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choice - the magazine of professional coaching


Part 3 of a four part series by Brad Stauffer

How to Leverage the New World of Publishing
There's never been a better time


Part III: Publishing Entry Points

Welcome back. In the two previous parts of this series, we've examined and learned about "the writer within," and that knowing one's brand is important. We've dug deep into ourselves and our passions, as well as our motivation for writing. We have gotten creative and brainstormed some article or book titles, and talked about ways to stay creative and record those ideas. The timing, space and support is critical for writing as well. So the inner work is done and the logistics are lined-up. So let's get published.

Eight Ways to Get Published

Getting published is easier than you think, especially online. Within your groups of peers and colleagues, to organizations and associations you belong to, there are many opportunities to contribute. Ask colleagues for writing leads and ask your association how you can write for the newsletter or website. Check out the writing guidelines of your favorite magazines. Even though many opportunities do not pay for contributions, they will more than likely give you a byline and or short bio with your email address or website address. And that helps you get known.

We'll cover eight traditional and online-based publishing opportunities and starting points in the next two parts of this series.

  1. Start your own blog or contribute to a blog. It's a great way to get kick-start your writing and publishing goals. If you don't have you own blog, it's easy to get started. Go to http://wordpress.com, www.typepad.com, or www.blogger.com. Blogger.com is a Google product and free. Wordpress is also free, and you can actually integrate the code directly into your website. Typepad has a trial offer, then a low-cost paid service. All three are great ways to start a blog. You could literally get published around the world right after you've finished reading this article. A great little book that first inspired me about blogs was Andy Wibbel's "Blog Wild." Just choose a blogging platform, and go!

    If you're not ready to launch your own blog, contribute to other blogs or even just post comments. Start by Googling keywords about your expertise, to find blogs of interest to you. Contribute to their blog, or just comment on their postings. Be sure to include your name and/or website link within the body of the response/posting to get your name out there. (But be sure you're contributing real commentary, and not just promotional or marketing content.)
  2. Contribute to magazines or journals. Business-to-business (or trade) magazines are often accessible, especially if you have experience in their industry. Sometimes they pay, and oftentimes (especially today) they do not, but if your main goal is to get known, then compensation isn't the priority. If you've worked in accounting or human resources for example, check out CFO or Accounting Today magazines or the publications of the Society for Human Resource Management (http://shrm.org/Publications/pages/default.aspx). All publications have guidelines on how to contact the editor and submit a "query letter" or an article. Check-out the submission guidelines on the website of interesting and appropriate publications. Consider writing for your local coaching organization or ICF or even choice Magazine! (See http://choice-online.com/article-howtosubmit.html.) A magazine or newsletter article is typically 600-800 words per page, depending on the design. A magazine feature can be 3000-5000 words or more. Each magazine will provide their desired word average. Business magazines in your area of expertise are often looking for contributions. It's easier than you think.
  3. Contribute to copyright free article websites. There is a lot of free content available today for websites and newsletters especially. And there are websites that specialize in gathering and distributing free content. They provide a good opportunity for you to contribute an article that may be picked-up by many online publishers. (The kicker is that you have to provide it copyright free, and sometimes without credit.) One example is http://ezinearticles.com, where you can initially contribute up to ten articles. Otherwise Google "free content articles." This is a good venue and structure to start getting articles out in the world.
  4. Your book. Writing a traditional print book takes passion, dedication and time. It can take from four days (yes, really!) to a few years, depending on how you work. If you need a good structure to stay on track, consider a writing contest or competition. My friend Laura wrote her book in four days! She wanted a structure to write and get it done, so she joined an online writing contest that was held over a Thanksgiving weekend. It had a starting and ending time, and it was a race with fellow writers! She worked hard and wrote for four days solid, but finished her book! Also, a blog is a good structure for a book, whether you share the blog or keep it private. Each post can be a chapter or portion of your book. (A series of blog postings could also suddenly morph into a book idea.) You'll read in Blog Wild that Andy actually got the attention of a publisher through his blogging.

    So back to books: There are a number of ways to publish a book. (We'll cover self-publishing in Part Four.) The traditional method includes a book agent and/or book publisher. You can go directly to a publisher, but it's helpful to also have an agent, who will work with you on your proposal, royalties, editing, submission, etc. (Remember that an agent gets part of the book sales revenue as well as the publisher.) If you go directly to a publisher, you're on your own for the most part. But these days, publishers have good submission guidelines and forms on their websites. In most cases, you'll need the following for your book proposal: 1) A detailed outline and tables of contents of your book idea with length estimates; 2) Usually 1-3 chapters written and complete; 3) An explanation of why you think your book is unique and why you're the one to write on the topic; 4) Samples of other previously published work; 5) A marketing plan of how you will be able to help market the book. (This is where "being known" is important.) The publisher will want to know your contacts, who you know, how influential you are, and who knows you! A book proposal is a project in itself, indeed, but in the end, it will be worth it if you get a deal.

    There are many small publishers, in addition to the big names. NewPages.com has a good list of independent and university publishers. Depending on your topic, you may also want to check-out these publishers:

    Entrepreneur Press
    http://www.entrepreneur.com/houseauthors/

    Chronicle Books
    http://www.chroniclebooks.com/index/main,info/infoid,submissions

    Career Press
    http://careerpress.com/?section=submission

    Paladin Press
    http://www.paladin-press.com/submission_guidelines
So get out that idea notebook, and continue to write down your ideas, and especially, just start writing.

About our expert:

Brad Stauffer is a certified coach, speaker, trainer, writer, publisher and business owner. His companies, Stauffer Media and On the Mark Branding provide publishing consulting, and branding and marketing services for publishers and solo-entrepreneurs, respectively. He is co-founder and co-trainer of Inspired on Demand, a business development program for coaches, and other solo-biz owners. Brad was also co-owner and publisher of choice Magazine and now serves as their business coach and publishing consultant. He is a certified coach through the Coaches Training Institute, and is a Certified Dream Coach® and Certified Dream Coach® Group Leader through Dream University, and has earned his ACB designation with Toastmasters International. Currently he is President of the Western Publishing Association, and a member of the International Coach Federation and ICF-Los Angeles.

Contact: Brad@StaufferMedia.com
http://www.StaufferMedia.com

Feedback is welcome at ExpertSeries@choice-online.com

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