Marketing Mania Week over at IndieReCon.org

Come join us over on indierecon.org for our marketing mania!

The week of June 10th on this blog we will be discussing marketing.

Because marketing is one of our greatest challenges as indie authors, IndieReCon brings you a mini-marketing know-how blitz! Featuring articles and workshops from CJ Lyons, Georgia McBride, KP Simmons and Penny Sansevieri this week promises to be all kinds of awesome!

Monday, June 10th

As a pediatric ER doctor, CJ Lyons has lived the life she writes about in her cutting edge Thrillers with Heart.  In addition to being an award-winning New York Times Bestseller, CJ is an internationally known presenter and keynote speaker.  

Join her to learn the tools you need to Build Your Brand and come away with fresh ideas for your website and tagline.

Tuesday, June 11th

Elana Johnson, independent author publicist and educator will talk to us about online marketing and how to be your own publicist. 

Wednesday, June 12th

KP Simmon from InkSlinger PR--a group whose purpose is to help authors and publishers get the word out--will talk to us about reaching that ever-elusive teen market.

Thursday, June 13th

And finally, Penny Sansevieri from Author Marketing Experts will wrap up the week with wisdom gleaned from over ten years as the leader in book marketing online and off.

Friday, June 14th - Marketing Advice from Bestselling Indie Authors & a Special Giveaway Hear some out-of-box marketing ideas from authors who have tried creative marketing methods.

See you there!

Quick Recap of IndieReCon

Thank you to everyone one who visited us at IndieReCon last week!

We had almost 20,000 unique visitors and over 2000 comments in 3 days!! 

I'm so glad people found it valuable.

The conference posts and recorded chats will remain live on the site so if you are just hearing about it - you can catch up anytime :) Here is the schedule with direct links to each event.

Publishing Perpectives wrote a great article about it yesterday. (yay!)

And yes at this time, we plan on having a mini-event in summer and an annual event. So if you have any suggestions, feel free to fill out the survey.


Great nuggets I pulled from each speaker at the conference:

Bob Mayer: "Product is king... and series is key."

Jessie Harrell - "And where are Indie and traditional publishing equal?  Serendipity. So much in this business is timing and luck and that doesn’t change, no matter which path you choose."

SR. Johannes - "Self publishing is not the easy way out. It is just the fast way to publication. It should not replace writing a good book, creating a quality book, or everything  that comes with self publishing."

Colleen Hoover - "I make choices based on each manuscript that I write and how I feel that manuscript can best reach the readers."

Joanna Penn - "The long haul career of a pro-writer involves always working on the next book. Celebrating the last, but getting on with the next."

Miral Sattar - "Spending money on quality editorial services will already set your book apart from the rest."

Heather McCorkle - "The most important thing to remember is to ask for help, and pay for it if need be, rather than put out a book that is less than stellar."

Denise Grover Swank - "While creating a business plan may seem like an intimidating project, just take it slow and give it some thought. You’ll have much more insight into the business side of your writing and will hopefully help increase sales. 

Cheri Lasota - "Start with global issues and work your way down to the paragraph, sentence, word, and punctuation levels."

Alicia Kat Dillman - "Thinking you know more about design than a trained professional is down right foolish."

M. Leighton - "Enter New Adult. It’s got all the charm and innocence of Young Adult material, only it has teeth.  Sharp ones.  This stuff has some steam, people!"

Addison Moore - "There aren’t any hard and fast secrets to a successful series, there are only ideas that, through hard work and passion, can be plausible avenues to propel your private manifesto into a story that is wildly embraced by readers the world over..."

Hugh Howey - "Which is why it’s only natural for the freedoms inherent in self-publishing to make it the new indie. The word is short for independent. What could be more so than publishing on one’s own?"

Laura Pauling/Sybil Nelson regarding middle grade self-publishing- "Contacting librarians directly has done wonders in this aspect. School librarians are so wonderful and helpful."

Lori Culwell - "Put keywords into your website so that the search engines will associate your site with these words, with the ultimate goal of having your site pop up when people Google those words.  The words are the demand, your site is the supply."

Jason Letts - "Every service you use to connect with your fans is trying to make money from you off of that relationship. The mission is threefold: (1) play the game by their rules, (2) know when to spend, and (3) find a way to own access to your fans."

Brittany Geragotelis - "I respond to every single comment that a fan leaves on my wall...it makes them feel like they have a connection with me, which makes them more likely to follow me and what I do."

