They say the way to make a small fortune in publishing is to start with a large one. But not for everyone. Some authors get more money from their blogs than from their royalties.

Here is how they do it.

Step One

Before you can start to monetize your blog you need traffic. You need thousands of visitors coming to your blog each month before you can expect to make money. If you sign up for our free Author Tech Tips newsletter you will get a free ebook on how to boost traffic to your blog.

The equation is simple: more traffic = more money.

Here are a few more articles to help you boost traffic:

• 5 Keys for Magnetic Blog Titles (very important!)
• 5 Things Visitors Don’t Want From Your Author Blog
• The Best Way to Track Site Statistics
• How to Track Your Author Website’s Effectiveness
• How to Track Your Message Online

Amazon Affiliates

Some authors I work with make more money from Amazon’s Affiliate program than they do from their royalties. If you have published a book and are not apart of Amazon’s Affiliate program you are missing out.

The key is to have your website that acts as a magnet. Anyone interested in your book should come to your website first. Then they click the Amazon link to buy the book. This can more than double the amount of money they make on each book.

You will need great content and great SEO for this to work. You also need to be a member of Amazon’s Affiliate program.

How to Join Amazon Affiliates

1. Sign up at affiliate-program.amazon.com. After you sign up you will see a gray bar at the top of every amazon page.
2. Find your book on Amazon.
3. Click “link to this page” on that gray bar at the top.
4. Use this link on your website. You can right click and copy link if you just want the URL and not the HTML.

Amazon gives you between 4-8% on the price of the cart. That means that if someone buys your book and another book then you get twice the commission. If they also buy a new digital camera you would make even more.

Have you ever used Amazon Affiliates? What do you think?

Recommend Other Books

Do you recommend books or other products on your website? Did you know you can make money on that as well?

The Amazon Affiliate program not only works on your own book, it works on every product on Amazon. One book I recommend a lot is Inbound Marketing: Get Found Using Google, Social Media, and Blogs. Every time I link to this book I use my special affiliate URL that Amazon provides.

Are there books related to your topic you blog visitors would appreciate? Are there other authors who write similar types of fiction?

Some blogs, like Garr Reynold’s Presentation Zen, have a list of recommended books on the sidebar. These carefully selected books not only make Garr money, they also help him build relationships with the authors of those books. Many of those authors recommended Garr’s book, Presentation Zen, on their blogs when it first came out.

Other Ways to Make Money on Your Blog

There are dozens of other ways to make money on your blog. The book ProBlogger: Secrets for Blogging Your Way to a Six-Figure Income has a lot of great advice on how to make a lot of money off your blog. That link for ProBlogger is an Amazon Affiliate link. See how easy recommending books is?

E-Books & Digital Goods

One popular way to to put together an ebook to sell for $20-$100 off your blog. The nice thing about selling ebooks and and other digital products like mp3s is that the money you make is virtually all profit. There are no paper costs or shipping costs.

E-junkie is a company that will handle all the details for you. All you need to do is upload your ebook and then e-junkie does the rest.

Premium Memberships

I’m not a big fan of this model but I have seen it used effectively. A premium membership for your blog means you set aside some content only for paying members. Then you have them pay a membership fee to get the exclusive content. This is a lot of work for you. You must create enough exclusive content to be worth the membership fee while also providing enough free content to attract more members. But if you have the time and or a lot of content people are willing to pay for this can be a great deal.

What do you think?

• Do you make money off your author blog?
• How do you do it?
• Have you had good luck with Amazon Affiliates?

Related posts:

1. 6 Things Readers Want from Your Author Website
2. How Connect Your Blog to Facebook
3. Why Your Blog Should Be Your Book’s First Draft
4. 5 Things Visitors Don’t Want From Your Author Blog
5. 7 Blogs Every Author Should Follow

If you’ve been reading Author Tech Tips, you know the importance of having a successful web presence. Usually that means having a website. But a website alone is not enough.

As writers, we’re writing the web content ourselves, but writing web content is its own skill. In some ways writing for the web is very different than writing for print.

Here’s how to make your web content fit your work and the internet medium.

How the internet is the same as print.

Believe it or not, the web is not entirely different than paper.

Fit the theme of your book.

If you’re writing a business book, your content should be intelligent and professional. If you’re writing sci-fi, it should be creative and quasi-scientific. If you’re writing articles for men’s lifestyle magazines, make it masculine. Whatever kind of business you’re trying to attract, your website content needs to be, on page one, a demonstration of your ability to deliver that style.

