First Word

  Chapter 4 A Day in the Life “ I love cats because I enjoy my home; and little by little, they become its visible soul .” – Jean Cocteau   “The Brothers”                   Have you ever heard in cat talk something called the “zoomies”? I define the zoomies in a visual and auditory way. Watching two cats racing at full speed around the house, across and over furniture, and literally up walls, that’s the zoomies (formally known as Frenetic Random Activity Pattern or FRAP). I usually hear the zoomies when the galloping starts. I can be writing at my desk and first thing in the morning, what do I hear? Gallop, gallop, gallop, crash, slide, meow, chase, race, pounce, jump, roll, and repeat . Most zooming takes place in the morning or late afternoon after a good nap has refueled the tank. I find the zoomies hilarious to watch. My desk faces the hallway so I’ve been ...

  What are common mistakes writers make?   Mistake #1 – Self-doubt : Oh, this one can actually kill careers. Self-doubting writers lack confidence in their work. Projects get scuttled even before they can be finished. The anxiety and fear that their work will fail before it even sees the light of day holds many writers back from finishing what they start.   Mistake #2 – Not studying writing itself . Key mistakes get made out of sheer lack of education. An overall story can be really fantastic but so poorly executed that it’s unreadable. Mistakes like overwriting scenes and focusing on minutia versus pushing a story forward (and it’s all equal when it comes to fiction or nonfiction) can bog down your manuscript. You can hire a copy editor to clean up those minor mistakes, but the writing itself needs to be solid.   Mistake #3 – Writers who lack grammar skills and make their work almost impossible to read . Editing is a profession in and of itse...

  As it turns out, two cats are better than one. They keep each other company. So, my son Cole’s encouragement to get two kitties paid off. I enjoy having my office kitties to pet and cuddle, but I still need to have my lap cat-free when I’m writing and typing. Slurpee, who is notably not a big lap-sitter, keeps Icee busy. It’s absolutely hilarious when they get the morning zoomies, as I mentioned in the last chapter. I sit at my desk and watch them wrestle and zoom back and forth in front of my office doors. I find myself stopping work, watching them wrestle, and laughing. I’ve made a lot of TikTok videos of them acting like crazy cats. I label the videos things like “Cat Wrestling” or “Cat Wrestlemania”. It’s all in good fun. These boys love each other. When Icee was still a kitten, Slurpee allowed him to eat out of his food bowl and even eat first. He was a sweet big brother. Later on, though, Slurpee got more protective over his food. A few choice growls se...

I am available for more project work, and now is a good time. If you have a project you want to start for 2023, please contact me at info@3LPublishing.com and I’ll give you a 10% discount , which can add up to some significant dollars.   Today’s topic: Selling Books Off Your Author Website   A lot of authors have opted out of selling print books on Amazon. They use their author websites to promote and sell books. Privately selling your books has pros and cons. So, let’s explore it.   Amazon Advantage is no longer free. It costs $99 a year to have an Amazon Advantage account. In the big picture, $99 a year doesn’t seem like a lot of money. Now consider that your royalty from Amazon Advantage is 45 percent, plus the cost of postage and handling. A book sold for $19.95 receives $8.98 in royalties. Next consider postage. A typical book sent Media Mail costs about $3.50. Here’s the math:   Retail Price: $19.95 Gross Royalty: $8.98 Postage: $3.50 ...

  Of all the characters in the Addams Family, Wednesday and Thing make the two perfect leads in a television series. Wednesday , which streams on Netflix, is one of the cutest, most entertaining, and refreshing series around. The show is helmed by the brilliant Tim Burton whose movies like Willie Wonka and Edward Scissorhands have become iconic. The character of Wednesday pulled away from the Addams Family and placed into a private school gives the show a wonderful gothic edge that is relevant to current culture. Since goth girls are popular, the show has a built-in audience. Consider, though, how Wednesday offered the ideal character to focus on in this era. Of all of the Addams Family, her supposed unemotional personality and candor make her so interesting to watch on her own. Then Burton tossed in her perfect companion, Thing, to accompany our goth girl all over school.  The show's premise revolves around the teens in the school and includes machinations going on with the...

