Folks, I’d like you to meet Tooks. I really enjoyed making his acquaintance and I think you will, too. He features in the latest book by Robert Philip Bolton, one of my favourite PublishMe authors. I’ve genuinely enjoyed all of his books and eagerly await the next.

But the subject of this post is his latest, The Artist as an Old Man (Self-Portrait), and this is what you can expect:

“After twenty years in London a somewhat notorious artist returns home when his life falls apart as a result of fraud, death and depression. The Artist as an Old Man (Self-Portrait) is a personal hour-by-hour journal of the day of his first New Zealand exhibition.

“Accustomed to always being busy, the restless artist — eccentric, irritable and ageing — suddenly has nothing to do until the exhibition’s evening opening. And so we follow him and his sometimes angry and unreasonable thoughts, including lingering doubts about his own work, through the long day.

“Having experienced financial relief before the exhibition, an unpleasant encounter at the exhibition, and sadness after it, he returns home at the end of the day ready to face his new life, alone and lonely, in Dunedin.”

If this description piques your interest, you can find the book here: https://bolton.co.nz/ along with the author’s extensive back catalogue.

Highly recommended ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Lel.

 

 

Here’s our latest new release from author Wayne Benton. By reading this book, you can:

Become a student of happiness by using the simple technique of an Attitude Check as a powerful tool to negotiate your way through life’s challenges. Learn simple techniques to improve your life, improve your career and professional growth, and create great relationships by learning from Wayne’s lived experiences. Master the ability of replacing negative thoughts with positive ones, leading to personal freedom and living the life you desire.

This book is a light-hearted, easy-to-read guide to living a purposeful life.

To get your copy of Wayne’s book, as well as his first publication, Real World Ready, you can visit his website at Wayne Benton – Author | Speaker | Mentor, where you can also learn more about him and his philosophy, or you can go to his Amazon page at https://amzn.asia/d/cA0eWog 

 

 

We are often asked how to market a book once it’s published, but book marketing is a big undertaking which would take time away from what we do best, which is helping you create your beautiful book. Thankfully, we recently met a New Zealand-based book marketer who can help you with the marketing aspects.

Wānaka author Kate Gordon-Smith has published three novels and a journal for readers aged 7 to 10 with her Relish Books company. She also runs the Kiwi Kids’ Bookstore, an online bookstore devoted to books by New Zealand authors for children and teens, where she supports independent as well as traditionally published authors.

With 30+ years’ experience in marketing and publicity, she knows there’s a LOT to learn and plenty of hard work to get your book into the hands of readers, but it’s a challenge she loves.

Kate is now sharing her knowledge as an indie publishing coach, helping New Zealand authors with various marketing tasks or taking on the work herself on an agreed fee basis. Her focus is primarily the New Zealand market, but she also sells her own books on Amazon, Kobo, etc., so can offer some insights there, too.

The main tasks Kate can help with are:

• An initial discussion about the likely markets for your book, and how to reach them.
• Getting your book listed correctly with Nielsen Data and Wheelers in New Zealand (important to reach public libraries and schools).
• Creating book marketing tools like the Advance Information Sheet, author bio, book description and barcode (if going into bookstores).
• Suggestions on how to reach bookstores and libraries.
• Book publicity – getting your book out for review and seeking relevant media opportunities.
• Publishing your eBook edition on Amazon or other eBook platforms
• If you need one, she will set up a newsletter template and mailing list system for you.
• Setting up an author website.
• Deciding which social media channels, if any, will help your book marketing efforts.

Kate likes to have an initial conversation with the author about a new book well before it’s published – ideally, at least two months prior. She says, “There’s nothing worse than doing all the hard work of writing, editing, design, and proofreading to produce a fabulous print book and finding out that your back cover blurb could be more compelling, or that the front cover design simply won’t help your book stand out to its target audience, either online or on a physical bookstore shelf.”

That’s why Kate also offers what she calls her “bookseller’s critique”, which is a half hour assessment of your cover design and content, first 2-3 chapters, and any marketing material you’ve already created. If any of these important elements need work, it’s better to improve them before you press print with PublishMe.

Recently, Kate worked with a local Wānaka author to publish an historical murder mystery, and before the book was even officially released, an order for five copies from Auckland Libraries was placed with Wheelers, thanks to Kate making sure all the technical aspects were correct from the outset. The author freely acknowledges she didn’t know where to start with any of these tasks and has been delighted with Kate’s attention to detail.

Find out more about Kate’s indie publishing coaching services on her website, https://www.kategordonauthor.com/nz-indie-publishing-coaching/

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Very happy to help you get your lovely book out there, Montana 😊

“I previously had a challenging experience with a traditional publisher overseas I have been working with for some time, leading me to cancel and request a refund just three weeks before my book launch. I then turned to Giles of PublishMe and was thoroughly impressed with their service. From our initial contact through to the delivery of my books, Giles maintained a high level of professionalism, providing timely updates and addressing all my questions. Despite the tight timeline, PublishMe managed my last-minute request efficiently and ensured that my book launch proceeded as planned. I highly recommend PublishMe for their excellent support, top notch communication and reliable service.
Thank you so much, Giles and the team at PublishMe.”

Montana Sefilino,
Author of ‘Crossing’ poetry book.

If you’re in or near Auckland, New Zealand, and you’re looking for something to do on Saturday, you could give yourself a treat by heading to the upcoming book launch by poet Sala Montana Tiatia-Sefilino. In her words:

“The inspiration for my debut book, ‘Crossing’, came from a deeply personal place expressed through the lens of poetic expression. It explores themes of loss, resilience, self-love, and the complexities of the human experience. I believe in the transformative power of poetry to heal, inspire, and connect people.”
Sala Montana Tiatia-Sefilino.

See below for details of where and when. Lel.