iUniverse Return Author Publishing Promotion

iUniverse wants to encourage their authors to publish again with this "retunr-flight" offer. So when you purchase 2nd publishing package before March 8, you’ll save 20% off the regular price. It's kind of like that Xlibris promotion "publishing your 2nd book free."

Promotion Description: Save 20% off the regular price of a Premier Pro, Premier or Select Publishing Package.
Code: DSC20

Xlibris Launches A Book Exhibition Marketing Campaign

A trade show can really help your sales by hitting the right target audience. Xlibris’ Book Exhibition Marketing service now gives you the power to do so - that's straight from their website.

With a choice of over 20 shows each year at which to display your book and unleash the full potential of your marketing campaign by establishing a physical presence. Their packages combine the book exhibit with the Press Release Service and a Newswire campaign.

The packages range from $999 to about $1800

It includes the following shows just in case some of you out there might be interested

Show Name	Show Date
American Library Association Midwinter	11 Jan -14 Jan 2008
American International Toy Fair	17 Feb -20 Feb 2008
Michigan Reading Association	15 Mar -17 Mar 2008
London Book Fair New Title Showcase	14 Apr -16 Apr 2008
Public Library Association	25 Mar -29 Mar 2008
Florida Library Association	23 Apr -24 Apr 2008
Texas Library Association	15 Apr -18 Apr 2008
Bookexpo America New Title Showcase	29 May - 01 Jun 2008
Connecticut Library Association	28 Apr -30 Apr 2008
New Jersey Library Association	29 Apr -30 Apr 2008
Pennsylvania School Library Association	01 May -03 May 2008
Beijing International Book Fair	03 Sep - 07 Sep 2008
Bookexpo Canada New Title Showcase	15 Jun -16 Jun 2008
American Library Association Annual	28 Jun - 01 Jul 2008
National Education Association	01 Jul -03 Jul 2008
Frankfurt International Book Fair	15 Oct -19 Oct 2008
Ohio Library Council	12 Sep -12 Sep 2008
Illinois Library Association	03 Oct - 05 Oct 2008
New England Library Association	19 Oct -21 Oct 2008
California Library Association	14 Nov -16 Nov 2008
New York Library Association	05 Nov -11 Nov 2008
Pennsylvania Library Association	10 Nov -11 Nov 2008

Visit the Xlibris website for more details about this book exhibition service

Be Inspired To Keep On Writing

This Authorhouse article attempts to answer, "Where do you draw your inspiration from?"

What sparks your inspiration?

Since hiring a muse isn’t as affordable as it used to be, inspiration for your writing may need to come from other sources. Life’s daily experiences can be a great source for material, and will provide your story with an authentic feel. Intertwining real events into your fiction could make the perfect murder mystery, or maybe a news broadcast will inspire the content of your next chapter. You could also weave anecdotes from events in your life into your narrative. The key is being aware of the details around you, because ideas may come from anywhere at any time—always be armed with your notepad and pen.

What keeps you writing?

When you begin to feel like your ideas just aren’t flowing and your progress has stalled, take a break. Though it’s important to stick to a writing schedule, breaks are just as essential to maintaining your creativity and writing stamina.

Take some time to think about your best and worst life experiences. What emotions make theses events stand out, and how did they change your life? As horrible as your worst experience may seem, you may find humor in it, or develop a dark mystery from it.

If you’d rather stay away from personal stories, go out and find a good spot in town to observe people as they interact around you. Pay attention to how people carry themselves and the way they converse with each other. What can you learn about someone by the details you notice? Incorporate these kinds of details into your story, and model the flow of your dialogue after real conversations.

So you have an idea for your story’s plot. You may now be wondering where do I base my story? Again, reference the “real-world” for a wealth of new ideas. Sit out in a park and observe how children play, or sit at a pub and see how the after work crowd interacts. Find a location that piques your interest and write a detailed description of the setting. You can use these notes to portray a detailed scene for your reader, making your narrative much more realistic and accessible.

