Category: Inspiration

Read, Eat, Drink–Weekend Roundup

by Maria

Read:

dennett

My favorite article this week is a throwback post that recently resurfaced from Brain Pickings: How to Criticize with Kindness: Philosopher Daniel Dennett on the Four Steps to Arguing Intelligently.

Dennett asks the question: “Just how charitable are you supposed to be when criticizing the views of an opponent?”

This is an incredibly important topic–if we never learn to criticize or dissent effectively, so little can ever be accomplished. It’s an essential skill to learn as editors and agents, because so much of our work hinges on providing feedback to authors. And anyone who’s ever tried to edit someone else’s writing knows what a touchy thing it can be–writing is an extremely personal thing, and being told that your writing should be changed can sometimes feel like a personal attack. That’s why it’s the responsibility of critics/editors/agents/everyone to deliver feedback in a way that will make your subject receptive, rather than defensive.

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Read, Eat, Drink–Weekend Roundup

by Maria

Read: 

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Leo Babuata of ZenHabits, one of my favorite sites on creativity and living, is finally launching his new book. Watching this launch has been incredible–it’s funny how sometimes we can learn so much more from people who are outside of the publishing industry.

He traditionally published a few books several years ago, and he’s self-published a few ebooks since then, but this is his first self-published print book to be sold direct to his fans (he has over a million readers on his blog). And he decided to approach writing a book the way a coder would approach writing new software. As he explains:

The traditional way of writing a book is like the old Microsoft model of developing software: you write it in isolation for a year or two, and then put it out as a fully-formed product.

The problem with that method is that it’s never been tested in the real world. You don’t know if readers (or users) will want it, you don’t know where you’ve made huge mistakes, you don’t know how it will work in the wild.

That “Microsoft” model of making programs has been replaced in the last decade or so by iterative programming, where you make a Minimum Viable Product as soon as possible, and let a small group of people (alpha or beta testers) use it and give you feedback and report bugs. Then a new version is made, more testing and feedback, and so on, making the product better and better each iteration. I love this model, because it leads to a better product over the long run.

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3 Secrets to Convert a Casual Blog Visitor Into a Customer

by Maria

convert blog visitor into book buyer

Hey y’all! This week I’m writing for the Female Entrepreneur Association about what I look for when I scout blogs–and especially why traffic isn’t the most important thing when it comes to supporting a book (or other product) launch.

Blogs are a powerful tool for connecting with potential customers—haven’t we all bought something online just because we followed and loved its creator? But any authorpreneur can tell you that it’s no easy feat to turn a first-time blog visitor into a repeat reader. And then to turn a repeat reader into a book buyer? That takes something more than just marketing.

Part of my job as a Literary Agent is to scout for talent, and every month I look at hundreds of blogs, businesses, and brands, and try to determine which ones have a high “stickiness” factor. Without stickiness (which is a powerful cocktail of engagement, loyalty, and goodwill), it’s difficult to support a major product launch, such as a book launch.

Luckily, there are a few secrets to make your blog an online home for your brand that turns casual visitors into engaged readers. And they’re not the secrets you’re expecting—they have nothing to do with marketing, or social media, or advertising. Those will bring visitors to your site, but they won’t guarantee that they stick around.

As publishers, retailers, and other gatekeepers have figured out, strong traffic and impressive social media numbers don’t always translate into sales. Sales only happen when a dedicated reader loves you and your work so much that they’re willing to put their hard-earned money behind it. We all work hard for our money, so that’s a big deal!

1. Design a site that encourages lingering.

The Internet is full of beautiful, bright websites that offer stunning infographics, gorgeous product photos, and distinct, memorable logos. But the other half of the Internet is littered with generic website templates, poorly lit photos, and amateurish logos. Think of it this way: would you rather spend a couple of hours in an Apple store or a 7/11? Don’t overlook the value of creating a space where visitors want to linger and explore.

Action Step: Go to Pinterest, create a board, and start pinning logos and designs you find beautiful. Then carefully analyze each image and determine what makes it lovely and how you can recreate it for your blog. If you don’t want to build it yourself, you can also search sites like Wix.com for templates (but beware the generic templates we’ve all seen before!). Or, if you have the budget, you can share your Pinterest board with a professional designer who can turn your vision into the website of your dreams.

2. Write in an authentic, memorable voice.

Blogs are not textbooks (thankfully!) so make sure that, even when your post is meant to inform, it’s written in an exciting, engaging voice. This doesn’t mean ending every sentence with five exclamation points (don’t do that, please…). But it does mean writing in an authentic, natural voice.

Action Step: Dig up the last email you wrote to your best friend. Take note of your authentic voice—are you usually upbeat? Sarcastic? Totally nerdy? Go with that. It’ll be infinitely more interesting to both you and readers if your posts are chock-full of personality!

3. Be a real person, not a brand.

Bloggers and writers often completely forget that the most compelling part of their business and brand is them—the real, live person behind it. Readers and customers want to connect with you, the three-dimensional person, not you, the person who’s trying to sell them something. So be open, be real, share your struggles and your victories, and create a community that encourages two-way conversation. That’s why Ree Drummond of The Pioneer Woman was able to successfully crossover into other ventures–her readers really felt like they knew her as a friend. And friendship is much more powerful than marketing.

Action Step: Create a pre-publish checklist for yourself. Alongside checking for typos and adding in links and images, add a check for “You.” Before you hit publish, ask yourself if the post still has some of you in it. Is this a post anyone on Yahoo could have written, or is rooted in your real life and your unique perspective?

This article originally appeared on the Female Entrepreneur Association site. Their site is an endless source of inspiration for anyone who needs extra motivation to get things done (i.e. everyone). I especially love the Tips of the Day they share on their Facebook page, like this one:

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Get one free tip for reading more + living better each week!

The Hope in the Query Pile

by Maria

Mountain

We’ve all heard the hilarious stories about crazy query letters—the ones written from jail, the ones that start “Dear Sirs or Madams,” the ones that include nothing but 3 pictures of purses made from jeans and an assurance that “this book will sell millions.” (My personal favorite of the year.)

But I think sometimes agents don’t talk enough about the encouraging query letters. Not necessarily the queries that get a request for more material, or the ones that are ultimately picked up by an agent and sold to a publisher. I don’t mean the successful queries, but the encouraging ones—the ones that give us back a little faith in humanity.

Because I work in nonfiction, I see a lot of sad stories in my query pile, mostly from the memoir queries. There are stories of cancer, sexual abuse, drug addiction, human trafficking, divorce, death of children, infertility, homelessness—every horrible thing that can happen to us humans. But, without fail, at the end of every one of these query letters, there’s one word: hope. These memoirs are always about hope.

The very fact that these writers have suffered through all the crappy stuff life can throw at you, and then come out on the other side able to write about it, says a lot about the therapeutic power of writing.

That’s one thing I wish I could tell more writers: sometimes writing can be just for you. For the therapy, for the catharsis, and for the energy it provides. Getting all those words and emotions and memories out of your head can be its own reward, and chasing a book deal can be secondary.

Publishing is a crazy world, and it can be a full-time job to build the sort of platform necessary to successfully launch a book. But writing is, and will always be, just for the writer.

[Writers: I’m caught up on all queries through August 1, 2014. If you sent me a query prior to that date and did not receive a response, please re-send!]