Copyright © 2003 Priya Shah

My habit of collecting every free eBook I could lay my hands proved very profitable to me while building my business.

Here are 20 ways that you can use free eBooks to boost your profits.

1. Build Your List

Use free eBooks as an incentive to get more people to join your list.

2. Keep Your Subscribers

Give away a new free eBook every time you mail your list or at least every month, so they have a reason to stay subscribed. Create a subscribers-only eBook library and keep adding new ones often.

3. Get More Affiliates to Promote Your Product

Offer free eBooks and free brandable eBooks as an incentive for join your affiliate program.

4. Sell Customization Rights to Your Own eBooks

If you’ve written an eBook and have a number of affiliate links in it, you can make more money by selling the customization rights.

5. Back-End Profits

Purchase customization rights to others’ eBooks and give them away free to your list. Profit when they purchase something through your links.

6. Become an Instant ‘Expert’

Write an eBook on a topic that you know well and give it away to a target market. Once people know you as an expert on your subject, they will be more willing to spend money with you.

7. Grow Your Downline

Offer free eBooks as an incentive to join a program under you. Allow your downline to give away the eBooks as well so they can build their (and your) downline.

8. Become a Leader

Train your team by giving away free eBooks that help them learn how to build their business. eBooks help you save on the cost of ordering printed copies and shipping them to your distributors.

9. Boost Your Website Traffic

Write an eBook yourself and insert your website links in a way that gives your readers a compelling reason to visit your website, either for the resources you offer or an invitation to download more eBooks.

10. Survey Your List

Have a great idea for a new product or eBook, but need to find out if there’s a market for it? Create a survey and use free eBooks to entice people to respond. To ensure a good response to your survey, offer two or more eBooks, or a product that you own, or even a download of the product you plan to create as a result of the survey.

11. Get Viral

Give away a free eBook that others can brand with their own links so they will give it away eagerly to their own lists. Include your own affiliate program, or traffic exchange programs, or two-tier or multi-tier affiliate programs that readers can join through your links, to get most from this strategy.

12. Get Free Advertising

Give away a free eBook that hasn’t been circulated much or one of your own products or eBooks to ezine editors in exchange for free ads in their ezine.

13. Get Joint Venture Partners

Make your JV offer more attractive by offering your partners a valuable or unique eBook that you own or have the right to give away.

14. Build Link Popularity

Get others to link to your website by offering them free eBooks or one of your own products. The more links you have pointing to your website, the higher you will rank on search engines and the more traffic you will get.

15. Promote Your Own Products

Offer free preview versions (say, the first few chapters) of an eBook that you wrote to promote it and get more people to buy it from you. Combine this with a rebrander to get a viral effect and increase downloads of your preview version. If you are selling a software product, give away a free report that explains why your software solves your target market’s problem and how it will benefit them.

16. Enhance the Value of Your Product

Give away free eBooks as Bonus Products along with your own product to enhance its value. This works best if the bonuses are related to the topic of the product you are selling.

17. Keep in Touch with Your Customers

Send your customers free eBooks often to show them you value their business and remind them of your products in a way they won’t object to.

18. Get Testimonials

Offer free eBooks or bonuses to existing customers in exchange for testimonials that you can put up on your sales page.

19. Boost Flagging Sales

When sales are low, create an eBook with discount coupons or special offers and give them away to your customers. You can also use this strategy to boost holiday sales.

20. Revive Your Old Articles

Update or rewrite old articles or sections of your ezine archives and compile them into an eBook to give them a new lease of life.

About the Author

Priya Shah is the Editor of “Be a Whiz at eBiz!” a
free-wheeling newsletter on internet marketing and
home business http://ebizwhiz-publishing.com
She also publishes “The Glutathione Report,” a newsletter
featuring regular updates on the health benefits of
glutathione. http://www.glutathione-report.com

In one moment, can you create a legacy that will outlast you? I
can, in fact, I have. I’ve written articles that will be around
after I’m gone. They’ll be reprinted and reused by new
publishers trying to reach the target audience interested in my
topic.

When an author creates an article, it becomes a permanent
fixture, driving traffic and enticing new customers all the
time. So the question is frequently asked, “How long will an
article be available to the target market?” It’s a fair question
and one that is both relatively easy, and almost impossible, to
answer. What happens to your articles once they are distributed?

~Posted on Websites~ This is the first destination that matters.
Websites always need content. Webmasters love having relevant
articles on their sites that will help their visitors make
better decisions. The more you write on your subject, the more
of an expert you will become. If there’s a widgets website and
your articles are all over that site, the target market
interested in widgets are going to come to know you as an expert.

