A Self Publisher''''s Journal Published by Hawse Pipe Ministries doc

Abandoned Hearts Study GuideUnexpected KissLove for LenoreCoveted Bride TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter One: Preparing Your Manuscript Chapter Two: Publishing Chapter Three: Blogging Chapter F

A Self Publisher's Journal

Published by Hawse Pipe MinistriesCopyright © 2012 by Regina TittelCover Design by Regina Tittel

Smashwords Edition

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copy Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Also by Regina Tittel

Abandoned Hearts

Abandoned Hearts Study Guide

Unexpected KissLove for LenoreCoveted Bride

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter One: Preparing Your Manuscript

Chapter Two: Publishing Chapter Three: Blogging Chapter Four: Marketing Chapter Five: Information Sheets Chapter Six: Preparing For Your Audience

Chapter Seven: Left-Over Helpful Hints

Welcome

Following, I'll share with you what I've been sharing on

my blog, my experience at self-publishing You'll soon notice, I'm quick to the point Although my advice moves quickly, if you take your time and apply what I'm

teaching, you'll reap big rewards But before we begin, take a look at your manuscript and see how it compares

to other books of that genre Determine what makes it stand out from all the rest

CHAPTER ONE Preparing Your Manuscript

How Do I Know If My Book Is Ready For Print

First and foremost, what are your fellow critique

partners saying? If you don't have any, odds are you

aren't ready Join a critique group like, American

Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) Listen well to what people say about your work Does it fit with today's

standards and rules? With ACFW, they even have an

archives section where you can learn for free with your membership ($50 for the first year, $40 after that.)

When you feel your book is ready, be patient, it's not yet Your next step is to enter it in a few contests Study what they judge on and make sure your ms (manuscript) meets their expected standards

Once the contests results are returned, listen to what they've said Where do you rank and why? Then ask

yourself if your ms is ready

Here are the results of my efforts

When I thought my ms was close to being ready, I

googled writing contests to see what was available I

chose carefully The more well known the contests, such

as ACFW's Genesis, I knew the less likely I'd be to final Simply because I was a new author and the book I was entering was my very first ms.

I chose the four contests I entered, based on who the final judge was Is the person an agent I would be

interested in having represent me or an editor from a publishing house I'm pursuing? The first contest

coordinator was kind enough to inform me I had been the third finalist until a discrepancy in the judging of another contestant called for a re-judging, which booted me to fourth place Not bad for a first try

My second produced little results but my third and fourth were very productive With my third, not only did I final, but my full ms made it to an editor's desk at Bethany

House, a publishing house you can't get in without an

agent They did turn me down, but hey, my first ms had done fairly well, so my optimism was still running high

My fourth and final contest attempt for Abandoned

Hearts, landed me exactly where I intended, the desk of Melissa Endlich at Love Inspired, Steeple Hill Although I hadn't finaled, my score was high enough to earn me

Honorable Mention where they forwarded my submission

to the final judging editor

Ms Endlich told me that although my story was what

their readers would like, my writing needed to be

strengthened Fair enough Even my critique partners had mentioned my writing had improved with each new

book I wrote (note: I did revise Abandoned Hearts and strengthen the writing before publication.)

I hope my experience has given you a better idea of what

to expect out of contests and their benefits And of

course, a clearer understanding of how to judge if your book is ready for publication Not to leave you wondering how they judge, I'll include what the judges look at

2 Is the transaction between scenes smooth?

3 Does the action flow smooth and naturally?

Point of View

1 Is the point of view clearly defined?

2 Are the transitions clear and effective between different point of views?

Setting

1 Is there a clear sense of setting and time?

2 Are the world-building elements presented in a believable way?

3 Are there internal and external conflicts that

move the plot forward?

3 Does the dialog fit the time period?

The judges will also score on style and mechanics Which means, does your ms stand out from the crowd and how

is your grammar and punctuation?

