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Allbooks Review and all of our staff, wishes to extend our heartfelt sympathy to our Managing Editor, Shirley Roe in the loss of her mother, Pearl Droy Aug. 12th, 2009.
ALLBOOKS REVIEW IS NOW ON iFOGO. Be sure and join the Albooks Review Author’s Group where we can share our success and our mistakes.
WARNING ABOUT JV PARTNER PROGRAM FROM ONE OF OUR AUTHORS
Dear Shirley,
I promised you to tell about the JV partner program. I was introduced to the program by e-mail. The advertisement was saying if I register for the class with cost of $2500 and follow every thing they teach. My book will be best seller on Amazon or Barns and nobles even if for a day. I registered, since there was a guarantee that if it did not work they will pay my money back. The class was on line and took several months. The problem was that I was suppose to find the JV partner myself and the refund would be possible if I could have at least 500,000 e-mail. This process which I sent the e-mail to people who had web with lots of opt-in’s took me a year since I did not find many who wanted to cooperate.
Finally, I did the campaign, the result was zero. Not even one book was sold. There was a form on the letter which only one person tried to fill with junk that was all. I had 12 partner to send the e-mail to more than 500.000 people. I do not know what went wrong. Either the partner did not send any e-mail or people have seen so many letters like it that they did not bother looking at it. After sending my results they refunded the money of course. They claim that I did not do it the way I should. But to me it is not worth it specially for the fiction books. Also those who were successful did it long time ago and may be the concept was new and it worked for them. I hope this will help.
Of course if you have so many friends who like to partner with you, you can create a page yourself and send it out and see if it works or not. If you can effort the time and you do not pay any money it does not hurt to try.
Yours ######### (The author wishes to stay anonymous)
BEWARE OF ALL EMAILS THAT PROMISE TO TURN YOUR BOOK INTO A BEST SELLER, THIS IS ONLY ONE OF THE MANY ON LINE. USE ONLY REPUTABLE COMPANIES.
Return to Whittakerville by Shirley A. Roe is now available. The final book in the Whittaker Family series is now on sale. www.realtimepublishings.com. Also on Amazon. Fans can order direct from the author at: sroebooks@aol.com.
Call for Submissions:
Posted in Uncategorized on June 1, 2009 by allbooksreview
AllBooks Review is hosting a book giveaway, add your book to the list for some great promotion:
Honor Due by Author D.H. Brown
Honor Defended by Author D.H. Brown
Of Dreams and Nightmares by Author Shirley Roe
The Whittaker Family Reunion by Author Shirley Roe
A Call to Faith and Freedom by Author Shirley Roe
Growing Up Ugly by Author Donetta Garman (An audio copy and a paperback copy)
Fairy Glade and other Enchanting Tales by Author Dawn Beaumont-Lane (2 Copies)
The Vampire Valkyrie by Author Peter Klein
The Dancing Valkyrie by Author Peter Klein
A Full House – But Empty by Author Angus Munro (This is a signed copy) plus many more.
To enter this book giveaway send an e-mail with a mailing address to allbooksmktg@aol.com Attn: Bob
Allbooks Review is now offering an Author’s Page, for $75 per year. You prepare your page to tell readers anything you like. Bio, book titles, where to purchase, link to website, etc. Include a photo of yourself, and a covershot for your books, one or ten+ it is up to you.
Each additional year is only $25. Get a full page ad that you can send your readers to. Just like having a website without the fuss.
Contact me at: allbookreviews@aol.com for details.
Remember to post your book signing, guest speaker events on our Bookstore page. Simply send us an email with details of your events and we will be happy to post them. Just part of the Allbooks service to our authors.
Success Stories
We love to hear of your success stories, submit them to us at: allbookreviews@aol.com
Robert Fate – Baby Shark series interviews –
www.lesasbookcritiques.blogspot.com
http://meanderingsandmuses.blogspot.com/
FEATURE
ALLBOOKS REVIEW INTERVIEW
Please state your name and location. (city and State or Province, Country)
My name is Lorilyn Roberts and I live in Gainesville, Florida, USA.
Tell us the title and publisher of your book:
The title of my book is Children of Dreams. The publisher is VBW Publishing.
Tell us about yourself:
I graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of Alabama in 1993 with a B.A. in Interdisciplinary Humanities/Social Sciences. I won an award for “Outstanding Senior Project” upon graduation for my coursework that was done in conjunction with my on-site study at the Institute of Holy Land Studies in Jerusalem.
As a Certified Court Reporter, I have made contributions to the scholarly journal published by the National Court Reporters Association. I have spent the last ten years providing real-time broadcast captioning for television for the hearing-impaired. Combined with my Biblical studies, I believe it gives me a unique perspective to write from a Christian worldview.
My first book, The Donkey and the King, had a second printing last year, and is a beautifully illustrated children’s book published by VBW Publishing.
I am intimately familiar with adoption, having also been adopted as a child, which helped me to present the spirit of adoption in Children of Dreams.
When was the book released?
April 30, 2009.
Give us an overview of your book.
Children of Dreams is an inspiring story of turning stolen dreams into life-changing hope, not only for me, but for two destitute children. Both a story of triumph and a story of insecurity and fear, Children of Dreams will touch the heart of every reader. This is more than an adoption story. Set in the remotest regions of the planet, I faced insurmountable odds – communist blockades, life-threatening illness, betrayal and deceit . Hopefully my courage and determination will provoke readers to ask some of life’s deepest questions. Despair transformed into heavenly joy may inspire even the most skeptical to believe in miracles.