Provide value.

A lot of author websites are completely self-serving: “Hey, this is me. This is more about me. This is my book. Click here to buy my book!”

People don’t want to read that.

Instead, include the key premise of your book right up front. Use the website as a platform to further the cause about which you’re writing. Maybe even give your book away. If it’s fiction, you might create an online community by writing blog posts as the novel’s characters.

As you weave your message/story into the website, you reinforce your brand.

How the net is different.

Here are some key points you must know if you are having a hard time attracting attention online.

Make your text skimmable.

Online, people avoid reading long paragraphs. They want quick nuggets of information. Make it easy for them to find what they’re looking for:

• Edit ruthlessly. Say everything in fewer words.
• Include headlines to introduce every topic.
• Bold the important stuff.
• Use lists (bullets/numbers) and paragraphs to break it up visually.

Make your writing searchable.

You want to rank high on google. If you don’t know how to write search engine friendly content, take a couple of hours to learn at least the basics. Although it’s not the most important factor in search engine optimization, your content is the foundation without which the rest is built.

• Find your keywords and include them. Sometimes the wording will be awkward, but with practice you learn to rewrite your sentences to include keyword phrases.
• Include your keywords in headlines and bolded phrases.
• Hyperlinks should always include keywords. Never link something with the words “click here”.

Make your site shareable.

The magic behind the web is the ability for ideas to spread quickly. As Seth Godin says, “ideas that spread, win.” Blog posts that spread, win too.

You want to make it as easy as possible for people to share your writing with others. If you notice at the top of each post on Author Tech Tips we have a Retweet Button. At the bottom of each post we have links to share the post via Facebook, Email and Digg.

If this is your first time here, chances are you came because someone clicked one of these buttons and shared this article with you. If you are concerned about people stealing your work we encourage you to read our post: Authors: Piracy is Not Your Enemy.

Related posts:

1. A Ninja Writing Guide – For Authors Who Want to Blog
2. Top 5 Blog Title Mistakes Authors Make
3. 8 Quick Search Engine Optimization Tips:
4. Why Your Blog Should Be Your Book’s First Draft
5. 5 Things Visitors Don’t Want From Your Author Blog

One great way to improve your writing is to learn from the best.

Here are seven blogs that not only are good examples of excellent blogging but will also help you hone your craft and sell more books.

We recommend that you subscribe to these blogs through RSS. If you don’t know what RSS is then check out our helpful guide. We have also provided a place to subscribe by email if you are just not ready for RSS.

Blog #1 Michael Hyatt

• Address: MichaelHyatt.com
• Why? Michael is the CEO of one the biggest publishing houses and he has great insight on the industry and how it is changing.
• Subscribe: by RSS by Emial by Twitter by Facebook

Blog #2 Seth Godin

• Address: SethGodin.typepad.com
• Why? Seth Godin is one of the most popular bloggers on the web. He is a good example of how to blog well. He  has great advice on how to market your book, yourself and your ideas.
• Subscribe: by RSS by Emial by Twitter by Facebook

Blog #3 Copyblogger

• Address: CopyBlogger.com
• Why? CopyBlogger is the best site for learning how to write good blog posts. Not only will following this blog (and reading the most popular posts) improve the quality of your blog posts but your overall writing as well. Highly recommended.
• Subscribe: by RSS by Emial by Twitter by Facebook

Blog #4 There Are No Rules

• Address: blog.writersdigest.com/norules
• Why? Not only does Jane Friedman give great advice on writing she also collects the best tweets from the week and posts them on Fridays. She follows Twitter so you don’t have to.
• Subscribe: by RSS by Emial by Twitter by Facebook

Blog #5 Rachelle Gardner

• Address: cba-ramblings.blogspot.com
• Why? Rachel is a literary agent who has great advice on how to improve your writing, get an agent, and find a publisher.
• Subscribe: by RSS by Emial by Twitter by Facebook

Blog #6 Author Tech Tips

• Address: AuthorTechTips.com
• Why? We help authors timid about technology. Our goal is to make promoting your work online easier and more fun. We also cover some industry news as it relates to technology.
• Subscribe: by RSS by Emial by Twitter by Facebook

Blog #7 Wild Fire Marketing

• Address: wildfiremarketing.blogspot.com
• Why? Rob Eagar specializes in helping authors sell tons of books. His blog has practical advice from speaking to radio to how to execute a successful book signing. Also, check out his guest posts for Author Tech Tips.
• Subscribe: by RSS by Emial by Facebook

Bonus Blogs

Ok so there are more than 7 great blogs for authors. Here are some more you should check out.

