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Whether you want to admit it or not, being a writer means you are now — congratulations! — a small business owner.

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Your Elevator Pitch

Published by Janet Gershen-Siegel on January 27, 2026

Let’s Deconstruct Your Elevator Pitch

We have all heard of what an elevator pitch is. It seems like it is the kind of stuff for some overly eager new sales associates looking to make an impression on the big boss between floors.

But there is more to it than that.

Someone has just turned to you and asked, “You’re a writer. What is your book about?”

Don’t just stand there! You have got to be ready.

Some Ideas for Your Verbal Elevator Pitch

Try something like this on for size.

Imagine if animals started talking, and they told you what to do in a topsy-turvy world.

My book is about Alice; she’s a young girl, a little bored on a sunny afternoon, when she spots a white rabbit. The odd thing about this rabbit is, he’s wearing clothes and talking. She follows him down a rabbit hole, but then she can’t get out.

That is less than seventy words, and the person asking has the basic plot, the name of the main character, and a reason to want to know more.

Also, you do not give away any spoilers with this pitch. Is that important? You had better believe it is.

Your Pitch in Writing

Yes, you need one of these, too. But a written elevator pitch is going to be a little different.

Even if readers know you for writing sweeping, epic sagas, you should still write some short stories. They can be in your universe, or not, although it might help with both marketing and your own personal creativity if they can fit somewhere within your universe.

They do not even necessarily have to be sent out for publication, but they could be good for anthologies. Do not knock that. This is exactly how a lot of people get their starts.

In fact, if you are having trouble breaking in, or want to impress a publisher, try submitting to anthologies. You can get a publication credit and impress the publisher of the anthology. And maybe also impress other publishers.

That is a win-win right there.

Point them there, if someone wants to read a sampling of your work. Do not make them commit to a 100,000 word novel.

Unless, of course, you really feel like alienating a potential customer.

In all seriousness, never, ever do something like that.

How Do You End Both Types of Elevator Pitches?

Why, with a call to action, of course! Why, here’s one right now.

On Balance

Finally, try to have some fun with it. Is your main character funny?

What about quoting one of her best zingers, assuming you do not need to explain the joke (that is key)?

Now that is an off-beat idea for a pitch.

And it just might be memorable enough to snag you a customer.

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… And Facebook for All – Offsite Sharing for Independent Authors

Published by Janet Gershen-Siegel on January 15, 2026

Offsite sharing is a bit like old-fashioned door to door marketing. But it has a modern twist and modern metrics. Both are ideal for the independent writer of today.

… And Facebook for All — Offsite Sharing

Offsite sharing is a fascinating concept. Perhaps the most compelling feature of Facebook consists of the availability of the Like button. And it is in so many places that there are likely many end users who can scarcely recall a time when it did not yet exist.

The Like Button and Offsite Sharing

Because the offsite Like Button dovetails beautifully with its presence on the site itself, i.e.,

“The Like button lets a user share your content with friends on Facebook. When the user clicks the Like button on your site, a story appears in the user’s friends’ News Feed with a link back to your website.”

Drag and Drop

Furthermore, the site tries to make it easy for even novice programmers (and people who can really only do drag and drop) to place a Like Button on their own sites for offsite sharing.

The premise is irresistible. You add the Like Button, people like your own site, and that information transmits back to Facebook and to the likers’ friend lists.

In addition, their friends, who may not have know about you at all, suddenly do, and the offsite sharing spreads even more. They, hopefully, check you out, like you, and the process repeats on and on, ad infinitum, or at least in theory.

And with enough intersecting friends with enough non-intersecting additional friendships, a few likes could translate into dozens, if not hundreds, or even thousands, of new people who know about you.

If those start to translate into sales, then you are golden.

Engagement and Reach

However, engagement and reach are both going down. And Facebook actually has the gall to try to get people to pay for what it does. Quelle horreur!

But, seriously folks, how do you think Facebook pays its bills? They do it with advertising. If users will not be charged (and Facebook would be mighty foolish to start charging all of those free sources of detailed consumer data), then advertisers will be.

And of course that already happens.

What gets a lot of people’s undershorts knotted is that the freebie advertising is harder and harder to implement. Facebook seems to push everyone with a page to start buying likes to get more offsite sharing.

Thumb on the Scale?

Whoa, Nelly! Because that would be kind of unethical, if the site was deliberately putting a thumb on an imaginary scale and making it harder for indie authors and others to reach their fans without paying for reach and engagement.

So, are they doing that?

While the jury is still out (after years!), I am still inclined to say no. After all, the site grows by leaps and bounds on a second by second basis. And so engagement and reach dilute without Facebook having to do a damned thing.

Finally, does the site benefit from making it harder for page and group administrators to connect for free? Absolutely. But do they have to work in order to create this condition?

Probably not (or at least, not much). Life does it for them.

Offsite Sharing: Takeaways for Indie Writers

Beyond issues with Russian interference and how the Facebook algorithm can sometimes tamp down third parties, offsite sharing can work pretty well there.

Political and other paid ads, though, are another story. They are a reminder that, every year, Facebook becomes more and more of a pay to play platform.

Hence if you want to share something from off the site, or you want to sell from your site by sharing to FB, then your shared content might be lost amidst the paid stuff.

You may simply have to attribute it to life in the big Facebook city, and start paying for some ads. So be it.

