Clearly, she’s had great success self-publishing her e-books. So, it was a surprise when Hocking decided to sign with St. Martin’s Press, which is a very established publishing house.

Hocking has openly explained that she suffered from depression for the vast majority of her life and turned to writing as a sort of escape. She finished her first novel at 17, titled “Dreams I Can’t Remember” and was turned down by each of the 50 agents to whom she’d sent her work.  Not long thereafter, she caught a clip on YouTube of the band Blink-182’s Mark Hoppus encouraging American youth to make their dreams come true. Hocking admits having a sort of “aha” moment and realized that she could not wait for her dreams to come true. She had to put forth the effort and make them come true.

In 2009, Hocking began to treat writing as a job rather than something she did for entertainment. She wrote a few more novels, sent them off to agents, and still received only rejections. In April 2010, Hocking uploaded her novel “My Blood Approves” to Amazon, then later to Smashwords, then directly on Barnes & Noble’s site. Hocking started selling books, first a few a day, then as she uploaded more of her work, she managed to sell 26 books in one day in May. These days, the author is selling 9,000 books a day.

Just how did she do it? Well, the stories she writes are an obvious piece of her success. Her novels combine action and romance with a dash of quirk and topped off by Hocking’s creative style of writing. Additionally, by selling e-books, Hocking was able to sell the books for far less money compared to a traditional bookstore book. Therefore, people were more inclined to spend the 99 cents or $3.00 to read her work instead of dropping upwards of $15.00 for a book off the shelf of a trendy bookstore. Hocking has a very blasé attitude in regard to her success and rapid writing. When asked just how she manages to complete her work so quickly, Hocking responds on her blog, “I don’t know. I just write a lot and drink a lot of Red Bull.”

Hocking also suggests that writing paired with reading more than she writes, was instrumental in her success. She made sure to edit her novels a great deal in order to get them just right. Learning to take criticism was useful to Hocking’s success because she was able to understand that although her books weren’t for everyone, they did have an audience.

Taking a look at her blog, Hocking describes herself as an, “Obsessive tweeter. John Hughes mourner. Batman devotee. Muppet activist. Unicorn enthusiast. Fraggin Aardvarks guitarist. Author of the USA Today Bestselling Trylle Trilogy & the upcoming Watersong series.” She actively updates her blog, so her fans always have something new to read. This past October was Hocking’s second annual “Zombiepalooza!” on her blog, which ran for the entire month of October. Hocking explains that while she especially enjoys zombies, Zombiepalooza is really a celebration of all things horror and Halloween. Throughout the month, there were guest posts, giveaways, and other fun goodies, such as the “ultimate Halloween Playlist.”

John Kremer recently mentioned Amanda Hocking in a seminar about blog tours. Amanda Hocking inspired him to name a particular type of blog tour a Blogpalooza. John got the name from Hocking, after her first Zombiepalooza in October 2010. In his seminar, John also explained a few of Amanda’s stats, which were affected dramatically by Zombiepalooza. Before Zombiepalooza, Amanda had been selling about 3,000-5,000 copies of Kindle eBooks each month. She sold about 20,000 total before October 2010. In December 2010, after Zombiepalooza, she sold 100,000 copies in the month of December alone. In January, she sold 450,000 copies of her Kindle eBook novels.

In February of 2011, she made the USA Today best-seller list. By the end of February, she had sold 900,000 copies of self-published Kindle eBooks. In March 2011, her book sales totaled over 1 million copies, and she subsequently sold the rights to four of her books to St. Martin’s Press for $2 million. Some were surprised by her decision to sell her book rights, but Hocking has explained that in order to be a billion-dollar author, she needs people to buy her books at Wal-Mart. In order to get her books onto shelves, she had to partner with St. Martin’s Press.

Says Hocking, “I’m a writer. I want to be a writer. I do not want to spend 40 hours a week handling emails, formatting covers, finding editors, etc. Right now, being me is a full time corporation.  I am spending so much time on things that are not writing.”

“I like writing. I even like marketing, especially when it comes to interacting with readers. And I don’t mind editing. I just don’t want to run my corporation, because that takes away from writing and everything else that I actually enjoy doing,” concludes Hocking.

After gaining so much success, Amanda has been able to seize unique opportunities. For example, she was a featured speaker at Comic Con in San Diego. Additionally, she was able to buy a life-size Han Solo figure from Star Wars, which was encased in carbonite. The life-size figure is rare and was something Hocking had her eye on for quite some time. The unique purchase was due in great part to the success of her Zombiepalooza.

The way Hocking executed Zombiepalooza is what earned her such success. She invited people to guest-post on her website, offer free copies of their books, and contribute stories to her blog. Simply put, she asked people to come to her blog and blog. Those guest bloggers, in turn, brought their fan clubs to Amanda’s website, earning Amanda’s work more exposure and causing her to gain even more fans. Zombiepalooza was an event blog tour that really got people talking and excited about the event, making it extremely effective.

In addition to her own blog, Hocking has separate blogs for her book Virtue, My Blood Approves, The Hollows series, as well as a blog dedicated to soundtracks for her various books. Hocking follows dozens of blogs herself. Having been blogging since April 2009, Hocking has had nearly 2 million page views.  Check out Amanda’s blog to learn more about her, her work, and to see release dates of her upcoming books at http://www.AmandaHocking.blogspot.com or her facebook fan page. http://www.facebook.com/amandahockingfans

The bottom line: Amanda Hocking is an incredibly talented author. She has achieved great success in her career, largely due to marketing her novels so effectively. Amanda began writing e-books and now has a multimillion dollar book deal. Her talent for both writing and knowing how to market her books has enabled her to become a wildly successful author. Amanda Hocking has helped pave the way for authors to follow in her footsteps without the traditional ‘gatekeepers’ of publishing being involved.

