Mel Hopkins

34 minutes ago, A.J. Williams said:

Should I wait it out and keep grinding or diversify?

@A.J. Williams  Keep grinding and diversify....   Your book is intellectual property and you have to treat it that way.  What you're giving amazon is the right to copy your book and you pay them for the right.  I'm not a fan of that business model.   Unlike a traditional publishing company that pays you for the right to copy... you are paying amazon for the right to copy your book and sell it - and give you 10 percent.  WHY?   When you look at it from that perspective does it seem right?

@A.J. Williams  ask those who gave you great reviews to buy at wholesale a minimum of 5 copies  to  handsell at the retail price.  They make money and they also get the word out about your book.  

Amazon or barnes and noble don't know your book so how can they give it more exposure than those who have read it and believe in it? 

Hi @A.J. Williams  Welcome!  One thing I have learned about Amazon is this : first and foremost it was a book cataloging system  in its first incarnation.  This means if your title has an ISBN  you may not have a say as to whether your book is sold through amazon.   

But Is your book digital or print?

@David Covin 

Thank you.   Troy gave you an excellent introduction!

I didn't think of asking this before attempting to answer @Bill 's question. 

But it helps to know who are the stakeholders and how the strategies will help.   

For those of us who are readers only - the strategies might not be helpful unless we construct them with readers in mind.   Thank you again for your response.    

 

@Bill  Welcome to #readingblack.com

Are you a reader,  Indie Publisher, author,-independent publisher?   Excuse me if you've answered this already. 

On 1/19/2018 at 1:46 PM, Troy said:

..at least sharecroppers got food and a place to live.

@Troy   Ouch!!! 

On 1/19/2018 at 1:29 PM, Troy said:

  I think, in context, it is a strong statement.

Also, it's the publisher's unique selling proposition - I know from that one line, their authors are from the motherland.. That's powerful marketing lol

And  how about Cal-Exit?  Rural California decided to break off from the urban part of California to declare its independence. In doing so, they've  formed New California which founders hope will eventually achieve statehood  Then  a small earthquake hit.  

Reason #777  why I rarely write for free - and definitely not on a third-party platform (well except for AALBC.com).  

Huffington Post's Editor in Chief Lydia Polgreen announced today the contributors platform is now history.  You read right.  All those Huffpost bloggers, some starting back in 2005, found out today "the HuffPost blogging platform is no more.  

In its place, Huffpost Opinion and HuffPost personal.  Writers will have to pitch ideas to get inches on the platform now.  But at least they will be paid for their work.   

Polgreen also announced they will be hiring staff writers too.    Rest of the story can be found on the Huffington Post By Lydia Polgreen    

If I wanted to hear more of the same programming, I'd watch national network news.   But I don't.   

I want to hear/read diverse thoughts.  I want others to challenge and stimulate my thoughts and beliefs . I don't want to get  stuck in an echo chamber.   

So let's hear it for yet  another reason, reason #1 we need to maintain our own platforms, share our thoughts and link to each other... 

RIP HUFF POST CONTRIBUTORS BLOGS. 

24 minutes ago, Troy said:

We Proudly Publish Authors From “Sh_thole Countries” would make a difference or should I craft something completely different?

 

@Troy aren't those the words from the publisher of The Mantle?   

If yes, it seems then those words  should remain.  It makes a strong statement.   

If those are your words, then  :eek:  .... 

Academic Marketing & Sales

Did you know there are many associations that host about 352,300*  conferences and meetings that are attended by professionals who can make purchasing decisions, such as making a wholesale purchases of your book? 

Conference exhibiting is another way to knock on a backdoor market to reach your readers.   If you’re only exhibiting your books at book conventions you’re missing out on quite a few opportunities.   Source: MARKETING YOUR BOOKS TO THE ACADEMIC COMMUNITY

17 hours ago, Pioneer1 said:

except for the fact that I basically said the same thing in another thread but Mel ignored it

@Pioneer1 I did NOT ignore your comment!  I didn't respond to it.   If you read my remarks in that thread you'll see I was on another tangent.   When I did return, my reference was in agreement with Troy's statement -because I had noticed the same in learning.  I realized that if I can teach a subject then my comprehension of the subject is solid.

