Writing Nonfiction Books That Sell is Easier Said Than Done - Book Review

Are you one of 10s of millions of Americans that would like to write their own book? Well, what are you waiting for? The more you procrastinate or hesitate the more likelihood someone else is going to write it first. First, however you are going to need to get a little bit of education on the topic and thus I recommend that you do a little reading, so let me recommend a very good book to you:

"Author 101 - Best Selling Nonfiction, an insider's guide to making reality sell" by Rick Frishman and Robyn Freedman Spizman; 2006.

Nonfiction is a huge category and much bigger than fictional works categories, especially when it comes to sales. And a new author indeed has a better chance according to these authors of making their books sell that a first time fictional writer. This book encompasses many types of nonfiction works such as: Biographies, Autobiographies, Memoirs, How to Books, Scientific, History, Art, Cooking, Travel, Picture, Exercise, Self Help and Reference Books.

Also in the "Author 101 Series" to go along with this book, I recommend "Best Selling Book Proposals; Top Secrets from Best Selling Agents" which reminds future authors and writers that there was over 195,000 books published in 2001 alone, and that was a down year. In this book they recommend that book proposals use sensory descriptions of smell, touch, taste, sight and sound.

It is my opinion that any future author really wishing to get a book deal in the nonfiction category, that they read both of these books together. I have them both on my shelves and they have done wonders for my publishing goals. Please consider this.

The Current Best Selling Books on the Market

With thousands of books written every year on all sorts of topics from business to fiction to religious, it is impossible to read every book released. Thankfully, The New York Times gives us some help by releasing and constantly updating the best-seller list for all of the topics you can imagine. Here are the current best sellers for four different categories.

Hardcover Fiction
The number 3 best seller for hardcover fiction books is Daddy's Girl by Lisa Scottoline. This is a fast-paced thriller that keeps the reader's attention and will keep you reading non-stop. The number 2 non-fiction book is Shopaholic & Baby by Sophie Kinsella. This book takes the main character, Becky, amidst a possible love triangle with her husband and his ex-girlfriend as she shops for the perfect world for her baby. Finally, the number 1 best seller is Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult. This is another contemporary thriller by Picoult about a high school shooting.

Hardcover Non-Fiction
The number 3 non-fiction best seller on the New York Times list is 'I Feel Bad About My Neck' by Nora Ephron. This comedy book discusses the topic of aging, in particular women aging. The number 2 book is 'A Long Way Gone' by Ishmael Beah, which takes into account the life of a young boy at the age of 12 who is swept into the horrifying world of civil war. The best seller currently for non-fiction books is 'In An Instant' by Lee and Bob Woodruff. This tells the tale of the traumatic experience Bob Woodruff experienced in Iraq and how he and Lee Woodruff worked through the difficult times after.

Children
Number 3 on the list for children's books is Flotsam by David Wiesner. It all begins as a boy finds a camera that is washed ashore, and from there it is an adventure full of pictures. The number 2 best seller is Today I Will Fly! by Mo Willems, which tells the story of a piggie who is optimistic about flying and an elephant that is skeptical. With a little help from others, amazing things happen. Lastly, the number one book is Someday by Alison McGhee, which tells an enchanting story of a mother's dream coming true, watching her child live life to the fullest.

Religion
The number 3 religious book is The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman. This book guides you to learn to understand and speak the unique language of love through a couple's guidance. The second book on the best seller list is by Richard Dawkins entitled The God Delusion. Richard Dawkins attacks arguments for the existence of God in this controversial book. The number one religious book on the market is Grace by Anne Lamott, which takes Lamott's life into the realm of reality as problems of faith pop up in the most unexpected places.

There are hundreds of brilliantly written books on the market, even within the four categories listed above. But starting with the best sellers from the New York Times is a good place to begin. Enjoy!

A Guide to Online Book Selling Expenses

Disclaimer: My expenses are just that, MY expenses. You may or may not incur such expenses if you are beginning or your expenses may be even greater if you're an expert at this by now. Either way, I hope that you will grab some ideas or "Ah Ha!" moments while reading this material.