So when will the webmaster take your articles off the page?
Almost never. Why would they? It’s an additional page on their
site that the spiders and their visitors alike appreciate having
access to. That means that your link in the resource box is
going to be reaching new widget audiences for years to come.

~Sent in Newsletters~ Publishing a newsletter is very popular,
but creating enough content by yourself is difficult. When
newsletter editors publish your widget articles in this month’s
newsletter, it is sent out to a group of people who have
demonstrated interest in the topic of widgets. How did they
demonstrate interest? They signed up for the newsletter. You
could pay for an ad, or you could write an article. Articles are
more interesting to subscribers than ads are, and you can
demonstrate your expertise more fully with a well written
article.

~Archived on the Web~ Many newsletters, in addition to being
sent directly to the inboxes of your target market, are also
archived on the website of the newsletter publisher, giving your
article double exposure. Talk about better bang for your buck!

~Linked at Sites~ Don’t underestimate the power of links. Sure
you get a link from your article to your page, but here’s
something that many people haven’t considered: A link from the
widgets home page to the widgets newsletter which contains your
widgets article adds a tremendous weight to the relevance of the
link from your article’s resource box back to your home page.
This is a very advanced linking strategy because these links are
pure ambrosia for the Google Spider.

These heavily weighted links generally show up 3-6 months after
the newsletter has been sent out - giving you an unexpected
bonus boost with Google Page Rank and Search Engine Results
Position.

~Constant and Never Ending Submission~ New publishers and
editors are always joining Article Marketer Universe, so your
articles are constantly being sent out to new content sites, new
newsletters and new article repositories. Your words are always
being delivered to a fresh set of prospective customers.

~Article Directories~ Your articles are posted on article
directories, and they are available forever. These sites want
content and they’ll keep your article around forever.

~Used by Affiliates~ Your article might also be used by your
affiliates as they try to create new business for you. That
means your article will show up on your affiliate’s sites, in
their newsletters, targeting another fresh set of prospective
customers - or even new affiliates for you.

~Included in e-Books~ E-book publishing is entering a new phase
of popularity. Free reprint ebooks and rebrandable ebooks are
used to introduce newcomers to a given product space. Remember
when you were new at your thing? Didn’t you do research, look
things up on the web, and read the ebooks that were available?
Don’t you wish there had been more information easily available?
When your article appears in an ebook, you have been introduced
to yet another qualified prospect. You are being recognized as
an expert in the space.

So what is the life span of an article? It can be years and
years. I know that my articles have been picked up long after
I’ve written them and all of a sudden I’ve got a bunch of new
visitors I wasn’t expecting. The cumulative effect of having
several articles out there makes your article life span almost
as long as yours… maybe longer!

You’ve decided. You know it is critical to your online success,
and you are ready to jump in and become an Ezine Publisher. Good
for you! You are headed in the right direction.

No doubt, the biggest hurdle you’ll find along this road is
simple getting started. The easy part is actually developing
your idea, setting up your format, deciding on your content, how
to mail it out, etc. That’s a breeze. No problem.

The challenge comes after that is all finished. Now you need to
start enlisting subscribers.

Get ready to work!

First of all, you MUST face the facts. Some recent statistics
tell us that there are AT LEAST 300,000 ezines out there. And
every one of those ezine are competing for the same
subscribers!!

So, are you one of those that, when faced with those kinds of
facts, promptly gets discouraged? Then, maybe you need to face
another fact: You may be in the wrong business! But if you’re
one of those who is motivated by a challenge, then read on.

First of all, building a successful subscriber list IS a
challenge. But it is NOT impossible, if you know what you’re
doing, and also what everyone else is doing.

If you’re willing to work harder than most ezine publishers, you
will get your share of the subscriber market. One reason? A
large majority of new ezine publisher, create their ezine, place
a subscribe form on their site, submit it to a handful of ezine
directories, and proceed to sit back and wait for the onslaught
of sign-ups. NOT!

Building a subscriber list is a multi-tasker’s dream! The secret
is in the numbers. Number of places you get your information,
number of different methods you use, numbers, numbers, numbers!
( Work, work, work.)

But, we’re getting ahead of ourselves. Let’s get back to just
getting started. That was the hurdle we were talking about. If
you are stuck in that overwhelming land of “I don’t know where
to start”, then here are 4 ways you can jump start your
subscriber list. Start here, and I promise, the ball will start
rolling.