• Advanced Fiction Writing (highly recommended!)
• Kill Zone (Thriller Writers Blog)
• Pro Blogger
• Newbies Guide to Publishing
• The Writer’s Keep
• So You Wanna Be Published?
• The Beacon Blog for Writers
• Vonda Skelton

What do you think? Are there any good blogs we missed? Post them below in the comments.

Related posts:

1. Author Interview: Mary DeMuth
2. Why Your Blog Should Be Your Book’s First Draft
3. How Blogging Got Me Published
4. 5 Things Visitors Don’t Want From Your Author Blog
5. How to Write for the Web (a guide for authors who learned on typewriters)

In this post author Renae Brumbaugh tells how her blog took her from unpublished stay at home mom to the published author of multiple books.

This is not rocket science. You can do this too.

Renae’s Story

Man. I sure wish I could see my name on one of these books, I thought to myself as I browsed the titles on the bookstore shelf. Sure, I could wish as much as I wanted. But I didn’t really believe it could happen to me.

Sound familiar?

My thoughts echoed the thoughts of millions of other wanna-be writers. I wanted to be published. I just didn’t know how to make it happen.

Then in 2007, I attended a writers’ conference. There I was told that every writer should have a blog. I didn’t even know what a blog was! So I went home and typed, “What is a blog?” into my search engine. Blogger.com came up, and before I knew it, I had my very own blog. I named it Morning Coffee.

I had no idea what to write on my blog. I mean, my life just isn’t that interesting! I couldn’t see writing about my piles of laundry or my less-than-thrilling weekly menu. After giving it a little thought, I decided to write devotionals.

But that was too hard. There are simply too many great passages to choose from! Every day I spent more time deciding which passage to write about than I spent actually writing. Finally I said, “Enough. I’m going to make this easy.”

I opened my Bible to my favorite book: James. I started with chapter one, verse one, and began blogging my way through the book. Before long, I started getting encouraging comments and e-mails. “This is great! You should turn this into a book!”

Yeah, right, I thought. But little did I know, God had plans for my little blog.

I wrote up a query and sent it to every publisher that accepted devotional books. Every single one. Within a few weeks, I had interest from three publishers. I sent them each a full proposal. It was rejected by two of them. It was accepted by one: Chalice Press. And it only takes one!

The discipline of starting a blog and posting faithfully has been life-changing for me. Since signing the contract for Morning Coffee with James, I have sold more than two hundred articles, have developed a syndicated humor column, have been given contracts for eight other books, and have contributed to various compilations. And it all started with a blog.

Blogging Tips

If you are a wanna-be writer – like I was just a few years ago – I’d like to offer some tips:

• Be humble. Take advice from the pros. They really do know what they’re talking about.
• Attend writers’ conferences, read books about writing and publishing, join a writer’s group. Follow the advice you’re given.
• Start a blog.
• Post faithfully. Even if no one ever reads it, even if it doesn’t turn into a book, the simple act of writing every day will cause more growth than you can imagine.
• Keep writing. Keep posting, even if no one ever leaves a single comment. You never know what may come of it!

Related posts:

1. Author Interview: Mary DeMuth
2. 3 Baby Steps to Get Your Book Published (for those who don’t know where to start)
3. 7 Blogs Every Author Should Follow
4. 7 Differences Between Published & Unpublished Authors
5. Why Your Blog Should Be Your Book’s First Draft

So you want to promote your blog on Facebook?

Learn how to update your friends when you have new posts and make it easy for them to spread the word about your blog.

In this post you will learn how to make this happen automatically.

The Hard Way

The hard way to promote your blog on Facebook is not really all that hard. You just have to manually click “share” for each post. If you are not sure how to do that check out our guide to sharing links on Facebook.

The Easy Way

The easy way is actually a bit more work at first. It involves connecting your blog to Facebook. But, once connected everything runs in the background. Automatically. That’s the AuthorTech way… minimum work in the long run.

So here is how to do it:

Step #1 Sign up For NetworkedBlogs

NetworkedBlogs is a Facebook app that connects your blog to Facebook. It will also let you follow other blogs like Author Tech Tips.

Once you visit the NetworkedBlogs app page on Facebook you will need to click “allow” shown above.

