By: Christopher A. Master, Lead Cover Designer
How big is a postage stamp?
The answer: .875” x 1”.
Most of us who have published a book have been conditioned to believe that success equates to having your book featured prominently on bookstore displays. I fell into this thought process when publishing myself. This is true for select high-profile authors with names like King, Rowling or Sedaris. The truth of the matter is that in recent years, a larger portion of book sales has been coming from online book retailers than from brick and mortar locations.
Fundamental 2: Think Digitally
Many, if not all, online retailers will list your book for sale with just a thumbnail snapshot of the book cover (a larger version is only viewable by clicking through to the product page) alongside other similar titles. On Amazon, for example, this thumbnail size is just .75” x 1.25”.
Why should an author worry about the size of a thumbnail image of their cover?
Consider these covers featuring two vastly different girls: Girl with a Pearl Earring and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Both covers look great when taken at full size, yet the thumbnails tell a different story. In the case of Pearl, both the title and the pearl earring are virtually lost at the reduced size. In contrast, the bold text of the Dragon title maintains easy legibility even as the art becomes decidedly less clear.
You can conduct your own similar comparison. Pick a handful of books that you like or that you have on your own bookshelf and look at their corresponding thumbnails on Amazon. Is the text legible? How does the artwork look at the reduced size? Now, if you hadn’t known anything about this book prior to seeing the thumbnail, would you have still purchased it? 
Be sure to keep these sizing issues in mind when devising your own cover concept. As I mentioned earlier, many of your sales will actually be coming from beyond the bookstore. Potential customers will be viewing your book’s information (and many others) on a computer, tablet, and even their cell phone. Sales can be helped or hindered by something as small as a postage stamp.
Does your book cover design need a facelift? Click here to view some of our cover design samples. Our professional team of designers would love to work with you to create a new, more modern and digitally friendly look.
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Christopher Master works as the Lead Cover Designer at Infinity Publishing. With 10+ years of cover design experience, he has amassed a design portfolio of well over 1000 book covers.
He has been married to his intelligent and very patient wife for nearly a decade. In 2010, they welcomed their first child, Sylvie, who is a now toddling machine. A few years back, Christopher published a collection of humorous true childhood stories entitled Tiny Cracker Zoo. Between work, family and freelance design, he strives to find the time to pursue writing a second book, this one focusing, perhaps, on the misadventures of new fatherhood.
by Sherrie Wilkolaski
Congratulations! You’ve made it to the final day of the Infinity Publishing Lucky 13 Social Media Challenge for Authors. It really has been an amazing two weeks. The feedback has been tremendous. To celebrate we’re going to talk about Pubmatch.com.
The publishing world is getting smaller each and every day. Why not market your book to the world? Pubmatch gives every author the opportunity to market and promote their work to publishers, world-wide.
International publishing rights is big business and Pubmatch.com makes it possible for authors and publishers to connect. It’s the only social media outlet that brings these two groups together. Their service is incredible.
Why PubMatch for authors?
Written a book? Create an account to post your book on Pubmatch.com then search the database of publishers searching for new titles, or agents and agencies looking for new talent to represent. Connect on Pubmatch.com and begin important business relationships for making your book available to readers all over the world! Click here for a video to learn more.
Why would you want to sell your book to a publisher outside of the US?
The grass is always greener on the other side, right? There are many foreign publishers, looking for new titles, written by US authors. It also goes the other way, international authors trying to get into the US. Either way, Pubmatch.com is the easiest way to make that happen. As an author, you want to open yourself up to possibilities. A foreign publisher could potentially expose you to an entirely different market.
There is an author that I was consulting with, she is a speaker that is based in the US, but her fan-base is international. She is a big hit in Russia. Those folks can’t get enough of her. She does well in the US, but her popularity is much greater in other countries.
Will I still be published with Infinity if another publisher outside the US is interested in my book?
Yes. Infinity Publishing is your US publisher.
How does PubMatch.com work?
As an author you can set-up an account. Click on the Register Now button in the upper right-hand corner of the site to get started. www.pubmatch.com.
