What I Know

On Saturday I’ll be holding another one of my Publishing 101 Boot Camps. This one will be in Oakland, hosted by Mid-Maine Regional Adult Community Education.

The last time I held one of these intensive sessions was in 2013. The setting was also adult education, in Lewiston. I had a group of 10 to 11 students who wanted to learn from someone who actually knew how to take a book idea from start to finish. That would be me, author of four books, and someone with credits of books published on my own, as well as helping other authors bring their projects to market.

My world in 2013 was a different one than where I find myself in 2018. The biggest difference is that Mark is no longer around to confer with and share some of my thoughts with, as well as voice any frustration during preparation.

Publishing according to Jim Baumer

The guide I created in 2013 was one Mark laid out for me. Looking it over, it’s weathered the passage of time (at least the five years since I last handed it out) very well. There are a few things that need updating, but they are minimal. Continue reading

The Work of Writing

I led my third Publishing 101 Boot Camp on Saturday, the second time it’s been offered during Lewiston Adult Education’s Super Saturday format. This six-hour time slot (which also included lunch for attendees) is the right amount of time to walk prospective publishers through the nuts and bolts of independent publishing. This followed closely on the heels of my fall writing class, Let’s Write That Book: 8 Weeks to Writing and Publishing Your First Book. Five of my writing students sat though Saturday’s workshop. Continue reading

Ahead of the Curve?

A year ago, my life was filled with uncertainty. The nonprofit where I’d been for six years laid me off—not for performance issues or anything related to not doing my job—but because they no longer had the money to support someone who was really good at business development, partnership-building, and managing multiple projects. Continue reading

Life is like publishing a book (Part II)

Coming up with an idea isn’t such a big deal. The real key is taking your idea, or even the germ of an idea, and getting it to the place where you can develop an actual product.

The process of researching, writing, and then publishing my own book was a major step forward for me. The early portion of my life was filled with lots of ideas. At one point, I had a book that had scraps of writing, lyrics for half-written songs, even various chord progressions to song snippets. I once even bought a four-track recorder to lay down song sketches with dual-tracked guitar parts. None of these ever ended up amounting to anything more than another series of unfinished projects. Continue reading

Life is like publishing a book (part I)

Book publishing teaches many life lessons.

Book publishing teaches many life lessons.

What motivates people to make changes in their lives? Why is it that some people embrace self-improvement and personal growth, while others stay stuck in the same old rut?

As mentioned before, I was stuck in self-defeating patterns of behavior for a good chunk of my young adult life. Even in my early 30s, when I began looking for answers not bound by spiritual precepts, I had a hard time accepting the power our minds hold over us. Often, how we think, and what we choose to fill our heads with sabotages the best laid plans. Continue reading

Think before you publish

Earlier this year, just after I began “the big transition” that defined 2012 for me, I told someone they should think about writing a book. Here was a person who was an excellent marketer, an entrepreneur, and someone I recognized as having the requisite skills and personality required to be the kind of savvy promoter that going the independent publishing route requires.

I think there are many people who are quite capable of writing and publishing their own book. In fact, I remain bullish on the idea that many are missing the boat when it comes to getting their expertise out in book form. Despite social media’s minimalist approach to every jot and tittle, there are still a wealth of niche markets for books and publishers who can spot them. Continue reading