Question: Do you have a list of movie producers who I can pitch my novel to as a movie? The book was published by the small publisher PublishAmerica. -- Mark Mills, author of To Protect the Innocent
John's Answer: I have a list of producers and production companies that have bought movie rights in the past year, but I don't yet have addresses for most of them.
Besides, you don't pitch willy-nilly when you pitch movie rights. You target specific producers, directors, actors, screenwriters, or production companies depending on what they have done before and what they might be planning to do in the future. You would never want to mass pitch a movie.
I also offer a list of agents who sell movie rights. They pitch to specific producers and companies. That list is part of the Literary, Foreign, and Subsidiary Rights agents file I sell for $30.00 via email.
Thursday, June 30, 2005
Tuesday, June 28, 2005
Retail Book Categories
Would you like to know the subject categories that are possible for placing a book on the shelf of a retail bookstore? Then check out http://bisg.org/standards/bisac_subject.
They list all sorts of categories, including more than 130 subcategories for Business and Economics. While most bookstores won't use that many categories, the BISAC subject categories should help you narrow where your book fits in a bookstore.
To supplement this online research, of course, you also need to visit some real brick-and-motar bookstores. Check where they shelve books like yours. What is the signage above the shelf? What categories do the books on that shelf display on their back covers? Ask the bookseller as well for suggestions on where your book should be shelved.
When you have finished your research, then put the one or two categories where your book should be shelved on the top left corner of your book's back cover. That way you can ensure that your book will find its best fit in most bookstores.
They list all sorts of categories, including more than 130 subcategories for Business and Economics. While most bookstores won't use that many categories, the BISAC subject categories should help you narrow where your book fits in a bookstore.
To supplement this online research, of course, you also need to visit some real brick-and-motar bookstores. Check where they shelve books like yours. What is the signage above the shelf? What categories do the books on that shelf display on their back covers? Ask the bookseller as well for suggestions on where your book should be shelved.
When you have finished your research, then put the one or two categories where your book should be shelved on the top left corner of your book's back cover. That way you can ensure that your book will find its best fit in most bookstores.
Monday, June 27, 2005
Get More Links -- Links That Last
"Since about 1999, I've been buying text ads in newsletters in just about every niche vertical you can imagine. Not only have those ads generated much needed awareness and traffic, those that are archived online still provide excellent, mature link equity." -- Mike Grehan, author, Search Engine Marketing
John's Comments: Would you like to get more links to your web site so you could get more visitors? One thing you might try is to buy text ads in ezines or newsletters. Why? Well, first, if you target the right ezines, the ads should get people to visit your site and maybe buy your books.
But, second and more important, most newsletters and ezines archive their issues. Hence, any link in your ad will continue to exist for years afterwards. Not only, then, do you get an on-going link to your web site, but it will be a lasting link, something that counts for more than a simple transitory link in most search engine ranking programs.
John's Comments: Would you like to get more links to your web site so you could get more visitors? One thing you might try is to buy text ads in ezines or newsletters. Why? Well, first, if you target the right ezines, the ads should get people to visit your site and maybe buy your books.
But, second and more important, most newsletters and ezines archive their issues. Hence, any link in your ad will continue to exist for years afterwards. Not only, then, do you get an on-going link to your web site, but it will be a lasting link, something that counts for more than a simple transitory link in most search engine ranking programs.
Sunday, June 26, 2005
The 100-Fold Marketing Plan
Mike Levy, author of Live Alchemy in Action, sent me this idea. It's an interesting pitch. I don't know how it will actually work, but it's certainly an intriguing idea.
==========
How would you like to turn 51 cents into a buying power of almost $51.00. Just imagine what you could do if your spending power were multiplied 100 times.
Well, here’s how you can do it in one instance, and it proves the power of the book you are about to buy. Order three copies of The Joys of Live Alchemy ISBN 0966806964 from: http://www.amazon.com.
Go to the checkout cart. They will ask you if you would like to apply for a new Visa credit card. They will credit your account with $30 once you fill in the online form, that will take you about one minute to complete.
They have discounted the book to only $10.17 from $14.95. They will give you FREE shipping (valued at $5.97) with the three book order. The total value of the order is $50.82.
All it costs you is 51 cents and you will get three books. One for yourself, one for someone who is suffering (send it anonymously to a friend or foe) and one that will make great birthday gifts or house party gifts or gifts for any holiday.
It is the best book anyone can read for easing stress and enjoying life (in my opinion). You are witnessing Live Alchemy in action...making something with little value grow into something substantial...51 cents turns into the buying power of almost $51.00 and all you have to do is read this message and take the appropriate action.
If you cannot be bothered to increase your money 100 times and you cannot be bothered to receive the gift of a book that is loaded with the wisdom of the universe, then why are you squandering your time reading this message? Obviously, a part of you wants to take action, the part of you that stubbornly will not take the action is the cause of all the grief in your life. Who is the master of your domain?
Remember, what you can do once, you can do an infinite number of times every day of your life. For all the folks who cannot get a credit card I have discounted the book to only $9.95 for the next month, until the end of July at: Point of Life ... Enjoy!
