Genre: Nonfiction/Writing/Careers
ISBN: 978-1-5369-4837-0
Publisher: HowToDoItFrugally Press
Cover by Chaz DeSimone

A review of How to get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically by Carolyn Howard-Johnson

Reviewed by Magdalena Ball, originally for The Compulsive Reader

How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically

Reading Carolyn Howard-Johnson’s books is always a pleasurable experience. It’s not just because of her warm, intimate and accessible prose. Howard-Johnson is something of an industry expert, and she manages to make the most complex processes seem simple fun. Her How to do it Frugally series provides pretty much everything you need to know about all aspects of marketing your books without spending a fortune. The latest in the series, How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically, is no exception. This is a very thorough compendium that goes from importance of obtaining reviews through to building lists, writing query letters, using Amazon, how to deal with (and still use) negative reviews, and a whole lot more. How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically is the most comprehensive book on getting book reviews I’ve ever come across. In her usual warm and easy-to-follow manner, Howard-Johnson outlines everything you need to know to maximise your book’s chances.

Some of the information is a tidy and helpful distillation of commonsense, such as “review trippers,” or how to deal with things like passed deadlines, book bigotry (or publisher bias), what an ARC is, and how to get e-book reviews, even from reviewers who only take hard copies. Other chapters are really innovative, such as creating an early series of contact lists and working them, even (ideally) before the book is written, and “magic bullets” (or bullet points) to ensuring that you get more positive responses to your review queries than negative ones. The latter point is crucial. I often think about what makes me accept a book for review – even when I have an already massive stack, and what makes me reject it immediately, and Howard-Johnson’s “legitimate hacks” are spot on. They really get to the crux of what a reviewer is looking for, not only in the approach or query, but in the way the book is packaged and presented. Howard-Johnson’s chapters on making use of Amazon are also particularly valuable, as this information is both key to sales, and not readily known or easy to find out.

The overall focus of the book is around getting reviews, but How to get Great Reviews Ethically and Frugally does more than simply focus on the review. It really parcels up the entire promotional process around a book and presents it in a handy format for new, and more experienced authors. There are chapters around book tours, quality control, what to do with the reviews you get, and even how you send your book, and I completely concur that parceling a book up nicely, and not stamping it all over with “Review copy” (including on the inner page where a reviewer might be trying to read, which has happened to me), makes a difference in terms of the reviewer’s personal experience with the book and how much value they assign to it.

Frugality is Howard-Johnson’s stock-in-trade, and since none of her suggestions involve a large outlay, I’d say that picking up a copy of this book is about the most frugal and valuable thing a new author can do in order to generate inexpensive and highly credible publicity. The book is easy to read, and rich with Howard-Johnson’s own considerable experience. Above all, I think the point that she makes about treating the acquiring of reviews, not as an ancillary activity, but an integral part of the promotional campaign and one that cannot be skimped on, is key. If you have a new book out, or are contemplating having a book out, you need this guide. How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically is an excellent resource that both beginning and seasoned authors can return to again and again.

MORE ABOUT THE REVIEWER
Magdalena Ball runs The Compulsive Reader Web site and edits its newsletter (http://compulsivereader.com). She is an author in her own right including a book on becoming a professional reviewer titled The Art of Assessment (http://bit.ly/ArtAssessment), and the author of several books of poetry and novels.

MORE ABOUT THIS BLOG
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.

A New Year Gift for Authors, Reviewers--and Readers--from The New Book Review!

You're right! This isn't exactly a review. It's better. I'm sharing an except from my new How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically with all my reviewer visitors and subscribers and author visitor subscribers. Perhaps it will even encourage the many readers who drop by for great reading ideas to write reviews of book you read. The authors who make books possible will love you for it! 

Off-The-Wall –Alternatives for Authors and Reviewers

Making Your Reviews Into Workhorses

By Carolyn Howard-Johnson

Excerpted (and adapted) from Carolyn’s new How To Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically: The ins and outs of using free reviews to build and sustain a writing career.

Authors rarely get the most from        their reviews. Surprised? I think it’s because the idea of extending a review’s value doesn’t occur to them. Reviewers have the same problem because these days so many reviews these are written by superfan readers. They aren’t professionals, so they have no idea how to distribute content beyond posting their review on Amazon.

Reviewers can get more mileage from reviews by getting them reprinted in more venues than just online bookstores. Authors can do it for them, too.  And, no, it isn’t stealing or plagiarism if you get permission from the reviewer first. In fact, it can benefit the reviewer.

