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- Generate income from your writing BEFORE you publish
- Learn how to create, build, and leverage assets
- Learn how to make cross-promotional opportunities
- Learn to identify, craft and close new revenue streams
- Apply new tools and platforms for book discoverability
- Develop guts, imagination, and persistence as keys to success
Lynn Isenberg distills her success as a content marketing innovator into her critically acclaimed new book AUTHOR POWER: Profit Before You Publish. As an author advocate, Isenberg paves the way for content creators and publishers across all platforms to generate alternative revenue streams and profits against a shrinking literary economy. Isenberg crafts, closes and delivers on multi-platform branded entertainment properties for authors, publishers, producers, and brands such as Marriott, HermanMiller, Legacy.com, Dignity Memorial, HaloPets, 1800Flowers.com, Paramount Pictures, TaylorMade Golf, Sundance, Activision, etc. via case studies, roadmaps, tools, and techniques featured in Author Power that yielded over six-figures during the great recession. Her novels include The Funeral Planner Trilogy Comedy, My Life Uncovered, and the upcoming Wet Hippies and The Field. She’s been featured on NBC, CBS, NPR, international media, and is a Celebrity Partner to 1800Flowers.com and Dignity Memorial. She executive produced The Funeral Planner Digital Series featuring singer-celebrity Joss Stone. Her novels have been optioned for television. In addition to her film, TV, internet and publishing credits, Isenberg founded the renown Hollywood LIT Retreat: Literature. Intelligence. Technology. Isenberg’s umbrella company, Focus Media, Inc. provides marketing, business development, and consulting. FocusMediaMarketing.com
For anyone who wants to write a book and be compensated for it, this is a must read. Using case studies based on her own successful journey, Isenberg delivers an informative “how to” that teaches authors how to negotiate the new frontier of publishing, and – just as importantly – how to make money before they’re even out of the gate.Pablo Fenjves, NYT Times Bestselling Author & Screenwriter, Man on a Ledge
Author Power is like jet fuel for next-age publishing and promotion that leverages an author’s creative assets (and energy) to amplify all possible revenue streams. Ignore this book at your peril.Jon Samsel, CMO, Verimatrix; Author, Writing for Interactive MultiMedia
Lynn shares her secrets on how to leverage story into profit and that’s the genius of Author Power!Frank Beddor, Author/ Producer, The Looking Glass Wars Trilogy, There’s Something About Mary, Wicked, The Juliet
Author Power is a game changer – shifting the economic power of writing into the hands of the writers.Andrew Bird, Marketing Leader, Deloitte; Author, Putting the Profit in Nonprofit
Every author, whether they are traditionally published, self-published or aspiring, needs to read this book.SJ Hodges, Celebrity Ghostwriter
Author Power creates a disruptive narrative on the form of narrative itself with advocacy for writers everywhere and at every stage of their careers.Josh Linkner, CEO/Managing Partner, Detroit Venture Partners; NY Times Bestselling Author, Disciplined Dreaming, The Road to Reinvention
Author Power fast-tracks your publishing journey and gives you tools to compensate your hard work before your book leaves your desktop!Liz H. Kelly, Founder, Goody PR/Goody Awards; Author, Smart Man Hunting
When the entertainment and advertising business changed forever with the evolution of the Internet and ubiquitous content, Lynn Isenberg not only reinvented herself, but reinvented ways to do business–innovating TV, web content, books, business, and ultimately box office. AUTHOR POWER makes convergence a reality, not a buzz word. Thanks Lynn, for putting into words what we all are experimenting with and validating new ways we will finance and consume content.Kevin Foxe, Producer/Director, The Blair Witch Project, Jackson Horn, The Ghost Experiment
For the past ten years I have worked as a ghostwriter/ editor/“birthing coach” for aspiring authors helping them to not only write/finish/edit their manuscripts but also guiding them through the traditional publishing process from book proposals all the way to hardcover in hand. In those ten years, I have watched, with great sadness, authors struggle at the Sisyphean task of bringing an idea from concept to completion only to discover at the end of the publishing process, they are flat out broke.
