I worked from home today because I had to. We were having a new type of insulation (Icynene) put into our attic to reduce our electric bill by 50% (hope that works.)  I was nominated to be the one to stay home since my daughter was going on a church youth outing to Hawaiian Falls and my husband couldn’t be away from his office.

Since I haven’t done this since last summer, I forgot how much I really get done.  And how much I really enjoy it.

It’s 100 degrees outside today…and yes, it was enjoyable.  It doesn’t hurt that we have a pool.  Here’s my usual routine. First, I set up the computer and my books on the table on the porch.  We always have a breeze so that is nice.  Then I go and dip in the pool (where else can you wear a bathing suit to work?) and spend about 15 minutes floating around reading a book we are working on.  Today’s choices were Let God Change Your Life by Greg Laurie (David C Cook publishers) and an upcoming Barbour Publishing book, A Place to Belong, by Lisa Troyer.  After my float, I sit at the table and thanks to my soak in the pool and the breeze, I am quite comfortable.  When I start feeling hot, I go float again for another 15 minutes and read. 

Actually, it’s not that I feel simply comfortable. It’s more than that. I am really energized, and the words seem to be flowing out of me as I write proposals and creative briefs. 

I may be on to something here.  What will I do when the fall months approach? I wonder if I can duplicate this feeling in a tanning booth…

I do know one thing….I will have a killer tan!

“What would you do if it was your book?”

These are the most common phrases I hear during an initial call with a prospective client. And I truly understand why a new client would feel that way.  Truthfully, I have probably used those same words myself when I’m negotiating delivery of a service (or…you know…hitting a monster sale at Nordstrom.)

But today when I heard the words, “give me the best bang for the buck,” it struck me. I can’t really do that.  There is no best bang for your buck when you are dealing with something that has no formulaic model.  It ain’t science.

Imagine you arrive at the surgeon’s office for a consultation. “Doctor, give me the best bang for my buck on this surgery,” you say. The doctor replies, “Sure!  I’ll just leave in half the cancer cells,” or “I’ll only do half of the root canal,” or “we can stretch that dollar even further if we don’t cast the severely broken arm. Just hold your arm straight for several weeks and it’ll probably heal up just fine.”  That’s not gonna work.

I sometimes feel like I’m spinning my wheels when we work on projects that only involve one form of media. Believe it or not, this is not because I’m lamenting all the lost fees we could have collected if only the client would have agreed to more media. I absolutely understand that many authors, especially first timers, are working with a limited budget. Money is tight for everyone these days. Still, I have seen time and again that unless clients are willing to put everything into promoting their work, the PR campaign doesn’t take them where they want to go.

Many clients are willing to try several different media, but they favor the piecemeal approach to publicity.  Let’s do radio interviews for a month or two. If that works, then let’s try print media.  This seems reasonable. Unfortunately, the result is similar to the “bang for your buck” system. Disappointment.

Not to be such a negative Nellie, but I’m not completely sold on the idea of a one or two day satellite tour  For those of you who haven’t heard, this is a setup in which the author goes into the studio for some length of time (8 hours, 4 hours) and does consecutive, non-stop radio or TV interview right after the other.  It’s great for the author’s time, and there might be a temporary boost of hits or sales on Amazon for a day, but I don’t think it does anything to help promote a book and keep the word about it out there long enough  to build the kind of audience it takes to make a book successful.

Why doesn’t all this work, you ask?

It’s simple.  Repetition works.  Think about it.  You see a billboard.  It’s nice but it doesn’t make you go buy the product featured on it (unless you are on a long road trip and you need that MacDonald’s right then and there because the kids are preparing to riot).  But then you see a review in a magazine or a Q&A interview with the author, and you get some perspective on the author you didn’t know.  You’re curious and you think, I might like to read his/her book.  Then a few days later you hear a radio interview with the author, and it gives you even more insight.  That afternoon you receive an email from your favorite internet site displaying the authors’ book on the banner at the top and maybe another review below. You decide to click the banner and you purchase the book.  Would that purchase take place if your exposure to the book was spread out over several months, with several weeks passing between each mention of the author (whether it be via radio, billboard, internet, etc.)?

And I haven’t even talked about marketing aspects yet….social media, speaking, events, etc.  I will have to save that for another rant, er, I mean post.

