GROUP POSTSPOSTS FROM THE CRIMSON CLOAK PUBLISHING SECRET GROUPAll in one place for convenience of referenceUp to 29 April 15

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http://www.amyporterfield.com/freeguide

www.amyporterfield.comLooking to make more sales with your product, program or service? Frustrated with your lack of sales, even though you've put A LOT of time and effort into getting your product out there?amyporterfield.com

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http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/use-the-linkedin-relat…/…

How to Use the LinkedIn Relationship Tab to Improve Your Networking |Do you struggle to remember how or why you connected with someone on LinkedIn? Discover how to use the LinkedIn Relationship tab to manage your...socialmediaexaminer.com

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Gary Winstead16 hrs

Anyone here who would like to appear on my blog as a guest please let me know. I have a series of questions about what and who you are.

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http://www.novelrank.com/

Sales Rank Tracking for Author Book Sales on Amazon | NovelRankFree Amazon Sales Rank tracker for tracking book sales on all Amazon domains. No login required, no ads, no costs, charts, rss feeds and more.novelrank.com|By Mario Lurig - http://www.phpreferencebook.com/

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Author Marketing Ideas: not mine, this is a post pasted from Children's Writer's World fb group, by Rayah Long. Re magnets, note that you can buy magnetic A4 sheets that you can print directly onto or use glued to the back of cards. I also heard someone suggesting sneaking advertising bookmarks into random books in random bookstores, but that's downright rude and the bookshop will never buy your books if you upset them like that! By all means put an advertising bookmark relevant to that particular book into your OWN book if it is for sale in a bookshop, though - or in any copy you sell. They might use it in the next book they read, then the details of your book are still under their noses, which might remind them to recommend it to others and/or pass on the bookmark!NOTE that she says "always be closing" - everything should take the reader direct to your book or product: the easiest place is a WEBSITE where they can find out how to BUY your book. I like that she's keen on bookmarks: remember you can use the ones we supply for your book or use it as inspiration to design your own - and if anyone has a good idea for other advertising material we can supply for you to print out for your book, post it here! ALSO it is an excellent idea of hers to suit the advertising material to the needs of the business you hope will distribute them - she talks about "dog safety magnets" which a pet store is happy to carry for her because it is relevant to their business and not just selling her dog-related book.************************************

A. Eye Catching Business cards using pictures from your books(Kids love them, you can give the targeted picture to right person (In my case I give the Beagle card to anyone I see with a Beagle) and they are like collectors' cards!B. Magnets and Stickers. Guerilla marketing at its best! Anywhere you can stick em, you can leave em! Also magnets are super professional and folks will be really happy to leave them at their front counters.C. Bookmarks and Sticker Sheets: You can make them yourself, order them or leave them anywhere!I have found sticker sheets are cheaper to make when you buy sticker paper, but book marks it's just cheaper to order them online.D. Pamphlets and Posters: Easy to print at home or get through a printer. Does your book teach kids something? Consider making a poster that is a constant display of your product. I have these posters pinned up or in glass cases at veterinary offices all over my town and they do it for free because I also leave bookmarks and stuff.E. Postcards! Make something cute with dual purpose! You can sell these, give them out, mail them to literary agents and publishers. (I'll do another post on this later) Unlike business

cards, you can pack more information on these! There's always a good time for postcards so you can make them match a holiday or event too. Postcards can also announce the coming of a book.

Where to leave your marketing material:1. IF there is an expo/event where they are giving out gift bags or prizes, get your marketing material or book in there!2. Library3. Schools4. Family Shelters5. Day Cares6. Community Boards (restaurants, cafes, laundry mats)7. Community Centers8. YMCA9. Anywhere there is a kids' zone.

And suppose you have a particular audience leave it where they can see it. For instance, mine is dog owners. So I leave them ata. Veterinary Officesb. Animal Sheltersc. Pet Shopsd. Pet Supply Stores (petco actually let me put my dog safety magnets at the cash register)

So find where your target audience is and leave it for them there.

