TOM BIRD'S WRITER'S ROUNDTABLE
Info follows on The Perfect Literary Agent For You program.
August, 2006
Dear Author,
As I write this letter to you, I am still in the midst of recovering from a rousing Book Publicity retreat in Atlanta.
As many of these as I have conducted, I still have never taught two which were identical. I always enter each session with what I want to accomplish in mind. How it is I will actually achieve that result usually remains a mystery to me until about ten minutes into the retreat, then the whole experience just seems to take me over and we’re on our way. I’m sure it is the Spirit leading us each time and, in designing an appropriate game plan, that Spirit seems to take into consideration the personalities, needs, and stage of development of each participant. Thank God for my ability to listen.
I then just take whatever is shared with me and go.
This retreat had its own unique twists and turns, which is always exciting. Each student had his or her own particular needs, and I can’t remember a group ever going deeper than did this one. Of course, I say that after every retreat, but I mean it each time. Each retreat just seems to go deeper than the one before it.
Lives were changed. Hearts and purpose were released. It is for that which I live. Thank You God.
Thank you as well to Linda Radke, who co-presented the retreat with me.
Linda and I have already discussed coming back together at my next Book Publicity retreat, which is scheduled to be in Sedona on Thursday and Friday, February 1 & 2.
I feel Linda brings a great amount of enthusiasm and heart, as well as a very unique perspective with the information she has to offer to the retreat. Not only does she have a tremendous amount of experience in book publicity, but she publishes books as well, a unique twist of perspective and knowledge that is both hard to find and replicate.
Information on the February Sedona retreat and how to sign up follows at the end of this newsletter.
September Retreat in Sedona
Please keep in mind my next upcoming Releasing Your Author Within retreat. Information follows. Please note that a generous discount is offered to those who sign up early. Also note the deadline for the early sign-up discount has been extended to Thursday, September 7.
Releasing Your Author Within Retreat in Sedona
Have you fallen behind on your resolution to have your book completed by the end of this year? Has your summer not been as productive, writing wise, as you would have liked? If so, you may want to consider signing up for my next Releasing Your Author Within retreat, September 14-16.
The following is a description. Please note the generous discount for those who sign up by September 7.
Releasing Your Author Within Retreat Dates: September 14-16, 2006
Location: Sedona, Arizona
First, I will help you master, at will, your ability to connect with your Author Within, so when you walk out of the retreat on Saturday you will be able to self-induce, on your own, this most essential of all states, any time you want the mood to strike you.
Second, I will aid you in connecting with the book trying to get out of you. Since most students who initially attend my classes or retreats either don't know specifically what it is they want to write, or are slightly off-base in one way or another about what it is they are writing, tapping into exactly what it is that is trying to come out is essential. Be prepared for surprises.
Third, most of the students who attend this retreat walk away after three days having written a number of words equivalent to one-tenth the length of their books. Accomplishing this is very important. Since the majority of the mistakes new authors routinely make transpire in the first tenth of their book, it is important to get beyond that point of no return as soon as possible.
Fourth, we will be both writing and completing your query letter for your book in class before you leave, so you may submit it to the publishing contacts I will provide to you immediately afterward. Doing so will not only cement your commitment to continue on with the writing of your book, but also enable you to reel in the acceptances you deserve from these sources.
Since I have not posted this retreat on my website, registrations will be limited to those who contact my assistant Darby via email at Darby@TomBird.com or by calling my office at 928-203-0265.
Pricing
Here is the pricing, with the lower of the two prices reflecting the $100 discount if paid in full by September 7:
First Time Fee: $695 / $595
Former Seminar Students: $595 / $495
Former Retreat Students: $545 / $445
Former and Present IIWP Students: $495 / $395
If you have any questions about the retreat, don't hesitate to contact me.
Quick HittersOpenings
I only have three spaces coming available in the next month for my Intensive Individual Writers Program. If you are interested in being interviewed to fill one of the openings, either drop me a line at TomBird@TomBird.com or contact my office at (928) 203-0265.
Updated Literary Agency Guide
My Selective Guide to Literary Agents database will be fully updated and ready for release by mid-September, just in time for the beginning of the next submission season. So keep your eyes open for a note from me announcing its release. As is tradition, we always offer, for a limited time, a huge discount off the regular price to those on my mailing list.
