As you know, in September, I am running a residential life story writing course at a picturesque watermill in Tuscany. Over at The Watermill, they asked me to produce a blog for them on writing, and, being a lover of the Ten Tips type of piece, I produced this:

10 tips for writing absolutely anything

Nip over to the Watermill and take a look.

Classes run 15-22 September 2012

and

18-25 May 2013

Wendy Williams is the author of the brand new, just released, hot off the press The Globalisation of Love, a book about multicultural romance and marriage. She has lived in six different countries and worked internationally for 18 years. Canadian and with an Austrian husband, she has been married for thirteen years, lives in Vienna, Austria and has one daughter.

See: www.globalisationoflove.com.

www.Facebook.com/globalisationoflove.com

twitter @globalisationoflove

JP

Tell me about your book. What is it about? Can you describe it in just a few sentences?

WW

The Globalisation of Love is about the whirls and twirls, the quirks and perks, the frustrations and the fun of a multicultural relationship. The book is based on dozens of interviews with multicultural couples from around the world.  It includes chapters on multicultural weddings, religion, race, food, language and children. It is both humorous and factual and I include personal anecdotes from my own experience in a multicultural family.  There is a world of romance happening out there and it is all captured in The Globalisation of Love.

JP

Why did you write it?

WW

Three reasons. Firstly, globalisation has been the buzz word of the past 20 years, yet little attention is given to the most profound influence of globalisation, which is the effect it has on people. People from everywhere are falling in love with people from everywhere else. Secondly, multiculturalism is another term that is bandied about to describe some kind of pesky nuisance to society, yet multicultural couples and families are constantly increasing and becoming a social norm. Thirdly, multicultural couples, what I call GloLo couples, get a lot of negative attention, like they are all destined to fail. In fact, most GloLo couples describe their multicultural relationship and experience as enlightening, enriching and the most amazing journey to take through matrimonial life.

JP

What qualifies you to write this book?

WW

I grew up in a multicultural family – a British-Ukrainian-Canadian family. I have been married to an Austrian for 13 years and have been living and working internationally for 18 years. What really qualifies me to write the book however, is the ability to see humour in the challenges of a GloLo relationship.

JP

Why do you think your book needed to be written? What will it do for other people? How will it help? Did you have any competition?

WW

It needed to be written for two main reasons. Firstly, it is important to recognise that a multicultural relationship is inherently different than a monocultural relationship. Multicultural couples have all the issues that exist in monocultural relationships, as well as whatever colourful combination of culture, language, religion and ethnicity the couple bring into their marriage. Secondly, the book outlines the issues in a multicultural marriage, so it helps GloLo couples to identify hot spots in the relationship that are culturally based. I wanted other GloLo couples to know that they are not alone and that there is a funny side to a GloLo marriage.

Yes, there is competition. There are many wonderful books about multicultural dating and marriage however The Globalisation of Love is the first book that is deliberately written with humour and wit.

JP

Who do you think will read your book? What made you think that there was a market for it? If your book has been out for a while, what proof do you have that you were right?

WW

Multicultural GloLo couples, and their friends and family will be interested in and benefit from reading The Globalisation of Love. Almost every knows someone or is related to someone in a GloLo relationship, therefore the book has a broad appeal. It is a topic that is starting to receive more media attention on multicultural royal weddings and GloLo celebrities, so it is becoming very chic to have an international marriage.

JP

It does not matter how good a book is, or how good your writing is if no one knows about it. What steps have you taken or do you plan to take to promote your book? Are you a speaker or trainer? Do you have a blog? A website? A newsletter? Do you use Facebook, Twitter or other social media tools? What about press releases and sending out review copies and free articles? Have you had any other ideas? Which methods do you think work best and can you give me any examples?

WW

The book is literally ‘hot off the press’ so the media promotional plan is still in the design phase. I haven’t even had time to have a book launch party yet! There is a new website and blog at www.globalisationoflove.com and you can follow The Globalisation of Love on Facebook and Twitter. I will be interviewed for different ezines and radio talk shows. I also look forward to the book signing and reading events.  It is nice to be with people and talk about their experience in a GloLo relationship. All the events will be posted on the website calendar.