Want More About Facebook?

If my experiences with Facebook resonate with you, then please be sure to check out my other blog posts about the largest social network on the planet, by far.

• Creating a Facebook page
† Working with a Facebook Page
• … Your Profile Page
† Offsite Sharing
• All Your Account Settings
† All the Rest of It
• Facebook versus Forums

Next blog post

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… And Facebook for All, and for all Indie Writers

Published by Janet Gershen-Siegel on January 13, 2026

Independent authors if you need a sign to tell you to get on Facebook, consider this your sign. This is why.

For Liberty, Justice (?), … and Facebook for All

Facebook matters.

At least, that is what Mark Zuckerberg would want us all to think, wish and feel. I can understand that, a desire to make a website about as universal as possible.

Once the site was no longer exclusive to collegians, the inevitable business model was to universalize it. And the site, today (although that will probably change), has about the best chance to become a truly universal web experience as any site.

And yes, this is despite the advent and rise of AI. It is even despite the fact that a lot of the youngest generations (Generation Alpha and Generation Z, to be more precise) tend to disdain it. But even they cannot avoid Facebook. Their families and teachers are on it.

Universality

So, are you trying to sell your books and short stories (and perhaps cover designs) on the biggest social media site on the planet? Over 3 billion monthly active users are there, as of 2025. That is an awfully big flea market.

But, wait, not so fast. Is that number truly accurate? Absolutely not. After all (and for different reasons), my husband and I each have more than one account. Do you?

Even if you do not, I bet you have at least one friend who does, and probably lots more. In particular, if someone has ever been in Facebook jail, they have probably got at least one separate account.

And that is perfectly all right, and is absolutely permitted by the site (although they would like to change that). And they are trying to….

Real Names

Facebook also pushes for users to go with their correct names. Why? Because if you can hide behind a username, you might flame people more than if you cannot. But the anecdotal evidence certainly points to this not working. At all.

Real names also (in theory) help to eliminate duplicates. But in all honesty, how many guys named Mike Brown do you know? I can think of two I have known in my life and that figure is probably more like four or five.

Even middle names might not fix such a duplication issue. There are probably several men with the name of Michael David Brown in the world.

Also, though, another use for real names is better marketing. If you Anglicize your name, then an advertiser might miss that you are Hispanic, and incorrectly market to you.

However, keep in mind that second accounts are far more likely to be under a fake name.

Not So Fast On Those Real Names

We have all seen names which are not quite so perfectly right, though. How many of us have seen married women using a middle name of something like Was(whatever their maiden name was)? Hence Susan Davis might call herself Susan WasSmith Davis.

It is not a perfect solution, and you do not really have to do that, anyway. Still, there are plenty of people who do.

Others might place a nickname within the middle name field. Robert Bob Brady, or Richard Dick Daily. But again, they might not have to.

The more common nicknames are already going to come up in a search, even though, in both of these examples, the nickname starts with a letter different from the full name.

So, Elizabeth (Beth, Liz), William (Bill), Christopher (Chris, Topher {maybe}), and Amanda (Mandy) are all covered.

Stage Names on FB

Still others may try to use stage names, but Facebook would rather you just create a fan page or have someone do so for you. This is not just to nicely help you keep your personal and professional lives separate. It is also to market to your fan base better.

After all, even your most avid fans might not be too thrilled by a celebrity talking about the logistics of getting to a local hardware store.

Then again, I am pals with a number of former child stars from the 70s and 80s. They all seem to be using their real names. Only Pamlyn Ferdin seems to be keeping two separate pages/accounts.

But it is also likely that, say, the Livingston brothers are keeping separate accounts but those accounts are private and locked down tightly.

No Real Name, No, I Mean it, Facebook!

Then there are people who have damned good reasons for never using their real names, such as people escaping domestic violence. Facebook has gotten better and more sensitive when it comes to such needs.

And, FB may very well have to deal with this issue for anyone who becomes a victim of identity theft due to DOGE bull in a china shop-style actions. We shall see, although they have likely already dealt with identity theft in one way or another.

Why Facebook?

The main purpose of Facebook (in case you are just coming into the light after a few decades on a desert island), is to sell advertising. Its offshoot purpose is to connect people, of all stripes, for free. But it is those connections which sell the advertising.

There is a lot else to it, at least on a general basis. But it is still a valuable business tool for any Social Media Marketing Campaign.

But never forget: you are the product that Facebook is selling.

In fact, that is a good rule of thumb: if it is online and it is free, then guess what they are selling?*

*Note: me? I am selling books, and my own services.

The Best Parts of the Site for Indie Author Social Media Marketing

The main virtues of Facebook, when it comes to marketing your book(s), can currently be divided into three basic areas:

• Personal pages and peripheral connections to same
† Company pages and groups and peripheral connections thereto, and,
• Offsite connections back to the site

By “peripherals”, I mean all the extra stuff that goes along with the site experience, and not computer hardware peripherals.

In addition, FB Marketplace may or may not be a decent place for some people and companies to get some sales traction. But I would not count on it, if I were you. You will most likely find FB Marketplace is more for a used bike, not your books.

Other ideas include creating a Facebook page for you, the writer, or for your biggest series. Or maybe just for your biggest book. What about a group? That might be a good idea for your fans to gather.