1. Submit to Ezine Directories and Announcement Lists.

EVERY ONE YOU CAN FIND! Remember, numbers. Here are a list of
some of the best ones to get you started. Do a search for Ezine
Directories.

http://www.bestezines.com http://www.ezineaction.com
http://www.ezineadvertising.com http://www.ezine-dir.com
http://www.ezinelibrary.com http://www.ezinelocater.com
http://www.ezine-marketing.com http://www.ezinesearch.com
http://www.ezinesplus.com http://www.ezinestoday.com
http://www.ezine-swap.com http://www.ezine-universe.com

Most will ask for a description of your ezine. A well- written
description can make all the difference in whether folks choose
to subscribe. As you’re looking at these directories, make note
of the descriptions that catch your eye.

You might want to check out a great piece of software called
Ezine Announcer. Takes most of the pain and tedious-ness out of
this submission process. http://wetrack.it/eza/af.cgi?47

2. Join an Ad Co-op.

An Ad Co-op is a service (free to publishers) that sends you
subscribers, in return for you running their classified ad.
These folks have agreed to subscribe to your ezine. You have
agreed to run their classified ad.

Two of the best of these are:

2Bucks An Ad http://hop.clickbank.net/hop.cgi?webworks/paaads

10Dollars20ads.com http://hop.clickbank.net/?webworks/cashgalore

Note: The subscribers you get from these programs are not quite
as valuable, percentage-wise as the ones that choose to sign up
from your site, or from an ezine directory. Many use yahoo and
hotmail addresses to collect the ezines, and may never see your
issue. BUT, once again, it is all in the numbers. You WILL gain
some loyal subscribers from these.

3. Install a Popup.

Yes, we know, there is a lot of muttering about popups around
the internet. BUT, facts are, we, and many others have seen the
largest increase in subscriber sign-ups after installing one.
They don’t have to be intrusive. A well- done popup can get some
amazing results. (Especially when combined with #4 below!)

Installing a popup is somewhat of an advanced technique for your
site. But we do have an article with instructions. If you would
like a copy, just send an email to:
mailto:gailh@cmymtc.com?subject=popup

4. Give away a gift for Subscribing.

Giving away a gift to your new subscribers can work for you in
more than one way. First of all, it can obviously work as an
incentive to subscribe, if you are providing a gift that has
value and usefulness. Secondly, if you are giving away a gift
(ebook or software) that contains information about you and your
site, then you are doubling its marketing value.

Ultimately, you want to work toward the goal of creating your
own unique give-a-way product. One you can give away, AND
provide to others to give away. (This is called Viral
marketing.) But, realistically, if you are just getting started
as a publisher, you may not be ready for this. So, give away
someone else’s product! There are many available that allow you
to insert your site information in a prominent spot on the front
page, or screen. (Called Co-Branding.)

Here at CMYMTC we offer our subscribers a series of Ebusiness
Easy Guides, which are also co-brandable.
(http://makemoneyhowto.com/brandform.htm)

There are many other ways that you can add to the numbers game
of ezine promotion. These few mentioned here will give you a
jump-start on the whole process. Take things a step at a time.
Learn the ropes as you go, and keep adding more to your
numbers!!

An ezine publisher’s job is never finished. If you can accept
that challenge, then you will be successful!

Xml2PDF HotFolder version 0.9 beta November 3, 2004 Altsoft N.V.

Altsoft N.V. announces the beta release of the new HotFolder
edition of its Xml2PDF formatting engine.

Xml2PDF Hotfolder is either a server or a client side
application for automatic convertion of XSL-FO, SVG, XSLT and
XHTML to PDF. It traces all incomming XSL-FO / SVG / XHTML / XML
files to the specified folder (named “hot folder”) and converts
them to PDF. It also provides a user-firendly log interface for
all error and warning messages.

Altsoft Xml2PDF is a .NET based formatting engine for converting
various XML-based formats to PDF. It supports XSL-FO, SVG,
XHTML, XML+XSLT as an input and generates PDF as an output.

Free evaluation version is available for download at
http://www.alt-soft.com/products_tools_xml2pdf_hotfolder_download
.jsp

For any additional information please visit our web site
http://alt-soft.com/ or e-mail to info@alt-soft.com

Regards, Altsoft N.V. http://alt-soft.com/

What’s the best way to plot?

Quick answer: the best way to plot is whatever works best for you. After all, we’re all different. Interview any group of a dozen writers and you’ll find they all have different times of the day when they’re alert; different belief systems about the world; different preferences in food and films. So why on earth would we all agree on the best way to plot a story?

