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ERMA BOMBECK WRITERS' WORKSHOP NEWSLETTER
University of Dayton
November 2006
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Dear writer:
I just finished reading Aiming at Amazon by Aaron Shepard. It's an amazing book and one of the
most practical I've read. Shepard has been making his living from self-publishing for years and is
also the author of of Amazon's #1 bestselling children's writing guide, The Business of Writing
for Children and the popular guide to book design with Microsoft Word, Perfect Pages.
Shepard writes:
"Take the example of my own lead seller, The Business of Writing for Children. For many years of its publishing life, this book has been the biggest selling children's writing guide on Amazon. It's currently competing against guides from both the For Dummies and the Complete Idiot's series -- and it has been outselling each of them by an average of 2 to 1. Is it a better book than those others? I wouldn't make that claim. But by a combination of persistence, dedication, savvy, ingenuity, and skill, I've been able to outmaneuver all comers and stay on top in Amazon sales. In fact, by aiming at Amazon, I've been able to sell close to 30% the number of copies sold by one of these nationally-distributed competitors including its bookstore sales. And because the profit from my publishing system is so high -- about 50% of the list price -- I've been earning about twice as much in total as that author would make with a normal royalty."
If you've self-published a book or are thinking about self-publishing, Aiming at Amazon is a must-read.
Keep writing!
Tim Bete
Latest news...
WILL ROGERS CONTEST WINNERS
California freelance columnist George Waters captured the style of one of the most successful communicators of all time to become the top prize winner in the Will Rogers Writing Contest sponsored by the National Society of Newspaper Columnists. Read more.
INTERVIEWING DAVE BARRY
Virginia Armstrong shares her experience interviewing one of the greatest humor writers of all time. Read more.
MARQUETTE BANS DAVE BARRY QUOTE FROM OFFICE DOOR
"As Americans, we must always remember that we all have a common enemy, an enemy that is dangerous, powerful and relentless," the sign stated. "I refer, of course, to the federal government." Read more.
TURNING BOOK SIGNINGS INTO PROFIT CENTERS
To offset tour costs, events become more elaborate. Read more.
STRAIGHT OUTTA LYNWOOD
In an interview with Mike Durrett, "Weird Al" Yankovic discusses the comic process. Read more.
FINDING YOUR INNER COMEDIAN
Five great tips for making people laugh. Read more.
ZWEIBEL GETS THURBER HUMOR PRIZE
Author and former "Saturday Night Live" writer wins. Read more.
WHAT THEY DON'T TEACH YOU AT COMEDY SCHOOL
The toughest crowd Jerry Seinfeld ever faced taught him the true meaning of stage fright. Read more.
NBC UNVEILS BROADBAND COMEDY CHANNEL
NBC Universal has launched a new comedy broadband channel, Dotcomedy, that will host original Web shows as well as video from TV programs including "Late Show with David Letterman," "Saturday Night Live," and "Late Night with Conan O'Brien." Read more.
FROM GILLIGAN TO THE STAGE
Sherwood Schwartz -- creator of hit TV shows 'Gilligans Island' and 'The Brady Bunch' -- trades sitcoms for stage. Read more.
Humor writer of the month
MARY BETH ELLIS
Mary Beth Ellis is author of Drink to the Lasses and a freelance writer masquerading as a college professor in central Florida. Her vast and frightening array of day jobs after completing her MFA in nonfiction writing at Bennington College have included bodyguarding Jimmy Buffett, working in education at the Kennedy Space Center, and sports reporting for the Thoroughbred racing industry. She currently writes commentaries for MSNBC.com and BustedHalo.com. Since 2003, Mary Beth has run BlondeChampagne.com, a kinda-daily updated humor site.
Book giveaway
Each month we give away a book on writing to a few subscribers to our newsletter. If you're subscribed, you're entered to win! This issue's winners are:
* Judy Pearson
* Marie Huber
* Ruth Mark
Who's publishing what?
WORKSHOP FACULTY
NEW VIDEO COLUMN: Fort Worth Star-Telegram columnist Dave Lieber posted his first "Dave's Video Column."
PAST WORKSHOP ATTENDEES
KLINK COOKS: Angie Klink had her essay “Half Notes: Memories of a Fifty-Percent Sister” published in Chicken Soup for the Sister’s Soul 2.
DLUGOS WINS: Jenn Dlugos' feature screenplay, "A Muse Named Stephen King," won first place in the Rhode Island International film festival.
GLARDON ONSTAGE: Dave Glardon recently did six shows with Kevin Pollak at The Funny Bone (Newport,KY) and saw fellow workshop attendee DC Stanfa in the audience. DC was recently picked as "Author of the Month" at Wordshack.
LOST IN SUBURBIA: Tracy Beckerman's column has been picked up by another weekly newspaper, the Somerset Reporter.
OTHER PUBLISHING NEWS
THOSE CRAZY KIDS: Sally Edwards has published the illustrated humor book, You Know Your Kids Are Driving You Crazy When…
DON'T CHEW JESUS: Lighthearted and nostalgic, Don’t Chew Jesus! is a look back at Catholic nuns and the impact they had on millions of Americans.
Markets, contests and more
HUMOR FORUM: New online forum includes Humor Challenges to hone humor writing skills and a Stand Up Comedy string with comedian, Richard Scott. Read more.
LEARN FROM THE BEST: Listen to Dan Poynter's self-publising seminar online. Read more.
SHORT STORY CONTEST: The 7th Annual Writer's Digest Short Short Story Competition is accepting entries. The Grand-Prize winner will receive $3,000. Read more.
MOTHER OF ALL FUNNY MOTHER CONTESTS: Looking for anecdotes, funny observations, clever or silly tips, mealtime madness, or stories poking fun at Super Mom or Oblivious Dad. Read more.
BAD MOVIES: The Agony Booth is an ongoing inquisition into some of the worst movies humanity has to offer. Read more.
GREAT AMERICAN BOOK GIVEAWAY: No strings, just great books. Read more.
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NETWORK WITH OTHER HUMOR WRITERS: Network with other humor writers. Join the e-mail discussion group for past attendees of the Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop and those who would like to attend in the future. Join now.
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SUGGEST A RESOURCE: If you have a favorite book or Web site, let us know at bete@udayton.edu.
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Copyright 2006, University of Dayton