These days, out of sight really does mean out of mind.  And thanks to the internet, someone is always in the wings just waiting to take your place.  Well, that’s not quite accurate. They are not waiting passively to take your place. They are actively working to beat you out of your place.  Ask Bruce Wilkinson.

Not quite sure who he is? Let me clue you in.  About 10 years ago, he wrote a little book called The Prayer of Jabez.  At book conferences, the lines of people waiting to buy his autographed book went all the way out the convention floor doors. Fast forward to 2009, after he left the writing world and did missions in Africa for a few years (don’t get me wrong; I think that is an admirable and God-glorifying thing to do.), then came back.  At the book convention, he was standing alone at a book signing table, and no one was lining up to get his autograph.  I think that’s terrible. He was just as great a writer in 2009—maybe even a better writer. But this is reality. The market is fickle. The brand loyalty people used to enjoy just isn’t the same in such a fast-paced, media-saturated environment.

So Tina, you ask. If it was your book, what would you do?  First of all I, would never write a book that I was not prepared to back up totally with whatever time, money, and effort it takes to make it succeed.  It takes a lot of elbow grease and several tens of thousands of dollars to make your book fiscally successful. It will require your own sweat equity and your own personal investment, even if you are lucky enough to snag a traditional publisher.  So I would budget $50,000 per book (yes, for starters, I really would) and I would do my homework to discover who my audience is. I would make the best investment with an agency that can handle everything and do it all with integrity—one that will really do the work, not just say they will get it done.  And I would be serious about making it a ministry and a business. I would put on my long- term reality glasses, not the rose- colored ones that entice me in the present.  And I would determine to pick myself up when I need to and keep moving forward.  That’s what I have done with my business. If I do write a book, I promise to take my own advice!

So what do you guys think? Am I completely off? I’m interested to hear your feedback.

Happy writing to all my author friends.

I am sitting in the Starbucks in Breckenridge, CO while the rest of my family members are on the slope skiing to their hearts’ content.  Those of you who know me best can testify that even the mild Texas winter is too cold for me. I would much rather be on the beach right now, but don’t worry about me (I know…what a relief, right?). Being with my family and watching them enjoy their spring break doing something they love is better than a trip to the beach–though I miss Abbie and David, who are not with us. The newlyweds decided to celebrate spring break in their own fashion. Go figure. My husband, Terry, was raised in South Dakota, and his family tree is rooted in Norway. He has snow in his blood. In this way, Abbie, Taylor, and Madeline are their father’s children. They were built for the winter sports. Meanwhile, their mama shivers, sips coffee, and dreams of palm trees and strappy sandals.

We have friends who graciously lent us their condo.  What a place!  3500 square feet, 3 bedrooms, shower with steam room, hot tub and jacuzzi tub, a kitchen I wish I could transplant to my house, and all in a nice area that is refreshingly free of crowds, even on spring break. Phenomenal.(Bobbie and Dena, THANKS for the loan! If only you could have scored a condo on a white sand beach for the week…)

My birthday always seems to fall on spring break, which means I often get to spend it with my family on vacation. And here we are taking in the snow and mountains of Colorado. Obviously, I was outvoted this time. Believe it or not, I’m never dreaming of a white Christmas. I’m not exaggerating. Snow is cold and wet. Yuck. At this moment, I am imagining myself sporting a bathing suit or sundress, basking in the sun somewhere.

Still, I am enjoying this time alone because I have lots of things to catch up on. I’m starting with this blog post, which is the first in about a year. Neglecting to post on my blog for a year is basically the opposite of what I counsel my clients to do. Then again, I still have a hard time imagining that anything I have to say is all that significant or interesting. Just one more reason why I’m the publicity person, not the client!

I have also come to  realize that Terry has been right all these years: my work is my hobby.  I love it.  It’s what I enjoy doing because as I work with my clients, I see lives change.  I also get to build relationships with the people who work for me, and I see directly the impact our business has on their lives. My great hope is that my clients and employees will be better for the time they have spent with me. Isn’t this how Christians should view every relationship?

