VJs Power Blog

One of the most difficult promises to keep to yourself—whether it is in the New Year or anytime– is to fulfill your dream.

Writers who complete their work and either self-publish or attract a publisher to get their product out to the world now have the task of helping potential readers find them and learn what they’re about.

That’s where media training comes into play.

I’m starting off the New Year with the “Book Tour Basics” Online Coaching to get you up to speed quickly.  Sometimes it feels like such foreign territory to those who aren’t used to speaking and answering questions and engaging an audience through readings, but it takes very little time to learn the ropes.

Then as long as you practice, and get out there to take the next steps on your journey, not only will your readers find you, they’ll follow your dream as well.

May 2010 be a prosperous, joyful year for all of you.

For self-published authors and those at small to mid-sized presses, it’s critical that you know how to get out there and sell your book.  And now that major publishing houses have also cut publicity staff, the task is just as important for their authors.

So I’m offering a 2-hour online course for you:  BOOK TOUR BASICS, on Saturday, Oct. 17th, 10am-noon west coast time.

I’m limiting the number of authors in the class to ten people so we can really get into YOUR specific book project to:

Find your story hook to attract the media

Nail the “what’s your book about?” opening question

Relieve the stress and panic of performance

Adapt to all types of interviews - Radio, TV, Phone, Internet

AND…SELL LOTS OF BOOKS!

Class size is limited to ten people, so sign up HERE.

“Your coaching helped me both on the radio and in my first presentation—

I got a standing ovation, and sold lots of books and CDs!”

My client launched his book tour last week and is already seeing RESULTS.

To kick off the Fall Book Tour Season, I’m offering a

BOOK TOUR BASICS SPECIAL:

2-hour ONLINE Training for $97

DATE: Wed., Sept. 30^th, 10am -12noon Pacific Time

Whether you’re self-published or with a small or large publisher—this program will work for you.

In this customized media training session you will learn how to

Find your story hook to attract the media

Nail the “what’s your book about?” opening question

Relieve the stress & panic of performance

Adapt to all types of interviews – Radio, TV, Phone, Internet

AND…SELL LOTS OF BOOKS.

ONLINE SESSION IS LIMITED TO 10 PARTICIPANTS, SO

SIGN UP NOW BY CLICKING HERE.

What do you need to be a successful communicator?

Whether you want to wow the team at work with your Power Point– Win your spouse over to take that special vacation– or Get people to buy your product or service– you’ve got to know how to deliver your message with confidence.

I was interviewed this week by author Caroline Leavitt about how and why Media Training fills those needs, and she begins the blog article with her own story to prove the point.

Visit her site, enjoy the Q&A, and check out her wonderful array of books!

This week I worked via phone with a client who’s about to start his book tour, and the focus was on clarifying and strengthening his media messages.

When you’ve written a 400-600 page book, it seems daunting to boil it down to 2 sentences when the show host asks “so, what’s your book about?”  But that is the essence of good media interviews.  When you’re able to describe your material in a succinct, entertaining, and informative way, that is Part 1.  The SECOND PART of the ability, when you ace it, puts you into the “she-was-so-great-let’s-have-her-back-again” category.

What is PART TWO?

Making your message POWERFUL.  That means it is simple, yet profound.

Now, not every subject demands such lofty goals.  If you’re main character’s a chaotic, coffee-swilling, hang glider who stumbles upon a murder and has to solve it, you might think “it’s just a mystery novel.”  And you may be too close to the material to discover the simple, powerful description.

That’s why you hire a communication specialist to help you dig through the story to find the essence of that connection to the audience.

We found it in our media training session this week.  And once YOU find it, you will know the Power of Simplicity.

The L.A. Times Festival of Books was a celebration for those who love stories…written, spoken, sung.

I have such wonderful mental snapshots of the event– kids rolling down the hills of the UCLA campus…children singing “Let There Be Peace on Earth and Let It Begin With Me”…ecstatic book sellers…armchair chefs fascinated by cooking demonstrations…readers meeting new authors and buying their books…famous writers thrilling readers with face-to-face stories…new writers sitting earnestly, listening to the masters share advice for their passion.

Despite the challenging economy, the negative media, and the shifting publishing environment–people have remained and have renewed their love of books and those who bring them to fruition.

It was, for me, a reminder of the joy of art.

It promises to be a very busy weekend in Los Angeles, as the L.A. Times Festival of Books welcomes thousands of book lovers and 450 authors. Unlike last year’s “Sweatstival of Books”…the weather promises to be cooler on attendees in ‘09.

I’ll be there scouring booths and panels for tour tips from writers. Stay tuned!

I drum this into my clients every time I media train them for the book tour, and I’d like to show you a case in point—where novelist Steven M. Thomas grabbed kudos and ran with them.

I am sending out a couple of e-mail blasts. The one that included your address has gotten me a writing conference gig and a lot of very nice responses, so far, and I am building another one now, culling through my e-mail system to create an additional list of friends, colleagues, writing professionals and others who may be interested in news about my novels.

His email signature includes testimonials, some of which he solicited:

High transportation costs and changes in the book biz are sparking creative marketing campaigns, including the virtual book tour.

Case in point: Angela Nickerson’s tour to promote her new travel companion book “A Journey Into Michelangelo’s Rome” from Roaring Forties Press.

Angela tells me she “appeared” as a guest on a new blog each day for one week per month, but it went so well that she kept adding more one-day blog appearances:

One blog asked me to create a playlist for A Journey into Michelangelo’s Rome which you can now buy on iTunes. I blogged for a blog in Spain. I did a live chat with readers in England. I was a guest on a blog in New Zealand. I don’t have the budget to go to England or down under to promote the book, so this was a cheap way to connect with readers all over the world.

The Chicago Sun Times even picked up one blog entry and ran a newspaper story, as virtual publicity fed back into traditional media.

She points out that a virtual book tour is very time consuming. You have to set it up, stay organized, come up with new topics each day, and point readers to each new exclusive blog site. But with contests, chats, links, and interviews, your audience grows with each “stop” on the tour.

Of course the virtual book tour doesn’t replace the power of face time between authors and readers.

Angela will be at Book Passage in Corte Madera, CA on Saturday, July 19th.

Best-selling author and psychic medium James Van Praagh has been in front of so many audiences, his public speaking muscles are fine-tuned.

As I watched him at a Barnes & Noble event for his latest book, Ghosts Among Us (HarperOne) I went down my mental checklist of the skills that I teach authors for their readings and booksignings, and Van Praagh hit them all.

He knows how to get the audience comfortable and focused on his material. He tells short, animated stories. He handles Q&A with diplomacy and control, and remains as natural and down-to-earth as possible. But since I am both a writer and a coach, I particularly love good quotes. Here are a couple from his latest appearance:

Upon seeing the ghost of a relative who had passed away: “I hadn’t seen her since she died 30 years ago.”

How ghosts refer to workaholic human beings: “The spirit world calls us ‘the walking dead’.”

On being a medium: “I’m the cheapest long-distance carrier around.”

As a writer, you choose your words carefully. Using that same discipline for public speaking & interviews will pay off as well.