TIP: Is that a Tag Cloud on your horizon?

As more and more material begins to grow on your web site, you'll want an introduction for your new readers to orient them to what's important on your site. One way is to have a mission statement in the header; a search engine for topics on your site, and so forth. A Cloud Tag would be good, too.

A tag cloud describes the content of web sites, using single words listed alphabetically. In a field of about 50, a few of those words will host heightened status, with larger font size or type color. The tags are usually hyperlinks that lead to a collection of items that are associated with a tag.

Now. Don't make your Cloud Tag a mess. Avoid these storms:
• Use of multiple colors and font sizes. Use two colors, two sizes, and leave the distinction at that.
• Putting ALL tags in one cloud. Consider a 90-day cloud on the landing page, and then a gigantic cloud tag on the Archives page.
• Forgetting the importance of choosing the right word. A Cloud Tag is a visualization of the words you would say, or think. Consider the semantics. Make sure one word can do the work of 4.
• Being messy with the housekeeping of the Cloud Tag. Every month, take a few minutes to combine some words/meanings, add some new words, and do a general check for the misspellings, etc.

All book publicists produce worthless work

What is the worth of a book publicist's work? Number of books sold? Accolades and fame and gold-encrusted champagne bottles delivered to an author's door?

Ms. Obie Joe asks this after musing aloud with a client obsessed with solving the algorithm of which promotional tasks equal success. While she counseled the stressed author to think of the big picture -- efforts means something, but not guarantees -- Mr. Obie Joe slid over the new copy of Poets & Writers magazine.

In an interview with the incomparable literary agent Molly Friedrich:
Q. Did you like doing publicity?
A. In my opinion, the two jobs that are the most exhausting in this business are the jobs of the foreign scout and the publicist. The reason is that there is never an end to the job. If you're a scout, there is always another book you can cover, another house you can do well by, another report you can write. If you're a publicist, for every eighty letters you write, and eighty ideas you try, there are seventy-nine that don't work. But the only ones that the author hears about—and the editor hears about and your boss hears about—are the ones that work. It is a thankless and really difficult job. But I did it.

What a lovely ratio: 1 out of 80 ideas fly, garner a result, go anywhere.

Daunting odds, yet book publicists press on, mostly because we adore books with a passion that rivals food and sleep for necessity.

TIP: Face to Face beats Facebook every time

For those of you who've heard of WIRED cover girl Julia Allison, it is a marvel the speed and agility of her entrance into traditional and online media.

So what does this have to do with books, says Mr. Obie Joe to Ms. Obie Joe? Well, for those authors who wish to sell their books via personality and author platform remember this: for as much we love online marketing to cultivate and keep an audience, especially via blogs, Facebook and MySpace, nothing beats face to face when building a new relationship, market, or media stream.

When Allison -- with no discernible skills, talent, or products -- moved to New York in 2004, she went online. Set up a blog about her shopping, her boyfriends, her vacations. Predictably, her site hits were countable. Given that her goal was to become a cult figure, she needed not only readers, but people to talk about her and her musings. "Discover a niche, position herself at its choke point, and stay there until people start to notice."

She wanted gawker.com to be her friend. She tried every castle window: sent tips, links to her articles, left comments, e-mailed the editors. The turning point, though, was as low tech as it gets. Allison crashed the Halloween party thrown by Gawker's owner, Nick Denton.

Shazam. Gawker wrote about her, sometimes unkindly, sometimes with respect. But all publicity is good publicity.

Allison's choice for a face-to-face was brilliant. "Timothy Ferriss, whose skill at reaching bloggers helped turn his book, The 4-Hour Workweek, into a best seller, says it can be effective. "It's a matter of ensuring you have the channel with the least competition," he says. "Email is by far the most crowded channel, followed by phone. The least common is in-person."

Ironic summer reading

Did the teacher who assigned Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 smirk, just a little, when assigning this book for summer reading for Obie Joe's second son?

While discussing the advent of Montag's shift from book burning to book saving, said son, snapped up his neck and exclaimed, "Wow. It's like Bradbury is talking about how we're all about entertainment and fun and not about ideas."

Yep. Although there is the second irony that the teacher had to force a student to set down the world of warcraft game long enough to arrive at this insight.

Who shot this bookstore?

The news of Decatur-based Wordsmiths Books' dance with disaster has many shaking their heads at the possibility of another independent bookstore closing. Many of the specs are familiar to all: undercapitalization; unlucky gamble with shift in locations; downturn in the economy; unfair competition with online sources...but there is one other reason that fascinates Ms. Obie Joe.

And a big name author who did not bring in the crowds.

There are bookstores reluctant to sponsor author events -- even when the only costs are fixed -- lights, space and chairs -- and it's been one of Mr. Obie Joe's challenges to work with bookstores to conquer this fear. In the case of Wordsmiths, the costs for that killer appearance must have been way out of the norm, and must have included advertising, printing costs, transportation, non-returnable books, and most interesting, an author's reading fee.

Anyone want to take a gander as to who that author was? Looking at Wordsmiths' recent calendar of past events, some of the suspects could be...Kathie Lee Joel? Carl Hiassen? Or...Barbara Walters? Who?

Confidence game is right

Instead of reading the betting sheets, Ms. Obie Joe decided to read Publisher's Weekly round-up of the Fall offerings from publishers illustrious. Because the books listed represent some of the publisher's biggest bets, we've been interested in a few trends:

• Blond, beautiful, famous, and old: Suzanne Somers' new book, Breakthrough: Changing the Face of Medicine, is printing at 600,000 copies.
• Bald, famous and know-it-all: Dr. Phil's Real Life: Preparing for the 7 Absolutely Worst Days of Your Life at 1 million.
• Smart, rich and contrary: The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life at 1 million copies.
• Connects with fans as you should: Debbie Macomber at 600,000.