I will break these expenses down into 3 different categories: monthly recurring expenses, recurring as needed expenses and one time expenses with mandatory and optional expenses in each. In each of these categories I will explain each expense I have, how much I'm spending and other expenses that you may see when running a successful online book selling business.

Monthly Recurring Expenses

Mandatory Expenses

1. Internet Connection - An Internet connection will be the crux of your business. This is what the online part is all about! A high speed connection is crucial for your business and your sanity because you will spend a significant. Call your local phone carrier or your cable TV provider to get a DSL or cable modem connection RIGHT NOW if you haven't already. If you're not in an area that can get a high speed connection, I don't think this business is for you. That is how important this is. I pay $40/month for my cable modem connection not only for my business but also for personal use as well.
2. Utilities - Utilities are also an obvious mandatory expense because you need to put your books in a climate controlled area. Typically, this area is a home you're already living in but for some, like me, it is a small warehouse. I pay a portion of the utilities to my sister that lives in the home connected to this small warehouse. My electrical cost is about $50/month when split with my sister, but your will obviously be different than mine.

Optional Expenses

1. Venue Listing Fees - When you just have a few books to sell, most sites will let you list your books for free with no listing fees or monthly fees. However, once you start getting an inventory in the thousands, sites such as Amazon, Alibris and Abebooks will want some monthly fee. The fee for Amazon is the Pro Merchant fee which is $40/month. This fee gives you a ton of great benefits. You can read all about them on Amazon's merchant help page. Alibris has it's Gold program for volume sellers which is a monthly fee I pay and Abebooks has $25/month fee to list books on their site which I also pay. Other sites vary on the monthly fees they charge.
2. Multi-Venue Listing/Order Service - I subscribe to a service called Fillz. This costs me $50/month + 1.4% of sales but is invaluable to me. This site allows me to upload my inventory to one site and have it dispersed on 10 different sites. It keeps all my inventory in sync as well as downloading all my orders in one place. If you want to become a volume seller, a service like this is crucial. Another service that is similar to this is The Art of Books.
3. Book Scouting Services - If you're going to be looking for great inventory at cheap prices, you will need to subscribe to a book scouting service. I subscribe to Scoutpal for my offline PDA book scout software as well as my online book scouting. Other services such as this include Neatoscan and Media Scouter.
4. Online Postage Vendor - This is another life saver for me and for any volume seller. This prevents you from having to wait in line at the post office and it will also save you some money! Printing postage online is extremely important to me as a volume seller! This service costs me $16/month. I use Endicia which I HIGHLY recommend. This service is bar none the best around and is pretty much the industry standard.

Recurring as Needed Expenses

Mandatory Expenses

1. Shipping/Packing Supplies - This is an unfortunate expense of shipping books. You have to have something to ship them in and buy the supplies that go along with it. I buy bubble mailers for all of my books except for the more expensive ones that require a box. Mailers are the cheapest way to go yet still provide adequate protection for your books. Included in this section is also packing tape. You always want to take one strip of packing tape on top of the bubble mailers sticky surface just for good measure. Packing tape will also be required if you choose to print postage online and don't have a label printer. You will then have to print out your packing slips and labels on plain copy paper, which is also a necessary expense. I used to get my shipping supplies at Uline but I started using Royal Mailers a few months ago and haven't looked back. You can get to them by clicking on the banner on the left hand side of the screen. They offer cheap pricing, free shipping and have just about anything you'd ever want in terms of shipping and packing supplies. Unfortunately, I don't know my expenses in this category off the top of my head but I would estimate $300/month.
2. Book Inventory - IMPORTANT! If you don't continually refresh your inventory your business will fail! Spend wisely in this category. You can get inventory online, thrift stores, yard sales, estate sales, auctions and a slew of other places. Be frugal yet try to find out what you can get from the book you buy by using book scouting tools.
3. Postage - Postage is another necessary evil. You will pay for postage on everything you send out. You can save on postage by buying postage through Endicia, but it's still going to be one of the biggest expenses you will see as an online book seller.

