Tag Archives: writing

Ghostwriting Conference in Long Beach

Posted on May 3, 2013 by JW Najarian | Leave a comment

Ghostwriters and writers interested in making a career in ghostwriting have their first ever conference.

Ghostwriters Unite! is the world’s pioneering conference for ghostwriters. Held May 3-5 at the Hilton in downtown Long Beach, GU! will bring together some of the best people in the book industry including publishers, literary agents, authors, distributors, eBook specialists, and—of course—ghostwriters.

Ghostwriters Unite! is the first conference of its kind: an international gathering to share ghostwriting experiences and expertise and discuss the future of our profession.

How did this pioneering event get its start?

Ghostwriters Unite! is the mental baby of Claudia Suzanne, the first person to ever deconstruct (Secrets of a Ghostwriter) and teach (Ghostwriting Certificate Program) how ghosts do what we do.

Ghostwriters Unite! was originally envisioned as an afternoon event, a chance for Suzanne’s alumni to meet and mingle with each other, their former teacher, and other industry experts.

But so many people got excited about the idea of getting together and talking about “professionalizing” our field that it’s grown into a full-blown conference!

We’ll be talking about setting fee standards and ethical boundaries and bylines and problem clients and working with agencies and publishing options and lots more.

If you’re a ghostwriter or are even thinking of getting started in this lucrative, recession-proof field, this is the one event you won’t want to miss!

The conference takes place May 3, 4, and 5, 2013 at the Hilton Long Beach & Executive Meeting Center, 701 West Ocean Blvd, Long Beach, CA 90831.

We’ll start with a Friday night mixer, then a full day of panels on finding clients, setting fees, handling the trust issue, maintaining voice, and other ghostwriter-specific topics. We’ll take a break at lunch with a keynote speaker and enjoy a limited-space banquet dinner with a special-guest author. We’ll finish the conference Sunday morning with an extended-panel discussion about the state of the book industry.

Get more information:

Ghostwriters Unite http://ghostwritersunite.com/

Come join me at this conference. Yes I will be there helping out Claudine and meeting all the wonderful authors and other industry leaders.

I can not stress enough how this conference may be one of the most important in the industry for those that want to make a living writing. – JW

Self-Publishing for the Right Reasons — FriesenPress

Posted on March 21, 2013 by JW Najarian | 2 comments

March 20, 2013 By: Rasanga Weerasinghe

Self-Publishing for the Right Reasons

I just recently watched a webinar featuring Mr. Guy Kawasaki that had some fantastic information for self-publishing authors. One of his top ten tips that really stood out for me is about ‘writing for the right reasons’ – so I thought I would share it with you right here on the FriesenPress Blog!

There are many wrong reasons to write a book, including writing for the sake of just making money, or to increase your consulting or speech fees. If you write a great book, you may make a lot of money as a secondary benefit, but it should not be the main reason you are writing in the first place.

Mac365 by Kenneth Cardell

Taming the Hamster by Dakota Jade

Art & Design Memory by Michael Gronnerud

1. To enrich people’s lives

Your book is a work of art, and the world is going to be better off because you have written it. Whether you are a writing a cookbook, an arts and crafts book, a novel or fiction, your goal is to enrich people’s lives, and we thank you for it.

2. To further a cause

You are passionate about a cause or a subject and you want to expand existing information or simply promote it, excellent! Write with [Continue Reading This Story….]

There are Ten Tips…

Self-Publishing for the Right Reasons — FriesenPress.

2 Comments

Posted in Authors

Tagged author, book, guy kawasaki, self publishing, writing

Stacey Patterson – Fidget’s Folly

Posted on January 24, 2013 by JW Najarian | Leave a comment

Stacey Patterson on Her Newest Book – Fidget’s Folly

This interview is with author Stacey Patterson who talks about her new children’s book “Fidget’s Folly”, a follow up to her first book “Fidget’s Freedom”. Fidget’s Folly is about two young peregrine falcons embarking upon their first adventures of freedom, incredibly illustrated by the greatest wildlife illustrator in Russia Vadim Gorbatov. Stacey also discusses her writing, publishing and marketing journey. Continue reading →

Laura Atchison Are You Asking Yourself the Tough Questions?