Book publicist Scott Lorenz is President of Westwind Communications, a public relations and marketing firm that has a special knack for working with authors to help them get all the publicity they deserve and more. Lorenz works with bestselling authors and self-published authors promoting all types of books, whether it’s their first book or their 15th book. He’s handled publicity for books by CEOs, CIA Officers, Navy SEALS, Homemakers, Fitness Gurus, Doctors, Lawyers and Adventurers. His clients have been featured by Good Morning America, FOX & Friends, CNN, ABC News, New York Times, Nightline, TIME, PBS, LA Times, USA Today, Washington Post, Woman’s World, & Howard Stern to name a few. Learn more about Westwind Communications’ book marketing approach at http://www.book-marketing-expert.com  or contact Lorenz at scottlorenz@westwindcos.com or by phone at 734-667-2090. Follow Lorenz on Twitter @aBookPublicist

• Weird But True is an app developed by the creators of National Geographic that will keep you entertained for hours. Packed with interesting facts that will allow you to impress your friends and colleagues with newly acquired knowledge of the natural world.

• Green Eggs and Ham provides children with picture/word association and other features designed to promote early literacy. Winner of the 2011 Parents’ Choice Award, its an interactive approach to learning hidden beneath a Dr. Seuss Classic.

• 3D Classic Literature Collection lets readers enjoy their favorite American classic stories in a 3-dimensional context. Complete with high quality animation and audio, this interactive app is sure to bring your favorite stories to life to let you experience them in a way you never imagined.

• Fahrenheit 451 brings Ray Bradbury’s sci-fi story off the page and into reality with narration, puzzles, auto-bookmarking, and book references to help you find your next favorite read. Enjoy this timeless classic all over again like never before.

• Pocket Cocktails serves as a complete archive of all your favorite drink recipes. Entertain your friends, or just make yourself the ideal martini on your night off. Complete with how-to photos and festive holiday drink recipes, you’ll be the life of any party this season.

• Jack and the Beanstalk is the perfect app to keep your kids entertained whenever you need a minute to yourself. Filled with interactive games, activities, artwork, and read-along text, it’s the ideal children’s app with an educational twist. Unlike other book apps, every page has a different surprise that will keep kids engaged and involved, all at a price that won’t break the bank.
• Wizard of Oz 3D, The Experience puts a new spin on the timeless classic of Dorothy’s adventure. Enjoy L. Frank Baum’s novel in an engaging 3D interactive experience. With pop-up animation, rediscover the story and share it with friends, family, and children. Bring an old classic to life and enjoy it all over again.

• Comics is a free app that lets comic fans keep up with their favorite strips from Marvel, DC, The Walking Dead, and many more. Kill some free time in between errands or make an evening out of it while watching your favorite superhero movies.

• Nancy Drew: Shadow Ranch Lite lets users follow their favorite teen detective on her latest investigation. Choose your own path through the story and solve puzzles to help Nancy crack her latest crime. Track your progress and backtrack when you receive new clues to get on the right path!

• Our Choice is an interactive app that covers the pressing issue of global warming. As viewed by Al Gore, Our Choice takes you through various charts, articles, diagrams, and other forms of media to help users grasp the seriousness of the environmental issue. Stay informed with everything going on and find ways to lessen your environmental impact. Check out the tour by Al Gore here: http://vimeo.com/22872218

Books have made a comeback in the world of entertainment with revelations such as audio versions, 3D supplements, and smartphone apps. Let me know your thoughts on these apps and others you find. Ever thought about developing an app for your book? It won’t be long until it’ll be common place. If you jump on the bandwagon now you’ll still early in the game.

Book publicist Scott Lorenz is President of Westwind Communications, a public relations and marketing firm that has a special knack for working with authors to help them get all the publicity they deserve and more. Lorenz works with bestselling authors and self-published authors promoting all types of books, whether it’s their first book or their 15th book. He’s handled publicity for books by CEOs, Navy SEALS, Homemakers, Fitness Gurus, Doctors, Lawyers and Adventurers. His clients have been featured by Good Morning America, FOX & Friends, CNN, ABC Nightly News, The New York Times, Nightline, TIME, PBS, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, Washington Post, Family Circle, Woman’s World, & Howard Stern to name a few. Learn more about Westwind Communications’ book marketing approach at www.book-marketing-expert.com or contact Lorenz at scottlorenz@westwindcos.com or by phone at 734-667-2090. Follow Lorenz on Twitter @aBookPublicist. For iPhone app marketing check out: http://www.iphoneapppublicity.com

Murphy’s Law seems to reign freely when it comes to live radio and planning events of any sort. When I begin working with my author clients I ask them to read over material I’ve created about “How to Conduct a Great Radio Interview” and “What to Wear on a TV Interview,” etc. One of the first things I recommend is to be sure to ask radio stations in advance to record upcoming live interviews. These can then be added to the author’s web site and even transcribed to glean new content for speeches, articles or another book.

After being informed that they would not be able to record the interview with Linda Jeschofnig, CEO of Hands-On Labs, Inc., the author’s executive assistant, Joan Buck, immediately started researching how to record live streaming radio from the web to her local PC. “First, I quickly investigated the sound options in the control panel of Windows 7. No luck there. Next to the Internet where I discovered Audio Record Wizard from NowSmart Software Studio http://www.nowsmart.com/index.php.  They offer a free download, which was fast and easy.”

“Sadly, the free download only offers 3 minutes of recording time and the scheduled interview now rapidly approaching was to be 10 minutes in length. The Audio Record Wizard program featured a “buy now” button which took me directly to their site and the transaction was processed seamlessly. Their site even issues the license key immediately with the payment confirmation so there’s no need to wait for an email with that information. A quick copy and paste of the license key and I was recording the interview within seconds,” says Buck. “A couple of wayward sounds that entered the recording indicating an email on Outlook had just come in were removed with RealPlayer Trimmer software,” adds Buck.

