Whose Stuff Is This? Audio Book

Whose Stuff Is This? is now an audio book!

You may have read my book, Whose Stuff Is This? Finding Freedom from the Thoughts, Feelings, and Energy of Those Around You. Now you have an understanding and are working on managing your energy.

Knowing you are empath makes sense to you and you’ve tried to explain to your family members why you are so sensitive at times. Maybe the one person, who really needs to understand you, is not the type who would sit down and read my book, but perhaps they would listen if someone read it to them.

Whose Stuff Is This? Audio Book is the answer to your dilemma. Recorded in MP3 format, it will explain the psychological aspects of empathy and help others understand the psychic ability you have been blessed with. The audio bookis nearly five hours long and contains all 12 chapters of the best-selling book for empathic people who want to wisely manage their energy.

Listen to the MP3 while you travel!
http://dld.bz/a6Fee

The 7 Graces of Marketing by Lynn Serafinn

New #1 bestselling book asks: Can we heal humanity and the planet by changing the way we sell?

Buy the book before Dec 21st, and receive an impressive collection of bonus gifts at http://the7gracesofmarketing.com/book

This week was the official book launch of the brand new book The 7 Graces of Marketing: how to heal humanity and the planet by changing the way we sell by my friend and colleague, Lynn Serafinn. I wanted to share this news with you, because this book truly stands out as a title many are calling "ahead of its time". 

While Lynn is known as a leading online marketer, this book is definitely NOT a "how to" book on how to "do" marketing. Rather, it's a book about how we can "be" with marketing, both as business owners AND consumers.

A bold, holistic and often spiritual examination not merely of the world of advertising, but also of our entire worldview, The 7 Graces of Marketing reveals how our relationships with Self, others, our businesses, our economy and the Earth impact every aspect of our lives. Addressing both the conscious and unconscious mechanics of marketing, Lynn shows the impact consumer culture has upon our health, our economy and the delicate ecological balance of our natural world.

The book is intended to be a starting point for discussion, hopefully leading to global changes in the world of commerce. Here are Lynn's poignant opening words from the book:

This is a book of questions, not a manual of answers. And I shall make no apologies for the fact that you are quite likely to have many more questions after you have finished reading this book than when you began...Instead of needing to find all the answers, let us agree to engage in the free dialogue of ideas. Let us unlock any barriers that may lie between us. Let us see and respect each other for what we all are: sentient, intelligent beings, who are made of the same 'stuff' and who share the same planet. Let us see and hear each other. Let us allow ourselves to be seen and heard. And now, with that in mind, let us begin with the first question of this book, and the one that will underpin all the other questions to follow: 'Is marketing making us ill?'

From this point, Lynn invites us to dive into a fascinating dialogue spanning 400+ pages of extensive research, historical examples, a wide variety of philosophical and sociological perspectives, refreshing humour and masterful storytelling, as she takes us on a compelling exploration through "The 7 Key Relationships", "The 7 Deadly Sins of Marketing", and ultimately, "The 7 Graces of Marketing".

Within hours of its launch on Tuesday December 13th, the book shot to the top of the charts, becoming an international #1 bestseller. Surely that is a sign that this is a much-needed book for our times.

The 7 Graces of Marketing has been receiving a lot of critical acclaim from other authors and speakers from the world of business and marketing, who are earmarking it as "the new paradigm" for the future. Here are just a few samples of what some of them have said:

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"At last--here's a brilliant reframe of marketing and selling. Lynn Serafinn offers a brave new world, where competition and scarcity give way to collaboration, abundance and greater connection among all humanity--and we still profit and prosper as we help each other. I love it!"
~ DR. JOE VITALE, author of The Attractor Factor, Buying Trances

"The world NEEDS this book! Lynn is ahead of the curve, and leading us toward how we will ALL look at marketing in the future."
~ RICHARD S. GALLAGHER, author of How to Tell Anyone Anything and What to Say to a Porcupine

"This is what the world has been waiting for! Finally a marketing book that guides us out of fear, lack and limitation into love, prosperity and abundance."
~ DR. ERIC PEARL, author of The Reconnection: Heal Others, Heal Yourself

"An amazing book…It's so ahead of the times, and is the kind of book that can set a new paradigm altogether."

