Jessica
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 Posted: Jul 25th, 2011 at 09:37 pm
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I bought the kindle version for dd a few days ago but it was $7, not $4.99. I haven't read it yet. I need to put the kindle app on dd's ipod touch so she can read it.
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Avoiding peanuts and tree nuts
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Chicago
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Posted: Jul 26th, 2011 at 08:18 am
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I wonder if some allergists would be willing to pass out a sheet regarding the book and giving your facebook/twitter accounts? (not for them to sell the book - just to get interested teens to connect to your promotion). I learned about FAAN from our allergist as well as a local support group.
Our community college has a course in social media and using it to promote your product/business. Since it is adult ed (not for college credit) and only 2 or 3 sessions, it is not too expensive and might give you some additional ideas on how to reach the teen market via technology.
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Posted: Jul 26th, 2011 at 08:30 am
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contests! FBers seem to love their contests. Is there a way to give an e-copy of the book as a prize? I've seen prizes given for "liking" a page, commenting on a post, sharing an experience, coming up with a slogan or joke to go with a picture.
when people comment or like, it shows up on their newsfeed and sometimes their friend's see it.
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giving a copy to places that are willing to review it can help.....assuming it's good. Asking for reviews can be risky.
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Another suggestion is, post a portion. Not an entire chapter, but maybe a page or a few paragraphs. a part that will leave people thinking "I wonder........" it doesn't matter what they wonder, but they have to wonder something.
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Too many people miss the silver lining because they're expecting gold. ~~~ Maurice Setter
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Posted: Jul 26th, 2011 at 10:14 am
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Spoke to my co-author last night to discuss your ideas. Thanks again for the support! She said our literary agent feedback is that we have to prove we have an audience before the publishing house will promote a book. Basically they want a guarantee it will work.
FREE THINGS YOU COULD DO TO HELP US HELP RAISE AWARENESS
1. Call your local library or high school librarian and request a copy of SUNDIAL:
ISBN: 978-0-9837442-0-7
LCCN 2011910395
(Yes, we purchased an ISBN number AND a Library of Congress number so that librarians would be able to find it as easily as possible as our intention all along is for education!)
2. "Like" our Sundial Book facebook page as this will help show people we have an valid audience = YOU
3. Tell other people you know with teens with and without food allergy about the book's existence through facebook/word of mouth/email/blogs
4. Say a prayer it will work and that teens will stop feeling socially isolated by their food allergy and will be better protected by themselves, their friends and the world at large
THINGS YOU COULD DO THAT REQUIRE ADDITIONAL MONEY AND/OR TIME
1. Buy the book and give it to a teen and ask them to pass it on (I know I risk being self-promotional here but consider that we have priced the book as low as possible and split it in half for the two co-authors and have spent 2 years writing it. As my husband likes to point out, this will have to be a bestseller for us to break even!)
2. Write us a review on Amazon or Goodreads to help rock this to the mainstream
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Posted: Jul 26th, 2011 at 10:28 am
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Let me also reply to those thoughts about mentioning it to the allergists--yes, the medical community is always in the forefront of my mind and I hope to get it out to the Allergists/Immunologists and Pediatricians. A pediatrician was one of our beta readers in fact!
Also, thanks to those who are continuing to help through suggestions. We are so happy to have them! We have tapped into our friends who are working for PR firms and web-based media and they have all come back saying the same thing. After sending out press releases, creating a blog, doing twitter and having the product available it is up to word of mouth or social media to create buzz. It needs to be talked about.
That is why we need the support of the food allergy community! Unfortunately, FAAN told us they can't even mention the book until they have vetted the paperback copy (which I understand) and we have sent press releases to all the other major organizations but have not gotten any recognition. So, then we mentioned it on their facebook page and STILL got no recognition. I'm sure this is because we seem self-promotional rather than educational but I don't know how to get around that other than to get other people to talk about it.
Lastly, thank you to those who bought the ebook. We were advised to recently lower the price to make it less than an iphone app to appeal to teens. It was painful to do so as our goal of breaking even gets further away rather than closer. The idea is to get the book out there and get the story out there--so that is what we are going to do.
Thanks again for the support and help. Deeply appreciate it!
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Posted: Jul 26th, 2011 at 10:36 am
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p.s. we have run a contest on our blog but ran into the problem of dozens of other contests going on at the same time. (Sigh) Even have asked book bloggers to help us out if we gave them kindle copies for free (at our expense) to not much avail.
I really hate to think those big corporate publishing house are right that we would have too much trouble building a base!
We have done everything we could by creating a dynamic love story like Twilight and an epic adventure with food allergy in the plot. Some of our teen beta readers have compared the heroine to Katniss Everdeen but smarter (which at first freaked me out since I didn't want to be copying anyone, but now take as a compliment!) and we have respected our audience by not dumbing it down.