Show vs Tell

I'm sure most of you are familiar with the phrase, show v/s tell I believe that's true in more than just writing I learn more easily if I can be shown by example Tell me what you want me to do then show me Following is some helpful advice I received from Jennette Green, author of Her Reluctant Bodyguard (awesome book, by the way I highly recommend it.)

She's recommending changes for an earlier version of Abandoned Hearts:

"First of all, some of the wording and phrasing of the sentences are stiff, and words are used that people

wouldn’t normally use in everyday conversations

Sometimes, as a result, it feels as though I’m wading through the words, and it also feels like things are being told to me, as a reader I’d rather have them shown the clichéd “show vs tell.”

1 What is the purpose for each scene?

What does the character want? How will she/he get or fail to gain her goal? How will she try harder to gain it?

What is the goal/problem at the end of the scene, which leads into the next scene(s)?

2 It is not necessary to detail every little thing that the characters do, as it slows down the narrative Such as

“She turned on the faucet and filled the glass…”

3 As mentioned above, some of the sentence phrasing feels stiff and unnatural More relaxed word choices

would flow better A few examples

“…floor to unrelenting” could change “unrelenting” to

“hard”

“He hadn’t changed his clothes…” (then goes on to

describe how they’re the same clothes he’d changed into earlier) Instead, could say, “He wore the same clothes that…”

“Ann peered down the hall to reassure herself no one was there…” Perhaps could change to: “Ann peered down the hall to make sure no one was there…”

Hopefully this will help those of you who battle the

whole show v/s tell issue and also the ill-fated habit of over detailing, which causes your reader to skim And as writers, we don't want that!

Weasel Words

What are weasel words? They're the little bugs that hook onto your manuscript and turn away the eyes of editors and agents faster than you can ask 'why?'

Here are a few examples in use:

She wondered who left the gate unlatched and decided

to see if the culprit was still inside

Why is using 'she wondered' wrong? If I'm in her head (her point of view, also known as pov), I won't be thinking to myself in third person ex "I'm wondering who left that open?" No I'd instead say to myself, "Who left that open?"

So by using, 'she wondered' you're taking the reader out

of your character's deep pov (Not a good thing.)

Why is using 'decided to' wrong? Same reason I don't say

to myself, "I'm going to decide to find out." No Instead I say, "I'm going to find out."

Here's a rewritten sentence of the original example:

Who left the gate unlatched? She squeezed through the small opening between the gate and fence, careful of its squeaky hinges, intent on finding out

Notice I didn't simply say she was going to find out I took the opportunity to describe what the character could see and hear By eliminating weasel words it opens up more opportunity for descriptive writing A small space

allowed her to squeeze through Rusty hinges threatened

to give her away Did you get a different visual this time?

Was Was is one of those words we think we need to use all the time but really shouldn't It can make for passive writing My advice to you is to use your 'find' button and highlight all of the underlined weasel words I mentioned Get rid of the two phrases that include wondered and decided And severely downsize your use of was Once you see it highlighted and begin working with how you

can tweak the sentence to omit it, your new style of

writing will come easier and easier Oft times, the

sentence can be changed into a question

I'd also recommend searching in google for a list of

weasel words Then 'find' them in your ms and improve your writing even further

Developing Your Characters

When you start a story, a good thing to begin with is a list of character attributes This list can help you develop other aspects of their personalities as you write your

story Also, it's a good list to keep handy as you read

other novels so you can jot down other descriptions to further broaden your own talent

Following is a list to begin with:

HEAD: Shaped as a heart, square jaw, long, or round

HAIR: Long, receding, brittle, wiry, silky, tight bun,

military cut

EYES: almond shaped, squinty, green, stormy

NOSE: hooked, sloped, broad

LIPS: wide, full, thin, crooked grin

NECK: long, short

SHOULDERS: wide, narrow, stooped, broad

CHEST: barreled, developed

WAIST: taunt stomach, narrow, ample

HANDS: slender, delicate, rough, manicured, white band

in replace of a ring

HIPS: ample, narrow

LEGS: stocky, spindly

FEET: dainty, pigeon-toed

JEWELRY:

CLOTHING:

CHARACTERISTICS: constant sniffing, twirl hair, limp

Name a personal feature that bothers them

What feature are they the most proud of?