(This was on the comments section of another post but I wanted to drop it in a thread here for those who won't see it.)"Business cards. These square cards act as trading cards and also target a specific audience. Kids and adults alike love them. Consider a different card with each of your characters, or pages from the story with a funny quote or line on the front and your contact on the back""Magnets and Die Cut Stickers are perfect for guerilla marketing and a quality one can be left at the front counter of a shop usually with the business' permission. Posters or pamphlets that teach a lesson are also something business might be happy to pin up on their wall if it relates to their business goals and mission. Always use both sides of your design, especially when it comes to bookmarks! Side A should be something fun and eye catching, side two should send people directly to your business and social media account. Remember ALWAYS BE CLOSING! Always have a direct link to where people can get your product.""Stickers! SO FUN TO MAKE! Stickermule does a great job with sticker sheets, but to save money I made my own buying sticker paper. BUT I had to cut score each one so that the stickers would come up easily. UGh that took a little while to do.""Postcards! We sent out these to kickstarter supporters and stores. This is side a but side b had a cute jingle and sent folks to get our products online. The colors are weird because this is CMYK not meant for web view.""Silly bookmark! Always fun to do something that will make people laugh."Like · Comment

Seen by 214 people like this.

Francine Lauriano great information thanks for sharing!7 hrs · Like · 1Laura Joy You are a wealth of information, Rayah!7 hrs · Like · 2

Rayah Long I try to be useful!7 hrs · Like · 1Cindy Freland so cute7 hrs · LikeAmy Losak How about animal sheltersas well? Great posts, Rayah.7 hrs · LikeRayah Long Yup...i mentioned animal shelters! I volunteer at animal shelters and also leave my books there. Whenever there is an animal fair we try and make sure that our material gets into the give away bags.6 hrs · LikeAmy Losak My eyes are playing tricks on me. Totally overlooked animal shelters. Now I see it!6 hrs · LikeRayah Long It's all good. I was delirious for days!6 hrs · Like · 1Salomi-Sharon Johnson Thanx again Rayah Long. Love what your doing.6 hrs · Like · 1Cynthia Port Again. Brilliant!6 hrs · LikeCindy Freland Wow, Stickermule wants $1 each. So expensive. But when you get 100 they are almost half off.6 hrs · Like · 1Sondra Robbins Rymer Great ideas. Thanks for posting !6 hrs · Like · 1Rayah Long Hey I'm going to post some pricing6 hrs · Like · 1Rayah Long $68.63 PS Prints Sticker Prints$28.31 VISTAPRINT Holiday Postcards$138.80 Printing Place Body language poster ...See More6 hrs · Like · 1Rayah Long That's what I spent and I will say the best prices (I researched alot) BUT ALWAYS ALWAYS get the promo codes!Or DIY6 hrs · Like · 2Cindy Freland When I order from Vistaprint I always get a promo code with 20% off. I just used it to order postcards to advertise my upcoming book, Oakley the Oyster. I like to put them in my other books.6 hrs · Like · 2Rayah Long Absolutely! Sometimes I'll create another account so I can get 50% off.6 hrs · Like · 2Cindy Freland And I got the extra 150 cards for an additional $15.6 hrs · Like · 2Billy Knows Look @u Sistah! Da kine marketing!Billy Knows's photo.6 hrs · Like · 1Cindy Freland Here is the postcard I just ordered from Vistaprint.Cindy Freland's photo.6 hrs · Like · 4Rayah Long NICE!6 hrs · Like

Gary Winstead I found this site. will order some http://www.uline.com/.../Laser-Printable-Magnetic-Sheets...

Laser Printable Magnetic Sheets - Scored, 8 1/2 x 11" S-19176 - UlineQuickly create warehouse signs or labels....uline.com

Gary Winstead23 April at 21:52

MARKETING: I was able to use AVERY shipping labels number 5265.I took the nice colored images Veronica sent and had them copied on the above. then I cut out each separate one and now have lots of sticky labels to put on things and to stick on little kids.