Personality Types

To find out the best way of plotting for you, first (a) think about your usual approach to problems then (b) try a few different methods. It’s not certain that the ‘best’ way for you will dovetail with your personality type, but it’s likely. If we work on the four basic ‘types’, we find that people tend to gravitate to being:

• Extraverted or Introverted [this refers to how you receive stimulation - from within yourself (introverted) or from external sources (extraverted)]

• Sensing or Intuitive [your usual method of taking in information - via the five senses (sensing) or relying on instincts (intuitive)]

• Thinking or Feeling [whether you make decisions based on logic and objectivity (thinking) or on your personal, subjective value systems (feeling)]

• Judging or Perceiving [how you deal with the world on a day to day basis: organised and purposeful, with a liking for structured environments (judging) or flexible and comfortable with open, casual environments (perceiving)]

Is this set in stone? No, of course not. We all function across the entire spectrum - but you’re likely to find that you have a natural preference. If you can identify your personality type, you can work with your strengths - and thus find the method of plotting your stories that works best for you.

If you tend more towards being introverted, intuitive, feeling and perceiving, then you are likely to prefer a more flexible form of plotting. You would probably feel comfortable with cluster diagrams, branching, and scribbled notes with lots of arrows and extra little boxes.

Cluster Diagrams

You can use these for the basic plot, for characters, and for settings. Draw a circle in the middle of the page. Write the name of the story in this circle. (Any working title will do.) Around it draw more circles- as many as you need for things such as the catalyst for change, the character’s initial problem or goal, obstacles to be faced, final challenge for the main character, darkest moment, secondary characters, ending.

There’s no point in my prescribing how many circles you need- after all, this is your plot. You’re the intuitive, feeling type - you don’t want me to say ‘you have to put this here and that over there’. Watch your plot grow in front of your eyes.

Branching

Branching is very similar to the cluster diagram. You begin with the story, then draw ‘branches’ (lines) out from the box in the centre. These branches will represent the main thrust of your story: the same basic ‘ingredients’ as used above in the cluster diagram: characters, problems, obstacles, and so on. Off each of these main branches you draw smaller lines or branches - and along those lines write the specific problems encountered, the various characters in the story, and so on.

Both cluster diagrams and branching will let you see the shape of your story in a pictorial way. Many writers find they can get a much better overall sense of where their story is going when they can see it all as a diagram, rather than as a list of points.

Plot outlines

Perhaps you feel much more at home in a structured environment. You are extraverted, and tend to think about things and make judgements. In this case, you could feel much happier with a detailed plot outline, with each step carefully planned. You may need to ‘write out’ the plot so you feel you know where you’re going.

The Gary Provost Plot Checklist

There are many basic plots you can use, but one of the best I’ve seen is the one advocated by the late Gary Provost. His plot outline, in the form of a checklist, is as follows:

• Inciting incident (what event sets the plot into motion?)

• The prize (what is it your character wants?)

• The strategy (what does your character decide to do in order to get what he/she wants?)

• The conflict (who are some of the people who are working against your character?)

• The stakes (what will be the consequence if the plan does not work?)

• The bleakest moment (what happens to make things look hopeless?)

• The lesson (what does your character learn about himself/herself, others or life?)

• The decision (what does your character do because of what he/she has learned?)

• The hole (In what way does your character need to grow emotionally (although probably unknown to him/her)

• The back story (what is it that is haunting your character as the story begins?)

Answer these questions and you have a story. The value of this checklist is that you can use it either to formulate a plot OR as a backup, to check that you have all the plot ‘ingredients’ in place if you use a different method.

Happy plotting!

(c) Copyright Marg McAlister

Marg McAlister has published magazine articles, short stories, books for children, ezines, promotional material, sales letters and web content. She has written 5 distance education courses on writing, and her online help for writers is popular all over the world. Sign up for her regular writers’ tipsheet at http://www.writing4success.com/.

Hello Internet Entrepreneur,

Have you ever considered publishing your own newsletter with a
list of subscribers who read it on a regular basis? Have you
ever thought about the income that this newsletter could
provide? If you haven’t, I think it’s about time you start…

Why? Because, if done properly, your newsletter can be a
goldmine for you!

Without your own “content concentrated” newsletter with an
avalanche of subscribers who trust you, you might as well kiss
the Internet riches goodbye.

Publishing your own newsletter still remains the only ‘real and
effortless’ way to earning a steady income on the Internet. The
best part? You can set-up your own newsletter in just minutes…

Many people think that running their own newsletter is extremely
difficult. They run away at even the thought of it! They fear
they lack the expertise they need to write.

Well, behold, your worrying days are OVER! Yes, you CAN have a
newsletter, even if you don’t know a thing about the topic.
Heck, you can have your own newsletter if you don’t know
English! How?

You can let other people write for you. There are many services
on Internet who offer to write your newsletters for you.

One of these services is http://www.elance.com/. You can find
writers and services of ALL kinds here - if it deals with
writing, you can find it here.

That’s it, click of a mouse and you have a writer. Still think
it’s too hard to have your own profitable newsletter?