It wasn’t always this way. Ten years ago, I helped an unknown first- time author with no platform sell a fiction novel off a book proposal for six figures in a bidding war. And yes, we all get our daily e-news from Publishers Weekly announcing the latest deals and yes, there are still a few writers (mostly well-established with huge platforms) walking away with big checks. What you don’t see is how much of those checks is then spent by the author on marketing, travel, product development, and social media maintenance.
In this market, I’ve seen verifiable celebrities with weekly and global audiences in the millions receive almost insulting (and com- pletely unlivable) advance offers in the low teens. I’ve seen authors taken on by traditional publishers only because they, the authors, were able to foot the bill for the first thousand print copies and it is fairly standard practice now, within a book proposal, to indicate how many copies of your book you can personally purchase within the first year. This is the reality that all authors must accept: the publishing industry can no longer provide a living wage for the creation of new material.
This is why, when Lynn Isenberg sent me her original manuscript for Author Power, I was beside myself with hope. Could a book really teach authors how to support themselves and their work in an era when content may be king but the creators are living like paupers? Was it really possible for an author to be pre-paid for their work by someone other than a traditional publisher? With new technology usurping and undermining the economic value of the written word, was it actually possible for an unknown author to clear a livable sal- ary in a year? I desperately wanted Lynn to be the real deal. Turns out, she was.
I truly believe the best books are reflective not only of our beliefs, but of our lives, and Lynn has lived every word she’s written in Author Power. This book comes out of decades of her work as an author and as an artist advocate working in traditional publishing, Hollywood, self-publishing, and online. Because she crosses the borders, bobbing and weaving from the written page to the World Wide Web, she has an intimate awareness and involvement in a world that most authors never see: the digital monetization of their blood, sweat, and tears. And she’s no passive bystander. Lynn is in the trenches, representing herself, others from time to time, and by proxy, all authors as she appropriates the already well-established conventions Hollywood uses to brand, market, and sell content in order to skip past the “trickle down” of diluted and diminishing returns to get to the richer source — the mother lode of corporate sponsorship — directly.
With that said, this book is not a “get rich quick” program with simplistic advice boiled down to memorable, but thoroughly unhelpful, platitudes. In these pages, Lynn shares exhaustive (and sometimes exhausting!) plans of how to monetize a manuscript all of which require a tireless enthusiasm for the work, a fearless bravadoto pick up the phone and a boundless imagination. Not every author is “built” for this publishing paradigm — the author as entrepreneur and impresario, the author as marketer, the author as brand — but for those who believe that the written word, in particular, their writ- ten word, must be read, Lynn offers up a path toward publishing that also pays the bills.
Simply put, Author Power places profits back in the hands of creators.
So I encourage you to read this book cover to cover and to enact and/or adapt Lynn’s ideas quickly. The writing life has changed and it will continue to change dramatically as self-publishing establishes its dominance. With e-books selling for $1.99 or less, it will take more than a part-time teaching job to subsidize your next novel. It will take gumption.
Open up this book and get some.