  Today I wanted to discuss challenges every writer faces. I’m going to discuss them in no particular order or emphasis.   Lack of confidence – many writers don’t get published or even try to publish due to a lack of confidence in their talents and skills. I’ve published hundreds of articles and books, and yet I still struggle with confidence in my work. Writing requires readers, and readers can be critical. It can be difficult to put your work in the public eye and not feel sensitive about it. One thing that helps me is to be open to improvement. When someone gives me feedback – and as long as it’s done in a productive manner – I’m open-minded about it and don’t take it personally … anymore . I used to feel like an abject reject lol … age and wisdom have taught me the phrase “it’s all good.”   Uncertainty with a story idea and whether or not it will be a commercial success . Over the years, I have learned that when a story is going to be a hit, it will ...

  Great interview with Jeff Perlman, author of Adventures in Politics: https://www.leadergov.com/podcast/ Adventures in Local Politics is the story of how one community found its way through visionary leadership and citizen engagement. The book serves as a useful guide to all those who want to lead positive change in their communities and tells the story of a former journalist turned mayor who helped to advance his city’s revitalization. Delray Beach went from blighted and depressed to being named North America’s “Most Fun Town” by Rand McNally. Adventures in Local Politics tells the story of how a city known as “Dullray” became a community considered a national model for downtown revitalization and citizen engagement. It offers lessons and cautionary tales for other communities on their journeys.    

On Tik-Tok, they have this thing called “Storytime”. Something kind of interesting plays in the background video while someone starts with a question: “Am the asshole”… I know it’s crude, but the question leads to some salacious tale about all sorts of family ridiculousness, bad relationships, cheating boyfriends and girlfriends, etc. Then in the comments, people answer whether or not that person was in the wrong. I have to admit, almost every story leaves me with my jaw on the ground. The point is, it’s shocking behavior told in a way that just sucks you right in.   Storytime prompted me to think about anthologies. Storytime is great because over the course of about four to six parts, you hear what is essentially a short story. It’s perfect for quick entertainment. Then after wandering into a bookstore to find a few anthologies right upfront in the most coveted display areas, it piqued my interest. For many years, anthologies weren’t that popular. So, it begged th...

I am intrigued and excited to discuss a major trend in book promotion: BookTok (aka TikTok). I already started building my TikTok platform. I recently read how BookTok is rapidly becoming a viable book promotion platform. According to the article “Publishing Trends: Predictions for the Book Industry in 2022” by Kaelyn Barron, “BookTok appears to be here to stay, with all trends indicating that even more authors will join the platform to market their books in 2022. So far, the hashtag #BookTok has garnered over 34.7 billion views on the platform. We’ve seen the impact of BookTok firsthand with one of our own authors, Maclen Stanley, who has accumulated over 424,000 followers and 6 million likes in just a few months since his book The Law Says What? debuted in July. Many reviewers on Amazon have commented that they bought the book specifically because they enjoyed his related TikTok videos. Book reviewers have also taken to the platform to share their thoughts on ...

  I am focused on writing right now. I had a discussion with a fellow writer about writing and rewriting. She mentioned that authors like James Patterson focus on the rewrites to find the genius in the work. I’m not a Patterson reader so I can’t speak to his work. I mostly get it down in a single draft, which is different from others. I’m naturally not opposed to rewriting, and in some cases, I do revisions. However, for the most part I seem to get it down in the first draft. In another discussion, one of my friends asked how I managed to get it right the first time. I acknowledged I don’t always get it down, but I would say at least 85 percent of it. As a professional writer, I am the same with my magazine articles. I get a first draft down pretty easily.   How do I do it? (And Friend-Os, adopt your own style and what’s right for you.) When I worked in corporate, I almost felt guilty for sitting idle just to think. I am a doer and work hard. So, I don’t like...