You could use it to plan when you will be doing a signing or a reading. And then coordinate when you can meet and greet your bigger fans. Or use a group to gather together all of your beta readers.

The Concept of Universal-ish Reach at Facebook

Beyond just the sheer numbers, Facebook is extremely good at putting people together who are similar. You always get friend suggestions, yes? Those people tend to either have friends in common with you, or they have some other characteristic in common with you.

The part that is in common might be home town. Or it might be favorite sports team. Another possible connection could be where you work.

Now, face it: if you work in a huge Fortune 50 company, then you will have tons of coworkers. And the chances are beyond good that you will not know everyone. You may not even know everyone in your office building or even on your floor.

So sometimes when a friend request arises, it may feel like a mystery. Hence, look for a commonality. Sometimes commonality is religion, by the way.

So, if you are a Muslim person working in New York City for a huge company like Exxon, the list of people that FB tags as being somehow related to you is laughably long.

Clutches of People

But getting back to the people you do connect with. It is perfectly natural to hang out with the people you went to high school with, or who love the same sports team you do. You might feel more comfortable with fellow cancer survivors, horse people, etc.

Or you might want to set up a political echo chamber. Another thing you might want to do is spend time with people in the same profession as you, and do some networking (although LinkedIn really is better for that).

Your readers may want to get together online to discuss your book. And, spoiler alert! They might not want you to be a part of that discussion.

But no matter what, we people tend to group together. It is a natural tendency. We have been gathering together since before there was a Homo sapiens species.

Facebook just exploits that. Really, really well.

And if antitrust cases go one way, they might not in the future. But we do not know that yet.

Takeaways

Your readers and potential readers probably have a lot in common. Helping gather them together can be a way to relate to them but also sell more books. FB can be a way to put together a street team, too.

Your readers may very well connect with each other, too. This is great news all around, and not just for sales.

After all, FB friendships are as real and powerful and intimate as those which originated offline. I know more than one couple who met and married after first meeting there. Don’t you?

Want More About Facebook?

If my experiences with Facebook resonate with you, then please be sure to check out my other blog posts about the largest social network on the planet, by far.

• Creating a Facebook page
† Working with a Facebook Page
• … Your Profile Page
† Offsite Sharing
• All Your Account Settings
† All the Rest of It
• Facebook versus Forums

Next blog post

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How to Create a Writer Website: What to Write About

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How to Create a Writer Website: What to Write About

Published by Janet Gershen-Siegel on May 25, 2023

It’s the first question pretty much any writer would normally ask anyway, and it concerns what to write about.

Do You Know What to Write About?

Let us start with one thing, and make it perfectly clear. Your writer website is (spoiler alert!) not your personal blog. Rather, it is a marketing tool.

Oh, and by the way, your Twitter stream (er, X stream), your author Facebook page and/or group, and BookTok? Guess what? They’re marketing tools as well!

This is not to say that you can never, ever be sociable. Actually, you should.

But there’s a line between sociable and confessional. For the most part (albeit not necessarily always), you do not want to cross it.

Consider What to Write About as You Consider Where that Writing is Actually Going

Wait, what?

What happens to your blog once you publish it? Well, you probably share it on social media. At least, if you want it to go to anyone, you sure as hell do.

In fact, Jetpack has a setting to get your writing out to social media. It’s pretty easy to set up and then it’s done.

This is not everything you should be tweeting, etc. You should be doing more than the barest of bare minima. But at least your stellar prose is going somewhere.

A Writer Newsletter — the World’s Greatest Landing Strip

Keep in mind, as I write this, I do not even have a writer newsletter yet! But I follow the newsletter my employer puts out. And I also follow the newsletters of some other writers, like Trinity Blacio. I look at what they say, and what they do not say. And, I check out how often they put out their newsletters.

And here’s what I have learned.

1. Newsletters that come out irregularly are probably not going to get you new readers. But they may appeal to your current fans. Still, you want to expand your base. Being consistent with your release schedule helps!

2. No one seems to know what to put in a writer newsletter, beyond a link to a free download and/or future appearance info. Why not reprint a part of some blog posts? And then link to the remainder!

3. Confessional newsletters should be few and far between. So, an irregularly published one might be able to get away with this. But if it’s a constant? Nope. A weekly newsletter, and maybe even a monthly one will get tiring very quickly if it’s only about how you’ve got writer’s block.

So, consider some of your landing strips when you write.

What do Your Readers Want to Read?

Beyond your fiction (or nonfiction), what do they want to know? Do they want to see anything about your process? Maybe they want to understand your characters better. Or maybe they want to get an idea of what’s coming out next.

But when considering what to write about, you also want to get inside the heads of this next group of folks.

What do Your Prospective Readers Want to Read?

Love it or hate it, if you’re an indie writer and you don’t just want to leave your writing in a drawer or on a hard drive somewhere, guess what? Congratulations, you are now a small business person.

What does that mean? It means that you should be trying to convert prospects.

I am not talking about clickbait here (although a little copywriting is probably fine if it’s not too aggressive). It is, rather, about trying to add some readers.

Here’s a Fer-Instance

Any number of die-hard Trekkies were appalled and clutched their pearls when a new timeline and new actors were introduced in the 2009 film. However, that film did something amazing. It attracted and hooked a new generation of viewers.