~ WILLIAM GLADSTONE, Founder Waterside Productions Literary Agents, author of The Twelve, co-author of The Golden Motorcycle Gang

"Natural, fresh and original, The 7 Graces of Marketing is the defining organic approach to marketing…"
~ LIZ GOODGOLD, author of Red Fire Branding: How to Create a Hot Personal Brand to Have Customers for Life!

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Buy The 7 Graces of Marketing at

http://the7gracesofmarketing.com/book

When you buy The 7 Graces of Marketing before December 21st, you can receive dozens of personal and professional development gifts from Lynn's friends and colleagues, as well as the complete set of MP3s (over 10 hours of audio) from Lynn's 7-part "7 Graces of Marketing Telesummit", with 24 world-renowned guest speakers discussing all of the "7 Deadly Sins" and "7 Graces" of marketing. Nearly 2000 people registered to attend this exceptional live event which took place last week, and now you can get the complete audio set as a gift, simply by buying the book, along with nearly 50 other free gifts.

To pick up your copy of the book (in paperback or Kindle)

 and claim your bonus gifts, go to:

http://the7gracesofmarketing.com/book

I hope you'll check out The 7 Graces of Marketing by my friend Lynn Serafinn this week, so we can begin the dialogue for a more connected way of doing business and marketing that will serve both humanity and the Planet.

Moving This Blog to Another Online Location

Writers in the Sky Podcast is moving to a new blog: http://writersinthesky.blogspot.com/. Feel free to subscribe to that blog to continue getting notices about our upcoming guests.

The 7 Graces of Marketing: how to heal humanity and the planet by changing the way we sell

Today I have the great pleasure of being the host on Day 11 of the Virtual Blog Tour of author Lynn Serafinn whose book The 7 Graces of Marketing: how to heal humanity and the planet by changing the way we sell launches on Amazon on Tuesday December 13, 2011.

Lynn Serafinn, MAED, CPCC is a certified, award-winning coach and teacher, marketer, social media expert, radio host, speaker and bestselling author. Her eclectic approach to marketing incorporates her vast professional experience in the music industry and the educational sector along with more than two decades of study and practice of the spirituality of India. In her work as a promotional manager she has produced a long list of bestselling mind-body-spirit authors. Passionate about re-establishing our connection with the Earth, she supports the work of the Transition Town network in her hometown of Bedford, England.

Yesterday, Lynn visited Gregory "Coach" Fernander at http://coachatgregory.blogspot.com , where they talked about the subject of responsibility in marketing & in life.

Today, I'd like to share with you a recent podcast interview I had with Lynn when she speaks about the 7 Graces of Marketing.    I hope you enjoy it.

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I hope you enjoyed this interview with Lynn Serafinn and that you’ll check out her book The 7 Graces of Marketing: how to heal humanity and the planet by changing the way we sell at http://the7gracesofmarketing.com/book-launch/pages/pre-launch.html

Here's why:

The 7 Graces of Marketing Telesummit

A FREE 7-Part Online Happening!

December 6th-9th, 2011

Register at http://the7gracesofmarketing.com/free-telesummit

When you visit the page at the link above and request a "launch reminder", you will automatically receive a FREE pass to Lynn's 7-Part online happening “The 7 Graces of Marketing Telesummit” with an illustrious panel of 24 bestselling authors and world-renowned speakers and media experts on society, business and marketing coming together to discuss how we can bring ethics and values back our business and marketing practices, and restore balance to our health, our economy and our natural environment.

Here's the spectacular list of guests speakers for the event:

Dr. Joe Vitale * Greg S. Reid * Dr. Eric Pearl * Dan Hollings * Pamela Slim * Liz Goodgold * Allison Maslan * Suzanne Falter*Barnes * Tad Hargrave * Misa Hopkins * Richard S. Gallagher * Ward Vandorpe * Barbara Altemus * Andrea Conway * Renee Baribeau * Renee Duran * Michael Drew * Chris Arnold * Jeffrey Van Dyk * Tanya Paluso * Kate Osborne * Shelagh Jones * Paula Tarrant * Lynn Serafinn

You can listen to the telesummit online in the comfort of your own home, and even ask questions during the broadcast.