So today’s topic is how a book supports your business. My client Jeff Bangerter , financial wizard, wrote Tenants, Toilets and Trash . He has since reprinted I believe about 7,000 copies. No, it’s not an Amazon best seller. No, it’s not a “best seller” at all in the traditional sense. So, why has he ordered 7,000 copies or more? Because Jeff does financial seminars and uses the books as a giveaways to educate others on a complicated subject. Those readers turn into clients. Jeff was less interested in book sales than he was in attracting more business. Client revenue adds up way more than a book sale. When should you consider either having a book written for you or writing one yourself that will support your business? When you have a complicated subject, a book supports your educational efforts . Bangerter’s book is a resource to explain and guide people to invest in properties using the Delaware 1032 Exchange Under the Statutory trust. If your business requires client educ...

  I hear authors routinely say, “I am writing a book.” However, I don’t see a lot of results from those declarations. A small percentage of authors actually produce a book. It seems that declaring you’re writing a book and really finishing a book don’t always go hand in hand. It’s not that people can’t write or aren’t talented, it’s really about motivation. How do you stay motivated to start and finish your book? Some of it has to do with authors who get bogged down in their own ideas of perfection. I’ve seen authors spin in circles around their first chapter. In fact, I’ve seen authors never get past their first chapters and stay stuck. These writers get caught up in every word and every little element of their writing. First, just keep writing and writing, and remember, you always have an editor who will help make the necessary adjustments. It’s easy to lose motivation if you can’t even move onto Chapter 2. So, keep momentum and just keep writing and writing. Lea...

You’ve worked with me for months on your pet book project. We’ve finished, and it’s ready to go to press. Now it’s time to consider the future of the book, and for many authors their writing and speaking careers. Some authors want to try it on their own. Perhaps they have budget considerations, which is understandable; however, when you’re factoring your publishing costs, especially for those authors who want to expand their speaking careers and their books are part of their platforms, you have to think about the PR and marketing portion.   In fact, if you’re considering working with a hybrid publisher like 3L Publishing, I strongly advise you to consider the PR and marketing with equal weight to the publishing. I can point to book after book in my catalog where the PR investment wasn’t made and the sales never took off. Authors often mistakenly believe that once the book is released, it will generate sales on its own. They hope for strong word of mouth, and yes, wor...

Do you ever look at some women entrepreneurs or executives and wonder, "How did they get to be so confident?" Sometimes it's a mindset and sometimes it's just practice. So, here are 15 Secrets every woman should know to become more confident any anything she does. 1. Confidence comes from knowing your area of expertise so thoroughly that you speak about it with complete certainty and unwavering knowledge. 2. Even when you're feeling a little wobbly, use your body language to convey the opposite -- stand up straight, hold your head high, ground yourself, and just "look the part." 3. Act as-if until you just are -- this means you "fake it till you make it." For example, when I started my business and had no clients, I still went to my desk everyday and acted "as-if" I had clients until one day I did indeed have real clients. 4. Dress the part -- our clothes can actually increase our confidence when we feel good in them. Th...

  Every spring and summer, my mom would make her famous potato salad. When I was a kid and a much pickier eater, it was my favorite dish. As I grew up, and I wanted to ask for her to make something special, her potato salad always got requested.  Now that I'm doing the nutritional challenge, I wanted to make it for the cookbook and immortalize her recipe. What makes Mom's salad so special is she adds hard-boiled eggs. Most salads only add potatoes. I love the addition of the eggs, because it tastes similar to Mom's other specialty, "eggy" sandwiches. I know you're thinking "eggy"? Well, she always called it by that moniker. So, stay tuned for Mama's "Eggy" Sandwich recipe coming soon.  Mom's home-cooked meals always seemed to be on a rotation -- some I foods I loved, others not so much. She used canned vegetables (it was the era, after all). For the longest time, I hated vegetables -- that is, until I discovered that fresh vegetable...