News

WHAT’S IN THIS ISSUE:

February MIPA Meeting: Tai Goodwin, Social Media
Letter From the President
The Importance of MIPA Membership
Member News
Self-Publishing: Everything you always wanted to know (or almost)
Editing: Make Ice Cream
Is Design Still Relevant?
Traditional Marketing: The Four P’s
Internet Marketing: Do You Use Technology or Does Technology Use You?
Write for Us!


FEBRUARY MEETING: TAI GOODWIN ON SOCIAL MEDIA

Six Simple Steps to Getting Results with Social Media

On February 8, 2012, Tai Goodwin will share real-world results of social media marketing, including how it led to being on the cover of a magazine. She'll also include misconceptions about social media, four ways to choose the best platform, what you need to get started, and how you can keep your time on social media practical and profitable.

She says: “I don’t just talk strategy—I know the tools. Theory is great, But I help my clients get more comfortable with knowing the right tools and how to use them. I’m a former teacher and trainer. My undergraduate and graduate degrees are both in education. I have over 17 years of experience in learning and development, including everything from technical writing to designing live training and building e-learning courses. I understand how to help you understand.”

She has written for Forbes and Drexel University and is on the cover of the January/February 2012 issue of Career magazine.

Her website is: http://www.taigoodwin.com

When: 6:30 pm, Wednesday, February 8, 2012 (NOTE TIME CHANGE)

Where: Joule: 1200 Washington Avenue South, Minneapolis. A map can be found at http://cojoule.com/location/directions.php.


LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT
By Seal Dwyer, North Star Press

It has been a strange winter so far. Not much winter, plenty of strange. There are, as always, changes afoot in the publishing world, although if I read yet another article saying that the industry is dead, I shall scream. Publishing is not dead, but it is changing. However, this change is nothing new. Publishing has been changing for as long as people have been writing and selling their writings. We can look back on the changes and say things like “Well, of course, moveable type was a huge leap forward.” But all the folks in the manuscript illuminating and handwriting business had to change how they worked and find new ways to market their skills. The same holds true now. We may have new technology and new ways of branding “content,” and pundits may be caroling that the industry is dead, but it's not. It's just going to a new form of moveable type.

Transitions are always hard. Some things work and bear repeating, and some things are false starts and should be left behind. One of the best things about MIPA is the incredible breadth of knowledge and ability amongst the membership. There are folks in our group who are surfing the cutting edge of new technology, and there are folks who are taking a more cautious route. There are new ideas being tried and old practices being modernized. Your board at MIPA is trying to stay abreast of the changes, even as we see it through practiced eyes. Our upcoming programs will be discussing some of the changes that are happening and posing questions as to the future of our participation in these changes. This month's meeting deals with social media, a topic that, while ubiquitous, is continually reinventing itself and adding new possibilities for publishers and writers to reach readers. In March, Small Press Month, we'll be discussing Amazon.com, which promises to be a lively discussion.




THE IMPORTANCE OF MIPA MEMBERSHIP
by Brandon Paumen, North Star Press

It’s February and MIPA membership is swelling as a result of many new publishers and authors (and many long-time members as well) submitting their books to the Midwest Book Awards. But being a member of MIPA offers more than a discount to enter the Midwest Book Awards. The opportunities for professional development, social networking and marketing provide benefits year-round.

We’re putting together a great new package of membership benefits intended to make MIPA even more valuable to its members, including discounted shipping, printing and services. Stay tuned for further developments.

Starting next month, I will be highlighting new members with a series of questions intended to let us know what MIPA membership means to them.




MEMBER NEWS

MIPA welcomes news of unusual sales, licensing deals, significant media coverage, and other achievements. The focus of this section is as much about how you accomplish something as what you accomplish, so details and specific how-to’s are important. Please contact us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Deadline is the 20th of the month for the following month’s newsletter. Please limit your submission to no more than 500 words.




PANEL DISCUSSION ON PUBLISHING OPTIONS
by Sybil Smith, Smith House Press

You’ve written a manuscript, have made the rounds submitting proposals to publishers and agents but nothing seems to work. What should you do next? Should you self-publish or use one of those seemingly inexpensive online publishers who will “take care of everything”?

