"Notes" is Self-Published

What do you expect from a publishing company called Wunderlick? You've gotta love that name folks. As a follow-up to my hasty post yesterday about "Notes From The Mothership", here's a quote from the author Adrienne Zurub:

"I worked on finding the perfect name for MY publishing company. I thought of naming the enterprise after my children, and then no. I thought of: Ford, Chase & Wunderlick, Ford & Wunderlick (I'll explain the Wundelick in a minute!), Guilford, Chase & Wunderlick, and a host of other names. Now, the Wunderlick name (which I think is sooo cool) came from the news of a woman somewhere and about something and her last name was 'Wunderlick!' How often do you hear a name like that? Exactly! So, it became mine. My publishing company is named "CHASE & WUNDERLICK PUBLISHERS,

http:chasewunderlickpublishers.com.cn. I gave it a China (cn) presence to make it international."


I'm suspecting her book was published through LULU.com, as mine is also since it's a hardcover, but the important lesson here is this:

1) A curious name such as "Wunderlick" goes a long way in attracting attention.

2) Launching your own publishing company (a registered LLC for several hundred dollars) with such a name lends valuable credibility to your book.

3) The .com.cn links her Publishing Company to the largest English portal in China, which in turn gives her International access and exposure.

There are, of course, many other factors that went into catapulting her book into bestseller status which BTW (light bulb here) makes a good topic for my next posting. What classifies a book as "bestseller" that is. I'll demystify that next time and set the record straight once and for all about that whole notion.

I think though, that the main reason for the book's success is that it has built-in controversy. Plus, Ms. Zurub is very well-versed in marketing and promotion and she knows how to "build a brand" around such controversy to begin with. Let's give credit where it's due. Great things don't happen by themselves for the most part. She's a tireless and astute promoter who knows her way around the world of publicity, and that's what it takes, among so many other things.

Everything must work in unison. From the curiosity of the book cover, to it's title, to the all-important writing between the marvelous covers, that is most important of all. Otherwise the book has no traction beyond what you see. The writing in essence carries the book to its successful ways and means. That's the heart and soul of the book, the thing that connects with readers and inspires them to react and become a part of it all just as I am doing here.

It's viral, it's catchy, it's curious, it's funny, the next hot topic of conversation, especially if you're a nurse or in the medical field in this case. A lot going on, and every element must "hold its own" along the way.

More about this later. I like to keep my posts short and bittersweet.

Notes From The Mothership

As you all know by now, I'm a marketing fanatic and so I came across this unique book called "Notes From The Mothership: The Naked Invisibles". How's that for a title? And the cover speaks for itself. (Publisher: Chase & Wunderlick Publishers, LLC)

The cover photo is by AliciaRoss.com and the original has been slightly altered (no legs). The writing appears to be projected onto the body, although it may well be Photoshopped. It's title, "I'm Not My Mother" is scrawled on her back, over and over, from top to bottom. You've got to see the rest of her work. She specializes in this sort of thing. All you "Macho-men" out there, beware, this is all about empowerment for women, in case your Cro-Magnon cells haven't noticed by now. (Snap out of it! --Yes, Cher from the movie Moonstruck. An old reference but for those of you who get it; priceless, and as the Brit's say, "Spot-on".)

BTW, that's not the author on the cover as one might suspect (and would've been a good idea), but Adrienne Zurub was not about to go that far. (women's empowerment only goes so far you know) You knew that was coming from a bloke like me, didn't you? But back to the book. For some reason this book, an autobiography/memoir, comes across as a self-published and might as well have been since it's author appears to be doing most, if not all it's marketing and publicity. But then again, doesn't that always fall on the shoulders of the authors? Most of the time. Especially in this new freakazoid world of publishing where the only thing that rules is money and sales percentages. (Not as new as we are led to believe, mind you. It's always been about the Benjamin's brother. I mean sister. Sister, I meant sister.)

Yes, I do know my place and take it well. My own protagonist in DFB is female and trust me, she's on a mission from God herself. (Yes, a shameful plug, but that's the way it works folks.)

And I've given my plug a paragraph of its own, so it just hangs there, like a summer breeze. I'm so transparent and self-serving, it's pathetic. Well at least I didn't spell out my title, "A Death For Beauty" in big, bold, flashing, red neon letters or anything. Way too crass, even for me.

But let's face it, I've done a good thing after all. At least it appears that way in print. Hey, I even posted this article on DIGG.com, without my shameless plug of course.

I do have my limits, you know.

More about all this tomorrow, I'm going to refresh my Mojito.

Can You Handle The Truth? Jerry Simmons has...

...no problem dishing it out. BTW, my short and self-serving post below was meant to point you to someone who really knows what they're talking about. (As far as I can tell.) And that would be Jerry Simmons of WritersReaders.com

His website is a cornucopia of related information that you need to know if you're writing a book or novel, and it's backed by plenty of publishing experience. I like his honesty and he never sugar-coats anything. (You can't handle the truth!)

Congrats on your website Jerry, I wish you the very best.

Does Your Book Cover Fit The Market?

Yes, I did it again. I tweaked the cover at least for the Hardcover version of my novel. Take a look below and see what I mean. Here's the ice-cream scoop. And BTW I've always been aware of this, but sometimes one is married to a certain design and you can't part with it. Although I've always wanted to make both the paperback and hardcover a little different, they almost looked identical so I finally decided to "do the right thing" (whatever that is). Let's not forget, I don't have all the answers, of course, and I'm winging it most of the time. (Plus my brain blinks on and off too much.)

Anyway, since my novel is "literary", (laughter here) and who would guess that a wise-cracking, smart-ass like me could pen a literary tome? Well, I'm bi-polar, or something like that. Who can even say that it masquerades as literary? Judge for yourself. I think it works. Maybe literary with shades of magical realism and dark satire all rolled into one. Who even cares?

At any rate, the cover should look like a librarian designed it. Somewhat stale, (I love librarians BTW) understated, and unadorned, I suppose. All I did was reduce the huge title and removed what I call a cameo frame, just to make it even simpler. I think it works and so I'm done with it, for now. If an agent ever gets a hold of this, I'm sure they'll suggest something that I'm really going to hate. Honestly, this is why I don't even want Lit Agents to get involved at this point. I'll be more than happy to strike out on my own. All I have to do now is sit back and watch the money roll in.

(LONG PAUSE)

And in case you didn't notice that last remark was a JOKE. And the joke is on me. I love it.
Check out this website for good marketing and publishing information by Jerry Simmons. www.WritersReaders.com/ Click on the Headline for the hyperlink to this website.

I think I'm due for a Mojito. And BTW, I'm not an alcoholic, I just sound like one because I keep burning the same old line. I've had enough too. (of the joke, not the drinks) Did I just break the first AA step?