And when Paramount+ (it was CBS All Access at the time) added new series which were different from TOS, what happened? Oh, those same fanboys and fangirls clutched their pearls and sighed and screamed it wasn’t “real” Star Trek.

Yet Discovery and the other new series have also reeled in a new generation.

Resting on your laurels is comfortable and nice. But it also makes you irrelevant very, very quickly.

Back to You for What to Write About

I know how hard it is for so many indie writers to market. Believe me, I know! Why the heck do you think I got a Masters in Communication to begin with? It was, in part, because I wanted to learn how to market my own creations.

Still, consider it this way.

You’re a writer. Setting words to paper or pixels is in your DNA.

And you should also be an inventor and an experimenter.

So, throw some of that writing jello against the wall. Document it and measure it.

Who knows? Maybe some of it’ll even stick.

Happy writing!

Want More of Writer Website Development?

If my post on website speed resonates with you, then be sure to check out my other articles about how to create a writer website.

Writer Website Development

• How to Create a Writer Website: Start a Writer Website
† How to Create a Writer Website: What to Write About
• Writer SEO
† How to Create a Writer Website: Writer Website Copyright
• How to Create a Writer Website: Writer Website Design
† Mobile Design
• How to Create a Writer Website: Writer Website User Experience Design
† How to Create a Writer Website: Writer Website Speed and More UX Design
• Next article

Get going the smart way with what to write about. #amwriting

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Social Media: Hope, Hype or What?

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Social Media: Hope, Hype or What?

Published by Janet Gershen-Siegel on March 23, 2023

Social Media: Hope, Hype or What?

Hype? Hope? Now, this subject has probably been done to death but, here I will do it all over again. Perhaps (hopefully!) my perspective will be fresh and/or of some value.

First of all, this post is inspired by The ABA Journal’s take on Social Media. As in the online magazine for lawyers. And they went on about Social Media, much like I have and others have, as well.

Hype Feeds Itself

And I can’t help feeling that that, in and of itself, is feeding the ole hype machine. Is Social Media hyped? Well, let’s put out an article about just that, and we’ll rev up the hype machine and get the word out and and and …. Suddenly, there’s hype about the hype.

Ai chihuahua.

However, there is, perhaps less of a hype issue than there is one of unrealistic expectations. I suspect that most people, if they give Social Media more than a passing glance (and, in particular, if they need to touch on it for business), take one look at it and think: free. Ooh, goody!

This marvelous free thing will supplement (and perhaps eventually supplant) all of the things I have to actually pay good money for! My wealth will increase, in an incredible and exponential manner, because I can put my advertising and marketing dollars elsewhere, outside of traditional (read: expensive) channels, and instead shove it all into some investment that catches my eye. Llama ranching, perhaps.

Traditional vs. Social Media Marketing

Okay. Let’s back up. The real thing is, Social Media marketing isn’t really an apples to apples comparison with traditional marketing. It’s more like holding a town hall meeting and seeing what people have to say about your product. Or like doing community outreach (e. g. having your company send people to work at a soup kitchen or build a house).

It’s like a million networking events. In short, it’s that dreaded, over-used term: relationship building.

And creating relationships is hard. And messy. Plus it’s not necessarily terribly free, at all.

Hype and A Sense of Entitlement

Because I have seen, in many instances, when software on a website changes. And in particular with community forums, people tend to freak out. They have a mislaid proprietary interest in a whole lotta sameness. Or they want the site to be the same from day to day, because that’s familiar to them.

Hence moving the post button from the left to the right, or changing its color, is akin to moving their cheese. So it tears at them.

But, ultimately, they figure it out. And they give it a chance and come back, and pretty soon, so far as they’re concerned things have always been the new way, and were never the old way. Because for them, it’s not about the tools; it’s about the people.

And the same thing should be true for you – and that should knock the hype right out, and for good. It’s not about the tools. It’s not about Twitter, or Facebook, or TikTok, or Groupon, or Yelp, or AirBnB, or MySpace (back in the day), or LinkedIn or StumbleUpon or Snapchat or a billion others. Instead, it’s about the people.

Want More About Social Media?

If my experiences with non-platform-specific social media resonate with you, then check out my other articles about navigating our social media obsessed world.

A Crash Course in Copyright Law, Part 3 (Exceptions)

Published by Janet Gershen-Siegel on December 15, 2022

And Finally: A Crash Course in Copyright Law, Part 3 (Exceptions)

What are some exceptions to copyright infringement cases?

So, when is it all right?

Purdue University offers a terrific and very readable summary of the main known exceptions to copyright infringement claims.

Note: the law changes in every area. This blog is no substitute for talking directly with an experienced copyright attorney!

Fair Use

For the fair use defense, Purdue outlines four basic factors:

Purpose and character

Some specifics favor fair use. These include nonprofit, educational, and personal usages. Plus there are those which represent a potential tipping point.

These include teaching, research, scholarship, criticism, commentary, and news reporting. And there are those which favor needing permission. These include commercial, entertainment, and for-profit uses.

Hence, a nonprofit’s research is more likely to be fair use than a for-profit enterprise’s commercial use. Hence the for-profit business should seek the copyright holder’s permission.

Nature of work

To favor fair use, it should be a fact and/or published. But to favor needing permission, it should be a fiction and/or unpublished. E. g. It’s more likely to be fair use if you repeat a published fact about dinosaurs.