Inspiration can be as fleeting as it is motivating. Keep yourself on track to meet your publishing goals by taking breaks often and constantly being on the lookout for new sources of material.

Express Book Publishing Package By iUniverse - Your Book Out In 45 Days

iUniverse just launched the Express Publishing Package, dubbed as the fastest publishing option in the market. It is a book publishing package that offers the same basic features of our Select Publishing Package but is designed for authors who need to have their book available by a specific date. If you have an event or special occasion scheduled in the next 60-90 days because according to iUniverse website, your book will be available for order in the iUniverse bookstore about 45 days after you complete your manuscript submission. This package costs $1,199 and is only for online submissions.

"The Express Publishing Package is another example of our ongoing efforts to increase and diversify the range of services we offer to aspiring authors," said Kevin Weiss, chief executive officer of iUniverse's parent company Author Solutions. "Most importantly, this offering meets the expedited needs of authors who have an event or special occasion scheduled in the next 60-90 days."

Priced at $1,199, Express offers the same basic features of the iUniverse Select Publishing Package but is designed for authors who need to have their book available by a specific upcoming date. Among its many features, Express includes ISBN assignment, custom cover design, up to 10 free production-ready interior graphics, one free paperback copy and worldwide distribution through the Barnes & Noble and Amazon online bookstores.

This is one of the most aggressive publishing packages I've seen to-date. I think Outskirts Press offers the same quick turn-over for a lower rate, they are quite comparable. You have to make sure though that you follow a strict schedule. iUniverse even mentions that author copy should be returned in 5 days so that's pressure on the author to deliver as well.

Book Publishing the Traditional Way -- The Role of A Literary Agent

For those interested in publishing your book through traditional means, by "traditional" I mean quite the opposite of "self publishing." While in self publishing, it is the author that pays for the publishing service, in traditional publishing - the publishing house purchases the rights to print and publish the author's book.

I'm going to post a couple of entries that are directly related to helping to get your work out. This will involve people you should know, steps you may want to take as well as important information that could help you get your book published or steer you away from fraudulent personalitties only looking to take advantage of writers and authors.

Let's start with the roles of a Literary Agent. To become a traditionally published author, you may have to establish contact with one of these. From Get Published! by Susan Driscoll, here are some of their functions as gatekeepers for most traditional publishing houses:

1. They have close working relationships with many editors and are careful to send them only quality works that they believe in as well as those they know suit a particular editor’s taste or a publisher’s range of categories


2. They assess the quality and marketability of an author’s proposal or manuscripts to determine whether they think it’s salable to a publisher.


3. They negotiate in behalf of the author to get the most money and best terms.


4. They are responsible for ensuring that the author agreement is in line with industry standards


5. They often become the points of contact for authors throughout their writing careers


6. Reputable ones don’t take a penny until the ink has dried on your contract


7. They are selective in accepting clients.

Be wary when choosing a literary agent. This person will be your guide into the world of publishing.

Xlibris Book Publishing Promotion

Xlibris has three February specials.

1. Publish 2 books for the price of 1 (second submission is fully transferable and is valid for up to two years)



2. Cash discounts of up to $1,950



3. Free upgrade to the next service level.

Booksurge Publishing Promotion

Booksurge Special Offer

Show your book some love in the month of February with special savings. Receive a free Unique cover when you sign up to publish with Total Design Freedom.

iUniverse Publishing Promotion

Promotion Description:

Save $200 off the regular price of a Premier Pro Publishing Package. $1,299 NOW ONLY $1,099
Code: 200FEB

Save $150 off the regular price of a Premier Publishing Package. $899 NOW ONLY $749
Code: 150FEB

Save $100 off the regular price of a Select Publishing Package. $599 NOW ONLY $499
Code: 100FEB

Booksurge Increases Author Royalties

Here's some self publishing news for those who want to earn a little extra something as published authors. If you take a look at Booksurge...

Effective February 1, BookSurge increased the royalty rates authors receive on sales of trade paperback books through all retail channels from 25% to 35%; this includes sales coming through from Amazon.com, Alibris.com, Abebooks.com and the BookSurge online bookstore.