                                        

If you are reading this after Dec 9th, 2011 you can still access the playback for a limited time when you register at http://the7gracesofmarketing.com/free-telesummit

This telesummit is a completely free
"no purchase necessary" gift from Lynn

FREE GIFTS

When you buy Lynn's book on Tuesday December 13, 2011, you can ALSO receive the MP3 download of all 10 hours of this historic telesummit, plus a complete library of beautiful personal development gifts from authors, speakers, coaches and other enlightened professionals from around the globe including one from me;

An audio book titled: Bliss in Divine Oneness

To claim your FREE pass to the 7 Graces of Marketing Telesummit

and read about the free gifts, go to:

http://the7gracesofmarketing.com/book-launch/pages/pre-launch.html

Thanks for reading! As usual, please feel free to share your comments and thoughts below. I love reading your feedback.

AND… be sure to follow Lynn tomorrow when the next stop on the Virtual Blog Tour is Tambra Harck, who will be interviewing Lynn on how can consumers help biz owners behave with more Grace? To visit that "stop" on the tour, go to http://theartofwellbeing.typepad.com/the_art_of_wellbeing/

Using "I" As a Conceit

By Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success

I don't know when I learned the word "conceited." I was raised in Utah where most of us didn't use "conceit" in the sense of an elaborate or strained metaphor but rather to mean that someone thought they were extra-super special. The little girl across the street who snubbed me because I didn't wear long stockings with garters (which was an immediate tipoff that I was not her kind) was "conceited" rather than prejudiced. The kid who was quick to make a point of how bright he was when I made a mistake was "conceited" rather than arrogant (or insecure). Gawd!I loved the word "conceited." I could apply it to so many situations and avoid learning new vocabulary words.

Of course, in a culture where being extra-super humble was valued, I soon noticed that our English language is, indeed, "conceited."

I'm speaking of the way we capitalize the pronoun "I." None of the other pronouns are capped. So what about this "I," standing tall no matter where you find it in a sentence? Recently as I tutored students in accent reduction and American culture I noticed that some languages (like Japanese) seem to do quite well without pronouns of any sort. I did a little research. Some languages like Hebrew and Arabic don't capitalize any of their letters and some, like German, capitalize every darn noun. So, English—a Germanic language at its roots—just carried on the German proclivity for caps.

But the question remained. Why only the "I?" Why not "them" and "you" and all the others. Caroline Winter, a 2008 Fulbright scholar, says "England was where the capital "I" first reared its dotless head . . . .Apparently someone back then decided that just "i" after it had been diminished from the original Germanic 'ich' was not substantial enough to stand alone." It had to do with an artistic approach to fonts. The story goes that long ago in the days of handset type or even teletype machines little sticks and dots standing all alone looked like broken bits of lead or scrappy orphan letters.

Then there is the idea that religion played a part in capitalizing the "I." Rastafarians (and some others, too) think in terms of humankind as being one with God and therefore— one has to presume—it would be rather blasphemous not to capitalize "I" just as one does "God." Capitals, after all, are a way to honor a word or concept.

Which, of course, brings us back to the idea that we speakers of English are just plain "conceited."

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Carolyn Howard-Johnson is an instructor for UCLA Extension's world-renown Writers' Program, and author of the HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers including The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success. It is a USA Book News award-winner as well as the winner of the Reader View's Literary Award and a finalist in the New Generation Book Awards. She is the recipient of both the California Legislature's Woman of the Year in Arts and Entertainment Award and is a popular speaker and actor. Her website is www.HowToDoItFrugally.com.

This blog is moving to http://writersinthesky.blogspot.com. If you are subscribed to this blog via RSS feed, please resubscribe at http://feeds.feedburner.com/writersinthesky to get the same material that was once published on this blog.

Learning to Love Passive Construction

By Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of The Frugal Editor

Writers of fiction, and nonfiction for that matter, are told to avoid passive sentences for a variety of reasons. After all, they tend to tug on the forward momentum we are usually after. But passive construction can be used effectively, too. Like all love, we need to accept passives, try to utilize what they’re good at and, at the same time, recognize their flaws and make an effort not to let them into our lives.

A good editor may help you avoid passive constructions by suggesting changes that will make them active. Try doing it yourself with the three examples below.

1. "I was offended by the President's proclamation."
2. "Catherine was being watched."
3. "Catherine was being silly."

Here is your cheat sheet:

For the first example you would, of course, make it "The President's proclamation offended me."