JP

How did you publish your book? Did you find an agent, a publisher or did you publish it yourself? Please describe your process and tell us how you found the experience. Is there anything you would definitely do again or never do again?

WW

I took a middle road between self-publishing and traditional publishing and hired a book mentor and publisher. It was the right route for me to take because I had a ‘book coach’ to help me ‘find my voice’, develop a consistent writing style and create a format for the book and then to deal with the administrative side of publishing by listing the book on Amazon and writing the press release. Writing a book takes a long time and it is also a ‘personal journey’. Having a coach along the way was a great help!

JP

What was your biggest challenge regarding the writing of your book? How have you overcome that?

WW

The biggest challenge for me is that writing a book is a lonely path to go in life. I loved conducting the interviews with GloLo couples from all over the world but I spent most of my time writing, re-writing and re-writing some more.  I overcame the lonely factor by taking my ‘office’ to the Vienna coffee shops, hotel lobbies and even Starbucks. It’s a book about people and I liked having people in the background while I worked.

JP

Now you have written this book, what has writing it done for you, your family, your self-esteem or your business?

WW

The most noticeable difference for me and my family is that since I finished writing the book, I now take weekends off!

JP

If you were to give advice to someone else who is thinking about writing a book, what would be your number one tip?

Write about something that you are passionate about and like to talk about or read about all day long.

JP

And finally, how can people buy your book, in what formats, and what does it cost? Please include any links if you have them.

WW

The Globalisation of Love is available on Amazon and via www.expatbookshop.com for €19,99. An ebook will be available soon too.

On Sunday, Doris Fuellgrabe interviewed me by the magic of video for the Expat Coach Association website. In this 54 minute film I share my journey starting with my experience, before discussing expat writing and publishing market opportunities, the main reasons expats get into writing, how the publishing industry has changed, where to focus your writing attention, how automation can help you be present in several platforms, how to go from blog to book, and when you know that a book is ‘done’. We finish up by talking a little bit about my first novel, called “Sunshine Soup,” also the featured item of their newsletter .

I have just returned from the WIN conference in Rome, followed by a blissful three days on the beautiful Lazio coast.

Back at my desk, the magic of the conference, with 950 amazing delegates this year, slowly dissipates, as reality returns.

Yet, one message came across to me loud and clear this year. So loud that it is still ringing in my ears. It was a message that seemed meant just for me as my novel, Sunshine Soup, is released into the world. Until last Friday I had decided that I simply could not justify the indulgence of writing another novel for a while. I had also realised that once an avid poet, I had not written a poem yet this year.

Nancy J Adler explained in her plenary speech that only art allows us to see real beauty. Art teaches us to pay attention to the world around us and its people, and the more we pay attention the more clarity we have in other areas of our life. An academic in international leadership at McGill university in Montreal, Nancy, has taught and written much about organisational behaviour, yet, it is her work as as an artist that has allowed her work to go deeper.

Art is about appreciating beauty. We need art and that it is fundamental to life and leadership. She reminded us of the wisdom of two great men:

• “I am not a businessman. I am an artist,” said Warren Buffet.
• “The soul never thinks without a picture,” said Aristotle.

“We need an artistic lens in order to do the things we dream of,” continued Nancy. “It is only by investing in the artistry of our humanity that we will create the peaceful, prosperous planet we deserve.”

Art has always been important. In fact, if you remember, the world’s oldest universities used to teach art and philosophy alongside the sciences. So what happened? We began to separate art and science. Yet, we all know that we need to use both the left and the right side of the brain if we are to become balanced individuals.

Nancy told us how studies were done in which trainee medical doctors were also taught history of art alongside their other work, and how doing so made their diagnoses more accurate. Why? Because they had learned to pay attention.

