Scribe Book School

Book publishing is currently at the beginning of the biggest shift since the rise of Amazon and self-publishing, and this episode explains both its present and future. The goal is to help you choose the best publishing path for you and tell you exactly how to launch your book once you choose your publishing path. In Part 1 of this episode, you'll learn what the current publishing landscape looks like right now. In Part 2, you'll learn the new things we see some Authors doing by presenting case studies with exact numbers. In Part 3, you'll learn how to pick the book publishing option that’s best for you. The truth is that there is no “right” publishing option; that all of them are right in different circumstances, and the “right” option depends on what you want to accomplish. Then, in Part 4, you'll learn exactly how to think about marketing your book, and the launch strategies that we see working for Authors right now (both with and without platforms). To access the full transcript of this episode, click here. To sign up for Scribe Book School's free courses, click here.

Want to write your book faster? Here are 8 simple tips to help you move through the writing process, beat writers’ block, and avoid many other common problems that  stand in a writer’s way. Free Template: Outline Your Non-Fiction Book If you need more help writing your book, check out our free courses at Scribe Book School.

If you’re a KDP Author and you’re wondering whether you should put your book in Amazon KDP Select, you’re not alone. It’s a complicated decision, and you could be leaving money on the table either way. Amazon KDP Select gives you some special Kindle promotional tools, and enrolling your book is free. But, of course, there’s a catch:  You have to enroll for a full 90-day period, during which Amazon has the exclusive right to sell your ebook.   In other words, you can’t sell your own ebook on iBooks, Kobo, Nook, or anywhere besides Kindle for the next 90 days.   So, is it worth it?  In this episode, we'll walk you through all the pros and cons of KDP Select for a self-published author of a non-fiction book. To access all of our free courses on writing, publishing and marketing your book, visit scribebookschool.com

Before you learn about turning your blog into a book, I want to make one thing perfectly clear: You don’t need a blog to write a successful book. At Scribe, we’ve helped thousands of authors write and publish books, and I’ve seen plenty of those books make a lot of money without a blog. So if you don’t have a blog, don’t build one just to write a book. That said, our co-founder Tucker Max did turn his blog into a series of New York Times bestsellers, so we are happy to share his advice on how to do it. So, if you happen to have a blog already, this episode will give you a step-by-step guide on how to turn it into a book. We'll also give you several examples of other people who turned their blogs into books.

The best way to write is the way you talk—at least for most writing. It’s conversational, and it’s easy to read. That’s exactly what you want in a book. The way we speak isn’t always grammatically correct, but that’s okay. Grammar rules are arbitrary and completely made-up. That said, we put together this shortlist of the most common grammatical errors, so you can fix them before sending your manuscript to your editor. To see all of our examples, check out the full article:  10 of the Most Common Grammar Mistakes to Avoid (& How to Fix Them)

Linkedin is a great marketing opportunity for authors. Because LinkedIn is a social media platform uniquely designed for professionals, it’s especially powerful for boosting your credibility, highlighting your relevant skills, reaching your target audience, and generating leads. In this episode, I’ll explain how you can optimize your LinkedIn profile to make the most of your status as an author. To learn more, check out our article: https://scribemedia.com/optimize-linkedin-profile/

How you tell a story will make or break your book.  A good story allows you to grab and hold the reader’s attention, teach them your ideas in an entertaining way, and relate those ideas back to their own lives.  So if you want readers to love your book and recommend it to other readers, listen to this episode and check out the accompanying blog post: https://scribemedia.com/narrative-writing And be sure to check out our free writing course at http://scribebookschool.com

Vanity presses thrive on ripping off self-publishing authors.  The good news is that you can avoid publishing scams with some basic knowledge about vanity publishing.   This episode will explain what a vanity press is, what the risks are, and how to spot and avoid publishing scams. We’ll also talk about why people fall for those scams, which publishers to avoid, and how you should publish your book instead. To learn more, check out this article: https://scribemedia.com/vanity-press