For the second, you'll have to provide the intended subject. It might look like this:

"The fuzz watched Catherine."
(So, maybe you'd be more formal (-: and call them "coppers!" ).

The third example might throw you a curve.

That's because it isn't a passive sentence. Here's the thing. We tend to assume a construction is passive when we see helper verbs and "ing" words. But these are not always passive indicators. That's one more thing for you to figure out in addition to deciding whether you want to avoid a passive construction anyway.

There are reasons to love the passive. I mean, language develops out of need (among other things). So we sometimes need the passive and when we do, and recognize why we do, we can grow to love it. Here are reasons you might want to intentionally use passive verbs:

1. You want to slow down the movement in a saga sent in the 19th century

2. You're using passive construction as part of a speech pattern used by a particular character.

3. You’re writing political copy and you want to avoid pointing a finger at, say, the FBI because you don’t want to get put on the dreaded US No-Fly list. So instead of saying “The FBI is watching Carolyn.” You say, “Carolyn is being watched.” No blame that way.

We need to know not only how to make verbs active and when to leave them alone, and, yep, when to use them to our advantage. That way we can learn to love them.

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Carolyn Howard-Johnson's first novel, This Is the Place, won eight awards and uses the passive voice liberally because it is set in a slower time, a different culture. An instructor for UCLA Extension's world-renown Writers' Program, her book The Frugal Book Promoter: How to Do What Your Publisher Won't is recommended reading for her classes, and was named USA Book News' "Best Professional Book." It is also an Irwin Award winner. Her second book in the How To Do It Frugally series is The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success is also a USA Book News award-winner as well as the winner of the Reader View's Literary Award in the publishing category. She is the recipient of both the California Legislature's Woman of the Year in Arts and Entertainment Award. She is a popular speaker and actor. Her website is www.HowToDoItFrugally.com.

Join us for a Conversation with Author and Philosopher Robert DeFilippis

Can't we all just get along? Author and philosopher Robert DeFilippis asks that very question on this week's WITS podcast. According to DeFilippis, the world would be a very different place if people on both sides of the religious v. science argument realized that the two standpoints are not mutually exclusive.

DeFilippis' third book, Faith, Stirred Not Shaken: Exploring the MIRACLE between Science and Religion, breaks down the debate and explains that not only do theology and science coexist, but are interwoven into an incredible tapestry that created--and continues to sustain--our world.

Robert DeFilippis spent 45 years traveling the world as an organizational development consultant and executive coach. Through his work he met people of different cultures, religions, and educational backgrounds, but they had all one thing in common: they questioned what it meant to be human. His interactions with these people continue to inspire his writing career.

Whether you follow religious doctrine or the canons of science, you will surely find DeFilippis' take on the debate fascinating, informative and thought-provoking.

Click here to listen listen


Like what you heard? Buy Faith, Stirred Not Shaken at www.outskirtspress.com/faithstirrednotshaken/
Also available at www.amazon.com and www.barnesandnoble.com

Calling for Submissions for December WITS Newsletter

Writers in the Sky Newsletter is now accepting contributions of material from our readers. To share a book review, announcement, or article about writing, editing, or book marketing please email Katie@writersinthesky.com. Our next issue is due to send next week so please get these in as soon as possible.

 

This Week's Podcast Guest: Author and Philosopher Robert DeFilippis

Everyone knows there are two topics you don't discuss at cocktail parties: politics and religion. And given how polarized this country has become on these two issues, this caveat seems more prudent than ever before. When it comes to religion, one of the most fiercely debated topics is whether we should believe the scientific community's "empirical evidence" concerning human evolution and purpose, or whether we should follow religious doctrine on blind faith. It has become long accepted by many of us that the two viewpoints are mutually exclusive.

Well, Bob DeFilippis begs to differ...with everyone. In his third book, Faith, Stirred Not Shaken, DeFilippis explores both sides of the debate and asks all to consider, what if we are all wrong...and all right?

Faith, Stirred Not Shaken explores the probability that religion and science are not actually at war with one another, but have worked together to create--and continually shape--us and the world we live in.

Robert DeFilippis is a retired organizational development consultant and executive coach. During his 45-year-career he traveled the world to work with people of all ethnic, religious, and educational backgrounds. His experiences with them have informed and inspired his writing career.