Bottom line: Going forward, I am adding Audio Record Wizard to my list of items all authors should have on their computers. What a wonderful gift that bolt of lightning provided! We recommend this valuable tool is used on all live radio interviews that offer streaming audio on the web.

Book publicist Scott Lorenz is President of Westwind Communications, a public relations and marketing firm that has a special knack for working with authors to help them get all the publicity they deserve and more. Lorenz works with bestselling authors and self-published authors promoting all types of books, whether it’s their first book or their 15th book. He’s handled publicity for books by CEOs, Navy SEALS, Homemakers, Fitness Gurus, Doctors, Lawyers and Adventurers. His clients have been featured by Good Morning America, FOX & Friends, CNN, ABC Nightly News, The New York Times, Nightline, TIME, PBS, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, Washington Post, Family Circle, Woman’s World, & Howard Stern to name a few. Learn more about Westwind Communications’ book marketing approach at www.book-marketing-expert.com  or contact Lorenz at scottlorenz@westwindcos.com or by phone at 734-667-2090. Follow Lorenz on Twitter @aBookPublicist.

STEP 1.  Create a “Fan Page” for your book

What is the first thing you do after reading a good book?  You tell people about it!  Creating a Facebook Fan Page allows your readers to easily share with their networks the great book they just read and provides you with a free, “mini website” to interact with your fans.

Using the link above, select “Entertainment” then “Book” and follow the step-by-step instructions to begin completing your page. Once you’re done, users will be able to list your book on their info pages, interact with you, the author, and other fans on the Fan Page wall, and share the link with their friends through email and other social networking sites.

One important option to take advantage of is giving your page a username (after you reach 25 followers you’ll be able to do so). For example, https://www.facebook.com/stieglarsson  goes to the fan page author Stieg Larsson. Having a username in your URL will be much easier for people to navigate your page than suggesting they search for you on Facebook. Plus, your link looks much cleaner.

STEP 2. Keep your page updated

Once you’ve created your page, you need to keep it up to date with fresh content.  It’s standard practice to post three to four times a week (Tuesdays and Wednesdays having the highest click through rates) being conscious not to “overshare” or fans will unsubscribe from your page.

When fans post on your wall, be sure to respond to them in a timely fashion and respond to their comment or question.  Facebook is a conversation and that means both parties have to participate.

STEP 3. Give your fans content they can’t get anywhere else

You’ve accumulated some fans, now you need to keep them coming back.  Providing them with content they can’t find anywhere else rewards them for liking your page and can help you at the same time.

In the “discussions” section, you can post excerpts of your work, allowing people to read and comment on your progress. This also allows you to keep your fans up to date on whatever it is that you are working on. You simply click the “discussions” option, select “start new topic,” fill out the topic title and then write a post about it. Your fans will be free to read and reply to all posts on the discussion board.

STEP 4. “Like” it

A page allows people to “like” your book’s page. A fun fact is that when people “like” your page, it helps in your search engine rank. Google figures that if people are “liking” your page, it must be pretty good and worth seeing. One note about liking things; make sure that you click around to other author’s books and pages and “like” them. Odds are, they’ll “like” you right back!

STEP 5. Promote your book signing and speaking engagements

Say you have a book signing or a speaking engagement coming soon. Sure, you’ll post it on your blog and your website. Another option you should utilize is the Facebook “events” tool. Using the “event” function, you can create an event, like your upcoming book signing or reading, and invite all of your Facebook friends to join. You can list information like the time, location, and even directions of how to get to your event. Adding a photo to an event is always a nice touch. List as much information as you can so people will be well informed and more likely to attend. People can RSVP and even if they don’t, the event will linger on their Facebook mini-feed as a constant reminder. Use this example for inspiration. http://tinyurl.com/3lfa9oo

STEP 6. Show appreciation

Once you start to rack up Facebook friends and fans, a nice gesture of appreciation for their support might be to offer some incentives. For example, update your book’s page status to something like, “2,986 people like my book’s page so far! If I can get to 3,000 I’ll be giving away a signed copy to one of my wonderful fans!” People like free things. More importantly, people will keep checking your page not only because of your literary masterpiece, but also to see when you’re giving away more prizes. Giveaways generate interest and will help maintain and produce more fans.

Step 7. Badge and advertise

To let the public know you’ve created this fantastic Facebook page for your book, be sure to add a Facebook badge somewhere on your blog or website so people can click right over to it. Finally, consider utilizing Facebook’s advertising space. You can buy ad space on Facebook. You’ll be able to create your own custom advertisement by filling out the URL, title, and body of your ad. Then, you just have to add a photo and preview. Facebook ads allow you to choose your audience by age, sex, location, interests, even by place of employment. You’ll also be informed how many are in each demographic, which will allow you to target your advertisements to the exact market you want to reach. Facebook allows you to set a daily budget and you can also adjust it at any time, so you won’t break the bank.

So, be sure to hop on over to your Facebook account and set up a page for your book. It is an effective way to market your work and it will allow you to connect with your fans.

Book publicist Scott Lorenz is President of Westwind Communications, a public relations and marketing firm that has a special knack for working with authors to help them get all the publicity they deserve and more. Lorenz works with bestselling authors and self-published authors promoting all types of books, whether it’s their first book or their 15th book. He’s handled publicity for books by CEOs, CIA Officers, Navy SEALS, Homemakers, Fitness Gurus, Doctors, Lawyers and Adventurers. His clients have been featured by Good Morning America, FOX & Friends, CNN, ABC News, New York Times, Nightline, TIME, PBS, LA Times, USA Today, Washington Post, Woman’s World, & Howard Stern to name a few. Learn more about Westwind Communications’ book marketing approach at http://www.book-marketing-expert.com  or contact Lorenz at scottlorenz@westwindcos.com or by phone at 734-667-2090. Follow Lorenz on Twitter @aBookPublicist

Pursuing and winning book awards will give you another opportunity to reach out to the media, booksellers and agents. Awards create interest in your book, which can lead to more sales and other opportunities.  A book award may cause someone to stop in their tracks and consider picking up your book in a book store.  A book award can give you an edge and sometimes that’s all the difference you need to propel your book into bestseller territory. If you win you can say you are an “award winning author.” Doesn’t that sound better? Of course it does, and you get a little magic that comes from a third party endorsement because an authority says your work is worthy, and that’s priceless.