Come hear the pros and cons of each method and why self-publishing may allow the author greater potential to make more money.

Panel participants are successful self-published authors who have used both traditional and cutting-edge strategies to promote and sell books to a worldwide audience:

Sherry Roberts, author of Book of Mercy and Maud’s House, Osmyrrah Publishing;
Dennis Weidermann, author of Cut From Plain Cloth and This Water Goes North, Manitenahk Books;
Sheyna Galyan, owner of Yotzeret Publishing.
Moderated by Sybil Smith, past president of MIPA and owner of Smith House Press Publishing Consultants, the Ebook Consultants, and FINS Publications.

Date: Saturday, April 14, 10:00 am.
Location: Washington County Library, Wildwood Branch, 763 Stillwater Rd, Mahtomedi, MN
Sponsored by Midwest Independent Publisher’s Association (MIPA), Washington County Library and Minnesota's Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund.




MAKE ICE CREAM
by Pat Morris, Editor, Book Architects

One of my favorite authors is a woman whose award-winning books I’ve not yet read. I heard Newbery Award-winning children's author Katherine Paterson (http://www.terabithia.com/about.html) interviewed on Minnesota Public Radio a few years ago. Asked about her writing process, she said she considered rewriting “the opportunity to turned spilt milk into ice cream.”

I looked at the radio and cheered because that’s not the attitude toward rewriting I usually encounter. My editing clients often are not that enthusiastic when a rewrite is suggested, even if it’s just a chapter, or even a few paragraphs.

The excuses are 1) deadline (real or self-imposed); 2) the next book is “calling;” they’re eager to move on, and 3) “I don't want to—I'm tired of it.”

Really? If the author is “tired of it,” more often than not, the readers will find at least parts of the resulting book tiresome.

I’ve seen it many times with my favorite authors: a first book is dynamite. The author gets a subsequent three-book/three-year contract from a major publisher. Even though the first book may have taken years to complete, the second book has to be done within a year (while also promoting the first book). Very rarely is the second, or even the third, book as good as the first.
I suspect they didn’t take the time to do the necessary rewriting.

In a 1958 Paris Review interview, Ernest Hemingway was asked, “How much rewriting do you do?” He replied, “It depends. I rewrote the ending to Farewell to Arms, the last page of it, thirty-nine times before I was satisfied.” The interviewer then asked: “Was there some technical problem there? What was it that had stumped you?” Hemingway: “Getting the words right.”

Shouldn’t that be the goal for all writers? The entire interview with Hemingway, including more comments on rewriting, can be found at http://www.theparisreview.org/interviews/4825/the-art-of-fiction-no-21-ernest-hemingway.




IS DESIGN STILL RELEVANT?
By Dorie McClelland, Spring Book Design

“Design is a funny word. Some people think design means how it looks. But of course, if you dig deeper, it’s really how it works.” —Steve Jobs

Steve Jobs was talking about all things Mac, but it’s true of books too; looks and use—form and function.

The skills of a good designer can make print, ebooks, fixed-layout, and animated books all look better. Think motion pictures versus YouTube videos.

Even though they may not recognize it as such, good design gives readers a better experience, one that will make them choose your book over others. It will encourage them to recommend your book to others, and will make them look forward to your next one.

In this fast-moving digital age, “making books” is available to all. Design was in danger of falling by the wayside, but that is changing. My clients want their ebooks to be as pleasant a reading experience as possible, even with the current limitations (we have to realize this technology is in its infancy, but those of us in publishing need to look ahead to adolescence and beyond). The marketplace is forcing standards to support design functions. It will be up to all of us to continue to demand excellent design—for our readers.

So what is design? In the next few newsletters, I’ll give some pointers and specifics to consider. You’ll probably be surprised that you already see them in what you choose to read—because they work.




THE FOUR P’S OF TRADITIONAL MARKETING
By Dorothy Molstad, Molstad Marketing (retired)

In this day and age of high-tech options, it is important to not forget the tried-and-true traditional marketing activities. There are many areas to cover but let's start with the four P’s of marketing: product, place, price, and promotion.

Your product is, of course, your book, and at all stages of development you must be aware of your marketing needs and opportunities. For example, some fiction writers place their book in settings familiar to readers, and make use of that location in planning book appearances and book tours.