John's Comments: The mathematics of this offer works well with any book priced around $15.00. Of course, a $14.00 book would make the percentage of savings go into infinity. It costs you nothing. You receive $1.40 or more. What a marvelous idea. The math doesn't work for a book over $15.00. Unless, of course, you increase the value of your money 80-fold instead of 100-fold. Perhaps your book buying audience would be interested in such an offer?
Also, the Amazon credit card offer seems good: Save $30 off your first purchase at Amazon.com, earn 3% rewards (at Amazon, 1% elsewhere), get a 0% APR for six months (variable after that, currently 14.9%), and pay no annual fee.
==========
How would you like to turn 51 cents into a buying power of almost $51.00. Just imagine what you could do if your spending power were multiplied 100 times.
Well, here’s how you can do it in one instance, and it proves the power of the book you are about to buy. Order three copies of The Joys of Live Alchemy ISBN 0966806964 from: http://www.amazon.com.
Go to the checkout cart. They will ask you if you would like to apply for a new Visa credit card. They will credit your account with $30 once you fill in the online form, that will take you about one minute to complete.
They have discounted the book to only $10.17 from $14.95. They will give you FREE shipping (valued at $5.97) with the three book order. The total value of the order is $50.82.
All it costs you is 51 cents and you will get three books. One for yourself, one for someone who is suffering (send it anonymously to a friend or foe) and one that will make great birthday gifts or house party gifts or gifts for any holiday.
It is the best book anyone can read for easing stress and enjoying life (in my opinion). You are witnessing Live Alchemy in action...making something with little value grow into something substantial...51 cents turns into the buying power of almost $51.00 and all you have to do is read this message and take the appropriate action.
If you cannot be bothered to increase your money 100 times and you cannot be bothered to receive the gift of a book that is loaded with the wisdom of the universe, then why are you squandering your time reading this message? Obviously, a part of you wants to take action, the part of you that stubbornly will not take the action is the cause of all the grief in your life. Who is the master of your domain?
Remember, what you can do once, you can do an infinite number of times every day of your life. For all the folks who cannot get a credit card I have discounted the book to only $9.95 for the next month, until the end of July at: Point of Life ... Enjoy!
John's Comments: The mathematics of this offer works well with any book priced around $15.00. Of course, a $14.00 book would make the percentage of savings go into infinity. It costs you nothing. You receive $1.40 or more. What a marvelous idea. The math doesn't work for a book over $15.00. Unless, of course, you increase the value of your money 80-fold instead of 100-fold. Perhaps your book buying audience would be interested in such an offer?
Also, the Amazon credit card offer seems good: Save $30 off your first purchase at Amazon.com, earn 3% rewards (at Amazon, 1% elsewhere), get a 0% APR for six months (variable after that, currently 14.9%), and pay no annual fee.
Saturday, June 25, 2005
Stop Procrastinating: Do It Today!
Just a note to help you start this coming Monday off on the right foot:
"Sometimes a gentle reminder is all we need. I recently set aside a portion of 2 days to make only 10 phone calls each day. Out of the 20 calls, I actually was able to talk with 12 of the individuals directly.
"The results? 1 prime-position, low-rent booth space at an event that I really needed to be at; 1 new author for my company; 2 new clients for book production services; 1 joint venture for an upcoming convention; 1 speaking engagement at a men's conference; and 1 meeting scheduled with a very influential pastor."
-- Marvin D. Cloud, author of Get Off the Pot: How to Stop Procrastinating and Write Your Personal Bestseller in 90 Days.
John's Comment: Now doesn't that inspire you to set aside a few hours during the next week to make a few phone calls. You won't get to them unless you plan to make the calls and set aside the time to do it. Do it now!
"Sometimes a gentle reminder is all we need. I recently set aside a portion of 2 days to make only 10 phone calls each day. Out of the 20 calls, I actually was able to talk with 12 of the individuals directly.
"The results? 1 prime-position, low-rent booth space at an event that I really needed to be at; 1 new author for my company; 2 new clients for book production services; 1 joint venture for an upcoming convention; 1 speaking engagement at a men's conference; and 1 meeting scheduled with a very influential pastor."
-- Marvin D. Cloud, author of Get Off the Pot: How to Stop Procrastinating and Write Your Personal Bestseller in 90 Days.
John's Comment: Now doesn't that inspire you to set aside a few hours during the next week to make a few phone calls. You won't get to them unless you plan to make the calls and set aside the time to do it. Do it now!
Friday, June 24, 2005
Self-Publishing Hall of Fame entries
I'm looking for more stories about people who have successfully self-published for my book and my Self-Publishing Hall of Fame web site.
If you think you qualify, send me your story. For details on qualifications, see SP Qualifications.
Details and longer stories are welcomed. If you know of someone else's story, tell me their story or send me contact info for them so I can interview them. -- John Kremer, Email: JohnKremer@bookmarket.com.
If you think you qualify, send me your story. For details on qualifications, see SP Qualifications.
Details and longer stories are welcomed. If you know of someone else's story, tell me their story or send me contact info for them so I can interview them. -- John Kremer, Email: JohnKremer@bookmarket.com.
