2 book contracts in the same week!

The hard copy contract for the TAB/McGraw-Hill book was Fed-Ex'd to me yesterday, and two hours later, Bloomsbury emailed me to say they'll publish the 2nd ed of my Cengage book! They want the files yesterday, to rush it into production so it can be on the shelves for Fall 2014 adoptions.

I am now juggling four books in various states of undress!

Congratulations, LC.  You have your work cut out for you.

9/21/2013

                       Congratulations LC. Maybe I should get into doing text books?

                                                           Cheers.........Joe...

Actually, the TAB book will be a trade (mass market) paperback. Not a textbook.

Any nonfiction is better than fiction as far as getting it published. Digital photography is so big, I don't know why you don't try doing a nonfic book about that. Combine it with tutorials on enhancing with digital imaging programs. Sell it via a MOOC at Canvas.net. People are making good money with that.

9/21/2013

                   What kind of book should I create ? Should I do a book on my photography ?
                   I already did a book on Santa Fe. How do I find these publishers and at the
                   same time know what their looking for in a book ? Thanks

                                                        Cheers......Joe..

They say, be careful what you wish for. Publishing contracts are a work of celebration!

Joe -rather than a book of your photography, specifically, a book that teaches how to take photos and enhance them would be more marketable. You need to research similar books on the market, look for an untapped niche or for a publisher who might want to take on the competition.

As for finding a publisher, a lot has been written on that subject. Start with an Amazon search of the subject you're interested in, to see what's out there and who publishes it. Also browse the shelves at Barnes and Noble to see what made it to their shelves, and study them.

And as I said earlier, if you can write tutorials, people are selling such things as courses themselves. Canvas.net is a popular platform. Make accompanying videos.

Congrats, LC!  What a wonderful problem to have!

Thanks, everyone! I was worried about the Cengage book because they won't release the first edition rights. This caused one publisher who was very interested to drop it faster than the Food Network dropped Paula Deen. lol. I was considering getting a lawyer about that, but luckily it's not needed. Bloomsbury told me to just sign and send back the rights return document as-is and we could go forward. So I did.

Victor, have you considered canvas.net as an outlet? I know a lawyer who sells her criminal law book there; it's pretty much her MOOC course. She has between 500-700 people sign up for it each session. That's a lot of sales!

9/21/2013

                                 LC..

                                        Thanks I'll check this out.

                                           Cheers...Joe...

You know, I briefly looked into self-publishing it. Since Cengage gave me their adoption list, I thought I would contact schools myself. I decided it was far more work than I was capable of. Just getting it into a pdf format discouraged me. I learned that my college would actually do that for me, for a 25% cut of any sales. They'd lay it out in Word. It would be very basic, nothing like the flashy interior layout the publishers do. I considered that a bit, but then decided that marketing it, even with an adoption list, would be just too much work. Not to mention distributing it.

I'm glad I can just write the thing, send it off, and and not think about it again. I do what I do best and the publisher does what it does best.

You may not think so, but I also think this is really great. Regardless of how I may feel about anonymous people posting, I still recognize that good work pays off. So, congratulations from this old guy as well.

Thanks, E. Don!

To elaborate a bit on anonymity. Prospective agents and editors google you. I don't have to tell you that. And you never know what will turn people off. So you either post nothing, or just boring nothings, or you post whatever you want knowing it will adversely affect your money/prospects sometime, somehow, down the road. There are also people who just live to cause trouble, and will post garbage about you even if it isn't true. But google keeps it all anyhow. People who are retired can afford the luxury of not caring. People who aren't retired yet can't.

I actually agree with your logic, and I understand it. However, there are those of us who have posted using our real names or the names we write under since we first started using sites such as this. My last name is Harp(e) and for years has been spelled both ways and both ways have been considered correct. I use my first initial, E. and the shortened version of my middle name, Don, and have been using E. Don Harpe since I decided to use that version of my name as my author's title. Before that I was just Don Harp or Harpe. I have been registered with my songwriters affiliation as Harpe for a long time now, so it isn't just something I picked up after I retired. I've never given much of a thought to what could happen, at least not to me personally. To be honest I'd rather some of my younger grand children post under an anonymous name that use their real one, simply to be on the safe side.

I have to admit that most of my life in the real world, back when I was an engineer in the appliance business, came before the advent of so much internet postings on sites such as My Space and Facebook, so we didn't have to worry about retaliation at work for stupid things we said on line. And over the years I have certainly said some stupid things. Sometimes it's because I want to see what kind of response I can get, sometimes it's just to play the devil's advocate, and now and then it's because I post before I really think something through. And then there are the times when I post because something just pissed me off and I want to tell someone how I feel. I am apparently mellowing in my old age, because those times come along fewer than they used to. Anyway, my sincere congratulations to you for these new projects you've landed. I'm sure a lot of hard work went into getting to the point where you would be offered such projects, and I'm sure you'll do a hell of a job with them.

For an intersection of what we're talking about and Obamacare, check out the following link. Someone made a comment -it was thoughtless, sure, but I personally just view it as an off-the-cuff expression of frustration -but the right wing is running with it. She's "frantically deleting all her social media accounts," as some are gloating, but it doesn't matter. She'll be out of a job soon, just watch.

http://twitchy.com/2013/09/22/unhinged-ucsf-fundraiser-wishes-death-on-all-obamacare-nonbelievers-nick-searcy-shreds/

Well, we never know when someone's stupid genes are gonna kick in. I don't personally understand why so many are against Obamacare. There were parts of it I disagreed with, and I communicated that to the White House a couple of years ago. Overall, though, I think it will help a lot of people. Just closing the doughnut hole has saved me over $1,000, so at least I know first hand that some of it is working. I see no reason why we can't have a national health care plan that is as good as the plan the people we elect to office have. I've never been quite sure why so many Republicans are against it, when they don't seem to care how much we spend on wars and give to corporations, who aren't creating jobs. Only thing I can figure is that they think they can make some money from war, but haven't figured out a way to make any off health care.

What E. Don said.

Agree. Point remains that her head is going to be on a stick in front of her (ex) office soon. The link referenced another person who was fired for posting something similar.

OH AND BY THE WAY -- CONGRATULATIONS!

What E. Don said.  I can't comprehend why anyone would be opposed to health care.  Perhaps the problem rests with the name.  If the name "Obama" is deleted, would that make a difference?
If already successful healthcare programs were used, there would be no cost to the government.  I'm referencing the healthcare program in Germany.  The insurers are making huge amounts of money and some (mine in particular) will refund much of their gain to those they insure.

The cost for an all-inclusive healthcare program is based on one's income.  Everyone pays based on their income.  Those who earn more, pay more.  Those who earn nothing, pay nothing and the insurers still make money.  The government "controlled" program does not administer the program nor does it contribute money to it.  The government regulates it.  Why not copy a successful program or is that un-american?

Even little Panama has universal healthcare.  They have many provisions that make retirement there a good idea - great benefits for senior citizens to make a limited income go further.

I find the venom in U.S. politics and among the citizens of the U.S. detrimental to the ideals and goals of its citizens.