Optional Expenses

1. Labels - If you choose to save some time and buy a Zebra label printer you will have to buy labels for it. The label printer will save you tons of time. I just about 8,000 labels for $135 at Royal Mailers. Not too bad at all for saving me tons of time and headache!

One Time Expenses

Mandatory Expenses

1. Book Storage - Your initial costs will always be a lot compared to your ongoing costs. Book storage is one of those. You will need a lot of room to store all of your books. I made my book shelves so the cost was minimal to me. All it took was a few cinder blocks and some sturdy boards. If you don't want to go through all that hassle, you can always just buy some rudimentary bookshelves.
2. Computer - Another obvious expense here. You will have to have a computer in order to run this business. I recommend a newer computer with at least a Pentium Dual Core processor with 2GB of RAM and a nice 19? flat panel monitor. You can always get by with less horsepower but since you will most likely spend a lot of time on the computer, just splurge and buy something nice. It will be worth it.
3. Laser Printer - I started out with an inkjet printer and it was terrible! I would try to print out packing slips and online postage and the ink would smear and it would run out very quickly. Not to mention the ink was expensive! Get yourself a nice laser printer. I bought mine on Amazon.

Optional Expenses

1. Label Printer - This is optional but I highly recommend one. This little guy has saved me tons of time. I recommend the Zebra LP-2844 printer. I've used one for a few months now and it has been very solid.
2. USB Bar Code Scanner - A USB bar code scanner helps me scan books quickly when I'm looking up prices. I have a strategy where I buy a bunch of books site unseen and then take them back to price them. It's a little risky sometimes, but it has paid off. This scanner allows me to scan each book without typing in the ISBN number in Scoutpal. I use the Adesso Ccd Contact Barcode Scanner USB Light Rugged Design Black and it works flawlessly.
3. Blue Tooth/Socket Portable Scanner - This is a must if you buy book scouting software. This scanner allows you to scan book on the fly while you are out in the field at a Friends of the Library book sale, auction or yard sale somewhere. You can scan each book you see if it has a bar code to quickly see the price it is going at. I use and recommend the Microvision Flic Cordless Bar Code Scanner.
4. PDA for Book Scouting - If book scouting this is a requirement as well to go with your trusty scanner. You have a few different options here but I use a Windows Mobile PDA running Windows Mobile 6.0. This is a little pricey, but will pay for itself in no time since you will be knowing how much a book is worth BEFORE you buy it.

You will find out that some of the optional expenses save you time, some save you money and some make you more money! It is up to you to decide how much you have and want to invest in order to pump resources into this business.

You'll see that I have spent thousands of dollars in my business but at the same time, if you also look at my recent blog post about my sales, you'll see that I'm making up for my expenses very quickly. As you can see there are a number of different expenses that you will need to be looking at. The more money you want to make in this business, the more money you will need to be spending thus the more complicated your business will become. I have accumulated all of my expenses over the year or so I've been doing this but started out with just the mandatory expenses. Don't get overwhelmed with all of these. Simply take them one at a time and if you want to sell more books take them one at a time building on top of one another.

Adam Bertram is an avid online bookseller that has generated thousands of dollars in selling books online by spending less than 20 hours/week and while still maintaining a full time job. He is dedicated to teaching others this great business opportunity and how to realize the cash potential of your typical used book.

Business Management Books - A Must For Every Businessman's Library

Business management books are available on all topics related to it, forming a truly great body of information. There are books on every aspect, every situation, every practice, and principle related to business management. The books are also all-inclusive, ranging from small, proprietary businesses, to business management of big, multinational companies.

Mostly these books fall into the following categories, as these categories form the basic elements or aspects of business management:

Financial management: Capital or financial resources form the very basics of any business. Such books guide you about the aspects related to managing your financial resources.

Marketing management: These books show you a way to design a marketing plan that works. It is also possible to find out some hitherto unknown factors such as some mistakes or false assumptions in your marketing methods, case studies discussed in such books. You might find some interesting new ideas that will be useful for your business.

HR management: Effective and efficient use of human resources makes any business successful. Books on HR management provide information about the latest theories and practices in this field.