When you distribute reviews beyond their original placement, it’s like getting a little marketing bonus for your book. Here’s how authors can do that:

§       If your reviewer doesn’t normally write reviews (these reviewers are often called reader reviewers), suggest she send her review or the link to her review to her friends as a recommendation.

§  

     If your reader reviewer lives in a town with a small daily or weekly newspaper, suggest she send her review to one of the reporters or editors. She may realize the thrill of being published the first time.

§  

      Ask professional reviewers—the ones who review for journals—to post her review on Amazon.com, BN.com, and other online booksellers that have reader-review features. I have never had a reviewer decline my suggestion. It is ethical for a reviewer to do it or to give you permission to reuse the review as long as she holds the copyright for the review. (Most reviewers do not sign copyright-limiting agreements with the medium who hires them.) Get more information on Amazon’s often misrepresented review policies in Chapter Eleven of my new How To Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically under “Managing Your Amazon Reviews.” 

§       After you have permission from the reviewer to reprint the review—whether she is a pro or amateur--post it on your blog, on your Web site, and in your newsletter.

§  

     Once you have permission to use reviews, send copies of the best ones to bookstore buyers and event directors as part of your campaign to do book signings, to speak, or do workshops in their stores. Go to (midwestbookreview.com/links/bookstor.htm) for a starter list of bookstores.

§       Use quotations from the reviews to give credibility to selected media releases and queries.

§       Send quotations (blurbs) from the reviews you get to librarians, especially the ones in your home town or cities you plan to visit during book tours. Include order information. Try Midwest for a list of libraries (http://midwestbookreview.com/links/library.htm).

§       Use snippets from positive reviews as blurbs in everything from your stationery to your blog.

§  

      If your reviewer doesn’t respond to your request to post the review on Amazon, excerpt blurbs from them and post them on your Amazon buy page using Amazon’s Author Connect or Author Central features. They will appear on your Amazon sales page. Yes, that’s ethical, too!

§  

      Include the crème de la crème of your reviews on the Praise Page of your media kit and inside the front cover of the next edition (perhaps a mass market edition like the pocket paperbacks sold in grocery stores?). See my multi award-winning The Frugal Book Promoter (bit.ly/FrugalBookPromo) for the complete—and I do mean complete—lowdown on media kits.

      Hint: Occasionally authors get reviews on Amazon that, shall we say…don’t thrill them. Reviews like that can be minimized by asking others for reviews. As new reviews are added, the old ones tend to get buried in the lineup of reviews. We can also (pleasantly!) refute a position a reviewer takes using the comment feature—or thank them for bringing something to our attention. We can also dispute their validity with Amazon, though that rarely works.

You can use some of these suggestions as part of your keeping-in-communication-with-reviewers effort after her review has been published.

There is more on how Amazon can help authors early in their review-getting process. in my multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books, How To Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically: The ins and outs of using free reviews to build and sustain a writing career. As long as it’s nearly impossible to do without Amazon and still have a successful book campaign, we might was well get them to return the loyalty we show them in as many ways as possible.

----

Carolyn Howard-Johnson brings her experience as a publicist, journalist, marketer, and retailer to the advice she gives in her HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers and the many classes she taught for nearly a decade as instructor for UCLA Extension’s world-renown Writers’ Program. The books in her HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers have won multiple awards. That series includes both the first and second editions of The Frugal Book Promoter and The Frugal Editor won awards from USA Book News, Readers’ Views Literary Award, the marketing award from Next Generation Indie Books and others including the coveted Irwin award. Her next book in the HowToDoItFrugally series for writers will be How To Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically.

The author loves to travel. She has visited eighty-nine countries and has studied writing at Cambridge University in the United Kingdom; Herzen University in St. Petersburg, Russia; and Charles University, Prague. She admits to carrying a pen and journal wherever she goes. Her Web site is www.howtodoitfrugally.com. 

MORE ON THE NEW BOOK REVIEW

The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.

E-book Help for Authors in Time for Holidays

Title: The Frugal Book Promoter
Subtitle: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher
Series: First in the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers
Cover by Chaz DeSimone
Awards: USA Book News winner, Irwin Award winner, honored by Dan Poynter's Global Ebook Awards
416 pages
Genre: Nonfiction/How-To/Writers/Careers
Available as e-book or paperback

Reviewed by Helen Dunn Frame

Carolyn Howard Johnson’s second edition of The Frugal Book Promoter, How to Do What your Publisher Won’t outlines what writers can do themselves. It offers good advice and is a most complete reference source for authors with little to extensive experience. Carolyn is great about networking and sharing. Back in the day, publishers helped to market books. In recent years, the landscape has changed dramatically and authors have to handle the brunt if not all the promotion even if published by a large traditional company. Not all writers can afford to hire help but they can afford this book. It’s worth adding to one’s library if only for the clarification about writing reviews on Amazon.

