Authors of self-published books often seek help from reviewers and copywriters. They realize that reviews on Amazon and other online bookstores can make a huge difference in book sales. They also realize they need sales pages to promote their books.

These days, publishing a book can be affordable. Many companies will do all the work, allowing you to pay a single lump sum. It’s very tempting for independent professionals (including coaches, consultants, therapists and others) to produce a book that reflects the wisdom they’ve accumulated painfully over the past five to ten years. They realize they gain credibility and even turn readers into paying clients. Alas, without planning, too many books end up piled on the floor of someone’s garage.

Ideally, the time to show your book to a reviewer or copywriter is before you publish your book. By the time a book is ready for review, you can’t make changes even when you discover fatal flaws. Here are 3 checkpoints before you send a book for review (or, ideally, before you publish).

First, Is your book truly original? Believe it or not, many authors simply repeat popular guidelines and aphorisms when they publish. One self-help author wrote, “When I worked with Ginny on her career change, we reviewed her strengths and values…” Nothing new here. The author needs to add a couple of extra steps to show how her unique approach got Ginny propelled into a new career. If Ginny’s been attempting a career change for three years, and only now succeeds, the author’s got a basis for a book.

Second, does your book have a consistent theme? If your book promises to help readers deal with emotions, you need to work the emotional challenge theme into every chapter. When I wrote my book on relocation, my theme was, “Moving changes your identity.” Every chapter shows how geographic relocation influences your identity.

Third, choose just one genre and stick to it. “Genre” refers to the category of your book. It’s where bookstore patrons go to look for your book. Fiction genres include horror, sci-fi, mystery, and literary fiction. Within each genre you can have subgenres, such as “cozy mystery”" and “police procedural.” Occasionally a successful book mixes genres; Kate Atkinson combines literary fiction with murder mystery, for instance. But usually publishers are very strict about genre and I recommend that self-published authors do the same.

Non-fiction genres include self-help, memoir, history, and biography. When you mix genres, reviewers and readers feel uncomfortable. Often they don’t know why.

Independent professionals often make the mistake of mixing memoir and self-help. They write out their story and then they write the lessons they want to teach others. Unfortunately, the results often ends up as neither compelling memoir nor insightful self-help. Authors justify their choice by saying, “I want to tell the story my way.” That’s fine - but readers will read your book through their own lenses and you can lose them.

And now I invite you to discover 101 essential truths about writing and promoting your self-help book. Discover how other professionals have found success (and why so many fail).
How To Write Your Self-Help Book .

And learn how book reviews can build your business and increase book sales. Book Reviews for Marketing .

[tags]service busines,self-publishing,,writing a book,authors,self-help[/tags]

I recently attended a meeting of a new business organization, where several fledgling entrepreneurs had been invited to share their business ideas, hoping to garner support from the audience. Members of the group were known to have resources such as financing, networking, and services that could help a startup business. The presenters’ jobs were to sell their business ideas as well as their personal competencies to develop and manage their projects.

While the first idea (for a healthy fast food venue catering to teens) was intriguing, the snappy visual presentation was liberally peppered with misspellings and bad grammar. Here is some important information: When business individuals or groups seek patronage or support from an educated target audience, they must present themselves as being competent, thorough, and serious about their goods and/or services. In this instance, a professional proofreader or editor would have been able to review and polish the presentation quickly and at very little cost. When someone is asking for support - especially money - it behooves the presenter to demonstrate professionalism and attention to detail. The presenter’s carelessness cost him.

On another occasion, I attended a networking event at my local small business association. The featured speaker introduced her new company, a data support service. The woman was very articulate in her description of her company’s services. I was impressed with the presentation and formed an initial opinion that the company was classy and professional. Brochures were then distributed and the company logo grabbed everyone’s attention - it was unique, clever, and colorful. The letdown occurred when people in the audience began to read the company literature. There were several misspellings of simple words, incomplete sentences, and bad word usage. Whispers heard throughout the room confirmed that the heretofore impressive presentation was shot down by careless, sloppy writing. With this little booklet, a talented professional deflated her top notch first impression.

People who see themselves as professionals tend to believe they are experts across the board, and seem to be defensive about their writing skills. If ego and territoriality could be set aside, more business principals would allow professional writers and editors to proofread company correspondence and literature. Delegation of responsibility is a primary job of business managers. This should include making certain that tasks are performed by those with the greatest specific expertise, even if it means outsourcing important tasks, such as editing and proofreading.