Posted on January 22, 2013 by JW Najarian | 1 comment

Laura Steward Atchison, Bestselling Author of “What Would a Wise Woman Do? Qestions to Ask Along the Way”

This interview with best selling author Laura Atchison could change your life. If you have issues that you can’t seem to resolve, you might be addressing them in the wrong way. Listen in and find out. Continue reading →

1 Comment

Posted in Audio Podcast, Education, Health and Wellness, Interview, iTunes, Lifestyle

Tagged ask the right questions, author, bestseller, bestseller track, book, information, jw najarian, laura stewart atchison, marketing, promoting, Publishing, sales, speak, what would a wise woman do, writing

E-book vs. Print

Posted on June 20, 2012 by JW Najarian | 3 comments

E-book vs. Print

May15 by Cristian Mihai

There are two types of people in the world: those who realize that this world is constantly reinventing itself and are usually capable of recognizing the new directions in which the world is headed, and those who can’t.

There’s this pathological fear that the world is more and more superficial; kids are dumb, the world is too fast and hungry and wants only to be fed information via an usb cable, people aren’t reading, paperbacks aren’t selling, bookstores are closing, and no one seems to read the newspapers anymore. And this is a global fear, it affects people on all continents, and yet…

READ ON CLICK HERE

or copy and paste to browser address bar http://cristianmihai.net/2012/05/15/e-book-vs-print/

Just found Cristian’s blog and if he does not mind I will steal a few of his jewels to share with you. You can just go to his blog of course… LOL

Thanks Cristian for some great writing and for helping others – JW

3 Comments

Posted in Authors, Journal

Tagged author, blog, book, Cristian Mihai, ebook, Novel, plays, print, vs, writing

Writing with a Deeper Point of View (POV)

Posted on June 19, 2012 by JW Najarian | 4 comments

Always on the prowl for interesting articles I found these two great blog posts on deepening your POV as a writer and found this so interesting that I had to share them… – JW

Deeper POV

From: iuemag.com

by Jody Lebel, Western Massachusetts

When you write in deep POV (point of view) you will never have to say s/he felt, s/he thought or s/he knew… realized… speculated… wondered… etc. These phrases create narrative distance. They are ‘telling’ sentences. The reader is at arm’s length, not in your character’s head where they belong.

If we are deep into our character’s psyche we can proceed directly to whatever it was s/he was thinking. In deep POV we get straight to the point exactly like the person would, creating ‘showing’ sentences. Here are some examples.

Before: He wondered if Kim would show up at the picnic.
After: Would Kim show up drunk at the picnic like last year and spoil it again?
Before: Two men approached the house. I hoped it wasn’t the cops again.
After: A pair of strangers walked briskly up the walk towards the front door. Not the cops again.
Before: He thought the dog needed a bath.
After:What a smell. He eyed the pristine bathroom then studied the muddy animal. What that dog needed was a good bath.

Another way to write with a deeper POV is to remove the was/were and rephrase with a hook. Start with a basic sentence: The night was dark. Pretty boring! Your reader is yawning…… Read More http://www.iuemag.com/june2012/deeper-pov.php

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Deep Point of View

Katie Ganshert June 18, 2012

Deep point of view allows the reader to feel and experience exactly what our characters feel and experience. Authors who do deep point of view well often create stories that are highly engaging – where the characters come to life and the reader gets lost in the pages.

Once we get the hang of it, deep point of view takes our writing to the next level.

So when I saw a tweet about this book called Rivet Your Readers with Deep Point of View, free on Kindle for a limited time, I was immediately intrigued. I hadn’t read a craft book in awhile, so I hopped on over and downloaded it.

I’m super glad I did.

It is a super quick (it’ll take you an hour, tops), informative read.

Not only did I freshen up on some important writing techniques, I now have a craft book I can recommend to lots and lots of writers.