You will get 30 days of FREE international exposure. If you decide to continue on, a basic account is only $29.95 a year and if you click on the Infinity Publishing banner on the home page, you’ll get a 25% discount off any membership package price.
Today’s social media challenge task of the day.
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Sign up for your Pubmatch.com account.
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Post a link to your Pubmatch.com profile page below in the comments for added exposure.
Infinity Publishing’s gift to you. We’re passing on a 25% savings to you if you decide to go with a membership. We’ll give you shout out in our campaign follow-up blog post!
Thank you to everyone who participated in this social media challenge. It has been great getting to know everyone who joined us on this journey. Congratulations and best wishes for much social media success!
by Sherrie Wilkolaski
Get ready for your 15 minutes of fame…today we’re talking about YouTube.com. YouTube is a website to publish and distribute video. Video is one of the best ways to drive traffic to your website, the search engines love it. Publishing your video via YouTube will give you the opportunity to get exposure, just like having your book having distribution to bookstore catalogs and Amazon. Using video as a marketing vehicle to promote your book and build your platform as an author will set you apart. From book trailers to testimonials you can publish your own electronic content on YouTube and share it with the world.
What is YouTube?
Founded in February 2005, YouTube allows billions of people to discover, watch and share originally-created videos. YouTube provides a forum for people to connect, inform, and inspire others across the globe and acts as a distribution platform for original content creators and advertisers large and small.
How should an author use YouTube?
Once you've created your account, you will need to set-up your author channel. If you don’t have a video yet, that is OK. Get your account established. Once you do have your video file, you’ll want to upload that to your account. You should consider putting that video up on the homepage of your website. Having a video on your homepage is a powerful tool to drive your organic online search for your site. Many websites have a YouTube plug-in so that you can easily incorporate your video into your site via your YouTube channel.
Use your YouTube account to promote your book trailer videos. You can also capture video testimonials from your readers and upload those to your YouTube channel. Don’t forget to include a short video of you reading an excerpt of your book.
How to set-up your YouTube account?
YouTube provides detailed instructions on their site, so we’re going to direct you right to that page: http://www.youtube.com/t/about_getting_started
What NOT to do with your YouTube channel.
Shooting video is not a skill that everyone may have, so be sure to leave it to the professionals. Don’t publishing junk videos. If you are doing it yourself, make sure it is simple, you have good lighting and sound.
Today’s social media challenge task of the day.
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Create an account at www.YouTube.com.
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Set-up your profile in your YouTube account. Be sure to add your author photo and a link back to your own personal website.
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Post a link to your YouTube lens below in the comments section so you get added exposure.
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Email marketing@infinitypublishing.com with a zip folder of your book trailer video OR include a video testimonial about Infinity Publishing.
Infinity Publishing’s gift to you. We will publish your video on the Infinity Publishing YouTube channel!
Tomorrow is the last day of this challenge…we’re going international. Talking about Pubmatch.
by Sherrie Wilkolaski
Today we’re going to learn about Squidoo.com. Squidoo is a website and online publishing tool that allows anyone with an account to publish one page, what they call a “lens” of information. The website has a Google page rank of 8 out of 10, which is very high. So if you’re publishing on Squidoo.com you’ve got a good chance of getting online exposure via the search engines and it will provide a nice backlink to your website.
What is Squidoo?
Founded in 2005 by Seth Godin, Squidoo provides a tool for writers to create beautiful webpages and promoting their stories, ideas and thoughts. It’s a wonderful resource to promote your books, one at a time, or all together.
How should you use Squidoo?
Once you've created your account, you will need to build your profile, include a short bio and upload your author photo.
As an author I recommend you create individual lens for each of your titles. Include the following items on each individual lens:
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Author bio.
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Book summary.
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Book cover image.
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Book excerpt.
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Reviews.
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Link to purchase your book via your own online storefront at www.buybooksontheweb.com and/or via the Amazon.com module that Squidoo provides.
