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Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Beta Readers Can Help You Edit Your Book



By Lorilyn Roberts




You have finished your manuscript – the first draft, which is more than a first rough draft. It is your edited first draft. I interpret that to be my first draft that I have edited as much as I can. That means I don’t know what I need to fix and/or I can’t find any more errors. In other words, I have no more objectivity. If this sounds confusing, I don’t mean it to be. I want to emphasize you don’t want to give your manuscript to beta readers until you have made it the best you can.

Does that mean your book is a masterpiece and ready to be published? Hardly. It means your manuscript is as good as it will be without input from others. Good beta readers will find the weaknesses, flaws, and issues that need to be fixed.

One of the hardest things for me to do is to take that first-draft manuscript and give it to someone to read when I am the only one who has yet to read it. Part of me wants to share it and part of me doesn’t—I want the feedback, but I also fear what others will say—suppose my book is horrible? Even if it’s not horrible, the process is humbling.

This is the most critical stage in writing a book. Anybody can write a first draft, but not everyone can take the risk of submitting it to someone and then evaluate the feedback objectively—what’s good, what’s worth considering, and what is totally “screwed up”? And yes, some will be way off base, but I can almost guarantee you, for every ten beta readers who read your book, you will get one or two gem readers that will amaze you with their insight—and that’s what makes the process of beta readers invaluable.

I offer some tips from my own experience, having used beta readers for two books—one fiction and one nonfiction. How can you get the most out of beta readers?

1. Have a list of specific questions you want the reader to answer.
On my recent fiction book, Seventh Dimension – The Door, a Young Adult Christian Fantasy, an example of a question and helpful response was the following from Hannah Bombardier:

Did you stay interested throughout the story until the end? If not, where did your interest wane?

At the very beginning I had a hard time staying focused, but I became interested when I got a couple chapters in, and my attention was caught by the time Shale was transported to the Seventh Dimension. However, I think that was partly because I was confused at the beginning, and I tend to be bored when I’m confused, but your revision should help with that a lot.

Consider your target audience and who is providing the feedback. Hannah is a teenager so I took her feedback seriously. Obviously, I have some work to do on my beginning, and that’s what I need to know BEFORE I publish my book.

2. Give a deadline on when you want your beta readers to finish reading your manuscript. Some readers will give you feedback quickly; others won’t. It will help if you give them a timeline.

3. Don’t expect beta readers to “edit your book.” They are reading your manuscript for flaws of story. You will still need a professional editor to fix grammar, typos, English, diction, et cetera; i.e., a copy editor.

4. When you receive your feedback, thank the person for his input regardless of whether you like his comments. The reader took his precious time to give you feedback and that is a gift.

5. If you have offered something in return for the reader’s comments, follow through quickly. In my case, I offered a $5 Amazon gift certificate—not much, I’m a poor author, but each person will also be recognized in my book on the acknowledgment page when published and will receive a free Kindle copy of the book.

6. Go through each comment and evaluate what the reader wrote. Weigh what he said and consider his feedback against the comments you receive from others. Some comments will be contradictory; others will be consistent. This is the value of beta readers. If one comment is consistent, that is definitely something you need to consider.

7. Recognize that not everybody will like your book. Those who don’t, consider why not and if there is a way to fix the issue or issues.

8. Remember, the book is yours—you know your story better than anyone else. Take all the feedback to heart and get busy editing, tossing out those comments that are not useful and incorporating those that are.

9. Where do I find beta readers? With my first book Children of Dreams, I approached the leader of the readers’ group at my church. I had never attended any of the meetings, so I did not know many of the readers (don’t include your mother as a beta reader; she will love your book no matter what). Some of my best feedback came from those readers. For my fiction book, I used the readers for the John 3:16 Marketing Network, almost all of whom I did not know. Sometimes friends can find it hard to be objective.

10. While implementing the process of beta readers takes more time, costs money, and requires extra work, in the end, your book will be better because of it. Beta readers as a whole can provide valuable feedback for authors, especially those who self-publish and do not have the benefit of a high-fluting editor at a prominent publishing house. If you have “problems” with the content, the readers will find them and give you the input you need before publishing, increasing your odds of getting those five-star reviews on Amazon. 