Step #2 Pick Popular Blogs to Follow (optional)

Network blogs will now show you a list of popular blogs and suggest that you follow five. You can easily unfollow a blog and you may find one you like. When you are done look for the big next button at the bottom of the page. You won’t find Author Tech Tips featured as a popular blog but you can still follow it.

Step #3 Follow Blogs Your Friends Follow (optional)

NetworkedBlogs will now show you a list of blogs your friends follow. Like in step #2 you don’t need to follow any of these blogs if you don’t want to. When you are done browsing look for this link at the bottom of the page.

Once you click on it you will go to the NetworkedBlogs homepage which is where the real magic happens.

Step #4 Add Your Blog to Facebook

Once at the NetworkedBlogs Homepage you will want to add your blog. It is as easy as clicking on the button shown below.

Once you add your blog you you need to type up your blog’s information.

This is fairly straight forward. Try to pick topics people will search for. This will help boost your blogs visitors.

Fill out all in info underlined in red. You will then get an offer to join Trackle. You probably want to decline this offer. Trackle will email you every day if you accept.

Step #5 Verify Your Blog

Once you add your blog to Facebook you need to prove it is actually your blog.

There are two ways to do this:

1. You can add a widget to your blog
   • Benefit: The advantage to using the widget is that it can help you turn blog visitors into blog subscribers. Not everyone has an RSS Reader but most everyone is on Facebook. You can see what the widget looks like by looking at our sidebar. –>
2. You can get 10 friends to vouch for you.
   • Benefit: Getting your friends to vouch for you is that they will likely become your first 10 blog followers.)

The Author Tech Tips recommendation is to do both. Ask you friends to verify you and then while you are waiting go ahead and add the widget.

Was This Helpful?

• If you get stuck leave a comment and we will help you get unstuck.
• If it worked leave a comment and let us know. Or better yet rating for Author Tech Tips on Networked Blogs.
• Feel free to leave a link to your blog and show off your NetworkedBlogs widget in the comments.

Related posts:

1. How to Create a Facebook Page in 3 Easy Steps
2. How to Get Twitter to Update Your Facebook Status
3. How to Sync Your Address Book With Facebook
4. How to Pick The Right Facebook Page Title
5. 7 Ways to Integrate Facebook into your Online Platform

Did you know that sharing a website on Facebook is as easy as one click? All you need to know is where to click. This post will teach you just that.

The key to the one click share is to find the “little blue Facebook F” icon. Sometimes you need ot know where to look for it.

This is what to look for:

Sometimes the icon is just text.

Ever wanted to share a YouTube video with your Facebook friends. Here is how.

Youtube decided to use the word “Facebook” (shown above) instead of the icon. Works just the same.

Click it and then Facebook will post the video to your wall and then update your status feed with a link to the video. Better yet you get your own private discussion area where you and your firends can discuss the video.

Sometimes the icon is green.

Sometimes you need to find a little green ShareThis icon instead of the little blue F. Clicking this icon will pop up a small window with several share options one of which is Facebook (shown above).

Sometimes the icon is faded.

Sometimes the little blue F will be faded out (shown above). It still works its just not as flashy this way.

Sometimes the icon is orange.

Sites like the New York Times use an orange “Share” button that will pop out several choices includeing the little blue F. Leave it to the New York Times to make you click twice.

Can’t Find the little blue F?

You can also add a Facebook bookmarklet to your browser that can let you share pages without the little blue F.

Now Go Practice!

That’s it! Now go practice. You are welcome to practice by trying to find the correct blue F on this page :-)

Related posts:

1. 7 Ways to Integrate Facebook into your Online Platform
2. Is Facebook A Fad?
3. How Connect Your Blog to Facebook
4. How to Sync Your Address Book With Facebook
5. How to Create a Facebook Page in 3 Easy Steps

Mistake #1 Descriptive

When you were in school your teacher probably taught you the purpose of a title was to describe your writing. Your teacher was wrong. Descriptive titles are boring.  The purpose of a title is to tell readers why they should bother to read your article.

The Internet uses tags and categories to describe content. Don’t waste title space describing content too. People do need to know what they are clicking on. So, describe the value of your content. This is a subtle difference that changes everything.

• Bad Title: Baby Boomers & Social Security
• Better Title: Why Baby Boomers Don’t Deserve Social Security
• Best Title: You tell me by leaving a comment

Mistake #2 Lack of Focus

Many titles give you no clear idea what the blog is about. While the titles avoid describing the content they also avoid describing the value of the content.

