MSI Press Blog

  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 What at least like to take their steps with a publisher by their side. Today's topic arises from a discussion last week with an author whose cost of book returns brought an otherwise successful book into the negative net income (i.e.) loss realm. Our conversation revolved around several questions that arose from her discussions with her local bookstore.  Why/how do returned books create loss for an otherwise successful book? A large number of returns can eradicate all profit from the book sale and put the book into the loss column on a P&L statement: print costs will not have been recoupled; additional books have now been returned to the publisher's inventory, books that wer

  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

                                                                                       (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. Ever wonder how books get to be accepted for publication? There is often more to any author's story than non-authors and not-yet-published authors would image.  Yes, of course, every publisher has the normal channel of proposal reading and acceptance based on the quality of the proposal, the "fit" of the book, the quality of the writing, and the perceived marketability, typically based on the author's platform. But...some books come into being in some other ways. Here are a few from the MSI Press e

excerpt from Road Map to Power -  Chapter 5: Self-Focus and the Challenges of the Discontent Rule of the Road: Looking for security? It’s in the attachment. Mile Markers: Attachment, Self-Esteem, Self-Focus, Bullying, Celebrity Worship, Real vs. Ideal Self, Social Comparison, Keeping Up with the Joneses, Eating Disorders, Rosebud Four former high school chums, George, James, Phil, and Tom, meet for a highly anticipated reunion with their coach to celebrate past victories and relive previous triumphs. Sounds like a scene from any of a myriad of communities across the landscape of the United States. It is also the premise for Jason Miller’s play, That Championship Season, winner of Pulitzer and Tony awards. Originally debuting in 1972, the play was a rebuke of time-honored traditions and a challenge to many of the collective values held by society at large. Set in the coal mining town of Scranton, Pennsylvania, four star athletes return to the house of their former coach to share the la