By the way,  REALLY Pioneer? Hate Black Men?  Are you serious?  

On 1/14/2018 at 9:09 PM, Delano said:

How is it you can explain something you don't know? 

@Delano that was a typo... I will go correct it now...

13 hours ago, Pioneer1 said:

This proves to me that you AGREED with my assesment but refrained from admiting such.

@Pioneer1  I don't remember joining in on that discussion between you and Cynique..  I remember your discussion with @Cynique being more nuanced.  

16 hours ago, Delano said:

How is it you can explain something you don't know?

@Delano You can't.   Without  comprehending a subject you can't explain it.  You can only give facts and details. 

"If you can't  explain it, you don't know it.   If you  can't teach it, you need to go back and learn it..."

 @Farai Caldwell and all members , Welcome!  

I've already noticed a change in my behavior when it comes to #ReadingBlack  I enjoy reading business, science , metaphysics etc  - and prior to this club I would wait for recommendations through feature articles that I read... Now I'm actually searching for the genre and determining if it is written by  African-Americans and/or for African-Americans.

So if any of our members have published books in the aforementioned genres  - please send me (melhopkins (at) theleadstory (dot) net ) an image of the book cover, a summary or book blurb/summary and preferably a  buy link I will add it to my website's bookstore and  my blog posts, if it's native to the subject.   Thank You!

3. Think Like an Editorial Director - and curate and create News your audience can use. 
 

Even if you have one name on your mailing list treat that one person like she represents 1,000 subscribers because she does if we can depend on exponential growth.   Sometimes good content could be related to your book's subject matter - especially if you're an expert.   Other times you may have to think beyond your book and really know what your customers need. 

For example,  @CDBurns  runs a website with the tagline "in-depth sneaker info.   http://arch-usa.com/  I haven't sign up for his mailing list but I do follow him and his conversation on disqus.   Chris Burns designs,and runs his shoe business but he also has his own publishing arm to the business too.   Burns is ahead of the curve.  Major Brands are now just realizing that they need a media department. 

I thought about him when writing this post because just yesterday,  he told me about Brooks running shoes and their partnership with Black Girls Run.   

I'm not a sneaker head but his information appeals to me.  This means when I think of sneakers, I remember him.   

You connecting with your audience through your expertise means they will remember you too.

 

Are you collecting sales, likes or customers? 

One thing that soured me on selling books through  amazondotcom  and even luludotcom was both companies had information on those who purchased my books that I didn't have.   Not knowing my customers put me at a disadvantage. It meant that when I had a new book they might like I had to wait until Amazon or lulu got around to telling them.  What if I just wanted to keep in touch?  I'm a firm believer in KIT Marketing (Keep in Touch Marketing)  I also couldn't reach out to them to find out what they liked about my book...( knowing what customers like helps you to create more of it.)  \

All this to say; 

2. if you haven't already started, It's time to build your own mailing list. 

On 1/8/2018 at 9:16 PM, Cynique said:

Should Trump still be around to run again,  a "mammy" figure" candidate defeating a  "slave master" incumbent would certainly be the stuff of poetic justice. Would an Oprah victory be the final nail in the coffin of the United States where a substantial portion of the population is still afflicted with racism and sexism?

@Cynique   Your post communicates perfectly why I've been rolling my eyes since social media has all but put Oprah on the 2020 Presidential ballot. 

 I''m embarrassed by how we, United States citizens, act as if we're extras in a television show.     I'm still waiting for the fall of Rome because so far, I see the entire civilization continuously play out in my newspaper, social media and sometimes television (if I don't have it tuned to some fantasy show).

I didn't watch the golden globe award show because I don't watch award shows...but folks being moved by an Oprah speech means we are truly controlled by mythology and storytelling.  We fall for the facade of shiny things and really don't look for substance anymore.  