Tuesday, June 21, 2005
Bill Schubart's Speech at BookExpo
Bill Schubart, President & CEO of Resolution, Inc., gave a great talk at BookExpo a few weeks ago. I can't reproduce it all here. It's six pages long. But I am posting it on my Promoting Your Books web site. Click here to read it: http://www.promotingyourbooks.com/BEA.htm.
Monday, June 20, 2005
Promoting Your Book
with a Great News Release Lead
Below is a great example of a lead sentence for a news release, this one written by Shel Horowitz for a client.
First paragraph:
"It's 10 O'clock. Do you know where your credit history is? How about your employment records? Your confidential medical information?"
Second paragraph:
"How would you feel if you found out this sensitive and should-be-private material is vacationing in computer databanks around the world -- accessible to corporate interests who can afford to track down and purchase it, but not necessarily open to your own inspection?"
John's Comments: The first paragraph is great. It plays off an old line about knowing where your children are -- which only makes knowing where your credit history is just that more vital.
The second paragraph is one long sentence. If I were writing it, I'd probably rewrite that sentence into two or even three sentences. But the points it makes are still important. Any media reporter would pick up this news release and know that there is something important that the author has to say.
First paragraph:
"It's 10 O'clock. Do you know where your credit history is? How about your employment records? Your confidential medical information?"
Second paragraph:
"How would you feel if you found out this sensitive and should-be-private material is vacationing in computer databanks around the world -- accessible to corporate interests who can afford to track down and purchase it, but not necessarily open to your own inspection?"
John's Comments: The first paragraph is great. It plays off an old line about knowing where your children are -- which only makes knowing where your credit history is just that more vital.
The second paragraph is one long sentence. If I were writing it, I'd probably rewrite that sentence into two or even three sentences. But the points it makes are still important. Any media reporter would pick up this news release and know that there is something important that the author has to say.
Saturday, June 18, 2005
Cross Linking: For Authors and Publishers
The Celebrity Cafe is now offering free cross linking in their author's directory: http://www.thecelebritycafe.com/links/Authors. If you need more links, check them out.
As you should already know, I also offer free cross linking on my BookMarket.com web site. I give any author or publisher web site a link as long as you link to my web site as well. That's what cross linking is all about.
The virtue of cross linking is that it can increase your web site page rank in Google and other search engines.
When sending page linking info to any other site, always include the following: site name, site URL, contact person, full address including phone/fax, email, and site description.
As you should already know, I also offer free cross linking on my BookMarket.com web site. I give any author or publisher web site a link as long as you link to my web site as well. That's what cross linking is all about.
The virtue of cross linking is that it can increase your web site page rank in Google and other search engines.
When sending page linking info to any other site, always include the following: site name, site URL, contact person, full address including phone/fax, email, and site description.
Friday, June 17, 2005
Los Angeles Book Marketing Seminar
I was talking with Fred Gleeck today and we've decided to offer a new two-day book marketing seminar in Los Angeles during the first weekend in November. I'm excited about the seminar. During the first day, Fred and I will download our brains to you (in a very gentle way -- we'll just tell you everything we know, or as much as we can during the time we have).
Then on the second day, we're going to take questions all day. And if you don't have questions, we'll put you on the hot seat until you're bursting with questions.
Both Fred and I know so many things that we can't possibly give you everything we know in one, two, or 18 days. But, by giving you a chance to ask questions concerning your book, your web sites, your needs -- we'll give you every opportunity to draw out of us those little insights that could make a huge difference in your sales.
And, in all likelihood, as the questions are asked, Fred and I will come up with new ideas that neither of us had ever considered before, simply because the question had never come up before. We want you to rack our brains. We want you to ask the impossible questions. We want you to pull out of us all the great ideas we know, including many we have never shared before.
Anyway, I just thought I'd share my excitement with you on this new seminar, even though it's months away, we haven't selected the site yet, and we haven't written the promotional copy. You can't even sign up yet. But you can email me if you'd like to know more. Email: JohnKremer@bookmarket.com.
Oh, by the way, I've already have had several queries about my new Book Marketing Masters Program. If you want to know more, check out my web site at http://www.BookMarket.com.
Then on the second day, we're going to take questions all day. And if you don't have questions, we'll put you on the hot seat until you're bursting with questions.
Both Fred and I know so many things that we can't possibly give you everything we know in one, two, or 18 days. But, by giving you a chance to ask questions concerning your book, your web sites, your needs -- we'll give you every opportunity to draw out of us those little insights that could make a huge difference in your sales.
And, in all likelihood, as the questions are asked, Fred and I will come up with new ideas that neither of us had ever considered before, simply because the question had never come up before. We want you to rack our brains. We want you to ask the impossible questions. We want you to pull out of us all the great ideas we know, including many we have never shared before.
Anyway, I just thought I'd share my excitement with you on this new seminar, even though it's months away, we haven't selected the site yet, and we haven't written the promotional copy. You can't even sign up yet. But you can email me if you'd like to know more. Email: JohnKremer@bookmarket.com.
Oh, by the way, I've already have had several queries about my new Book Marketing Masters Program. If you want to know more, check out my web site at http://www.BookMarket.com.