Most awards charge a fee to enter. Not all awards have a category for your genre and not all of these will work for every book.

Here’s a list of my Top 22 book awards worthy of your consideration.

Entering the Book of the Year Awards should definitely be on your end-of-the-year to-do list. Check it out here http://www.bookoftheyearawards.com/

Check out the National Book Critics Circle Awards and enter by December 1 http://bookcritics.org/awards/award_submissions/

The Man Booker Prize for Fiction boasts that the prize is the world’s most important literary award.  http://www.themanbookerprize.com/

The Newbery Medal was the world’s first children’s book award. Enter before December 31 http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/newberymedal/newberyapp/newberyapplication.cfm

Enter to win the Caldecott Medal before December 31 for your Children’s picture book http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/caldecottmedal/caldecottapp/caldecottapplication.cfm

IACP Cookbook Awards deadline is October 29. Check out how to enter http://www.iacp.com/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=745

Hugo Award deadline is March 26, check out science fiction’s most prestigious award details http://www.thehugoawards.org/about/

Strive to be nominated and win the Nobel Prize in literature. Who can nominate? Professors of literature and of linguistics at universities and university colleges to name a few. (Another reason it pays to keep the ties your alma mater!) http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/literature/nomination/

The Edgar Allan Poe Award for books submission deadline is August 15. See how to submit your book http://www.mysterywriters.org/?q=Edgars-Info

FT/Goldman Sachs Business Book of the Year submission deadline is June 30 https://www.eiseverywhere.com/ereg/index.php?eventid=22298&categoryid=74822

Enter to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction before February 2 http://www.pulitzer.org/how_to_enter

The National Book Award deadline is June 15. Learn how to submit your book here http://www.nationalbook.org/nbaentry.html

Submit your work by October 31 to win the Stonewall Book Award. Click for details http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/rts/glbtrt/stonewall/index.cfm

The Deadline for the Autumn House Press award for fiction is June 30. Check it out here http://www.autumnhouse.org/contest-submissions/

Enter to win the Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award deadline is December 17. Click for more details http://www.pw.org/writing_contests/hemingway_foundationpen_award

The PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction deadline is October 31. Check out how to enter http://www.pw.org/writing_contests/award_fiction

Get your book nominated for a Quill Award http://www.thequills.org/

Voting for the Indies Choice Book Awards ends March 31 http://www.bookweb.org/icba.html

Get your cook recommended for The Discover Great New Writers award http://www.barnesandnobleinc.com/for_publishers/discover_program/discover_program.html

The Nautilus Book Award seeks books that make a difference and inspire. The deadline is February 25 http://www.nautilusbookawards.com/Guidelines_for_Entering.html#How_to_Send

Enter your ebook to win Dan Poynter’s Global eBook Awards by June 30 http://awardsforebooks.com/

With book trailers being an important part of all book marketing strategies be sure to enter your book trailer in the Moby Awards. They are looking for the best…and worst book trailers. Deadline in April.

http://www.mobyawards.com/

Here’s a service where you can enter several book festivals at the same time for about $50 per festival. This is absolutely the best idea.  Just do it. www.diyconvention.com. http://bookfestivals.com/PORTAL/library/entry_form.pdf

The National Indie Excellence Book Awards competition selects award winners and finalists based on overall excellence of presentation in dozens of categories. April deadline. www.indieexcellence.com

Have you written a business book? The Axiom Business Book Awards celebrate excellence in business book writing and publishing by presenting gold, silver and bronze medals in 20 business categories. They have a year-end deadline http://www.axiomawards.com/

ForeWord Reviews sponsors the Book of the Year Awards. It’s open to all independently- and self-published books released that year. There are sixty categories, and in each category a gold, silver, and bronze winner. The deadline to enter is January. Check out: www.forewordreviews.com

Need another reason to enter? Jim Cox of Midwest Book Review says, “The fact is award stickers help to convince buyers to purchase. I’ve seen this happen with librarians — when faced with two competing titles and a limited acquisition budget the librarians will take the one that won an award, any award, over the title that doesn’t have an award to its credit. I’m confident that this same phenomena works for bookstore patrons browsing the shelves as well.”

The bottom line, book awards do matter. Enter a few and let me know how it goes. If you know of another book award I should check out, please send me the details.

Book publicist Scott Lorenz is President of Westwind Communications, a public relations and marketing firm that has a special knack for working with authors to help them get all the publicity they deserve and more. Lorenz works with bestselling authors and self-published authors promoting all types of books, whether it’s their first book or their 15th book. He’s handled publicity for books by CEOs, CIA Officers, Navy SEALS, Homemakers, Fitness Gurus, Doctors, Lawyers and Adventurers. His clients have been featured by Good Morning America, FOX & Friends, CNN, ABC News, New York Times, Nightline, TIME, PBS, LA Times, USA Today, Washington Post, Woman’s World, & Howard Stern to name a few. Learn more about Westwind Communications’ book marketing approach at http://www.book-marketing-expert.com  or contact Lorenz at scottlorenz@westwindcos.com or by phone at 734-667-2090. Follow Lorenz on Twitter @aBookPublicist

The first thing you need to do is create an account with a not-so-boring username. In my case I used what I do in the name @aBookPublicist, you could create something clever or about your book. Then you’ll need a picture or headshot, it better be a good one too, it’s the only image people will have of you so make it clean, clear, and simple

Twitter is reminiscent of the schoolyard playground, so play nice and make friends.

