New ISBN's Arrived & Review Tips

What an exciting month January has been! Our new ISBN numbers have arrived and we have some titles in the works. The first month of 2008 has been full of excitement and wonder. We are working with a company in Michigan on our new website development so our new look will be out within a few months.

In this blog entry we will discuss a few do's and do not's on getting reviews. As a publisher, and as an author, reviews are so very important and they can make or break a book depending on how important the review is. Over the years we have learned the following things:

• Do NOT send unsolicited materials to reviewers! Do your homework and see what genre the reviewer is seeking. After you find out that your book is appropriate, see their policy on receiving your book. Some reviewers prefer to know about your title before you send it and they also prefer a particular method of contact. Save yourself some time and money by doing it right the first time.

• DO make sure you have a stellar media kit to send out with your book.

• DO send your book in a way that can be tracked. This will help you to know that the book has been received and when to time your follow up.

• Do NOT expect a review from every reviewer you send a copy to. Reviewers receive hundreds of books a day and unless you are paying for the review it could take months for the review to come out.

• DO send your title out with some type of interesting package. Representatives of Midwest Book Review have told us in the past that attractive outer packaging will entice a reviewer to check that book out first. So, be creative and stick with a theme that matches the title and something that will make your book memorable.

In general there are many outlets to get your title reviewed and even the reviews you will gather on sites like Amazon can be helpful. You will use your reviews to help gather other reviews, for new back cover material on your next title or when you reprint, on your site and to help promote you and your work.

As always we are here to help and if you are looking to publish we would be glad to speak with you. Just visit Corn Crib Press for all of our contact information. Good luck and may your book be on the next bestseller list!

Some Help For New Authors

This may be repetitious for some authors considering most of us have grown up in the computer and Internet generation, but for many authors gaining publicity for their book is difficult and even the most net savvy author can have some trouble. Many authors I know have publicity agents, subscribe to numerous publications to provide sales and media leads and others rely solely on word of mouth to get the buzz going. Which one works the best? Well, they all have their merits.

One of the first things Corn Crib Press advises their authors is to get a web site. Even though your publisher has a web site and your book can be seen on the major networks it's always wise to own your own domain. This allows you, as the author, to promote yourself and your title by using an ever popular blog, creating a media room with your press kit and information, allowing for interaction with readers and potential readers and having a place to post reviews of your work. Utilizing this tool with word of mouth and your media coverage is a stellar combination.

Authors will usually ask us about what type of content should be placed on their site. We always advise that a picture of your cover with all the publishing information be one of the first things that a visitor sees. You should include a section with all of your press materials and one for all of your media reviews. If you schedule events there should also be a landing zone on your site for visitors to find out where you will be speaking. Make your audience have the best interactive experience you can.

Costs for a web site can be as little or as much as you want them to be. If you are willing to build and maintain your site the cost can be just what you pay for hosting a month. If your savvy with computers this might be the option for you. If you're looking for something amazing that you can build there are many companies out there that can do the work for you, but you'll have to pay for their services. Remember that you will always need to keep the site updated.

Make sure after you have your site up and running to let your publisher know it's there. Often we will link directly from our site to the authors to provide the most up to date information about the book, media and any publicity the book receives. This is also where your word of mouth campaign is extended. Your friends, readers and reviewers have a spot to check you out and many times they will email the link to their friends or people that might find your work interesting.

Stay tuned for more hints, help and updates!

A New Start!

Hello People!

Corn Crib Press is officially up and going. We have new ISBN's on their way and a great web site that's getting ready to be released! I'm so excited! This has been my dream for quite some time now.

I've spent 8 years of my life working and running another publishing company and now I have my own. The biggest challenge will be getting new authors to sign up with me. I know the services we offer will be very appealing to many writers that want their works published!

This blog will give advice, tips and hints on how to be published and what you should know before you consider publishing. I've heard so many horror stories about people trying to publish their work or using companies that just supply one book at a time making it impossible to be picked up by Barnes & Noble and Amazon, to only name a few.

So, let's keep this positive and may we have a very successful 2008!