The place refers to distribution. In what locations are you going to place your book for readers to find: bookstores, others stores, online on Amazon and BN, on your website? There are companies that will handle distribution for you, or you might decide to do it yourself. Be sure you research all of your options to optimize your sales.

As far as price, be sure you know the market—print and electronic—to be sure you are not under- or over-pricing your book. Pricing is also dependent on your production costs. There are many formulas available online to help you determine price for your product.

The fourth P is promotion. This is all about creating awareness in your target market. You can never start too soon on your promotion efforts. In future columns, watch for details on book signings, personal appearances, book tours, book blurbs, book reviews, and more.




DO YOU USE TECHNOLOGY OR DOES TECHNOLOGY USE YOU?
By Sheyna Galyan, Yotzeret Publishing
Originally posted on Yotzeret Publishing blog; used with permission

“I’ll never join Facebook; it’s a colossal waste of energy.”
“Twitter is nothing but a big time-suck.”
“Social media sounds like a great excuse not to work.”

Heard these before? Maybe you’ve even said them? It’s hard to persuade someone otherwise because all three of these contain a kernel of truth. I disagree with the above statements, but with a BIG caveat: you have to approach social media as a tool, not a toy.

3,917 unread email

Can you go for more than an hour without checking your email? (I have a hard time with this one.) We live in an age of such instantaneous communication that sometimes email is too slow. And texting isn’t much better. Maybe we should invest in telepathy. We expect instant responses and feedback, and that expectation feeds the pressure to provide instant responses and feedback.

Our very lives, it seems, rely on how quickly we can close the deal, make the sale, finish the project, submit the files. But you can make email work for you instead of the other way around. Some people advocate not checking email until noon, thus giving you the morning to work on other tasks before the flurry of email exchanges begins.

You’ve been invited to join Mafia Wars

Yes, Facebook has games, apps, quizzes, and all manner of ways to distract you from whatever else you’re supposed to be doing. Be strong. You can block the apps, ignore all game requests, and set your privacy settings to not show you a zillion cute kitten videos on YouTube “liked” by your friends.

Facebook can be an incredibly powerful tool for networking and marketing and creating buzz about your book, long before it’s published. You can create a Facebook page (different from a profile—your profile is you and all about you and can be private; your page can be you as an author or you as your book and is public) to keep fans updated about the production of your book (if your publisher keeps you in the loop—and if they don’t, ask them!), where you’re giving readings or signings, answering reader questions, sharing reviews, and displaying your latest blog post. (We’ll talk about blogging, and why every author needs some form of blog, another time.)

LOL RT @TwuttyCat I just changed the #litterbox too!

Did you know that with a few minutes investment, you could broadcast a link to your latest blog post to thousands of people who might not otherwise find you? Yes, there is also a lot of . . . we’ll call it “noise.” This is where those skimming skills come in handy. And being able to parse what you really want to say down to 140 characters or less. Your editor might even find that last one a step in the right direction.

You don’t need to tweet about your latest Target run, unless you found your book for sale on the store shelves or, failing to find it, you’re organizing a flash mob to convince Target management to carry your book. You can build professional relationships, get feedback on book ideas, catch up on the news, exchange meaningful opinions, and do market research. You can build your online presence, your authority and expertise, and your reputation.

Don’t think no one is watching; if that was true, Gilbert Gottfried would still be the voice of the Aflac duck.

The old adage “take what you like and leave the rest” is entirely appropriate to technology. I find that, as an introvert and a writer, social media is a great way to get “out there” without the risk of humiliating myself in public. Oh, I can still do that, even online, but I’m less likely to trip over the microphone cord or forget my speech.

Try it. You can always delete or abandon the account, or save it for posting cute kitten videos and litterbox changes.




WRITE FOR US!

Share your wealth of experience! If you have a how-to or a how-I story to tell that would help other members, please contact us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

We’re looking for informative (not promotional) articles on topics related to publishing (editing, design, marketing, printing, production, etc.). Articles should be about 300–500 words and proofread for spelling, grammar, and punctuation. The pieces that work best for us are the ones with lots of usable information supported by specifics. Please also include your full name and, if possible, a link to your website. Deadline is the 20th of the month for the following month’s newsletter.