Saturday, April 20, 2013

How to Launch a Best-Selling Christian Book Free Saturday April 20, 2013 on Amazon






It is an exciting time to publish a new book. I have published four, and there is nothing more rewarding than seeing our brand-new book in print or e-book, whether it’s our first, second, or fifth. When we go to Amazon, Barnes, & Noble, and other websites, we want to see our rankings validate the long hours we’ve put into writing our book.

The John 3:16 Marketing Network is designed for Christian authors to receive more exposure on book launches. As difficult and challenging as the writing process is, marketing is even harder. The John 3:16 Marketing Network does exactly what the name implies: It networks Christian authors so they can help each other with book launches on social networking sites via email, twitter and Facebook.

In March we added an official launch page for the John3:16 Marketing Network at http://John316MarketingNetwork.com. Launches last from the 1st to the 16th of every month now and are treated more like book showcases or book promotions. This allows time for a book to receive maximum exposure through the network and hopefully rank in the top 100 best-selling books for its category over two weeks.

I want to encourage all Christian authors to help one another in marketing. I hope to add about thirty new members and have lowered the joining fee to $10 until we achieve that goal. The only requirements to join are that you believe in John 3:16 and have a website or blog. For more information, visit http://www.lorilynroberts.com/john_3_16_marketing_network.html.

Please check us out and spread the word. We are on Facebook, have a blog, and private forum channel. The more writers who are involved, the more impact we can have on the world with Christian literature.

Through the John 3:16 Marketing Network, I have “met” many wonderful Christian authors whom I would not have known otherwise. Those friendships and relationships are priceless. You never know who will end up where down the road, and if love is the motivating factor, I believe we can become a dynamic force and new model for Christian publishing.

Because of recent changes in how we launch books, I have updated the book How to Launch a Best-Selling Christian Book. It will be free on Amazon Saturday, April 21. The link is: http://bit.ly/XMl64Q Even if you have no desire to join the network, there is a lot of helpful information about building a platform, particularly on Amazon.


Friday, April 19, 2013

Thoughts on the Flux of Self-Publishing versus Traditional Publishing and All the Stuff In Between


by Lorilyn Roberts.

In the future, I predict publishing books will take on the business model of commercially produced products:  The public will buy the books they like regardless of how they are published. As a popular commercial sums it up, it’s not complicated.

While many rules have changed, others are nonnegotiable. You better write a good book, hire a top-notch editor, and grace the front of your book with an outstanding cover. You will need a rocket full of energy to launch it and not enough hours in the day to promote it. Otherwise, your book may end up in the slush pile of broken dreams.

In spite of the challenges, the new norm is a win-win for both the producer and the consumer (the author and the reader). But for the uninformed, it has also created a void that needs to be filled. The biggest problem with this new norm is the lack of training for self-published authors. As the founder of a network of authors (John 3:16 Marketing Network), many of whom are frustrated, the lack of training in what it takes to market and the unrealistic expectations of what can be achieved is legend. I could give you many stories, including my own. While consumers will slap down a debit card for a Starbucks latte without a second thought (including me), ask someone to spend 99 cents on a book from you, an unknown author, and you will feel the parting of the Red Sea. You wonder if you have B.O. or bad breath.

As a self-published author, I have made my share of mistakes. One of my books had an amateurish book cover and a well-known author told me so. I quickly learned that I can’t sacrifice quality to save money. I grew up a lot that day—people notice the good, the bad and the ugly in books. If I am in this for the long haul, I better not be looking for a quick buck or I will be disappointed.

To that end, I would encourage writers and hopeful authors to think of writing as a business endeavor—approach it with that attitude. It’s not a hobby, it’s a job. Talent and willingness to learn will serve the serious writer well, along with some good business savvy.

The goal should be to build a platform and seek out readers who will fall in love with your book this year and come back and read future books—and share your books with friends and family. That mindset will serve those authors well who are serious about writing and marketing. It’s a business. The industry deserves that kind of quality.

Despite the challenges, I am glad the publishing world of the future won’t be controlled by a few highly successful companies. In the past, those publishers held a monopoly on the market. If I were a betting woman, I’d say they missed some real gems. What other answer is there for why some authors had so many rejections for excellent books? No wonder many writers gave up. The world will never know what books they didn’t get to enjoy. Not every wannabe author has the gumption to keep knocking on closed doors.