Your Author Platform: It’s Not About You!

by Joel Friedlander

As some of you know I’ve been conducting book marketing mastermind sessions with some top book marketers recently.

Exposing myself (figuratively, of course) to the ideas and practices of these experts has changed my thinking on some topics.

One of these is the author platform, something I’ve written about often before.

And here’s what changed for me: I’ve always thought of the metaphoric platform as something we patiently and consciously build, board by board with our marketing and networking activities.

You write a blog, give talks to groups, establish your authority, authenticity and helpfulness, gathering fans and readers along the way. This foundation becomes your platform.

The Big Change

But what if you thought about it from the other side, so to speak? What I learned from talking to these marketing pros is this:

The platform isn’t about you at all. It’s about the unmet needs of your audience.

That’s the platform that already exists. It’s there for you if you can address those unmet needs, because then you’ll have the platform to sell from, to spread your message or your stories.

The audience creates the platform. What you do with all your activity is try to move yourself onto the platform so that you have a place to speak from.

What does this mean in reality?

For an example out of left field, look at the contest going on right now for the Republican presidential nomination here in the U.S.

For months there’s been a large percentage of Republicans who have been unhappy with the candidates in the race. This unmet need of the audience created a powerful platform for anyone who could legitimately get up there to make their case.

So when someone like the Governor of Texas, Rick Perry, got into the race by jumping up on the platform already created, he rocketed to the top of the polls.

Was it his marketing, speaking, or books that did that? Nope. It was the power of all those unmet needs—the power of the platform—that did it. Once people got a closer look at him, he fell right off, but that’s not the point.

Think about your own subject area. No matter how many books have been written about it, there are still lots of unmet needs.

At the Pitchapalooza I participated in a few months ago one of the big hits was a pitch for a book about tree pruning. It turned out the best book on this narrow subject was very old, and had never been modernized or replaced. The person pitching had the exact credentials and the ability to create the new version the market needed. Every one of us on the panel immediately recognized a winning proposition. Why?

The unmet needs of that niche market are what will propel that book to regular, healthy sales. The people who are just waiting for a book that’s been written recently on this topic make up the platform for the author.

I could go on, but I think you can see the meaning and importance of this idea.

Certainly you have to do all the marketing practices you are doing, without them you won’t be able to use the platform you identify.

But look around, it’s a different world. People in all niches and interest groups and genres have these unmet needs, whether they realize it or not.

It’s up to us to find them and fill those needs. Welcome to the new author platform—it’s not about you at all.

Article by Joel Friedlander

Joel Friedlander is a self-published author and book designer who blogs about book design, self-publishing and the indie publishing life at TheBookDesigner.com. He's also the proprietor of Marin Bookworks, where he helps publishers and authors who decide to publish get to market on time and on budget with books that are both properly constructed and beautiful to read.

Why Wait? The Baby Boomers' Guide to Preparing Emotionally, Financially and Legally for a Parent’s Death

Today I have the great pleasure of being the host on Day 10 of the Virtual Blog Tour of author Carolyn A. Brent whose book Why Wait? The Baby Boomers' Guide to Preparing Emotionally, Financially and Legally for a Parent’s Death launches on Amazon on Tuesday November 15, 2011.

Author Carolyn A. Brent, M.B.A. is a former clinical educational manager in the pharmaceutical industry. She is an avid activist and advocate working with the U.S. Congress for the purpose of creating change to protect seniors and veterans from financial and medical abuse. She has appeared on many local and national TV and radio shows, and is a sought-after keynote speaker.

Yesterday, Carolyn visited Joyce Joneschiet at http://aginginplaceoptions.com/2011/11/how-to-protect-your-parents-and-make-caregiving-a-family-affair , where they talked about Carolyn writing the book and couple on smoothing certain emotional conversations.

Today, I'd like to share with you a recent podcast interview I had with Carolyn. I hope you enjoy it.

I hope you enjoyed this interview with Carolyn A. Brent and that you’ll check out her book Why Wait? The Baby Boomers' Guide to Preparing Emotionally, Financially and Legally for a Parent’s Death at http://www.babyboomersguide.org/book-launch/pre-launch.html

Here Are Two Reasons Why:

FREE 3-DAY PASS

When you visit the page at the link above and request a "launch reminder", you will automatically receive a FREE pass to Carolyn's 3-day "Why Wait? Telesummit", with a panel leading experts preparing emotionally, financially and legally for the death of a parent.  You can listen to the telesummit online in the comfort of your own home, and even ask questions during the broadcast.