Do long sleeves cover someone's tattoos?

Why do they wear their hair a certain way?

What Inspires Me

As a writer, anything and everything can be inspiring From lending an ear to a distressed friend, to hearing a heart-warming tale about a dog signally help for his

master Though I don't copy word for word, or action for action from any of the things that inspire me, I do allow them to take form in my mind and turn into another

For a suspenseful element in the upcoming sequel,

Coveted Bride, I walked past a window in our home and noticed the hammock at the edge of the yard bordering the forest A thought passed my mind, what if someone had been in it? Oooh, that would've been scary So that's what I had happen to Lindsey Of course, when she steps back to double check, no one's there, just an empty

hammock swinging in the still, summer heat

Recently, I had an unsettling encounter with a milk snake in my home! That episode is going in Cherished

Stranger!

But what about other events - when someone shares

something with you and it inspires you, but you can't

exactly write about it? I chew on it, so to speak A death

of a loved one, or the crumbling of a marriage, or even a sickness, can be blended to become its own story

Allow yourself to be inspired Take some neighborhood talk, sprinkle in a tale from your youth, and add a bit of news, that's what I did with Abandoned Hearts

Information for Writers

I found a great site for names http://

www.babynology.com It's completely free and you can even go by country Plus, it will give you the meaning of

the name which really helps round out your character.Try it, you won't be disappointed

Also, it is worth getting your books into print I use

Create Space but am also looking into Lightning Source From there, I made a free website through

www.etsy.com Check mine out at

www.reginatittel.etsy.com to see what they look like They're not fancy, but they're already designed to sell from using paypal They have easy to follow instructions and you can even link it up with your business facebook account

Pilcrow-the life-saving tool for your e-version

manuscript

When preparing your manuscript for publication, begin

by locating the pilcrow on your tool bar It looks like a backwards P This allows you to see the extra spacing you didn't mean to add by way of extra dots By removing

these extra spaces, your document will upload more

successfully into the formats offered by e-publishers

Understanding How to Use an Interior Template for

Your Book

I told you I'd tell more about how to prepare your book for print Well, here it is I'm going to take you through the steps I used for Create Space I first entered the title and number of pages Then, I selected a formatted

interior template Open it and you'll see the need for a few pages before the title page for your partial segment that you may want to add like in Love Inspired novels (They show a page from the book that's like a hook.)

To get this, click on the page and in your tool bar find

INSERT and insert a page break

That's how you add more pages to an area Now on

chapter three, their template doesn't delete the header like it should To amend this, at the end of your chapter two, go to your tool bar and and under 'page layout' you'll find 'Breaks,' choose 'section break.'

Now because I forget things quickly if I'm not writing

them down as I'm doing them, you may have to play with section break and page break to figure out which one is really needed for your situation But I do know they

really helped me to control the headers and even page numbers Because at the end of your chapters, you may need different pages like I did One for an order form, another to advertise another author's books, etc So

again, I found I had to figure out how to remove the

header I think I settled for allowing the page numbers

on some of these sheets, I couldn't work around it But in looking at the book, Love Letters, I realized they had the same thing going on, so mine must've not been too

wrong

I'm sure there was more information to share with you, but at the moment, that's all I can think of If you have any questions, please feel free to ask in the comments section.