DuoLit girls - "Your mailing list, when grown and used effectively, can deliver 24x the results of the more traditional book marketing methods, such as social media marketing."

Ali Cross - "Remember being true to who you are as a writer, and as a person, is the essence of your brand."

Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi - "Without the backing and promotional support of a publishing house, we are on our own. Success or failure is up to us, and to capitalize on the buzz rush that accompanies a book launch, we must work hard, think creatively and have a wide reach to give our book the strongest start possible."

Amy Edelman - "As far as Award’s go, the point of getting chosen as a winner is the same as with reviews: you want to get people’s attention for your book in a crowded sea of other titles."

Susan Kaye Quinn - "Write the best book you can. Write a series. Write in a different genre. The sales will come or they won't. You don't have control over sales; you only control what you write next."

Nancy Holder - "We can also keep one foot in the more traditional publishing world. We don’t have to choose one or the other."

Orna Ross - "We own our rights and we can decide what we want to do with them. We are not bound by a publisher's overall policy and can do what seems best for each individual book."

Stacey Wallace Benefiel- "You’ve already written the book and you’ve gone to the trouble to format it for e-book and print – just think of this as another distribution channel."

Steena Holmes - "Not all agents are equal. Not everyone will work in your best interest. Just because you get an offer doesn’t mean you have to accept it."

Barbara Freethy - "If something isn't working, change it. Try a new cover, change prices. Explore the top and the bottom of your price point. Run sales. Do giveaways. Most importantly - enjoy the process!"

Richard Smith - "The target market for Book Apps is any reader with a device using an Android or an iOS operating system (OS)."

Mark Lefebvre - "Booksellers and book lovers – the main thing that attracts people to get into bookselling isn’t a love for being a retailer; it is a love of books."

LM Preston - "Authors are getting a lot smarter about the ‘business’ of writing. And the days of writing books and sitting back while someone else promotes you as an author is long gone."

If you attended, was there any nugget that stood out to you?

IndieReCon starts tomorrow

Hey guys

I'll probably not be back until next week as I'll be facilitating INdieRecon that starts tomorrow!!

It's been a lot of work for a team of us but I'm excited about the agenda and hope to help writers decide or learn more about the journey.

Here is the call to writers posted today.

And here is the instructions on how to participate.

Heres how to register or help spread the word at a chance for a KoBo ereader.

All events are on the indierecon site.

Hope to see you there!

2 ways to win 2 KOBO ereader - sponsor of IndieReCon

IndieRecon starts in 5 days.

For those who don't know IndiereCon is a free online conference inspired by WriteOnCon.

It is Feb 19 - Feb 21st. We have over 25 speakers and tons of prizes. This conference is online and free. It relates to any writer - traditional or self pubbed as it covers a variety of topics from the basics of indie publishing to how to market books into being bestsellers.

We recently had KOBO sign on as a partner/sponsor and they offered two ereaders up for grabs. yay! ;)

Two ways to win 1 of 2 Kobo ereaders:

1) Help spread the word for a chance at a KoboGlo. 

2) Register for the conference and get a chance at a KoboMini. 

Spread the Word! 
(ends midnight Thurs night/Fri am 2/21 EST)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Register for IndieRecon! 
(ends midnight Thur night/Fri am 2/21 EST)

a Rafflecopter giveaway 

To be clear on this one - we will draw from the registration list so if you have already registered, you will be included.

Good luck! And we hope to see you there!

20 reasons you should sign up for IndieReCon!

As you may or may not know, IndieReCon starts in less than 2 weeks from Feb 19-Feb 21.

The free conference features over 25 guests who will discuss the nuts and bolts of self-publishing from the pros / cons all the way through marketing and being a bestselling author.

Here it is - 20 reasons why you should register for IndieReCon Today!

1. Key note speaker Bob Mayer reveals the future of digital publishing.

2. Identify the biggest mistakes indie authors make and how to avoid them.

3. Find out all the nitty gritty details on self-publishing basics like pricing, distribution, and formatting.

4. Create a business plan and understand your costs.

5. Explore the elements of a great book and how to make your book stand out through editing and covers.

6. Learn the importance of creating a solid business plan and how to measure your success.

7. Discover everything you need to know about reaching your readers including: metatagging, blogging, and audio books.

8. Delve into marketing skills like building your community, utilizing social media and understanding your brand.

9. Learn how to throw a creative book launch by using events, blogging, and more.

10. Chat with some great bestselling authors and get the 411 you need to garner success.

11. It's FREE!

12. Since it's online, you can stay in your PJs and we won't laugh at you. :)

13. There are huge giveaways! Yeah... HUGE!

14. Learn about awesome organizations that support indie authors including: IndieReader, The Book Designer, Indelibles, World Literary Cafe, Fostering Success, Alliance of Independent Authors, Kindle Fire Department, Goodereader, and Bibliocrunch.