Burst Blog has a good list of unfocused titles and how to make them better:

• Bad: “Breaking News”
• Good: “Iowa Caucus: Prognostications, Results and Breaking News“

• Bad: “Month/Year in Review”
• Good: “Year in Review: Best Homebuilding Products of 2007″

• Bad: “Weekly Book Review”
• Good: “Book Review: How The Dead Dream by Lydia Millet”

Mistake #3 Too Clever

So someone sends out a Tweet that says “Who’s Your Daddy (link)”. Are you going to click that? Maybe. But  you have no idea why you should bother to read the post. Clever is good. Too clever is fail.

• Bad Title: Who’s Your Daddy
• Better Title: Is Satan Your Daddy?
• Best Title: You tell me by leaving a comment

Mistake #4 Generic

Generic titles are like clever titles but without the clever. Giving a post the title “Follow Me” will not get anyone to click.

• Bad Title: Follow Me
• Better Title: How I’m Going to Change the World & Why You Should Help
• Best Title: You tell me! Leaving a comment.

Mistake #5 Cliche

If other people are using the title don’t use it too. Even if its the greatest title ever if you’ve already seen it so has everyone else. Your an author you can think up something original.

• Bad Title: Shock & Awe
• Better Title: 5 Things that Shocked me senseless
• Best Title: You tell me! Leave a comment below.

If you want ideas on how to write titles that will draw people in check out our post on Magnetic Blog Titles.

What do you think?

What makes a blog title bad? What do you think would be better titles for the examples above. If the title is too vague feel free to come up with your own content.

Related posts:

1. 5 Things Visitors Don’t Want From Your Author Blog
2. How to Pick The Right Facebook Page Title
3. 5 Keys for Magnetic Blog Titles
4. How Connect Your Blog to Facebook
5. A Ninja Writing Guide – For Authors Who Want to Blog

7 Reasons To Blog Your Book First

1. You start building a platform right away.

Platform is the first thing publishers look for. No platform? No contract. Your platform is how many people listen to you on a somewhat regular basis. As you blog regularly you will gather a faithful group of readers which will be the beginning of your platform.

2. You find out what connects and what doesn’t.

When you write you have no idea what people like and what they won’t. Your editor can help, but you are both shooting in the dark. On a blog the stats show what connects with your audience. More importantly, you find out what doesn’t connect. Your book will dramatically improve if you remove the boring content.

3. Blogging allows you to enhance your message with media.

Is there a video that helps you prove a  point? If you have a blog you can embed it. Try that with a paper book.

Click here to view the embedded video.

4. Your message gets out right away.

The publishing industry moves at the speed of a blind turtle. If everything goes well, it will be years before it hits store shelves. And that is if you work hard and get all the right breaks. If you want to reach people tomorrow start blogging today.

5. Your blog creates a rally point for your following.

Assuming you spend the $20 a year to buy YourBlogName.com, you will be able to use your blog as the center of your platform. Got a radio interview? Push your blog. Writing an article for a magazine? Put your blog in your bio. As people come to your blog and subscribe you get their permission to contact them when your book comes out.

6. You get instant feedback.

The comments you get on your blog will help you find logical flaws, and answer people’s questions and objections before they have them. Did something not make sense? The commentators will let you know.

7. Your blog will boost your credibility.

As an unpublished author it can be hard to build credibility. But, if you are the editor of YourBlogName.com suddenly people will treat you like the expert. The key is to have your blog on YourName.com. A free blog will not boost your credibility. You need your own domain name.

Will a publisher buy my writing if it’s published online?

In a word, “yes.” I have clients who have sold their blog’s as books and can point to many bestselling books that were blogs first. Free is not your enemy. Obscurity is your enemy.

Your book will have exclusive content. Save some of your nuggets for your book. Plus, everything in your book will be edited and focused. Remember all those stats and comments from benefit #6? They will help you hone your message. Plus, your editor will add value to the book by cleaning up your language.

What do you think?

Do you think this will work? Do you know someone who has sold their blog to a publisher? Do you have a blog you want to get published?

Related posts:

1. 7 Differences Between Published & Unpublished Authors
2. How to Make Money With Your Author Blog
3. 3 Baby Steps to Get Your Book Published (for those who don’t know where to start)
4. How Blogging Got Me Published
5. How Connect Your Blog to Facebook

Whether you’re an author, speaker, or publisher, your goal is to sell more books and spread your message. But, how do you know if your message is really spreading? How do you track the success of your book marketing and platform-growth efforts?