Learn more about their new royalty rates here

Xulon Press And The International Christian Retail Show 2008 Publishing Promotion

Xulon Press is set to attend the annual International Christian Retail Show (ICRS) convention hosted by the Christian Booksellers Association (CBA).

February is the LAST MONTH for you to get in on this once-a-year opportunity - and to SAVE $500. Xulon Press is already preparing for this annual mega Christian book conference, which will be held this year in Orlando, Florida. We're designing a beautiful exhibit and training the staff to talk about our books to curious onlookers.

You can get published for as little at $999, and $500 OFF the regular cost of Xulon Press' "Best-Seller" program (this gets your book in our exhibit at the Christian book convention). The deadline to submit your manuscript is February 29, 2008.

More Self Publishing POD Promotions This February

Apparently Booksurge and Outskirt Press also have their own publishing promotion for February according to this entry by PODdymouth, how true that is you'll have to validate on your own cause I certainly can't find it on their websites.

Anyway Booksurge apparently has a Plus 1 book offer for every 5 you order and Outskirt press is giving away a diamond necklace if you get their Diamond publishing package before Valentine’s day. Hmmm... a little too much I think. Sounds exaggerated.

Xlibris Book Publishing Promotion - 2 for the price of 1

Xlibris, the only one left of the big 3 self publishing companies, still standing alone (or appears to be anyway) has an offer this month that allows authors to buy 2 publishing packages for the price of one. So to say that backwards would be that you pay for one publishing package but get two of them. Sounds like a lot to give out but who am I to complain?

Here are their Black & White and Full Color Publishing Packages:

Publish 2 Books for the Price of 1
Advantage	- $299 (special offer does not apply)
Basic	- $ 499
Professional	- $899
Custom	- $1,599
Premium	- $2,999
Executive	- $5,999
Platinum	- $12,999

* Please note that the second submission does not include books.

February Cash Discounts If you only have one book to publish, then take advantage of our February Dollar Discounts. Save up to $1,950 on the publishing package of your choice.

Advantage	- Streamlined and practical. Perfect for books with simple design requirements - $299 (special offer does not apply)
Basic	- An economical service with multiple design options – NOW $424, SAVE $75
Professional	- Interior customization and graphics with hardback availability – NOW $764, SAVE $135
Custom	- Have total control over complex design and text formatting – NOW $1,359, SAVE $240
Premium	- A full-service package with an extensive marketing campaign – NOW $2,549, SAVE $450
Executive	- VIP service, full customization and up to 125 books – NOW $5,099, SAVE $900
Platinum	- An incomparable assortment of publishing, marketing, and editing services that will cater to your every need - NOW $11,049, SAVE $1,950

Authorhouse Free Website Offer Extends In Feb

Authorhouse has decided to extend their free website when an author decides to publish with them. They already had this same promotion last month. Maybe it worked for them? Anyway it's set to run for the whole month of February

Special offer extended:
Publish in February and get a Free Author Web Site

Sign up to publish a book by the end of the month and get a free author web site to promote your book. In addition, AuthorHouse is providing authors who choose the Standard Paperback Publishing option 20 free paperback copies of their completed book. Special offers are also available to authors choosing to self-publish children’s books and poetry books.

Offer expires on February 29th; cannot be combined with other offers.

iUniverse Valentine Publishing Promotion

iUniverse (the self publishing company that just fused with Authorhouse) is offering free copies of your book when you publish before Valentines Days or Feb. 15 to be exact

Promotion Description:	Code:*
Receive 60 FREE paperbacks with every Premier Pro Publishing Package purchase. (40 Bonus copies plus 20 included with the package.)	40FEB
Receive 40 FREE paperbacks with every Premier Publishing Package purchase. (30 Bonus copies plus 10 included with the package.)	30FEB
Receive 25 FREE paperbacks with every Select Publishing Package purchase. (20 Bonus copies plus 5 included with the package.)	20FEB