Tap the Power of Hope

    

By Terry Whalin @terrywhalin

In the world of publishing, it’s easy to get discouraged. Let’s think about the volume of books which are published every day: over 4,500 titles. Recently, a colleague emailed me the link for this article: The 10 Awful Truths about Book Publishing. I encourage you to follow the link and study it, it’s pretty easy to feel small, discouraged and overwhelmed. Yes, I’ve felt all of those emotions in my daily work. In this article, I want to emphasize how you keep going in spite of these truths. What is your method to tap into the power of hope?

Look at the elements at the bottom of this article.

Strategies For Responding to “The 10 Awful Truths”:

1. The game is now pass-along sales and pre-orders.

2. Events/immersion experiences replace traditional publicity in moving the needle.

3. Leverage the authors’ and publishers’ communities.

4. In a crowded market, brands stand out. 

5. Master new digital channels for sales, marketing, and community building.

6. Build books around a compelling, simple message.

7. Front-load the main ideas in books and keep books short.

If you read these articles about The Writing Life, you know I see the glass as half full rather than half empty. When you have something discouraging happen, then you have to say the word “next” and look for the next opportunity.

We live in a world full of opportunities which are everywhere. Recently I recorded a podcast about Faith in Publishing. If you follow the link you can hear the 18 minute interview.

Another way to tap into the power of hope with your writing is to make sure you know why you are writing. Yes, some of your writing is to make money--but here’s an important truth: not all of it. For example, I’ve written over 1,000 book reviews on Amazon and over 800 reviews on Goodreads. I write these reviews to support other writers. Other times I write devotions and not for the pay which is often minimal. I write these words to encourage others. I encourage you to mix some of this type of writing into your writing life along with the writing which helps you pay your bills.

As Christian writers we have a super power in prayer and God’s promise to lead us with our writing and to open new doors. The right opportunity for your writing is out there. But this opportunity doesn’t just fall from the sky or into your email box or on your phone. Every writer has to be actively looking for the opportunity and open to it. As you have magazine ideas, you need to write query letters and pitches. I encourage you to attend writer’s conferences to meet editors and agents. At these events you can speak with them face to face about ideas and possibilities. Also as you have book ideas, I encourage you to write a book proposal or a business plan--even if you self-publish. Then pitch this book proposal. 

As you pitch your ideas, no matter what happens whether it is accepted or rejected, keep going. I keep going because the journey is all about finding the right opportunity and fit. What practical actions do you take to tap into the power of hope? Let me know in the comments below. 

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What action steps do you take to tap into the power of hope?  This prolific writer and editor gives some insights here. Get the details in this article. (ClickToTweet)

Much of the publishing process is outside of the writer’s control. 10 Publishing Myths helps writers have a realistic perspective and take action. Get 10 Publishing Myths for only $10 +FREE shipping + over $200 of free bonuses.

Be "The Exception" Author

By Terry Whalin @terrywhalin

From my years in publishing. I know there are many authors who want to write a bestselling book. They take classes and courses and work hard at learning the craft of storytelling and writing. They join a critique group and even hire an outside editor to produce an excellent manuscript and proposal. They go to conferences and meet literary agents and editors, then follow up with their writing. Each of these steps are important and essential to the process.

Publishing has a lot of competition as a part of the mixture. Thousands of new books enter the marketplace every day and there are many books already in print with those authors trying to sell their books. While self-publishing is always an option, it is not a route that I recommend to authors because most of it is not successful (doesn't sell) and you end up doing everything on your own (everything—including functions that you have no interest in doing).

As an acquisitions editor, I'm looking for authors who are the exception. As an author, I'm trying to be the exception in my approach and life. Such an approach is not easy-and if it were, everyone would be doing it. The path is filled with failure and restarts yet there is a path and you can continue in spite of the failure and restarts. From my experience, those persistent authors are the ones who eventually succeed and find their way. Here's a couple of examples of these authors:

Cec Murphey has written many books including his bestselling 90 Minutes in Heaven. He had written many books before this title and received a modest advance (and expectation) from the publisher regarding this book. Through the tireless promotion of Don Piper, this book got on the New York Times bestseller list and has continued to sell year after year. Cec has written many different types of books and he is a great example of someone who is an exception as an author.

Jerry B. Jenkins has published 195 books and been #1 on the New York Times bestseller list 21 times. Left Behind was his 125^th book so he was not an overnight success. The Left Behind series has sold over 70 million copies. Jerry has written many different kinds of books and is another example of an author who is the exception.

While you have probably heard of these last two authors, I'm intentionally selecting a third author who is the exception and you've probably not heard of him: Alan Williams. He is the author of The Little Teammate which is a Morgan James children's book. I understand this book has sold over 400,000 copies—and you would not know it from the BookScan numbers or the Amazon ranking. How did it happen? The author is selling copies in bulk to corporation.  Every author can use this strategy to sell books but few do so Alan Williams is an exception. You can learn about bulk sales through this free teleseminar that I did on the topic. 

Here's a few of my lessons from these exceptional authors:

1. Be consistent and persistent.

2. Timing is not in your control but you can control your effort—so make it consistent and persistent.

3. Look for the open doors and march through them. Most people give up but the ones who succeed keep on knocking and trying and working to find the right place. Persistence and the right connection will pay off in the long run.

Are you an “exception” author? Or maybe you know of one and their actions. Let me know in the comments below.

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Can you be “The Exception” author? Learn some of the key characteristics in this article. (ClickToTweet)

Follow Your Ideas for Submission

The idea pops into your head. “Send this article to this editor.” Or as you are reading a magazine, you think, “I could send this editor an article about this personal experience or this how-to idea.” Or you are reminded about a connection you made months earlier at a conference and you haven't followed up with the agent or editor.

In each of these cases, how do you handle it? Some people shrug it and the “nudge” disappears. Others will take action and get their idea into the marketplace for consideration.  Without action, nothing happens.

From my years in publishing, I've learned the importance of taking action on a thought or idea. For example, I will call or email an author about their book proposal or manuscript, it will happen just on a day when they need some encouragement or direction.

Or my entry about The Writing Life will land in someone's mailbox on exactly the day they need the encouragement to move forward. Some people would call these accidents but to me, these actions from the still small voice of the Holy Spirit. As a Christian I believe God is guiding my daily actions and steps. Certainly I fail to follow that guidance but I've discovered remarkable things happen when I take action on those ideas.

For example, I've been wanting to attend a large conference in a couple of months yet I wondered how to budget for the conference fee.  One morning I got an idea that maybe I could do something else at that conference to help out such as volunteer to work registration or some other task. To follow through on my idea, I called a leader in the organization which sponsored the conference and pitched my idea of working the registration in a voice mail message.

The exact day of my call, this leader got a message that the person who was going to teach the publishing workshop was not going to be able to attend the conference.  My voice mail message and this cancellation arrived on exactly the same day. Was it coincidence? I don't believe so. I was asked to lead the publishing workshop at this conference. As a workshop leader, my fee for the conference is waived and I have a much larger opportunity than I could even have imagined.

Notice what happened in this story: I had an idea and I took action and made a phone call.

What ideas and possible actions are whirling in your writing life? Are you writing them down then crossing them off as you execute each one?   I appreciate the necessity of having dreams and ambitions for our writing—yet at the same time we must be taking consistent action for those dreams to turn into reality.