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Helping to Change the World…Word by Word

The Steve Laube Agency

The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World Word by Word

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Home » Writing Craft » Book Business » Page 12

Book Business

Two Important Ingredients for Success

By Karen Ballon March 12, 2014
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happy businessman holding success text and jumping on the green field

I’ll never forget the day, just after church, when a friend pulled me aside and said, “My son can’t find a job and he needs to make some money fast. So he’s going to write a book. Any advice for him?”

Yeah, well, the advice I had wasn’t for him, it was for her: “Don’t ever say anything like that to me again.”

Whatever gave people the impression that writing was a get-rich quick scheme? Or that there was anything quick about it? Those of us who’ve been working at this for more than a few days know that very little happens quickly in publishing. So let me point out two things you have to have if you hope to succeed at this writing game: patience and perseverance.

But then, those two gems are necessary for success in most fields. So for those who are growing weary, who feel it’s taking too long, who wonder why they ever jumped into this pool to begin with, let me encourage you with a few stories of success that finally came—but only after substantial patience and perseverance:

  1. Emily Dickinson: One of the best-loved writers of all times, Dickinson crafted 1800 pieces of literary beauty. And, while she lived, guess how many were published? Less than 1 percent. And many of those dozen or so pieces were altered big-time to fit contemporary poetic rules. (Rotten editors!) Her first book of poems was published in 1890, 4 years after her death, by a group of friends. The first complete collection of her poems wasn’t published until 1955. Today? She’s read worldwide and considered by many to be one of the most important American poets ever.
  2. Vincent Van Gogh: One of his paintings recently sold for $149.5 million. And yet, while he lived, he sold…wait for it…one painting. One. To a friend. For the equivalent of pennies. So what did he do in the face of no sales? He kept painting. In fact, he created over 800 works. That, my friends, is perseverance.
  3. Dr. Seuss: Oh yes, Theodor Seuss Giesel was not an overnight success. In fact, his first book was rejected by 27 publishers. But thank heaven he kept trying, and ultimately we all benefited from The Cat in the Hat and the discovery that we do, indeed, like Green Eggs and Ham!
  4. Harland David Sanders: I’m especially fond of this one because Colonel Sanders of Kentucky Fried Chicken fame actually helped send me to college. No lie. He grew up in the same denomination I did, and gave scholarships to children of pastors and missionaries in that denomination. So not only did I receive one of those scholarships, the Colonel, decked out in his white suit and hat, came to my college once a year to say hello. And guess what the food service folks served him every single time. Yup, fried chicken.
             While KFC is, today, a clear success, Sanders had a hard time selling his chicken at first. In fact, his famous secret chicken recipe was rejected 1,009 times before a restaurant accepted it. Now that’s finger-lickin’ perseverance!
  5. Jack London: Speaking of rejection slips, this author of White Fang and The Call of the Wild received six hundred rejections for his works. Six. Hundred. Nuff said.
  6. Oprah Winfrey: Arguably one of the most recognizable people in the world, right? Revolutionized talk TV. Launched numerous writers’ careers with her book club. And, like many who are now successful, took hit after hit before she hit it big. In fact, she was fired from her job as a TV reporter because—ready for this?—they declared her “unfit for television.” Yeah, okay. Good thing she didn’t believe them.
  7. Thomas Edison: Okay, so today we equate this name with invention and brilliance. But when he was a kid, Edison’s teachers were less than encouraging. Said he was too stupid to learn anything. So, adulthood was better, right? Yeah, not so much. He was fired from his first two jobs. Enter his inventor years, during which he invented the light bulb…after 1,000 failed attempts! Perseverance, thy name is Edison!
  8. Abraham Lincoln: We all know Lincoln as one of the most successful and revered presidents in history. But that didn’t happen until he’d been demoted from captain to private while in the military, he’d started any number of businesses that failed, and he ran for public office—and was defeated. Over and over. So glad he kept at it!

This is just a short list of folks who have had to overcome adversity, opposition, rejection, and failure to reach the heights of success. And I believe they made it because of those two special ingredients: patience and perseverance. They didn’t let failure derail them. And they didn’t expect success NOW. They just kept at it, doing what they knew to do, believing in themselves and their calling.

Let’s follow their lead and stay the course.

Onward!

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Category: Book Business, Career, Creativity, Karen, PlatformTag: Career, perseverance, Success

How to Be A Publisher’s Favorite Author

By Dan Balowon March 11, 2014
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Three years ago, Seth Godin published his book Linchpin.  Since I follow Seth’s books and blog as a personal and professional challenge, I read it and was inspired by it’s concepts. In it, Godin speaks about some of the new realities in business relationships.  There used to be management and those who were managed.  But now, he says, there is a third group…linchpins.  These are people who make …

Read moreHow to Be A Publisher’s Favorite Author
Category: Book Business, Branding, Career, Dan, PlatformTag: Authors, Career, publishing

Did You Feel the Tremor in the Industry Last Week?

