Mrs. Mecomber's Scrapbook Talking technology, computers, and the Internet… for the average computer user

I remember, waaaay back in the “olden” days (pre-1999, haha), authors used to have to jump horrible hoops and hurdles to get their books published. It was very difficult to even get a publisher to look at your manuscript. I know how difficult it was, as I tried to do so a few times with several works I’ve written. Most of the rejection letters were “We are not accepting new material at this time,” which REALLY meant: if you don’t have an agent marketing your stuff for you, we don’t want to hear from you. Literary agents can be expensive (which is why I didn’t have one). So my stuff sits in my filing cabinets. And my kids have hopes of writing some books, too– the traditional way, that of going through an elite publishing house, is very formidable.

BUT TODAY, ah! The world is wide open. Authors can now do our own marketing, thanks to the Internet. One such company that aids authors is OutskirtsPress.com. So have you got some material you want to publish? The democratization of the Internet has made this possible. Outskirts Press can help you publish and sell your work, including paperbacks, hardcovers, full-color books, and e-books. Keep ALL your rights and royalties to yourself, set your own retail price and profits. It’s a great time to be a writer today.

Here’s the scoop:

May 12th, 2009. Denver, CO and Irvine, CA – Outskirts Press, the fastest-growing full-service self publishing and book marketing company, today announced that one of its authors has earned over $100,000 in author royalties in six short months.

Gang Chen, the self published author of Planting Design Illustrated and LEED AP Exam Guide, will receive a first-quarter royalty check in the amount of $77,611.88 for books sold between January-March 2009. This follows a previous royalty check of $33,679.56 that Chen recently received from Outskirts Press for books sold between October-December 2008.

…After contacting hundreds of traditional publishers for his first book Planting Design Illustrated, Chen finally landed a deal with one major publisher, only to discover that he was dissatisfied with the substantial revisions they were suggesting. He promptly cancelled the traditional publishing contract and decided to publish the book himself. He compared various publishing options and chose Outskirts Press. “Their services do not end after the book is published,” Chen stated. “They continue to provide excellent marketing advice, as well.”

Outskirts Press understands that marketing is a huge part of an author’s success and, unlike most self-publishing firms, offer promotional advice and marketing services extending for years after publication. States CEO Brent Sampson, “Successful authors have the potential to separate themselves from the pack by publishing with a full-service, custom publishing company that provides support before, during, and after publication.” For a partial view of the marketing services that are available for Outskirts Press authors, visit http://outskirtspress.com/marketing.php .

OutskirtsPress.com has several publishing packages to choose from– this looks terrific! Check out OutskirtsPress.com for more information.