In the image above, you can see a piece of the original Roman Appian Way, on which I had the pleasure of walking two days ago, in Terracina. It is a beautiful piece of road, eh? And looking at it reminds me that sometimes the old ways are the best. That we cannot live without art. We must incorporate it into our lives. For me, this means writing for me  – poetry and fiction – and it means paying attention.

There, on that platform, I had it spelled out to me – it is not just that I want to write poetry and to take nature walks, paying attention as I go, I need to. There is no other way.

At WIN I made a promise to myself to write more poetry. Daily, if not weekly. Over the next few days I will share some of them here with you.

HOW TO BUY SPANISH PROPERTY AND MOVE TO SPAIN – SAFELY

NICK SNELLING

Price £14.99

Summertime

ISBN 978-1-9074-98800-24-0 pp, paperback 338pp

Moving house is a daunting and costly thing to do. However, buying a property in a foreign country, or moving there permanently, is a huge undertaking. Many people find themselves face to face with life changing problems.  Thank goodness for Nick Snelling, who has written the most comprehensive guide available. This book is for anyone and everyone who may be thinking of buying Spanish property or moving to Spain. Essential reading, the book is a critically important ‘roadmap’. Not only could it save you thousands of pounds, but it can also make the difference between your dream coming true – or not.

“Make no mistake. Of course you can buy property safely in Spain and attain your dream of living in or having a holiday home here.  However, buying property in this country is not for the faint hearted; there are many pitfalls.  Any permanent move to the country is a much more delicate process to get right than most people realise,” explains Nick.  “The key, of course, is to have first class, authoritative information, which will help to guarantee you success and happiness – whilst enabling you to maximise your budget.”

Nick Snelling is an acknowledged expert on Spanish property and life in Spain having known the country since the 1970’s.  He has lived permanently in Valencia with his family since 2003 and he has now written four books about the country together with numerous articles.  He knows the property industry intimately having worked as a management consultant to Spanish estate agents and currently runs an authority blog (www.CultureSpain.com) that provides up to date information about Spain, the culture and day to day life.

“At last, a book about Spain that tells it the way it is! Unsparing in his judgments and advice, Snelling has produced a book that is a critically important guide for anyone even considering coming to Spain. How to Buy Spanish Property and Move to Spain – Safely tells the unvarnished truth and reveals the dangers and benefits inherent in relocating or buying in Spain. Clear, concise and comprehensive, this book should be required reading . . . “

Steve Hall www.thisisspain.com

How to Buy Property and Move to Spain – Safely is released officially on 1^st October 2011, priced £14.99. Published by Summertime at Bookshaker it is for sale on Amazon worldwide in both print and Kindle formats.

For review copies, images, interviews, enquiries, extracts or original articles from the author please contact the publisher in the first instance:

publicity@summertimepublishing.com

Wait a moment while I fetch my soap box.

Saying thanks

I have just had an inspiring morning with the journalists who attend my monthly Journalists’ Support Group meetings. One of the group shared how she had been doing a number of reviews on new and interesting books and mentioning them on her blog. As all good bloggers do, she has then been tweeting about these books. As all good authors do, they have been retweeting her kind mentions. Some of them have also contacted my journalist directly and thanked her for her kindness.

Makes sense?

Of course it does.

The fact is that one of the best ways to grow your network of the nice, kind people (such as bloggers) who write about your books for free is to take the simple step of saying thank you. Saying thank you will show the nice, kind people (such as bloggers) that you are nice and kind too. And so a relationship starts to form between authors and bloggers.

The next thing that happens is that the nice, kind blogger is likely to write about your book A SECOND time.

You see …. you do business with people you like. And one way to make someone like you is to say thank you.

Authors need bloggers

If you are an author you NEED all the publicity and reviews you can get. One of the best ways to get this coverage is to make friends with bloggers, journalists and so on.

Authors need to ensure that they spot every single mention your book receives. The easiest way to ensure you don’t miss any (and thus don’t miss the chance to thank the writer and start to build that all-important relationship) is to set up a Google Alert for the title of your book and another for your name. As soon as you spot you have been mentioned zoom on over there and say thanks.