It keeps coming down to just social buzz. Well, that and the belief that it will work.
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Posted: Jul 26th, 2011 at 10:50 am
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I just checked our Sundial book facebook page and we only have 36 people who like us! Please help if you are reading this thread this far down. I am now doubting I am even getting the word out on this message board since the start of the thread begins so badly.
We really need some help!
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Jessica
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Posted: Jul 26th, 2011 at 03:03 pm
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Where is the facebook page? When I put in sundial it shows several results, none of which look like the right one.
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Avoiding peanuts and tree nuts
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Jessica
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Posted: Jul 26th, 2011 at 03:06 pm
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never mind. Found it by going to the Whitney Forbes page first.
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USA
Avoiding peanuts and tree nuts
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Posted: Jul 26th, 2011 at 03:33 pm
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Thanks, Jessica! We have now made it to 37! 
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Sundial/168754229855929
Maybe if I can get to 100 "likes" by the end of the week my co-author won't be annoyed with me that I have flubbed the start of this thread and am sputtering out ridiculous tweets while she has been on vacation!
Thanks for the help!
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rebekahc
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Posted: Jul 26th, 2011 at 04:38 pm
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It sounds like you've gotten a lot of good ideas!
Since this topic continues to be about the promotion of your book and/or how we can help you with that and not about food allergies, I'm moving it to the Commercial section.
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Posted: Jul 27th, 2011 at 09:11 am
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I appreciate you letting the community provide feedback on SUNDIAL.
I agree, we have gotten a ton of great ideas and I have followed through on them. My co-author and I were even brainstorming more thoughts on the blog/fb contest and considered letting kids with food allergy submit their names or a name of their creation to be a superhero in book 2. However, since this thread is being cut off feel free to email us at pureenergybooks@gmail.com if you have any other thoughts or suggestions that can continue to reach out to kids with food allergy.
As my actions have shown over years of silent and relentless dedication, I am truly an advocate for awareness and have now refocused my efforts at trying to make it better for teens.
I will start over in the commercial section. I didn't realize was where you would have liked me to have talked about the book. Thanks for your patience.
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rebekahc2
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Posted: Jul 27th, 2011 at 11:08 am
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This thread was not "cut off" merely moved to the appropriate section of our forum. There's no need for you to "start over" just continue using this thread in it's new location.
From the TOS:
Quote:
You agree to NOT use the Service to:
6. upload, post, email, transmit or otherwise make available any unsolicited or unauthorized advertising, promotional materials, "junk mail," "spam," "chain letters," "pyramid schemes," or any other form of solicitation, except in those areas (such as Commercial Links) that are designated for such purpose;
« Last Edited by
rebekahc2
Jul 27th, 2011 at 11:22 am »
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Ra3chel
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Posted: Jul 28th, 2011 at 08:09 pm
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Jul 25th, 2011 at 05:39 pm, FAwriter wrote:
My partner is on her vacation now so I am bumbling away at twitter and the rest of the PR jobs in her place. I am probably making a mess of it but I will carry on! At least one day my daughter will know I tried my heart out to make her world a better place!
I appreciate your intention, but, honestly, intention and sincerity will not substitute for expertise. I'd suggest a) making use of resources, forums, and blogs aimed at self-publishers; and b) seriously, seriously considering hiring a PR consultant, even briefly. If you've not done this before, he or she could at the very least give you some useful guidelines and a sense of where to start.
As a publishing professional, I've seen a lot of good books fly under the radar for want of informed publicity campaigns. This doesn't need to be expensive, nor fancy, but it does need to be deliberate; and what you lack in financing, you'll need to make up for in both effort and expertise.
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Posted: Jul 29th, 2011 at 05:28 pm
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Hi Ra3chel,
Thanks for the honest advice. I will discuss it with my co-author when she returns (thankfully!) tomorrow.
Not sure where we will get funding for it though. The book was a full time job to write and then we each fronted quite a lot of money to get it out there. We are now on a wing and a prayer hoping that social media will help us but that is proving not to be the case---this thread said it was read over 400 times but only Jessica "liked" us on facebook! Which leads me to believe not many people are reading it very far.
I'm fairly realistic. You are correct that we may have written a great book that answers the request of teens in The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology who asked for a means of educating their peers and those around them in a socially friendly way. But I have to accept the fact that we can't do everything alone. At some point, other people will have to do whatever small thing they can to get the message out there and I will have to accept that some will accuse me of being a self promotional for saying it. So be it. I believe in the story and that it can make a difference.
One of the characters in SUNDIAL says "Either you live your life with an extended hand or a closed fist."
To all those who are reading this far down, thanks in advance for any and all help. There is always something you can do to be a light in the darkness.
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A New Tool for Back to School: Young Adult Novel for food allergic teens - (Read 2,601 Times)