Many Authors want to get their book into hundreds (or even thousands) of bookstores across the country. It’s one of the most common dreams I hear from first-time Authors. But there have been many changes in the publishing industry since ebooks made self-publishing accessible to everyone. Today, being in bookstores doesn’t guarantee book sales—and it’s not the best way to make money with your book. Even if you can get your book onto thousands of shelves across the country (and most Authors can’t), you’re taking a huge financial risk—the kind that can bankrupt a self-published Author. And there’s absolutely zero reason to expose yourself to that kind of risk. You can publish a tremendously successful book and use it to make a lot of money without being on any bookstore shelves. It has already been done, thousands of times, by countless other Authors similar to you. Now, if you want to know the joy of walking into a bookstore and seeing your book sitting on the shelf, you can still make that happen. You just have to go about it the right way. This episode will tell you everything you need to know about getting your book into brick-and-mortar bookstores—while avoiding the risks that can come with it. We'll walk you through: Why bookstores are so risky, especially for self-published Authors What being in bookstores requires and what it won’t do for you How you can get bookstores to sell your book online A low-risk approach if you really want to see your book on a bookstore shelf How to approach bookstores to make that happen

Most writing exercises make your writing worse. That said, there are a few practices you can follow that will help you write a great book. They’ve worked for hundreds of Scribe Authors, and they’ll work for you.   To read the full post, click here.

This is the exact process we use with our authors at Scribe to book them on podcasts.  If you follow this process exactly, you can start booking yourself on podcasts today.   To read our accompanying blog post, visit scribemedia.com/get-interviewed-podcasts

The #1 question we get, both from current and prospective authors, is this: “How should I approach book marketing once it’s published?” In this episode, we will cover the basics of how we teach our authors to market their business books. When you’re marketing a business book, the most important thing you can do is frame your thinking around three core tenets: 1. Your book is a marketing tool—not the thing you market 2. Book marketing is a long term process—not a single event 3. No one cares about your book—they only care what your book gets them Click here to read Scribe's Ultimate Guide to Book Marketing.

As a self-published Author, you can use your book to get fantastic media coverage—including television and YouTube. If you wrote the kind of book that can connect to your ideal audience through TV, this episode will give you tips for landing that coverage. Click here to read our blog post with 12 tips for landing TV coverage.  Click here to sign up for our free book launch course.

Non-fiction authors who can get book deal with a traditional publisher will need to write a “book proposal."  In this episode, you'll learn the purpose a book proposal serves, and how to structure yours. ​scribebookschool.com 0:00 - Intro  2:34 - Why do publishers want book proposals?  6:02 - How to structure book proposals  14:38 - Optional sections  RESOURCES MENTIONED    'Bluefishing' Book Proposal by Steve Sims (6-figure advance) 'Mate' Book Proposal by Tucker Max/Geoffrey Miller (7-figure advance) Scribe Book Proposal Template

You may have an important message, but it can’t make an impact if nobody hears it.  In this lesson, #1 New York Times bestselling author, Tucker Max, breaks down how to use your book to get greater coverage in the media.  Need help getting coverage for your book? Check out: scribemedia.com/service/media-coverage

Many authors forget the basic things they should be doing when their book is published.  Consider this episode a checklist for when your book comes out, and spend the 60 minutes required to complete the following five actions to bolster your book’s success.   Episode Show Notes: Click here For help launching your book, visit scribemedia.com/service/book-launch

Every author should use their book to land guest posts and contributor articles.  Getting featured on major sites can attract new clients and business opportunities.  In this episode, #1 New York Times bestselling author, Tucker Max, will teach you how to get guest posts with your book. To learn more, visit: scribemedia.com/service/media-coverage

Every business owner knows what a pain client acquisition can be.  A book doesn’t magically solve this problem, but it does make it much easier to both find and close new clients.   Ready to start your book? Visit scribemedia.com and sign up for our free courses at scribebookschool.com

One of the most common questions we get at Scribe is: “How do I get my book on a bestseller list?”  Our standard answer: “You’d be better off by totally ignoring them.”   We encourage our authors not to chase bestseller lists, but instead focus on the business and personal goals for their book. This confuses them initially (Having a bestselling book doesn’t get me more business?), but once we explain the process and tradeoffs to them, the overwhelming majority discard it and focus more on the goals that are far more impactful to them.   In this episode, 4-time #1 New York Times bestselling author, Tucker Max, will cover everything you need to know about bestseller lists. To learn more, visit http://scribebookschool.com

Think about your favorite authors—the ones whose books deeply affected your life. Do you know what all of them had in common? None of them used special book writing software to write their book. Yet, this is where many beginning and amateur writers start. They spend so much time searching for the “perfect” book writing software (among other tools) that will magically make their writing better. Let me spare you time and money: software is not a relevant consideration for writing a great book. If you’re stuck on finding the “perfect” software, something else is holding you back. To read the full post and see our reviews, click here. To sign up for our free book writing courses, click here.