MORE ABOUT THE REVIEWER

Helen Dunn Frame
Retiring in Costa Rica or Doctors, Dogs and Pura Vida (Second Edition); Greek Ghosts, Love and Danger; Wetumpka Widow, Murder for Wealth; Secrets Behind the Big Pencil, Inspired by an Actual Scandal.
Website: http://bit.ly/1KxXt7T  Facebook: http://on.fb.me/1COtMJn 

Author's Page:http://www.amazon.com/Helen-Dunn-Frame/e/B0054LDOBW
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/grandi1369/  

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/helen-dunn-frame

MORE ABOUT THIS BLOG

The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.

Midwest Book Review Managing Editor Reviews The Frugal Editor

 In The Frugal Book Promoter, I advise that authors choose promotions and marketing tools that fit their title, their personalities, and their pocketbooks.  Recently I have also learned it's a good idea to be kind to oneself and adapt to the circumstances of one's life. The campaign I had planned for the release of the second edition of The Frugal Editor  in paperback is far more casual (and scattered!) than the one I had planned because my husband fell from our roof and broke his vertebrae (four of them!), So, as a full time caregiver,  I'm taking my own advice and doing a what we might call this a dribble campaign. Here is the latest review from Beth Cox the new managing editor of The Midwest Book Review.

The Frugal Editor
Carolyn Howard-Johnson

From the HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers
HowToDoItFrugally Publishing
www.howtodoitfrugally.com
ISBN: 9781505712117
 $17.95

Genre: Nonfiction/Writers/Marketing

288pp, 

Available as an e-book or in paperback from Amazon

Review by Beth Cox, Managing Editor of Midwest Book Review

Reprinted with Permission from her June newsletter, the Beth Cox Report

June's Book of the Month is about the writing and publishing trades.
Writing/Publishing books are regularly featured in the Jim Cox Report,
 so I rarely spotlight them here, but this one is exceptionally worthy:

Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible and film media used to convey information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, organization, and many other modifications performed with an intention of producing a correct, consistent, accurate and complete work. The editing process often begins with the author's idea for the work itself, continuing as a collaboration between the author and the editor as the work is created. As such, editing can involve creative skills, human relations and a precise set of methods. There are various editorial positions in publishing. Typically, one finds editorial assistants reporting to the senior-level editorial staff and directors who report to senior executive editors. Senior executive editors are responsible for developing a product for its final release. The smaller the publication, the more these roles overlap. In the book publishing industry, editors may organize anthologies and other compilations, produce definitive editions of a classic author's works (scholarly editor), and organize and manage contributions to a multi-author book (symposium editor or volume editor). Obtaining manuscripts or recruiting authors is the role of an Acquisitions Editor or a commissioning editor in a publishing house. Finding marketable ideas and presenting them to appropriate authors are the responsibilities of a sponsoring editor. Copy editors correct spelling, grammar and align writings to house style. Changes to the publishing industry since the 1980s have resulted in nearly all copy editing of book manuscripts being outsourced to freelance copy editors.

The Frugal Editor: Do-It-Yourself Editing Secrets for Authors is a complete course of instruction under one cover. From editing query letters to editing final manuscripts to the editorial chores of marketing, The Frugal Editor covers the complete range of editorial tasks and responsibilities -- including common mistakes and errors to avoid. Thoroughly 'user friendly' from beginning to end, The Frugal Editor is ideal for the novice author, and would prove to be of immense value as an instructional reference resource for experienced authors, publishers, publicists, and freelance copy editors.

Bethany Cox
Managing Editor
The Midwest Book Review
http://www.midwestbookreview.com

----- 
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.

An Author's Complete Guide for Using Book Fairs to Market Books

Title: Book Fairs for Authors
Subtitle: How to Leverage Book Fairs to Build Your Author Platform
Authors: Larry DeKay with Peggy DeKay
ISBN: 9780983414438
Genre: Nonfiction: Writing, Book Marketing, Reference
Publisher: Darby Press
Bonus Materials: Lists of book fairs, book festival, resources for authors, book expos and trade shows

 

 

Marketing whizzes Larry and Peggy DeKay have published Book Fairs for Authors: How to Leverage Book Fairs to Build Your Author Platform. Here’s what I love about it above and beyond what I wrote about book fairs in my The Frugal Book Promoter: The couple includes a lot of resources including lists of book fairs, book festivals, book expos, and trade shows and tells how book fairs can “impact speaking opportunities.” Peggy says, “Your book is not your baby… your book is your business.”

