Getting Fed by Twitter

This weekend I went looking for Eddie Izzard on Twitter.  I like his world and political ideas and thought his tweets would be a good addition to my feed.  I found that Mr. Izzard has over a million followers and yet only follows 71 people. 

I have had WAY too many conversations with authors and publishers about their "Twitter marketing work" and how they are "putting it out there" on Twitter and Facebook.  I have never thought of Twitter as a way to push myself out there.  I have always seen it as an amazing learning bank. 

There are agents, publishers and industry insiders who generously share their wisdom, pass on news and tidbits and forward fantastic articles that I never would have seen otherwise.  Because of them (and Twitter), I am a more educated, informed person. I would not have ever have gotten the benefit of their wisdom without twitter and I am grateful for their generousity.

There are also a number of industry folks who use my twitter page as a place to promote (read: spew) their latest review, minor triumph or self-serving mention. For them, Twitter is a marketplace, not a place of learning and community.  Okay, I can see that; I can let Twitter be a marketplace on THEIR computer, but not mine.

For me, Twitter is an exchange of information, not a place to sell yourself.  It is a forum where I get to give and take with no expectations.  It is like any other relationship... Those who enter into it wondering what they can get out of it are not good relationship prospects.  The next time an author asks me about the return on my Twitter time investment, I am going to hit him/her over the head with a piece of Church of England cake.

So that leads me to my post next time...  Should I be more selective about who I follow?  Shall I unfollow those who have not turned out to be good relationship prospects?

Old Friends, New Faces

The Cadence Group, like several of our friends, is preparing for next week's book extravaganza in New York at BEA. 

This year, the face of the show may look a little different. Many of our old friends will not be attending. Some won't go at all, others will be sending a limited staff. The show is expected to be a little smaller and a little less attended than years past.

We do believe, however, that getting together with a great group of book lovers will be a time of excitement for our industry. We're looking forward to perusing some of the new technologies, new titles, and "out of the box" concepts--those that have been announced and those that will surprise us on the show floor.

While we will miss some of our old friends, we're excited to "meet" several of our new friends and clients.  And most importantly, we're looking forward to seeing what great things the book industry has planned for the future.

Are things turning around for Borders?

Three months ago, it was announced that Borders was seeking to combine existing stocks in an attempt to bolster their stock prices to above a dollar. Three weeks ago, they announced that their stocks had risen above a dollar all on their own. The cost cutting and new management policies put into place by Ron Marshall seemed to be working. Investors were impressed and the stock has been rising ever since. Last closing, BGI was traded at $2.62.

Business journals that had recently written off the book retailer are now pointing to BGI's possible rejuvenation. Reporters, who in February named Borders as one of the top 10 companies guaranteed to fail in 2009, are now heralding a new day at BGI.

Will Marshall's changes be good for the company? What do you think of Borders' "turn-around"?

Educated by the Audience

Last weekend I had the pleasure of traveling to sunny Florida to conduct a workshop for the Space Coast Writers' Guild. While I may have been the presenter, I also learned a lot from this really fantastic group of writers.

In fact, I came home with a smart list of questions about the market and industry that I thought needed some extra research. These writers are really on top of their game.

We talked about marketing, positioning, platforms and social networking. They wanted to know category sales trends, competition and how to differentiate themselves from other books on the shelf. They asked smart questions about self-publishing, e-books and grass roots publicity.

While we spend a lot of time talking about the changing landscape of what's happening with publishers, this group taught me another important lesson.

Savvy writers are learning to navigate our industry just as well....if not better...than the rest of us.

The Power of an Apology

Last month I messed up. I mean REALLY messed up. Never mind what I did, but suffice it to say... It was bad. It was an error, not an omission, but should not have happened and it impacted a client's book launch.

My client (let's call her Rebecca) called to let me know that she was beside herself and she rightfully let me have it. She wanted her money back. She wanted my head on a platter. And then she wanted me to really suffer.

Today Rebecca is my happiest client and has just signed up for another 6 months of service.

What happened?

I apologized.

When Rebecca called up last week yelling, my first instinct was to defend myself. I wanted to explain that there were extenuating circumstances. Iwanted to remind her that she was just as much to blame.

But I bit back the urge to interrupt and fight back. I ignored the voice in my head telling me that it was not FAIR to be blamed. I listened to what she had to say and then I completely copped to it. No excuses, no defense. I took full responsibility and promised to do everything in my power to make it right.

As I apologized and made a commitment to fix what I could, I gave Rebecca the only thing I could at that moment... I honored her by admitting she was right to be upset without a defensive tone or throwing around passive-aggressive blame. In an instant, I was once again her partner and would work with her to make things right.

There is strength in admitting that we are wrong. No one is perfect. Admitting we are wrong without justification can help us lose our fear of imperfection. No matter how unfair we think it may be or what other circumstances are to blame, when something goes wrong, it is best to take a deep breath, look at the situation honestly and take responsibility for the parts of which you are responsible.

.... and then not do it again.

You Are What You Think

Okay everyone... I mean it. It is time to turn off CNN and stop obsessively reviewing every news feed about the economy.

I know the book industry (and most other industries) are in the crapper and that there are huge losses being reported every day.

But it's time to get down to business. I've had enough of the hand wringing. I am sick of the culture of panic that we have all agreed to live with.

If it is true that we are what we eat, that we become, in large part, a sum of what we put in our bodies, than I believe that it is also true that we become a sum of what we put in our minds. I am not a huge fan of mind-body-hooey and can promise you that I will never read The Secret, but I do know this: We create our own reality.

If we spend all of our time being afraid of the future, we will not have the energy to improve that future. If we spend hours each day talking to cohorts about how bad things are, we are wasting opportunities to make them better.

I plan on spending some time each day working on ways to help my small, fledgling business survive this "down-turn". Not only do I plan to survive, I plan to thrive.

People are going to need books and companies will need help coming up with creative ways to make and market books.

I can spend the next few months blaming everything on the market or I can start believing that every day hold new opportunities, even in a recession. I can either wallow in depression and accept defeat before it has arrived, or spend my day happy and excited, doing my best.

How are you going to spend your day?