Articles tagged "authors"

by Gavin
February 2, 2012
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SXSW Interactive 2012 Recommendations for Authors & Publishers

In Events — Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

South by Southwest Interactive (SXSW) 2012 is right around the corner, scheduled to take place in Austin, Texas March 9-13.  If you’re an author and have never heard of “South by,” you may want to check out the following blog post by Evo Terra entitled “7 tips for authors attending SXSW 2012.”  Evo manages to give a great overview of the festival with tips catering specifically to authors.  Even though SXSW is not a publishing conference, Evo correctly points out that our “world is changing faster than you imagine,” and SXSW is a great way to “forward your knowledge and expertise in the interactive world.”

As we all know, electronic marketing tools such as social media are very important to authors looking to promote their work.  Among other things, SXSW offers you the ability to learn from interactive industry leaders who work on the cutting edge of digital technology.

So whether you’re planning to attend this year of not, to add to Evo’s blog post, I have outlined below some of 2012’s SXSW Interactive panel discussions that are geared specifically to authors and publishers.  The list below may help you save time as you plan your schedule.  If you are not planning on going, hopefully these panels will inspire you to get your late registration in … at the very least, these can help get you excited for next year.

Discoverability and the New World of Book PR
http://schedule.sxsw.com/2012/events/event_IAP13632

Publishing Models Transforming the Book
http://schedule.sxsw.com/2012/events/event_IAP10347

Libros digitales para todos/eBooks for Everybody
http://schedule.sxsw.com/2012/events/event_IAP13728

Rhapsody to Year 0: Music & Publishing Go Digital
http://schedule.sxsw.com/2012/events/event_IAP9680

Take a Look It’s in a Book or Now Tablet Devices
http://schedule.sxsw.com/2012/events/event_IAP12327

Self-Publishing: A Revolution for Midlist Authors?
http://schedule.sxsw.com/2012/events/event_IAP9146

Social Role-Playing: Brands and Publishers
http://schedule.sxsw.com/2012/events/event_IAP9024

Knitting a Long Tail in Niche Publishing
http://schedule.sxsw.com/2012/events/event_IAP9356

Making eBooks Smarter: Responsive Page Design
http://schedule.sxsw.com/2012/events/event_IAP9737

Books Win the Attention Economy
http://schedule.sxsw.com/2012/events/event_IAP9275

Next Stage: Tear It Up: How to Write a Digital Novel
http://schedule.sxsw.com/2012/events/event_OE00939

by AJ
December 6, 2011
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How to Make an eBook Anyone Can Read with ePub

In Contest, Events, Howto, Lulu Blog, Lulu Help, Lulu News, Marketing Tips, Promotions, Tips and Tricks, Walkthroughs — Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Blog Update: Before you read, check out our handy new eBook landing page for the latest tips to help you publish your eBook today.



In a recent post I talked about how all of you would-be eBook authors should know your file formats, or at least be somewhat familiar with the most commonly used ones.  As an author, you want to make your work as accessible as possible, which means making your content able to be read on as many devices as you can.  Since it is Read an eBook Week, and Lulu is giving away three Apple iPads, I thought it might be useful to provide a how-to tutorial for the most universal eBook format: ePub.

Many new authors might make the mistake of thinking that if they have a portable document format (PDF) of their book it means that it can be read on an e-reader or other mobile device.  While in many cases the PDF can be opened, the text is far too small because it is a static or unchangeable image.  ePub makes it so your text is resized to fit the screen of any given device.  Since the text in ePub format can be changed in terms of size, font and color, reading an ePub book becomes a much more personal experience for the reader.  Sounds great right?  But how do you make an ePub book?

You really have three options:  let Lulu do the work for you with our conversion services, use a conversion program like (Adobe InDesign, eCub, Calibre, Google ePub Toolkit, etc.), or you can do-it-yourself.  If you decide to do-it-yourself, I’ve added some great directions I found over at jedisaber.com.


What You’ll Need:

* A text editor (like Text Edit or Notepad) that can edit text files, HTML, and XML.
* A program that can create .zip files (which should be built into OS X or Windows).