Here is another place where ‘I’ have had oodles of success
finding people to write for me, internet marketing and writer
forums.

You can easily find experts in all kinds of writing on these
forums, and the best part is, they love helping! Even better,
they take pride in their work, so you can make sure you always
get the best of the best. Many times, they won’t even charge you
a penny for it. Why? This is their way of getting their name out
there - more assurance that they’re work will be flawless.

So now, all you have to do is know the topic and you can have
others do ALL the writing FOR you - all for as little as $20.00.

You simply give the writer the topic, idea and style of writing
you want - and WALAA, out comes your newsletter! When it’s done,
simply send it out to your subscribers - they’ll never know that
you didn’t write it and you never have to credit the writer for
it.

Now, you’re probably worried about that $20.00 you spent, right?
Well, if the issues are written well, just one issue of your
newsletter can end up resulting in thousands of dollars in
sales!

$20.00 turns into a possible thousands, and you didn’t write a
single word!

Just make sure you include links in the article to your
affiliate products, or even your own products - as your
subscriber is reading, he/she will click the links and BUY!

NOTE: The number of sales you make through your newsletter
depends on the quality of the content you provide. People want
quality information and not just information meant to sell.

There is a lot of crap on the internet nowadays, so if you want
your readers to trust you as an expert in your field and buy
from your recommendations - you NEED to provide very informative
content.

If your content is helpful and fresh, your readers will learn to
trust you - pretty soon, they will purchase everything you
recommend!

Ok, so now you know how to get content for you newsletter, but
how about the subscribers to actually read the content? There
are some services that can get you subscribers very quickly. The
best among them include:

http://profitinfo.com/leadfactory/ http://www.hiplists.com
http://www.worldwidelists.com/
http://www.listopt.com/lbsignup.html

Now, because they are offering you subscribers FAST and with
little work on your part, you have to pay them. However, their
costs are quite affordable, starting at just $0.09 per
subscriber.

With quality content well packaged with your promotions, this
minimal investment of buying subscribers can easily pay off. Our
research at http://www.affila.com/ shows that, if done properly,
you should make an average of $10 a year per $0.09 subscriber
you buy. And that, my friend, is not a bad start at all.

What else do you have to worry about? You now have subscribers
and great content. Now, just choose some great products to
promote, and sit back and watch the checks roll in.

===== Learn the most amazing and profitable shortcuts to running
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Have you ever thought about writing a non-fiction book? A book with your name on it can inform people on a topic while it enhances your career and provides a nice source of supplemental income.

Published works earn you the respect of co-workers, management, customers, and friends. Your expertise in a subject will be a matter of record, and you may receive other writing offers or speaking invitations. While your book may benefit from knowledge gained on the job, your professional career can also benefit from knowledge gained while researching the book.

Do you have what it takes?

Most non-fiction book authors didn’t major in English or journalism. Publishers are looking for people who are knowledgeable about popular or leading-edge topics and can explain them to others. They are more than willing to work with first time authors, providing the editing and artwork support required to transform a rough manuscript into a finished product. If you are an expert (or are willing to become one) in a subject that others want to know more about — you are already halfway there.

How does your company feel about it?

If the subject of your book is directly related to your job, your employer may have something to say about your plans to publish, so first check out any company guidelines or restrictions. Many companies ask to review job-related works before publication. Reviewers may include management, the communications or public relations department, and a corporate attorney.

Most employee writing projects are done outside of work in order to avoid ownership conflicts. To be safe, do everything on your own time: research, telephone calls, writing and printing. Use your home personal computer, not the one in your office. Carefully avoid using any company-confidential information. If you are writing about a still-unannounced product, make sure that your employer (or the product’s owner) and the publisher are willing to sign a confidential disclosure agreement.

Royalties, advances and taxes

Book sales depend on things like the popularity of the topic, reputation of the author, strength of competing books, promotions and advertising, and corporate sales. Some companies buy books in bulk for product promotions (a book sold with a product or used for marketing purposes) or for internal distribution. For example, IBM employees can order many computer books (for business use) through the company.

Royalties are paid twice a year and their rates are negotiable, ranging from 10 to 15 percent or more of the net receipts, not the jacket price. For example, let’s say a book sells for $35 and nets an average of $15 per copy. A 10% royalty would yield a per-copy payment of $1.50. Sell 10,000 books and you’ll earn $15,000. Some publishers will pay on a sliding scale: 10% for the first 10,000 copies sold, then 12% for the next 10,000, etc. Royalties from co-authored works are shared according to ratios set by the authors.

An advance on royalties is customary, and is also negotiable. Some publishers will also pay a one-time fee for certain expenses in preparing the book.