The author (Jill Elizabeth Nelson) addresses techniques that so many writers fail to employ.

Mistakes I see all the time whenever I critique a piece of writing or judge a contest entry.

Two of the BIGGIES:

Authorial Intrusions
Prepositional Tells

Authorial Intrusions

Anytime you put an invisible narrator between the reader and the character, you’ve inserted an authorial intrusion.

Phrases like she wondered, she felt, she saw, she wished, she decided are all examples. Purging them from your manuscript will take your prose to the next level.

For example:

She realized where she put her purse.

Can be changed to…

Oh, right. That’s where she left her purse.

Another example:

She spotted the lime green bike swerving through traffic.

Can be changed to… READ MORE http://katieganshert.com/writing/deep-point-of-view/

4 Comments

Posted in Authors, Journal

Tagged author, authorial intrusions, deeper, point of view, pov, propositional tells, writer, writing

Literary Agent Bruce Barbour on Submitting Your Book to Publish

Posted on May 22, 2012 by JW Najarian | 1 comment

Long Time Literary Agent Bruce Barbour Talks About How To Submit Your Book or Story

Literary veteran Bruce Barbour talks to OPM about how to submit your book to him.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GRmatbYQQ6c]
I met Bruce at the incredible Author 101 Event in Los Angeles. This interview is well overdue since I recorded in in 2011, but the information has not changed.

Bruce is a veteran literary agent and he tells it like it is, about getting your book to him. What he wants to see, how he wants to see it and many more tips and suggestions to make sure you get your stuff read and taken seriously. – JW

Bruce Barbour

Excellence in Literary Management

Bruce R Barbour has been active in book publishing for thirty years.

Known to friends and colleagues as “BRB”, Bruce is the fourth generation of a publishing family that has served authors and publishers for nearly 140 years.

In 1870, his great-grand uncles, Fleming H. Revell and Dwight Moody, started publishing Christian books. Following in the footsteps of his great-grand uncles, grandfather, and father, Bruce joined the Fleming H. Revell Company in 1975 after graduating with honors from Pepperdine University, Malibu, CA.

He has held executive positions at several publishing houses including Fleming H Revell Company (family owned-business sold in 1979), Barbour and Company (co-founded and Exec VP in 1983-1986), Thomas Nelson (VP, Publisher, 1986-1993), and Random House (VP, Publisher 1994-1996).

In 1997, Bruce founded Literary Management Group, Inc., a full service literary agency and publishing consulting firm that has represented best-selling authors and properties including Zig Ziglar, Sandra Felton and The Beginner’s Bible and consulted with publishing houses including Thomas Nelson, Zondervan, Gospel Light, Pneuma Life, Legacy, New Hope, White Stone Books and others.

Literary Management Group

Literary Management Group is committed to providing excellent support and counsel to authors and publishers of a variety of resources (print, multi-media, and electronic).

We represent adult fiction and non-fiction and recommend that authors of children’s, gift, poetry, illustrated and academic books seek out literary firms which specialize in these genres. A great source for seeking out agencies is at www.michaelhyatt.com.

Although we specialize in the area of Christian publishing from an Evangelical perspective, we have editorial contacts and experience in general interest books as well.

Services include:

Literary Representation

Preparation of proposals based on a proven template that presents features, advantages and benefits so editors can review and quickly determine if book concept fits their editorial strategy and publishing needs.
Development of publisher submission strategy that identifies the list of publishers and editors most likely to be interested in reviewing and publishing the book.
Negotiation of optimum terms in publishing contract; terms that are fair for author, and reasonable for publisher, so everyone wins when the book is successfully published.
Project management and facilitation with publisher to ensure author’s experience, from editorial through marketing and publication, is smooth and understandable.
Review of publisher’s royalty reporting so author is clear on what the statements mean and confident in their accuracy.