Strategic management: The decision-making is a multi-level process. It needs to consider various situations, processes, requirements and various changing factors such as the market, customer, competition, production and cost issues in line with overall planning and goals of the organization. Such books provide a clearer view to look at the problem, as well as make us aware of some important aspects that might be ignored otherwise.

Production management: There could be some other factors that affect the overall productivity or internal losses. You can find some useful information about such unanticipated aspects and methods to deal with such issues from these books.

Service management: Retaining and increasing the customer base is very important for the growth of any business. These books on service management provide useful information, data, and helpful and effective policies to be applied for better service management.

IT management: The latest of management science, IT management covers all the issues related to the management of IT resources. You can learn how to make the most from your IT resources, how to use it cost effectively, make profit and expand your business.

Business Intelligence: You need a lot of data related to production, financial inputs, competition, customer requirements, market trends, etc. to make business decisions. Comparative analysis and various aspects of particular business methods or practices are discussed in such books. Many successful businesspeople make use of any such books available in their decision-making.

There are also a variety of journals and periodicals that publish useful data pertaining to their respective fields. It is helpful to keep abreast of the latest market updates through such publications.

To stay ahead of the competition, it is necessary to keep yourself updated with in-depth information. Any businessperson knows the importance of acquiring such resources. It makes sense for a businessperson to stock his personal library with the latest business management books.

Don't Let Your Story Book Relationship Turn Into a Category 3-Type Hurricane

You have been in a wonderful love relationship for sometime now. It is everything you always wanted. You two are very close. Your partner has been warm and loving. There have been no real problems. You have pretty much agreed on everything. A break up is the farthest thing from your thoughts.

The love-making has been great; extremely satisfying. You do so many things together as a couple. All of your friends and family envy your love and relationship. Except for a very few minor ups and downs, everything has been going in an almost story book fashion.

You cannot do enough for each other. You give each other the space you need. You each have your own friends and mutual friends that you spend time with. Even after all this time together, you find each other desirable and enjoy each others company.

There is a sense of calm and security that you have been feeling. You have been basking in the glow of the sunny side of love. It is like a dream. It looks like your story book relationship will last forever. You are content.

Until now, that is!

What happened all of a sudden? Hurricane Season has hit with no warning!

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the federal agency that focuses on the condition of the oceans and the atmosphere tells us that the Atlantic hurricane season lasts about 6 months. However, it seems like this unnamed storm in your personal life is about to put an end to your relationship.

We all know the catastrophic damage hurricanes can do. Winds can exceed 155 miles per hour, spawn tornadoes and cause extensive damage from heavy rainfall and flying objects.

Hurricanes are classified into five categories based on their wind speed, central pressure, and damage potential. Category 3 hurricanes are considered major hurricanes causing major damage.

That's what you relationship seems to be getting to. You and your partner have started arguments that last way longer than necessary. It seems like a tornado has hit. The damage from the flying angry words and the mistrust is about to cause extensive injury. It looks like you could break up.

You have got to do something to make up before it is too late. This storm has been brewing for several weeks or maybe even months. You just did not notice the warning signs. You do not want to break up.

You cannot stop the destruction of a hurricane. However, with care and consideration, you can stop major damage in your relationship if you are willing to take the time to find the cause and the effort it takes to make up and put it back together.

Categories of Fantasy - An Interview With the Writer's Retreat

This extract is part of an online interview which was undertaken with members of the Writers Retreat at the Institute of Children's Literature in September 2008. For more than thirty five years, the Institute has offered the premier writing course for adults interested in learning how to write and be published for children and teens.

Q: I know many writers have a lot of trouble understanding some of the different categories of fantasy. Can you help sort that out? For example, what do people mean by 'classic fantasy' and is there anything coming out today that you could consider 'classic?' Also, what are some fantasy categories we're seeing now? I know paranormal and urban fantasy, how would you say those two differ? We hear so many terms and it's a little confusing for the newcomer to understand the real scope of the genre. And do you have examples to give of what would fit in these categories?