Upon entering the world of Twitter, your mission is to create a following. If people aren’t reading your tweets, they won’t read your book. The best way to gain a following is to follow people. Hopefully, you’ll pique their interest so they follow you in return. It won’t hurt to do a Twitter search for the subject area of your book. If you wrote a romance novel, search topics like “love,” “relationships,” and “romance,” Follow those people, pages, or groups and maybe they’ll want to follow you.

Look up magazine editors and tweet them specifically (using the @ function) to steer their attention to you and your literary masterpiece.

You should make nice with the book industry folks like book store owners, book reviewers, librarians, and your wonderful friends at Westwind Communications @aBookPublicist and let them know what you’re up to by following them. If you have a new blog post, find an article about your genre, or have new information on a speaking engagement; let them know about it by tweeting it.

You’re an author. You should follow other authors. That way, you can get tips on what is happening in the writing world, outside of your area of expertise. You’ll learn while you are promoting and what’s wrong with that?

About writing actual tweets: You’ve written an entire book, don’t ruin it all with a bad tweet. It is important, while tweeting, that you use a catchy headline and include a link. If your tweets are stupid, boring, annoying, or uneducated, no one will read them; or worse, people will unfollow you! We simply cannot have that nonsense. So, you should be sure to use keywords that relate to you and your book, attracting “tweeps” to your page and thus gaining your book recognition.

DO NOT make every single tweet a shameless self-promotion. People don’t like that. If people don’t like your tweets, that means they will not like you or your book. Tweet interesting things you come across, your genuine thoughts, and save the self-promoting tweets for about 20% of your total tweets.

Since tweets are limited to 140 characters, each letter is very valuable. Use www.tinyurl.com to shrink up those lengthy links containing fascinating information. This will give you more room to convey your personal message and to add your own touch to the tweet.

Once you gain a following, you should reward those who were kind enough to give a hoot about you in the first place. Reward your “twitterverse” by announcing a “giveaway” and give a prize to a follower selected at random. You could make them earn their prize, perhaps by re-tweeting a tweet of yours.

Remember how I said be nice and make friends? Well, Karma will help you survive in the land of social media. Re-tweet posts from people you follow. They’ll probably be flattered and thus, more inclined to re-tweet the things you post; especially if they’re interesting and relatable!

Still not convinced all this tweeting is worth it? The media follows Twitter posts as they are searchable by Google. If someone is commenting on a current event in the news and a reporter finds your tweet, you can get quoted directly or they may call you for an interview. Trust me, as a publicist I know it works.

The bottom line: Twitter is becoming a very useful tool that all authors need to utilize. Get tweeting today.

Book publicist Scott Lorenz is President of Westwind Communications, a public relations and marketing firm that has a special knack for working with authors to help them get all the publicity they deserve and more. Lorenz works with bestselling authors and self-published authors promoting all types of books, whether it’s their first book or their 15th book. He’s handled publicity for books by CEOs, Navy SEALS, Homemakers, Fitness Gurus, Doctors, Lawyers and Adventurers. His clients have been featured by Good Morning America, FOX & Friends, CNN, ABC Nightly News, The New York Times, Nightline, TIME, PBS, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, Washington Post, Family Circle, Woman’s World, & Howard Stern to name a few. Learn more about Westwind Communications’ book marketing approach at www.book-marketing-expert.com or contact Lorenz at scottlorenz@westwindcos.com or by phone at 734-667-2090. Follow Lorenz on Twitter @aBookPublicist.

1. You need a terrific website that is informative and grabs the viewer’s attention as soon as they click to your page.  A website is one of the first things someone who is interested in you will check out. If they like it they’ll contact you, if not they won’t. 

Your website is the perfect place to post a video of you at a speaking engagement or feature an article you’ve written. One way to insure your website is as good or better than others is to benchmark it against websites of your competitors or practitioners in your same field. It is also important for your website to look professional. In order to achieve a clean, professional look hire a web designer who is familiar with medical marketing to design your website. The days of doing it yourself are over.

2. Patient testimonials are a useful marketing tool and can be easily added to your website. Testimonials can be acquired by asking your patients. Simply ask them questions and videotape their responses. Once you have a few testimonials, edit and compile the videos and upload them to your website and YouTube.

3. Doctors who publish articles get asked to speak. My clients are invited to speak on a regular basis because their articles are discovered online. How? A conference organizer who is looking for a speaker on a particular topic will search the Internet for someone demonstrating that expertise. If you have an article on that topic they can find you. It’s that simple. When writing articles, it is important to understand that you have two main audiences. First, you have patients. Second, you have your peers. Your patients are not going to understand the serious medical lingo that your peers might. One solution to this issue is to develop two different websites; one for patients and one for your fellow doctors. With a peer-friendly website, you can add the more technical articles and information. On your patient-friendly website, you can put things in layman’s terms which patients will understand and appreciate.

4. Position yourself as an expert in your particular medical field. One option is to add the word “expert” after the topic you are expert in. For example, one of my doctor clients is a “propofol expert.” If someone were to search a topic of interest online and add the word “expert” to their search, the experts in that area would show up in the search results. Go ahead try – it. Search on “propofol expert.” You’ll find Dr. Barry Friedberg. By finding your specific expertise and promoting it via articles and press releases, when people need an expert in your field, you will be sure to pop up in their Internet search. You can also get yourself listed as an expert by visiting www.expertclick.com or www.authorsandexperts.com.

