How to Make a Book Series - Proofing the Project

By now you have established your target market, set production goals, conceptualized your layout, written the content of your book, created your artwork and have decided upon choosing media components. Now comes the fun part...polishing your work.

As any quality chef would say, "food tastes only as good as the time it takes to make it." The same is true with your project. The time which you invest into this critical step will well be worth the effort and your success in the long run. Let's take a look at some of the common areas you should be aware of when polishing your manuscript.

First off, there are endless agencies and firms you can work with to help you proof your work. Typically, these fall under the term "Copy Editing Services." A simple Google search for this term will provide you with a number of resources that offer professional editing services. Alternatively, most states have what they call a "Writer (or Author) Association" for local writers that exist to provide valuable resources for their authors. To get started on editing your own work, I have included some helpful hints below.

Grammar and Spelling
This goes without saying. If you are like most of us, you know what you wanted to write, but thought twice about the way it read. If you don't have a major in English, I highly recommend finding someone who does that will kindly take a look at your manuscript and make grammatical suggestions. Not only will you reap the benefits, but now you can say that someone, other than yourself, has read your book! Congratulations on your first reader!

Layout
Your book is written and you have made grammatical corrections, now you can take a step back and look at your project from a different height. I was once told by a famous musician that he believes there is more music between the notes than there is written on the page. Take this same philosophy and learn to train your eyes to discover the spacing between your words, the alignment of your chapter titles (are they supposed to be centered?) and the layout of your artwork (are the edges of your artwork being cutoff?). These are areas that are often overlooked and can be critical to the readability and flow of your book.

Widow and Orphan Lines
A widow line is generally the last line of your paragraph that is by itself at the top of a page. Similarly, an orphan line is a line of text that is by itself at the bottom of a page, most commonly at the beginning of a paragraph. These usually appear during the process of correcting your grammar or adjusting artwork that has been placed within your text. Some effective ways for getting around the appearance of widow/orphan lines are rewriting your paragraph, adding subject matter, adjusting your spacing and/or page margins or fine tuning your font parameters. Although it is not necessary to eliminate all widow/orphan lines, it is generally recommended that your manuscript contains at least 2 lines of text at the top and bottom of all of your pages.

Unclear Content
It is very easy for the author to understand the ideas of their manuscript as, well...they wrote it! However, while the ideas may be clear to you, they may come across differently to someone reading your book for the first time. Reread the main points of your book as if you have never read them before. Perhaps you'll find you need to elaborate on certain ideas or you may find you can delete some of the content and still have the idea communicated effectively. Emplore a friend a two to read your proof and ask whether or not your ideas are clearly presented. The advice of others can be a valuable asset when you are genuine about making a memorable impact.

Proofreaders' Marks
Lastly, I recommend familiarizing yourself with the Chicago Manual of Style Proofreaders' marks. This set of editing marks is basically a way of editing your work and making corrections with shorthand, which will save you valuable time during the editing process.

The basic idea of proofing, or editing, your project can be summed up with the five universal "C's:" clear, correct, concise, consistent and comprehensible. If you can succeed in all five of these areas, then you can confidently move forward knowing your manuscript has the polish and integrity it needs to rise to the top.

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How to Make a Book Series - Choosing Media Components

Watch any classic movie and you will see character development, profound yet simple backdrop imagery, drops of blanketed humor and the timeless struggle between good vs. evil. These are the stories that have gone down in history, written with true craft and respect. However the classics are buried deep within the racks of our memory, so much so that the word "movie" itself has come to mean the current blockbuster hit. Why is this? We are in an age where a crafty script and a few talented actors are not enough. Nowadays we need the whole package: extreme cinematography, expert special effects, famous names, a shock factor and of course, merchandise and clothing brands. (wink!)

Simple is too simple for today's audiences. Books on the New York Times Bestseller list are also known to capitalize on these packaged elements to capture our attention. Realizing this, how can you effectively reach today's audience with your book? One way to do this is to include media components or "companion products" with your project.

Whether you are thinking of creating a promotional piece or an add-on component to your book, media products have quickly become a standard in the book industry. DVD's, CD-Rom's, websites, blogs, newsletters and audiobooks are all ways publishers are effectively engaging their audiences. Media components are especially effective for how-to books, resource books, history books, novels and curriculum. Just look in the back pages of the book you last read and chances are that you will find a website address pointing your curiosity to online resources where you can learn more about the subject matter.

Content Developer and Owner of Creative Blue Media, Matt Hunt, gives us an effective way to identify what to look for in creating media products. Mr. Hunt says, "Many clients of mine come to me for creative direction and guidance for promotional and complimentary media pieces. My advice for aspiring authors and publishers is to go out into the market place and research what other people are doing. Take what you like and leave the rest and make it your own...this is where some truly creative and effective marketing can shine."

One creative way Mr. Hunt suggests promoting your book with media is by the use of Flash/Thumb drives. With the prices of thumb drives steadily decreasing, he suggests putting a few sample chapters of your book on the drive in addition to an interview with the author or perhaps utilizing a video diary to help readers connect with the author. This idea takes care of two things: (1) It drives people to emotionally engage themselves with your product and (2) It is a cost effective means of promotion. Why is "emotionally engaging" your audience important? It may surprise you to hear this, but economics usually has nothing to do with money…it has everything to do with emotion (a good thing to keep in mind on your road to stardom!).

The key to creating media components is to capitalize on your available resources to effectively reach and engage your audience. When thinking about what you would like to include with your project don't forget the use of your web space on the internet. This is a very cost effective way to share your ideas, content, newsletters, videos and other resources with your readers.

Lastly, be reminded that you don't need extreme cinematography or special effects to appeal to the emotions of your readers. All you need is a well written script, a little PR and the dedication to give your project the legs it needs to run on its own. Even Martin Scorsese comments on this by saying, "The reality is, if I don't do PR, I'm hurting the picture. And as many things as I did, that's as many things as I turned down."

So you may or may not have a blockbuster hit, but one thing is for sure, with the right combination of effective media components and creativity, your book could well be on its way to being a timeless and much sought after classic for ages to come.

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To explore further information about media components, feel free to contact Mr. Matt Hunt at www.CreativeBlueMedia.biz or by email at creativebluemedia@gmail.com.