Gary Winstead27 April at 17:08

Here is what I know. Staples gloss white magnet sheets will print on an ink jet printer. I was able to get very nice quality magnets by printing the pictures of each of your book covers. so now I will have magnets and book marks as handouts.

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You can list your book for free on Bookchoice4uhttp://www.bookchoice4u.com

Bookchoice4u Your Book - Your ChoiceA showcase for books of various genres including mystery, thriller, crime, children's books, e-books, historical and miscellaneous.

bookchoice4u.com

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http://ww2.kqed.org/…/sir-ken-robinson-creativity-is-in-ev…/

Sir Ken Robinson: Creativity Is In Everything, Especially TeachingCreativity can seem like an abstract concept, but having a definition can give a learner the power to practice it on a regular basis.ww2.kqed.org

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Gary Winstead22 April at 14:18

A chance encounter: I was at the local coffee shop this morning when a lady walks up and asks if was an author. Seems she is familiar with CCP. Made my day. smile emoticon She had overheard me a week earlier giving Steps in Time to another person and wanted one as well. So she received business cards and the website of CCP. Looking good guys. keep those books flowing.

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New group with ideas for selling a children's book (children's books are a notoriously hard sell ...)https://www.facebook.com/groups/364156423794109

Children's Writer's World

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Another short story competition that gets you coverage:http://tales2inspire.com/?page_id=642

Awards | My Website* Your story featured on a rotating basis in the monthly Inspiring Stories newsletter, which goes out to hundreds of subscriberstales2inspire.com

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Any book fairs near you? Read about one here:https://lynetteecreswell.wordpress.com/…/what-does-the-lon…/

What Does The London Book Fair Have To Offer Writers And Authors?For weeks I have counted down the days before I attended the London Book Fair. This is the global marketplace where the publishing world gathers for rights negotiation, sale and distribution of con...lynetteecreswell.wordpress.com

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Keywords in the metadata of your website are what are used to find your site when people are searching. They should at least include your author name and the name of your book. This tool might be helpful -http://www.thehoth.com/blog/lazy-mans-keyword-research/…

Easiest Keyword Research Strategy & ToolsCheck out this SEMRush tutorial - We'll show you how to get keyword suggestions to find high search volume, low competition keywords.thehoth.com

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https://winningwriters.com/…/welcome-to-the-best-free-liter…

Welcome to The Best Free Literary Contests - Winning WritersWelcomes new subscribers to The Best Free Literary Contestswinningwriters.com

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http://www.whimsydark.com/…/wait-keep-talking-author-self-p…

Wait, Keep Talking: Author Self-Promo That Actually WorksSo there have been quite a few comments on yesterday's post regarding why self-promotion for authors doesn't work. From the extremely rude tirades-- which...whimsydark.com

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https://chrislowens.wordpress.com/…/how-to-turn-a-complex-…/

How to turn a Complex Story into a Simple Synopsis

Reblogged on WordPress.comchrislowens.wordpress.com

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Here's an idea if all those facebook and website passwords are driving you madhttps://lastpass.com/?hc_location=ufi

LastPass | The Last Password You Have To RememberThe Last Password You Have to Rememberlastpass.com

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If you write sci-fi, consider entering a story for this competition, inspired by Sir Terry Pratchett. Hurry! Closing date is 5th May! http://www.inkitt.com/anotherworld

Writing Contest: Another WorldThis month's free writing contest at Inkitt has us travelling to other worlds. Prepare your spaceships – submit a story now!inkitt.com