This telesummit is a completely free
"no purchase necessary" gift from Carolyn

To register, go to

http://www.babyboomersguide.org/book-launch/telesummit.html

FREE GIFTS

When you buy Carolyn's book on Tuesday November 15, 2011, you can ALSO receive a complete library of beautiful personal development gifts from authors, speakers, coaches and other enlightened professionals from around the globe including one from me:

MP3 audio book of More Than Meets the Eye ~

True Stories about Death, Dying, and Afterlife

To claim your 3-Day Pass and read about the free gifts, go to: http://www.babyboomersguide.org/book-launch/pre-launch.html

Thanks for reading! As usual, please feel free to share your comments and thoughts below. I love reading your feedback.

AND… be sure to follow Carolyn tomorrow when the next stop on the Virtual Blog Tour is Shelagh Jones, who will be podcast interviewing Carolyn on her show.  To visit that "stop" on the tour, go to http://SpiritualMarketing-Blog.com/books-by-spiritus-members/carolyn-a-brent-why-wait/  

Join Us for a Conversation with "Knock-Out" Novelist, Sijuan King

Clearly, Sijuan King learned a few things from her uncle, boxing promoter Don King. From start to finish, her debut novel packs a punch that will have you reeling.

Millennium Slave: Part I is the story of one man's struggle to regain his life after everything he holds dear-including his freedom-is stolen from him.

Charles had the perfect life--a Central Park address, a brilliant career with global giant C.E.E.L. Industries, and the lovely Trudy Henderson by his side. When he is invited aboard the company yacht for an eight-day cruise, he eagerly accepts and asks Trudy to accompany him for a romantic voyage.

But on the second night at sea, Charles' American Dream turns into a nightmare when he and the other passengers are taken hostage and brought to an island where slavery is still the law of the land.

As Charles plans his escape, he learns there is nothing he won't do for those he loves. Millennium Slave: Part I is a story of both heartbreaking loss and the triumph of the human spirit.

Click here to listen to the podcast:

Like what you heard? Order Millennium Slave: Part I today at www.sijuanking.com

For Nook and Kindle versions, visit www.barnesandnoble.com and www.amazon.com
For more information on Si's work, visit http://www.facebook.com/pages/Millennium-Slave-Sijuan-King/103778199705652

Look for Millennium Slave: Part II in 2012!

Top 8 Tactics to Power Your Online Book Launch

By Joel Friedlander

Okay, you’ve finished your book, filled out all your book metadata, and gone through the publishing process. Soon, your book will become available for sale online. For many authors, this is a critical time in the lives of their books.

Why? When your book is new, it’s the natural time to do a book launch. In fact, it’s possible to re-launch a book any time there’s a reason to do so, but the vast majority of book launches are, appropriately enough, at the time of initial publication.

The idea of a book launch is to turn the publication of the book into an event. Events, by their nature, draw more attention from the public. Your event is one-time-only, happening live, and the more ways you can attract attention during the launch period, the more eyeballs you will attract to your book (and your other books, if you have related books in print already).

Let’s look at the elements that can go into a book launch. You won’t be doing all these things, so don’t immediately become overwhelmed. Think of this more as a menu of options you can choose from.

8 Ways to Make Your Book Launch Take Off

First, decide whether you want to run all of your activities on a single day, over the course of a week, or extending to a longer time period. Any of these options is workable, and I encourage you to spread them out if your time is already at a premium. Remember that you’re in charge, so you get to decide the exact parameters of your book launch. Here are some things you might include in your book launch:

1.     Media Kit – This is essential. It’s the established way for you to get your information to book reviewers, media contacts and other bloggers. I won’t go through the whole media kit here, but it should include your book launch media release (see below for more information), photo of your book cover, photo of the author, marketing information, sample interviews, and a concise cover letter.

2.     Guest Posts – One of the best ways to bring your message to new groups of readers is by offering to write guest articles for other bloggers. This can be done as part of a blog tour or on its own. In any case, by introducing yourself and your subject to new networks of readers, your book will get more of a boost at its launch.

