Authorlink News Alerts and Podcasts

I am back!

noreply@blogger.com (Doris Booth, Authorlink.com CEO) — Sat, 04 Jan 2025 20:54:00 +0000

whoa it has been so many years since I have posted to my blogger site. I've been busy on authorlink.com and on Quora and Social Media. So forgive the long absence here I plan to post more information here about how to write and publish. Please visit our website authorlink.com and check out all of our new services. For example, have you tried our new killer query, mini critue, or our sponsored review services? More details are located on our main menu under the services tab. Do you watch our blogger for more updates? Meanwhile, you can read our blogger archives here. Be sure to visit authorlink.com. Often we are constantly adding new features and author content. our mini critique

What are the most common mistakes new authors make when querying literary agents, and how can these pitfalls be avoided?

noreply@blogger.com (Doris Booth, Authorlink.com CEO) — Sat, 04 Jan 2025 20:49:00 +0000

Many writers don’t take the time to study the agency or agent they are trying to attract. A query letter must be highly relevant to the agent reading the information. The classic example is that you don’t send a query for your thriller or sci-fi fantasy to an agent who only represents children’s books. The trick is to match your story with the agent, most likely interested in your topic or theme. Be prepared to query 25 or 50 targeted agents and to receive many rejections, or no response at all. Finding representation is a tough job in today’s market. It is critical that you first understand the audience you want to reach. What is this readers persona? Who is your likely reader? Consider the persons, gender, family, life, work, life, age, geographical Location and any other Useful information? If you don’t understand the audience for your story, it will be difficult to find an agent whose interest a line with yours. Begin the arduous querying process by carefully, selecting the agents who best fit your category or genre. Read, understand, and honor the agent’s submission guidelines. Never make grandiose claims about the story’s potential success or tell the agent what to think about the work. That’s up to them. Include a One page synopsis, unless it’s agent’s the agents guidelines. Make sure that the synopsis portrays the story in a succinct and interesting way. Don’t rely on artificial intelligence alone to make your sales pitch shine. We at Authorlink have developed a sensible way to use artificial intelligence tools together with the author’s insights and our editorial experience, to enhance the querying process. We found that AI alone is not helpful In appealing to the publishing world, unless it is coupled with human insight and experience.

noreply@blogger.com (Doris Booth, Authorlink.com CEO) — Wed, 02 Jan 2013 19:27:00 +0000

Film Festival Names New Director, Sets Contest Dates

January 2, 2013--The Santa Cruz Film Festival has several exciting new developments to share.

New dates. SCFF will take place November 7-11, 2013, when the air is chilly and the days are short. They think this is a better time to gather together and enjoy films and events. The Call for Entries will open in the New Year.

New Director. Jeff Ross, the founder of SF IndieFest, will join the Festival as director. Jeff has been in the independent film festival industry for more than 15 years. Come and meet Jeff and his family on January 4th, First Friday, from 6-8pm at NextSpace,101 Cooper Street, Santa Cruz, CA 95060

New Collaborations.The Festival will work with the following programs in 2013: The "Live Life Laughing" film series with the Average Miracles Foundation; the STEAM POWER After School Program; a 3rd Friday Mini Film Festival at the Museum of Art & History; and more to be announced! We continue our strong relationships with the Film & Digital Media Department at UCSC, the Reel Fresh youth film program and of course, our ongoing fiscal sponsorship of TEDx Santa Cruz.

The Santa Cruz Film Festival is a 501(c)(3) non-profit arts organization. As we head into our 12th year, we would greatly appreciate your support in helping us strengthen our role as one of the leading independent film festivals on the West Coast. Donations may be made online here. Thank you in advance for your support of filmmakers and digital storytelling. Elizabeth Gummere is President, Board of Directors.

Georgia Writers Seek Awards Sponsors

noreply@blogger.com (Doris Booth, Authorlink.com CEO) — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 16:48:00 +0000

Kennesaw, Georgia. April 17, 2012--The Georgia Writers Association will hold its 48th Georgia Author of the Year Awards Ceremony on June 16, 2012 at the Kennesaw State University Center.

There are 105 nominees this year, the largest number in over six years, and the Association expects a record number of authors, publicists, agents, and other literary people at this event.

The group is seeking sponsorships of $100, and advertisers for the event. Sponsorships will help the organization offer better prices to attendees. Sponsorship tables are limited. Those interested in more information should contact the sponsorship coordinator before May 4, 2012.

E-book Awards Submission Deadline Near

noreply@blogger.com (Doris Booth, Authorlink.com CEO) — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 15:52:00 +0000

Santa Barbara, CA/Authorlink News/April 16, 2012--Deadline for entering Dan Poynter’s Global eBook Awards is April 30,2012. The competition features more than 100 fiction and nonfiction categories. In addition, there w
ill be awards for best eBook cover, best eBook trailer, Best Illustration and Best Multimedia categories.

All nominees will get a free bonus—the use Washington D.C.’s News Release Wire Service FREE to May 30, 2012.

Winners will be announced at a ceremony on Saturday, August 18, 2012 in Santa Barbara, CA.