Numbers we don't understand, but comprehend: Bill O'Reilly's memoir (1 million); Ina Garten's new bookbook (800,000); and Nicholas Sparks (1.5 million).

And Annie Proulx's new book at only 150,00. For shame! Ms. Obie Joe thinks a copy should be pressed into the hands of everyone, and not just 150,000 of us besotted fools.

So! The lesson in all of this for striving authors? Get famous, or write well, but in any case, make connections with your audience.

Of course, nonfiction would be first

For those who don't know any better, there is the conceit that an author scurries to the small publisher, or self-publishing route, because of a rejection from the big publisher. Perhaps. But Mr. Obie is fascinated to see more authors check out the small publishing route for more money, quicker profit sharing, and more collaborative publicity.

The business press has made about the innovations of the business model from the new imprint, Harper Studio, part of Harper Collins. Bob Miller is the new head of Harper Studio, and formerly of Hyperion. Elements like increased online marketing, no or low author advance, no book returns, and increased profit sharing (50/50 split!!)...is this "Engineering the Risk Out of Business?"

Kinda of, sorta of, says Ms. Obie Joe. Miller just announced the first set of Harper Studio's titles; 16 are nonfiction and one is nonfiction. Let's see, with nonfiction titles you have the following advantages in book promotion:
• Author platform with strong name recognition.
• Author with other income, so more willing to delay book income.
• Locked in audience, tied to author, and/or topic.
• Wider swath of venues for presentation by author.
• Large scale drilling into several niches in online communities interested in the book's topic.

Hmm. Sometimes the little teaches the big.

Do school summer reading lists kill or create?

In the Obie Joe household, Hatchet by Gary Paulsen is king. With four teenagers, and one soon-to-be, and of course, one wanna be (she's still a toddler, though), the Hatchet is a story memorized.

And while the story features Paulsen's excellence in Young Adult literature, Hatchet remains a bit of a sore topic in the household. Why? Because it's required reading. Hatchet is one of those perennials on the summer reading lists from teachers. Just try to get your hands on a copy from the library or bookstore in the weeks before summer's end.

Which makes us think about the usefulness of summer reading lists. Mr. & Ms. Obie Joe adore any spark to encourage young readers. Yet we can't wonder as to their wisdom when so many of the lists are copycats, uninspired, rigorous for no purpose and just plain unfun. In a world where the increase in YA readers is now outpacing every other book sector, do we really need reading lists to dictate every aspect? How about one suggestion, and then let the kids roam as they like.

Just like the kid in Hatchet -- he'll find his own way.

Listening to librarians

For those authors and publishers waiting for national distribution and media, or big box orders, it is wise to cultivate the interest of libraries. Each library system can be worth an order of an average of 20 copies.

There are a few essentials in catching the interest of libraries:
• Make sure you garner a prepublication review in the Library Journal. Your review might not appear in the print edition, but an online review is still worthwhile.
• When you get media -- a review, a feature on you, or whatever -- make sure to send a copy of the clip, along with your book, and a request for a speaking engagement. Granted, the speaking engagement is a dim possibility (libraries have become even reticent than chain bookstores in setting up events), but you probably will get a book order.
• Read blogs by librarians to vibe their language and their zeitgeist. One of Ms. Obie Joe's current favs is the peeping from this former librarian. Gotta love the industry language: Copies of The "Condition have been received in most libraries; holds to copy ratios are ten to one in some libraries." Apparently how many holds are ordered display interest, but Mr. Obie Joe wagers how long the book circulates is the long-term view.
• Participate in a co-op mailer. This involves sending about 1,200 fliers to the major library systems, using the mailing list and distribution system of a small publisher. Sam's got one we've used, but make sure to take care with the design. Librarians received an onslaught of book marketing materials, and it can be tough to catch their attention.

But not impossible.

Why you plow every cent into promotion

Say your first book, sold a decent amount of copies in the first three months after publication. Decent, meaning, about 15,000 copies.

Time to prop the Adirondack chair next to the mailbox and wait for the royalty check, right?

Nope. In many regards, now is when you really plow into the bank account and pony up for time off from work for a publicity tour that includes media, venue bookings and online promotion. Here's why: selling half of a typical print run is cool, but selling OUT the print run is like diamond ice.

Why? Because you do want decent royalty checks, but more importantly because you want to build your career as an actual author. After former Arizona Republic reporter Tom Zoellner published his first book, The Heartless Stone: A Journey Through the World of Diamonds, Deceit and Desire (St. Martins Press), his publisher procured a few bookstores dates. Zoellner wanted to make sure his first was not his last, and on his own did a few more dozen bookstore dates, sleeping in his truck, across the U.S. See www.slushpile.net/index.php/2007/03/15/interview-tom-zoellner-author/ He ended up investing about $22,000 -- nearly the whole sum of his first royalty payments.

His first book was a hit. For his second book, Zoellner negotiated a much more generous advance and royalty rates. (His next book is Uranium: War, Energy and the Rock That Shaped the World).

Take it from Mr. Obie Joe who speaks from painful and wonderful personal experience: do not expect to get rich from your first book. Instead, think of the experience as an investment in your career. Put that money and time into publicity; it will reap what you sow.