Continue Reading »

by AJ
July 18, 2011
Comments (2)

Winners of the HP Mini Laptops Announced!

In Contest, Lulu Blog — Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

As some of you may know, Lulu has an ongoing relationship with HP and we want you to reap the benefits of that relationship just as much as we do.  So, back in June, we announced two easy ways customers could win one of two brand-new HP 5103 Mini Laptops – by either creating and publishing a photo book, or by using one of Lulu’s handy services to publish one of your remarkable works.

We also got the chance to surprise one lucky Book Expo America attendee with a third HP Mini Laptop,  just for visiting our booth back at the conference in May.

Without further ado, the winners are:

  • Ronald Libertus – for his photo book wonderfully titled: Cupcakes and Lollipops
  • John Hurly – A long time customer of Lulu’s services.  John purchased a Best Seller package for his upcoming work.
  • Austin Reale (pictured) – Good old Mr. Reale, blogger for Reading Teen, stopped by the Lulu booth several times a day throughout BEA and was about as excited as I’ve seen anyone to receive a brand new computer.  Yes, I asked him to blog about it.

Help us in congratulating our winners on their new technological prowess in the comments.  Now, they’ve each got a shiny new computer to help them start on their next remarkable works.  As for the rest of you faithful Lulu blog readers, keep your eyes peeled for other contests in the coming months and for your chance to win from a selection of great prizes to help kickstart your publishing career. And most of all, thank you to HP.

by Gavin
July 13, 2011
Comments (2)

Marketing Your Book at Book Fairs

In Events, Lulu Blog — Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

This past May, Lulu team members, along with numerous works by our remarkable authors, attended Book Expo America 2011 in New York City, the largest book convention in the United States.  Book Expos such as BEA offer great opportunities for authors to display their content, meet fellow authors, and hear insights from industry professionals.  Check out the video above of the action from this year’s BEA and see why Lulu’s booth was the talk of the show – drawing such great crowds.  If you are thinking about attending or displaying your book at a book fair, here is a list of up-coming events.  Hopefully this video will get you excited for BEA next year, as we’d love to see both you and your book(s) at the show.

by AJ
June 2, 2011
Comments (3)

Lulu at Book Expo America 2011

In Events, Lulu Blog, Lulu News — Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Last week, Lulu attended Book Expo America (BEA), the largest book convention in the nation, where attendees got the chance to meet the new face of publishing – you!

Doors opened bright and early the morning of the 24th to floods of authors, publishers, journalists, librarians, and businesses all clamoring to get the latest scoop on the publishing industry and Lulu didn’t disappoint. With exciting new initiatives such as our Open Publishing APIs, Partner Program, and growing print network, Lulu has an affordable publishing solution for just about everyone – no matter if you’re an author looking to become a publisher, or a publisher wanting to monetize your back catalogue.

We definitely stood out in our bright orange booth too, but what really stole the show were our “author-ego” cutouts (pictured).  All three days of the show people lined up at our booth to have their photos taken behind their favorite author’s body and we’d display them on our wall.  They’d also be entered for a chance to win a new Mini 5303 laptop, courtesy of our partners at HP.  I can’t tell you how many times I heard the phrase:  “My friend Blahbity Blah, told me I had to come see the Lulu booth. You’ve gotta take my picture!” And we were happy to oblige.

For those on the go, we also had mobile author-ego cards (pictured) that folks could use with their camera phones to encourage their friends to publish (or just make them look ridiculous). At Lulu, anyone is empowered to publish and sell their work to customers all over the world and our author-ego cards and cutouts really drove that point home – that and the fact that people love to get their photo taken.

We easily talked to about 2,000 attendees, but with the way boxes of author-ego cards, Lulu hats and tote-bags were flying off our tables, we definitely reached all 30,000+ attendees.  Lulu CEO and Founder, Bob Young, also presented to convention attendees Monday, May 23rd on the future of publishing and the impact of eBooks and e-readers.

While eBooks were a hot topic among the BEA crowd this year, we were surprisingly asked about print-on-demand books even more.  This boils down to what the new generation of authors and content owners really seems to want:  options.  And with Lulu’s open-publishing model we’re providing the freedom to creators that tons of options bring.  At Lulu, you’re free to publish and sell books immediately, electronically or in print. You pick the price.  You pick the market.  You pick the medium.  You are the new face of publishing and you are in control.