A: I find it somewhat confusing myself, especially when we are told that we can't mix genres. What about romance and historical fiction? Or romance and horror? Or horror and fantasy? Or of course science fiction and fantasy? It's often tough to tell where the line is drawn or determine if the line needs to be drawn at all. Two of my books involve time travel by means of a magical box or an enchanted amulet, but also feature journeys to 1483 and 1349, so are they fantasy, science fiction, historical fiction, pure adventure or all of these? Classic fantasy I have always seen as involving an imaginary kingdom or landscape, akin to the worlds of Tolkien or Narnia, with mythological creatures, fairies, elves, dwarves, swords, sorcery, quests, wizards and so on, in a medieval type setting.

Science fiction generally, and this is very general, is often about science and technology, alien planets, spaceships etc rather than the supernatural or magic, yet time travel can be both SF and fantasy, as far as I can see. I have never received a satisfactory answer whenever I have asked 'experts', but I have come to consider time travel as fantasy if it involves magic, but science fiction if it involves a device, which could be mechanical, such as a vehicle, a bracelet or other piece of jewelry, or a method, which could even be something that is ingested. I am not a fan of strict pigeonholes. A book might be classed as fantasy if there is travel into another dimension, but if the novel also features a bizarre comic book universe, there are elements of another genre there too, plus the machinery employed by the chief villain and the experiments he engages could clearly be scientific in nature. Urban fantasy is a sub-genre of contemporary fantasy, with magical stories and traditional fantasy characters and races set in modern day, real world settings.

Paranormal I would normally consider to be about the spirit world, psychic powers, telepathy and so on, but stories classed as paranormal today often include themes from what has up to now been seen as traditional fantasy, science fiction, or horror, including vampires, demons, werewolves, witches, shape-shifters, ghosts, characters with psychic abilities, like telekinesis or telepathy, or even time travel. Paranormal romance is apparently one of the fastest growing trends in the romance genre.It may all sound very confusing, but bear in mind this is how bookstores, the publishing industry and anyone other than the writers creating the stories from the depths of their wonderful imaginations, attempt to categorize things. Write what you want to write and what you are passionate about and don't worry which pigeon hole it fits into or what might be popular at the moment.

The Best Books to Sell Online

Books are man's best friends, and according to me, they come before dogs. They are invaluable and priceless, and pearls of wisdom. For someone who does not like to read, they don't know what they are missing. I encourage you to go ahead, try a book, a good book, and it will make a difference to the way you think and your way of life. A good book always has a positive effect on people. When you read a good book, the thoughts and ideas of the author are imprinted in your head and heart.

You need to be smart, when you want to make it a business of selling the best books online. Collecting books for your personal use and wanting to make it a business are two different things. Be serious and stay focused. Try as far as possible to buy or purchase books in bulk, so that you get them at a cheap and low cost. And the same books can be sold at a higher and profitable price.

Some book sellers like to stick to special categories, like children's books, health, recipes (gourmet, Indian, barbecue, there are hundreds of them) as they feel that they have so much information on that particular topic, and that it is sufficient for them, to sell and also profit from it. Yet there are others who would disagree, and opt for an open category, as this would not only give them a variety of topics, but enable them to cater to different kinds of customers, and meet with each of their needs. This they find is more profitable, than sticking to just one category.

When you open your bookstore online, make sure your website is attractive and will draw people to it. Offer great discounts, so that it all looks very tempting and hard to resist. Be intelligent when selecting your categories, as topics like romance, and mystery don't really sell much. Don't buy too many useless books. Buy only a few, but profitable ones. Don't consider the value of a book in terms of literature and quality of work. That is only okay when you want it for yourself. Instead, look at whether it is profitable for your business and whether this is what people want.

People who stick to only one type of category have great courage in doing so, as quite a risk is involved in it. If by some chance it does not run, then you will have a problem. Still it is a safer option to go into the books business, and that too online, as you have a better and wider market to cater to, and you have a chance to think global, and to think big. Chances are, you will always make a minimal profit, but never really bear heavy losses like people who deal in shares or something more difficult.