As much as I write about the benefits of an Obama Administration, I've never fell victim to his narrative.

Quiet as kept, I never listened to his speeches either. I read them. This after I learned from a Chicago reporter, who covered him in early years, how Mr. Obama practiced his cadence until he perfected it to stir the audience.  Anyway,  I see the same in Oprah.  She has goals and she achieves them.  I admire that in her, period. 

 But like the rest of the players, she has the hero's journey (monomyth) down to a science and people respond emotionally.   Like you've written,  she's the photo negative of  45*.   Oprah was most likely tapped because "they" suspect  45* isn't the beacon for consumer spending.   Nothing tanks America's economy faster than us holding onto our purse strings. 

 If folks can't see how easily we're played then we need to revisit all 11 seasons of the  X-Files 

14 hours ago, Pioneer1 said:

Incase people forgot, Oprah was among the first people in public to throw their support behind Barack Obama and she promoted him.

@Pioneer1 I didn't forget.  I even wrote about it on myspace  I called her move "hiding behind the penis"... OMG (It's 2018 and I'm agreeing with Pioneer LOL) You're correct  Oprah was absolutely instrumental in his rise in the black community and yes the white community too...


"Then he went on tour with Oprah Winfrey, whom he had gotten to know when she interviewed him after his speech at the Democratic National Convention in 2004. "  New York Times December 29, 2007   "A Biracial Candidate Walks His Own Fine Line"

17 hours ago, Troy said:

I'll create the widget.  Are you thinking about a seal or something similar?

Thank you! A public profile badge.    In my iPhone favorites I have the little open book w/ aalbc.com logo  whenever I see that logo I think of this website.

I'd like that like a "proud member" of aalbc.com and of course  it can have a link embedded within that opens a new page displaying my profile over here would be ideal - sort of like a linkedin public profile badge builder  for the website 

.   

I have a feeling many celebrate Kwanzaa but since it's not commercialized we don't hear a lot.  For that reason alone I celebrate it by honoring it with my thoughts and words.  I did a separate blog post for each day of Kwanzaa.  It  put me in a positive community-focused frame of mind to start off the year.    I did the original post on my melhopkins.com website but I also copied and paste everything to theleadstory.org.   

Imani: Golden Rule

Kuumba : The Chosen Ones

Nia: Reasons

Ujamaa: Until the Lion Learns

Ujima: Yes We Can

Kujichagulia Goal Minds build Gold Mines

Umoja No Man's Land

Ok I get 1400 visitors per month on my theleadstory.org  and 10,000 visits per month

Two searches that are mentioned on semrush - is from the writers events from aalbc and  prnewswire... a lot of my blacklinks (see what I did there lol) are from aalbc.com - there's more information relating to aalbc.com  and personally I do my best to press the aalbc newsletters each month .  I had to move the writers event widget to a separate page because I changed my theme...it's now in MOB News   


Here's what's weird, I don't even pay a lot of attention to that site but I will from now on.  I'm not sure why I get that amount of traffic.  One time, it was do to hacking attempts but the visits and visitors seems to be steady and growing...  

All this to say.  @Troy can I have a widget that says my web site:

The LeadStory is a proud member of aalbc.com  please... :

Also I know that 1400 visitors is a not a lot but I'll take it and grow it...

Happy New Year!!! 

When I worked for Penguin USA and G.P. Putnam's Sons - I worked in Academic Marketing & Sales and Special Sales, respectively.   Big 5 Trade book publishing houses don't just have A Marketing department, they have several marketing and sales department for children's books, Young Authors, Back List  etc... Here's where I'l will post some ideas on ways to distribute your titles beyond bookstores and online retailers such as Amazon.  If you think of some please include them too..  Thanks to @Sharon Wilson for reaching out and remind me! 

For starters: 

1. How about writing a grant for your favorite charity that could benefit from your book?  This way your charity can purchase your book wholesale and distribute it to the stakeholders. Not only is your book bought, it's  also distributed it too!