Shifting Chapter Headings

If you get the proof of your book back and notice the

chapter headings start at different levels on your pages, then check the font of your peplum Sound weird? It is

Upon late night searching of my ms, I noticed the font of that backward 'p' changed from TIMES NEW ROMAN-22, to MYRIAD PRO-14 Once I manually changed all of them to match, wa-lah!, everything worked like a charm

This is what I did I highlighted on the peplum at the

beginning of the chapter and changed the font style and size Then I deleted the extra peplum that wouldn't

highlight (The one right before the chapter heading.) Then I entered another peplum and my pages all

matched

Also, sometimes I had to click on a peplum and go to my toolbar to 'remove line after spacing.'

How I Made My Own Book cover

What do you think? I'm excited with how this turned out

If you peer close enough to this small picture, you can see a vehicle leaving and a man standing to the side,

looking defeated

My husband posed for this picture and we worked with it

on the old version of Windows ('93, I think)

Download your picture into HP Photo and Imaging Click

on 'Annotate.' A bar will drop down, click 'text.' A box will appear Type in your text and click 'okay.'

Now, if you right click on that box, you can change font and add a background color If you want more text in the

same box but with a different font Simply create a

second text box on top of the first but don't choose a

background color, stick with 'transparent.' This will allow the first text to be seen, as well as the second

The way I got the yellow to appear around the brown was with more text boxes I just deleted the use of words but chose a color

How To Make a Book Cover Using Photoshop Adobe

To capture the effects on my cover, I opened the picture

in Photoshop adobe Under special effects in the panel

on the right, I clicked on photo effects then text panel A filmy box appeared on my photo from which I resized to

create the long, narrow borders above and below my

title box I also used the same method for the title box But for the narrow bars, I picked up the color in the

hero's work uniform and by selecting paint bucket,

changed the color to what you see

By clicking on text, I was able to select the font I wanted

to use For the title, I used Lucinda Calligraphy, and I believe I used Cambria for the series My name is in

Kunstler Script

On the back panel, the boxed information you see is

made from one smaller text box overlapping the other With something like this, you sometimes have to merge layers before your text will show up I recommend saving each step in its own file That way, if there's ever a

problem and you have to go back in and make changes, you won't have to start from scratch (By the way, 'merge layers' is at the top in your tool bar under, layers.)

If you're using Create Space, I recommend using their

templates You'll be directed how to do this as you add a new book It's easy to use, once you fill in how many

pages your book is and what size you want it to be, the program will select the proper size template you need It will look like a white book cover with an inset of dotted lines You don't want your text outside of these dotted lines as that's where they cut Once you download it,

open it in Photoshop and you're well on your way

Now that you've learned how to prepare your manuscript, learn how to prepare your platform

CHAPTER TWO Publishing

Do You Have to Have a Publisher to be Successful?

Some of you may be asking yourself the same thing It is recommended that you have a publisher if you want to crack open the doors to libraries, as your book can't

obtain a library number without one (Get Library of

Congress Number: http://pcn.loc.gov/ )

Also, in order to be reviewed by some select literary

reviewers, you have to have more to show than your

name as the publisher

So how hard is it to become a publisher? Not hard at all First, you may want to contact your local county

courthouse to see if you need a license to operate a

company from your home Our county charges $25 a

year Secondly, register your company's name with your state It's about that easy

Did I form my own publishing company? No First of all, I

do have a name chosen Eventually, I may create my own company But two factors kept me from doing so now First, I'm a tightwad I want to prove the easiest way to

self-publish that I can In order to start my company, I would need to buy rights to the photo I've chosen to

represent it That would cost $50 Not much, you say? Well, it all adds up when I also want to order enough

books to sell and distribute locally Secondly, if I spread myself any more thin, one of two things will happen I'll never have time to finish the Ozark Durham Series,

or my children won't be schooled properly (I

homeschool.) I say I'd spread myself thin because I don't desire to do anything half-way If I start my own

company, I'll probably want to build on it, add other

authors, yada, yada, yada

So you decide what's best for you Victorine Lieske

helped me decide I'm pretty sure she doesn't have a

publisher name with her book -and if she can sell that many without it, we can too