I can tell you that traditional publishers have never looked twice at me. I am too old for them to invest their cash in but too young (or stupid) to believe I can’t start another career. When I crawl into bed at 4 a.m. or 5 a.m. in the morning, after writing a few words on the computer following several hours of broadcast captioning, I sometimes wonder if I am insane. Still, I wouldn't trade what I’ve learned for any contract from any publisher.

Why? Because knowledge is power. While some information just doesn’t stick in this old brain of mine like I wish, that doesn’t mean I am going to give up. After all, we live in a world of information overload. I sometimes tell my daughters the C-drive in my brain is full. I need to delete something before I can take in any more information.

But with that power come opportunities. Today is a readers’ world in spite of television and computers and smartphones and tablets. In fact, it’s because of the plethora of these gadgets that more people are reading. Perhaps we make our hopes and dreams too small—too many rejection slips have convinced some they can’t make it at all. The journey is what it’s all about. And for me at least, I know the outcome is in God’s hands.

***

Lorilyn Roberts is a Christian author who writes children's picture books, adult nonfiction, memoirs, and a young adult Christian fantasy series, Seventh Dimension. The first in the series, The Door, was just published (October 2012).

Lorilyn graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of Alabama, which included international study in Israel and England. She received her Masters in Creative Writing from Perelandra College and is a graduate of the Institute of Children's Literature.

Lorilyn is the founder of the John 316 Marketing Network, a network of Christian authors who are passionate about promoting books with a Christian worldview.

To learn more about Lorilyn, please visit her website at http://lorilynroberts.com or blog at http://lorilynroberts.blogspot.com. You can follow her on twitter at http://twitter.com/lorilynroberts. To connect with her personally, you can contact her by email at llwroberts@cox.net.





Fearless Friday - Nike Chillemi and her newest book Darkest Hour


Meet Nike Chillemi

Website: Nike Chillemi ~ Crime Fictionista  http://nikechillemi.wordpress.com/

Like so many writers, Nike Chillemi started writing at a very young age. She still has the Crayola, fully illustrated book she penned (penciled might be more accurate) as a little girl about her then off-the-chart love of horses. Today, you might call her a crime fictionista. Her passion is crime fiction. She likes her bad guys really bad and her good guys smarter and better. 

She is the founding board member of the Grace Awards and is its Chairman, a reader's choice awards for excellence in Christian fiction. She writes book reviews for The Christian Pulse online magazine. She was an Inspy Awards 2010 judge in the Suspense/Thriller/Mystery category and a judge in the 2011 and 2012 Carol Awards in the suspense, mystery, and romantic suspense categories. BURNING HEARTS, the first book in the crime wave that is sweeping the south shore of Long Island in The Sanctuary Point series, finaled in the Grace Awards 2011 in the Romance/Historical Romance category. GOODBYE NOEL, the second book in the series released in December, 2011 won the Grace Award 2011 in the Mystery/Romantic Suspense/Thriller category. PERILOUS SHADOWS, third in the series released July, 2012, and DARKEST HOUR, the fourth in the series released in February, 2013.  She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) and the Edgy Christian Fiction Lovers (Ning). http://nikechillemi.wordpress.com/ 

 
 


DARKEST HOUR
B00BE9N6XE

---Murder Mystery w/Romance, late-1940s

---a widow is framed by powerful people/the medical examiners knows she didn't pull the trigger

---Sweet romance, warm intimacy, sophisticated themes presented tastefully 

A petite widow, secretary and sole support of her son and grandparents, is framed for the murder of her boss. Wealthy village residents conspire with the DA to indicte her and stop further investigation. The medical examiner thinks the shooter was a tall individual and when his report is shoved aside, starts snooping trying to clear her and in the process falls in love with her.
 
Buy on Amazon

Your unique talent:   I'm a foodie. I watch the Food Network on TV and love the show Hell's Kitchen. I love to cook and feed people. Food, eating, cooking, restaurants show up in my novels. I guess, at least to some extent, I write foodie fiction.
 

Share something not many people know about you:    I'm a graduate of the Fashion Institute of Technology and worked in the bridal industry for years before writing. I attended bridal shows and fairs in Atlanta, Dallas, Chicago, Las Vegas, and my hometown of New York. It's quite noticeable in any story of mine where there is a bridal gown, I give a highly detailed description.