Tuesday, June 14, 2005
The Cusp of Something
I just ran across a great literary blog at The Cusp of Something. You might want to check it out.
Also check out the blogs in my blogroll on the right (down the page a little).
Also check out the blogs in my blogroll on the right (down the page a little).
Monday, June 13, 2005
John Kremer's Updated BEA Report
Here's a little note from Jenna Glatzer, Editor-in-Chief, Absolute Write newsletter. Web: http://www.absolutewrite.com.
"We had several other celebrity-type spottings... Henry Rollins walked by the booth numerous times, Ken Jennings from Jeopardy... Jack Canfield was disappointingly rude, John Kremer was a delight, and I missed the times when Dr. Ruth and Henry Winkler walked by, apparently."
John's Comments: Gosh, now I'm a celebrity. Finally. And a delight, too. The sad thing is that I don't remember the encounter (unless it was a nice talk I had at one booth). I saw so many people during the three days of BEA. I had a list of 450 booths I wanted to visit. I didn't make it to all of them. Somehow, I missed some that I really wanted to see.
I did get my regular hug from Dr. Ruth. She was at the booth of a friend of mine, Steve Mettee, publisher at Quill Driver Books. I'd introduced him to Dr. Ruth about four years ago at a Playboy party in Chicago. It was that introduction that finally led to Dr. Ruth doing a book for him -- with a lot of hard work and persistence in between by Steve. I love Dr. Ruth. She is such a wonderful person and an incredible promoter. I've seen her pull people into a booth she was working so she could talk to them. I try to get a hug from her every year.
Right across the aisle from her was Jack Klugman, another wonderful person and one of my favorite comedic actors. I loved his Odd Couple persona.
There are so many good people in publishing that I don't always get to see everyone I'd like to see. Some are busy with someone else when I walk by. Some are out walking the show, some have taken off already, etc. But whenever I can, I try to see all the wonderful friends and peers who make this business interesting.
The PMA University was crowded with at least 100 of my friends, along with 500 soon to be friends, if I have my way. Jan Nathan and her son Terry Nathan are great leaders for PMA. They are good people to the core.
On Thursday I spoke at Fred Gleeck and Rick Frishman's seminar. Now there are two more really great and generous people. Later during BEA I saw Fred again and I told him that I wish I could spend just one day in his mind, to pick it clean. He said that would be okay, but only if he could spend one day in mine as well. Now we just have to figure how to do it. During my talk at the seminar, people actually did an ovation in the middle, not something I usually get. But, I guess now that I'm a celebrity, I'll have to get used to it.
My friend Brett Waldman of Tristan Publishing treated me to two orange mango smoothies -- very tasty. Plus a cuddly teddy bear that I now have sitting on my desk. Plus a second cuddly teddy bear that I had to give away (I did -- to the niece of a good friend, for her birthday). Brett publishes some wonderful books.
I also stopped by the Dianetics booth to celebrate their 55th anniversary and 55th foreign translation. At least I think that was the celebration. I came for the cake. But I also had some informative talks there, especially with Ray Carroll of Levy Home Entertainment.
I also had wonderful talks with Ray Bard of Bard Press, Gibbs Smith of Gibbs Smith, Ian Shapolsky of SPI Books, Mark Victor Hanson and Jack Canfield at the celebration of their 110th book in the Chicken Soup for the Soul series, Marc Allen of New World Library, Steven Piersanti of Berrett-Kohler, Richard Cohn and Cynthia Black of Beyond Words, Janet Mills of Amber Allen, Jed Lyons of NBN, Brook Noel of Champion Press, Ron Fry of Career Press, Ted Parkhurst of August House, Vicki Lansky of Bookpeddlers, Paul Coates of Black Classics Press, Greg Godek of Bestseller Management, Clint Greenleaf of the Greenleaf Book Group, Wade and Cheryl Hudson of Just Us Books, Judy Galbraith of Free Spirit Publishing, Michael Brien of Brien Books, Brent Farmer at Charlesbridge Publishing, Stuart Matlins of Jewish Lights Publishing, Jeffrey Goldman of Santa Monica Press, Joseph Billingsley at Pelican Publishing, Dominic Raccah of Sourcebooks, Rudy Shur of Square One Books, Peter Goodman of Stone Bridge Press, Tom Lebovsky of Voyageur Press, Lawrence Stone of Rutledge Hill Press, Mike Farr of JIST Publishing, Avery Cardoza of Cardoza Publishing, Eric Kampman at Midpoint Trade, Charlie Winton at Avalon Publishing, Debra Wasserman at Vegetarian Resource Group, Buddy Bess at Bess Press, Lisa Grant of the Writer's Collective, Brian Hades of Tesseract Books and Edge Science Fiction, Charles Leocha of World Leisure, Mark Anthony of Q-Boro Books, Chef Harry Schwartz at Bonus Books, Ed Avis of Marion Street Press (and Independent Bookstore newsletter), Cynthia Kurtz and Chris Wyble of Ronnie Sellers Productions, Paul Mikos and others at Broadman Holman, Richard Brown of Mystic Ridge Books, Adam Klugman of Good Hill Press, Laura Keresty of Wilderness Press, Bob Speicher of Shine On! Publications, Mark Wesley of me+mi Publishing, George Gibson of Walker & Company, and so many other good friends. I also made many new friends I hope to meet again and again.