For complete details see: http://globalebookawards.com/instructions-for-entering/

2012 Hollywood Book Festival Call for Entries

noreply@blogger.com (Doris Booth, Authorlink.com CEO) — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 21:45:00 +0000

HOLLYWOOD, CA _ The 2012 Hollywood Book Festival has issued a call for entries to its seventh annual program celebrating books that deserve greater recognition from the film, television, game and multimedia communities.

The 2012 Hollywood Book Festival will consider published, self-published and independent publisher non-fiction, fiction, children's books, teenage, how-to, audio/spoken word, 'zines, comics, e-books, fan fiction, wild card (anything goes!), unpublished stories, screenplays, genre-based works and biographical/autobiographical works. This is a story-oriented competition and there is no date of publication restriction.

A panel of entertainment and publishing industry judges will determine the winners based on the following criteria:

1) The story-telling ability of the author;
2) The potential of the work to be translated into other forms of media
All entries must be in English. Our grand prize for the 2012 Hollywood Book Festival Author of the Year is $1500 and a flight to Hollywood, CA for our gala awards ceremony.
ENTRIES: Please classify your book and enter it in the following categories. Multiple entries must be accompanied by a separate fee for each book.
1) General Non-fiction
2) General Fiction
3) Children’s books
4) E-books
5) Comics/’zines
6) How-To
7) Fan Fiction
8) Wild Card
9) Unpublished Stories
10) Teenage
11) Biography/Autobiography
12) Audio/spoken word
13) Genre-based
14) Screenplays
In addition to honoring the top selections in the above categories, The Hollywood Book Festival will award the following chosen from submissions:
1) Hollywood Book Festival Author of the Year Honors the outstanding book of the competition.
2) Hollywood Book Festival Design of the Year Honors outstanding and innovative design.
3) Hollywood Book Festival Publisher of the Year Honors the top publisher based on potential to develop future works suitable for transformation into other media.

FESTIVAL RULES: Hollywood Book Festival submissions cannot be returned. Each entry must contain the official entry form, including your e-mail address and contact telephone number. All shipping and handling costs must be borne by entrants.

NOTIFICATION AND DEADLINES: We will notify each entry of the receipt of their package via e-mail and will announce the winning entries on the web site shortly after the entry deadline. Regular registration deadline submissions in each category must be postmarked by the close of business on June 25, 2012. Winners in each category will be notified by e-mail. Please note that judges read and consider submissions on an ongoing basis, comparing early entries with later submissions.

TO ENTER: Entry forms are available online at www.hollywoodbookfestival.com or may be faxed/e-mailed to you by emailing HollywoodBKFest@aol.com. Applications must be accompanied by a non-refundable entry fee via check, money order or PayPal online payment of $75 in U.S. dollars for each submission. Multiple submissions are permitted but each entry must be accompanied by a separate form and entry fee.

Entry fee checks should be made payable to JM Northern Media LLC. We’re sorry, but entries must be mailed and cannot be delivered in person or by messenger services to the JM Northern Media offices.
Entry packages should include one copy of the book; any relevant marketing material; a copy of your official entry form; and the entry fee or receipt from online payment. Entries should be mailed to:

JM Northern Media LLC
attn: Hollywood Book Festival
7095 Hollywood Boulevard
Suite 864
Hollywood, CA 90028-0893
Phone: 323-665-8080

2012 NEW YORK BOOK FESTIVAL SETS AWARDS DATE

noreply@blogger.com (Doris Booth, Authorlink.com CEO) — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 19:07:00 +0000

NEW YORK/April 5, 2012--The 2012 New York Book Festival will hold its annual awards honoring books that deserve greater recognition from the world's publishing capital at the famed Grolier Club in Manhattan on Friday, June 22.

The oldest and largest society for bibliophiles and enthusiasts in the graphic arts, the Grolier Club is housed in an elegant library on New York's Upper East Side.

The 2012 New York Book Festival will consider published, self-published and independent publisher non-fiction, fiction, children, young adult, how-to, audio/spoken word, comics/zines/graphic novels, poetry, wild card (anything goes!), unpublished stories, science fiction, horror, photography/art, romance and biography/autobiography works.

Entries can be in English, Spanish, French or Italian and must be published on or after January 1, 2006. Our grand prize for the 2012 New York Book Festival Author of the Year is $1,500 and a flight to New York for our awards ceremony.

Registration forms are available online at www.newyorkbookfestival.com. Regular registration deadline is May 25, 2012.

2012 SAN FRANCISCO BOOK FESTIVAL SET FOR UNION SQUARE

noreply@blogger.com (Doris Booth, Authorlink.com CEO) — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 16:57:00 +0000

SAN FRANCISCO _ The 2012 San Francisco Book Festival will hold the outdoor portion of its annual competition honoring the best books of the spring season at Union Square on Saturday, May 19.
Union Square is a cosmopolitan plaza bordered by Geary, Powell, Post and Stockton Streets in the heart of downtown San Francisco. It is surrounded by stores, hotels and a theater district, making it one of the largest shopping and tourist destinations in the world. Publishers, authors and other vendors interested in being a part of this special opportunity should email SanFranciscoBKFest@sbcglobal.net to obtain an exhibition space registration form and more information on the outdoor event.
The 2012 San Francisco Book Festival will consider non-fiction, fiction, biography/autobiography, children's books, compilations/anthologies, teenage, how-to, cookbooks, science fiction, audio/spoken word, history, wild card, gay, photography/art, poetry, unpublished, travel and spiritual works. There is no date of publication deadline.
Our grand prize for the 2012 San Francisco Book Festival is $1500 cash and a flight to San Francisco for our gala awards ceremony and day festival on Saturday, May 19.
Submitted works will be judged by a panel of industry experts using the following criteria:
1) General excellence and the author's passion for telling a good story.
2) The potential of the work to reach a wider audience.
ENTRIES: Please classify your book and enter it in the following categories. Multiple entries must be accompanied by a separate fee for each book.