3.     Book Trailer – Short videos that act like movie trailers for your book have become more and more popular in the last couple of years. Some books seem to lend themselves to this treatment more than others, and some of the most effective I’ve seen are for fiction, like thrillers and romances.

4.     Media Contacts – One way to help your book get off to a good start is to get the attention of the media. This might be through an interview with the local newspaper or radio station about your book, or it might be articles you submit to magazines or online periodicals in your niche. Developing a list of media contacts who are interested or who have reported in the past about your topic will be very useful for this effort.

5.     Book Reviewers – Planning your review campaign well in advance will allow both print and online reviewers plenty of time to prepare a review about your book. Although we can’t dictate the schedule on which these reviews are released, let reviewers know when the launch will be happening and other events scheduled for the time period of the launch. For more on getting online reviews, see .

6.     Contests & Giveaways – One of the techniques that’s been used to good effect by lots of authors is to give away a set number of books during the launch period. These may be offered by lottery, for leaving comments on your blog, for posting Tweets about the book launch, or any other way you can dream up to attract people’s interest. Free anything is still a powerful pull for lots of people, and getting your book into as many people’s hands as possible is the aim of your launch, so get creative here.

7.     Blog Tour – A blog tour organizes the guest posts, giveaways and blogger networking into a formal schedule during your launch period. Setting up guest appearances on blogs, which allows the bloggers to introduce you to their readers, is a terrific way to grow your own reader community and enhance your relationship with lots of bloggers in your niche. You can promote your tour schedule on your own blog and through social media to create some excitement for all the events you’ve planned.

8.     Media Release – Although your media release is an integral part of the Media Kit I mentioned at the beginning, it’s really a key piece of your book launch as well. Why? A well-written and targeted media release will bring together all the best reasons people should be interested in your book, your subject, you and your book launch. And if your book legitimately addresses more than one audience, take your basic media release and re-write the headline and first paragraph to highlight the connection to other groups.

Taken together, putting together a book launch can be a lot of work. But there are a lot of tangible and intangible benefits you get from going through all this trouble. And while our basic aim is to sell books, if you’re in this for the long haul, you’ll recognize that these benefits will repay your efforts in many ways. For instance, by going through the launch, you can:

§  Create better relations with other bloggers in your field

§  Better understand your readers and why they respond to you

§  Explore aspects of your subject that might be of interest to different groups of readers

§  Learn which approaches work best in driving traffic, and interest, about your book.

Running a book launch can be a demanding, exhausting and exciting adventure. You’ll learn a lot, and you’ll be able to use that learning for your next book. So give it a try.

Joel Friedlander is a self-published author and book designer who blogs about book design, self-publishing and the indie publishing life at TheBookDesigner.com. He's also the proprietor of Marin Bookworks, where he helps publishers and authors who decide to publish get to market on time and on budget with books that are both properly constructed and beautiful to read.

This Week's Podcast Guest is Sijuan King

Join us Friday when Sijuan King talks about her new suspense thriller, Millennium Slave, Part I.

Although this is her first novel, it is the latest in the long list of Si's accomplishments. As niece of boxing promoter Don King, she learned at a very early age that anything is possible. "Only in America," her Uncle Don always said, and Si followed his example. She has worn many hats in her life: entrepreneur, poet, activist--now novelist--and she has excelled at it all.

The idea for Millennium Slave came to Si, fully formed, in a dream. It is the story of handsome and brilliant Charles Allen Hart, a New York City executive with the world at his fingertips. While still in his early thirties, he is appointed CFO of global giant C.E.E.L. Industries. When he is invited aboard the company yacht for a cruise to the Caribbean, he considers it just one more milestone in his meteoric rise to the top. He asks his girlfriend Trudy to go along, planning to propose marriage as they sail into the sunset.

What they are sailing into, however, is an unimaginable nightmare; for their destination is not an island paradise, but a secret island where human bondage is still the law of the land.

Millennium Slave is impossible to put down and ends with a cliffhanger that is...well, downright cruel. Luckily, readers won't have to wait that long to find out what happens to Charles, because Si is planning to release Millennium Slave, Part II in 2012.

Tune in on Friday to hear more about Si King and this riveting novel. To purchase Millennium Slave, Part I in paperback, got to http://www.sijuanking.com/

For Nook and Kindle versions, visit http://www.amazon.com/ and http://www.barnesandnoble.com/