Some of the people I really missed, who don't usually come now, are Carl Weschcke of Llewellyn and Joe Bannon of Sports Publishing. And, of course, Tom and Bobbi Drewes who haven't come in so many years, but who were so important to independent publishers as founders of Quality Books. I did meet the new president of Quality Books as well as the new publisher contact. So many good, good people.
That's what publishing is all about. Good people who love good books.
All the publishing gurus and publicists were there as well: Dan Poynter, Shel Horowitz, Marilyn McGuire, Brian Jud, Eugene Schwartz, Paul Krupin, David Cole, Marion Gropen, Sharon Castlen, Jerry Jenkins, Bobbye Middendorf, Steve O'Keefe (who loves to escalate and de-escalate with me), Michael Drew, Alice Acheson, Ellen Reid, Eric Gelb, Michael Cader, Jonathan Kirsch, Penny Sansevieri, Victoria Sutherland of Foreword magazine, Tonya Evans, Kim Dushinski, Celia Rocks (her booth was my home base), Robin Spizman, Kate Bandos, Peg Booth, Pam Lontos, Fern Reiss, Howard Fisher, Marisa D'Vari, Steve Harrison, Alex Carroll, as well as those already listed above. I pretty sure that they were all there. Every time I turned my head I saw another friend. I really see BEA as John Kremer's Fan Club, but, of course, I could well be deluded. But I enjoy it more viewing it that way.
I also visited with many suppliers to the industry, including George Foster of Foster Design, Barry Kerrigan of Desktop Miracle, Peri Poloni of Knockout Design, Shannon Bodie and Bob Swingle of Lightbourne, Mayapriya Long of Bookwrights, Leeza Hernandez-Stelzer of Conker Tree Design, Alan Canton of Adams-Blake and Jaya123 software, Andrea Howe of Blue Falcon Editing, Eric De Vos of City Diecutting, Wilford Downs Wrightson III of Packaging & Design, Shirley Kelly of Plus Media, as well as representatives of the following POD companies: Lulu.com, Infinity Publishing, AuthorHouse, BookSurge, BooksJustBooks, Lightning Source, Starnet Digital, and others. Plus representatives from the following printers: Joe Upton at Malloy Litho, Phil Knight of Color House Graphics, David Prentice of Delta Printing Solutions, Anup Uniyal of Thomson Press in India, Bang Printing, Banta, BookMasters, Central Plains, Phoenix Color, Rose Printing, Thomson-Shore, and many foreign printers.
On Sunday, I spoke for an hour at the booth of the Small Press Center. About 20 people listened to my golden words :)) and many gave me hugs at the end of the talk. It was a very good talk. I talk briefly with Karin Taylor, the director of the Center. Among other association leaders, I saw Pat Sabiston of the Publishers Association of the South, Scott Flora of SPAN, Joan Peterson of the Travel Publishers Association, Judith Briles from Colorado Independent Publishers Association, Irwin Zucker with Book Publicists of Southern California, Al Gallaso of North American Bookdealers Exchange, Nicolas Levesque of the Association for the Export of Canadian Books, The National Association of Independent Publishers Representatives, The Authors Guild, Women Writing the West, and the Association of Booksellers for Children.
The problem with these lists is that I know I'm missing many people I spoke with and, in some cases, had long conversations with.
Oh, and how could I forget this, I got a great hug and photo op with Miss USA 2004. That was sweet. You can see a previous photo op with her right below. I'm the sweet young man between Miss USA and a former Playmate, both of whom besides being beautiful are really smart and personable. I could easily fall in love with either one -- if I were not already married.
Which reminds me, one other thing I did during BEA was contact a number of children's book publishers and editors about publishing my wife's books. She's a great storyteller with some wonderful stories, including Little Fox and the Golden Hawk, Crazy Horse, and others. I was able to give about seven editors copies of the stories. Another 20, I got names for. If you are a children's book publisher and would be interested in publishing my wife's stories, please let me know. Email: JohnKremer@BookMarket.com. Thanks.
In the print Book Marketing Update newsletter, I'll be covering many of the new or clever book marketing ideas I ran across during the convention as well as some key contacts I uncovered. The print newsletter comes out twice a month and I write an Editor's Corner for it each issue. You don't want to miss these editor's corners. They are worth the price of each issue alone. But each issue also includes many tips, PR resources, and articles that are also incredibly valuable. For more details on the newsletter, go to http://www.freepublicity.com.
"We had several other celebrity-type spottings... Henry Rollins walked by the booth numerous times, Ken Jennings from Jeopardy... Jack Canfield was disappointingly rude, John Kremer was a delight, and I missed the times when Dr. Ruth and Henry Winkler walked by, apparently."
John's Comments: Gosh, now I'm a celebrity. Finally. And a delight, too. The sad thing is that I don't remember the encounter (unless it was a nice talk I had at one booth). I saw so many people during the three days of BEA. I had a list of 450 booths I wanted to visit. I didn't make it to all of them. Somehow, I missed some that I really wanted to see.