It is both foolish and arrogant to assume that your writing skills are professional unless you are a professional writer or editor. Careless writing will betray you every time.

Barb Fisher advocates the use of professional writers by those who should demonstrate high standards of professionalism. Arizona Wordsmiths - http://www.azwordsmiths.com - provides fast, low-cost writing and editing services to small businesses.

[tags]writing, editing, proofreading, entrepreneurs, professional writers, small business services[/tags]

Press releases are a wonderful way to get free publicity for your company. They have the added benefit of being free while at the same time providing useful information. Before you get these benefits, however, you must learn how to write a good press release.

Preparing to Write Your Press Release

There are a couple of things you must do before you begin writing your press release (also called media release).

1. Press releases start with the most important point and work their way down to the least important. If you don’t catch your reader’s attention right away, they will not keep reading to the end. Make a list of the points you want to cover in the media release and list them in order of importance.

2. Press releases answer the questions: who, what, when, where, why and how. Who (or what) is the news about? What is the news? When did it happen? Where did it happen? Why is this news? How will it affect the reader. Having the answers to these questions before writing your announcement makes your job easier.

Headline

The headline of a media release is your first opportunity to capture the attention of the reader. A lackluster and uninteresting headline is an immediate turnoff that makes the content of your announcement irrelevant.

So, exactly how do you write an attention getting press release headline? Media release headlines are written in an announcement style and include the company’s name.

Include your company’s latest achievement, newsworthy event or new product or service. A simple way to write a great headline is to gather the main keywords from your press release and form a logical, attention-getting statement from them.

Once you the headline written, properly format it. Announcement headlines are in bold and have a font size larger than the text of the announcement. Always capitalize the first letter of each word, but leave the rest of the headline in lowercase letters. Writing the headline after the media release is written may make the task much easier.

Body

The first line of a press release begins with the date, city and state of origin. You don’t have to include the city and state if, for example, you’re in Dallas and writing about in your company’s California office.

The first paragraph of a media release comes directly after the date and city/state and is basically a summary of the entire announcement. Similar to the headline, the first sentence of this paragraph must capture the reader’s attention while stating exactly what the announcement is about. The remaining 1 to 2 sentences explain the main point in further detail.

The remaining paragraphs elaborate on the summary provided in the first paragraph. Utilize the lists made before you started writing. The easiest way to write the rest of the announcement is to read over your lists and assemble paragraphs about the information you included, Keep in mind that the most important point(s) come first.

Close to the end of the media release, include a “call to action.” This is a very important part. Without it, your readers won’t know what to do with the information provided. A call to action, for example, may be your desire to readers buy a product/service (include where it’s available) or enter a contest (include how to do so).

Additional Points

* Paragraphs are 3-5 sentences long.

* Press releases are never longer than two pages, with the ideal length being only one. Word count is typically between 350-800 words total.

* The news in the media release should be recent and relevant. Don’t cover things that happened a long time ago.

* Avoid specialized industry jargon. If it can’t be avoided, include a definition for it.

* Don’t fill your announcement with advertisements or it will likely be rejected. The point is to provide information about recent events in your company, not sell something.

Conclusion

The conclusion of your media release is where you include information about your company and should have its own title, for example “About ABC Company.” Describe your company in 5 to 10 sentences. Include contact information. Contact information includes: company name, media contact person, physical address, telephone and fax numbers, business hours, any relevant email addresses and a link to your website.

Put three # symbols, centered on the page, as the very last line of your press release. This signifies the end of the release.

These simple guidelines ensure you are well on your way to creating a successful press release. There are many good professional writing services that write media releases on a regular basis. Contact one of them for additional information and advice.

Mike Lawson is a freelance writer, entrepreneur and internet marketing professional. Learn more about effectively marketing your business here:

Cutting-edge internet marketing information, products and services: “Your One-Stop Internet Marketing Shop”.

Custom web content, articles and copywriting from an established professional writing service: Content That Sells.

[tags]press release,media release,news release,free publicity,writing press releases[/tags]

Count the years since you attended the fourth grade. This is not about age; it is about the ability to remember details you learned a long time ago, perhaps 20, 30, 40 years or more. Here is the point. Essential rules of grammar are taught in the third and fourth grades. Are all of those rules still fresh in your mind? Are you certain your grammar skills are strong enough to present clear, intelligent information to your potential customers?