So here I am at the Starbucks, diving back into the blogosphere and answering all the well-wishers on Facebook.  Boy, that makes you feel like Sally Fields: “You like me…you really like me!”  On vacation, on my birthday, on a Sunday, no less…and here I am working. By choice. I find it enjoyable and life giving. And now, at age 51, I have come to realize that my tendency to think about my clients, my employees, and my projects is not a sin. It’s not a bad thing.  It is just what the Lord has given my hands to do.  Others get their jollies from writing, painting, singing, playing music, golfing, shooting skeet, bungee jumping, or some other crazy thing (Civil War reenactment, anyone?). I find it fun to plan creative ways to help my clients get where they need to be. Basically, I just sit and think, and I find that once the creative juices begin flowing, my thoughts drift toward my family–how I can be the mom, wife, lover, daughter, daughter-in-law, sister-in-law, friend. Next to the feeling of sand between my toes and waves washing my stress away, this is what I love to do most.

So I will be ok with this cup of coffee and my thoughts, at least for today.  And tonight I will celebrate my birthday with my husband, my son and his girlfriend, and my youngest daughter.  I will miss my daughter and son-in law and my mom and dad.  But I will be happy, content and blessed.  And I will have avoided major injury and shielded my non-Norwegian body from the brutal cold. It’s all good.

Your message is important.  It is God-given, God-inspired.  It is something that resonates deep within your soul and something you have carefully crafted.  Now you need to let people know, but how?

Building public awareness of your message is like sailing a ship.  You are likely moving into uncharted waters, perhaps stretching yourself in ways you’ve never dreamed.  You need a navigator, someone who can guide your journey within the context of the big picture.  Whether you have written a book, developed a speaking platform or created a ministry, a public relations coach can help you navigate the sometimes turbulent and confusing tide of public sentiment, current trends and media interest.  This coach will assist you in fine-tuning your message and help you gain access to new forums and opportunities to deliver it.  As your navigator, he or she will help you design the best public relations plan to meet your goals and will keep you on course so that you don’t waste valuable time steaming along in the wrong direction.  This person will maintain a vigilant watch on your behalf, changing course when necessary and scanning the horizon for new possibilities.  Without experienced guidance, public relations plans can easily go awry and quickly lose steam.  It is the job of a public relations coach to help you build and maintain momentum, avoid or minimize delays and successfully guide you to your final destination.

Here are several things to consider as you seek the right public relations coach for you:

• What is this person’s intended destination?  Is it the place you wish to go?
• How much of the horizon does this person see?  Does he/she see the big picture?  Does this person see more than you see?
• How long has this person been sailing the high seas?  How many times have they made the trip?
• Does this person work alone, or does he/she have a crew available?  If so, how many staff are there?  Are they experienced?
• Can this person tell when it’s favorable to sail and when it’s time to seek the safety of the harbor?
• What other projects has this person successfully navigated?

Do I have to admit how many pairs of shoes I have in my closet?  My friends call me Imelda.  Do you remember her? I assume they’re referring to her boundless shoe collection and not, you know, the whole “dictator of the Philippines” part…

I love shoes.  I love all kinds of shoes.  I love very high heels but lately, as I come close to 50, I am getting to a point where I can’t wear them very long.  Is surgery in my future? I suppose I could just stop wearing high heels altogether…no, I think I’ll opt for the surgery.

I love colorful shoes, but I end up with a lot of black and variations of black shoes in my closet.  I have a pair of pumps that remind me of a Dalmatian dog. They’re white with black spots.  I have two pair of green shoes, several pair of red shoes, and 3 pairs of yellow shoes (yellow has been the latest trend). 

I love my sandals. And, of course, I couldn’t do summer without my flip flops (formerly known in my teen days as thongs). 

I LOVE boots but seldom wear the 5 pairs that I have because it doesn’t get cold enough in Texas these days.  And they are difficult to travel with.  I never wear them when I am traveling through an airport, even in the dead of winter. Have you ever been behind someone at security who is taking off their boots? It takes forever!  And trying to pack them in the limited luggage we can carry on these days…it’s almost impossible.  Perhaps the next trend will be boots that are retractable and easy to pack, like those collapsible cups people take on camping trips (so I’ve heard). I would take those in black and brown…and maybe in red…

I do own a few pairs of what I call ugly shoes–you know, the really comfortable ones that are supposed to be good for your feet.  I don’t’ wear them very often (see above: surgery).