— SJ Hodges, Humanitas Award Winning Author
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Hollywood Insider and Author Advocate Lynn Isenberg releases “Author Power: Profit Before You Publish” PR Web
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With “Author Power,” author Lynn Isenberg has written a book worth millions. It’s a privilege to have such a book like this available that will teach new authors and experienced ones how to maximize their book sales with a bit of careful planning and effort. There’s nothing like this on the market that I’ve seen so far. It’s one I’ll be keeping on my bookshelf for decades.Donna Ledbetter, Reviewer, NetGalley
Anyone who considers themselves an author or is even thinking about getting into the writing world NEEDS this book! There are so many great tips in this book. It is a treasure trove of information for authors who are trying to launch their career and make money at it. Lynn Isenberg has done a great service to authors everywhere by writing this book!Ella Drayton, Founder, Writer In Progress
The Internet has democratized the process of creating content, but this abundance has also hurt the overall writing community on the whole. Budding authors now find it increasingly difficult to break into the publishing industry. The explosion of self-published writers and ability to reach readers through services like Kindle and BN has dried up the once fat advances that authors could hope to get from publishers. Becoming a career author has become increasingly challenging and not so lucrative. In Author Power, Lynn Isenberg shows you how you can turn around your fortune as a writer. She argues that authors now need to shed the image of a reclusive writer and proactively hustle for their dues. With the advice that she shares in this book, the author promises that you can earn a fortune even before you get your book out and get on the charts. Lynn Isenberg is the author of comedic trilogy The Funeral planner and frequently consults for entertainment technology companies and teaches Transmedia Entertainment at LMU. She is also the Chief Creative Officer at Focus Media Inc. where she crafts cutting edge narratives, branded entertainment, and publishing properties for select clients. While I believe that Author Power is most useful for authors who already have a book under their belt and a good sales number in their armory, it shouldn’t stop never published writers from applying the solutions that Author Power shares. The process of publishing has undergone a big change like every other business. In the first part, The I Am Philosophy, the author outlines these changes and shows you why you need to sit up and take notice of these changes and face the reality. She sums up the state of publishing when she says “Unfortunately, the days of giant advances are over, unless you’ve reached a celebrity status and can guarantee substantial sales and media attention on your own.” But a change doesn’t really mean that you are out of business. It is just that you need to adapt to the changing environment and find new ways to generate business. She suggests that authors need to see themselves as entrepreneurs, and explores the new roles and helps you in adopting these roles. Part II, Strategies, begins with how self-publishing is not necessarily the last option. Here, the author talks about various ways the author can raise money even before the book is finished. Crowd sourcing is the most ‘happening’ thing in the business world. Raising money as a loan or in return for endorsements is gaining traction in various industries. The movie and television industry is no stranger to product placement and the author believes there’s no reason why it cannot be done in a book. The author shares literally hundreds of ways you can raise money for your writing project before the book hits the stands. Throughout the book, the author provides various resources to put in action what she suggests. You will not just find examples of how she did it or how someone else did it, but also concrete resources to do what she did. She also goes a step further by actually quoting email transcripts and chats she had with different corporate sponsors and other small businesses. Part III of the book, Proof of Concept, shares and end-to-end case study of how Jim Dratfield managed his book Dogphoria. All this marketing jargon can sound too intimidating to authors. Lynn Isenberg gives you the basic tools to run your next book project and provides you with the material for each step of the way in Must Have Materials: Roadmaps. You can see everything that the author professes applied to Author Power. A simple online search will help you see how the author has put in action what she has shared. Author Power is a must-have book for every published, self-published, and wannabe writer. You will find some great resources to make money and support your next book.Prasanna Bidkar, Owner, RightMix Technologies