Whereas you more likely need permission for an unpublished novel about vampires.

Amount

Small and insignificant bits of copying are more likely to be fair use than large ones representing a work’s heart. As a result, those are more likely to require permission.

Hence, if I copy the character of Millicent Bulstrode, then the character is minor and small. But this does not necessarily mean JK Rowling won’t sue me. Still, copying Hermione Granger is another matter entirely.

Market Effect

You’re more likely to be in the fair use realm if:

† Licensing/permissions are unavailable or there is no major impact,
• There is limited/restricted access to the work, or
† The user or institution owns a legal copy.

But it’s different if there is a major impact, or licensing/permissions are readily available. Or the work has worldwide availability, or there is repeated or long-term use. Then the scale slides to requiring permission.

Profit and sales are not an element to this cause of action. Although selling the copied article, particularly multiple instances of it, can place the act into the ‘requires permission’ camp.

Exceptions for Face to Face Instruction

According to Purdue,

The traditional classroom or face-to-face instruction is when the instructor and the students of a nonprofit educational institution are in a place devoted to instruction and the teaching and learning take place at the same time. In this setting all performances and displays of a work are allowed.

Requirements:

† All materials must be legally acquired.
† Teaching activities must take place in a classroom or a similar place devoted to instruction.

Exceptions: Virtual Instruction

Like face-to-face instruction allowance, virtual instruction generally gets a pass, per Purdue University. However, there are some specifics. For example, the class must be a regular offering in the curriculum.

What about Parody Exceptions?

The American Bar Association notes the United States Supreme Court treats parody and satire separately. But the ABA feels it’s a distinction without much of a difference. Both are mockery. But satire is often more like commentary than outright mimicry.

For the ABA, and particularly when a work has both elements, the difference matters less. Although copyright holders might be more inclined to license satire rather than parody. This is because parody is pretty much a knockoff by definition.

Commentary generally falls under fair use. That commentary can be amusing or not, satirical or not. Copying generally isn’t fair use. But amusement and exaggeration blurs that line.

The best advice I can give you is: don’t make your work into a copyright test case!

In other words: be original!

And be sure to check out Part 1 and Part 2!

And yes, of course I have the copyright in my own material!

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Working With a Cover Artist, Part 2

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Working With a Cover Artist, Part 2

Published by Janet Gershen-Siegel on October 11, 2022

It’s Time for Working With a Cover Artist, Part 2

There is more to the engaging of a cover artist part of working as an independent writer than just selecting an image or giving them an idea of what you want. Working with a cover artist involves some paperwork. Welcome to the business side of writing.

Because—surprise!—guess what you suddenly are now?

You’re a small business owner.

Working With a Cover Artist Should Mean a Contract

A lot of us get nervous talking about contracts and copyright and that is completely understandable.

They seem difficult, complex, fraught with meaning, and all-too final. It feels like a prenuptial agreement sometimes – don’t you want to have faith that everything will work out all right?

Eh, not so fast.

This is not your great love (even if the cover artist is a friend or a relative). Instead, this is about rights. Your rights and the rights which belong to the visual artist.

The question is: who owns what? Without getting into the minutiae of copyright law just yet, this site offers not only a decent basic breakdown of the law in the United States, but also a good basic contract for a free download.

Contracts are also extremely helpful because they are, in part, a set of instructions. The artist produces the work as of X date, you pay Y amount of dollars as a down payment, etc. So, you get the idea, yes?

So, Are We There Yet?

Are you all set now, and just have to fill in the blanks and you’re good to go?

Not exactly.

Read over the agreement. If any of it does not make sense to you, talk to a lawyer! Even those of us not specially trained in copyright or contracts law can generally dope out an agreement.

Further, in the US, you have got to have competence in Contracts Law in order to pass the Bar examination. It’s a basic part of the Multistate Exam.

Hence even your friend the real estate lawyer should be able to answer your basic contract questions. Oh, and please pay for their time.

One Quick Tip

For the part which is about City, County, and State, you want to write in your own city or town and state, and county or parish. Why?

Because if a lawsuit comes down, you will be a far happier person if you get to go to the courthouse in your county, instead of one potentially on the other side of the country.

It will be far less expensive, and you will be far more likely to exert your rights if you feel they have been violated.

But when it’s a dispute for $100 and it costs $200 each way to fly to where the lawsuit is happening, you’ll do a cost-benefit analysis and not assert your rights. At least, that’s what the vast, vast majority of people would and will do.

Second Quick Tip

Introduce the idea of a contract before the cover artist does anything. Make it clear you won’t engage them to do the work if the agreement is not signed, but also give them an opportunity to look it over and make changes to it (e. g. they might agree to a different-sized format, etc.).

Note: this agreement is rather artist-centric. They probably won’t have much of a problem with it. But it’s not outside the realm of possibility.

Be patient and pleasant like you would be with anyone. This is not you forcing the artist to do anything. But do insist on a signed agreement.

Anyone who is insulted by your insistence on signing an agreement is never, ever someone who you would want to work with. Ever.

Changes

You might want to make changes to a design. You can spell those out in the contract. Should the artist charge you for any changes? They might. So, make sure all of that is in writing. See why it’s a good idea to know pretty much what you want before you start?