5. Writing a book is an excellent way to publicly demonstrate your expertise. The most common approach is to write a book proposal and then find an agent who will present your proposal to a publisher who will publish your work. A different approach is to compile past articles you’ve written and then self-publish your book. Visit www.Book-Marketing-Expert.com for ideas on publishing and promoting your book. Whichever route you choose, your book will show the media that you are serious about the work you do.

6. Now that you have your book written and published, what do you do with it? The answer? Promote it! You can either promote the book yourself or hire a PR firm to get the word out and promote the book for you. The PR firm will create a press kit, which includes a press release, a bio of the author, sample media questions, as well as a fact sheet that covers some of the issues in your book along with excerpts and direct quotes from your book.  You can also sell your book at the end of a speech or require the people who  schedule your speech to buy “X” number of books to give to the participants. For more strategies on book promotion check out www.WestwindCos.com

7. While searching for speaking engagements, be sure to visit these useful websites. First is www.ProfNet.PRnewsWire.com, which sends out media and speaking leads to PR executives and communications representatives at hospitals, associations and universities. A second website to utilize is The National Speakers Association (www.NSASpeaker.org). Another website, www.DoctorsReview.com, has two thousand scheduled meetings readily available on their site. On the DoctorsReview.com page, you can narrow your results by searching for a specialty or travel destination. A final suggestion is to visit www.projectspropublica.org/docdollars to gain an idea of who is paying doctors to speak.

8. In order to be a successful speaker, I recommend presentation and media training. A good friend of mine, Jess Todtfeld, was Bill O’Reilly’s producer at Fox for many years, and also worked at NBC, ABC, and CBS. Jess’s website www.successinmedia.com offers media training in both New York and Los Angeles. On his site, you can also find advice on how to pitch to the media and how to create an effective speaking presentation. Media training will help you improve your speaking skills as you will learn to speak succinctly.

9. Another way to gain speaking arrangements is to reach out to the media directly. The Harrison Guide to Top National Media and Interview Shows is an effective way to gain access to the media. For example, each of the top shows from Good Morning America to Dateline list the dozens of producers’ contact information. Another resource is called Media Atlas; they offer an online database you can access. It is easy to go online through these options and hone in on a specific audience and get in touch with the media associated with them. Once you’ve identified a member of the media that covers your topic, send them a pitch letter and a press release.

10. Finally, there are free online services you can utilize to publicize yourself and your book. CraigsList www.craigslist.org is a great place to post a number of press releases and it does, in fact, work to your advantage. Depending upon your topic, people do search for all types of things on CraigsList. Two other websites are www.PRAvenue.com and www.PR-Inside.com where you can also post releases along with photos and video at no charge. All three of these free websites are fine options for your press release to gain circulation online.

One more thing. Keep your Curriculum Vitae (CV) up to date with education, affiliations and articles as you may be asked to email it to a prospective customer on the spot. Furthermore have new headshots taken so your photos look like you and not your high school yearbook.

If you follow these steps you’ll be well on your way to obtaining more speaking engagements. For a more detailed strategy with tips and articles on these subjects visit http://www.WestWindCos.com.

Scott Lorenz is President of Westwind Communications, a public relations and marketing firm. Lorenz works with doctors, lawyers, inventors, authors, start-ups and entrepreneurs. As a seasoned publicist he is often called upon in the early stages of a company’s existence to get them “on the radar.” His clients have been featured by Good Morning America, FOX & Friends, CNN, ABC Nightly News, ESPN, New York Times, Nightline, TIME, PBS, NPR, USA Today, Washington Post, Woman’s World, & Howard Stern to name a few. To learn more about Westwind Communications visit www.WestwindCos.Com or contact Lorenz at scottlorenz@westwindcos.com or by phone at 734-667-2090. Follow Lorenz on Twitter @aBookPublicist

Authors who want to sell books need to do what anyone else with a product needs to do – find the place in the marketplace where your buyers can be found. And, in the case of authors, readers will be found in largest numbers at book fairs, festivals and conferences.

Book fairs and festivals are held every season around the world so it’s a fairly easy task to locate one to promote your book. As an internet book marketing specialist, I am the first to impress on authors the new and powerful marketing avenues open to all authors on the Internet – from book websites to book trailers to social networks like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. While these are fantastic tools when used properly, authors should never overlook opportunities to meet the reading public face-to-face.

Book fairs usually want speakers. By volunteering to speak, the author not only gains great exposure but can also add that appearance to their resume and press releases. But plan ahead; dates for panel participants, speakers and autograph sessions are arranged months in advance.

Book fairs are excellent places to interact with fellow authors, publishers, network with book industry leaders, locate the help you need such as a publicist or book editor, and learn what’s new in the marketplace. For more information about book marketing visit http://www.book-marketing-expert.com and for upcoming book events on C-SPAN2 visit: http://www.BookTV.org. For a great blog about book fairs by the LA Times go to http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/jacketcopy/book-festivals/

Here’s a list of upcoming book fairs and events that are worthy of your attendance in 2011.

1.       2011 Dayton Book Expo, Christian Writers Marketplace, April 30, 2011, Sinclair Community College, Dayton, Ohio A great opportunity for authors of books on Christian topics. www.Daytonbookexpo.com

2.       Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, April 30-May 5, 201. The festival attracts more than 150,000 readers. www.latimes.com/extras/festivalofbooks/

3.       South Carolina Book Festival, May 14-15, 2011, Colombia Metropolitan Convention Center, Columbia, SC, more than 6,000 book lovers attend www.scbookfestival.org/

4.       BookExpo America, May 23-26, 2011, Jacob Javits Center, NYC, the premier North American publishing event of the year www.bookexpoamerica.com

5.       Printers Row Lit Fest, June 4-5, 2011 Chicago, Illinois at Dearborn and Polk street. A large book fair attended by more than 100,000 book lovers http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/books/printersrowlitfest/