 

by AJ
April 11, 2011
Comments (2)

Lulu to Create a New Standard in Publishing Commerce

In Lulu Blog, Lulu News — Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

At Lulu, we stop at nothing to help you bring your knowledge and ideas to your readers more easily than ever before.  For us the formula is simple:  the better the tools and resources that power Lulu, the quicker you can publish and sell your remarkable works. It’s rare, but when we find other companies that focus on ease of use for customers like we do, we get very excited. Just like we did when we partnered with eCommerce platform provider Elastic Path.


By working with Elastic Path, we’ll be able to add new capabilities such as registration-less checkout and customized sales campaigns that will benefit all of our customers whether you come to Lulu to buy or to sell.  In fact, our unique online community of 2.5 million customers, made up of great folks just like you, has been the primary inspiration behind this partnership as we work to provide creators with more freedom and buyers with more savings.

This new eCommerce strategy is just one more element of the open-publishing market that Lulu is building. Through our growing network of retail partners and open publication APIs, Lulu is empowering you to sell your works anywhere, anytime. Be on the look out for Lulu and Elastic Path at two upcoming events. Our CEO, Bob Young, will be presenting along with Elastic Path CSO, Cliff Conneighton, about the future of publishing at the World e-Reading Congress in London, May 9-11, and at Book Expo America in New York May 24-26.

by Nick
December 10, 2010
Comments (1)

How To Use Customer Support & Our Online Community Part 2

In Howto, Lulu Blog — Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Back in November, I wrote part one in this series. My objective in writing these posts is to help users better understand the Customer Service process, the Community tools available to you, and how to get the most out of both. In part one, I highlighted creating a case with Customer Service. In part two, I would like to cover some of best ways to use our Knowledge Base.

With hundreds of articles on almost every aspect of Lulu from helping new users to after you publish using our Knowledge Base can be daunting to say the least. There are at least two ways to approach it, by searching or browsing. I will discuss both options as well as suggesting a few tips & tricks for using them to find your answers.

Searching

Typically, I recommend searching our database to find the information you’re looking for. It’s probably the quickest way to find what you’re looking for. That said, you want to make sure you are finding the right information.

For example, if I am trying to find out how long I should expect the Mail shipping option to take, what should I enter into the search box? To begin with, I went to the Support home page, and entered “Mail Shipping Option” into the text box. This returned 155 Knowledge Base Articles, 729 Questions, 1029 Discussions, and 59 Ideas. A lot to go through.

Luckily, our search shows the top five results for each category, so all I have to do is look at Articles and try to find the one that matches what I’m looking for. The first option is “Shipping To Prisons” which isn’t exactly what I want. The second option though, “Shipping Times and Options” is exactly what I want.

In short, to get the most out of searching, you want to make sure you choose search terms that most accurately reflect the topic you’re looking for, and focus on the results that are most likely to give you the response you want. It may take a little trial and error, but you should get there.

Browsing

The second method for locating a particular article is browsing. This method is most effective if you know the general stage of publishing you are in, but you aren’t sure exactly what you need to know. Using the same example as above, I will demonstrate how to find the same article by browsing.

To begin, you’ll want to click on the Knowledge Base link from the Support page. From there, you should see a list of categories for articles. By reviewing the descriptions of the categories, I can narrow down what I’m looking for. While none of the categories themselves are titled “Shipping” the category Shopping on Lulu is described as “Learn how to browse, buy, download, or ship on Lulu”. That sounds about right!

Inside this category, I see a new category for “Shipping FAQ“. I’m clearly on the right track. Clicking into that category takes me to a list of articles, and the first one is Shipping Times and Options. Success!

Summary

  • Get a good idea of what you’re searching or browsing for before you begin looking
  • Try to use as accurate phrasing as you can
  • Don’t be afraid to browse around for the right answer
by Josh
December 8, 2010
Comments (1)

Great Gift Ideas for “That Guy ”

In Lulu Blog — Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

At one time or another, we’ve all come across “that guy.”  You know, the guy who tries to check out in the 15 items or less lane with at least 30 things in his cart.  Or the guy who tries to beat the read light, only to clog up the intersection – leaving you stuck at a green light.