It could come in handy for, say, an agreement that the first three changes are free.

Working With a Cover Artist Means Payments

Don’t pay it all up front, and don’t agree to do so. If you are absolutely, flat-out broke, you should still be able to pay something, even if the artist hand waves and doesn’t want anything for their work.

Be good to your conscience and at least ask if you can make a small donation to one of their three favorite charities.

Otherwise, payments should be as specified in the agreement. Are they in dollars, Euros, bitcoin, or something else? Do you pay with a check, a credit card, PayPal, or something else? When is the first payment due? What percentage of the total is due at the time? What’s the mechanism for getting a refund if things don’t work out?

If this sounds an awful lot like engaging, say, a roofer for your home, then ding ding ding! You’ve got it. You are, in essence, working with a service contractor.

Recommendations

Do you absolutely love your cover? Or do you dislike it but still think the artist is great (in other words, sometimes our visions can clash)? Then find out where and how to recommend them, whether it’s a recommendation on LinkedIn or a review on Yelp. And be sure to tell your writer friends, too!

Be good to your cover artist, and they will reward you many times over.

Want More About Creating, Commissioning, and Deciding on Book Covers?

If my experiences with book covers resonate with you, then please be sure to check out my other blog posts about getting the best cover for your book. Because, like it or not, we all use them to judge books.

• Color Theory, Part 1
† Color Theory, Part 2
• Part 3 of Color Theory
† Part 4 of Color Theory
• Working with a Cover Artist, Part 1
† Covers, Working with Them
• Video on Working with a Cover Artist
† The Weird World of Being Published

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Working With a Cover Artist, Part 1

Published by Janet Gershen-Siegel on October 6, 2022

Let’s Look at Working With a Cover Artist

Have you ever worked with a cover artist?

They are a fellow creative soul. But they express their artistry in a far different way from how you and I do.

It is like any business relationship, or it should be. Respect your cover artist, and they will help you. Don’t, and beware!

Get an Idea of What You Want Before You Start

So the last thing a cover artist wants to hear is, “Surprise me!” When they ask you how you envision your cover, you need to have an idea. One of the best ways to get such ideas is to browse Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and even your local bookstore.

Look at the typical covers in your genre. Are they natural-looking? Industrial? Hand-drawn?

What are the predominant colors? Black and white? Green? Pink? Red? Something else? So are they angular, or are the shapes softer and more muted?

Consider the fonts as well. Science fiction tends to have sans serif fonts. Romances tend to have serifs and script display fonts.

Also, are there people on the covers of the books in your genre? Is it two people holding each other, or just someone’s impressively chiseled abs?

Use Care!

Now we have all heard or read the expression, don’t judge a book by its cover.

Except that it’s absolutely untrue. We do judge books by their covers. All. The. Time.

Do Your Cover Artist a Favor and Do Some Research

If the covers in your genre’s section of the bookstore are all orange, should your cover be orange, too? It’s hard to say. You want it to look like it belongs in that section, right? But you also want it to stand out.

I would say, if you are a new author and you are predominantly selling online, you need to consider how your work is going to look when it’s shown with others in the genre.

Perform an Amazon or Barnes & Noble search for your genre, and for any keywords related to your plot. If your book is a children’s work about a super-ocelot named Clive (please don’t steal this work. I suddenly have a wicked plot bunny ping-ponging around my head), then you could search under children’s works and then under superheroes or animal stories, etc.

Do some in depth research because your cover is a valuable piece of your marketing.

It might even be helpful to take a screenshot, print it and then consider images which would fit in and images which would stand out.

Your Name

So, your name is probably not going to be recognizable to most people. While it is an important part of the cover, it might be better for the artist to make the title stand out more.

Unless you are very famous already, it is highly likely that the cover will have the title of your book at the top and your name at the bottom.

Cover Artist Contracts!

Oh, and another thing – be sure to have a written agreement with this person. Even something relatively informal, signed by both of you, is better than nothing. But why? Because you’re exchanging money for labor. And that means, sometimes, people sue.

This is the very essence of the business side of writing. So, it’s time to pull out all the stops and be a professional about such things.

Want More About Creating, Commissioning, and Deciding on Book Covers?

If my experiences with book covers resonate with you, then check out my other articles about getting the best cover for your book. Because, like it or not, we all use them to judge books..

Book Covers and You, the Writer

• Color Theory, Part 1
† Color Theory, Part 2
• Part 3 of Color Theory
† Part 4 of Color Theory
• Color Theory Videos
† Working with a Cover Artist, Part 1
• Working with a Cover Artist, Part 2
† Covers, Working with Them
• Video on Working with a Cover Artist
† The Weird World of Being Published

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Libraries—How to Get Your Book into Them

Libraries—How to Get Your Book into Them

Published by Janet Gershen-Siegel on November 18, 2021

Shh, this is about libraries!

Getting into Libraries

Libraries are the unsung heroes of the American (and other countries’) educational system. They are where people look for jobs, listen to lectures, or teach themselves all sorts of things.

They are also a marvelous home for your newly-published book.

Connections

First of all, you probably can’t just write to or visit every library in creation. While writing is something of a numbers game, it won’t do you much good to just launch your book at all the libraries out there. You need to have a plan.