Withholding tax is not deducted by publishers, so it is up to you to send estimated taxes to the IRS. A tax accountant can provide guidance on this and other tax matters, such as deductible business expenses. Keep a chronological log of your activities, showing hours spent, milestones, and related expenses such as automobile mileage, telephone calls, and computer supplies.

Royalty income over the life of a book can range from less than $5,000 to over $50,000. The life of a technical book, such as one about computer hardware or software, is generally less than three years, but a popular title can be extended with revisions and subsequent editions. The highest sales are usually in the beginning, when book distributors make their initial purchases. A computer book may have a half-life of only six months to a year, and sales drop off rapidly as the information becomes obsolete. Eventually returns will exceed sales (book distributors get refunds on unsold inventory) and your royalties will drop below zero. If you have multiple books, negative royalties subtract from positive royalties. Otherwise you’ll build up an amount that you theoretically “owe” your publisher, although these balances are rarely collected.

Before contacting any publishers, set some goals. What level of detail do I want to cover? How long should this book be? How long will it take to write? How much do I want to earn? What are the non-monetary benefits of this project? How much of my personal time do I want to devote to it?

Who is your audience?

Publishers will ask you for an outline and a sample chapter, but they’ll also ask for your help in sizing up the potential market. Book sales depend on the subject matter, market demand, and the strength of competing books. A clear understanding of your potential readers is important. Non-fiction, especially technical publications, can be viewed as a pyramid. At the base of the pyramid are books about general and how-to subjects that appeal to a broad cross-section of readers. At the top are narrow, specialty topics of interest to a few. You may be an expert on gardening and well-qualified to write about it, but unless you are writing just for the fun of it, you’ll want to aim at a wide readership.

Define your audience(s) carefully. For example, a book about a software product might have multiple subcategories of readers: (1) shoppers: people who are curious about the product but haven’t yet purchased it, (2) new users who have just bought the product but haven’t installed it or are just beginning to use it, and (3) experienced users who want to get more out of it. Will your book address all of these readers or just one or two segments? If it is a technical topic, will an introductory chapter extend its appeal to a less-technical audience? Or, if it is written primarily for novices, would a more advanced chapter at the end attract additional readers?

Some topics have a long shelf life while others peak early and decline quickly. For example, a book about basic computer architecture, if general enough, could sell for several years. With a few changes (such as questions at the end of each chapter) it might serve as a textbook. On the other hand, a book about next year’s Folk Music Festivals might experience brisk sales, but only for a brief period. Read trade magazines and visit local bookstores. What’s selling? What new topics are in demand? Which ones are overdone or obsolete?

The title of a book can be very important. A broad-based, general purpose book might be called the XYZ Handbook, XYZ Guidebook, or the Survival Guide to XYZ. The title can also identify the audience: XYZ for the Novice, Advanced XYZ, or Mastering XYZ. Don’t restrict the book by naming it Understanding XYZ Version 3.2.1.

Timing is very important in technology subjects. The demand for information on a new product is very strong immediately after it is announced or shipped. If you write about a “hot” topic, it’s important that you and your publisher move quickly to meet that demand.

Outline, outline, outline

The effort spent on your book outline is a good investment of time. Generally, the effort expended in creating, modifying, and remodifying an outline at the beginning of a writing project will save time later on. Use an outline program or your favorite text editor or word processor. The format isn’t important, but the content is. List the major topics you plan to cover, then sub-topics, and so on. Add notes and comments that will help your publisher understand where you are going. Don’t hesitate to move topics around to better organize your book — better now than after you start writing.

Read competing and related books to make sure you aren’t missing any important topics. How are they organized? Visit online Internet discussion forums to see what people are saying on this subject. What are the most frequently asked questions? Each time you discover a new topic or sub-topic, add it to your outline.

Should you self-publish?

Every first time author considers self-publishing their book. It certainly sounds a lot simpler than finding a publisher. Also, your profit from each copy sold might be higher. And, there are many companies who will offer to publish your book — if you are willing to pay for the cost and distribute the book yourself. Is this a good idea?

Many first time authors have self-published their books and ended up with a garage full of books and no way to sell them. Bookstores prefer to deal with established publishers and book distributors, not individuals. If you can find a publisher who believes there is a strong market for your book and is willing to promote it, you are probably much better off, especially if you are a new author.

Should you use a literary agent?

An agent will shop your book among several publishers and keep a portion of your royalties (usually around 10 - 15 percent). If you find that you have little success finding a willing publisher, you may want to consider using an agent.

Choosing a publisher

Now that you’ve done your homework, it’s time to find a publisher for your book. Visit local bookstores. Contact several publishers who have books in your area of speciality (they should be easy to find on the Web). Which ones advertise the most or have the most books on the best-seller lists?