· General Non-fiction

· General Fiction

· Children's books

· How-to

· Spiritual

· Photography/Art

· Gay

· Poetry

· History

· Teenage

· Biography/Autobiography

· Audio/spoken word

· Compilations/Anthologies

· Best Unpublished Short Story

· Cookbooks

· Science Fiction

· Wild Card

In addition to honoring the top selections in the above categories, The San Francisco Book Festival will award the following chosen from submissions:
1) Author of the Year- Honors the outstanding book of the competition.
2) Book Design of the Year - Honors outstanding and innovative design.
3) Publisher of the Year- Honors the top publisher based on materials displaying
excellence in marketing and promotional materials, as determined by our judges.
FESTIVAL RULES: San Francisco Book Festival submissions cannot be returned. Each entry must contain the official entry form, including your e-mail address and contact telephone number. All shipping and handling costs must be borne by entrants.
NOTIFICATION AND DEADLINES: We will notify each entry of the receipt of their package via e-mail and will announce the winning entries on our web site (www.sanfranciscobookfestival.com). Because of the anticipated high volume of entries, we can only respond to e-mail inquiries.
Deadline submissions in each category must be received by the close of business on April 25, 2012. Winners in each category will be notified by e-mail and on the web site. Please note that judges read and consider submissions on an ongoing basis, comparing early entries with later submissions at our meetings.
TO ENTER: Entry forms are available online at sanfranciscobookfestival.com or may be faxed/e-mailed to you. Please contact our office at 323-665-8080 for fax requests. Applications must be accompanied by a non-refundable entry fee of $50 in the form of a check, money order or PayPal online payment in U.S. dollars for each submission. Multiple submissions are permitted but each entry must be accompanied by a separate form and entry fee.
Entry fee checks should be made payable to JM Northern Media LLC. We're sorry, but entries must be mailed and cannot be delivered in person or by messenger services to the JM Northern Media offices.
Entry packages MUST include:
1) One copy of the book;
2) A copy of your official entry form or a reasonable facsimile;
3) The entry fee or receipt for online payment;
4) Any press/marketing materials you wish to send. Marketing is used as a tie-breaking consideration by our judges.
Entries should be mailed to:
JM Northern Media LLC
attn: San Francisco Book Festival
7095 Hollywood Boulevard
Suite 864
Hollywood, CA 90028-0893
AWARDS: The San Francisco Book Festival selection committee reserves the right to determine the eligibility of any project.
The 2012 San Francisco Book Festival is part of the JM Northern Media family of festivals, which include the DIY Convention: Do It Yourself in Film, Music & Books, New York Book Festival and Hollywood Book Festival.

Earnest Hemingway's Son to Present Bard Pen Award

noreply@blogger.com (Doris Booth, Authorlink.com CEO) — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 16:55:00 +0000

ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, N.Y.—Bard College writer in residence Teju Cole has won the 2012 Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award for a distinguished first book of fiction for Open City. Patrick Hemingway, the son of Nobel Prize–winning writer Ernest Hemingway, will present the prestigious literary award to Cole on Sunday, April 1, at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston.

“Written in a deceptively quiet voice, Teju Cole’s remarkable and penetrating debut novel achieves what Kafka said art should; it chops the frozen sea within us,” said novelist and Hemingway Foundation/PEN award judge Andre Dubus III. In addition to Dubus, writers Sigrid Nunez and Edith Pearlman were judges for this year’s Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award.

Teju Cole will receive a $10,000 prize from the Hemingway Foundation and PEN New England, as well as a residency in The Distinguished Visiting Writers Series at the University of Idaho’s MFA Program in Creative Writing. Cole and competition finalists and honorable mentions receive Ucross Residency Fellowships at the Ucross Foundation in Wyoming, a retreat for artists and writers. The late Mary Hemingway, the wife of Ernest Hemingway, founded the Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award in 1976 to honor her husband and draw attention to first books of fiction. Past recipients of the Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award include Edward P. Jones, Marilynne Robinson, Ha Jin, and Jhumpa Lahiri.

Teju Cole is a writer, art historian, and street photographer. Born in the United States in 1975 to Nigerian parents, he was raised in Nigeria and currently lives in Brooklyn. Besides Open City (Random House, 2011), Cole is the author of a novella, Every Day Is for the Thief (Cassava Republic Press, 2007). His writing has appeared in the New York Times, Qarrtsiluni, Chimurenga, New Yorker, Transition, Tin House, and A Public Space, among other publications. He is currently at work on Water Has No Enemy, a nonfiction narrative of Lagos, and on Small Fates. He received his B.A. in studio art and art history from Kalamazoo College in Michigan; his M.A. in African art history from the University of London; and his M.Phil. in 16th-century northern European visual culture from Columbia University, where he is working on his Ph.D. He has taught art history and literature at Hofstra University, New York University, and Columbia University. He has received a Rudolf Wittkower Fellowship and Andrew W. Mellon Fellowship in the Humanities (awarded by the Woodrow Wilson Fellowship Foundation), and has been interviewed for the documentary film, Wole Soyinka: Child of the Forest.