My shoes are one of my signatures.  I can’t help it.  They can make a statement about the way I feel on a particular day or they can just MAKE the outfit.

Ok, here goes: I have somewhere in the neighborhood of 60 pairs of shoes.  It’s probably more than that. I lost count this morning.

I really don’t spend that much at Nordstrom, although, next to Pay Less, it is my preferred store for shoes.  Ok, and when I go to Northpark, I rarely venture out into the rest of the mall because, really, what could those places possibly offer me that I couldn’t find at my (beloved) Nordstrom?  I even get my tummy full, because the Bistro has the BEST food (unless the kids are with me, in which case I’m stuck with teenager food).

Unsure of what I was getting into, I made an appointment with my lady, Nancy.  When I showed up, both Nancy and I realized that we had met and that she had helped me before when I was just a normal customer shopping in the store. 

Just my luck, the yearly sale was going on (I was not aware!) and Nancy took me into a back room.  It felt a little like my jaunts on Canal Street in New York (oh, I haven’t written about those yet!).  There were clothes, shoes, bags, sunglasses, jewelry, belts, you name it– anything that I needed (that is, wanted) to purchase was displayed on tables and hanging on the curtained walls.  I went through and picked out what I wished to “try on” and Nancy went and retrieved my size.  I could really get used to this.  Instead of having to visit each department, the best of Nordstrom was right there at my fingertips.

 I tried on a few things, and I bought a couple of shirts and some undies—all at half price (ha!).  I found a great new watch. And yes, I bought one pair of Sam Edleman shoes. He has become my favorite shoe guy, and my daughters steal these shoes from me, so I guess he is theirs, too (it’s nice to see I’m having such a profound effect on their life choices).  It was a great sale.

Nancy then introduced me Debbie, the lady who initiated this great service for me. Debbie explained to me that Nancy is my gal and that whenever I needed anything, even if it is just something small and insignificant, I am to call her and she will get it together for me.  I am liking the sound of this! I live an hour from the mall, and I rarely have the time or the patience to shop like I used to. Now I can call ahead, show up, and pick up what I need.  I hope.  And it doesn’t cost me anything extra.

I have always heard that Nordstrom had great customer service.  Obviously, I’ve always enjoyed shopping there. Let’s just say they just took my loyalty as a Nordstrom’s customer up a notch.

Sure, this personal attention and great service is good business. But it’s also a show of thoughtfulness, of appreciation for the contribution someone has made—in this case, the financial contribution.

What can I do to show the people in my life that I appreciate them, whether they are my customers at work, my friends, or my family? 

Hmmmm…

Yesterday was one of the most emotional days that I can recall.  A new baby was born in my family. My oldest child—at 20 years old—departed  for Africa  all by herself (www.abbiejacobson.blogspot.com). I was just beginning to process these events when we received word of a tragic motorcycle accident that had, only minutes before, killed three people from our little community, including a woman who attended our church.  On top of that, a day earlier my dad had the heart catheter test to see if his arteries were blocked (good news, they’re fine).

This morning, as I boarded a flight to Denver to attend the ICRS book convention, I found myself wondering how to deal with all of this.  It’s all bittersweet. 

The new baby, my grand nephew, was placed in a loving family through an open adoption.  This has been the plan for many months, and our family has run the gamut of emotions about this day.  And still we cry, laugh and hug each other.  Hopefully, I will make it to Tulsa this week to see him and hug my niece and my sister.

My daughter is flying by HERSELF to a third world country.  She left her wallet but had her passport with her. She did not, however, have the credit card that she needed for a hotel stay over in Frankfurt (we discovered on the way to the airport that the “2 hour layover” we were expecting was actually a 26 hour layover!).  We settled that, but now I find myself worrying about her making the next leg of her flight and getting to Ghana the day after the President has been there.  I didn’t’ sleep very well last night. Too many dreams about some sordid guy name Gunter in Frankfurt stalking my daughter!  I am sure she will be ok, and I do trust that God has her in the palm of His hand.  But I have to admit, my stomach will feel much better once I know she has arrived.