I did get my regular hug from Dr. Ruth. She was at the booth of a friend of mine, Steve Mettee, publisher at Quill Driver Books. I'd introduced him to Dr. Ruth about four years ago at a Playboy party in Chicago. It was that introduction that finally led to Dr. Ruth doing a book for him -- with a lot of hard work and persistence in between by Steve. I love Dr. Ruth. She is such a wonderful person and an incredible promoter. I've seen her pull people into a booth she was working so she could talk to them. I try to get a hug from her every year.
Right across the aisle from her was Jack Klugman, another wonderful person and one of my favorite comedic actors. I loved his Odd Couple persona.
There are so many good people in publishing that I don't always get to see everyone I'd like to see. Some are busy with someone else when I walk by. Some are out walking the show, some have taken off already, etc. But whenever I can, I try to see all the wonderful friends and peers who make this business interesting.
The PMA University was crowded with at least 100 of my friends, along with 500 soon to be friends, if I have my way. Jan Nathan and her son Terry Nathan are great leaders for PMA. They are good people to the core.
On Thursday I spoke at Fred Gleeck and Rick Frishman's seminar. Now there are two more really great and generous people. Later during BEA I saw Fred again and I told him that I wish I could spend just one day in his mind, to pick it clean. He said that would be okay, but only if he could spend one day in mine as well. Now we just have to figure how to do it. During my talk at the seminar, people actually did an ovation in the middle, not something I usually get. But, I guess now that I'm a celebrity, I'll have to get used to it.
My friend Brett Waldman of Tristan Publishing treated me to two orange mango smoothies -- very tasty. Plus a cuddly teddy bear that I now have sitting on my desk. Plus a second cuddly teddy bear that I had to give away (I did -- to the niece of a good friend, for her birthday). Brett publishes some wonderful books.
I also stopped by the Dianetics booth to celebrate their 55th anniversary and 55th foreign translation. At least I think that was the celebration. I came for the cake. But I also had some informative talks there, especially with Ray Carroll of Levy Home Entertainment.
I also had wonderful talks with Ray Bard of Bard Press, Gibbs Smith of Gibbs Smith, Ian Shapolsky of SPI Books, Mark Victor Hanson and Jack Canfield at the celebration of their 110th book in the Chicken Soup for the Soul series, Marc Allen of New World Library, Steven Piersanti of Berrett-Kohler, Richard Cohn and Cynthia Black of Beyond Words, Janet Mills of Amber Allen, Jed Lyons of NBN, Brook Noel of Champion Press, Ron Fry of Career Press, Ted Parkhurst of August House, Vicki Lansky of Bookpeddlers, Paul Coates of Black Classics Press, Greg Godek of Bestseller Management, Clint Greenleaf of the Greenleaf Book Group, Wade and Cheryl Hudson of Just Us Books, Judy Galbraith of Free Spirit Publishing, Michael Brien of Brien Books, Brent Farmer at Charlesbridge Publishing, Stuart Matlins of Jewish Lights Publishing, Jeffrey Goldman of Santa Monica Press, Joseph Billingsley at Pelican Publishing, Dominic Raccah of Sourcebooks, Rudy Shur of Square One Books, Peter Goodman of Stone Bridge Press, Tom Lebovsky of Voyageur Press, Lawrence Stone of Rutledge Hill Press, Mike Farr of JIST Publishing, Avery Cardoza of Cardoza Publishing, Eric Kampman at Midpoint Trade, Charlie Winton at Avalon Publishing, Debra Wasserman at Vegetarian Resource Group, Buddy Bess at Bess Press, Lisa Grant of the Writer's Collective, Brian Hades of Tesseract Books and Edge Science Fiction, Charles Leocha of World Leisure, Mark Anthony of Q-Boro Books, Chef Harry Schwartz at Bonus Books, Ed Avis of Marion Street Press (and Independent Bookstore newsletter), Cynthia Kurtz and Chris Wyble of Ronnie Sellers Productions, Paul Mikos and others at Broadman Holman, Richard Brown of Mystic Ridge Books, Adam Klugman of Good Hill Press, Laura Keresty of Wilderness Press, Bob Speicher of Shine On! Publications, Mark Wesley of me+mi Publishing, George Gibson of Walker & Company, and so many other good friends. I also made many new friends I hope to meet again and again.
Some of the people I really missed, who don't usually come now, are Carl Weschcke of Llewellyn and Joe Bannon of Sports Publishing. And, of course, Tom and Bobbi Drewes who haven't come in so many years, but who were so important to independent publishers as founders of Quality Books. I did meet the new president of Quality Books as well as the new publisher contact. So many good, good people.
That's what publishing is all about. Good people who love good books.