6.       American Library Association Annual Conference June 23-28, 2011, New Orleans, LA, some 2,000 seminars and events plus a huge trade show. http://www.alaannual.org/

7.       International Christian Retail Show (ICRS) July 10-13, 2011, Atlanta, GA  http://www.christianretailshow.com/ Considered the best show for Christian authors according to Sara Bolme author of Your Guide to Marketing Books in the Christian Marketplace http://www.marketingchristianbooks.com

8.       Harlem Book Festival, July 23, 2011, West 135^th Street, NYC www.qbr.com/

9.       The Atlanta Black Book Expo, August 6, 2011 at the Georgia International Convention Center in College Park, GA. http://www.abbexpo.com

10.   Decatur Book Festival, Sept. 2-5, 2011, Decatur, GA,  largest independent book festival in the country. Since its launch, more than 600 authors and 190,000 attendees have attended this event in downtown Decatur. http://www.decaturbookfestival.com/Community/index.php

11.   Fall For the Book Festival, Sept. 18-23, 2011, George Mason University’s Fairfax Campus, Fairfax, VA., sponsored by George Mason University, Fairfax County Public Library and Barnes & Noble. Attended by more than 150 authors. http://www.fallforthebook.org

12.   Baltimore Book Festival, Sept. 23-25, 2011, attracts more than 100 authors.  www.baltimorebookfestival.com/

13.   Sonoma County Book Festival, September 24, 2011, Old Courthouse Square, Santa Rosa, CA. attended by thousands of book lovers. http://www.socobookfest.org

14.   West Hollywood Book Fair, October 1, 2011, at West Hollywood Park, more than 180 exhibitors expected. http://www.westhollywoodbookfair.org

15.   Frankfurt Book Fair, October 12-16, 2011 in Frankfort, Germany. Considered the biggest book show in the world. www.book-fair.com

16.   Southern Festival of Books: A Celebration of the Written Word October 14-16, 2011, War Memorial Plaza, Nashville, TN, attracts more than 200 authors from throughout the U.S. http://www.humanitiestennessee.org/festival/current.php

17.   Texas Book Fair, October 22-23, 2011, State Capitol Building, Austin, TX, established in 1995 by First Lady Laura Bush, a former librarian, more than 45,000 attend. www.texasbookfestival.org/

18.   Kentucky Book Fair, Saturday, November 12, 2011, Frankfort Convention Center, attended by up to 5,000 people including 150 authors http://kybookfair.org/

The bottom line: Make it a priority to visit a book fair in the coming weeks and months. You’ll be glad you did!

Book publicist Scott Lorenz is President of Westwind Communications, a public relations and marketing firm that has a special knack for working with authors to help them get all the publicity they deserve and more. Lorenz works with bestselling authors and self-published authors promoting all types of books, whether it’s their first book or their 15th book. He’s handled publicity for books by CEOs, CIA Officers, Navy SEALS, Homemakers, Fitness Gurus, Doctors, Lawyers and Adventurers. His clients have been featured by Good Morning America, FOX & Friends, CNN, ABC News, New York Times, Nightline, TIME, PBS, LA Times, USA Today, Washington Post, Woman’s World, & Howard Stern to name a few. Learn more about Westwind Communications’ book marketing approach at http://www.book-marketing-expert.com or contact Lorenz at scottlorenz@westwindcos.com or by phone at 734-667-2090. Follow Lorenz on Twitter @aBookPublicist

There are several reasons to rename a book such as adding a subtitle to be friendlier to search engines. Another important reason is to get a new copyright date because many book critics will not review an old book and reviewers often define an “old” book as one with a copyright of more than a year old.

Margaret Mitchell first gave the title “Pansy,”  the original name for Scarlett O’Hara, to her epic novel. That title was dropped as soon as MacMillan convinced Mitchell to rename her main character. She then considered the titles of “Tote the Weary Load” and “Tomorrow is Another Day,” the latter being taken from the last line in her novel. When MacMillan objected to these two titles, Mitchell reconsidered and suggested “Gone With The Wind.”

Sometimes just a minor tweak in the title will pay off big, such as “Harry Potter and The Philosopher’s Stone” being renamed “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.” “Philosopher’s Stone” was the first novel in the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling when it was first published in  London in 1997. The next year it was republished in America with the “Sorcerer’s Stone” change made in the title and it reached the New York Time’s best-selling fiction list in August 1999.

Other examples of books that were re-titled include:

• “The Last Man in Europe” to “1984”
• “The Dead Un-Dead” to “Dracula”
• “Catch 18” and “Catch 11” to “Catch 22”
• “Atticus” to “To Kill a Mockingbird”
• “First Impressions” to “Pride and Prejudice”
• “Fiesta” to “The Sun Also Rises”
• “Strike” to “Atlas Shrugged”
• “Mistress Mary” to “The Secret Garden”

I think you get the point. Tanya Hall of Greenleaf Book Group  (www.greenleafbookgroup.com) tells of the renaming of a book that made a big difference for Greenleaf: “Gregg Crawford approached us seeking distribution services for his book, ‘Execute or Be Executed’, originally published in 2006,” says Tanya. “We saw potential in the book but it definitely needed to be repackaged and re-titled to stand out in the crowded business genre. Gregg agreed to our suggestions, and the end result was ‘The Last Link: Closing the Gap That is Sabotaging Your Business’ which was published in March, 2007 by Greenleaf Book Group Press and became our first New York Times bestseller.”

Many of the authors with whom I work do not subtitle their book which is a big mistake. A subtitle allows for a book title to contain more searchable terms which, in this day of search engine optimization, is a major consideration. Remember that people use Google, Bing and Yahoo! to search for information they need immediately – help that fills their needs, wants and desires. You want to be their Answer.

Authors should always  be open to suggestions made by editors and publishers. You may love your title but the publishing company that makes millions of dollars each year selling books knows a lot more about titles that sell than you do.

