Archive for September, 2009
Couple Who Lived Out The Sermon on The Mount Touched Thousands
September 30th, 2009 by Susan Brill
Contact: Bob Waymire, 530-467-5373, http://www.shepherdsofthevalley.com
Etna, California, September 30, (Christian Newswire) –- At a time when many are looking for authenticity and purpose, yet shying away from the Church, author Bob Waymire offers a hopeful new book.
“Shepherds of the Valley: How Love Looks in Shoe Leather” tells the inspiring story of Wendell and Marilyn Seward, whose authentic faith influenced thousands of lives around the world from a humble setting in a valley in the mountains of Northern California.
Whether in the home, the church, the school, or the community, the Sewards were known as champions for many whom society marginalized. For nearly 40 years, they taught in public schools, pastored churches, served separately as mayor, and took into their home more than 100 teenagers and adults, many recovering from addictions.
Pursuing a dream of world missions, the Sewards experienced deep disappointment before God fulfilled their dream in unexpected ways. Though they knew difficulty in their own home and family, through a willingness to serve others, the Sewards etched the love of God on countless hearts.
“Shepherds of the Valley” details dozens of individuals, churches, and communities transformed by this unassuming couple living out the Sermon on the Mount in daily life. Their story is a proclamation that unconditional love, generosity, and hospitality do break down barriers, provide power to live, and transform lives.
Mike Yaconelli, founder of Youth Specialities, once said, “The Sewards have quietly ministered to thousands of people all over the world. Wherever Wendell and Marilyn go, they bring life, energy, hope, and healing.”
And Evangelist Luis Palau observes, “The Lord has used this couple to reach out to hundreds of people all over the western United States. To me their lives have always been a tremendous example of how God can use lives totally given to Him.”
About the Author:
A long-time personal friend of the Sewards, Bob Waymire founded Global Mapping International in 1983 and LIGHT International in 1991 to assist in the strategic and informational aspects of world missions. He has published several research- and strategy-related manuals; and co-authored, “Discovering Your City: Bringing Light to the Task of Community Transformation,” (2000, LIGHT International).
Editor’s Note: Wendell Seward passed away in December 2007, and Marilyn Seward actively continues the couple’s diverse, love-based ministries.
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Twitter Weekly Updates for 2009-09-27
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Who’s sailing your ship?
September 27th, 2009 by Tina JacobsonNavigating the vast seas of the mass media and delivering your message to the public can be a journey through uncharted waters.
Your message is important. It is God-given, God-inspired. It is something that resonates deep within your soul and something you have carefully crafted. Now you need to let people know, but how?
Building public awareness of your message is like sailing a ship. You are likely moving into uncharted waters, perhaps stretching yourself in ways you’ve never dreamed. You need a navigator, someone who can guide your journey within the context of the big picture. Whether you have written a book, developed a speaking platform or created a ministry, a public relations coach can help you navigate the sometimes turbulent and confusing tide of public sentiment, current trends and media interest.
This coach will assist you in fine-tuning your message and help you gain access to new forums and opportunities to deliver it. As your navigator, he or she will help you design the best public relations plan to meet your goals and will keep you on course so that you don’t waste valuable time steaming along in the wrong direction. This person will maintain a vigilant watch on your behalf, changing course when necessary and scanning the horizon for new possibilities. Without experienced guidance, public relations plans can easily go awry and quickly lose steam. It is the job of a public relations coach to help you build and maintain momentum, avoid or minimize delays and successfully guide you to your final destination.
Here are several things to consider as you seek the right public relations coach for you:
- What is this person’s intended destination? Is it the place you wish to go?
- How much of the horizon does this person see? Does he/she see the big picture? Does this person see more than you see?
- How long has this person been sailing the high seas? How many times have they made the trip?
- Does this person work alone, or does he/she have a crew available? If so, how many staff are there? Are they experienced?
- Can this person tell when it’s favorable to sail and when it’s time to seek the safety of the harbor?
- What other projects has this person successfully navigated?
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10 Steps to Creating a Marketing Plan for your Book
September 23rd, 2009 by Nick CiskeWhether you pursue traditional royalty publishing or publish independently, a marketing plan is essential for your book to be a success.
Gone are the days of “getting published” and relying solely on your publisher to market your book (if they ever really existed).
Literary Agent Chip MagGregor just posted a 10 step guide to creating a marketing plan on his blog:
I [Chip] had a chance to sit down with a marketing specialist at last week’s ACFW conference. This wasn’t just a publicist who knows a bit about the industry, but a marketing consultant who works with some top companies (Apple, Disney, HP, etc) to design their marketing plans. His name is Jim, and he’s got a proven track record of success. I told him, “I have the privilege of working with some great authors, who create wonderful books, but it often feels like the publishers seem to do the least they can when it comes to marketing a book.” Then I went on to explain the frustrations for an author trying to create a marketing plan when he or she is not actually trained in doing marketing.
Jim’s response: “I think every entrepreneurial writer can learn to do more effective marketing.” While he admitted that some will come to it more naturally than others, he also noted that there were certain steps everyone should think through in order to create a full-blown marketing plan. When I asked him what those steps would be, here’s what he said (and he gave me permission to share this with you)…
Head over to Chip’s blog to read the 10 steps to creating a marketing plan for your book.
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Rick Warren’s New Book Cover Contest
September 21st, 2009 by Nick CiskeIf you haven’t heard/read about Rick Warren’s contest to design his new book cover, well, it’s too late (the content ended Saturday).