Simple, isn’t it?

You see, the harsh reality is that IF (God forbid) you do forget to thank that nice, kind blogger, then that nice, kind blogger may do one of the following:

• Forget all about you and your book and never mention it or recommend it to anyone ever again
• Think you are a miserable and ungrateful so and so
• Write about your biggest competitor instead

And you would not want that to happen, now would you?

OK, rant over. I shall now put my soapbox away.

I actually met Helen in Cyberspace just a few weeks ago. Via Twitter, I think. Being interested in all books by and for expats it was a matter of minutes before I had asked Helen for some review copies of her book for me and members of my Journalists’ Support Group. In a couple of weeks I will be interviewing her for my Writers Abroad radio show, but until then you can enjoy learning about how this expat ATCK educationalist became a publisher and produced a super and very useful book for expat kids.

Helen Maffini is an educational consultant who lives and works all over the world. The author of Sammy’s Next Move, she is passionate about helping third culture kids settle into their new environments.

Website:http://www.family-travel-scoop.com

Twitter: @HelenMaffini

LinkedIn:  Helen Maffini

JP

Tell me about your book. What is it about? Can you describe it in just a few sentences?

HM

It is the story of a snail, who travels and lives in different countries with his family. Sammy shows the emotions that are typical of ‘third culture kids’ as they learn about their next move.

JP

Why did you write it?

HM

As an education consultant I have worked with many children in International schools in the countries I have lived in. I realized that there was not a book written for these children, to help with their emotions during an overseas move. The idea came to me to write a book with the snail as the character as a snail carries his home on his back just as a TCK makes home wherever he/she lands!

JP

What qualifies you to write this book?

HM

I am a ‘third culture kid’ myself having spent 2 years in Japan as a child. I also have two of my own TCK’s, Francesca, 8 and Alexandra, 15 who have now lived in 7 and 9 countries respectively. I am an educational consultant currently studying for my doctorate, looking at emotional resilience in TCK children. I am a certified Emotional Intelligence trainer and co-author of the book Developing Children’s Emotional Intelligence.

JP

Why do you think your book needed to be written? What will it do for other people? How will it help? Did you have any competition?

HM

There is competition in that there are other books about moving etc. but I did not find any fiction book specifically dealing with the emotions of TCK on their journeys.

The main obstacle is letting people know the book is out there! I believe this book can help children about to move overseas or moving again to realize their emotions are normal and they are not alone. This book allows children to talk about their own feelings, by talking about Sammy the snail, and whether they feel the same or different.

JP

Who do you think will read your book? What made you think that there was a market for it? If your book has been out for a while, what proof do you have that you were right?

HM

My book only recently came out but I have had positive feedback so far. It will be read by children who live overseas or are going to live abroad. Some of the markets include the military families abroad, international schools and embassy families. I will also target large corporations who send many families abroad.

JP

It does not matter how good a book is, or how good your writing is if no one knows about it. What steps have you taken or do you plan to take to promote your book? Are you a speaker or trainer? Do you have a blog? A website? A newsletter? Do you use Facebook, Twitter or other social media tools? What about press releases and sending out review copies and free articles? Have you had any other ideas? Which methods do you think work best and can you give me any examples?

HM

I do send out free copies for review but only if I feel this will be useful. I have recently tried to send out the ebook instead of the print book for reviews as this does not cost me anything whereas the print book I have the costs plus postage.

I plan to target large companies, international schools and others who have large groups of children moving abroad to buy in bulk. So far there has been some interest but nothing firm.

I use these tools plus things such as email international school librarian etc to sell me books.

Facebook

Twitter

Linked In

Skype

Yes I am a trainer, mostly on emotional intelligence or school improvement. I recently started a website with my sister about travelling with children on holidays and we are also adding sections about moving abroad with children www.family-travel-scoop.com I also have a personal website at www.helenmaffini.com

JP

How did you publish your book? Did you find an agent, a publisher or did you publish it yourself? Please describe your process and tell us how you found the experience. Is there anything you would definitely do again or never do again?