Publishing Consultant and Executive Coach

Needs Assessment of all phases of publishing process including: strategic planning; budgeting; acquisition; editorial; design; production; sales and marketing; fulfillment; customer service; and, financial systems
Management mentoring and training.
Turn-arounds
Acquisitions and Sales of Assets
Strategic Planning facilitation

Packaging

Development of content from manuscript through delivery of bound books to customer including edit, design, production, and fulfillment
Sales and Marketing guidance and counsel

For Editorial Guidelines and Proposal Templates, please visit: http://literarymanagementgroup.com

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Rick Frishman’s Author 101

Are you curious about what publishers like Harper Collins, Morgan James, Adams Media, Wiley, Random House, and Simon & Schuster are looking for? What is the best way to get your manuscript read when you’re an unpublished author? Want to know the biggest mistakes to avoid when writing book proposals? You’ll be engaged as these top pros share their expertise, reveal the inner workings of the publishing industry, and discuss various approaches to common marketing and publishing challenges.

Author 101 University Event Website: www.author101university.com

1 Comment

Posted in Business, Education, Interview, Management, Marketing, Video Podcast

Tagged agent, author, author 101, book, Bruce Barbour, business, children, christian, consulting, coporate, fantasy, fiction, how to, interview, jw najarian, Literary Agent, manuscript, marketing, non-fiction, Novel, packaging, publish, Reading, rick frishman, submit, Submitting Books for Publishing, training, video, writer, writing

9.5 Blog Writing Tips for Nimrods Like Me

Posted on May 13, 2010 by JW Najarian | Leave a comment

First I have no clue how to write, I do not know all the blog etiquette and have been spanked by a few professional bloggers so the first tip I will give you is to learn from someone that knows something.

These are tips I have either taken from others or found out on my own, but the help me and I hope they can help you too.

Do some Googling, buy a book or go to a class on blogging if you really want to excel. If you just want to get by read on.
You are allowed to screw up, and make mistakes. We all have and if you are not a great writer just getter done.. and don’t worry whether the local literary club is critiquing your work. Believe me that probably have nothing else to do on a Friday or Saturday night..
Have a point. If you publish a blog post then others may read it and it is so much more fun for the reader if there is a point. Don’t let yourself go off on too many tangents. Save tangents for new blogs. A great way to start or come up with content for your post is to turn your point into a question and answer it.
Get to the point right away and then expand on it. You can start with the title as the title is the commercial for your blog so it should pique interest and tell something about what the person is going to read about or get out of the blog post. Also give away the plot in the first paragraph if you can as people have the attention span of a gnat. You can then expand on the story as you go.
You should stick to subject matter that is relevant to your site, business etc…, but people do have other interests other than work. If you have a product site you may want to stick to the subject of your product, but it is sometimes good to step out of the box and treat people like humans by adding some more personal or interesting stories that the reader can relate to.
Short paragraphs of not over 3 or 4 lines is best. Readers seem to do better reading short paragraphs.
Blogs do not need to be long. You can blog a couple of paragraphs if you wish. It is not important to write long blogs as long as you have a point and make it.
Bullet Points instead of commas, make any writing more scannable and readable.
Speak with your readers, not at them. The Internet has turned marketing on it’s head and we have discovered that taking the time to relate to your audience as opposed to trying to teach or convince them of something is much more desirable way to get the point across.
Interview yourself to get great content. You can also have someone else interview you and record it. Then you can listen back to it and type it out to get your post.

Other stuff… (Bonus Stuff)

Don’t have over 10 points… Good advice for a blog, but you need 25 to 101 for a book.

According to HubPages – Too many promotional links = Newbie Mistake and Too much personal content that is only relevant to people close to you or is private joke with yourself = Newbie Mistake

Call to action – Yes and No.. You do need to, in some circumstances, want a call to action by asking them to comment that could be simple or you might go as far as to ask them to sign up and buy from you etc., but be careful you should give someone more meat than marketing. Sometimes you just have to give without receiving.

Yes Ask for the Sale.. but also… Ask your readers about what they want. That is the best call to action.

Here is my call to action: Tell me if this blog was good for you. Oh baby.. and give us your best tips you have learned about blogging.

JW Najarian
www.CREPIG.com
www.CREDAA.com
www.NetworkingFool.com

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