Conspiracy, Intense Reading

NOW AVAILABLE ON AMAZON – Conspiracy is the first novel in the Conspiracy series.

A mystery/thriller with elements of science fiction, it merges fiction with facts similar to Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code.

Conspiracy reveals the shadowy underside of the illusion we call reality, revolving around the discovery of an ancient shadow organization of immense power.

Reviews: “wild and unexpected”; “a real page turner”; “an unforgettable experience”. Michael Cross had a troubled past. Forces set into motion long before his birth put him in conflict with the ancient, secret organization. Who began the Brotherhood? How long had they existed? A hundred years? A thousand? In that time, they had gained massive power, even infiltrating governments. How can such an organization be destroyed? This is the task that Michael Cross faces. In his conflict with the Brotherhood he discovers a secret so overwhelming, so unimaginable that it changes his life forever.

One thing is certain–nothing is what it seems. Conspiracy is available through Amazon and for more information about the book Conspiracy visit Fehrman Books

How Does a First-Person Essay Fit Into Your Book Marketing Plans?

Just dropping in to let you know about the new review I just posted at http://thenewbookreview.blogspot.com/2010/08/your-first-person-essay-or-memoir-your.html . Writers will want to know about this book, they should also know about The New Book Review. It's open to all books, all reviewers. Guidelines for submissions are in the left column.

My best to all of you VBT subscribers!
Carolyn Howard-Johnson

Teacher and Marketer Recommends New Book on Marketing

I have a motto: "Reading one book on book promotion is never enough."
Thus, I recommend Michelle Dunn's Mosquito Marketing, a book full of book-marketing essentials. Here is the heartfelt recommendation I wrote to Michelle, complete with disclaimer:

Dear Michelle:

Congratulations on a job well done! In the writing. In the accumulation of knowledge. And in the production. I shall recommend Mosquito Marketing to my UCLA students and my clients--every single one of them!

Yes, you may use that as an endorsement, though you may not want to because I contributed to the book. Thus I may appear biased. The thing is, I would have said the same thing even if I had no part in it! (-:

So, it's going up on my Web site (the Resources for Writers section of www.howtodoitfrugally.com) right now! And into my recommendation list for my students. Soon. (-:

Thank you so much. Mosquito Marketing (ISBN 1453605304) will be a valued part of books I am part of--ones that I keep in a special reference (and brag!) library. Great work!

Best,
Carolyn Howard-Johnson

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The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've loved. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by author names, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the index handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. As a courtesy to the author, please tweet and retweet this post using the widget below:

Sylvia McClain wrote this note to me after we had a discussion about Twitter for writers and I told her I though she would get lots from my new book on Tweeting, even though it isn't written specifically for writers! She made me pretty happy when she wrote back:

Carolyn:

Just read your book on tweeting and what struck me most is Branding, Branding, and more Branding. Whew! Where do I begin? No, I am not a retailer but as you said, there might be something in it for writers, too!

The book, Frugal and Focused Tweeting, said:

YOUR TWITTER MONIKER is as important for your Twitter branding as it is for your e-mail addresses.

My Epiphany:

Duh! was my first thought; no one knew that my Twitter Moniker "rpmenter" stood for RPM Enterprises (my company name) but me. What everyone knew me by was "Scribal Press," my company imprint publishing name, my Web site and my news calendar of writer events. So before I could finish reading the book, I jumped online and immediately changed my Twitter Moniker everywhere not just on Twitter, from "rpmenter" to "Scribal Press." So my Twitter name is now www.twitter.com/scribalpress.

In Chapter Two, page 30, of Frugal and Focused Tweeting for Retailers, you suggested:

I will make ____ useful contacts a week. Twitter contacts include possible customers, but connecting with vendors, bloggers who write about shopping, and business editors at print and online media, etc., can be equally profitable in the long run.

My Epiphany:

I had no idea what number to use but it made me take notice and start thinking.

In Chapter Three, page 36, Frugal and Focused Tweeting talked... about branding using our Twitter biographies and you gave an example of what you would use for your own store.

I needed to go do a new bio on my Twitter account. Why? Branding that's why.

In Chapter Four, page 57, Frugal and Focused Tweeting said:

Tweet about new blog posts, newsletter editions, Web pages. More on this when we talk about integrating your marketing efforts in Chapter Seven.

My Epiphany:

Why I have never thought of this is beyond me.

Anyway, yes you were right again. There is something in this book for everyone, even those who don't think they want to to tweet.

Sincerely,

Sylvia McClain
Blogging at View Points at http://sylviaspeaks.blogspot.com
Book Reviewer at MyShelf.com and Atlantic Publishing Company
Now available, the 2nd Edition of The Write Life