Children of Dreams is my riveting, first-person account that will resonate with all those who have, know, or love children.
What inspired you to write this book?
This question is answered in the first paragraph of the introduction to Children of Dreams.
“What does it mean to be adopted? As I look at my two beautiful, internationally adopted daughters, the definition becomes living and full of personal meaning, not just a two-dimensional word on a written page. Maybe what I want is not so much a definition as an understanding of the depths of its meaning on a spiritual level—the act itself of love, sacrifice, cost, and inheritance.”
How is your book different from other books in this genre?
The title of my book, “Children of Dreams,” falls into the most recognizable category of adoption. However, most adoption books give detailed information on how to adopt. I do not give any advice or information in that regard.
Children of Dreams is a story borne out of sadness and loss. I experienced a difficult childhood after being left on the streets by my father, and later my husband left me after I put him through medical school. Two weeks after my divorce was final, my husband’s girlfriend gave birth to his child.
How could God bring anything good out of all of that? How could God heal my broken heart? Children of Dreams is a true story of how God redeems dreams and makes them better than anything we could have imagined. It’s a story of redemption in my life as well as how God chose me to be the mother of my two beautiful daughters.
My faith hopefully will inspire others to pursue their dreams even if they feel like so much has been lost. God never wastes anything and can use everything to bring Him glory.
Where can people buy your book?
People can go to my website at http://www.lorilynroberts.com/ where there is a link to VBN Publishing and Amazon, or they can order Children of Dreams directly from Amazon. There are a lot of pictures on my website and links to other places lurkers might enjoy visiting.
Are you working on another book? If so when do you expect it to be published?
Right now I am not working on another book. I am blogging and writing articles and praying that God will show me what He would like me to write next. I have many ideas. After twenty years of court reporting, I would love to write the greatest court scene that will ever happen in the future. Maybe that will get someone’s imagination going.
If you self published, what advice can you give to fellow writers?
I’m not sure where POD fits into the scheme of publishing, whether it is considered self‑publishing or not. In the beginning I was completely set on having a traditional publisher publish my book. But when I went to the Florida Christian Writer’s Conference in March, nobody was interested in my book. I kept hearing from book editors, “no personal stories, no memoirs.”
I had worked very hard to prepare my book. I had many people to read it and give me feedback. I had spent months editing with many rewrites based on feedback I had received. I knew I had a good book. I was shocked there was so little interest. I don’t think I had anyone at the conference to read the first word simply because it was a personal story and the Christian publishing world is not publishing that kind of book right now.
When I came home, I started looking at secular publishing companies and found that is not the case in the secular world. Personal experience stories are sought after and being published. I started doing research to find anyone that might be interested in my type of book.
Have you ever had one of those moments where a light suddenly goes on in your head and you think what am I doing? Do I really want to spend two years jumping through all the hoops to go with a secular publishing company? I am 53 years old, I knew my book was a good read, and it was finished. I also knew VBW Publishing would publish it and do a good job. For a couple of thousand dollars, I could have my book in the marketplace within two months.
It was a no‑brainer at that point. VBW Publishing had previously published a children’s picture book I had written a few years ago, The Donkey and the King, and had done a wonderful job. Part of it I think was pride. I wanted to be able to say I was published by a main line publisher.
I feel like I made the best choice I could have made considering my situation. I am not a well‑known speaker, I do not have a platform, I am not a celebrity, and I do not have a Ph.D. or other impressive initials after my name. No matter how well written a book is, without these additional qualifications, it is an uphill climb to go with a traditional publisher.
The good news is, you don’t have to. There are so many more options today for writers to get their work published, and with the Internet and other avenues through which to market, it’s not necessary. Prices continue to drop and make it a viable option for those of us who aren’t wealthy, and the quality of the books, at least with VBW Publishing, is on par with any mainline publisher. It is an exciting time to be a writer and author.
Can you share one of your marketing successes with us?
I have four videos that I put on Youtube and found it to be an inexpensive way to share my adoption story. Online videos now make up 52% of traffic on the Internet. Youtube visitors spend 27 minutes a day watching videos. In the future I see it becoming an even more important way to reach potential buyers. As the old saying goes, “a picture is worth a thousand words.” Maybe videos are worth two thousand words.
How did you find Allbooks Reviews and what are you hoping for in your relationship with us?
I found Allbooks Reviews through best‑selling author Debra Welch, who recommended the website to me. Networking is very important as a writer. I have been fortunate that some authors have taken the time to share their knowledge and help me along the way.
Was the low cost a surprise? What other things would you like Allbooks Reviews to offer writers?
I was very impressed with the Allbooks Review that I received and the thoroughness and perceptiveness of the reviewer, which is helpful for people who haven’t read my book to know whether it’s a book they would want to read. I found Allbooks Reviews to be very approachable for all authors, whether published by a traditional publisher, POD, or self‑published. Allbooks Reviews is an excellent resource, especially for new authors, to get their book noticed in the marketplace and receive low‑cost publicity. Without publicity, no matter how good a book is, people won’t know about it to buy it.
And yes, the low cost was a surprise. Marketing is very expensive and since I don’t have a lot of extra money, I was glad to find a way to market my book professionally as well as very economically.
Thank you for this interview and best of luck with your book.
Thank you for letting me share.
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