HM

My first book Developing Children’s Emotional Intelligence was published through Continuum. I knew there was a gap in the market and so we wrote only a proposal for the book and sent it to the 10 largest publishers of educational books.  We had eight rejections and two acceptances.

For Sammy’s Next Move I decided to self publish as I have thought about this book for years, and planned to produce other items such as suitcases, soft toys and cards to go with the book. I wanted more control over the book and the process. I feel with self publishing I have been more successful so would definitely go that route in future.

JP

What was your biggest challenge regarding the writing of your book? How have you overcome that?

HM

The hardest part is just getting on with the publishing process. Everyone is busy and it is hard to ‘make it happen’ I had written the book 3 years before I published it as I couldn’t find a reliable artist and then had to learn the ins and outs of the self publishing business. At the same time I moved between Bahrain, The UAE, Italy and Australia so it always seemed there wasn’t enough time! I think you just have to put time aside each day and make things happen. Read as much as possible and trust your intuition.

JP

Now you have written this book, what has writing it done for you, your family, your self-esteem or your business?

HM

I see myself first and foremost as a writer. I always have. I find it therapeutic to write. Sammy’s Next Move is based loosely on my own children’s lives and moves so it has a special place in my family’s heart!

Writing has also provided a creative outlet and although it has not broke even yet I am hoping to do so by the end of year one!

It has allowed me to work from home and have more time with my children as well.

JP

And finally, how can people buy your book, in what formats, and what does it cost? Please include any links if you have them.

The PDF book can be purchased through this link, in addition there is additional information here related to TCK’s.

http://www.family-travel-scoop.com/sammys-next-move.html in PDF format for $4.99 US

The e-book is available from KINDLE  for $4.99 US ( it is also available from UK Kindle)

http://www.amazon.com/Sammys-Next-Move-ebook/dp/B004L62DDG/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&m=A24IB90LPZJ0BS&s=digital-text&qid=1309486821&sr=8-2

The printed version is $9.99 US plus shipping and is available at

https://www.createspace.com/3535841/ or from Amazon.com

In this three part series, I am delighted to introduce Linda Janssen of the award-winning Adventures in Expatland as a guest poster. Here, inspired by the amazingly successful Jack Canfield, she shares the nuggets distilled from his recent webinar into bite-sized nuggets of inspirational goodness. Today’s post, the last in the series, is all about the piece of the puzzle that most people shun – promotion! Here goes:

Getting Where you Want to Be, part III

This is the final in a three-part series based on the recent 90-minute webinar ‘How to Get Where You Want to Be as an Author/Speaker’. Steve Harrison, publisher of ‘Radio/TV Interview Report’, interviewed Jack Canfield of the highly successful Chicken Soup for the Soul franchise. Canfield generously shared his ideas and insights to help authors market and sell their books..

The ‘Chicken Soup’ franchise created by Canfield and his co-founder Mark Victor Hansen boasts 200+ titles and 115 million copies sold to date in 41 languages. Canfield is also the author of highly acclaimed training/coaching books such as The Success Principles, The Power of Focus, The Aladdin Factor and Dare to Win.

Part I highlighted some of Canfield’s core beliefs fueling his continual quest as a ‘student/practitioner of the newest and latest practices’ in marketing and publicity; Part II took a look at some of his specific suggestions for selling books. Part III offers more of his ideas to help get your book into the hands of eager buyers.

Get on the radio. ‘Books travel by word of mouth.’ Authors need publicity, and should seek out interview opportunities. Canfield recalls an interview with Scott Peck, author of the wildly best-selling The Road Less Traveled that remained on the New York Times Bestsellers List for years. Peck spoke of doing three radio interviews every day for a year; he then did one interview a day for the next ten years! It can be a few minutes during morning or afternoon ‘drive time’, but getting 30 or 60 minutes outside of prime time allows for long-form interviews. ‘You never know who’s listening.’