My Books
As well, I will be releasing two new books this September: You Were Born to be Published, which takes a new approach to what I have been teaching about getting your material into print, and You Were Born to Write: Mastering the Game of the
Inner Writer. Both will be published in hardback.
In the September Newsletter you will also be offered special, time sensitive, discounts on both books.
New Website
Much of my time lately has been going into the development of my new, cutting edge website, which should be up soon. I’ll keep you posted.
Instructor Training Program
A thank you to all of you who have expressed interest in potentially teaching my courses.
To give you an update on our progress, we plan to have a strategy completely in place for your training by the beginning of October. If you are interested in pursuing this option and you have already expressed an interest, please just remain patient.
At present, it appears as if we will be able to offer those who are interested an opportunity to potentially make a full time living through teaching part time. That, of course, would be ideal for the continued pursuit of your writing. If you are interested in knowing more and you have not yet contacted us, I suggest you do so soon. Limited numbers will be taken into the program.
Self Sufficient Living
For those of you who have expressed interest in being kept abreast of my move to a totally self-sufficient life style, you have not been forgotten. I have just been busy finding and then acquiring the land on which to build our new home.
That is an entire story within itself, one I will be glad to share later on. Until I get back to you, I strongly suggest you read, if you haven’t already done so, Whitney Strieber’s best seller The
Coming Global Superstorm, and Al Gore’s book An Inconvenient Truth. Or, of course, you can just see his movie. That way, you’ll better know where I’m coming from when I write back.
Other works I can recommend as well are: Earthbag Building by Kaki Hunter and Donald Kiffmeyer; The New Ecological Home by Daniel D. Chiras; Building Green by Clarke Snell and Tim Callahan; Earth Sheltered Homes by Rob Roy; and Michael Reynold’s two Earthship books.
I would also recommend acquiring a copy of the 2006 Green Guide (usually available at Whole Foods or like places), which has a listing of invaluable sources.
Again, I will update you later on my personal situation, as well as the criteria I used to choose a locale for the purchase of our land, where we bought land, and all of that.
The latest version of Dragon Naturally Speaking (the best voice activation program on the market) is on sale for $100 off the regular price until September 30.
There is an internet ad offering a chance to get the latest version of the program for $99.00.
In the ad, the discount is only available for those of you who already have a version of the software. However, we contacted Nuance Corporation and they’ve extended the offer to any of our clients, both first time buyers and those of you upgrading.
For first time buyers to receive the special offer, call 1-800-654-1187 and then punch in #3 for customer service. Let them know you’re interested in purchasing Dragon Naturally Speaking 9 at the special promotional rate of $99.00, and that should do it!
If you already have a version, you can receive your upgrade at the $99.00 advertised rate by calling 1-888-781-1189 and using reference promotional code 262470.
Remember, both promotions are only good until September 30 of this year.
I’m glad we were able to arrange a way for all of you who might be interested to purchase the software at a reduced price.
Copy from the Internet AdIntroducing Dragon Naturally Speaking Preferred 9
Dragon Naturally Speaking 9 is the Best Speech Recognition Software Ever. Guaranteed.
Dragon Naturally Speaking is universally viewed as the uncontested leader in speech recognition software. It's a perennial favorite for editors' choice awards with nearly 200 industry awards and accolades to its name. While version 7, winner of its own share of those awards, is an excellent product, version 9 is superior in every way. First and foremost, Dragon Naturally Speaking 9 is over 30% more accurate than the version you have! Even our advanced users have been amazed by this dramatic improvement.
With Dragon Naturally Speaking Preferred 9, you get all this functionality and so much more. Just look at the features and functionality available to you if you upgrade now!
* New Select-And-Say Indicator: Dragon Naturally Speaking 9 includes a new indicator that lets you know when you have Select-and-Say functionality available allowing you to be at your most productive.
* Share Vocabularies Between Acoustic Profiles: With Multiple Acoustics, Dragon Naturally Speaking 9 lets you use a single vocabulary for both your microphone and handheld recorder user profiles. This is a huge time-saver!
* An Expanded Array of Input Devices: We've told you about the new Bluetooth wireless support. Now Dragon Naturally Speaking 9 also supports handheld digital recorders and other PDAs that record in .wma and .mp3 format for deferred transcription.
