Adventures in PubSmart (part five) by Kate Tilton

by Adventures in YA Publishing

My favorite session of the PubSmart conference, Authorpreneurship, covered how to get money for publishing, where you should spend it, and why you (the author) should value yourself and what you do. This panel flowed in an all-in-one package that I summed up for you below. No matter where you are in your publishing journey this session will help you.

If you are new to this PubSmart series please take a minute to check out the first parts of the series; IBPA’s Mini Publishing University, Social Savvy & Media Mastery, What Does It Mean to Publish? by Jane Friedman and Insights from Bestselling Author Hugh Howey. You’ll be glad you did!

Session

Authorpreneurship: From Cost-Planning to Funding to Reinvestment
Speakers: Amanda Barbara (PubSlush), C. Hope Clark (Funds for Writers), Miral Sattar (BiblioCrunch), Orna Ross (ALLi), Kathy Meis (Bublish, moderator)

How to fund your book, where to spend the funds, and why you should value yourself and your work.

Crowdfunding is the process of funding a project/venture by raising small amounts of money from many sources.
Using a crowdfunding platform designed for books only like PubSlush allows you to gain marketing analytics for future marketing efforts.
7 tips for crowdfunding success: pre-campaign research, know your audience, target, don’t be timid, be personal and make it easy, update your supporters, and offer enticing rewards.
Don’t send your crowdfunding campaign to your email list when it is sitting at zero; first ask a few people you know will contribute and then reach out to your list.

It is feast or famine in this business; do not discount your other options such as article writing. More people will see your one article in a week than your book in a year. Prove you are a writer in any way you can before you become an author.
Reach out to your art and humanities council.
Don’t turn down opportunities like contests; in fact, don’t discount any opportunities that come your way.
Miral Sattar shared her numbers on the costs of self-publishing. You can view the whole list here.
We are in the collaboration business.

The reader is king, queen, prince, and princess. You must know your readers and know yourself.
Invest for success. If it is not important to you, then why do it? Value what you do.
Copyright your work; it costs $35.
Step out and reevaluate what you are doing.

If you’d like to experience more of PubSmart you can now purchase videos of ALL the events on the PubSmart website. I would love to hear from you about this article! If you have any questions about this article, publishing, or social media just leave a comment below or connect with me on my website, katetilton.com.

About the Speakers:

Amanda Barbara is the vice president of PubSlush, a global crowdfunding platform for books.

C. Hope Clark is the editor of FundsforWriters.com and an author.

Miral Sattar is the founder and CEO of BiblioCrunch, an award-winning literary services marketplace.

Orna Ross is the founder and director of The Alliance of Independent Authors.

Kathy Meis is the founder and president of Bublish, the social book discovery and commerce platform.

Related Articles:

About Kate Tilton:

Kate Tilton has been in love with books for as long as she can remember. Kate believes books saved her life and strives to repay authors for bringing books into the world by serving as a dependable author assistant. A cat-lover and fan of many geeky things, Kate can likely be found curled up with the latest Doctor Who episode, plotting world takeover, or assisting authors and readers in any way she can. Kate is also a self-proclaimed Twitter addict. You will find her hosting #K8chat, her own creation, every Thursday night on Twitter from 9-10pm Eastern.

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Adventures in YA Publishing

This is the user name for posts from Adventures in YA Publishing that did not have a specific author.

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Posted: May 22, 2014

Category: Imported from AYAP

Tags: Promotion

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The first slide is an animation of a science/magic room in a castle. A cartoon character of a mad-scientist looking man in in the foreground says: “Hello! Dr. Frankenstein here to say, Well Done on kid lit zombie week! I’m an expert at reviving the dead, and let me assure you, with a little spark, you can bring dead projects to life. Especially if you dig up parts from other dead things. I’ll even let you have a sneak peek at my laboratory’s store room to consider potential parts for your dead project. If you see something with a yellow glow, that means you should click it. Have fun!”

He points to the right side of the screen and a new scene slides in of a castle science/magic storage room. There are various cartoon Frankenstein body parts scattered around. Some of them have a yellow glow. If you click on them, the images below appear (I’ve added alt text to them, so I hope it works).

The Heart of your story is the main character. The protagonist is the beating core that truly brings your story to life. If your MC doesn't make kids (and their grown-ups) care within the first few pages, your story will flatline. </p>
<p>Your main character needs to be:<br />
• Relatable enough for kids to see themselves<br />
• Unique enough to stand out in the slush pile<br />
• Active enough to drive the story<br />
• Memorable enough to survive multiple readings at bedtime</p>
<p>Where do you find this amazing donor heart? It might be the very thing you loved so much about the manuscript you want to revive. It might be the younger sister from your shelved YA novel. Or maybe it’s the hilarious kid you blogged about meeting at a school visit. Find a character beating with potential and place it in the center of your story.<br />

The Brain of your story is the theme or central message. The theme is the big idea that controls everything else. Picture books are more than stories - they're tiny life lessons disguised with humor and heart.</p>
<p>But your theme needs to be:<br />
• Subtle enough not to trigger the dreaded "didactic" rejection<br />
• Clear enough for a four-year-old to grasp<br />
• Universal enough to speak to both kids and adults<br />
• Fresh enough to prevent agents and editors from responding with "Not another sharing/bedtime/first-day story!"</p>
<p>Check your other dead manuscripts to see if there is a recurring theme, something that really seems to be speaking to you. Find the bit of poetry you scribbled on the back of a receipt to see what theme inspired it. Reread the pep talk you texted your critique partner at 1am. Pick the theme that will drive your story, giving it purpose, direction, and deeper meaning.<br />

The Legs of your story is the plot. Not to be confused with a grave plot.🤪 The plot is what keeps everything upright and moving, as well as providing support for all the other elements. You have very few words to use in a picture book, so you need to do a lot with each plot point.</p>
<p>In general, your plot should:<br />
• Hook readers fast<br />
• Build tension that a child can follow<br />
• Create page turns that feel natural<br />
• Wrap up in a way that satisfies</p>
<p>You can borrow a plot twist (a leg) from one manuscript and the opening (the other leg) from a different manuscript. Consider if the subplot of the middle grade novel you trunked would work better as a picture book. Or maybe your Facebook post about a disastrous camping trip could become a story for kids. Just keep putting one foot in front of the other until you have your storyline.

The Arms of your story are the side characters.

The Torso of your story is the setting. Setting helps a story breathe and connects all the elements of the story. It isn't just where your story lives, it's what makes your story ALIVE. It's the difference between "this happened in a park" and "this happened in that park, the one with the twisty slide that burns your legs and the creaky swing that sounds like a baby crying.”</p>
<p>Your setting should:<br />
• Make your character's world feel real<br />
• Contain your story in a way that makes sense to young readers<br />
• Connect different scenes and moments organically<br />
• Give your illustrator enough room to add visual subplots</p>
<p>Half-finished manuscripts are a great place to dig up settings, since you worked out the place details before the plot petered out. Or maybe you had to cut a second fantastic location from your chapter book. You can also revisit the detailed caption from your Instagram carousel documenting your tour of that delish candy shop. Disinter a robust setting that can house all of your story's vital organs.

After you press the Click When Done circle button, the lights flash with the sound of electricity buzzing. Then the screen goes black and lightning zaps across the screen with the sound of thunder.

The screen then lights up to show the storage room, and all the Frankenstein pieces have been assembled into the whole monster. An upbeat song plays in the background. Then a speech bubble pops up with the words, “I’m alive! I’M ALIVE!” Then the screen goes to black.

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