E-Book Buyers Drive More Sales through Apps and Web Sites

noreply@blogger.com (Doris Booth, Authorlink.com CEO) — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 19:47:00 +0000

New York, NY/February 28, 2012 – E-book consumers are increasing their purchase of books—both print and e-book formats—online and especially through in-app purchasing, and decreasing their use of brick-and-mortar stores, according to the Book Industry Study Group (BISG)’s closely watched Consumer Attitudes Toward E-Book Reading survey. The first installment in Volume Three of the survey reveals that more than half of e-book readers increased their use of apps to purchase books and more than one-third increased their use of general retail websites such as Amazon.com. The gains for these digital vendors come at the expense of brick and mortar bookstores, even independents. More than a third of e-book buyers decreased their spending at national chains and 29% said they are buying less from their local indie.

“The e-book market is developing very quickly, with consumer attitudes and behavior changing over the course of months, rather than years,” said Angela Bole, BISG’s Deputy Executive Director. “One of the strengths of this study is its ability to monitor ‘Power Buyers.’ They are predictors of where the market is moving, providing us with an ideal opportunity to look at what’s coming next.”

The BISG study, which is conducted by Bowker Market Research, follows Power Buyers (those who acquire e-books at least weekly) closely for their ability to act as predictors of overall consumer behavior. The latest installment of Consumer Attitudes Toward E-Book Reading shows a rosy outlook for publishing, with nearly three-quarters of e-book Power Buyers purchasing more titles overall. Further, nearly half of Power Buyers had more total spending on books in all formats.

Findings also show that while dedicated e-readers remain the dominant e-reading platform, especially among Power Buyers, multi-function tablet devices and smartphones are gaining in popularity. Consumer Attitudes Toward E-Book Reading results show:

· Almost 17% of respondents indicated that tablets were the devices most used to read e-books—up from 13% in the previous survey.

· Respondents who preferred smartphones jumped from 5.3% to 9.2%.

· Dedicated e-readers were preferred by 60.9% of all respondents, down from 71.6% in the previous survey.

Since November 2009, Consumer Attitudes Toward E-Book Reading has been tracking the habits and preferences of book consumers who say they have acquired an e-book or a dedicated e-reading device within the past 18 months. Volume Three is sponsored by Baker & Taylor, Barnes & Noble, and Harlequin.

Consumer Attitudes Toward E-Book Reading is powered by Bowker Market Research. In addition to quarterly PDF Summary Reports, Volume Three of Consumer Attitudes Toward E-Book Reading is published as a dynamic online report via Real-Time Reporting: a unique web-based tool set displaying the raw data derived from responses—drillable, sortable, with on-demand accessibility.

Data for Consumer Attitudes Toward E-Book Reading was derived from a nationally representative panel of book consumers (men, women, and teens). Each month a new group of more than 6,000 respondents complete surveys about their book purchasing behavior for Bowker Market Research. Out of more than 72,000 possible panelists drawn from the last 10 months, respondents were qualified for the BISG e-book survey by indicating they had either purchased a “digital book or e-book” or owned a dedicated e-reading device (such as Kindle, NOOK, or Sony Reader). The resulting sample size for the survey was 1,036, an increase from prior fieldings.

The survey findings are available for sale both as a PDF Summary Report and as a complete data compendium, accessible online. A substantial discount is available for BISG members. For more information, or to order a copy of Consumer Attitudes Toward E-Book Reading, visit www.bisg.org/publications/product.php?p=19&c=437.

BISG EPUB SERIES EXCELLENT!

noreply@blogger.com (Doris Booth, Authorlink.com CEO) — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 19:02:00 +0000

Just listened in on the first in a series of webcasts on the new EPUB 3.0 format for e-books, sponsored by the Book INdustry Study Group. Three more are in the series. Highlight recommended for those who are fairly tech savvy.
Thanks Angela Bole for an excellent series! www.bisg.org for details.

Author Series to Bring Jonathan Franzen to BU

noreply@blogger.com (Doris Booth, Authorlink.com CEO) — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 16:01:00 +0000

by Susan Lamb

BINGHAMPTON, NEW YORK/February 17, 2012--The spring 2012 Readers’ Series will feature the acclaimed authors Jonathan Franzen — a National Book Award recipient who has graced the cover of TIME magazine — and C.K. Williams, a Pulitzer Prize-winning poet.

The Binghamton Center for Writers (BCW), established six years ago, hosts the Readers’ Series in collaboration with the creative writing program at Binghamton University.
Christine Gelineau, associate director of the creative writing department, said the BCW Readers’ Series is sponsored by the BU English department.

“Each spring semester the series brings to campus contemporary writers whose creative work we believe will be of interest to anyone who enjoys fiction and/or poetry,” Gelineau wrote in an email.