Whether you’re an author, speaker, or publisher, your goal is to sell more books and spread your message. But, how do you know if your message is really spreading? How do you track the success of your book marketing and platform-growth efforts?

There are several obvious factors you could use, such as increased book sales, speaking engagements, or newsletter subscribers. In this article, however, I want to share two little-known services that you can use for free to help gauge your book marketing effectiveness.

Google Analytics

Your website is your most important book marketing tool in today’s economy. But, many authors fail to utilize the power of the Internet. Instead, they settle for a barebones website, rarely update the content, forget about it, and wonder why book sales are sluggish.

In contrast, you can use your website to your advantage. And, there’s a great tool that can help called, Google Analytics. This is a free service available at: www.Google.com/Analytics Once you create your account, Google generates a specific piece of computer code that you embed on each of your webpages. It’s a simple task, but if you’re unfamiliar with html code, then ask your webmaster or designer for help.

After your code is setup, Google automatically begins to track all of your website statistics and provide insightful reports. Here’s why it’s so cool. According to Google, their service shows you how people found your site, how they explored it, and how you can enhance their visitor experience. They provide reports that identify important information, such as:

• How many unique visitors come to your website
• Where each visitor comes from
• How long people stay at your website
• Why they leave and which pages are popular
• What keywords people use to find your website

For instance, knowing what keywords drive readers to your website is invaluable. You can use that data to adjust your site in ways to help boost web traffic and grow your author platform. In addition, Google Analytics can help you improve your website’s return on investment, increase conversions, and make more money selling products.” Sure, the making more money part isn’t as easy as it sounds, but Google can at least point you in the right direction.

Until recently, website analytics software was really expensive. But, thanks to Google, it’s free. So, if you’re struggling to make your website work for you, consider this service.

TitleZ.com

If you’re an author who loves to peek at your book’s Amazon ranking, then you’re going to love this next tool. There’s a free service still in beta testing called TitleZ, which allows you to analyze the sales trends of books based on data compiled from Amazon’s sales rankings. The current database contains sales history information for over 500,000 titles. And, if your book isn’t currently being tracked, you can easily add it to their database.

TitleZ lets you analyze sales for an individual title, a specific author or publisher, or even an entire segment. The sales history of titles is broken down into seven-day, 30-day, 90-day, and lifetime averages. Plus, you can compare the sales trends of several books against each other.

I like this service, because you can also track your book’s sales history over time, even down to a particular date. This ability allows you to see if a specific media interview or marketing initiative created a spike in book sales.

Since Amazon’s sale rankings are not totally accurate, do not get obsessed with their numbers. Amazon is just one small slice of your book’s total sales. But, it can be one way to track your book’s overall success. For instance, you could check your “lifetime average” ranking and compare that with this chart on my blog for a rough estimate of Amazon sales.

Amazon isn’t the most reliable book sales tracking tool. But, since it’s almost impossible to get current sales information from bookstores and publishers, TitleZ.com can be a useful resource. Take advantage of this free service before they start charging for it.

Related posts:

1. How to Track Your Author Website’s Effectiveness
2. The Best Way to Track Site Statistics
3. How To Setup Google Analytics on WordPress (Video)
4. 6 Things Readers Want from Your Author Website
5. Why Your Blog Should Be Your Book’s First Draft

Little arm hairs raise on end. Bumps form on my skin, desperately struggling to retain its warmth. It’s freezing in this room as I type away on the computer. I want to be in bed! If only that guy standing next to the refrigerator hadn’t asked me to write a ninja writing guide. This one’s for you, Thomas…

1. Have something to say before you write.

Did abuse in your life start your fire to bring healing to women? Do you love soccer more than any sport in the world? Does political drama make your blood congeal and fester? Can fart noises bring us world peace? Decide what fuels your passions and plan to write about it. Even better, make sure it’s something that someone else cares about. Once you’ve done that, don’t think about it for a while. Clear it from your brain. Now you’re ready to write.

2. Start out with a powerful opening.

Any one will do. The key is to grab the reader’s attention long enough so that he or she greatly desires to find out what comes next. It doesn’t even have to be about your subject matter. You can pick the first exciting image that comes to mind. Really. Try it! Just write down whatever pops into your head. It’ll get you started.

