PayPal Makes It Easy ...

But be careful: If you'd like to take credit and debit card orders for your book(s) but don't want to pay the freight for a credit-card merchant account, PayPal is a viable option. PayPal has several plans available, which can be both confusing and helpful. And you should also be aware that there are many complaints on the web about PayPal, most from merchants rather than consumers and many of the complaint sites seem to be supported by a competing merchant provider. Several of our clients are using it to take credit card orders and like it. One of them, Scott Mares (author of The Complete Book of Cyclocross) found that Yahoo web hosting made PayPal a particularly convenient option for his bookselling site. The Publishing Pro.

In Tough Times, Publish.

... Or perish: The old expression from academia applies in the business world today. Even though the world seems to be constricting, this is a good time to publish. In fact, publishing may be the difference between your success and failure. Here's why:

• In tough times, people want help. In fact, they are desperate for it. If you've got something to say that will change their lives, say it now--when your audience is most interested in listening.
  
• In tough times, you have to be better. You can't be lazy. You must be focused. You have to know your audience, know what they need, and know how you can meet that need. In tough times, you are more likely to produce a great book.
  
• In tough times, your book can be the difference in your business, ministry, or work. The right book builds your credibility and your brand, gets you more business, makes you desirable as a speaker, and is a profit center in its own right. The right book may even make you attractive to an employer.
• In any times, publishing a book--if you do it right--is low risk. Nowadays, you don't have to dump your money into inventory. You can print as you go. Moreover, you can adjust on the fly.

Let us tell you how to make your project a success, especially in these times. The Publishing Pro.

Join Our Author's Meet-up!

Reach your audience: I'd like to form a Colorado Springs "authors' meet-up" This would differ from a "writers' group," which typically focuses on the introverted part of the publishing process. Instead, we would focus on the extroverted side of things--the selling, the marketing, the reaching out to your audience--what I call "authoring." Early feedback suggests that we charge a modest fee, maybe $5.00 for would-be authors and $1.00 for anyone who brings their published (traditional- or self-). The reason for the distinction is that published authors would be able to share their experience, strength, and hope. We've settled on the first Monday of the month, time and place. still to be determined. This is a great opportunity to get free coaching and support, both from me and participants. Contact me if interested. (If you are interested in this sort of thing but live outside of the area, let me know. There are virtual ways to meet.) The Publishing Pro.

Do-It-Yourself Typography: Double Space

It's a New Era: In the typewriter era, good style required you to put two spaces after a period. Typewriters used "monospaced" fonts, meaning that every letter or glyph took up the same width. With monospaced fonts, two spaces after a period looked better and we're needed to set off a sentences from each other. When we moved into the computer era, more than two decades ago now, most fonts in common use are variable-width. These fonts look better when you use only one space after a period.

Even so, a surprising number of people keep to the habit of inserting two spaces after a period. This either makes more work for your desktop publisher, who will eliminate them, or will leave your book looking a little amateurish if your desktop publisher doesn't better than to eliminate all those extra spaces.--The Publishing Pro, LLC