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Link back to your personal website.
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Book trailer video link to YouTube.
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Social media connections via Twitter and Facebook.
If you have more than one book, you should also consider creating a main author page at Squidoo and list all of your titles from that page.
For more ideas on how to continue using Squidoo via content building and creating new Squidoo lens, we’re going to send you directly to Squidoo. Click this link to learn more:
http://www.squidoo.com/originalitypact
How to set-up your Squidoo account?
Squidoo provides detailed instructions on their site, so we’re going to direct you right to that page: http://www.squidoo.com/squidoo
Today’s social media challenge task of the day. 
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Create an account at www.Squidoo.com.
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Set-up your profile in your Squidoo account. Be sure to add your author photo and a link back to your own personal website. http://www.squidoo.com/squidoo
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Once you have your account set-up, go to the Infinity Publishing page here and click on the “like” button. http://www.squidoo.com/infinity-publishing
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Post a link to your Squidoo lens below in the comments section so you get added exposure.
Infinity Publishing’s gift to you. We will like your Squidoo lens!
Tomorrow we’re going to talk about YouTube.
by Sherrie Wilkolaski
Professional social media site, LinkedIn is an incredible tool for authors to connect with other authors and publishing professionals. One of the great resources LinkedIn has to offer any registered user is its “groups” feature. You can connect with different professional groups in your favorite niche and contribute to discussions, find resources and keep up with trends. You have the luxury of picking and choosing what groups you want to join. Another thing about LinkedIn that is luxurious is that once you have your profile established, it will help to automatically make recommendations on who you may know or want to reach out to, based on your email address and work history. It’s like having your own personal assistant out there, networking for you. You can grow your professional network virtually, barely lifting a finger.
What is LinkedIn?
Founded in 2003, LinkedIn connects the world's professionals to make them more productive and successful. With more than 135 million members worldwide, including executives from every Fortune 500 company, LinkedIn is the world's largest professional network on the Internet.
How should you use LinkedIn?
Once you've created your account, you will need to build your profile. As an author there is no harm in partnering your career history with that of your work as a writer. In most cases it should make sense to do so. Simply list your job as a writer and include in your profile. Make sure it is your most recent position, so it shows up at the top of your profile. If you have a resume on file, it will make it easy to create your profile, you can import it or cut and paste your work history into the online profile builder within your new LinkedIn account.
If you are writing under a pen name or in area that you do not want to have associated with your day job, then create a LinkedIn account under your pen name, or create your author profile. You can have more than one LinkedIn account.
How to connect with writers groups and publishing professionals?
One your profile is set up in your LinkedIn account you can start searching for groups. Use the search box at the top of the page to find local writers groups, or groups in your own niche (i.e. romance, fiction, etc.) and join those groups. You should also look at joining a few publishing groups to keep up with trends and what is going on in the industry.
What NOT to do as an author on LinkedIn?
Don’t push your book directly. This site is a professional networking resource. Use it to make connections. When it makes sense to talk one and one about your book to other writers and professionals, do so. If you’re launching a new title, there is no harm in sending out an announcement to your connections. Just keep the direct book marketing via LinkedIn in check.
How to set-up your author account at LinkedIn?
LinkedIn provides detailed instructions on their site, so we’re going to direct you right to that page: http://learn.linkedin.com/new-users/
Today’s social media challenge task of the day.
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Create an account at www.LinkedIn.com.
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Set-up your profile in your LinkedIn account. Be sure to add your author photo and a link back to your own personal website. http://learn.linkedin.com/new-users/
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Follow the instructions to set-up your author account as provided above.
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Once you have your account set-up, connect with Infinity Publishing and become our friend. www.linkedin.com/in/infinitypublishing
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Post a link to your LinkedIn profile page below in the comments section so you get added exposure.
Infinity Publishing’s gift to you. We will friend you back on LinkedIn!