A publisher’s acquisitions editor will provide their guidelines for submitting a proposal, which will include your chapter outline and market information. If this is your first effort, they’ll want to see examples of your writing style and subject matter knowledge. A sample chapter is a good idea.

Once you have narrowed down your selection, agree on a submission date and the length and format of the manuscript. Artwork is important, and you should determine if the publisher will create figures from your sketches or if final camera-ready quality is expected. Most publishers will provide technical and grammatical reviewers for your manuscript, but it’s a good idea to name some of your own.

Read the contract proposal carefully. It covers things like ownership and copyrights, royalties, certification of originality, promotional (free) copies, and the schedule. Publishers are understanding if you have to slip your schedule, but you should try to establish and meet a reasonable deadline for submission of the manuscript.

Finally — writing the book!

The duration of a writing project depends on two important aspects: how much of your personal time (evenings, weekends, vacation days) you choose to devote to it, and the manuscript submission date you agreed to. A book of 300 pages could take anywhere from a few months to a year to finish, depending on the amount of time you spend each week.

Since you will probably use your personal computer to create the manuscript, your publisher will expect machine-readable format as input to their system. Discuss their preferred file formats and styles. Some accept a straight text format, which is the “lowest common denominator” for file exchange between computers. Others may ask for formatted output from a word processor. Some may accept camera-ready pages — if you have a system that can create them — and compensate you for the extra work.

Keep a list of company and product names you reference in your work. Make sure you distinguish registered trademark names from simple trademarks.

Don’t insert artwork directly into your text, unless you are producing camera-ready pages. Keep a folder of sketches, screen shots and other illustrations referenced in the manuscript. If you have a graphics program (and the talent to use it) or a screen capture program, send some sample files to your publisher. The captions for each figure should be stored in a separate file.

You can excerpt some material from other publications (such as an appendix from a technical manual) if you get the permission of the original publisher.

The final stages

Deadlines are a drag, but they are very important. A publisher must schedule expensive printing resources. Often a book has been announced well in advance, or committed for a yearly trade show. Give your reviewers enough time without impacting your schedule. Good reviewers add to the accuracy and quality of a book, so you should encourage and work closely with them.

Your publisher will probably ask you to create the book’s index. When you receive the final page proofs, create a spreadsheet listing important topics in one column, with corresponding page numbers in another. Then sort the topics in alphabetical order. Edit the list so that all referenced page numbers follow each topic name.

About the Author

Dick Conklin is a freelance writer and journalist. He has written five non-fiction books, was editor of two magazines, and is a newspaper columnist. He can be reached at conch@keysy.com or keysy.com/conch

Most writers are readers first. Whether historical, research, romantic mystery or spiritual focus. Many well versed writers have either read extensively or have been challenged by a variety of in depth life changing experiences. Remember, your best writing already is “in” you.

Let’s talk about how to put those thoughts on paper. First, discover what inspires you:

Are You A Romantic? We all have that special someone—first love, new love, unforgettable moments or situations that strengthened a love relationship. Most important here is to write straight from the heart, making each scene as real for the reader as it was for you.

Do You Love To Travel? Don’t consider taking that next trip without a pad, pen or tape recorder. You don’t have to write the perfect copy from the hotel or cruise ship, but become more aware of your surroundings. Take an “inside perspective” of the décor and service, note the ambience, and be prepared to describe your experience. There are many magazines on and off line that would appreciate a first hand description of popular vacation “hot spot” or cruise packages. It’s a great way to “break the ice” and achieve your first byline.

Are You In To Healthy Eating? Canvas health magazines, family journals and review food commentary pages of local newspapers. Your approach might include writing an overview of the variety of uses of a particular health related food, like Tofu. You might include a tasty recipe idea. You might even submit a picture of the final “tasty dish” with your article. If attractive enough you not only have a first article, but you’ve also become a self -made photographer.

How About “How To”? Have you ever wondered how books like “Computers For Idiots” became so popular? Don’t. Generally, people want to know how to do just about every conceivable thing you can imagine. You may have a creative way to cut corners in home improvement, gardening, or interior decorating. You may also have successful child rearing tools and techniques. Whatever it is, someone wants to read about it. All you have to do is write the details.

As a first time writer, the ultimate point to remember is you should always start with what you know or have personally experienced. Let the words come, don’t analyze your thoughts while they are thoughts. Spending too much time rethinking can spoil a great work in the making.

Stay personal. Write as if you are verbally telling the story or having a conversation with a good friend. Maintaining a casual attitude keeps you relaxed and open to ideas and witty thoughts.

Let your first draft be a “free flowing” experience. Have fun with it. You can get technical later. If it hasn’t already, writing will become part of you. Not unlike riding a bike, the more you write, the better it gets, and the more comfortable you’ll become. Let your inner source guide, direct and keep you on track. Do not hesitate to ask God to give you the words to write and or what topic to develop. There is no better source of inspiration.

About the Author

Theresa V. Wilson, M.Ed. is a Freelance Writer, with over eighty bylines in several business, family and women on and offline publications including a recent issue of Guide to Retirement Living, Godly Business Woman Magazine, and The Greater Omaha Parents Journal. She is owner of a home based business dedicated to families and caregivers facing health recovery and crisis related issues. For more information, visit www.meetingtheneeds.org

Calling all publishers, editors, journalists and freelance
writers. It’s time to breathe more life into your copy. Turn
your articles into living pieces that spark measurable
debate, get closer to your readers and engage their mind and
soul - we’re talking revolution.

As it was in the beginning

Publishers have for many years relied on letters to get
feedback from their readers and although email has opened
up this method of communication it is still time consuming
and difficult to process with only a fraction of the
received correspondence ever being used.

Let’s face it, as well as being an overhead for the
publisher, to most people it is an unrewarding medium in
terms of effort required and response received, just think
of the number of letters that go unpublished and unread.

As it is now

The Internet has brought new channels of communication and
has opened up opportunities that allow us to challenge
traditional methods. The Internet is now a mature
technology, no longer the preserve of the new fad brigade
but a technology that has been embraced by a global
population, young and old alike and it allows us now to
re-evaluate the way things are done. Newspapers, trade
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When people read an article they often would like to
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strongly enough to put pen to paper; or with the creation
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majority, is what they haven’t got. The letters page
although interesting are at best a snapshot of comments; a
well crafted and well written letter on any given subject
may hold the view of the majority, or the minority, as it
is a free text medium and difficult to measure.

As it should be

Now consider the advantages of linking articles to online
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that can be easily measured. Just as important as you
communicating with your readers is giving your readers a
way to communicate with you where they know it will count.

Want a snapshot of opinion? Did they like that article?
Did your readers agree with what was said or do they take
the opposite view?

Now it’s easy

In the past surveys would have taken considerable effort
to design and publish and altogether was a process too
long winded and therefore reserved for the niche and
bigger topics.

However, using sites like http://www.SurveyGalaxy.com
surveys and questionnaires can be created and published via
the internet by anyone who has a pulse. Professional
looking surveys and questionnaires created in minutes that
make the perfect compliment to articles that prompt opinion
and debate.

The advantage over letters and e-mails are that all the
feedback is managed and measured and sites like Survey
Galaxy will provide you with a real time poll that you can
either keep to yourself or share with your readers.

It’s not even one or the other now

Link each article to an online survey and not only extend
the life of the article as people have a channel to express
their views, but involve your readers in the discussion
where they now know their opinion will be counted.

You think they would rather send an email? - no problem -
include the facility within the survey and get the best
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Try it now and register your opinion of this article here:-

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About the Author: Martin Day is a Director of Survey Galaxy Ltd. For more
information please visit http://www.SurveyGalaxy.com

At times, it can be frustrating to find freelance business writers that are of good quality, dependable, and within your budget. The good news is that there are many people who can perform at the level you need. The question is, though, how do you find the best freelance business writers? To answer this, we need to learn what good expectations are for them first.

Jobs and employment availability is limited in this field. That is due to the fact that business owners have a high demand for perfection and normally take advantage of the same company or individual time and time again. But, because there are so many people willing to do the work for you, you can expect to find a good qualified individual who is simply just starting out. By using these individuals, you can mold them to what you need them to be instead of having to deal with individuals already stuck in a pattern. Regardless, you need to analyze your demands to insure they can be met by anyone. Is your budget too low? Are you providing enough information about your needs and desires to the writer? Are you giving enough time for research and rewrites? And, are you willing to communicate? Only then will you be able to attract the best business writers.

To find freelance business writers, you simply need to look throughout the internet as vacancies are quickly snatched up by anyone interested in your project. For example, posting on a relevant message board can be beneficial. To ensure they are the quality individuals you are looking for, set up a contract, contact them regarding your specific needs. Communicate with the individuals to find an understanding of the demands before you agree on one. Who can provide you with what you want, in the best manner? Quality, on target work can come from employment that is contracted with a good understanding of the needs of both parties as well as being able to communicate effectively.

About the Author

Visit http://www.FreelanceWritingResource.com for more Articles, Resources, News and Views about Freelance Writing. This article may be reprinted in full so long as the resource box and live links are included intact.