 Are you a “pet person” or prefer no pets?  I'm a pet person and in fact was a pet rescuer in my early days. I've rescued about 50 dogs and cats. Even squirrels that were released back into the wilds of NYC.
 

Would you rather travel or stay at home?  Both. I love being at home. But there's nothing like travelling. I'm in love with the ocean, mostly the Atlantic Ocean. I love it's history and lore and love to visit cities and villages on the American's eastern seaboard. I'm in love with Key Largo and St. Augustine, Florida. However, two summers ago our family visited the left coast and the Pacific Ocean was truly magnificent. That wasn't the first time I'd seen the Pacific. My husband and I honeymooned in Acapulco, Mexico and that, of course, is right on the Pacific.
 

Do you read more or write more?      Unfortunately, I find I market the most. I think I even dream about marketing...nightmares, actually. That was a small joke. However, between reading and writing I write more. In fact, my reading was truly nil for a while, but I'm making time for reading again. I missed it so and there were so many books on my to read list it was ridiculous.
 

Prefer cake or pie?   Pie. Lemon meringue, warm apple with vanilla ice cream on the side, and coconut custard. 
 

Would, or do, ride a motorcycle or prefer to ride/drive a car?   My all time fav vehicle is a Jeep. I like to drive along coastal highways and also up windy mountain roads. I live in a city, a huge one, but don't enjoy city driving.
 

How about taking the bus or walking?   Neither. I do like to ride a bicycle. And I like walking my dog and walking on a boardwalk as the ocean waves come in. 
 

Are you part of a big church congregation or a small church? A very small church.
 

Would you describe yourself as happy or joyful?  I can be either. But I think more joyful. The more I stay in the Bible, the more joyful I am. However, to be honest, I can be a total grumblecrunch too. I have to repent of that a lot.
 

Do you like to telephone people or prefer to use e-mail?  Email. Don't have time to talk on the phone. Of course, now I'm finding keeping up with my email in-box is overwhelming. I think there's too much information coming at everyone these days. 

 

Do you eat at home or eat out?   I like everything about eating except over eating. I like to cook, feed people. I love cooking, for holidays, setting a holiday table, and eating with family and friends at holidays. I like well-made traditional recipes. I'm not so much into the new cuisine. I love going to a good restaurant. It could be rustic, family style, or five star. I've learned a lot about food and have gotten into healthy eating. I buy quite a bit of organic food and try to get produce locally and in season.  As much as I love the fun of cooking and eating, I see the health and healing aspect of food as part of my Christian walk. I don't think it's either/or. I think it's both and a balance has to be found. 

 

Listen to music or prefer quiet?  I vastly prefer quiet. I don't have a musical ear at all. Although, there are times when I must listen to music...absolutely must. But that's not often. Mostly I like the stillness of early morning or very late at night.
 

Prefer sunrises or sunsets?  I love both, especially when I'm on the beach.

 

Monday, April 15, 2013

Request for Book Reviews


April 12, 2013
Exclusively for John 3:16 Readers and Authors
Free Books for You to Read in Exchange for Your Review
(reviews help readers to find good books!)
If you see a book you would like to read, please contact the author with the contact information provided and let him know how you would like to receive a copy of his book.




Name of book:  THE OLDEST ENEMY
Genre: SUPERNATURAL THRILLER




Description: David Lighthouse was once a hard-hitting investigative reporter for the Denver Post-back before he was accused of the brutal murder of his fiancée and his life unraveled. Now, six years later, he
suddenly finds himself the target of sinister, supernatural forces as he tracks down a conspiracy to release an ancient evil upon an unsuspecting world.

Link on Amazon KINDLE http://amzn.to/RWyv4c PAPERBACK http://amzn.to/Rolsf1
4.7 star rating on Amazon

Author MICHAEL J. WEBB

Format Availability KINDLE, or PDF
Contact information  Reviews@SeventhDimensionSeries.com
30-day turnaround time to post review on Amazon

###

Name of book:  HOW TO LIVE A FABULOUS LIFE IN CHRIST, TEN LESSONS: A WOMAN'S
GUIDE ON SPIRITUAL GROWTH
Genre:  RELIGION & SPIRITUALITY




Description: How to Live a Fabulous Life in Christ encourages women to develop their new lives in Christ
through spiritual growth. Sabrina teaches 10 lessons that are common obstacles to spiritual maturity,
intimacy with God and personal peace.