So be ready to rename your book if that new title will attract more readers and sell more books. If in doubt, ask Margaret Mitchell, or J.K. Rowling, or Ernest Hemingway, or George Orwell or ….. Want to rename your book? Bounce an idea off me at: scottlorenz@westwindcos.com.

Book publicist Scott Lorenz is President of Westwind Communications, a public relations and marketing firm that has a special knack for working with authors to help them get all the publicity they deserve and more. Lorenz works with bestselling authors and self-published authors promoting all types of books, whether it’s their first book or their 15th book. He’s handled publicity for books by CEOs, Navy SEALS, Homemakers, Fitness Gurus, Doctors, Lawyers and Adventurers. His clients have been featured by Good Morning America, FOX & Friends, CNN, ABC Nightly News, The New York Times, Nightline, TIME, PBS, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, Washington Post, Family Circle, Woman’s World, & Howard Stern to name a few. Learn more about Westwind Communications’ book marketing approach at www.book-marketing-expert.com or contact Lorenz at scottlorenz@westwindcos.com or by phone at 734-667-2090. Follow Lorenz on Twitter @aBookPublicist.

As a professional book publicist, (www.book-marketing-expert.com) I am frequently asked to find an agent for my clients. While I know many agents and publishers and work with them, it’s not what I do. But, from time to time, I find someone who can really help out my clients and I’ve found that person. His name is Jeff Rivera, founder of Gumbo Writers based in New York City.

Rivera has been featured or mentioned in the Los Angeles Times, Publishers Weekly, School Library Journal, New York Observer, Fast Company, TMZ, NPR, Billboard Magazine, Huffington Post, and many other publications. Rivera interviews high profile power players such as Janet Evanovich, Jeff Kinney, Seth Godwin, Philippa Gregory and James Patterson for Mediabistro’s “Galley Cat” considered the publishing world’s TMZ.

Jeff’s query writing service is the #1 service of its kind. He crafts the perfect query letter for you, then selects the right literary agents to pitch to and sends the query out to them. Jeff guarantees at least 10 top agents will request your manuscript or book proposal. Jeff says this has worked successfully for more than 100 clients. That’s remarkable when you think that many writers cannot get even one literary agent to request their work, let alone read it. His record is over 200 agents requesting one client’s work. For one of my clients he got 19 requests. I was astounded and so was my client.

“Most aspiring writers have shot their chances of ever being represented by a literary agent before the agent has even had a chance to read their query letter,” explains Rivera. “Why? Because agents and people like me who work in the book publishing industry, know in two-seconds flat who is professional and who is not, just by a simple glance at their query letter.”

Rivera, who has ghost written countless successful query letters for clients, stresses that first impressions are everything and that there are a few common mistakes aspiring writers make over and over again that block them from being taken seriously. “It’s really unfortunate because there are some very talented writers out there but writing a query letter is a whole other art,” adds Rivera.

As a book promotion specialist who deals daily with the media, I learned a long time ago that a common mistake in crafting pitch letters is making them too long. The same is true of query letters to an agent. A query letter should be no more than half a page. You have to know exactly what agents want to hear, what they’re looking for. Tell them only that and end the letter right there! Keep it short, keep it sweet and you’ll be one step closer to landing an agent.

The next key to a successful pitch letter to the media and a successful query letter to an agent is the first sentence. Here are some ways to grab an agent’s attention in the very first sentence:

• Start with a question that makes them ponder
• Talk about a dramatic moment in your personal life that connects with the book you’ve written
• Tell them immediately about your platform
• Compliment them on a specific recent sale
• Tell them who referred you

Remember that referrals are an aspiring author’s best friend. If you can find someone the literary agent knows to recommend you, or at least someone who will allow you to use their name in an introduction, you’ll be ten steps ahead of everyone else. When someone else refers you or recommends you to an agent, you are brought in at that same level. You don’t start from ground zero, like all the other aspiring authors, but begin on a whole other plane. Always, always, always get the person’s permission to use their name before you mention them. And because you’ve gotten their permission your referral person also may even be kind enough to give the literary agent a call or email to let them know that you’ll be reaching out to them.

Remember that agents are in the business of selling books. They’re not our best friends, they’re not our therapists, and they’re not our life coaches.  The best agents put their nose to the ground, they focus on what they do best which is generating enough excitement on a book and sell it for as high a price as possible. When you get paid, they get paid. End of story.

One novelist hired Rivera who wrote one sentence about what the novel was actually about. “Don’t you think we should tell them more about it?” the client asked. Rivera told him, “Who cares what it’s about? You’re a regular guest on Fox News.”

A book agent or book publicist can turn your manuscript into a best seller – if you listen carefully and follow their advice. You know how to write – they know how to sell your book.

The bottom line: Why reinvent the wheel? Sign up with an “agent’s agent” like Jeff Rivera by dropping him a note at query@gumbowriters.com and then listen to his advice.

Book publicist Scott Lorenz is President of Westwind Communications, a public relations and marketing firm that has a special knack for working with authors to help them get all the publicity they deserve and more. Lorenz works with bestselling authors and self-published authors promoting all types of books, whether it’s their first book or their 15th book. He’s handled publicity for books by CEOs, Navy SEALS, Homemakers, Fitness Gurus, Doctors, Lawyers and Adventurers. His clients have been featured by Good Morning America, FOX & Friends, CNN, ABC Nightly News, The New York Times, Nightline, TIME, PBS, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, Washington Post, Family Circle, Woman’s World, & Howard Stern to name a few. Learn more about Westwind Communications’ book marketing approach at www.book-marketing-expert.com or contact Lorenz at scottlorenz@westwindcos.com or by phone at 734-667-2090. Follow Lorenz on Twitter @aBookPublicist.