Tomorrow we’re going to have fun with Squidoo.
by Sherrie Wilkolaski
Today we’re talking about Shelfari, another social media vehicle authors can use to connect with readers. We’ve already taken a look at GoodReads and LibraryThing, both being similar to Shelfari, in that it targets the reader. The importance of Shelfari is that it’s connection to Amazon. As an author promoting your work, you just have to be a part of it.
What is Shelfari*?
Shelfari introduces readers to our global community of book lovers and encourages them to share their literary inclinations and passions with peers, friends, and total strangers (for now). Shelfari is a gathering place for authors, aspiring authors, publishers, and readers, and has many tools and features to help these groups connect with each other in a fun and engaging way. Our mission is to enhance the experience of reading by connecting readers in meaningful conversations about the published word.
Shelfari’s members:
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Build virtual bookshelves to express themselves to their friends and to the world
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Discover books that are popular in their trusted circles of friends
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Influence peers by rating and discussing books online
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Discover and learn from people with similar reading tastes
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Participate in online book groups to further explore literature and share ideas
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Interact with and learn from authors
Shelfari was officially launched in October 2006 and was acquired by Amazon.com in August 2008. * Information provided by Shelfari.com
How should you use Shelfari?
Once you've created your account, start connecting with readers who are looking for books in your genre. You can send them an invite to become a friend. The more people you're connected with, the more exposure you will have. If you find readers that have read your book, reach out to them and get their opinion. People love to hear from authors. Also, once you have your account established, you will want to select books that you are reading and add them to your collection. Don’t forget that you can easy add books to your shelf by importing from your purchases on Amazon.
What NOT to do as an author on Shelfari?
You should include your own book(s) in your list of what you have read but do NOT rate or review your own book(s). Readers and Shelfari does not like that. Never rate or review your book(s) on any site.
How to set-up your author account at Shelfari?
Shelfari has author detail pages for all published authors with a book in their catalog. You can find your detail page by clicking your name beneath the title of your book. If your book does not correctly show your name, click on the cover or title which takes you to the book page. On the book page, edit the Authors & Contributors section. Once the change is approved by Shelfari Librarians and then your book will be updated with the correct author information. Click through your name to your author detail page and begin adding and editing biographical and other information that would be interesting to readers
Shelfari provides authors who participate on Author Central with an "Amazon Author" badge on their avatars.
They have an extensive FAQs section so be sure to utilize it. http://www.shelfari.com/help
Today’s social media challenge task of the day.
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Create an account at www.Shelfari.com.
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Set-up your profile in your Shelfari account. Be sure to add your author photo and a link back to your own personal website.
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Follow the instructions to set-up your author account as provided above.
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Set-up your authorcentral.amazon.com account if you don’t already have one, it will give you more exposure both at Amazon and on Shelfari.
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Once you have your account set-up, connect with Infinity Publishing and become our friend. http://www.shelfari.com/infinitypublishing
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Post a link to your Shelfari profile page below in the comments section so you get added exposure.
Infinity Publishing’s gift to you. We will friend you back on Shelfari!
Tomorrow we’re going to get LinkedIn.
by Sherrie Wilkolaski
We’re in the final stretch of our 13 day social media challenge. We’ve spent the last week getting the basic social media accounts established. For day #8 I thought it would be good to put into practice using content in conjunction with your new social media tools like Twitter and Facebook. One of the most effective ways to promote your content, which in turn helps to promote your platform as an author and your ability as a writer, is via social media. Let’s talk about creating a list of the top five reasons to buy your book on ListYourFive.com. 
What is ListMyFive.com?
ListMyFive.com is a website and publishing vehicle, with a format of listing five reasons to like something, do something or “how to” do something. For an author it is a great resource to list five reasons why someone would want to read your book.
Why post content on another website, why not just use my blog?
In addition to your own blog, you want to continually be posting content out on the web and then linking back to your own personal website. It will help with your own site traffic and the more in-bound links you have to your website, partnered with your social media presence on Twitter, Facebook, etc. will create the right formula for organic online growth. It’s also added exposure to promote your work.
How do I use ListMyFive to promote my book?