Link on Amazon
http://amzn.to/TU6k64
5 star rating on Amazon

Author SABRINA C ANDERSON

Format availability
PAPERBACK AND WILLING TO GIFT A LIMITED NUMBER OF KINDLE
COPIES.

Contact information Reviews@SeventhDimensionSeries.com
30-day turnaround time to post review on Amazon

###

Name of book:  KEEPER OF REIGN
Genre: YA FANTASY (for readers 12 and up)




Description: The Elfies of Reign, already cursed for centuries, are in further trouble as Gehzurolle, the evil lord, scours the land for Keepers and their Books. Jules Blaze and his family seem to be his primary target. Jules must adventure into dangerous enemy territory to find his answers and the truth that could save him and his family.

Link on Amazon http://amzn.to/16Tem7I
No reviews yet on Amazon

Author EMMA RIGHT
Format availability PDF
Contact information Reviews@SeventhDimensionSeries.com

30-day turnaround time to post review on Amazon.

###

Name of book: THE LIFE SYSTEM: GOD AND MAN 101
Genre:  RELIGION / SPIRITUALITY




Description Christian How-To that teaches people the benefits of a seed and to use words to change any situation in life.

Link on Amazon http://amzn.to/12U1Wht
No reviews yet on Amazon

Author Matthew Thedford

Format availability PDF and KINDLE MOBI
Contact information Reviews@SeventhDimensionSeries.com
30-day turnaround time to post review on Amazon.

###

Name of book:  THE STORY IN THE STARS
Genre:  SCIENCE FICTION




Description: The Creator who wrote the story of redemption in the stars has commanded to share it with her reluctant savior. That's not all He expects of her, but the rest is unthinkable.

Link on Amazon http://amzn.to/12U4AUl

4.9 stars on Amazon

Author YVONNE ANDERSON

Format availability PRINT, .PDF AND KINDLE MOBI
Contact information Reviews@SeventhDimensionSeries.com

30-day turnaround time to post review on Amazon.

###

Name of book:  STOLEN WOMEN: WHAT WOULD YOU RISK?
Genre: CHRISTIAN SUSPENSE / ROMANCE




Description Human Trafficking:  Asha knew nothing about it before meeting 16-year-old Rani,
stolen from her home and forced into prostitution in Kolkata, India.

Link on Amazon http://amzn.to/154TZWL

4.8 stars on Amazon

Author KIMBERLY RAE

Format availability SOFT COVER, PDF, KINDLE, NOOK, OR SMASHWORDS COUPON

Contact information Reviews@SeventhDimensionSeries.com

30-day turnaround time to post review on Amazon.

###


Name of book:  WHERE LOVE ONCE LIVED
Genre: CHRISTIAN ROMANCE




Description She has worked hard to put her love for Brian behind her and rebuffs his advances. Brian can see that winning her over again isn't going to be as easy as he had hoped, but he's willing to do whatever it takes.

Link on Amazon http://www.amazon.com/dp/1451511817

4.5 stars on Amazon

Author SIDNEY W. FROST

Format availability PAPERBACK OR KINDLE MOBI.
Contact information Reviews@SeventhDimensionSeries.com
30-day turnaround time to post review on Amazon.

###

Name of book:  TERRELDOR AT WAR
Genre: FANTASY / ADVENTURE





Description: The Kingdom of Terreldor has fallen into war, and Mark must choose the path to selfpreservation, or follow his mentor to battle a great evil. He will learn the lasting scars of war are not
always wrought on the battlefield.

Link on Amazon http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00C7HGAPS

5 stars on Amazon (2 reviews)

Author CHRIS M. HIBBARD

Format availability PDF, MS WORD DOC, or KINDLE MOBI
Contact information Reviews@SeventhDimensionSeries.com
30-day turnaround time to post review on Amazon.