The best and easiest plan is to go with a library where you have some sort of a connection. Did you grow up in Cleveland, go to college in Dallas, and are now settled in St. Louis? Then try your local library from when you were growing up. Don’t try every single Ohio or even Cleveland library. The same is true of Dallas, plus you may want to try your alma mater. For St. Louis, do yourself a favor and get a library card before you even start. They want to know you, at least a little bit. So go and let them at least know that much about you.

The Approach

I’m going to give you three approaches.

With the Book

Take your book with you, in a purse or tote bag or backpack. Ask to speak to whoever is in charge of acquisitions. Go to them, book in hand, and explain how you are related to the library. E. g. “I grew up down the street, on Parkland Road.” or “I just got a card three months ago.”

Now explain what you’re doing. “I’m a first-time author. This is my book. It’s about ____.”

At minimum, tell them the genre. I find it’s helpful to tell them either where it’s shelved elsewhere (is it science fiction or fantasy, for example). Also tell them whether the work has any triggers or heavy sex or violence scenes. Mention if it is LGBT-friendly. This isn’t just a courtesy to help keep small children from taking out works with explicit sex scenes. It also helps the library decide how they are going to display the work and what they are going to say if anyone asks them about it.

Then give them the book. Yes, just hand it over. Make sure it’s a perfect new copy. Do not give them a signed copy. Why not? Because those can potentially be stolen. In addition, the library has to think ahead. Your book will probably end up in their book sale, and maybe even in less than a year. A pristine copy is easier for them to sell.

Without the Book

No book? No problem! Come over with a business card instead. Again, ask to speak with whoever is in charge of acquisitions. Explain who you are and what your book is about. Hand over your business card. And if you’ve got the ISBN handy, then write it on the back. But also get their address of where you can send the work. Don’t make them ask for it. You have to do all the legwork here.

On the Phone

This one is similar to when you go in but don’t have a copy of the book with you. Again, ask to speak to whoever is in charge of acquisitions, and explain about your work. Make it clear the book is free to them. Then ask for their shipping address, and whose name should it be addressed to. And the best part about this approach (or if you need to mail the book for any reason) is, you can just have Amazon ship it to them and send it as a gift.

What do You Want in Return From Libraries?

Pictures. Yes, really! Tell them you will do this if they take pictures of your book on their shelves and send the images to you. Explain you are going to use them in your marketing campaign. And then do so, making sure to thank them profusely and link back to any libraries which help you out.

Libraries: Takeaways

You just sold another book! Never mind that it was to yourself. You still sold one, and that counts for Amazon’s rankings system. Plus your book now is in a position to be seen by others. And the librarian knows your title. Finally, I have personally found talking to librarians to be easy. Because you’re not really selling. Instead, you’re giving them a donation. Libraries want authors to succeed.

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… And Facebook for All — Company Pages

Published by Janet Gershen-Siegel on August 5, 2021

Liberty, Justice (?), … And Facebook for All – Company Pages for Writers/Authors

Company pages have become spots you put together on Facebook to support a business (not the same as a fan page). These have gotten more corporate recently. For a writer, this is what you’re currently dealing with.

For other types of companies, you’ll need to open them up and do some experimenting.

Also, like everything else on Facebook, these pages and their settings do evolve, and they’ve gotten simpler these days. Currently, the following features are available for fans. Let’s start with the main tab.

Main Tab (Posts)

• Intro
† Page type (author, etc.)
• Location
† URL (which you can click on to promote your website, for a fee, of course!)
• Ratings, if any
† Photos
• Posts (under each post, there’s a button to boost that post)

About Tab

Now for the About tab.
† Contact and basic info
• Page transparency
† Details
• Categories
† Contact Info
• Websites and Social Links
† Basic Info

Within the About tab, there are subtabs. The main such tab includes followers in the first . section.

Followers Subsection

Followers has tabs for Followers, Following, Mutual Following, and Likes.

Photos Subsection

The next section is Photos and just includes tabs for Photos and Albums.

Videos Subsection

The only thing in this subsection is, unsurprisingly, videos.

Two More Subsections

These are just Groups and Likes.

Mentions Tab

This tab is just for whenever anyone has contacted or tagged you. Do yourself a favor, and look at it on occasion, as it can sometimes become a spam magnet.

Reviews Tab

This one only contains reviews, if any.

Followers Tab

This is really just another way to get to the aforementioned Followers subsection (under the About tab). Followers has tabs for Followers, Following, Mutual Following, and Likes.

Photos Tab

This is really just another way to get to the aforementioned Photos subsection (under the About tab). Photos just includes tabs for Photos and Albums.

More (with a down arrow)

Currently, this tab provides ways to get to:

• Videos (same as the aforementioned Videos subsection under the About tab)
† Live (live videos go here)
• Groups (same as the subsection under the About tab)
† Music
• Check-ins
† Sports
• Movies
† TV Shows
• Books
† Likes
• Reviews Given

Also, there’s…

There are also a Shop Now button (which you need to set up), a Like Button, and a Button to Message the page owner.

As you may imagine, things are different for the owner/admin. So, switch on over to that account (which I believe is made when you make the page), and let’s take a fresh look.

There’s a spot for Page Health, where Facebook will tell you if there’s anything glaring that you need to do. Just under that, you can invite friends to Like your page. Don’t go nuts with this! Too much of this form of self-promotion can actively harm your brand.