You want to create a list of the top five reasons why someone would want to buy your book. Focus on one title. If you have more than one book, create a list for each individual title. As an author, you know your work the best. Call out the top things about your book that make it a good read. Get creative. There is no right or wrong way to promote your book. Once you've published your ListMyFive list, send out a link to your list via Twitter and Facebook.
Bonus: Once you create this top five list, repurpose the content and post this list on your own website.
Today’s social media challenge task of the day.
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Create an account at www.listmyfive.com.
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Set-up your profile in your ListMyFive account. Be sure to add your author photo and a link back to your own personal website.
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Once you have your account set-up, connect with Infinity Publishing and give us a “high five” on this page: http://www.listmyfive.com/2b1532ee/The-Top-Five-Reasons-to-Publish-With-Infinity-Publishing
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Post a link to your ListMyFive page below in the comments section so you get added exposure.
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Promote your list via Twitter and Facebook.
Infinity Publishing’s gift to you. We will give your list a high five! 
Tomorrow learn all about Shelfari.
by Bob Sherman
When you do a book signing and invite all your friends, you’re lucky if they both show up. Maybe there’s safety in numbers. Several years ago I attended Delray Beach Library Author’s Showcase. Twelve authors presented their books after which the authors displayed and sold copies of their books. There were over 100 guests in the audience. The Delray Showcase is in its 13th year. Numerous authors submit their books, but only 12 are selected. I submitted my book, More Bull, for this year’s showcase on January 8th. Unfortunately, I was not selected.
Last year I decided to do my own showcase at the Hallandale Library. As the organizer there was no doubt my book would be selected. I invited all my fellow authors to participate and 10 signed up. Each author was allowed 5 minutes to present their book. Acting as Master of Ceremonies, I introduced the authors based on bios which they supplied. I appointed a friend as timekeeper. One of the authors never looked up; so the timekeeper had to clear her throat several times to get the speakers attention. This procedure must be fine-tuned for the next showcase. Maybe I’ll give the timekeeper a big hook or some ripe fruit. Afterwards we each had our own table to sell our books. We also served some refreshments, which was an overkill. Next time it will just be cookies or candy on the table.
The Hallandale Library printed some fancy brochures. However, I received them one week before the event; so there was not enough time to distribute them. I also contacted newspapers and radio stations. This must be followed up to be effective. We only had 40-50 guests. The Hallandale librarian considered the event a big success based on other events held there.
The 2nd Annual Authors Showcase is planned for April 14, 2012 at the Southwest Regional Library, Pembroke Pines. This venue is likely to draw more of a crowd. Other venues were considered. However, having a location that is free is very important for “starving writers.”
We have 12 authors signed up for April. I chose to limit the number at 12, to keep the speaking presentations to about an hour. I created a brochure which each author will reproduce and distribute. I have already started advertising by listing the event on various social networks and will contact newspapers as the date gets closer.
Because the April showcase seemed so far off, I decided to have a group book signing, in the interim, at the Hallandale Library. Originally there were only two of us. As the number of authors grew, I renamed the event a “Book Fair.” It will coincide with the first meeting of the Gulfstream Writers, a group affiliated with the Florida Writers Association, which I organized. The book signing will be January 28th from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. I sent out invitations and selected 10 authors on a first come basis. When my showcases become more popular we’ll need a selection process to assure a good representation of genres. For now I’m the sole judge and jury.
I’m counting on all the authors to do some promotion. The event is listed on www.americantowns.com as is the Showcase in April. I have sent notices to several newspapers. A notice has already appeared in a local weekly paper. The first time the event appeared on the Community Calendar, the date was incorrect. This illustrates why it’s important to follow up to verify the notice is published and is correct.
For an event like this to be successful good advertising is the key. In addition to the brochures in the Hallandale Library I’ll distribute brochures to other nearby libraries. I expect all the participating authors to tell everyone they know. I also have the support of the “Friends of the Library” who will serve refreshments. This will allow the authors to concentrate on selling books. Even with all the planning I’m doing, I’m carrying my rabbit’s foot and keeping my fingers crossed.
