Did You Miss Last Night's Interview?

I know a few writers who are regretting the fact they didn't listen to my live virtual book tour last night with Moody fiction editor Andy McGuire. The exchanges provided a series of valuable information for any writer interested in writing children's books or in particular writing fiction for Moody Publishers.

Here's the good news: you can still listen to the full interview--even download it to your iPod or computer and hear it on your own schedule. Just follow this link. This session was recorded and late last night I made a few edits to the interview (mostly cleaning up some pauses) then I added a short music introduction for the beginning and the end. Next I moved the material into the replay page (see the illustration). It's not too late for anyone to hear this information so just go to the link, give your first name and email address. In the question box, you can mark "no question" since they will not be used because the interview is over.

It will take you to the replay page. Notice at the bottom of my illustration the little yellow "tell-a-friend" tool, you can use it to send a short email to others about this valuable resource. Why is it valuable? Through listening to Andy, you can learn specifically about the types of fiction books which he is actively looking for Moody Publishers. How does he process a submission? How much of it does he read? This information is in the interview and will help you target your submission to Moody Publishers.

Also in the children's market area, how can you gain a hearing for your manuscript? What does it take and how did Andy do it for his first children's book, Rainy Day Games? You can learn this information through the teleseminar along with other great insights.

The only way you will miss out on this information is if you don't go over there and get it. I want to keep learning and growing in my knowledge of the publishing business and the market. I learned a great deal during this session and you can too.

For Your Burning Question

There is no shortage of passion among writers and especially writers for children and fiction writers. It is obvious to me as I've read these questions from more than 100 people who have signed up at the moment for this event. If you want to ask a question about Christian fiction or children's writing for Andy, now is the time to ask it: http://www.askandymcguire.com/

Late last week I wrote a short, targeted press release about this event and sent it to three publications which have regular online newsletters that go out to their audiences. I know two of the three publications picked up on the release. Here's one of them from yesterday:

"Fiction editor/author answers questions in upcoming teleseminar. Moody Fiction Editor Andy McGuire will answer your questions in a free live 70-minute telewebcast this Wed., Jun. 18, at 4 p.m. Pacific/7 p.m. Eastern. Host Terry Whalin will use the questions from various participants to grill McGuire about the publication of his first children's book, Rainy Day Games, Fun with the Animals of Noah's Ark (Harvest House Publishers). Anyone can ask a question at: http://www.askandymcguire.com/ and register for the free teleseminar.

Participants in the free teleseminar can also ask McGuire questions about his day job as the fiction editor at Moody Publishers. Each person who registers for the teleseminar at: http://www.askandymcguire.com/ will receive a free four-chapter e-book called Novel Curriculum by Andy McGuire. This 47-page e-book will help writers understand some of the basics related to creating and shaping Christian fiction.

Don't have time to listen during the workday? The event will be recorded and every registrant will receive access to the replay links, which can be downloaded to a computer or iPod."

OK, maybe you are not a fiction writer or children's author, can you learn something from this post for your writing life? There is no doubt in my mind.

First, notice the technology. Sign up and notice you can hear the author talking, then when you ask your question, you get to the confirmation or mirror page where you make sure you have your question worded as you want it. Once again you have a personal connection to this author. Finally when you ask your question, you reach the confirmation page where you will hear me talking and confirming your registration.

Check out this confirmation page and notice it's where you download the free 47-page Ebook from Andy McGuire about writing fiction. Also this page is where people get the call-in number for their phones or they can listen to the interview on a live webcast (free). Also this page has a countdown timer highlighting when the event will take place. Notice at the bottom of this page there is a tool so the registrant can tell a friend about the event.

There is a large button in the middle of the confirmation page which encourages people to purchase copies of Rainy Day Games. Does it work? I've already received an email from one participant who has purchased the book. My mentor on virtual book tours, Alex Mandossian has specific sales results from these events. With one book and one author, Alex can point to over 3,500 book sales. Now when you realize that many books don't even sell 500 copies in their lifetime, if someone sells over 3,500 copies of an authors book, that is a huge deal.

People who sign up for the event also receive two confirmation emails. Why two? Because of not all email reaches its original destination and the dual emails helps raise those possibilities.

I've prepared the author for this event, sent the questions from the participants and I will be sending another batch later. The author can be confident about the time on the telephone with me because they know what information the audience wants before the event.

Finally notice how easy this event is for the author. They don't travel anywhere or sit in a bookstore wondering if someone is going to come for a book signing. They have over 100 people gathered in a virtual event just to listen to them talk with the host on the telephone.

In terms of time and expense, a virtual book tour is one of the most effective ways to sell books as Alex says, "Quicker, faster and with less human effort." Yes some other people are touting other technology events like blog tours. No one has yet shown me that blog tours sell books with specific results. Yes it gives some exposure to the book but in terms of results I've found zero evidence that translates into sales. Call me a skeptic but I want to put my time and energy into events which sell books and are a winner for the author and the publisher. There is no better way than a virtual book tour--at least that I've discovered to date.

I want to point to the Church of the Customer Blog and their post about The Word of Mouth Manual. It's a great resource for you to get this book and learn about how the publishing industry should reinvent itself. Virtual Book Tours fall into this same area of innovation.

Finally I wanted to show you the back cover of Rainy Day Games and wonder who was Andy McGuire thinking about for a model when he drew that illustration. Maybe we'll find out tomorrow night. Hope you can make it.

A Rare Opportunity For You

Unless you travel to a writer's conference or a trade show, it's often difficult to reach an editor with your questions--especially if you are new to the world of book publishing.

There are several challenging areas of the book marketplace for writers. First, the children's market is a challenge. Many beginning writers read dozens of children's books to their own children and decide, "I could have written that book. In fact, I think I'll try." These writers throw down some words on a paper and begin sending out their materials to publishers. Before long they receive a nice little stack of rejection notices--which they don't understand. I'll admit that I didn't understand much about this market from the publisher perspective until I worked as an acquisitions editor and brought children's books into the publishing house. It is not easy and full-color printing is expensive. I've seen the financials for some of these children's books and to most would-be authors, the numbers are staggering. I know a number of writers who would like to have some inside information about how to get their own children's books published.

And what if you are an illustrator for your own children's books? It is possible but it is even rarer for a writer to make the words and the illustrations for their own children's book. I want to tell you about a new children's book called Rainy Day Games by Andy McGuire. I've read this book and Andy's artwork combined with his elegant words is remarkable.

Here's the rare opportunity for you: you will get to ask Andy some questions about this work through a live virtual book tour on Wednesday, June 18th. Just go to AskAndyMcGuire.com and ask your question and sign up. If you can't attend the event, it will be recorded and you will receive the replay link and be able to download it to your computer or iPod. Rainy Day Games is Andy's first children's book which he wrote and illustrated.

Andy has a fascinating day job as the fiction editor at Moody Publishers. Whenever I set up these teleseminars, I ask the author for something which we can give the participants as an "ethical bribe" or gift. It turns out Andy had four unpublished chapters of a how-to book on how to write a novel. I poured this material into an Ebook template to create Novel Writing Curriculum. Everyone who asks a question and signs up for next week's event, will be able to download this 47-page book on the confirmation page. In addition, at the bottom of the confirmation page, you will be able to tell your friends about this event.

As the host and creator of next week's teleseminar, I'm excited about the opportunity to interview Andy and learn about his children's writing but also about how he handles his fiction editor role at Moody Publishers. I hope each of you will sign up and take advantage of this learning opportunity.