Detours to the Publishing World

As most writers have experienced, the road to

publication is often closed to no through traffic But

there are detours to that sought-after destination

Although self-publishing has often been regarded as the last resort and least respected, that opinion is quickly changing Even many well-known, traditionally pubbed authors are turning to self-publishing Why? Their reasons range from controlling their rights to financial freedom

Author, Grace Kone, turned to self-publishing to revive out of print books She still uses traditional and e-

publishing, but for reasons further explained on her blog,

http://www.masaicmoments.blogspot.com/, she uses this steadily increasing, new opportunity to her

Other self-pubbed authors to learn about are, Michael Wallace, H.P Mallory, Joe Konrath, and Dean Wesley Smith

With stories such as these, it's enough to make anyone think twice about a traditional publisher I know it did for me, hence my self-published knowledge that I'm

about to share with you

The Effort of Self Pubbing

I think there's a lot of work involved either way you go, whether one chooses to self-pub or sign with a publisher But, I am learning that self-pubbing isn't as easy as 1,2,3

Maybe 1,2,4 Because as soon as I accomplish a step, it seems I look back and realize I'm not done There are still pilcrows to check, automatic changes to undo, the list could go on.

However, there are enough free sites available, I don't know why one would need to buy a book on how to do it Take Smashwords for example They offer a free guide that walks you through their formatting guide, step by step After that, you have a polished manuscript that you can easily change to meet other publisher standards And Kindle recommends MobiPocket, another free download Still, there's CreateSpace that offers a free service to put your book in print They have templates available for those of us who don't have an idea of what we're

supposed to do

CHAPTER THREE

Blogging

Getting Your Blog Noticed

Now I'm no great blogger, anyone paying attention to the dates of my posts will agree to that However, I have

learned a few things since starting Such as the use of stats In stats, it tells how many viewers you've had for each post Take a look at which posts drew the most

attention, which posts drew the second most attention

What was the main subject matter of each? If you want more attention on your blog, perhaps those are the

subjects you should concentrate on

Following is a list of helpful advice I learned online

1) Tag your post, keywords improve search engine

5) At the end of the link, add a "related posts thumbnail" plug in

6) Make sure you choose to have Google automatically pinged when creating your free blog site

The Benefit of Becoming a Blog Follower

Why should you sign up to follow a blog? If you're aspiring

to be known, it gets your name out Whether you want to

be known as an author, a dancer, or a bear tamer,

leaving a trail of interest is the way to do it And it's

been said you should start early, before your book is in print

Consider Victorine Lieske She started out as simply a

mom who wrote a book, then became a self-pubbed NY Times Best Seller How'd she do it, by blogging not only

on her sites but others She joined forums and

commented, commented, commented All the while,

leaving an imprint of how she wanted to be known

Whenever I visit a blog now, I try to never leave without commenting on something I want to leave a trail back to

my book, my blog, whatever it is I want to be noticed about

But don't waste your time where it won't count I write inspirational fiction I'm not going to go to a sci-fy blog to leave a trail It wouldn't be productive - obviously

CHAPTER FOUR Marketing

Marketing, Step One

Let me share my milestones as I turn them over on my walk through self-pubbing

One of the first things a writer should do after finishing a manuscript is write a press release If you research

romantic novel press releases, you'll see some examples online

You prepare this to prepare for your next step, which is

contacting local newspapers and such But I won't get

into that, yet First, write a press release Too much

information all at once will only stress you

A Sample of my Press Release

**FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE**

ABANDONED HEARTS/Romantic Fiction with a Purpose

Patton, Missouri - July 12, 2011

Abstinence gets over-looked by supporters of 'use

protection' Yet, fifteen-million people contract STD's every single year Author of Abandoned Hearts, Regina Tittel, shows her readers how to step back from tempting situations, before they're allowed to go too far, through

an exciting romance novel

Regina says, "I wanted to create a situation of sexual

temptation that anyone could relate to However, I didn't want to stop there, I wanted to use that opportunity to show how to step away from those heated moments

when your body is pleading to stay but your mind is

telling you it's wrong

Abandoned Hearts fits into the category of 'edgy

inspirational,' a genre that is on the rise in popularity Following is an excerpt from the back cover:

Stranded by flood waters in the heart of the Ozarks, Ann McHaven is forced to stay with a rugged farmer, Jacob Durham Her annoyance with him soon turns to

attraction The magnetic pull between them puts her faith to the test as temptations tease her thoughts

Independent and stubborn, Jacob’s eyes and heart are opened to all he has to lose when a fearless mountain lion turns him into the hunted Will his life be spared long enough to restore his trust in God, and admit his love for Ann?

Abandoned Hearts is the first of The Ozark Durham

Series Regina's second book, Unexpected Kiss, is due for release in the fall of 2011, and she is currently working

on the third of the series, Coveted Bride Her books are available through Amazon, Pubit, Smashwords, and

CreateSpace Here is what her readers have to say:

CaSondra Poulsen on June 28, 2011 :

Regina has a smooth way of writing that quickly draws you into the story I had quit reading

inspirational/christian fiction due to the predictable

nature that comes with them Abandoned Hearts has

given me a renewed hope in the genre I look forward to the next book in the series

review is from Krista: Sweet and Sassy!!!, June 8, 2011

I loved this book!!! It has just the right mix of sweet and sassy! The cougar scenario adds an added dimension of action and suspense not found in most romance novels! Well written and emotion driven! I thoroughly enjoyed it all the way through! Can't wait to see what's coming next

Marketing, Step Two

Okay, so you've written your press release Now before you get gung-ho about contacting newspapers and the like, stop by your local libraries and bookstores Get a

feel for how supportive they would be to hosting a book signing for you I recommend starting in your hometown You're most likely to feel the most secure there

Talk to them and gather contact information Go home and make a list of possible book signing establishments Make a second list of contacts for the newspapers you want to carry your press release, also the t.v and radio stations Still, don't act on this Just make your lists

This should keep you busy Tune back in in a couple days for the third step Believe me, this is the best way to do this, small amounts of information, time to complete the given task, then more information At least, that's what works for me No ulcers here!

P.S Media requests at least two weeks advance notice of your book signings

Marketing, Step Three

You should also make a catalog information sheet This is just a piece of paper that lists the title, author,

suggested retail, isbn, publisher, binding, pages, weight, shipping info, terms (Let's take a breath.) about the author, brief descrip of book, and discount schedule Whew, like I said, it's just a piece of paper!

I'll try to put one together this week and post so you can

see mine Something else I did, I used excel and made an order form to include in the back of my book That way,

if someone read my book and is interested in ordering the rest of the series but doesn't have access to the

internet, they can use the form Here's a copy of mine:

Have The Ozark Durham Series sent to your home!

Name (Please Print)

Item

Qty

Pric

e Ea

Total

Abandoned

Hearts (avail

now)

$ 11.9

5

Unexpected

Kiss (Fall 2011)

$ 11.9

5

Coveted Bride

(Spring 2012)

$ 11.9

Address

City State Zip

Signature (if under 18, a parent or guardian must sign)

□ Please contact me to discuss a discounted purchase for use in a youth group, book club, or other related service where five or more books are needed

Make Check Payable to:

Regina Tittel(insert address here)

Notice the last line before the 'make check payable' part?

I gave an idea of how my book can be used Don't miss the opportunity to publicize different avenues for your book Even if it's fiction, what points do you address that could be helpful to others As you probably know,

Abandoned Hearts deals with abstinence before marriage yet is still a fictional novel

Hope this helps But that's not the actual third step I wanted to mention, if you're wanting to list your book in some review magazines, they prefer four months prior to the release date Are you prepared to wait that long? I may do that for my third book, but I've already

publicized the second of my series due this Fall, that

doesn't leave me enough time for the review magazines, though it hasn't stopped me from contacting online