###

Name of book: SEVENTH DIMENSION - THE DOOR, A YOUNG ADULT CHRISTIAN FANTASY 
Genre: CHRISTIAN FANTASY / YOUNG ADULT




Description:  Shale is an emotionally and psychologically injured girl - after many years of torment at school and abandonment at home, she is left empty and hollow inside.One day, she is transported to a happy, peaceful garden...or is it?

Link on Amazon http://amzn.to/170JeEm

4.7 stars on Amazon

Author LORILYN ROBERTS

Format availability PDF, KINDLE MOBI, SOFT COVER, OR SMASHWORDS WITH A FREE COUPON
Contact information  Reviews@SeventhDimensionSeries.com
30-day turnaround time to post review on Amazon.


###




Name of book: CHILDREN OF DREAMS
Genre: Adoption Memoir







Description: A one-of-a-kind inspirational adoption story--in fact, two stories. Children of Dreams is borne out of Lorilyn Roberts' shattered world, a story of turning broken dreams into a heart-warming realty.

Link on Amazon http://amzn.to/V86QUB

4.6 stars on Amazon

Author LORILYN ROBERTS

Format availability PDF, KINDLE MOBI, OR SMASHWORDS WITH A FREE COUPON

Contact information Reviews@SeventhDimensionSeries.com
30-day turnaround time to post review on Amazon.

###
Name of Book: MEOW MAYHEM
Genre: Mystery

Description: After being dumped at the altar Ivy moves her message business and cat to Apple Grove, IL where she meets handsome but scarred True Thompson, bookstore/coffeeshop owner. When their friend the mayor winds up dead, can their love withstand the sudden rise in crime?

Link on Amazon: http://tinyurl.com/bnc956d

4 stars on Amazon

Author LISA LICKEL

Format availability PDF, PRINT

Contact information: lisalickel-at-gmail.com
30-day turnaround time to post review on Amazon.


Name of Book: The Last Bequest, book one of the Buried Treasure series
Genre: Cozy Mystery


Description: When Judy Winters inherits the family farm upon her aunt's death, Judy must decide whether to stay there or sell her family's heritage. Meeting the boy next door who helped with chores could be an incentive to stay - unless he's a murderer.

Link on Amazon: http://tinyurl.com/cyjsf4w

4.8 stars on Amazon

Author LISA LICKEL

Format availability PDF, KINDLE MOBI

Contact information: lisalickel-at-gmail.com
30-day turnaround time to post review on Amazon.

Name of Book: Healing Grace
Genre: Women's Fiction



Description: Grace could fix anyone with a touch - until her husband got cancer and died. Grace runs far and fast--right into the arms of another man who desperately needs her. What would you sacrifice to save the life of someone you love?

Link on Amazon: available April 19

 stars on Amazon

Author LISA LICKEL

Format availability PDF, KINDLE MOBI

Contact information: lisalickel-at-gmail.com
30-day turnaround time to post review on Amazon.

###


Questions? Trouble with links or email addresses?  PLEASE FEEL FREE TO Email Lorilyn Roberts at llwroberts@cox.net.  Our authors appreciate you taking your precious time to read their books
and review them!

Wednesday, April 3, 2013

Should You Purchase Your Own ISBN's and/or Form A Publishing Company?


by Lorilyn Roberts
First, buy your ISBN’s from Bowker – not from a secondary vender, though they are a lot cheaper – but you will end up throwing them out. They are worthless.

Should you incorporate or make yourself a publisher? What I did is I used my business name, Roberts Court Reporters, as I am already incorporated and have been for about 20 years. 

The only advantage to getting your own ISBN’s (rather than using Smashwords or Create Space) in my opinion is if you want to try to sell to bookstores or more easily to libraries. If you use the Create Space ISBN and publish only through them, you will never be able to get your book into bookstores unless the bookstore is willing to open up a Create Space account and buy directly from Create Space. If I were a betting woman, I wouldn’t count on it.

I want to get my books into bookstores. Why? I don’t like having just one revenue stream for selling my books. While Amazon is a big part of the pie, it just makes business sense to “spread the wealth” – and yes, I consider my books an asset, even if nobody else has figured that out yet.