By Steve Laubeon March 3, 2014
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by Steve Laube

I know what it is like to feel the earth move under my feet having experienced the '64 Alaska earthquake firsthand. (The above picture is from the neighborhood where we lived called Turnagain Arm.) Therefore I know the difference between a 9.2 Richter scale quake and a tremor that registers near 2.0 on the scale.

Last Thursday Amazon announced they were reducing the royalty …

Read moreDid You Feel the Tremor in the Industry Last Week?
Category: Book Business, E-Books, Get Published, Steve, The Publishing LifeTag: Book Business, E-Books, publishing

Basketball and Writing

By Dan Balowon February 25, 2014
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Next week is March and that means basketball “March Madness” around the country.  From high school to college, teams will compete in tournaments where excitement is at its peak.  

One of my hobbies is to work as the official scorer for the Wheaton College (Illinois) men’s and women’s home basketball games.  I started doing this back in the late 70’s, took some time away from it when our kids …

Read moreBasketball and Writing
Category: Book Business, Career, Creativity, Dan, The Publishing Life, Writing CraftTag: Basketball, publishing, Writing Craft

Adopt a Bookstore

By Dan Balowon February 18, 2014
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Bookstores throughout the United States are going through the most challenging period in their history.  The combination of online purchase of printed books and the dawn of the eBook have combined to deliver a one-two punch to the business of book retailing.

For Christian bookstores, the challenges started over a decade ago when a substantial part of their business (in some cases over a third) …

Read moreAdopt a Bookstore
Category: Book Business, Book Sales, DanTag: Book Business, Book Sales, Bookstores

And Another Thing, Your Baby is Ugly

By Dan Balowon February 4, 2014
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Have you noticed how much of public and private discourse so quickly moves from a simple disagreement to a personal attack?

I was attending a sporting event not long ago and the people sitting around me in the stands seamlessly moved from displeasure how their team was performing to calling the players, coaches and referees all sorts of names that had nothing to do with how they …

Read moreAnd Another Thing, Your Baby is Ugly
Category: Book Business, Craft, Dan, Get Published, Rejection, The Publishing LifeTag: Rejection

Is Christian Fiction Dying?

By Dan Balowon January 28, 2014
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Last year, a couple Christian publishers stopped publishing fiction.  Some publishers are nervous about it and in a wait-and-see mode. Others are excited about growth potential.  The answer to the title question is no, but it is certainly interesting to explore the reason behind such widely diverse opinions on the subject.

NOTE #1: For full disclosure, I am a member of the advisory board for …

Read moreIs Christian Fiction Dying?
Category: Awards, Book Business, Dan, E-Books, Get Published, TrendsTag: fiction, Trends

Five Reasons Not to Brag

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon January 23, 2014
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We've all done it -- bragged -- whether intentional or not. Not only should all glory go to God for your accomplishments, but bragging may not get the reaction you think. Say you tell someone you made ten million dollars last year. Rather than the reaction you're expecting, you may instead:

1.) Look foolish. Ten million dollars? I paid more than that last year in taxes.

2.) Hurt someone …

Read moreFive Reasons Not to Brag
Category: Book Business, Career, Communication, TamelaTag: Career, Communication, Success

Knowing Discouragement’s End

By Karen Ballon January 22, 2014
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A guest blog by Mesu Andrews

Mark Lowry is one of my favorite comedians. I heard one of his performances many years ago, and he quoted a single, profound phrase found 457 times in the King James Bible: “It came to pass…”

That’s it. That’s all.

It came…to pass.

And then he challenged the audience to remember those words the next time they faced an impossible situation, the depths of …

Read moreKnowing Discouragement’s End
Category: Book Business, Guest Post, Karen, The Writing LifeTag: Discouragement, The Writing Life

Embracing Change – Part Two

By Dan Balowon January 21, 2014
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Last week in my post "Embracing Change," I outlined the six phases that characterize the acceptance of change in our lives and world.  Today, I want to focus on some specifics that you need to consider to adapt to the future.

First, a recap of the six phases when confronted with something new:
Phase One - Dismissed as a fad by those who stand to lose the most or like the status quo.
Phase Two …

Read moreEmbracing Change – Part Two
Category: Book Business, Career, Dan, Get Published, TrendsTag: Book Business, Change
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