15. Discover some great new authors to read.

16. Walk away knowing what self-publishing entails and if it's right for you.

17. Did we mention it's FREE?

18. Find out secrets from bestselling authors like Bob Mayer, Hugh Howey, M. Leighton, CJ Lyons, Barbara Freethy, Colleen Hoover, RaShelle Workman, Darcie Chan, and Addison Moore.

19. Because it will be epic! (At least we think so.)

20. Did we mention it's FREE AND ONLINE?? Why? Because we like YOU :) (Just call us the Mickey Mouse club of indies.)

Every single blog post, chat, vlog will be packed with all the information you need to help you on the self-publishing path.

IndieReCon will help you learn all the dirty secrets about the indie pubbing industry and help you succeed.

February 19-21!!!

Tell your friends.

Hang out with us all day. Hourly posts. Check out the amazeballs schedule.

Just enter your email up in the left sidebar to receive updates and a drawing for giveaways so you don’t miss out!

See you there!

Announcing INDIE ReCon - free conference on all things indie!

First of things, big Happy bday to Elana Johnson!! To celebrate her bday, Christina Fonseca is giving away a PRINT collection of all three of her books (yes, even the last one once it is released), and ebooks of Regret, Possession and Surrender. The contest will run through 12/15.

Ive known her for years online, skyped with her, and online grouped with her in many amazing forums. She is brilliant and lovely and I adore her so give her a bday shout out!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

=============

In other news,

Do I have a surprise for you! :)

A small group of indie writers has pulled together and is hosting a FREE online conference on everything INDIE in Feb 2013!

Welcome to the first INDIE ReCon - Make Indie Publishing a Mission Possible

Are you curious about Indie publishing, but don't know where to start?  Or, are you already a published Indie author looking to boost your sales or expand your reach?  Then you'll want to attend a new exciting online conference happening in 2013 - INDIE Revolution Conference.  Or as we like to call it, INDIE ReCon.

INDIE ReCon is happening online from February 12-14, 2013.

INDIE ReCon is a FREE, ONLINE conference that is modeled after the awesome annual WriteOnCon. It is designed to help any writer or author who is curious about the ins and outs of Indie publishing. 

However any author or writer can attend because we cover topics all of you may want to know more about (marketing etc)

Everything from the pros and cons of Indie publishing, essential aspects in creating a high-quality book, successful online marketing, and expanding into International markets. 

We will feature over 30 guests that include industry experts as well as some of the bestselling adult and young adult authors in the publishing industry today including: Bob Mayer, Hugh Howey, M. Leighton, and Samantha Young (just to name a few).  

For three days, INDIE ReCon will highlight new topics every hour (sometimes every half hour) for 8 hours a day which will include interviews, blog posts, vlogs, and live online chats.  You'll receive advice from authors, bloggers, marketing partners, cover designers, editors, and more.  You can check out our line up of topics and guests on our website.

Did we mention it's FREE and ONLINE? Well, there's more. Tons of Giveaways! There will be awesome giveaways from each and every speaker and partner. This will include books as well as services like free book designs, free editing, book development services, marketing prizes, and more. 

So mark your calendars for Feb 12-14th!

But, more importantly, sign up now with your email and we'll be sure to send you updates, news, and reminders as the conference gets closer so you won't forget. 

You won't find this much information (or excitement) about Indie publishing anywhere else. The hosts, partners, and presenters are all giving their time and knowledge for free for one simple reason: they're excited about being Indie and they want to help you decide if it's right for you too.  

You can already sign up on the home page to receive updates and news.

We hope you join us at INDIE ReCon - where we'll help you make Indie publishing a mission possible!

See you there!

Founders/Hosts:

S.R. Johannes

Ali Cross

Laura Pauling

Jessie Harrell

Heather McCorkle

Cheri Lasota

Special thanks to our partners:

ALLi

Bibliocrunch

IndieReader

Kindle Fire Department

World Literary Cafe