And then there was the accident. As soon as we arrived back in Corsicana after dropping Abbie at the airport, we went over to visit with Mike, whose wife was killed that morning.  The day had begun like any other. There was a charity motorcycle ride to raise money for the high school drill team. Leslie had been riding on the back of a motorcycle that her dad was driving.  It was something that they liked to do together.  Their lives were snuffed out in an instant when a pickup truck hit them.  I know Mike from church.  He plays the drums, and I sing in the worship team (there are only two singers, but we decided we can still call ourselves a “team”). What do you say to this guy who, at age 34, just lost his wife and his father-in-law in one morning?  What do you say to his 10-year-old son?  How do I guide my children, who had Leslie as a teacher and who taught her son in Awana?

New life, a major passage, and death all in one day.  Is it too much to fathom?

God’s word tells us that He will not give us more than we can handle.  I believe that.  I can only lean on His sovereignty especially when it doesn’t make sense.  I can only lean on His grace when I can’t see clearly.  I can only lean on His love when I want to fight back. 

Father, be with my family. Comfort them.  Guide Abbie and give her safe travel…but most of all let her seek your face and follow you.  Abba, please, please bring comfort to Mike and Dalton as they miss their wife and mother.  Help me to love and to be Jesus to all these people.   It’s all I know to ask today.

Social networking is a great tool, especially for self-published authors. But not everyone uses it well. For the purpose of this blog post, let’s focus on facebook, which is free (for now) and has attracted millions of users. Here are a few suggestions for getting the most out of your facebook friendships:

• For most of us, facebook draws all the separate areas of our lives—home, work, friendship, family—into one big circle. Keep this in mind when you post personal information, especially pictures. Always be mindful of who may be watching. Those hilarious pictures you took while you were “building your testimony” in college might not serve you so well in the present.
• Certain facebook applications are guaranteed to turn off a majority of your potential network. Resist the urge to hit people with a virtual pillow or to “find out what color sharpie you are”. If you simply must know what kind of sharpie you are, go ahead and take the quiz, just don’t publish the results on everyone’s page.
• Skip “the poke” altogether.
• Update your status from time to time, but not all the time. Endless status updates might give the impression that you’re not doing much with your time. Trust us on this. Even your closest friends may not really want to know which brand of cereal you ate this morning. In fact, your facebook friends may begin thinking of you as a bit of a nuisance. This is the last thing you want. Annoyed people will block your content altogether. Or, *gasp*, you might even join the ranks of the “un-friended”!

And here are some things that you SHOULD do:

• Do link your blog to your Facebook page by using the NetworkedBlogs application. When you post a new blog entry, your feeds will come up on your page and your friends will be alerted. This is also a great way to attract more blog followers.
• Do make your status messages interactive from time to time. Ask a question that your friends can respond to in order to get conversations going. If it’s a topic that you discuss in your book, even better!
• Do work to build up your friend list. Did you know that you can import your email addresses from Outlook or web email servers in a few simple steps?
• Do respond to comments people are making on your wall posts to show that you are reading them.

Facebook is an ideal forum for authors to share their excitement and the latest information about their new books. Hopefully, these few points of etiquette will keep you from turning your facebook friends into facebook foes.

I went to The National Religious Broadcasters convention last weekend in Nashville. I flew in Friday to speak at a seminar for Women in Christian Media. The seminar was about “How to Get Your Book Published.” My contribution was talking about marketing and publicity. It was fun! I really should do more of these because I enjoy meeting new authors.

My feet hurt. I have band aids on my toes because of the blisters. I know, I know…you’re right. I should wear sensible flats to an event like this. But I can’t. I have the shoe fetish, and I feel more like Tina in my high heels and new shoes. I also don’t wear hose. So I suffer. Call it the price of vanity. I suppose if the success of a convention could be measured by the number of blisters on toes or how bad your feet hurt, then I would have to say I score a 10 every time.

Foot fetish aside, it was a good convention. I had not been to NRB for a couple of years, and it was great to connect with old friends. I had some great meetings, and I think we will get some new business. While I never forget that bringing in new projects is the goal, I always have more fun focusing on the new relationships and seeing old friends. That’s what business is about anyway. Oh…the weather was so nice…wish I could have enjoyed it more.

 **update: Almost two weeks have passed since I was in Nashville, and the weather here at home has been consistently chilly for several days. Boo.