From the press release:
Grand Rapids, Mich., September 17, 2009 — 99designs.com, the largest marketplace for crowdsourced graphic design, last night announced that best-selling author Rick Warren is running an open design project for the cover of his new book, The Hope You Need: from The Lord’s Prayer, to be published by Zondervan. Since that announcement, the website is being flooded with designs.
“As of 11 a.m. East Coast time today, 327 designs have been submitted to the website,” said Steve Sammons, Zondervan’s Executive Vice President of Consumer Engagement. ”We’re announcing this morning that the winning design will now receive $5,000 rather than the original $3,000.”
The Hope You Need: from The Lord’s Prayer, scheduled for hardcover release on November 17, was inspired by a sermon series Warren taught at Saddleback Church in Orange County, CA. It invites readers to plug into the unparalleled power that exists within the words of the best-known prayer on the planet. With his classic approachability, passion and candor, Warren will provide helpful insight and much-needed inspiration for reviving whatever seems to be dying in life.
The final tally: 3189 designs.
There’s a lot of debate (resulting in a very heated dialogue) going on about this being spec work, which many people and organizations feel is bad for both clients and companies, but I won’t get into that here.
I’d like to talk about the practical implications of this, and why it’s probably a bad idea for anyone to mimic this publicity stunt.
- It’s Rick Warren — attach his name to anything and you will have some amount of success. You are not Rick Warren.
- The prize was $5,000. You can get a professionally designed cover for much less — and you get to work directly with the cover designer. Offering a smaller reward would likely get you some entries, but not the number Rick did.
- Side note: If you were one of the most successful authors of modern times and had signed an exclusive deal with Zondervan to publish your next book, why would you fork over $3,000 of your own money for a cover design contest? Zondervan would have hired a professional designer and paid the bill!
- Speaking of the number of entries… would you rather: sift through hundreds (or thousands) of cliche, poorly designed book cover concepts (many of which couldn’t follow simple instructions like the trim size) or 2-3 high quality concepts? There are a few decent covers in the pile, but it’s definitely entered “needle in a haystack” territory. Some of the entries are intentional jokes… while others are just terrible.
- One cover is supposed to be of a person kneeling in prayer, but the focus is on the, uh, lower front of the mans torso. Imagine that face out at your local Christian bookstore!
- There’s no guarantee you’ll get concepts from a Christian cover designer. If your book deals with abstract spiritual concepts the results could be comical or downright offensive.
- If you pick a winning entry — will that designer be able to produce press ready files or will you need to pay extra for that?
I could go on, but you get the point: there’s little added value to a contest like this, and in this case, the price tag was higher. Of course, the exposure the book received was priceless, but it hadn’t been Rick Warren, it wouldn’t have been newsworthy.
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Twitter Weekly Updates for 2009-09-20
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Interpreting the “Response Speak” Agents Use
September 18th, 2009 by Nick CiskeAgent Kristin Nelson helps you interpret the letters you get from agents in response to your query/submission.
Valuable advice on how to read between the lines!
Form response:
Don’t interpret anything. It could mean just about anything under the sun.Form response with personal comment
Submission was interesting enough for the agent to make a comment. Don’t interpret too much. It’s the nature of the comment that is important here. If it’s “I just didn’t fall in love” that could mean anything from concept isn’t right or writing isn’t quite there yet.If comment is something along the lines of “see talent here but not right for me”, well that’s encouraging.
Read the rest of Response Speak at PubRants.
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Avoiding Commonly Misused Words in Your Writing
September 18th, 2009 by Nick CiskeBrian Clark at CopyBlogger compiled a list of 27 commonly misused words and how to use them correctly.
Poor grammar and misused words are one of the main criticisms of amateurishly published books. With this list, some diligence, and the help of a good editor, you can stand out from the crowd of poorly written/edited books in the market.
You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means. ~Inigo Montoya, The Princess Bride
It may be inconceivable for you to misuse a word, but a quick look around the web reveals plenty of people doing it. And it’s all too easy when we hear or see others use words incorrectly and parrot them without knowing it’s wrong.
So let’s take a look at 27 commonly misused words. Some are common mistakes that can cost you when trying to keep a reader’s attention. Others are more obscure and just interesting to know.
Adverse / Averse
Adverse means unfavorable. Averse means reluctant.
Afterwards
Afterwards is wrong in American English. It’s afterward.
Complement / Compliment
I see this one all the time. Complement is something that adds to or supplements something else. Compliment is something nice someone says about you.
Criteria
Criteria is plural, and the singular form is criterion. If someone tells you they have only one criteria, you can quickly interject and offer that it be they get a clue.
Farther / Further
Farther is talking about a physical distance.
“How much farther is Disney World, Daddy?”
Further is talking about an extension of time or degree.
“Take your business further by reading Copyblogger.”
Read the rest of the article here: The Inigo Montoya Guide to 27 Commonly Misused Words
The Inigo Montoya Guide to
27 Commonly Misused Words
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Twitter Weekly Updates for 2009-09-13
September 13th, 2009 by BelieversPress TweetBot- "Write your own book and get published in under 8 hours" Seriously… people fall for that? #
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The Making of Dan Brown’s The Lost Symbol
September 9th, 2009 by Nick CiskeIt’s a bit dry and can be overly technical at times, but this video shows how a mass produced hardback book is manufactured (with several cover treatments).
Note: We’re posting this purely as an example of book manufacturing, not as an endorsement of Dan Brown or his books.
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