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Bob E Sherman is a retired CPA and former controller for several boat manufacturers. He’s a Miami Hurricane born and raised on the Jersey Shore. He holds a 100 ton U.S. Coast Guard license and is a columnist for South Florida’s Waterfront Times. He’s author of two books — Am I the Only One That Signals? and More Bull. http://bobesherman.blogspot.com/
by Sherrie Wilkolaski
Today we’re talking about LibraryThing, another social media vehicle authors can use to connect with readers.
What is LibraryThing?
LibraryThing is an online service to help people catalog their books easily. You can access your catalog from anywhere—even on your mobile phone. Because everyone catalogs together, LibraryThing also connects people with the same books, comes up with suggestions for what to read next, and so forth.
How should you use LibraryThing?
Once you've created your author account, start connecting with readers who are looking for books in your genre. You can send them an invite to become a friend. The more people you're connected 
with, the more exposure you will have. If you find readers that have read your book, reach out to them and get their opinion. People love to hear from authors. Also, once you have your account established, you will want to select books that you are reading and add them to your collection.
What NOT to do as an author on LibraryThing?
You should include your own book(s) in your list of what you have read but do NOT rate or review your own book(s). Readers and LibraryThing does not like that. Never rate or review your book(s) on any site.
How to set-up your author account at LibraryThing?
LibraryThing provides detailed instruction on how to set-up an author account, so we’re doing to send you directly to their detailed instructions. It is quite simple. Click the link below:
http://www.librarything.com/about/authors
Today’s social media challenge task of the day.
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Create an account at www.librarything.com.
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Set-up your profile in your LibraryThing account. Be sure to add your author photo and a link back to your own personal website.
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Follow the instructions to set-up your author account.
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Once you have your account set-up, connect with Infinity Publishing and become our friend. http://www.librarything.com/home/Infinity_Publishing
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Post a link to your LibraryThing profile page below in the comments section so you get added exposure.
Infinity Publishing’s gift to you. We will friend you back on LibraryThing!
Tomorrow learn all about List Your Five.
by Sherrie Wilkolaski
Social media marketing via Goodreads is a must for any author.
What Is Goodreads?
Goodreads is the largest site for readers and book recommendations in the world. They have more than 6,200,000 members who have added more than 210,000,000 books to their shelves. A home for casual readers and bona-fide bookworms alike, Goodreads users recommend books, compare what they are reading, keep track of what they've read and would like to read, find their next favorite book, form book clubs and much more. Goodreads was launched in December 2006. Their mission is to help people find and share books they love.
Goodreads is where readers go to find new books to read. As an author you have an opporutnity to set-up a Goodreads account and have an author account.
How should you use Goodreads?
Once you've created your author account, start connecting with readers who are looking for books in your genre. You can send them an invite to become a friend. The more people you're connected with, the more exposure you will have. If you find readers that have read your book, reach out to them and get their opinion. People love to hear from authors. Also, once you have your account established, you will want to select books that you are reading.
What NOT to do as an author on Goodreads?
You should include your own book(s) in your list of what you have read but do NOT rate or review your own book(s). Readers and Goodreads does not like that. Never rate or review your book(s) on any site.
How to set-up your author account at Goodreads?
We are going to send you directly to the instructions at Goodreads to learn how to set-up your author account. It is quite simple. Click the link below:
http://www.goodreads.com/author/how_to
Today’s social media challenge task of the day.
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Create an account at www.goodreads.com.
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Set-up your profile in your Goodreads account. Be sure to add your author photo and a link back to your own personal website.
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Follow the instructions to set-up your author account. Note: it will take a few days for Goodreads to get back to you to confirm your author status.
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Once you have your account set-up, connect with Infinity Publishing and become our friend. http://www.goodreads.com/infinitypublishing
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Post a link to your Goodreads profile page below in the comments section so you get added exposure.
Infinity Publishing’s gift to you. We will friend you back on Goodreads!
Tomorrow we tackle LibraryThing.