First off, I have to applaud this author for taking the time and effort to document what has worked for her and shared it with the rest of us. She didn’t asked us to pay hundreds to attend a seminar or sign up for an online course. She piled her experience, examples, tips and approach into a book any writer could afford. It is WELL worth this price and more. This will be a longish review because the content has so much to offer about the ‘business’ of writing. I think that is important. Today’s authors are usually holding down a day job, attending to a family, putting time into their writing craft and also trying to learn about how to market their book with social media. Not all writers are born salesmen and promoting their own creative work is awkward for most. This book takes the promotional portion of a writing career to an entirely different level. It is very similar to product placement in the movies. I know what you are thinking. Where do I find time to learn and do that? If writing isn’t just a hobby for you, if you want to make a career out of it and let go of that day job somewhere along the way, then you owe it to yourself to have a business plan. Branding yourself, your characters, and having multiple streams of income from your work are going to get you to your goals faster. Here’s just one priceless paragraph to help the writer: “Okay, you’re about to call a complete stranger and ask them for money. Step back. Reframe. No. That’s not it. You’re about to call a really cool, creative person and forge a professional relationship and maybe even make a new friend. You’re going to ask them to believe in the opportunity you want to present to them, to read and consider your follow-up e-mail, and to invest in your idea. And maybe, if you can establish a professional friendship, it will turn into results you can imagine and some you can’t.” I will admit that I think Lynn maybe had a head start compared to the rest of us. It seems with some of the name dropping and info about her previous career she may have already been around the entertainment industry and had a few contacts we may not have. Her character in her novels is also an entrepreneur, this may have made it a touch easier to associate an industry with her novels. However, we could all put this plan into place on some level. Maybe you don’t know a movie star, but the local weather man attends your church. Is there an opportunity there? Maybe you can’t land a national chain like 1-800 Flowers, but could you forge a 10% discount at a local restaurant for anyone that takes of picture of themselves with your book in hand? Maybe. This author includes technical as well as inspirational content. There are examples of contact letters and emails, scripts for making phone calls, bullet lists of the benefits of sponsorship, examples of contracts for promotional agreements, sections on alternative marketing campaigns, and a resources section. I think any author that intends on making income from their creative work needs to read this book. Hands down 5 stars. I was provided a free copy of this book through NetGalley to read and write an honest review. Felita Daniels, Owner, Lilac Reviews
GREAT book! I mean, really great. Lots of new and original ideas for marketing. Too often with books like this it’s the same old thing over and over and this definitely isn’t that.Cherie Burbach, Founder, Working Writers
Writers of all publishing camps, whether traditional or indie, need to read this book. Lynn Isenberg brings her experience from the business/marketing world, Hollywood and the publishing world in a remarkable new way to increase that ever-so-sought after visibility. Branding takes on a whole new definition with Isenberg’s tutelage. She outlines ways for authors to look outside the norm for getting their message, their novels to new audiences than ever thought of before. Just as Hollywood clamors for deals with big businesses to place products in their films, authors can utilize the same ideas within their novels with brand partnerships. She warns that this isn’t “selling out” but rather joining forces with others that equally need the exposure to ensure it’s a win-win for both the author and the company/charity. It doesn’t stop with just product endorsements, but is limitless with social causes that need more attention to benefit charities and whatnot. As long as the book stays true and doesn’t pander to products, but rather showcases them in real ways the character would use or interact with them. This book advises authors to look into tradeshows, conventions and other out-of-the-box venues to showcase the author’s work married to the subject of those gathered there. The avenues within multi-media are endless as technology merges with story more and more. Apps, video games, videos, short films, commercials etc. are among the many that could be included in this marketing avenue. Author Power offers not only the roadmap of how to utilize these techniques but offers basic scripts for cold calling and examples of basic contracts. It offers sample press releases and multi-media sponsorship packages and ways to create alternative marketing campaigns. Above all, it brings to the forefront that in today’s publishing world, an author can no longer sit back and write without also being a business person. They need to think beyond the pages and be creative in bringing their books to the world. They need to bring the world into their books.Shannon L Gonzalez, Reviewer, Literarily Illumined Critiques
As a recent recipient of a Masters Degree in Professional Writing, I, like a lot of my fellow alums, have been wondering what now?? Our instructors, all of whom have published amazing works, did it the old-fashioned way: they earned themselves agents and publishers and, in some cases, best seller status and movie deals. But the truth is, in these shifting and insecure times in the publishing world, most of us still end up feeling like fairytale princesses, hoping and praying for Prince Agent/Publisher Charming to choose us so we can start the journey toward a lucrative literary life. But what if there were an alternative route? What if we writers through our own efforts, could start getting an income from our work before it’s even published? Renaissance woman Lynn Isenberg not only knows from first hand experience that it’s possible, she generously shares her knowledge of how to make that possibility a reality in the amazing, mind-expanding Author Power: Profit Before You Publish. Step by step, she gently and clearly teaches the reader her “I AM” philosophy. Writers, she believes, need to be more than just writers to find success in today’s world. They must be “Impresarios,” self-starters who create their own brands and embrace innovative new ideas and methods like transmedia; “Authors,” Author Power authors to be exact, who not only complete and publish their work, but also act as architects of their book’s branding; and “Marketers,” unashamed of finding and using creative ways to get income from their creations.Caron Tate, Master of Arts in Professional Writing, The University of Southern California