3. Connect the first sentence you wrote to the topic you want to write about.

Your brain will figure it out. I always prove this to the students in the workshops I teach by taking one of their introductions and then challenging them to give me any topic to connect to it. They love throwing out the most contrasting topics, and I love quickly writing a sentence that links the two together. As long as you have an image-rich introduction, you’ll be able to grab an image from it and use it to compare or contrast another image by your subject matter. Kids learn this in 5 minutes, so don’t try to prove me wrong.

4. Use specific facts

Specific facts satisfy the analytical part of your reader’s brain, confirm in their minds that you know what you’re talking about and allow them to focus on connecting with you emotionally. If you don’t use enough facts, you’ll sound like a vapid beauty pageant contestant or a manipulative politician. If you use too many facts, your nasal voice will scream “Poindexter know it all” and cause eyes to sleep deeply and dream of some interesting writing.

5. Use interesting verbs

Interesting verbs jolt a reader’s eyes wide and flood their senses with attentive joy, while big adjectives overload and confuse the mind with too many, non-specific, organic, difficult-to-process electrical, synapses. If you want to resurrect the dead, massacre the living or soar the heavens of imagery, embrace verbs.

6. Don’t say everything that comes to your mind.

If you do, you’ll pry butterflies from cocoons and kill your audience’s imagination. Great writers know what to leave out and let the reader figure out the rest. I don’t have to describe the minutiae of John F. Kennedy’s smile orCharles Mansonis eyes to bring their respective charm or murderous intent into your room. One small mention connects all your feelings about them to the story and gives your thoughts license to paint in the blank spots of canvas. Let your passion and life lessons boil underneath your writing and draw your audience to discover the mystery that churns beneath the surface.

7. Connect the end to the beginning with added evidence of transformation.

You score extra points for making it an even more powerful mental image than your opening. Every great speech or piece of writing does it. From the Gettysburg Address to I Have a Dream to Ich bin ein Berliner, great writing and great speeches end with a powerful mental image that refers to the beginning and goes beyond it. It’s part of our desire not only to participate in a journey, but accomplish something through it, even if it’s not positive.

8. Edit what you wrote.

You haven’t finished yet. It didn’t come out perfect the first time. People who think that are idealistic morons who will aspire to mediocre writing. Even God wrote the ten commandments twice (although to be honest Moses broke the first ones, necessitating the 2nd draft). You should find plenty of opportunities to remove unnecessary words, replace boring words with exciting ones, improve your work’s rhythm and cut out whole sections, if necessary. If you can’t find the courage to be that harsh with your precious masterpiece, get someone else to examine its attributes and save you from exposing your rough draft to the piercing stares of a critical world.

If you really want to take your writing a step further, find one activity that allows you to assemble a whole out of more parts than a formula can define, and then find a different activity where spontaneity and improvisation cause you to do things outside your comfort zone. James Michener prescribed ceramics and rhythmic dancing, in Chapter 10 of his book, This Noble Land. Cooking and funky white boy dancing both unwittingly preceded my writing explosion. Whichever ones you choose, don’t just think about them. Some things you can only discover while in the act.

This may not qualify as The Ninja Writing Guide, but it will improve the words you glue on a page. No qualifications will prepare you for the actual steps of risk you face. But taking them puts muscles on bones, skin on corpses and brings armies to life that can change the world.

I get goose bumps just thinking about the power of words. It’s either that, or I’m just freezing in this room, and I need to go to sleep.

Related posts:

1. How to Write for the Web (a guide for authors who learned on typewriters)
2. 5 Keys for Magnetic Blog Titles
3. Top 5 Blog Title Mistakes Authors Make
4. Why Your Blog Should Be Your Book’s First Draft
5. How Blogging Got Me Published

Mary DeMuth is an author, writing coach, and sought after speaker who speaks at writers conferences all over the country.

In this interview she shares how she uses social media (Blogging, Twitter & Facebook) to sell books and connect with readers.

What is your blogging story? When did you start blogging and when/why did you start your other blogs?

I initially started blogging when we moved to France as church planters. I thought it would be a great way to keep in touch with folks back home. I enjoyed it so much, and started creating a following immediately. That was the fall of 2004 with RelevantBlog.

How much traffic do your blogs get?

Combined, about 30,000-50,000 visitors a month.

How did you promote your blog at first? Has that changed now?

It was just my own networks plus our email distribution list that first drove people to my blog. Now I promote primarily by writing comments elsewhere, adding Feedblitz, and advertising through my updates on Twitter and Facebook. I’d say the latter is what drives the most significant traffic these days.