* New On Screen Tutorials: Become a Dragon power-user with ease. On Screen Tutorials make it fast and easy for you to learn how to use all of the features in Dragon Naturally Speaking.
* Give Commands Naturally: Version 9 is even easier to use! Our exclusive Natural Language Technology enables you to say commands virtually any way you want in Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, and many other applications.
* Enter Commonly-Used Text and Graphics: More powerful and versatile than ever before, you can create text blocks, including bitmaps such as your signature at the end of a letter, and insert them into documents or e-mails using a single voice command.
In addition to best-ever accuracy, Dragon Naturally Speaking Preferred 9 also gives you an array of powerful new features, including:
* New wireless support for any Nuance-approved Bluetooth headset. Now you can work without being tethered to your PC, giving you more freedom than ever.
* Expanded support for more applications. In addition to Microsoft ® Word, Excel ®, Internet Explorer ®, Outlook ® Express, Corel ® WordPerfect ® and AOL ®, Dragon Naturally Speaking 9 is integrated with Firefox ® and Thunderbird ® from Mozilla. Plus, new support for nonstandard edit controls means you get full Dragon functionally, such as Select-and-Say,
allowing you to edit more easily than ever before.
* Improved Command Browser that makes it faster and easier to create and view voice commands. Now you'll work faster than ever using Nuance's exclusive Natural Language Technology to say commands virtually any way you want in Microsoft Word, Excel, and many other applications.
* New Smart Formatting Technology. Smart Formatting lets you specify how Dragon Naturally Speaking 9 should format dates, measurements, acronyms, numbers, or any word to meet your requirements.
Information for those who already own a version and want to upgrade:
Limited-Time Half Price Offer
To save $100 and purchase Dragon Naturally Speaking Preferred 9 for just $99.99, plus get Photo Explosion Special Edition 2.5 (a $39.95 value) FREE, copy and paste the following link: http://www.digitalriver.com/promo=139077
Or call 888-781-1189 and reference promotional code 262470.
Remember, this offer is not available in stores and is for a limited-time only. After September 30th, the price will be $199.99 and there will be no free gift!
We look forward to hearing from you.
Best regards,
Robert J. Weideman
Senior Vice President, Productivity Applications
Nuance Communications, Inc.
P.S. Upgrade direct through this offer and you'll save 50% off the regular price of $199.99 What's more, I’m so sure you’ll love Dragon Naturally Speaking Preferred 9 that I want you to try it without risk for one full month. If you’re not completely satisfied, simply return it within 30 days of your purchase and well refund your $99.99, but keep your copy of Photo Explosion Special Edition 2.5 (a $39.95 value) as your free gift from Nuance.
Note: This offer is limited to two units per customer. If you're interested in purchasing multiple copies for your office, please send an e-mail to: insidesales@nuance.com and a sales representative will connect you with an authorized reseller regarding our ScanSoft Open
License Program.
*Taxes, shipping and handling not included.
The Perfect Literary Agent for YouMy thanks to all of you who have expressed interest in this program, which is designed to help you find just the right literary agent to represent the sale of your work.
In response to your interest, I have worked very diligently over the last few months to put this program together. For those of you who would like to apply, here is the procedure:
Step One: Complete the application form and either e-mail or fax it (928-222-2853) into the office. The form will be forwarded to you by contacting the office at (928) 203-0265 or e- mailing a request to Darby@TomBird.com.
Tom will review your application. You will then be contacted to arrange a telephone consultation with Tom, during which he will discuss your alternatives and answer any questions you may have.
The cost for this initial step and consultation is $125 Payment will be required in advance of the consultation.
The number of consultations accepted for each month will be limited to ten. Applicants will be scheduled on a first-come-first-serve-basis.
If you’re interested in getting your material before literary agents in September, I suggest you respond as soon as possible.
Step Two: Should the first consultation result in the decision to continue, Tom will request materials from you. Since each case is handled on an individual basis, the materials requested will vary, but might include:
*A copy of your query letter
*A book proposal
*A synopsis, sample pages of your book, or your entire manuscript.
Once your material has been received, a second consultation will be arranged. Based on your material, Tom will suggest you proceed to the next step, or present alternatives to bring your material up to the quality necessary to continue.
These alternatives are specific to you and your material, and may include recommending a specific copy or style editor, or adjusting your approach to the strategies listed in a specific how-to book.