 

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Larry DeKay is a marketing strategist and event planner for The Business of Writing Today (Darby Press) and the Business of Writing Summit. He is also cohost of The Business of Writing Today podcast heard in over eighty countries. Peggy DeKay, award-winning author, speaker, and book coach, is his business partner.  

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The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage thse reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.

Start 2015 With Career-Building Book for Authors

The Frugal Book Promoter
Subtitle: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher
By Carolyn Howard-Johnson
Winner USA Book News Award
ISBN: 978143743291
Available on Amazon in paperback and e-book
Author’s Web site: http://HowToDoItFrugally.com

Reviewed by W. Terry Whalin originally for Amazon

An Excellent Book for Authors Got
Even Better With This Updated Version

When I want to increase my understanding of book promotion, I turn to sources with experience and wisdom. One of those sources is Carolyn Howard-Johnson and her excellent, THE FRUGAL BOOK PROMOTER. The information in this book is practical and tested and perfect for a first-time author or one with many published books. The experienced voice of the author echoes on each page of this book. It’s not just theory but these are ideas Howard-Johnson has put into practice with results.

As she writes toward the end of her book, “It’s never too late and it’s never too early to promote. Rearrange your thinking. Marketing isn’t about a single book. It’s about building a career. And new books can build on the momentum created by an earlier book, if you keep the faith. Review the marketing ideas in this book, rearrange your schedule and priorities a bit, and keep at it.” (Page 364)

This new edition has more than 100 additional pages from the first edition yet THE FRUGAL BOOK PROMOTER is practicing frugality—and maintains the same retail price as the first edition. I recommend every author get this book and take action on the multitude of ideas.

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W. Terry Whalin, a writer and acquisitions editor lives in Colorado. A former magazine editor and former literary agent, Terry is an acquisitions editor at Morgan James Publishing. He has written more than 60 nonfiction books including Jumpstart Your Publishing Dreams. To help writers, he has created 12-lesson online course called Write A Book Proposal. His website is located at: www.terrywhalin.com.  Learn more about him and what he does for authors at
Straight Talk from the Editor (FREE Ebook): http://straightalkeditor.com
Follow him onn Twitter: http://twitter.com/terrywhalin
His blog, The Writing Life (over 1,000 entries): http://www.thewritinglife.ws

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The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.

The Secrets to Great Reviews

I usually post only reviews on this blog (see the submission guidelines in the left column!). It is open for authors, publishers, reviews, and readers who want to spread the word about the books they read. Today, I'm republishing a note I wrote to the subscribers of my SharingwithWriters newsletter because it deals with reviews--and, I believe, can be helpful to all those who contribute and visit these pages. Here it is:

Dear Subscribers:

Perhaps the hardest job I have is to convince my clients that a critical review can actually be beneficial to the sales of their book. (The other is convincing them that marketing a book is not selling a book but an act of consideration—that is identifying their readers so they can be helped or entertained in the way they like best!)

Back to reviews. I was reading a review for The Small Big: Small Changes That Spark Big Influence by Steve J. Martin and Noah Goldstein with Robert Cialdini in Time magazine. And there! Right there! Was the clincher. It leads with, "At first glance, little differentiates Berkshire Hathaway stockholder reports from those of any other major corporation. But look closer. Even in years when Berkshire has been unimaginably successful, [the Berkshire Chairman draws attention] to a snag or strain in the company."

"What," you may ask, "does that have to do with my book, or reviews for my book?"

The review amplifies a bit: "Researchers who study persuasion know that messages can be amplified when people present a small weakness in them, which in turn garners a higher level of trust."

As those of you who have read my The Frugal Book Promoter know, I don't advocate slash and burn review tactics—for authors who review books or authors who take the lowest road and denigrate their competitors' books. But a review that is honest, one that tempers praise with a little helpful critique, can be of far more value than one that looks as if it were written by the author's mother.

Apparently this book also suggests that those with something to sell might "arrange for someone to toot your horn on your behalf." It gives an example of the old switch tactic that I've had car salespeople use on me when they turn me over to someone who is "more experienced," or "in a better position to cut me a deal."

Another lesson: Use potential. Facebook users introduced to "someone who could become the next big thing" were more convinced than they were from a mere list of his or her credentials, however stellar.