You have a robust online presence (Twitter, Facebook, etc). What role does your blog play in connection with those other sites?

An intrinsic one. I promote my blogs through Twitter. I have three blogs: Wanna Be Published, My Family Secrets, and RelevantBlog. Whenever I post to the blog, I write an intriguing teaser and a link on Twitter. I also promote other people’s blogs so I’m not a me-monster.

Does your blog help you connect to readers or sell more books? If so how?

Yes, absolutely. I’ve met plenty of new readers through social networking. They say it takes about 5-7 touches before a consumer will make a purchase of your product. Blogging, facebooking and twittering provide several touches at once. One time, a guy with my last name bought a novel for his mother, simply because he found me on Twitter (because of our name). So, you just never know!

What would you recommend to hopeful authors who want to start a blog?

1. Have a purpose for your blog.
2. Be interesting.
3. Be consistent in posting. Don’t orphan your fan base by being gung ho a few weeks and then dribbling off to nowhere.
4. Advertise through your social media networks.
5. Write inviting posts that aren’t too long.

Related posts:

1. Social Media & Authors – An Interview with Dave Evans
2. 7 Ways to Integrate Facebook into your Online Platform
3. 6 Things Readers Want from Your Author Website
4. Is Facebook A Fad?
5. 7 Twitter People Every Author Should Follow

Google analytics answers the who visits your site, when they visit and even why they visit.

This post has a video that explains Google Analytics in clear easy language. And it has a pause button if you want to follow along.

How To Setup Google Analytics on WordPress

This video gives you step by step instructions on how to install google analytics on your self hosted wordpress blog.

Related posts:

1. The Best Way to Track Site Statistics
2. How to Track Your Message Online
3. How to Track Your Author Website’s Effectiveness

Stop using google image search. Using those images is often illegal and they are not the best images anyway.

Here are a dozen sites that are better and legal.

1. Stock Exchange

Of all of the stock photo sites on the web sxc.hu is the best. It has high quality free stock photos. But be careful. The first row of photos cost money. Clicking on them will take you to a different site where you have to pay. Most of the photos we use here at AuthorTechTips.com come from sxc.hu.

2. Flickr Creative Commons

Flickr has a huge selection of photos mane of which are protected under the Creative Commons which means you can use them legally as long as you attribute the photographer.

3. EveryStockPhoto.com

Every Stock Photo searches several other stock image sites for you. It does not filter offensive images, so use with caution.

4. MorgueFile.com

Morgue File has many photos that you are free to use commercially without attributing the photographer. The photos are mostly snapshots and not true stock photos.

5. FreeStockPhotos.com

Not only does Free Stock Photos have some great nature photos it also has a list of over a dozen other free stock photo sources.

6. IconsPedia.com

Icons Predia has the best selection of free icons. If you want to add a cool Twitter Bird to your website this is the first place to look.

7. BiblePlaces.com

If you need biblical photos BiblePlaces.com is a great place to start.

8. NASA

I’m not sure how this happened but if the U.S. government takes a photo they often release it into the public domain. If you want high quality technology or space photos you can’t do much better than NASA.  

9. StockVault.net

StockVault has 13,000+ high quality stock photos. The photos are high quality but low selection. The site does not offer safe search so use at your own risk.

10. FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Freedigitalphotos.net has high quality photos but the selection is not great and the terms of use require a link back to use the photo for free.

11. FreePhotosBank.com

FreePhotosbank has a lame selection of mediocre photos.

12. HistoricalStockPhotos.com

If you want vintage photos Historical Stock Photos is the site for you. Don’t expect much color here.

Related posts:

1. 9 Premium Stock Photo Sites
2. How to Get Your Avatar to Show Up Everywhere
3. 8 Quick Search Engine Optimization Tips:
4. How This Little Orange Icon Can Save You Time

Most blog titles are about as magnetic as a skunk. Learn how to write titles for your blog posts that will pull in more readers.

#1 Focus on Benefits

Your readers don’t care about you. They are asking “whats in it for me.” Answer that question in the title and they will read on.

Examples:

• 7 Ways to Send More Traffic to Your Website During a Radio Interview
• How to Get Twitter to Update Your Facebook Status
• How This Little Orange Icon Can Save You Time

#2 Tease

Curiosity is a powerful motivation.  Perk your reader’s interest. If you can make your reader curious they will read on. Contradict a known fact. Challenge an accepted authority. Make your reader question himself.

Examples: