MSI Press Blog

  It is Tuesday. Monday's madness is over, and Wednesday will take us over the hump, so Tuesday it is--for some serious discussion with authors. Tuesday talks mean to address authors in waiting and self-published authors who would like to go a more traditional route or who would at least like to take their steps with a publisher by their side.  Today's post looks at the relationship between book marketing plans and book sales. Specifically, book sales can be quirky, which makes it difficult to put together a book marketing plan for self-publishing authors. (Publishers usually have established plans that they apply to all books, and they only accept books that they believe they can market effectively through their established marketing plans. Let's take a look at some favorite marketing barometers and see how they really stack up. Amazon Top 100 If a book lands in the Amazon Top 100, it clearly has scads of sales, right? No, not always. Perhaps even not often. Amazon's t

  It is Tuesday. Monday's madness is over, and Wednesday will take us over the hump, so Tuesday it is--for some serious discussion with authors. Tuesday talks mean to address authors in waiting and self-published authors who would like to go a more traditional route or who would at least like to take their steps with a publisher by their side.  This week's conversation addresses the hopes that authors bring to their writing and the realities they get handed. Perhaps some of those hopes should be called delusions (too harsh a word for sure, but the kinds of expectations -- I have written a book that is going to make me rich -- some authors bring with them in seeking publication really do not match reality, and it is sometimes hard for publishers to help them understand objectively how difficult book sales are. When authors find out the reality, many give up, which hurts authors and publishers alike. Let's take a look at what is really going on. Marketers claim that authors a

It is Tuesday. Monday's madness is over, and Wednesday will take us over the hump, so Tuesday it is--for some serious discussion with authors. Tuesday talks mean to address authors in waiting and self-published authors who would like to go a more traditional route or who would at least like to take their steps with a publisher by their side.  This week's conversation seeks to point authors in the direction that so many ask about--how to maximize book reach and sales. There is not one easy answer, but the following considerations may help. Maximizing your book’s reach and sales involves a combination of strategic planning, marketing, and engagement. Here are some effective steps you can take: Build Your Author Platform Website: Create a professional author website with a blog, contact information, and links to purchase your book. Social Media: Engage with readers on platforms like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Share updates, behind-the-scenes content, and interact

  It is Tuesday. Monday's madness is over, and Wednesday will take us over the hump, so Tuesday it is--for some serious discussion with authors. Tuesday talks mean to address authors in waiting and self-published authors who would like to go a more traditional route or who would at least like to take their steps with a publisher by their side.  This week's conversation addresses a thorny and frustrating issue--the finances of book sales, especially books that, in general, sell well. (We are not talking about authors who take thousands from savings to plaster information about their books everywhere or buy their own copies to try to get onto a bestseller list. Rather, we are talking about the average author, who simply desires to get the word out and the sales in.) Nearly all authors intently want to see their book in every bookstore they walk into -- and every one they don't. They don't realize three important things that can destroy their life if they actually get thei