All the publishing gurus and publicists were there as well: Dan Poynter, Shel Horowitz, Marilyn McGuire, Brian Jud, Eugene Schwartz, Paul Krupin, David Cole, Marion Gropen, Sharon Castlen, Jerry Jenkins, Bobbye Middendorf, Steve O'Keefe (who loves to escalate and de-escalate with me), Michael Drew, Alice Acheson, Ellen Reid, Eric Gelb, Michael Cader, Jonathan Kirsch, Penny Sansevieri, Victoria Sutherland of Foreword magazine, Tonya Evans, Kim Dushinski, Celia Rocks (her booth was my home base), Robin Spizman, Kate Bandos, Peg Booth, Pam Lontos, Fern Reiss, Howard Fisher, Marisa D'Vari, Steve Harrison, Alex Carroll, as well as those already listed above. I pretty sure that they were all there. Every time I turned my head I saw another friend. I really see BEA as John Kremer's Fan Club, but, of course, I could well be deluded. But I enjoy it more viewing it that way.
I also visited with many suppliers to the industry, including George Foster of Foster Design, Barry Kerrigan of Desktop Miracle, Peri Poloni of Knockout Design, Shannon Bodie and Bob Swingle of Lightbourne, Mayapriya Long of Bookwrights, Leeza Hernandez-Stelzer of Conker Tree Design, Alan Canton of Adams-Blake and Jaya123 software, Andrea Howe of Blue Falcon Editing, Eric De Vos of City Diecutting, Wilford Downs Wrightson III of Packaging & Design, Shirley Kelly of Plus Media, as well as representatives of the following POD companies: Lulu.com, Infinity Publishing, AuthorHouse, BookSurge, BooksJustBooks, Lightning Source, Starnet Digital, and others. Plus representatives from the following printers: Joe Upton at Malloy Litho, Phil Knight of Color House Graphics, David Prentice of Delta Printing Solutions, Anup Uniyal of Thomson Press in India, Bang Printing, Banta, BookMasters, Central Plains, Phoenix Color, Rose Printing, Thomson-Shore, and many foreign printers.
On Sunday, I spoke for an hour at the booth of the Small Press Center. About 20 people listened to my golden words :)) and many gave me hugs at the end of the talk. It was a very good talk. I talk briefly with Karin Taylor, the director of the Center. Among other association leaders, I saw Pat Sabiston of the Publishers Association of the South, Scott Flora of SPAN, Joan Peterson of the Travel Publishers Association, Judith Briles from Colorado Independent Publishers Association, Irwin Zucker with Book Publicists of Southern California, Al Gallaso of North American Bookdealers Exchange, Nicolas Levesque of the Association for the Export of Canadian Books, The National Association of Independent Publishers Representatives, The Authors Guild, Women Writing the West, and the Association of Booksellers for Children.
The problem with these lists is that I know I'm missing many people I spoke with and, in some cases, had long conversations with.
Oh, and how could I forget this, I got a great hug and photo op with Miss USA 2004. That was sweet. You can see a previous photo op with her right below. I'm the sweet young man between Miss USA and a former Playmate, both of whom besides being beautiful are really smart and personable. I could easily fall in love with either one -- if I were not already married.
Which reminds me, one other thing I did during BEA was contact a number of children's book publishers and editors about publishing my wife's books. She's a great storyteller with some wonderful stories, including Little Fox and the Golden Hawk, Crazy Horse, and others. I was able to give about seven editors copies of the stories. Another 20, I got names for. If you are a children's book publisher and would be interested in publishing my wife's stories, please let me know. Email: JohnKremer@BookMarket.com. Thanks.
In the print Book Marketing Update newsletter, I'll be covering many of the new or clever book marketing ideas I ran across during the convention as well as some key contacts I uncovered. The print newsletter comes out twice a month and I write an Editor's Corner for it each issue. You don't want to miss these editor's corners. They are worth the price of each issue alone. But each issue also includes many tips, PR resources, and articles that are also incredibly valuable. For more details on the newsletter, go to http://www.freepublicity.com.
Thursday, June 09, 2005
6 Resources from BEA You Can Use Today
The following post comes from Kim Dushinski of Marketability.
As you know this year’s BookExpo America in New York just wrapped up. I will blog a nice juicy wrap up article later, but in the meantime I found a few resources while walking the aisles, standing in line, or sharing a table at lunch that might be helpful to you with your book.
These are for all kinds of books, so be sure to check them all out, just in case one fits your particular topic.
1) PARENTING -- Looking for a way to lend some credibility to your parenting book? Or top off the great success you’ve already had with it? The upcoming deadline to submit your book for an iParentingMediaAward is Friday, June 10. Find out more here: http://iparentingmediaawards.com. That's today. Act now!
2) SPANISH BOOKS -- Whether you are already active in the Latino and Spanish- language market, or you are interested in leveraging this underserviced and lucrative segment, spanishbookmarket.com features essential information, valuable resources and expert services. Check it out here: http://www.spanishbookmarket.com.
3) FICTION WRITERS -- Kirkus Reviews, one of the premier book review journals, is relaunching its Virginia Kirkus Literary Award, a literary talent competition for a best unpublished first novel or story collection. The deadline for entries is August 31, 2005. Find out more about this award: http://www.kirkusawards.com.
4) FOR FICTION READERS -- OK, this one isn’t about promoting your book, but about reading fiction books. BookClubInABox.com is a cool service that helps you have better book club discussions. If you are in a book club, you should at least see this site. Web: Book Club in a Box.
