You're four lessons into the Self Publishing Basics e-course and I want to know if you are getting the value I promised?

I welcome your feedback and comments. Send an e-mail to if there is anything you would like me to explain better or discuss in more detail.

While I can't possibly cover everything on the vast subject of self publishing in this e-course, I will answer all e-mails the very best I can.

I really want to help you make your publishing goals reality this year. Better yet, in the next 3 months. There is NO reason that you cannot have a book in your hands, and additional revenue in your pockets in the next 90 to 120 days. Besides, if you're like me, it has taken you longer to make the decision to write your book than it will take to bring it to life...

My hope is that you are serious about becoming an author and that you will commit to getting the support you'll need to stay the course and follow a proven process for writing, publishing and promoting your book as swiftly and affordably as possible.

If you do…you will reduce your publishing costs, eliminate frustration and avoid the trap of writing a book that no one knows about or worse yet wants to buy.

Ready to get started writing your book the right way? Then e-mail me to learn more about my hands-on, one-on-one self publishing coaching program, there are still open spots. Just send me an email to for more details.

Lesson 5 is on the way, and in it you'll  learn 10 things to do to avoid writers block and how to write compelling chapters fast...

But now here's Lesson 4 and with useful information on picking a great title and the importance of staying focused on the task of writing your book.

Mega-Million Titles

The best titles tell the reader exactly what they can expect to get from the book. While it might be more 'fun' to write clever titles that play on words, this usually does not serve the reader well.

Consider some of these titles and see if you can tell what the book is about, or who would be best served by reading it:

• The Abandoned Money Book
   
• Squandering Aimlessly
   
• Funny- He Doesn't Look Like a Murderer
   
• In Addition to Tuition
   
• Life Is A Choice

The titles listed are very difficult to 'catch the message' from at first glance, maybe you'd have to look further on the cover or turn to the back cover or even the inside flap to give you a bit more insight, but the truth is-people don't want to have to do that much work.

Now consider these book titles and sub-titles:

• The Self-Publishing Manual
  How to Write, Print and Sell Your Own Book
   
• 1001 Ways to Market Your Books
   
• Conversations With Millionaires
  What Millionaires Do To Get Rich, That You Never Learned About In School!
   
• Learn to Earn
  A Beginner's Guide To The Basics of Investing and Business
   
• Teen Money Tips
  Simple Steps For Banking, Saving & Making Money
   
• Speeding Excuses That Work
  The Cleverest Copouts & Ticket Victories Ever!

What do each of these titles have in common?

They all tell the reader exactly what they can expect to get from the book, not only that but some go a bit further and identify the person who would be best served by the book.

A books title should do all of the work for the reader, or at least a good portion of it. As an author you know what you want to say, and often the message is a good and necessary one, but according to Dan Poynter, the foremost authority on self publishing...

"Selecting the title and subtitle will be the single-most important piece of copy writing you will do for your book. A great title will not sell a bad book but a poor title will hide a good book from potential customers. Both your title and subtitle must be a selling tool. They are the hook that help sales."

Dan goes on to say:

"Select a working title now so that you can improve on it as you work on your book. Start with a short, catchy and descriptive title, and then add a lengthy, explanatory subtitle."

In fact in Dan Poynter's special report, Book Titles That Changed you'll be able to see how popular the title "Gone With the Wind" would have never made it's mark on history if it kept its original title, "Tomorrow is Another Day" and to make matters worse, Scarlett O'Hara's name was going to be Pansy! "Frankly, Pansy"...can you imagine?

Testing your title by sharing it with several people will help you get an idea on what would resonate with your audience, another way to get inspiration for a title is to use the name of a popular talk or workshop that you have already conducted. If you are a coach or speaker this will not only help you to further brand yourself, but it will boost your sales after presenting the talk.

Staying Focused

The process of staying focused can be easier said than done. Often we have good intentions to get and stay focused while we are involved in a task, but the truth is that when little distractions creep in, it's very easy to loose our focus and in turn become frustrated, overwhelmed and taken off course.

According to personal coach Wendy Hern, "There may be distractions in your mind, such as the voice that's reminding you what else you need to do. Your mind may also justify to you that there's something else necessary for you to focus on. Being more focused takes you outside your comfort zone and your ego will object. Your ego will do anything to prevent this and will create numerous distractions. It will try all sorts of things to unfocus you and sabotage your success."

Hern continues on the topic of focus, by saying...

"There are likely to be many things which side-track you. You may have doubts: "Are these the right things to be focusing on?" Or distractions, interruptions and things that seems to get in the way. Loss of enthusiasm, lack of confidence, or information overload can all cause you to question your focus. At least every day and when any of these things take you off track, re-connect with your focus in order to maintain it."

Writing a book in a compressed period of time requires a determined focus to get the book done. Think about your favorite musician or sports star, the average concert lasts a little over 2 hours and a professional game is played in quarters, innings or some other limited time segment.

When the lights go on the stage and the starting bell sounds, the star is called to perform at top peak. They get in "the zone" and function at 150% until the first break where they can get refreshed and revived before hitting it hard again. That's the way you'll need to think about your book writing process. You will be required to give your best but not all at once and not all the time.

To make the process smoother, here are five focusing techniques:

• Have timed writing sessions- our minds tend to wander when we have undefined amounts of time to do a task, use a stop-watch or a kitchen timer to keep you focused for a pre-determined period. I suggest 30 to 45 minute stints.
   
• Identify the best time of the day for your personal power. Each person has an internal body clock that gives you more energy at certain points of the day, tap into that time and commit to assigning a portion of it to writing or researching your book topic.
   
• Avoid hi-tech distractions- do your friends IM you whenever they notice you're online? Do you always keep your cell phone on? Do you check e-mail each time your computer notifies you? If yes, than you'll need to log-out of your e-mail, 'hide' yourself from your IM list and turn off your cell phone before you start writing.
   
• Listen to calming music- ocean waves crashing, peaceful birds singing, or the smooth sound of a saxophone- whatever sounds calm you are best to listen to when attempting to get into a focused writing state, or "the zone".
   
• Focus on only ONE thing at a time- it is impossible to focus fully on more than one thing at a time, so identify the one thing that you want to get focused on and commit to only that that for a specific period of time.

Just think, you can turn your powerful seminar, user friendly coaching technique, or compelling message into a book that your target audience wants and needs to read. And you can do it in just 90 days. Imagine in three months or less, you can be a self-published author.

So, what are you waiting for?

Email me at if you're serious about going from idea to author this year then I'll help you develop a timeline and book publishing plan just for you, PLUS you'll get the structure, consistency and accountability necessary "do-it-yourself" without doing it alone.

I've helped aspiring authors, coaches, speakers and entrepreneurs just like you achieve their self publishing goals and I'd like to show you how a book can help you make more money, attract more clients and gain more exposure.

If you'd like to discuss your book idea just go to http://selfpublishingworkshop.com/callme and tell me your book idea and when you'd like to talk with me.  


In lesson 5, you'll get tips on avoiding writer's block and much more.

Until then…Bring Out the Author in You!