I’ve read a lot of “How to Writing Books.” I’ve even read a few how to publish, despite the fact that I have a zillion started stories and none complete. “Author Power” is awesome at being inspirational for a beginner like myself or for an advanced author. It has tons of creative and unique tips to motivate and point you in the right direction for what would work the best for you. I’m working on a few short stories right now and after reading “Author Power” I can honestly say I have a goal and a direction to be published and making money in just a couple months. I received a copy of this great book on Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.Sheryl Parrish, Reviewer, NetGalley
This was a great book full of not only useful information but inspiration as well. I think this should be read by anyone even thinking about writing. It inspired me to get working again. No matter your level of experience I think any writer would find useful information in this book. I have read many books on this subject and this was by far one of the best. A book I would highly recommend. I was provided a copy of this book by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This did not effect my review one way or the other.Shannon Watz, Reviewer, NetGalley
Terrific reality check for authors in the new writing economy. The truths are hard to take, but accurate, with a game plan for the savvy, super motivated to overcome hurdles. Well done.Diana Belchase, Award-Winning Author & Reviewer, DianaBelchase.com
I appreciate Ms. Isenberg’s ability to take what has always been a mystery to writers and bring it out into the open. Her tips and techniques are well researched and supported. I think this book is a tool that any writer’s arsenal should contain. It is written in a conversational and anecdotal style. The information contained seems to be applicable to writer’s both beginning and established. I especially appreciated her notes on the use of technology and social marketing.Janet Kinsella, Reviewer, NetGalley
Author Power is a roadmap of how to market your work and yourself as a writer. It’s full of tips, templates and tools to empower authors. The days of big advances from your publisher are long gone, and Author Power provides new, alternative approaches to making the most of your efforts.Mike Hale, Reviewer, Commencia
This guide is geared towards authors who want to leverage every aspect of their non-fiction and to a lesser extent, fiction print books. Written by a professional from the movie industry the concept of branded content in your work and branded entertainment is brilliantly explained and explored in depth. How you approach and pitch to potential sponsors is quite fascinating and a real insight into how books and branding can be combined. This approach to leveraging your book ideas is both motivating and inspiring.Nina Harrington, Reviewer, NetGalley
Empowering the Author & Content Creator
During the worst economic decline in American history since the Depression, Isenberg published four novels and an art book generating over $100,000 in cash and 1M shares in stock pre-publishing; i.e., before her content hit virtual and physical shelves. Then she repeated her success for an author client (announcement forthcoming). More clients started calling. Isenberg realized given only so many hours in this dimension, she could better serve collectively by teaching how to achieve revenue streams on intellectual property before taking it public.
An avant-garde visionary, Isenberg followed her heart and vision back to 1996 when she produced a packed-in seminar in Michigan on writing for multi-media and developed her theories. Later, having identified the future of publishing in 2005 and eager to test her patent pending methodologies but restrained by traditional publishing until a reversal of fortune gave her the means to implement her vision where she has achieved proof of concept, successfully challenging publishing convention. She brings that success to you with a nuts and bolts seminar and workshop on how to create revenue on your IP before it leaves your desk.
This workshop provides a comprehensive approach to a new way of publishing, one that puts the economic power in the pen and wallet of the author. You’ll learn how to leverage the advent of technology and changing economic models to protect your own livelihood as the creator. You’ll be guided through the steps a new way of publishing, whether it’s self-publishing, hybrid or partnership publishing, or even traditional publishing.
We’ll cover basic principles, and a different approach to writing and publishing and why this is important in the changing literary eco-system. We’ll also discuss the good, the beautiful, the bad, and the ugly on literary tech; how to overcome and circumvent barriers to profit; how to adapt your material to different mediums.
SXSW Interactive Festival 2016
Author Power: Book Reading & Signing
Frankfurt Book Fair 2014
Panel: Marketing for Self-Published Authors