5) BOOK INDUSTRY INFORMATION -- Granted, this site contains mostly big publisher information, it also has a ton of great articles and information about all things book industry related. Well worth a visit. Web: The Book Standard.
6) GOLF BOOKS -- (This is the guy I met by sitting down at his table for lunch.) If you have a golf related book (fiction or non-fiction) you may have found a potential distributor for it. First check out the website, see if your book fits, then using the contact us page grab their phone number. Call and offer them a reading copy. The Booklegger sells all things golf related. Start here: The Booklegger.
7) BOOK MARKETING ASSESSMENT -- Whether you've just finished your book or you're overwhelmed trying to market it, find your First 3 Action Steps at MarketAbility's new web site. Your personalized assessment includes resources, strategies, tips... designed specifically for your book, and it's all yours, FREE! Check it out at How to Market My Book.
John's Comments: That's some good tips from Kim. In addition, check out my new home page at Promoting Your Books. It describes a new program I'm offering with a short deadline.
As you know this year’s BookExpo America in New York just wrapped up. I will blog a nice juicy wrap up article later, but in the meantime I found a few resources while walking the aisles, standing in line, or sharing a table at lunch that might be helpful to you with your book.
These are for all kinds of books, so be sure to check them all out, just in case one fits your particular topic.
1) PARENTING -- Looking for a way to lend some credibility to your parenting book? Or top off the great success you’ve already had with it? The upcoming deadline to submit your book for an iParentingMediaAward is Friday, June 10. Find out more here: http://iparentingmediaawards.com. That's today. Act now!
2) SPANISH BOOKS -- Whether you are already active in the Latino and Spanish- language market, or you are interested in leveraging this underserviced and lucrative segment, spanishbookmarket.com features essential information, valuable resources and expert services. Check it out here: http://www.spanishbookmarket.com.
3) FICTION WRITERS -- Kirkus Reviews, one of the premier book review journals, is relaunching its Virginia Kirkus Literary Award, a literary talent competition for a best unpublished first novel or story collection. The deadline for entries is August 31, 2005. Find out more about this award: http://www.kirkusawards.com.
4) FOR FICTION READERS -- OK, this one isn’t about promoting your book, but about reading fiction books. BookClubInABox.com is a cool service that helps you have better book club discussions. If you are in a book club, you should at least see this site. Web: Book Club in a Box.
5) BOOK INDUSTRY INFORMATION -- Granted, this site contains mostly big publisher information, it also has a ton of great articles and information about all things book industry related. Well worth a visit. Web: The Book Standard.
6) GOLF BOOKS -- (This is the guy I met by sitting down at his table for lunch.) If you have a golf related book (fiction or non-fiction) you may have found a potential distributor for it. First check out the website, see if your book fits, then using the contact us page grab their phone number. Call and offer them a reading copy. The Booklegger sells all things golf related. Start here: The Booklegger.
7) BOOK MARKETING ASSESSMENT -- Whether you've just finished your book or you're overwhelmed trying to market it, find your First 3 Action Steps at MarketAbility's new web site. Your personalized assessment includes resources, strategies, tips... designed specifically for your book, and it's all yours, FREE! Check it out at How to Market My Book.
John's Comments: That's some good tips from Kim. In addition, check out my new home page at Promoting Your Books. It describes a new program I'm offering with a short deadline.
Tuesday, June 07, 2005
Rick Frishman's BEA Report with Steve O'Keefe's comments
The following post is excerpted from Rick Frishman's newsletter. I agree with what he says about this year's BookExpo in New York City.
"I have gone to 27 BEA's (it used to be called ABA). This one was the best ever. Thousands of authors, agents, booksellers, want to be authors--roaming the halls meeting each other. The buzz this year was great. Everyone was in a good mood. Attendance was at an all time high.
"On a personal note- Just about everyone from PTA was there at the convention. The people who work with me here at PTA are the best in the business (David Hahn, David Thalberg, Deb Kohan, Sandy Trupp, Audra Berman, Sharon Farnell, Paul Schwartz, Kristen Clifford--just to name a few) If you haven't met them--you should. They are wonderful people--and they know their stuff! Most of them have been with PTA for over 10 years (David and David for 19 years each) Give them a call at 212 593 5820--say hi. Web: http://www.plannedtvarts.com."
John's Comments: The people at PTA are great people.
"I have gone to 27 BEA's (it used to be called ABA). This one was the best ever. Thousands of authors, agents, booksellers, want to be authors--roaming the halls meeting each other. The buzz this year was great. Everyone was in a good mood. Attendance was at an all time high.
"On a personal note- Just about everyone from PTA was there at the convention. The people who work with me here at PTA are the best in the business (David Hahn, David Thalberg, Deb Kohan, Sandy Trupp, Audra Berman, Sharon Farnell, Paul Schwartz, Kristen Clifford--just to name a few) If you haven't met them--you should. They are wonderful people--and they know their stuff! Most of them have been with PTA for over 10 years (David and David for 19 years each) Give them a call at 212 593 5820--say hi. Web: http://www.plannedtvarts.com."
John's Comments: The people at PTA are great people.
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