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 topic addresses the value of books that fit clear niches and platforms that are conduits to those niches. I am always a bit saddened and frustrated when authors of a pretty good book state in their proposal that no way is their book a niche book, that it will be of interest to everyone in the world, or millions of people, or every woman, etc., referring to a huge population base. Reaching a base that large, unless one has immense amounts of money (tens of thousands, if not more) to invest, is quite unrealistic -- and then there is the issue of creating your audience, i.e. interesting people who are not actively searching for your

  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.  Often, we have shared the major advantages to book sales that discovery by a social media Influencer brings. But what if, we have been asked, you have had zero luck, no matter how much you have tried to bring your book to the attention of an Influencer or to have an Influencer decide to promote your book? Well, you could become an Influencer yourself. Here are sone ways to go about that. Choose your niche Select a niche that aligns with your interests, expertise, and passion. Choosing a niche helps you target a specific audience and establishes you as an authority in that area. Define your personal brand Clearly define your persona and perso

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 topic suggests not underestimating the power of small. As in your book niche; as in your publisher. Take a look at it: Being in a small niche is not a bad thing.  While there may be fewer overall members of your target audience, you are not going to sell to every member of your target audience, anyway. For example, if your niche is parenting, yes, you have a lot of possible buyers BUT you have a proportionately greater number of competitors; unless you have a recognizable name, you may not be able to get your book "seen."      Some niches are easier to dominate than others. So, for example, the parenting category, into wh

photo by Frank Perez It is Tuesday. Time to tall turkey. 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 topic is about how you get an acquisition editor to consider your proposal serious. Most have only a few minutes to look at each cover letter/proposal. Will yours get more than a curosry glance?  So, let's look at each item in an authorial contact. The proposal If a publisher has guidelines for the proposal, follow them. Don't assume you know better than the publisher what the publisher needs or should publish. Our submission guidelines  are at our website.  All the categories are important to us (and to any publisher who provides guidelines). If some are missing, we will ask the aut

It is Tuesday. Time to tall turkey. 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 topic Is the path of book sales from launch to later one. The question that comes up again and again is why do book sales decrease, rather than increase, after the heady days of the book launch are past? While one might think and hope that a launch is just that--a platform for moving forward, too often the book launch brings the highest levels of sales with a modest or rapid dropoff thereafter. So, what gives? Sometimes, the author has put all his/her money and efforts in one basket of eggs: the launch. Once the launch is past, so are the set-aside money, energy, interest, and plans. What now? is a frequent que

  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.  The question for today is how do small publishers stay in business? We are a small publisher, and yes,sometimes we struggle. Other times we do well. Much depends on our authors and how active they are; the top 10% are the ones who keep us in business.  Co-pilot comment:  Out of curiosity, I asked co-pilot this question and the following popped up as typical strategies used by small publishers to stay afloat: Funding from Grants : Many small publishers receive financial support through art grants, especially if they focus on niche markets or support underrepresented voices . Markup on Books : They often mark up the price of their books to ens