Maria Gillan, a professor of English, general literature and rhetoric, said the speakers are chosen using two criteria. Two are recipients of Binghamton University’s two book awards, the John Gardner Fiction Award and the Milt Kessler Poetry Award. The other readers are suggested by the creative writing faculty.
Authors of books of poetry and fiction may submit their works to the creative writing department to be considered for the awards, according to the department’s website. Two members from the department serve as judges, one for each award, and select the work that they feel represents the strongest works of poetry and fiction of the year. The winners of the awards receive $1,000 each.

This year’s Readers’ Series consists of six readers across five presentations. Jonathan Franzen and C.K. Williams are the 2011 recipients of the John Gardner Fiction Award and the Milt Kessler Poetry Award, respectively. Novelist Minrose Gwin, graphic novelist Katherine Arnoldi, poet Marilyn Nelson and publishers Vivian Shipley and Jim Reese have also been selected to present for the series.

“There are a number of factors to consider in setting up the readings,” Gillan said. “Once we find who the judges have chosen as the winners of the [Book Awards], we choose additional readers based on diversity of gender and ethnicity, and also based on getting writers who are willing to come to Binghamton to read.”
Gelineau said she believes the Readers’ Series would appeal to all students because they choose authors with wide appeal who write on a broad range of topics.

Jonathan Franzen, the recipient of the John Gardner Fiction Award for his novel “Freedom,” will read at 6:15 p.m. on March 7 in the Mandela Room. Franzen is a National Book Award winner, a Pulitzer Prize finalist and a New York Times’ bestselling author. His other works include novels the “Twenty-Seventh City” (1988), “Strong Motion” (1992) and “The Corrections” (2001) as well as a collection of essays and a memoir.
“Students should be aware that Jonathan Franzen is a major American writer and this is an opportunity to hear him read and discuss his work that they will remember in the years to come,” Gillan said.

C.K. Williams, the recipient of the Milt Kessler Poetry Book Award for his collection “Wait,” will be reading at 8 p.m. on March 20 in Science II room 149. Williams is a Pulitzer Prize winner, a National Book Award winner and author of 13 collections of poetry.

Gillan said she was able to book Williams for the BCW Readers’ Series because she knows him personally.
“He also felt very happy about getting the BU Milt Kessler Award because he thought it brought attention to this book and he was anxious to do that,” Gillan said. “He had a nonfiction book out the same year and that got lots of attention, and he felt it drew attention away from this book of poems.”

In the past, the Readers’ Series has featured authors such as Ted Kooser in 2005, the same year he won the Pulitzer Prize and was also named Poet Laureate of the United States, Maxine Kumin, Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 1981-82 and Mark Doty, National Book Award winner for poetry in 2008.

Gillan recommended that students get their books signed by the authors and ask questions because it is a great opportunity to have a one-on-one discussion with them.

The Readers’ Series opens at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 21 in Science I room 149 with a reading by Minrose Gwin, author of the novel “The Queen of Palmyra.” All events are free and open to the public.

New IndieCommerce Policy Bans Amazon Titles

noreply@blogger.com (Doris Booth, Authorlink.com CEO) — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 22:45:00 +0000

NEW YORK, NY/February 9, 2012--On Monday, IndieCommerce, a for-profit subsidiary of the American Booksellers Association, informed subscribing stores of a new policy regarding available inventory. Beginning this week, only publishers’ titles that are made available to retailers for sale in all available formats will be included in the IndieCommerce inventory database.

According to Publishers Weekly, IndieCommerce began removing Amazon titles from its database earlier this week, joining Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million and Indigo Books’ decision to keep Amazon published titles out of their physical bookstores. The booksellers feel that Amazon’s push for exclusivity in eBooks is hurting the publishing industry.

In an e-mail to its users, IndieCommerce explained:

This decision was made to support publishers committed to fostering a diverse and robust publishing industry — and to making books as widely available to consumers as possible — and in support of the bricks-and-mortar retail sales channel, which offers an essential — and unique — venue for discovering and marketing new titles of both established and debut authors.

All retailers using the IndieCommerce platform are free to stock any published books from any publisher in their stores and/or to fulfill any customer orders through another source. This policy change in no way affects that ability. Bookstores using IndieCommerce have the option of adding any title to their individual store’s online database and/or fulfilling orders through other means.

IndieCommerce said that it was instituting the policy change in response to Amazon.com’s plans to distribute its print catalog through conventional means while “it seems that they are simultaneously pursuing a strategy of locking in e-book exclusives, which other retailers are not allowed to sell. IndieCommerce believes that this is wrong, and that any book title for sale should be available to all retailers in the same formats and on the same basis.”

This week’s e-mail underscored, however, that “any IndieCommerce store that would like to list one or more of Amazon’s titles on [their] website may do so by creating the title as a custom product. This will also cause it to appear in the search with other books — but only on [their] store’s site.”

Yale Publishing Programs Announced for 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Doris Booth, Authorlink.com CEO) — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 16:53:00 +0000

Yale University in New Haven, CT is now accepting applications for two week-long publishing programs.

Leadership Strategies in Magazine & Digital Publishing will be held July 15 to 20, 2012

Leadership Strategies in Book Publishing is scheduled for July 22 to 27, 2012

These week-long programs held on the campus of Yale University in New Haven, CT provide print and digital publishing profession

Publish Post

als with the skills they need to prosper in a time of unprecedented change and opportunity.