Also, you can edit the intro/bio or other details like URL. And, you can feature any of your photos, or upload something new and feature that. There’s room for more than one featured photo.

Posts

Over by your posts, there are options for a live video, a reel (you can just upload a preexisting one), and adding a photo or video. You can feature (pin) a post, too.

Under each post, you can click for insights. Click on it, and you’ll see views (followers vs non-followers), reach, interactions, link clicks, views, and interactions. Interactions include likes, reactions, shares, and saves.

† *
• *

Company Pages and Details

For every tab and section which a fan can see, there’s a way to edit it. In addition, you can adjust privacy settings for each such section.**

Events

I’ve found adding events to be hit or miss. First of all, not everyone RSVPs, and not everyone shows up even if they’ve said yes. However, it provides more exposure and it will bring your page up to people as the event date rolls around.

Because even people who are clicking “No” are still looking, at least a little bit. So use with discretion and don’t overdo this. Because not every activity is an event, and not everyone should be invited to everything. Since that’s just plain annoying.

Wall

Fairly self-explanatory. In addition, you can control who can add to your wall. However, keep in mind that if you are free and easy with this, you’ll get more posts but you might also get spam. Although if you shut this down, you end up with Posts to Page. And it’s easy to miss these!

Company Pages Info

Here you add more detailed information. Hence this includes the company’s address and its business hours.

Photos

Fairly self-explanatory. Posts with images nearly always do better than those without, so upload an image if the link you’re sharing doesn’t have one. Make sure you have permission to use the image!

Notes

Fairly self-explanatory. Hence add notes like you would on your own personal page. E. g. these are almost discussions. However, the responses are relegated to subordinate comments versus the kind of back and forth that comes from the wall or the discussions page. And this is, admittedly, a nitpicky distinction without much of a real difference.

I would, though, suggest that you not use the Notes section for blogging. Instead, get a blog through WordPress (yay!) or the like and do it that way. Because the Notes section ends up a rather poor substitute for that.

Videos

Fairly self-explanatory. Hence if you’ve got videos uploaded, they can show up here. However, this is not the same as linking to a video hosted online elsewhere.

Company Pages: Post Scheduling

Fairly self-explanatory. So just post to your wall but pull down on the post button and select Schedule Post. In addition, if you’ve been looking at your Insights, you should know when people are online. And of course you want to try to post when people will see your posts.

Various Apps

Finally, go to Edit Profile and there is an option for Applications. However, these days, the only ones are Notes and Events.

Want More About Facebook?

If my experiences with Facebook resonate with you, then please be sure to check out my other blog posts about the largest social network on the planet, by far.

… And Facebook for All

• Creating a Facebook page
† Working with a Facebook Page
• … Your Profile Page
† Home Page
• Offsite Sharing
† All Your Account Settings
• All the Rest of It
† Facebook versus Forums

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Tag: business

Let’s Deconstruct Your Elevator Pitch

Some Ideas for Your Verbal Elevator Pitch

Your Pitch in Writing

How Do You End Both Types of Elevator Pitches?

On Balance

Like this:

… And Facebook for All — Offsite Sharing

The Like Button and Offsite Sharing

Drag and Drop

Engagement and Reach

Thumb on the Scale?

Offsite Sharing: Takeaways for Indie Writers

Want More About Facebook?

Like this:

For Liberty, Justice (?), … and Facebook for All

Universality

Real Names

Not So Fast On Those Real Names

Stage Names on FB

No Real Name, No, I Mean it, Facebook!

Why Facebook?

The Best Parts of the Site for Indie Author Social Media Marketing

The Concept of Universal-ish Reach at Facebook

Clutches of People

Takeaways

Want More About Facebook?

Like this:

Do You Know What to Write About?

Consider What to Write About as You Consider Where that Writing is Actually Going

A Writer Newsletter — the World’s Greatest Landing Strip

What do Your Readers Want to Read?

What do Your Prospective Readers Want to Read?

Here’s a Fer-Instance

Back to You for What to Write About

Want More of Writer Website Development?

Writer Website Development

Like this:

Social Media: Hope, Hype or What?

Hype Feeds Itself

Traditional vs. Social Media Marketing

Hype and A Sense of Entitlement

Want More About Social Media?

Social Media in Our Society

Reviews of Books on Social Media

Working with Social Media

Social Media for Writers

Like this:

And Finally: A Crash Course in Copyright Law, Part 3 (Exceptions)

Fair Use

Purpose and character

Nature of work

Amount

Market Effect

Exceptions for Face to Face Instruction

Exceptions: Virtual Instruction

What about Parody Exceptions?

Like this:

It’s Time for Working With a Cover Artist, Part 2

Working With a Cover Artist Should Mean a Contract

So, Are We There Yet?

One Quick Tip

Second Quick Tip

Changes

Working With a Cover Artist Means Payments

Recommendations

Want More About Creating, Commissioning, and Deciding on Book Covers?

Like this:

Let’s Look at Working With a Cover Artist

Get an Idea of What You Want Before You Start

Use Care!

Do Your Cover Artist a Favor and Do Some Research

Your Name

Cover Artist Contracts!

Want More About Creating, Commissioning, and Deciding on Book Covers?

Book Covers and You, the Writer

Like this:

Getting into Libraries

Connections

The Approach