And while we're at it, one of the first "lessons" I learned about endorsements (they're sort of like mini reviews, right?) is that you can write them and present them to someone in a position to influence your particular readers in the query letter you write to them. You tell them that if they prefer they can chose one one of your prepackaged endorsements--edit it or not--or write one of their own. It's a way of keeping control over the aspects of your book you'd most like to have at the forefront of readers' awareness and—at the same time—being of service to the person you are querying. You will also up your success rate for getting an endorsement because many movers-and-shakers aren't necessarily writers and the idea of writing an endorsement from scratch scares the beejeebees out of them!

You can do the same thing with a review. Write one the way you would like to see it (using some of the techniques outlined in this note to you), and let someone else—someone with tons of credibility--sign off on it. If no one does, you can use the review in your media kit with a note that it is a "sample review." That's honest and sometimes needed when you're finding it hard to get that first review! By the way, that's another tip you'll find in The Frugal Book Promoter along with ways to avoid paying for a review and why you should avoid paying for one.

Happy writing, editing, and promoting,

Carolyn

PS I’d love to see those of you who live in the LA area at the coming Digital Conference (http://www.wcwriters.com/dasp/program.html) for sure, though hotel accommodations are available for out-of-towners. I’ll be speaking on “Using Createspace as a One-Stop Shop for Digital and Paper” and “Digital Marketing Made Simple.” Get more details by scrolling to the bottom of this newsletter for my coming presentations. 

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The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.

Writers Bureau Correspondence Course Recommended

Today's post is a casual review/recommendation of a course, rather than a book. It came to me from a trusted fellow writer from the UK, Mark Logie, and because so many of the subscribers to this blog are writers and publishers, I thought it would be a service to post his letter of recommendation.

Here is the metadata:

General info from:  The Writers Bureau (www.writersbureau.com ), Manchester, UK
Course info:  www.sell-book-course.com
Course type: home study
Price: £274  (about $470)
Here is his note to me, reprinted with Mark's permission:

Dear  Carolyn,
In The Frugal Book Promoter you stress the importance of  authors educating themselves in marketing books. I found the Writers  Bureau correspondence course “How to Market Your Book” very  useful.
When I took this course  (November 2013 – May 2014) there were a small  number of mistakes (such as a few out-of-date Web links, and one or two  features on Amazon it suggested using that had changed or been  discontinued), but it did motivate me to start a blog, which I had been  putting off
because I was finding it very difficult. There was excellent  support
from my tutor too.
With very best wishes,

Mark Logie

More about Mark:
Mark Logie is the award-winning author of On the Road to  Infinity and Deadfall, in which a young tearaway leads the battle to prevent the world's worst terrorist attack. It is written for young people twelve years and over. Find it on Amazon. Thanks to inspiration offered by good books and courses on marketing books, he now blogs at Goodreads.

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The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.

Authors, Reviewers, Readers! How To Submit Your Fave Review

I post and edit this The New Book Review blog  at no charge and I do it by myself. I don't even ask for donations. And I love it! Lucky you! 

I outline the submission guidelines in the left column of the blog, but I still get all kinds of unusual submissions that require me to send the author, reviewer, or reader back to the drawing board. The thing is, my guidelines are not an isolated requirement. They are standard throughout the publishing industry and authors who don’t know how to follow them are at a disadvantage with everything from entering a contest to getting a agent.

I, like everyone else, do ask that the submission guidelines be followed exactly. In other words, your favorite review--whether you're an author, a reader, or a reviewer--must be all submitted all in one place--by you--so it's pretty much copy and paste for me. (Though I always have some details to attend to). Dan Poynter actually uses the term “copy and paste ready” in his guidelines for submissions.

I cover tips for submissions to editors, etc. (among hundreds of other tips)  in The Frugal Book Promoter as a way to assure that more of your marketing efforts get used by editors.  I consider these guidelines a bit of a training ground for authors. Find The Frugal Book Promoter at http://budurl.com/FrugalBkPromo.  

So....your submission to this blog should come all in one e-mail window.

It should be formatted as outlined in the submission guidelines right here at http://thenewbookreview.blogspot.com  in the left column. 

And no attachments, please. Many universities, newspapers, etc will NEVER open attachments. In fact, their servers may not even let e-mail with attachments through but send them instead directly to cyberspace--bypassing even the spam folder. 

I hope to hear from you soon! Should you decide to take on this marketing opportunity, let's make it fun, easy, and a wonderful marketing (and learning) experience. (-:

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The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.