The Yale Publishing Course offers a unique curriculum that focuses on forward-looking approaches to publishing as a global enterprise and provides in-depth information on the latest advances in technology.

Its outstanding speakers, carefully selected for their expertise, teaching skills, and demonstrated performance as innovators, include leading publishing executives and industry experts as well as distinguished faculty from the Yale School of Management.

Limited to only 80 participants, its collegial and informal atmosphere allows participants to receive personal attention from speakers at meals and receptions as well as in small group discussions and one-on-one counseling sessions.

Apply now or for more information, click here. Enrollment is limited.

2012 San Francisco Book Festival Call for Entries

noreply@blogger.com (Doris Booth, Authorlink.com CEO) — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 18:39:00 +0000

SAN FRANCISCO _ The 2012 San Francisco Book Festival has issued a call for entries to its annual competition honoring the best books of the spring season.
The 2012 San Francisco Book Festival will consider non-fiction, fiction, biography/autobiography, children's books, compilations/anthologies, teenage, how-to, cookbooks, science fiction, audio/spoken word, history, wild card, gay, photography/art, poetry, unpublished, travel and spiritual works. There is no date of publication deadline.
Our grand prize for the 2012 San Francisco Book Festival is $1500 cash and a flight to San Francisco for our gala awards ceremony and day festival.
Submitted works will be judged by a panel of industry experts using the following criteria:
1) General excellence and the author's passion for telling a good story.
2) The potential of the work to reach a wider audience.
ENTRIES: Please classify your book and enter it in the following categories. Multiple entries must be accompanied by a separate fee for each book.

· General Non-fiction

· General Fiction

· Children's books

· How-to

· Spiritual

· Photography/Art

· Gay

· Poetry

· History

· Teenage

· Biography/Autobiography

· Audio/spoken word

· Compilations/Anthologies

· Best Unpublished Short Story

· Cookbooks

· Science Fiction

· Wild Card

Journalism Society Calls for Award Nominations

noreply@blogger.com (Doris Booth, Authorlink.com CEO) — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 16:29:00 +0000

New York City, November 2, 2011

The American Society of Journalists and Authors (ASJA) is seeking nominations for two endowed journalism awards: The Arlenes: Books and Articles That Make a Difference and The Donald Robinson Memorial Award for Investigative Journalism.

"We hope to expand the pool of eligible work for recognition," said Alexandra Owens, ASJA's executive director. "Independent writing is the lifeblood of a free society, and in today's media environment it's more challenging than ever. These awards recognize the best work of freelance writers who dedicate themselves to truly making a difference with their work."

The Arlenes are made possible by the Arlene Eisenberg Memorial Fund, which was established by ASJA member Howard Eisenberg, Arlene's husband. Ms. Eisenberg wrote What to Expect When You're Expecting, as well as other books affecting (and improving) the lives of parents worldwide. The awards are for freelance articles and/or trade books making a documented difference in society by inspiring readers to take action to make a positive change in the world around them.

The Arlene Article Award is presented annually for articles published within the last two years. This year the award will be given to articles published in 2010 or 2011.

The Donald Robinson Memorial Award for Investigative Journalism is funded by a bequest from Donald Robinson, third president of ASJA. This monetary award goes to a freelance-written article representing exceptional achievement in investigative journalism or exposé writing. Entries for 2012 award must have been published in 2011.

ASJA encourages freelance writers -- members and non-members alike -- to submit their work for consideration if they feel it meets the criteria for one of the awards. There is no fee to submit work, and both awards come with a monetary prize of a minimum of $500.

For complete details and submission instructions, visit http://www.asja.org/awards. Submission deadline is January 13, 2012.

William Saroyan Writing Prize Accepting Nominations

noreply@blogger.com (Doris Booth, Authorlink.com CEO) — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 19:27:00 +0000

Nominations are now being accepted for the 2012 William Saroyan International Prize for Writing. Two prizes of $5,000 each are given biennially for works of fiction and nonfiction. The awards, cosponsored by the Stanford University Libraries and the William Saroyan Foundation, are intended to “encourage new or emerging writers and honor the Saroyan legacy of originality, vitality, and stylistic innovation.”

Submit five copies of a novel, short story collection, or work of creative nonfiction published between January 1, 2010, and December 31, 2011, with a $50 entry fee. Visit the website for more information, including entry forms, contest rules, and complete guidelines. Go to: saroyanprize.stanford.edu

DEADLINE: Please note that entries must be received on or before January 31, 2012.

If you have additional questions, feel free to contact Stanford University Libraries, William Saroyan International Prize for Writing, Green Library, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305-6004. Sonia Lee, Saroyan Prize Administrator: sonialee@stanford.edu, (650) 736-9538.

E-Book Growth Triples in Latest AAP Report

noreply@blogger.com (Doris Booth, Authorlink.com CEO) — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 17:59:00 +0000

The newest statistics from the Association of American Publishers show that e-books saw triple-digit percentage growth again in July 2011, compared to the same time last year, according to Moco News Net.