Okay. Don’t mean to be cocky, but the point is, you are limiting yourself if your dreams begin and end with Amazon. I got my ISBN’s, and I will be publishing through Lightning Source shortly. I honestly don’t know if you can publish through Lightning Source as an independent author. I think you have to become a publisher. You also have to show credit worthiness, which is why I went with my business name – too many hoops otherwise. Maybe an LLC is easier. It’s about $500 in Florida to incorporate, and unless you are making a profit, I don’t know whether it’s a good business decision to do it. You will pay more in taxes – CPA fees, et cetera, to help you not pay so much in taxes.

But if you want to get your book in bookstores, you have to have returnability of books, and Create Space won’t give you that.

This is what I am doing: I am republishing with Lightning Source, using my own ISBN that I bought from Bowker, both for the ebook and the print copy, you need two different ISBN numbers because then you have to go back and register those books with Bowker. I will republish with Create Space using my own ISBN number for both ways of publishing. 

I also got a Library of Congress number – and that was not easy because I didn’t know how to do it, and I did it all wrong. YOU MUST GET YOUR LIBRARY OF CONGRESS NUMBER BEFORE your book is published. After it’s published, you can’t get the number.

I wanted the number to help get my book into libraries. Plus it just looks good. I believe it will help me to get some reviews from people who review books with those numbers, because libraries use those numbers to determine which books they want to order.

I know you don’t have to be incorporated to publish with Lightning Source or to get a Bowker number, but you need more than just being an author. Essentially you become a publisher. It’s a lot more of a hassle, but anything worth having sometimes just takes a lot of work.

Sunday, March 31, 2013



by Kimberley Payne, illustrated by Esther Haug

Product Details
Trees of the Book is a 26 page children's activity book, #1 in the Science & Faith Matters Series. It explores the trees discussed in the Bible in a way that is both fun and informative for children of the grade 2 - 3 level, or ages 7-9. With a colorful interior and 8.5" x 11" format for comfortable handling for children, it offers challenging activities, fun facts, opportunities for Bible study and presentation of stories connected to the trees.
Paperback: 28 pages, 8.5 x 11 inches
Publisher: byDesign Media (February 13, 2013)
ISBN: 978-1896213736
$9.95
 

Kimberley Payne shares information and activities from biblical accounts, from the oaks of Genesis to cedars and palms, and the mustard tree, to the less common fig, sycamore, and brooms.
 

Told in a fanciful first-person style as though the tree is telling its own story, Payne gives both the biblical passage where mention of the tree is made, and questions related to it. For example, the first story about the oak involves using the tree as a landmark. At the camp Abram set up near these mighty oaks, God made a special promise. Payne asks her readers to think about promises.
 

Following these passages and questions, Payne gives the scientific description of the species, including growth pattern, names, and other details.

 
Each chapter also has an activity, such as word search, fill-in-the-blank paragraph, match the facts, or a crossword.
 

Haug’s illustrations are charming and add depth and beauty to each chapter.
 

It’s hard to mix science and faith for many. In this book, readers don’t have to even enter a debate. God’s creation is wonderful and varied and awesome. Payne ends with a great glossary, answers and a fun list of further activities.
 

Highly recommended for fun and learning, Sunday School, family activities.

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

And the Winners Are....

WE HAVE WINNERS!





Shout Outs on the Rafflecopter About Out New Site, Designed by Our Own Joseph Young, Free Books, PRIZES, and Monthly Great Books Being Launched!



Sounds like a great site!
-- Brittany McEuen

Sounds like this venture has a bright future!
-- Sandy Salsbury

Thanks for giving us this opportunity!!  I love the chance to see the latest books, let alone the contests!!
-- Midgie E. Bardo

Wow! Awesome site!
-- Leisa Sonnenberg Schirmer

Winning a kindle would be the only way I get one, lol.
-- Eileen Bartschenfeld

Great give away
-- Matthew Kratz

I'm excited for my daughter to read Seventh Dimension!
-- Becca Carroll

love being able to read quality Christian books.  Thank you!
-- Lori McCartney Ritchey


!!DRUM ROLL, PLEASE!!




Using Random.org, the following people are winners!

Kindle 




Kelly Gowens


$50 Amazon Gift Card

Amanda Stephan


$10 Starbucks Card

Matthew Kratz




Make sure you bookmark our new launch site at http://John316MarketingNetwork.com
A launch every month. John 3:16 Authors aren’t eligible to win a Kindle but are eligible to win any other prizes, including a free book launch!