Prices for Step Two will vary dependent upon your individual needs, and will be quoted at the end of Step One. If further consultations are required, you will receive a price quote at the time they are scheduled.
Step Three: At this time Tom will shop your material to the agents you would most like to land.
A $225 administration fee will be charged to cover Tom’s time and expenses.
There is a fee of $250 for each placement landed. Therefore, it is suggested you keep your list of preferred agents to ten or less.
Step Four: Tom will review each of the agent contracts you receive. He will offer you a list of questions and considerations to pose to them to ensure you properly evaluate your alternatives and choose the finest representation possible.
The price for Step Four is $85.
After Step Four, any necessary follow up consultations will be arranged on an as-needed basis. Commission-based options are also available.
To receive the form, contact my assistant at Jill@TomBird.com.
Sedona Book Publicity Retreat and Media TrainingDate: Thursday and Friday, February 1 & 2, 2007
The Tom Bird Sanctuary
Sedona, Arizona
The publicist who will again be joining us for the Sedona Publicity Retreat is Linda Radke, President and founder of Five Star Publications, Inc.
Linda has over twenty years experience in the field of publicity and marketing, and has nearly as many years experience in development and publishing. Her skilled efforts have resulted in coverage for her clients in prominent media, including CNN.com, BBC London, CBC Marketplace (Canadian Broadcast System), "60 Minutes", FOX News, Ladies Home Journal, The Wall Street Journal, Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine, the Associated Press, US Air magazine, Publishers Weekly, Choice, Small Press, The Denver Post, The Arizona Republic, NEA Today, the Midwest Book Review, C-Span2 Book TV, the Howard Stern Show, the Dr. Toni Grant Show, and many more.
Linda is known for her persistent and successful efforts to locate and take advantage of every marketing opportunity. As part of a comprehensive campaign, she and the staff at Five Star Publications “create materials that sizzle. We position you as the authority in your field. We create that magic that has the media knocking at your door.”
It takes creativity, industry knowledge, and vast experience to consistently achieve the level of success for which Linda is known. I’m very excited to again be working with her, and I am confident that all participants will acquire an excellent education in the publicity of their books.
The following is what you can expect to learn:
- Getting on Oprah: how DO you do it and when you should go after it
- Why publicity is 100 times better than advertising
- The 6 words every author wants to hear, but very few do
- How to become an author in 5 easy steps and in less than 90 days
- The ins and outs of every great interview
- How to prepare for the flawless interview, to be the great interviewee the media expect you to be
- The 10 questions every interviewer looks for and how to write them
- How to spot and utilize the 3 types of interviewers to your advantage
- Real-life stories about the "legends" in the business and what you can learn from them
- Understanding the differences between retainers and "pay for placement" PR and why it's important to you
- What does a publicity department do for you at a publishing firm and what that means for you
- Designing a press release that will generate results and get the media to pick up the phone and call you
- How does a first-time author with limited royalty checks advance his or her book with a PR campaign he or she can afford
- Reveal inside information on how to make friends in the media
- Offer simple but effective ways to get others to spread your message
- Millions of dollars of industry secrets revealed by the pros. Tom will help you compose the necessary pitch letters, press releases, and other materials that few, if any, publishers' publicists even know how to write.
This unique Intensive Retreat and Media Training offers you the ultimate opportunity to take full control of your literary destiny and live it to its absolute fullest.
Retreat Pricing
For the retreat, I am offering a reduction of $100 if paid in full by January 2, 2007. The reduced price is reflected in the lower of the two prices below:
First Timers: $695 / $595
Former Seminar Students: $595 / $495
Return Retreat Students: $545 / $445
Former and Present IIWP Students: $495 / $395
Good News
Francis Hall sent out 93 letters and 213 e-mails to literary agents who work with non-fiction and/or new age books. Six agents want to see a proposal and sample chapters or the whole book.
Some even seemed very eager to receive it. Her book, An Angel Among Us, is currently being edited.
Congratulations to Mary Blomgrem who just had two books published by Authorhouse. Find information at www.maryblomgrenbooks.com.
Linda Christenberry’s book The Return of Mary Magdalene is now available on both Amazon.com/Borders.com and Barnes & Noble.com.
It’s time for me to get back to working on the new books. I hope all is going well and I hope I will see you again soon.
My best,
Tom