Of course if you’re anything like me, you may have been “that guy” more times than you care to admit.  You may also be in the position of having “that guy” on your holiday shopping list this year.

You really like “that guy.”  After all, he’s most likely family or a very close friend.  You want to see him shed his misguided ways in time for the New Year.  So this begs the question:  what do you get “that guy” for the holidays?

Here are a few gift ideas I came up with, right here on lulu.com:

Continue Reading »

by AJ
December 7, 2010
Comments (11)

eBook Distribution Guidelines

In How to Publish, Lulu Blog — Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

It is an exciting time to be an author. Everyday customers find new ways to discover and purchase your remarkable works and Lulu has been proud to offer authors the ability to reach more readers and sell more books through our growing network of retail partners.

For us, the formula is simple: more channels equal more opportunities for your work to be discovered.

For authors selecting distribution, it is important to remember that many retail channels maintain strict policies on acceptable content. In an effort to ensure a lasting relationship with existing retail channels and to continue to cultivate even more options and opportunities for our authors, Lulu must uphold these policies and validation procedures. Lulu reviews all content marked for distribution and reserves the right to re- categorize and/or decline to submit books, which violate a retailer’s content policies.

One of the most popular retail channels is the iBookstore. Authors selecting this particular distribution method will need to keep these basic guidelines in mind:

  • To ensure an author’s work appears for sale, in the quality it deserves, iBookstore distribution takes at least 30 days.
  • Adult and/or sexually explicit content is de-prioritized and may be rejected if inappropriately categorized by the author.
  • eBooks in non-English languages and/or offered for free will be listed on lulu.com, but will not be distributed to the iBookstore or other retail channels.
  • Public domain content will only be submitted to the U.S. version of the iBookstore.

We know how eager you are to see your books out in the world and we want to assure you that Lulu processes your works with the utmost care. All authors are still able to publish and sell their eBooks immediately to the 2.5 million unique monthly visitors in the Lulu Marketplace for free. Lulu continues to strive to bring you the best service possible to empower you to sell more content to more readers more profitably than ever before and we look forward to your continued success on Lulu and all of our retail partners.

by AJ
November 24, 2010
Comments (3)

Author Success Story: From Salesman to Silver Screen.

In Author Spotlight, Lulu Blog, Marketing Tips, Tips and Tricks — Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Love & Other Drugs in theaters today.

Today, Lulu author Jamie Reidy is getting to see one of the biggest dreams any author can have come true. His autobiography, Hard Sell: The Evolution of a Viagra Salesman, has been made into a movie, Love & Other Drugs, starring breakout actors Jake Gyllenhall and Anne Hathaway.

If you ask Reidy if he ever expected this level of success, he’ll chuckle and smugly say: “Well, yeah.”

While Reidy jokingly admits to being somewhat of an egomaniac, he believes that any author who has gone so far as to have their work published should be thinking about their potential and at least have an idea of their long term goals for their work. Otherwise, it’s a self-defeating process.

“If you’re determined to be an author, you obviously have a story to tell and characters to share” says Reidy. “It doesn’t make sense if you’re not ready to go to all lengths to make something happen with them.”

Even with Reidy’s newfound success, his follow-up book, Bachelor 101: Cooking + Cleaning = Closing, available on Lulu, was still rejected by traditional means.

“The industry is scared to take a chance right now” says Reidy. “Luckily, tech like Lulu lets me sell my work anyway and I can get on with my writing.”

Reidy is particularly fond of Lulu’s formatting services and the freedom of not having to go back and forth between editors, which can become very expensive and time consuming.

“With Lulu, $400 for formatting was a deal – I know I got my money’s worth,” Reidy says.

Be sure to pick up a copy of both of Reidy’s books in the Lulu Marketplace and head to your local theater to see Love & Other Drugs, opening today. And for those aspiring authors out there, Reidy has a few last sarcastic words of advice: “No matter how good it is, you cannot count on your friends to buy your book.”