Written work often provides a customer’s first impression of your business. Good writing is clear to the reader and is a powerful expression of your commitment to excellence and detail. In your business, you write letters, brochures, advertisements, web pages, and other communications designed to deliver messages to your associates and customers. It would seem simple enough to write what you want to say, but a comma or semicolon in the wrong place can dramatically change the meaning of your message.

Homonyms, words that sound alike but have different spellings, are liberally misused. I recently received a written comment from a friend about the turtles that live in my pond. The writer inquired, “You mean their pets?” I responded, “Yes, they’re pets.” Little words that sound alike often have very different meanings. This type of mistake is exceedingly common, and catches much more attention than most people think.

Enlist professional writers to help improve your business image. Precious time and money are frequently invested in web sites, brochures, advertising, and documents full of grammatical errors and bad English usage. Here’s the thing: You have a skill or a product that is the heart of your business, and that is where your time and energy are best spent. If writing isn’t your favorite thing to do, then DON’T WRITE! There are many baby boomers around who were educated in the strict old days, when the rules of grammar, writing, and spelling were taught and continually reinforced by stern, single-minded teachers. We will be happy to point out your written mistakes for you. With the “advancements” of word processors, email, and the dreaded text messaging, many of us got a little lazy and overly complacent about the shortcuts. We forgot the importance of proper writing.

Many professional writers are not journalists or English Majors by education, but rather consider themselves “Accidental Writers” because they developed a love for writing and grammar through years spent in various professional careers. Writing services of all kinds are readily available, and tend to be very cost effective. Carefully consider the use of professionals for any written work that needs professional polish, such as, editing, research, articles, grants, proposals, articles, web content, and e-books. If you do not want to involve “hired guns” for your written output, consider a refresher course or two on grammar and business writing.

The first impression your business makes on prospective customers is critical! No business is too large or too small to benefit from a good first impression!

Barbara Fisher crusades against substandard use of grammar, spelling, and basic writing. Barb (barb@azwordsmiths.com) founded Arizona Wordsmiths to help businesses avoid mistakes that compromise the integrity of their written messages. For information go to http://www.azwordsmiths.com.

[tags]writing, grammar, editing, first impression, professional, grants, articles, web content, E-books[/tags]

Do you dream of a book with your name on it as author? You’re not alone, if you do. Researchers say 81% of us have a book dream hidden in our heart. Yet many never accomplish this lofty goal, leaving only a select portion that go on to write a saleable book.

If you’re anything like I was, you sincerely want to write your book but lack the focus and know-how to bring it to fruition. For years, I stumbled around this secret (I’m about to share with you) with little results. I used the stop and start system that didn’t work. You know the system of getting excited, starting your book, telling everyone you know that you’re writing it and then life happens. You lose focus and stop writing the book.

The manuscript goes into a drawer along with your high hopes and dreams of becoming an author. It’s probably no news to you but that system never helped me reach my goal of a completed manuscript. Then one magical day, I discovered how to write a book in 100 days or less. I set a goal (not the 100 day goal that came later.) The point is I set a goal, accomplished it and never looked back. It could be a 30 day, 48 day or 90 day goal. Whatever works for you will do.

Now, you can join that elite group of aspiring authors that write their book to completion in a few short weeks. Here’s a few tips that will help you feel the magic, get started and reach your goal of a completed successful, saleable book manuscript in 100 days or less.

1. Develop a plan. Remember, rarely anyone reaches a goal without a plan. This statement is trite but true; failure to plan is equivalent to planning to fail. Develop a plan for how you are going to complete your book in the following weeks. If you’ve never written a book before, get a plan from someone who’s been where you want to go. Sign up for a book writing course or hire a book coach. Your plan is your roadmap to success and profits.

2. Make a commitment. Prepare your mindset. Do a reality check. Don’t believe those who say you can write a book with little or no effort. If that were true, everyone would be accomplishing it, right. It’s a doable goal but it’s going to take some work, maybe even hard work and commitment on your part. Write your commitment down on paper. I’ve found nothing crystallizes your intentions better than writing them down. Make a written commitment and watch the will and determination to finish follow your action.

3. Prioritize your book project. Take it off the back burner. Move your book’s completion into your top 3 priorities. Set up a regular time schedule to write. Keep your commitment and allow the cumulative effect (doing a little bit at a time) to build. Even so, unless you want it to take years to write, you must schedule 15-20 hours writing time each week. For example, you could write 2 pages in an hour a day and have a short book in weeks.

4. Avoid over checking progress. An important key to achieving your book within the 100 day goal is to not focus on the results while you are working. It’s kind of like when one is trying to lose weight and always checking the scales. It works against your momentum. Just keep writing each day of your schedule until the 100 days is up or you finish. This way there is less chance for a break in your momentum as you see how close or how far you are from your goal.

5. Stop taking breaks too early. Don’t be so easy on yourself. As soon as one sees progress there is a natural tendency to relax. We want to put our feet up and take a break. No, don’t do that. Your goal is not achieved yet. After the 100 days is up and your book manuscript is complete, treat yourself. Take a few days off; celebrate. Then you can start your next 100 day project.

Don’t put it off any more. Take your dream off the shelf. If you wait, you can be this time next year without making your dream of writing a successful book come true. You have the plan, the knowledge and the solution. Now write it all down. Your audience is waiting. Use the magic of a 100 day goal and write a successful book. Make it different. Make it count. Make it yours.

Are you ready to get started writing your book in next 100 days or less? Go get my free 7 lesson mini-course Jumpstart Writing Your Book! You can get instant access to this ecourse and other How to Write a Book tips at the http://www.bookwritinghelp.com web site From Earma Brown, 14 year author and book writing coach

[tags]how to write a book, book writing help, book writing tips[/tags]

All aboard Walt Disney’s Railroad and Walt’s passion for his trains and dream.

Walt Disney World cast member John is passionate about trains.

As a conductor for the Walt Disney World Railroad at the Magic Kingdom Theme Park for the past 12 years, John has shared his enthusiasm and encyclopedic knowledge of Disney’s history with trains with thousands of guests, not just by driving the train but also by facilitating the magic behind our steam trains tour every Thursday.

The fascination with trains, John said, transcends generations and is something guests of all ages enjoy. “Everyone loves the power and noise of steam engines,” he said. “Kids love them because of their knowledge derived from Thomas the Tank Engine toys. It seems everyone has a grandpa, father or uncle who was a railroader at one time, and older guests often slip back to reminiscing over the good ol’ days when trains were the only way to get anywhere fast.

“And of course, some love the Disney heritage the trains represent and love how these old trains were saved from the rust heap and given a new life by Disney.” But Disney’s history with trains began long before John was hired. Walt Disney grew up in an era in which steam trains, and the promise of faraway travel they brought with them, were all the rage. After the Walt Disney Studio became established and profitable, Walt rewarded himself by having an elaborate miniature train, the Carolwood Pacific Railroad, built in his backyard. And when designing plans for Disneyland Park, he naturally included plans for a train.

The first railroad to open at the Walt Disney World Resort was the Walt Disney World Railroad, which debuted to Guests on the opening day of The Magic Kingdom Park in 1971. The railroad features four antique locomotives, and as many as three operate simultaneously on the train’s loop.

“They’re all Baldwin locomotives from right outside of Philadelphia, Penn.,” said Steam Train Engineer Josh. “We’ve got four, and the oldest is from 1916 and is the Roy O. Disney locomotive. There are two from 1925, the Walter E. Disney and the Roger E. Broggie, which are actually sister trains, they were built one serial number apart. And the last one was built in 1928 and is the Lilly Belle.”

As the resort grew, trains were added to other parks, transformed into ride vehicles for attractions and incorporated into the decor of resorts, restaurants and merchandise shops. For example, Guests at Walt Disney’s Epcot today have the unusual experience of walking through a miniature village with an outdoor train set at the Germany pavilion, themed to different holidays and park offerings, like the Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival.

At Disney’s Animal Kingdom, Guests can board Wildlife Express, which debuted in 1998 to be transported to Rafiki’s Planet Watch, where they can learn more about how they can help the environment. The train can transport 240 people and travels a 1.2-mile route along 6,335 feet of track that runs from the Harambe Village area of the park to Rafiki’s Planet Watch.

The theme parks also offer two options for wild train themed attractions: Big Thunder Mountain Railroad at The Magic Kingdom Park and Expedition Everest legend of the forbidden mountain at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad opened in 1980 and whisks guests through the southwestern U.S. mining town of Tumbleweed. In Expedition Everest a runaway steam engine tea train in the Himalayan Mountains of Asia travels on almost 1 mile of torn railroad tracks to escape the mysterious yeti.

Trains have been incorporated into the decor at various resorts, too. The Carolwood Pacific Room, a conference room at The Villas at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge, offers a valuable glimpse into Disney history, with one car and pieces of track from Walt’s original train on display. Cabins at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Lodge & Campground are decorated with paintings of trains. The Walt E. Disney suite at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa features a replica of Walt’s Carolwood Pacific Railroad locomotive among its many decorations.

Disney trains held such high interest for Guests that in 1999, Leaders at The Magic Kingdom Park launched The Magic Behind Our Steam Trains Tour, which according to John, gives some great behind the scenes information. “Many guests are surmised to learn that they are real steam driven locomotives, not make believe ones with a diesel motor under the hood. They’re also surprised that we burn fuel oil in the firebox, not natural gas. And above all, many are surprised that we clock more than 3.5 million turnstile entries (riders) each year. Not bad for a 1.4 mile long railroad.”

Tollie Schmidt, lost over 300 pounds. Tollies passion, is to end Teen & youth obesity, anorexia, depression and diet. Tollie a former WDW Cast member founded Disney Exclusive Online. A Disney Theme Park Exclusive store, Blog, news, tips.Disney Exclusive Online
Tollie’s Personal Site

[tags]disney, walt disney, disney store, walt disney world, walt disney railroad, disney train, disney wdw[/tags]

You’re a coach and you know your field. You bring the best of your expertise and inspiration to your clients. Don’t miss the golden opportunity that writing a book can bring you. If you’re good at what you do and want to reach even wider audiences, writing a book is a must in today’s competitive coaching marketplace.

Here are 10 reasons for you, the coach or thought leader, to become a published author.

1) Your book establishes you in the public eye as an expert in your field, a very effective form of branding. There is status and prestige in being the author of a published book.

2) Your book is a long-term and very substantial marketing tool, with more clout than newspaper/magazine ads or commercials on radio or TV. It gives you a strong advantage in terms of positioning yourself in a competitive marketplace.

3) Your book will help gain you access to ongoing media interviews, such as talk radio and talk TV. This is related to point #1–the perception of you as an expert. But it goes further than that. The media enjoy good story-telling, and your authorship of a book establishes you (in the mind of media and the public) as a story-teller with something interesting to share.

4) Your book gives you the opportunity to explore and express your own creativity with words and concepts in a very concrete way.

5) Your book enables you to increase the “value added” aspects of seminars, keynote speaking, presentations and coaching sessions by having the book included in the cost of your seminars, available for sale at events where you speak, available for order from your website; or as a tool you give your clients when they sign on for coaching.

6) In writing your book, you organize your thoughts and experiences and distill the most powerful wisdom of your expertise and experiences. This allows you to keep your message strong and consistent, and to find the compelling narrative arc that makes your book magnetic to your readers and clients. You can also revise as needed. It is possible to periodically publish revised editions or to produce a series of books.

7) Despite the rise of electronic media and the “sound bite” universe, consumers continue to enjoy the feeling of actually holding a book in their hands. Research has shown that even when people buy books in ebook form as internet downloads, more than 60% of e-book buyers will also buy the trade-bound form in traditional book format from bookstores, through sites such as Amazon, or placing an order from your website. Many authors have both an ebook and hardbound or softbound trade edition.

8) Your book enables you to communicate with audiences far beyond those you address directly in seminars, consultations, coachings, and keynote speeches. It’s a way to communicate with thousands of people you have never met. You strengthen your reputation as an expert. You become a thought leader in your field.

9) Your book can help provide you with spin-off opportunities, such as becoming a regular or guest columnist, producing further materials (workbooks, audio products, DVDs, teleseminars, webinars, etc.) based on the content of your book.

10) In the macro sense, writing and publishing furthers the cause of promoting literacy and of ensuring that the pleasures of good writing (which is a tradition thousands of years old) will never be lost.

Find time in your busy schedule to create a book about your expertise and become a published author. You will be happy you did.

Sharon Lindenburger is a book coach, story sense specialist, editor, journalist and author, involved with the world of book publishing for over 25 years. She has helped numerous coaches, consultants and thought leaders to develop, create, and market strong, wise, and compelling books. Visit her website at www.contentcoaching.com

[tags]coaching, writing a book, book publishing, thought leader, book coaching[/tags]

The article writing exercise is not purely about marketing and getting information out there onto the internet via the various article directories and submission services, granted many people do use it for this purpose, as it does in fact offer one of the most cost effective and efficient ways to market one’s business. However this forum and exercise of article marketing is also valid for those wishing to share their expertise and experiences when dealing with issues that affect many of us on a daily basis.

Some of these article writing themes or concepts may be relevant to specific situations, like dealing with a death in the family or teen depression. The options and subjects are practically unlimited and because we will always have something in common with someone else there your insight into a situation may prove to be beneficial to a reader that is looking for an objective opinion.

There are times in our lives where we believe we are being tested to the maximum of our abilities or capabilities and yet some or other how we manage to pull through and prevail over that situation that may have been threatening us. These situations come to light in hundreds of thousands of people’s lives and how each one deals with such a situation is usually dependant on what resources they might choose to draw upon. Some might not have any resources or may be too embarrassed or ashamed to ask for help, in which instance an article that has been written and submitted to the article directory or directories might be that very resource that person needs at the time. This article writing will have gone a long way in helping someone who stumbles across the writing at the time they need it most.

One should not feel hindered or held back to write about experiences and how exactly you managed to cope with the ordeal or the experience, just the fact that you are taking the time to express this in article writing may be the contributing factor to help someone realize that they are not alone. Even your experiences as a parent may help another parent cope with the daily trials that parenthood presents. By sharing your experiences, as well as any potential solutions you may have discovered along the way will empower your reader or readers and allow you that sense of contribution or of sharing with your fellow human being.

Make the effort to share your thoughts and experiences, in the form of article writing, this will allow you to share and provide solutions to people who may be in a similar situation and are at their wits end, not knowing what to do or how to act. It may provide them that sense of believing that things will work out in the end.

Life happens all around us and affects us in a number of ways. Perhaps an article on Avoiding Divorce
can save your marriage. Resources to be found at http://www.talkinmince.com/

[tags]article writing, article directory, article directories, articles, article submission[/tags]

You have finished your manuscript. Congratulations! Wait; before you take the next step. Is your non-fiction book title a sizzler or a dud? Remember, your title may be 90% of the pulling power for your book. It would be worth your effort to create a sizzling title for your message. Researchers say you have 4 seconds to hook your potential buyer.

An excellent title is short. The top titles are benefit driven. Don’t forget to heat your title up with emotion. Use terms your audience can relate to. Use action words and verbs. Quantify change with ways and time limits. Use one or two word ideas to tell a story. Pledge change. Spark interest.

Instead of choosing to bore her readers with “How to Write an E-book” an author friend after brainstorming chose the title “Seven Secrets to Write Your E-book Like a Winner.” She quantified change, sparked interest and branded her title.

Here are 5 common ways anyone can use to get uncommon book titles:

1. Best Seller List
Use the Best Seller list to brainstorm ideas for your non-fiction book title. Start by looking at the Best Seller list at Barnes and Nobles or Amazon. When Jason Oman and Mike Litman wanted to title their book, they modeled a popular book called “Conversations with God” and came up with “Conversations with Millionaires.” Their book achieved #1 on Amazon. Now it’s your turn; go be inspired by your favorite best sellers list.

2. Tabloids
Have you stood in line at checkout, recently? I know I have. But did you read the tabloid cover pages or picked one up to browse while you waited? The compelling headline on each tabloid is designed to reach out and grab your attention. We all know the tabloid magazines don’t sell because they’re filled with wholesome content. They sell because they’ve mastered the titling aspect of their papers. Next time you’re reading the tabloid cover, examine the titles and begin to brainstorm titles for your non-fiction book.

3. Newspapers
Newspaper headlines are designed to capture your attention. Model and compare your book title with the parts of a newspaper headline. Is your book title short and to the point? Will it capture the attention of your potential reader? When you’re reading your next newspaper, take a look at all the headlines and sub headlines. Notice how the journalist captured your attention or not.

4. Magazines
Magazine cover page article titles are my favorite example of great titles at work. Like newspapers and tabloids they must have titles that entice and pull at your interest to sell magazines. For example, which would capture your attention quicker, “7 Easy Ways to Lose Inches Off Your Waist” or “How to Lose Weight In Your Waist?” Most people are drawn to the specific results in the first title. Go get your favorite magazine and notice the article titles that captivate your attention.

5. Memes
Department stores are great places to visit and brainstorm using memes. Memes are words or visual images that tell a story at a glance. For example, visit Sears and look at the brand names of their proprietary products. The short names of these products are concepts; that tell a story in an instant. At a glance you get it.

You understand the message. Examples include Diehard batteries, Weather-Beater paints and Craftsman tools. Each products name is a concept. Think about it, which product would you be attracted to “Diehard” or “Stop Slow”. Many successful books are based on concepts or memes. For example, “A Happy Pocket Full of Money” by David Cameron tells a story of happiness and money. From the title you know this book is going to be about getting more money in your pocket.

No matter how good your book is, if you don’t title it well you may never sell as many copies as your message deserves. Now go create a book title that stirs your book reader’s interest to read

Are you ready to develop a title for your top selling book? Visit here for a FREE report Book Title Mini Tutorial at Book Title Help from Earma Brown, 14 year author, business owner. Visit her at http://www.writetowin.org for other book writing tips

[tags]non fiction book title help, how to write a non fiction book title[/tags]

Have you given up on writing your book this year? Don’t give up; you can do it. I know there are lots of discouraging reasons to just throw in the towel. A friend of mine told me a few days ago that she probably wouldn’t write her book now because people are reading less and less. I looked that statistic up and sure enough according to the National Endowment for the Arts reading has been in decline over the last decade. The overall findings say Americans are reading less than ever.

Even with these findings, I still encouraged my friend to write her book. I suggest writing for the more active audience. An active audience doesn’t have the time or don’t take the time to read long books anymore. So I say still write your important message into a book just make it a short book. Here are 5 irresistible reasons to write a short book and prosper even when people are reading less.

1. Write a short book to make it easy on yourself. Write your book into the simpler, shorter, and punchier version. Shorten your sentences, stories and analogies. Use a professional format which includes a strong heading (question) your reader needs answered and the answer. This professional formula presents the problem and solution quickly without a lot of words.

2. Write a short book to gain momentum. Completing your first book will build your confidence. I know short doesn’t mean the same thing to every person. For books, let’s agree 50-100 or so pages is short, even 140 sounds less intimidating than a 200-300 page book. Your future customers are busy and usually read only what takes the shortest amount of time. For example, a colleague of mine wanted to learn how to conduct tele-seminars. He said he didn’t hesitate buying a short book of 70 pages at $19.97 to help him learn the ropes of tele-seminars.

3. Write a short book to make it readable. Fill your short book with anecdotes, short stories and case studies. But don’t make it read like a long boring speech. It will put your readers to sleep just as a long winded speaker does. Make your short stories reflect real life situations. Your readers will love it and tell all their friends about your interesting book. The stories will breathe life into your book and keep your readers reading to the end.

4. Write a short book first to reach more people. Slash your BIG book in half. Too many aspiring writers overwhelm themselves with goals of a 365 page book first. Shorten your book to 25-90 pages the first time or divide your large book into a smaller book one and two. Though you shorten it, still fill it with useful information by using the question and answer format for each chapter. Using the same format and length for each chapter and answering all your readers’ questions will not only speed your writing process but it will result in a successful book.

5. Write a short book to get your book to market faster and profit sooner. Because your book is shorter and easier to write fast, you can expect to go to market sooner. To speed up your writing time, write your book in chunks, chapters, sections and parts. Writing this way will allow you to refine, repeat and repackage your information. Develop a continuing flow with a website, a stream of articles, reports, follow-up products and even services to build your book, your brand and your profits further.

If you don’t decide to take the shorter easier route of writing a short book first, you may be this time next year still wondering if you should or shouldn’t write a book. Don’t hesitate any longer; write a short book first and profit sooner.

Are you ready to get started writing your book? Go get my free 7 lesson mini-course Jumpstart Writing Your Book! You can get instant access to this ecourse and other Write a Short Book First tips at the http://www.writetowin.org web site From Earma Brown, 14 year author and book writing coach

[tags]write a short book first, write a book[/tags]