Canfield is a fan of late-night interviews on all-night radio stations. ‘All it takes is one listener…to start a ‘chain letter’ effect.’ The trucker driving cross-country or the insomniac hears you, is intrigued and buys your book; he or she then buys copies to give to their college student daughter or military nephew, recommends it to their next-door neighbor and best friends, and so on.

‘People are still listening to the radio, or their advertisers wouldn’t be buying ads.’ Nowadays an author can participate in a satellite radio tour while sitting in their own home; they connect to a series of radio shows via a telephone bridge, and can knock out one or two dozen short interviews of 3-5 minute duration.

Expat publisher, author and writing mentor Jo Parfitt recently started her own radio show Writers Abroad on the Women’s International Network (WIN Radio). I had the honor of being interviewed by her as a growing writer, and the response was amazing. You can listen to the show at http://www.thewinonline.com/writers-abroad

Get on television. Participating in a satellite television tour is the same concept as the radio tour. It requires you to make arrangements beforehand and then go into a local studio, but once there you can complete several interviews. You may have to start with smaller stations and build your way up, but don’t let your geographic location stand in your way.

Leverage social media. Create a website or blog, and maintain a presence on Facebook, Twitter and Linked In to facilitate sharing information and the word of mouth strategy to advertise your book(s). Conduct an internet book tour in which you visit prearranged relevant websites and chat rooms to discuss your book, or participate in a blog tour where you visit a number of blogs for short interviews or you provide a guest post.

A big tool is Bypass Marketing. Only one of seven book buyers go into a bookstore to buy a book, which means six out of seven aren’t coming to bookstores. ‘Take books to where the people are…especially anywhere people wait.’ Canfield and Hansen put books in gas stations, truck stops, bakeries, medical and dental offices, hair and nail salons, pet stores, military post exchanges, restaurants and other unusual places.

Get into a sharing mentality. If you co-author a book, ‘it’s not only less work to write and produce the book, but also to market it.’ You can cross-promote each others’ books, share mailing lists and expand publicity. If you’re an author of a single book, consider packaging yours with another author’s book that would be of interest to your audience when you sell ‘at the back of the room’ after a book signing or speech. In this way, ‘we all win bigger’.

Invest in your marketing education and become a master marketer. Canfield is a big proponent of reading books and articles, going to conferences, and taking seminars and workshops to stay on top of the latest developments. He cites Benjamin Franklin as saying ‘Pour your purse into your head’ (i.e., invest in continual learning).

‘Go beyond shelf esteem’ where you go to marketing education events and then put the handouts, materials and notes away, never to be referred to again; ‘Use what you’ve learned!’ Canfield reiterates ‘Don’t give away your responsibility for promotion and marketing to someone else…become an expert in this arena.’ Even if you do end up hiring a PR professional, you’ll know enough to oversee and augment their efforts. It is inspiring that despite enormous success, he continues to practice what he preaches.

Do the ‘hard-easy’. Make the time and energy investment  up front so that you can do the easier things later. ‘Most people give up too soon’, before they’ve really done the hard work to market their books.

Going further, faster with less effort. Learn to leverage your work to create additional products and generate more publicity. Use a syndicated column to boost public relations and sell more books. Re-purpose your book and other writing material into pod casts, articles, handouts, blog posts, or short e-books. Develop an electronically-delivered newsletter or magazine via email (e-zine) or on the internet (web-zine).

Dialing for Dollars. If you’re truly interested in becoming a sought-after speaker, you have to be speaking to the organizations and associations you’re interested in. Do your research and track down the relevant catalogue or directory for your area of expertise (e.g., Directory of Direct Selling Businesses, Harrison’s Radio & TV Interview Report, etc.), then start making calls. ‘The best way to make things happen is on the phone.’ That’s how you can demonstrate that you are a vibrant, persuasive speaker, and they can see your value.

In February I met David Beckett when he attended one of my writing seminars. Last month he launched his book, based on the people who live in the city in which he lives – Amsterdam. This book is inspirational on so many levels. Not only did David write and publish his book in a year, but he also created a book that was perfect for his local market. It is no surprise the David is a marketing man, with years in international marketing for Canon. You would expect a man like him to get so many things right – and boy does he do that!

To hear about his incredible success and share his secrets please …

listen here

In this three part series, I am delighted to introduce Linda Janssen of the award-winning Adventures in Expatland as a guest poster. Here, inspired by the amazingly successful Jack Canfield, she shares the nuggets distilled from his recent webinar into bite-sized nuggets of inspirational goodness. Today’s post is all about my favourite marketing tool of all -giving. Here goes:

Getting to Where You Want to Be, Part II

I recently had the opportunity to listen to an informative 90-minute webinar in which Steve Harrison, publisher of ‘Radio/TV Interview Report’, interviewed Jack Canfield of the Chicken Soup for the Soul franchise. The topic was ‘How to Get Where You Want to Be as an Author/Speaker’, and Canfield shared a wealth of information, insights and tips to help any author market and sell his or her book(s).

As co-founder with Mark Victor Hansen of the more than 200 titles in the ‘Chicken Soup’ franchise and author of highly acclaimed training/coaching books such as The Success Principles, The Power of Focus, The Aladdin Factor and Dare to Win, Canfield has sold more than 115 million books in 41 languages.

In Part I, I highlighted some of the core beliefs that fuel Canfield’s continual quest as a ‘student/practitioner of the newest and latest practices’ in marketing and publicity. Today we look at some of Canfield’s specific suggestions for selling books.

If you’re going to be successful, be a giver. Canfield has read The Go Giver books by Bob Burg and John David Mann, and subscribes wholeheartedly to this concept in all aspects of life. Giving begins with writing. He counsels ‘be the best you can be as a writer’; don’t be seen as an exploitative writer who throws out a mediocre product to capture the passing wave of interest on the latest trend. ‘Learn the craft of writing, put in the hours, get feedback…do the work to really write a great book.’

Identify a charity or cause to receive a portion of the proceeds. Canfield and Hansen do this regularly because the benefits are threefold. First, the charity receives financial support and public awareness. Second, ‘people love to be part of more than just buying a book’. Third, the recipient organization often starts helping to advertise or sell the books.

Give away chapters or articles for free use. Initially this may seem counter-intuitive: if you give away a key portion of your product, why would anyone buy the book? Doing so not only garners publicity and generates interest, but also establishes trust in your product. Canfield offered excerpted portions of Chicken Soup for the Parent’s Soul which ended up in more than 75 parenting newsletters across the US. The result? Tens of thousands of copies sold.

Give free talks. Most authors know to do the obvious book readings. Canfield suggests seeking out groups and organizations that might have an interest in your topic and offer to speak gratis. He is adamant that ‘the Universe always gives back tenfold.’ In addition to making sales at the back of the room after the talk, he maintains every free talk given led to selling more books or being hired for work with new companies or clients. As he puts it, ‘It is impossible to give without receiving’.

Give away your books. Canfield and Hansen read Malcolm Gladwell’s The Tipping Point , which speaks of connectors (people with a special gift for linking us up with others) and mavens (people who accumulate knowledge and ideas and share them with others). Canfield’s advice is to look for connectors and mavens, and give them your book(s). For one of their books, they gave away 2500 books to such influencers, and ended up selling half a million copies. ‘If you won’t give it away free, you’re not passionate about it.’

Become a joiner and network, network, network. ‘Get into the right room, and you’ll meet wonderful people.’ Canfield talks about the ‘power of environments’, believing that people are generally weakest in the environments of money and networks. ‘The fastest way to develop a network is by getting into one.’ Look into professional organizations, associations, conventions, conferences and seminars in your field(s) of interest (e.g., a writers’ association, expat groups, etc.). Once there, be sure to volunteer your time and efforts. Pay your dues, literally and figuratively. Sharing an amusing yet effective anecdote about passing trays of hors d’oeuvres and drinks early in his tenure with one association, he counsels ‘join the hospitality committee and work your way up.’