The AAP also reported some good news for print books. Adult hardcover sales were up 33.9 percent for July 2011 compared to July 2010. And sales of digital audiobooks are up 26.7 percent so far this year.

2012 New York Book Festival Call for Entries

noreply@blogger.com (Doris Booth, Authorlink.com CEO) — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 17:59:00 +0000

NEW YORK/AUTHORLINK NEWS/October 11, 2011--The 2012 New York Book Festival has issued a call for entries to its annual program honoring books that deserve greater recognition from the world's publishing capital.

The 2012 New York Book Festival will consider published, self-published and independent publisher non-fiction, fiction, children, young adult, how-to, audio/spoken word, comics/zines/graphic novels, poetry, wild card (anything goes!), unpublished stories, science fiction, horror, photography/art, romance and biography/autobiography works.

Entries can be in English, Spanish, French or Italian and must be published on or after January 1, 2006. grand prize for the 2012 New York Book Festival Author of the Year is $1,500 and a flight to New York for our awards ceremony in June, 2012 in Manhattan.
Additional information and registration forms are available online at www.newyorkbookfestival.com

2011 Book Award Finalists Announced

noreply@blogger.com (Doris Booth, Authorlink.com CEO) — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 21:11:00 +0000

Book Award Finalists

National Book Award Finalists Named

New York, NY/October 12, 2011--The twenty Finalists for the 2011 National Book Awards were announced by past National Book Award Winners, Finalists, and Judges in front of a live audience at the new Literary Arts Center in Portland, Oregon as part of Oregon Public Broadcasting's morning radio program, Think Out Loud, and streamed live at www.opb.org/nationalbookawards.

The Winners in Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, and Young People's Literature will be announced at the 62^ndNational Book Awards Benefit Dinner and Ceremony at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City on Wednesday, November 16. Actor, writer, and musician John Lithgow will host the event. Winners receive $10,000 and a bronze statue; Finalists receive a bronze medal and $1,000. Poet John Ashbery will receive the National Book Foundation's Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters, to be presented by poet Ann Lauterbach. Mitchell Kaplan, co-founder of the Miami Book Fair International, will receive the Foundation's Literarian Award for Outstanding Contribution to the American Literary Community, to be presented by writer Walter Mosley.

The invitation-only Awards Ceremony is the culminating event of National Book Awards Week. The celebration begins on November 14 with 5 Under 35, the Foundation's sixth annual invitation-only celebration of emerging fiction writers selected by National Book Award Winners and Finalists. On November 15, for the first time, the National Book Awards Teen Press Conference will be streamed live online, from Scholastic in Soho, hosted by acclaimed young adult author and Scholastic editor David Levithan. Streaming will allow students from across the country to play the role of reporters as they direct questions to the five Finalists for the National Book Award in Young People's Literature. That evening, all twenty Finalists will read from their nominated works at the National Book Award Finalists Reading at The New School. The Finalists Reading is open to the public; tickets are $10 and are available through The New School box office by calling 212-229-5488 or by emailing boxoffice@newschool.edu.

For more information about the 2011 Finalists and upcoming National Book Awards Week events, visit www.nationalbook.org.

Fiction

Andrew Krivak, The Sojourn

Bellevue Literary Press

Téa Obreht, The Tiger's Wife

(Random House)

Julie Otsuka, The Buddha in the Attic

(Alfred A. Knopf, an imprint of Random House)

Edith Pearlman, Binocular Vision

(Lookout Books, an imprint of the Department of Creative Writing at the University of North Carolina Wilmington)

Jesmyn Ward, Salvage the Bones

(Bloomsbury USA)

Nonfiction

Deborah Baker, The Convert: A Tale of Exile and Extremism

(Graywolf Press)

Mary Gabriel, Love and Capital: Karl and Jenny Marx and the Birth of a Revolution

(Little, Brown and Company)

Stephen Greenblatt, The Swerve: How the World Became Modern

(W. W. Norton & Company)

Manning Marable, Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention

(Viking Press, an imprint of Penguin Group USA)

Lauren Redniss, Radioactive: Marie & Pierre Curie, A Tale of Love and Fallout

(It Books, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers)

Poetry

Nikky Finney, Head Off & Split

(TriQuarterly, an imprint of Northwestern University Press)

Yusef Komunyakaa, The Chameleon Couch

(Farrar, Straus and Giroux)

Carl Phillips, Double Shadow

(Farrar, Straus and Giroux)

Adrienne Rich, Tonight No Poetry Will Serve: Poems 2007-2010

(W.W. Norton & Company)

Bruce Smith, Devotions

(University of Chicago Press)

Young People's Literature

Franny Billingsley, Chime

(Dial Books, an imprint of Penguin Group USA, Inc.)

Debby Dahl Edwardson, My Name Is Not Easy

(Marshall Cavendish)

Thanhha Lai, Inside Out and Back Again

(Harper, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers)

Albert Marrin, Flesh and Blood So Cheap: The Triangle Fire and Its Legacy

(Alfred A. Knopf, an imprint of Random House Children's Books)

Lauren Myracle, Shine

(Amulet Books, an imprint of ABRAMS)

Gary D. Schmidt, Okay for Now

(Clarion Books, an imprint of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)

Seeking Answers to the Mysterious: Are There Angels Among Us?

noreply@blogger.com (Doris Booth, Authorlink.com CEO) — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 15:55:00 +0000

Authorlink Audio Interview With Javier Sierra

Are there human-like angels walking the earth today? New York Times bestselling author Javier Sierra explores the question in his heart-pounding new thriller about modern evil, and about mankind's most ancient desire--to communicate directly with the Almighty. What motivates this passionate novelist? AUDIO interview. Read more about Javier.