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How's this for enterprise: Gary Winstead tells me "I had a chance at the stable today to do a lot of promotion. Handed out a lot of cards. Lot of people looking forward to the work. Also I talked to the owner and I will have a book signing at the stable with a food truck the whole nine yards so should be fun."Author Appearances don't always have to be signings at bookshops, and many people no longer have local bookshops and/or libraries anyway. But the "local" hook is a good one to use. If your book has a character who gardens, try a local garden centre or flower shop, they could do a special display or offer that day of related plants or landscaping materials (they might even carry your book for you). Is the book set in a particular part of the world, or does the character travel? Try Travel Agencies: they can do a feature on travel to that part of the world on the day they host your book signing. Vegetables or other food a key theme? Try local food shops or restaurants. Wildlife or pets in the book? Try a pet shop. Mobile Phone shops sell phones on which people can read your smashwords e-book version; if they think signing print copies is too old-fashioned, try printing up some leaflets about your e-book and ask them to display them. And don't forget to tell your local newspaper and other media that they have a new author in their midst, they love to hear about talented locals, and your local newspaper shop might then carry your book and/or host a signing!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Cbuy4yoNz0

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You can either print the pocket calendars onto the back of coloured or patterned card, or print onto plain card and put your book details on the back. Customise this document with your own book details ...

FrontOfPocketCalendarTemplate.docDocumentDownload Preview Upload Revision ------------------------------------------

https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g…

BloggerFree weblog publishing tool from Google, for sharing text, photos and video.accounts.google.com

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The Poetry Prize 2015 and the Short Story Prize 2015 are now open for entries, here -http://www.poeticrepublic.com/…

Writing competitions reinvented | Poetic RepublicPoetic Republic: a community of writers rethinking how we discover new poetry, short stories and novelspoeticrepublic.com|By Poetic Republic-------------------------

Veronica Castle This site gives updates on upcoming competitions:http://www.fanstory.com/contestsall.jsp

Writing Contest ListOur writing contest list. View listing of writing contests for poets, short story writers and other forms of writing.fanstory.com

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I will be the "visiting author" for an entire week at Licking Heights West Elementary School April 1317 for "Right to Read Week." The teachers have themed the week: "Catch a Dragon By the Tale". Can't wait!

John Ingrisano Very good. Suggestion: I think it would be great for this type of "Coming Events" or "What's New" stuff to be posted on the CCP website.12 April at 12:39 · Unlike · 1---------------------------------------------

http://www.authorspublish.com/memes-a-novel-way-to-market-…/

» Memes: A Novel Way to Market Your NovelAll authors, especially Independent Authors (Indie Authors), seek to promote their work for maximum exposure. They have mastered the craft of writing, but they are not confident in their marketing. Budgets for new writers are dismal; they do not...authorspublish.com------------------------------------------------------------

http://nanowrimo.org/about

National Novel Writing MonthNovember 1-30. The world needs your novel.nanowrimo.org

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Gary Winstead10 April at 19:33

I will have an opportunity to talk about CCP and my work in a couple of weeks in a radio interview. should be interesting

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John Ingrisano9 April at 20:49 · Gainesville, GA, United States

“The most essential gift for a good writer is a built-in, shock-proof shit detector.” – Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961)

The above quote has been my bible and guidepost since I first began writing. I hate the idea of writing formula pieces. (Yes, I once tried to write a Harlequin Romance, but about died from boredom.) My goal is to write about life, politically incorrect, honest life, to write something that makes the reader give pause and say either, "Hmm, I never thought of this that way before," or "Oh, crap, this guy is full of (sh)it."

So, when I write something, I like to give it the sniff test: Is it bullshit? Is it banal? Is it real? Is it (aha!) true?

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http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/social-media-tools-to-…/…

Social Media Tools That Help Optimize Your Time |Do you struggle to keep up with social media tasks? This article shares a number of social media tools that will help maximize your time.socialmediaexaminer.com

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http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/pinterest-marketing-gu…/…

Pinterest Marketing: Your Complete Guide to Pinterest Success |Are you looking for a Pinterest marketing guide? Each of these articles will help you master a specific part of marketing on the Pinterest platform.socialmediaexaminer.com

Pinterest is increasingly cited as being a must-have marketing tool: this article explains how to draw people to your website and your books, by having Pinterest boards showing any relevant items which all link back to your website. Is your book about someone who loves gardening? Start a gardening board. Is it set in a specific location? Start a board about that area. You get the picture! You can pin all sorts of things, though, not just pictures: but images draw that draw the eye will introduce people to what you want to say, about your book, your website blog about your work, whatever you like ...http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/pinterest-traffic-with-…/

Pinterest Traffic: How to Use Pinterest for More Exposure |Social Media Marketing Podcast 126, in this episode Vincent Ng shares how to use Pinterest to drive more traffic to your website.socialmediaexaminer.com------------------------------------------------------------

Tips on how to get your book talked about -http://ukartsdirectory.com/terry-tylers-literary-blog-35/

Video about what to post in order to engage your audience ...https://lizmelville.leadpages.net/video3/

lizmelville.leadpages.netlizmelville.leadpages.net

If your book is aimed at age group 15-25 and you have a mobile phone, consider Snapchat: http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/snapchat-marketing-with…/

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I've just been reading about Skype in the Classroom. Instead of visiting schools and libraries to do readings, this is a way of scheduling a virtual reading over Skype. See here https://education.skype.com/help for more information ...

Welcome to the world's biggest classroomWe believe that amazing learning experiences should be available to everyone. Skype in the Classroom is a free platform for connecting educators and experts to learners everywhere.education.skype.com Veronica Castle http://skypeanauthor.wikifoundry.com/

Virtual Author Visits in Your Library or Classroom - Skype An Author NetworkA place to join a network of authors willing to Skype...skypeanauthor.wikifoundry.comhttp://bookmarketingmaven.typepad.com/.../11-how-to-speak...

#11 How to Speak at Schools and Libraries through Skype, with Margot Finke -...bookmarketingmaven.typepad.comhttp://bookmarketingmaven.typepad.com/ezine/

The Savvy Book Marketer NewsletterFree book marketing newsletter with book promotion and book publicity tips for authors and book publishers.bookmarketingmaven.typepad.com

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Checklist for organising a virtual book tour, from Savvy Book Marketer VirtualBookTourChecklist_DLSmith.pdf

This article details a survey that was done to find out the best time to post things on Facebook, and the kinds of posts that best engage people. Notice that Instagram had the highest rates of engagement: if you use a mobile device you should really consider Instagram! Consumers apparently share "list" and "why" posts most: "Five ways to read my book", "Why you should read this book", that sort of thing.http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/social-sharing-habits-…/…

Social Sharing Habits: New Research Reveals What People Like to Share |Are social shares part of how you measure social marketing RO)? Read the most recent findings on social sharing to get the insights you need.socialmediaexaminer.comVeronica Castle http://louisem.com/2573/make-picture-quotes-easy

Top 10 EASY Ways to Make Picture Quotes for Facebook & More!Want to make picture quotes, but not sure where to...louisem.com|By Louise Myers

Linked In book promotion How to Promote and Market on Linkedin_BB.pdf

This video shows how you can find readers on Facebook who like books similar to yours, so that you can target them with your posts and interest them in your own.https://lizmelville.leadpages.net/video2/

http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/how-to-craft-headlines-that-draw-people-to-your-content/?utm_source=Newsletter&utm_medium=NewsletterIssue&utm_campaign=New

http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/social-media-privacy-settings/

Facebook is about connecting with a following of potential readers interested in your books, not actually selling - for that you lead them from Facebook to your WEBSITE. This video

explains it really well ...http://bit.ly/1FvUWbM

bit.lylizmelville.leadpages.net

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If you don't like the idea of Blogging, you can keep the Facebook page (not profile) regularly updated (once or twice a week will do) and display the page feed from this on your website instead. This is done by embedding a facebook LIKE BOX into your website. Go here https://developers.facebook.com/…/plugins/like-box-for-pages and enter the url lfor your facebook page. BE SURE TO TICK THE "SHOW POSTS" BOX and untick the Friends' Faces box. Click on "get code" and follow the instructions given. Some websites provide a widget for embedding "html snippets" in this way - look at your website host's "help" section to find out how they want you to do it.

Facebook Like BoxThe Like Box is a special version of the Like Button designed for Facebook Pages. It allows admins to promote their Pages and embed a simple feed of content from a Page into other sites.developers.facebook.comhttp://www.prchecker.info/web.../top-10-free-web-hosting-sites/

People who blog tell me weebly is good, because it's easy to set up for optional blogging ... http://www.weebly.com/#plans/compare

Weebly is the easiest way to create a website, store or blogWeebly makes it surprisingly easy to create a...weebly.comVeronica Castle Would others please post on here what website they use, if it's a free one? It will help others

For an author these days, having a web presence is what is going to sell your book. A website need not cost anything, and if you already have a domain name you can arrange to have that "point" at wherever you specify. Some hosts offering free websites include a facility for blogging, a good way of offering fresh posts regularly enough to keep people coming back - ready to be snagged as buyers for an upcoming book ... smile emoticonhttp://www.wikihow.com/Get-a-Free-Web-Site-and-Free-Domain

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I have pasted below Smashwords' view on Piracy, which seems very sensible and will help put things in perspective if anyone is still worried about this. See the whole thing here https://www.smashwords.com/about/supportfaq, where you can click through to the Neil Gaiman interview and other links listed.

How big of a threat is piracy?Smashwords is in the business of selling books. It's the only way we make income. If someone steals your book, we don't make income. So you might be surprised to learn we don't lose sleep over the fear of piracy. We believe obscurity is a bigger threat to authors than piracy. There are three types of piracy that concern authors: 1. The criminal takes your book and tries to sell it (for profit). 2. Readers upload your book to underground bulletin boards or torrent sites so that readers can download your book for free. 3. Ebook buyers sharing your book with their friends. The first item can cause an author great grief, but it's extremely rare, less than one in one thousand books affected, and the pirates are usually detected before they've had a chance to earn money on their theft because loyal fans report the book. The second category of swashbuckling black hat pirates stealing and reading your book for free is probably the worst fear of some authors, yet it's important to remember that readers who go out of their way to knowingly download pirated ebooks are not the readers who'd typically purchase your books anyway, so they don't really represent a lost sale. The third category is more common, but most progressive authors view book sharing among fans as "accidental" piracy, and view it as beneficial marketing. There are many who argue that illegal piracy of your work actually benefits your overall sales. This fascinating video of author Neil Gaiman might cause you to reconsider how you feel about piracy. He speaks about his own evolving views on piracy. We know of other best-selling authors such as Paulo Coelho who deliberately encourage illegal piracy of their works by uploading their books to pirate sites. They do it for the same reasons cited by Neil Gaiman - they believe it spurs sales. Don't let the fear of piracy paralyze your efforts to reach readers. Most readers are honest and want to support you. You can reduce the risk of piracy by making your book easier to purchase than it is to steal. Maximize your distribution, offer your book at a fair price, and use the recommended "Smashwords Edition License Statement" as described in the Smashwords Style Guide. The license statement provide honest readers a polite reminder of their ethical obligation to support the author.

What is Smashwords' stance on piracy and DRM?We don't believe piracy is as big of an issue as many fear. The demographics of book readers tend to skew toward more mature (middle age), more financially secure people. Book readers are less likely to pirate digital books than say, the younger demographic who engages more in music piracy. Smashwords is a strong advocate for author's rights, and the right of authors and copyright owners to receive payment for their digitally published works. Therefore, Smashwords strongly discourages piracy/infringement of author works and encourages customers to purchase licensed copies. However, Smashwords does not publish works containing digital rights management schemes that limit the customer's ability to legally enjoy the author's work. Therefore, Smashwords cannot completely prevent

piracy/infringement of an author's work (the reality of the matter is that even DRMed content can be reproduced and pirated, just as easily as a printed book can be scanned and digitized). When an author lists the work on Smashwords they are trusting the consumer to honor their legal copyright and abide by the licensing terms set by the author. Many ebook buyers refuse to purchase ebooks infected with DRM. Non-DRMed works often outsell DRMed works by leveraging the viral nature of uninhibited sampling and sharing which can dramatically increase your total audience and sales opportunities.

What can I do to reduce the risk of piracy?Piracy is often a symptom of unsatisfied demand: These readers want your book, but for some reason it's not available or affordable to them. Most ebooks are read on dedicated e-reading devices (Kindle, Nook, Sony Reader, Kobo Reader) and multi-function devices (iPad, iPhone, smartphones, tablets), and most of these device manufacturers operate their own ebook stores which are closely tethered to their devices. For customers, it's easier to purchase and read an ebook from the device-maker's own bookstore than it is to search out a pirated copy. There are several steps you can take to encourage legal purchases and discourage piracy. First, price your ebook less than printed equivalents, price them fairly (much lower than print), and maximize the distribution of your books. By pricing low and maximizing distribution to as many stores as possible, you make your book more available and more accessible to more readers. Add the Smashwords License Statement as recommended by the Smashwords Style Guide (you'll find it below in the next FAQ item). It politely reminds readers of their moral and ethical obligation to support the author. For more information on how Smashwords helps you prevent piracy, see this post at the Smashwords Blog, Should Publishers Abolish DRM and Trust their Customers Instead?

What is the Smashwords License Statement, and how does it combat piracy?Following the copyright notice above, we recommend you insert the Smashwords License Statement. Unlike traditional copyright statements that warn readers not to copy the book, or that threaten legal action or fines, the Smashwords License Statement offers a kinder, gentler reminder to the reader that they have a legal and moral obligation to compensate the author for their hard work. It's our belief at Smashwords that the biggest form of piracy is not on underground file sharing torrent sites, it's well-intentioned sharing. If you place the Smashwords License Statement in your book, it acts as a trojan horse. If your book is shared, the recipient is politely reminded of their obligation to return to Smashwords and purchase their own copy. For more of the Smashwords License Statement, see this Smashwords blog post, Are Copyright Statements Copyrightable? Here's the statement, which you'll also find in the Smashwords Style Guide:

Smashwords License StatementThis ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each reader. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your favorite retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Smashwords distributes to Scribd, which in the past has been used by pirates to host and download pirated books. What does this mean for Smashwords authors?Scribd is one of the world's largest publishing platforms for user-generated content. When you make it easy for the community to upload anything, there's a risk that unauthorized content is uploaded. It's something every social publishing platform - Youtube, Amazon and Smashwords included) must struggle with. In December 2013, Smashwords announced a distribution agreement with Scribd. You can read the news at the Smashwords blog. In addition to representing yet another sales channel, the agreement will also significantly

reduce the risk of piracy and unauthorized uploads at Scribd. Here's how: To protect the intellectual property of authors and publishers, Scribd has developed and is continuing to enhance a Copyright Management System (CMS). Their CMS takes a digital fingerprint of all authorized uploads from Smashwords. Scribd uses the Smashwords version as the authorized version of record to prevent unauthorized uploads in the future. Scribd also uses the digital fingerprint of your Smashwords edition of your book to trigger automated takedowns of previously uploaded unauthorized versions. If you ever discover an unauthorized version of your work at Scribd, visit the the Scribd DMCA takedown page and provide them a direct hyperlink to the offender's upload.

What steps can I take to detect piracy?Go to www.google.com/alerts and create free Google alerts for your author name, your book title, and for short 6-7 word text strings that appear early in your book. This will provide you an early warning system of where your book is being talked about, sold or distributed.

What is copyright, and how do I protect it?As the author, you own your copyright, which gives you the right to allow others to make copies of your work. Simply by publishing something, you are granted legal protection against people illegally copying your work (though this legal protection alone doesn't protect you against piracy or illegal copying). If you want to go the extra mile, you can file online at the US government's copyright office for an official copyright. Most authors don't do this, though such a filing can help bolster your case if you ever find a need to press legal action or seek damages against an infringer. Click here for the US Copyright Office. For a good overview of copyright, and your rights as an author, see this blog post by Victoria Strauss.

Do I own my copyright if I publish with Smashwords?You own your copyright. When you publish with Smashwords, you grant Smashwords a non-exclusive right to publish, promote and distribute your book, as well as samples of your book. Because the relationship is non-exclusive, you can publish and distribute via other services, if you wish.

Smashwords – About Smashwords — Support FAQHow to use this FAQ: If you're new to Smashwords, we recommend reading from the beginning to the end in sequential order, because this will help you get the most out of the Smashwords platform. If...smashwords.com------------------------------------------------------------

Social media marketing is becoming a must for authors. But it's not enough just to be on facebook: this article explains the difference between your Facebook profile and a PAGE you create for your author name or specific book/series: http://www.lizmelville.com/5-reasons-never-use-facebook-pr…/

A couple of useful Free guides ...http://www.yourwriterplatform.com/guides-resources/

This handy website makes a nice short link to use on your advertising literature, to the Amazon versions of your book. Saves a buyer having to type in a very long url. What is clever is that Every BookLinker URL is "universal" and automatically takes readers to your book in their correct Amazon storefront (USA if they are in the US, UK if the buyer is in the UK ...) You should always make yourself an Amazon Author Page too: the more places you can be "found" on the internet, the more chances of book buyers finding you. And this site lets you make a short url to link to that Amazon author page as well ... http://www.booklinker.net/

Each book is provided with a downloadable bookmarks set (see CCP website page for your book) - you can print those with your own advertising details on the back if you alter this TEMPLATE to suit, and use them instead of (or as well as) leaflets to give away advertising your book bookmarks back template, alter as required.docx

You can either print the pocket calendars onto the back of coloured or patterned card, or print onto plain card and put your book details on the back. Customise this document with your own book details ... FrontOfPocketCalendarTemplate.doc

If you give someone something useful that they will keep about them, it keeps your book details under their nose. Customise the back of this 2015 pocket calendar for an interesting giveaway. 2015calendar.pdf

Using the printable tutorial in our Children's Corner, you can make little notebooks using one sheet of A4 paper. Put your own book and advertising details on this template where shown, and print and make up as many as you need: an unusual advertising idea. For a children's book, you could print the tutorial as well, and supply it with your customised template so kids can enjoy making their own notebook with your book cover on it. https://www.facebook.com/download/800957519958932/MiniNotebookTemplate.doc

https://winningwriters.com/…/tom-howard-john-h-reid-fiction…

Interesting article on how to set up your website to be user-friendly in terms of spreading the word about your book: http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/increase-social-shares-…/

We publish on Smashwords to ensure cross-platform reach, but make sure people know they can also read your books on their phones if they prefer to use only Amazon Kindle: there is a free app for this available from Amazon.https://www.amazon.com/gp/digital/fiona/kcp-landing-page/…

Carly McCracken If you order direct through me, I can usually save you close to 50 percent each book.

Instagram is only for phones: but what a cool way to get the word out about your book! You could offer a free e-copy to anyone who reposts a picture of your book cover. Be sure to use the right hashtags: you might be surprised how far your book cover travels. Let us know how you get on, if you do this!http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/run-an-instagram-contes…/

Your nearest libraries can be a good place to start. They will often arrange for you to do readings from your book, in exchange for a print copy of it to carry in their library. For a

local author, they may even allow a small sales stand of your books ... http://askjohnkremer.com/library-sales-how-to-get-your-boo…/

http://patricksamphire.blogspot.co.uk/2011/12/five-reasons-author-should-have-website.html

Piracy: Don't think there's much we can do about this sort of thing. The following is about music piracy, but it's still relevant: http://music.myninjaplease.com/?p=2672

http://www.buzzfeed.com/…/33-amazingly-useful-websites-you-…

We are looking into videos of books: meanwhile, if you already have one for yours, you might find this article of use:http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/use-facebook-video-for-…/