Indy Publisher Book Awards Call for Entries

noreply@blogger.com (Doris Booth, Authorlink.com CEO) — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 20:20:00 +0000

Calling all independent authors and publishers!

The 16th Independent Publisher Book Awards, conducted annually to honor the year's best independently published titles, are now accepting entries for books with 2011 or 2012 copyrights or released between November 1, 2010 and March 15, 2012. The annual contest is presented by Jenkins Group and their book marketing website, IndependentPublisher.com, headquartered in Traverse City, Michigan.

Entry fee is now just $75 to enter a National category and another $45 if you choose to enter the Regional or E-Book contests. All entrants are considered for the Outstanding Books of the Year Awards at no extra charge.

Early-bird entry fee deadline is October 15, 2011 - save $20 per National category entry.

Entry information and guidelines available online at: http://www.independentpublisher.com/ipland/IPAwards.php

McGraw-Hill to Announce Third Quarter Results

noreply@blogger.com (Doris Booth, Authorlink.com CEO) — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 20:16:00 +0000

NEW YORK, Oct. 7, 2011 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE: MHP) announced today that its third quarter 2011 results will be issued on Thursday, October 20, 2011 via news release before the start of NYSE trading. The news release will be available for downloading from http://www.mcgraw-hill.com/.

Harold McGraw III, Chairman, President and CEO, and Jack Callahan, Executive Vice President and CFO, will host a conference call/webcast at 8:30 AM Eastern time on October 20, 2011 to discuss the third quarter results. They will also update investors on McGraw-Hill's progress toward the Growth & Value Plan and the planned separation into two public companies. The presentation is open to all interested parties and may include forward-looking information.

Webcast Instructions: Live and Replay

The webcast will be available live and in replay through the Corporation's Investor Relations Web site at http://investor.mcgraw-hill.com/phoenix.zhtml?p=irol-eventDetails&c=96562&eventID=4214014. (Please copy and paste URL into Web browser.) The archived replay will be available beginning two hours after the conclusion of the live call and will remain available for one year.

Telephone Access: Live and Replay

The call begins at 8:30 AM Eastern time. Please dial in by 8:20 AM. The passcode is "McGraw-Hill" and the conference leader is Harold McGraw III.

For callers in the U.S.: (888) 391-6568
For callers outside the U.S.: +1 (415) 228-4733 (long distance charges will apply)

2012 Green Book Festival Call for Entries

noreply@blogger.com (Doris Booth, Authorlink.com CEO) — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 00:29:00 +0000

SAN FRANCISCO/AUTHORLINK NEWS/September 21. 2011--The 2012 Green Book Festival has issued a call for entries to its annual competition honoring books that contribute to greater understanding, respect and positive action on the changing worldwide environment.

The 2012 Green Book Festival will consider published, self-published and independent publisher works in the following categories: non-fiction, fiction, children's books, teenage, how-to, audio/spoken word, comics/graphic novels, poetry, science fiction/horror, biography/autobiography, gardening, cookbooks, animals, photography/art, e-books, wild card (anything goes!), scientific, white paper, legal, business, mystery and spiritual.

Entries can be in English, Spanish, French, Portuguese or Italian. Our grand prize for the 2012 Green Book Festival is $1500 and transportation to our May awards in San Francisco OR an equivalent amount donated in your name to the environmental charity of your choice.

A panel of judges will determine the winners based on the following criteria:
1) The overall writing style and presentation of the work;
2) The potential of the work to enhance understanding of the environment and its issues.

TO ENTER: Entry forms are available online at http://www.greenbookfestival.com or may be sent to you by emailing GreenBookFestival@sbcglobal.net.
The Green Book Festival is produced by JM Northern Media LLC, producers of the Hollywood Book Festival, New York Book Festival and DIY Convention: Do It Yourself in Film, Music & Books.

Erotic Anthology Calls for Contributors

noreply@blogger.com (Doris Booth, Authorlink.com CEO) — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 17:51:00 +0000

Kingdoms of Desire: Erotic Tales of Fantasy, an anthology edited by Mitzi Szereto, is seeking contributors to the book, which will be published by Cleis Press in autumn 2012.

Kingdoms of Desire: Erotic Tales of Fantasy is a place where lust and legend abound, and adventure, passion and danger entwine. Think mystical lands and creatures, kings and queens, knights and renegades, heroes and villains, warlords, maidens and princesses. Think battles and danger, honor and dishonor, good and evil. Most of all think hearts filled with passion and secret desire.

The anthology is looking for short stories between 3,000 to 6,000 words.

Szereto wants well-developed story lines and well-crafted prose told in a unique voice and containing interesting characters and settings. Think atmosphere, passion, desire… imaginative steamy tales that transport the reader to fantastical realms. Stories from female and male writers are welcome, as are stories containing characters of any sexual orientation.

For more information see Mitzi's blog: