FTL Publications is now on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/ftlpublications
Posted by Publisher at 1/22/2010 6:56 PM
FTL Publications is now on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/ftlpublications
Posted by Publisher at 1/22/2010 6:56 PM
FTL Publications titles are now available in the following eBook formats on Smashwords: ePub, Sony Reader, Kindle (.mobi, .mobipocket), and Palm Doc. Smashwords also makes these titles available with Stanza, an e-reading app for the Apple iPhone and iPod Touch. For more information, go to:
http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/ftlpublications
Posted by Publisher at 8/24/2009 8:22 PM
The following FTL Publications titles are now available on Amazon.com’s Kindle eBook format: Autumn World, Boldly Writing, Cat’s Paw, and Murder at the War.
Posted by Publisher at 6/30/2009 3:26 PM
This morning, I entered “Thunderbirds” in the Google search engine, and was delighted to find that Thunderbirds.com appeared on the first page of the search results. What’s so pleasantly astonishing about this is that until very recently, I did not know what Search Engine Optimization (SEO) was. All I knew was that I kept getting calls and e-mails from companies that offered to make changes to my web site so that it would come up on the first page of any web search…for a price, which generally was $200-$1000 a month.
As it happened, however, earlier this year, I saw a link on Twitter for HubSpot, which offers a free Internet Marketing Kit. I downloaded their kit, and listened to their webinar (which also has visuals), and followed their instructions. I did not see the result right away (it has taken about 2 months), but I was very impressed when I did see it. (HubSpot, by the way, also offers a free Website Grader, which evaluates a web site and gives suggestions as to how to improve one’s page rank.)
In general, I’m amazed at how quickly web technology continues to change, and how quickly I (and other publishers) are rushing to adapt to it. For instance, one day, I learned what a favicon was, and within 48 to 72 hours, I had a favicon on my web sites (it’s the small picture to the left of the web address on the top of the browser window). It seems as if every week, there’s something new or changing on the web that demands my attention, as there was this week. I’m all for improvements; I just hope that I can keep up with them!
Posted by Publisher at 5/30/2009 3:05 PM
In a struggling economy, all small businesses encounter obstacles, but the hurdles that independent presses face even in a good economy become much higher. Many habitual readers remain largely unaware of small press books, and March’s Small Press Month presents the opportunity to raise awareness of these vital contributors to the book world.
The smaller a press is, the less visible it is. I have noted with a mixture of amusement and disgust that surveys of small presses generally exclude those with an income under $1 million. Hundreds of small presses, however, take in significantly less than that, and produce perfectly fine books.
Those below that threshold find difficult challenges. Bookstores, whether or not they are part of a chain, prefer to order from distributors. Distributors are generally reluctant to carry books that do not generate a certain level of sales ($2000-$20,000). Even when a distributor will take orders for a title that does not rise to that level, the publisher may have to pay a significant fee or may be placed in the backlist or may not featured in the distributor’s regular catalog (meaning the bookstores are not aware of a title unless a customer asks for it). While some independent publishers maintain proudly that they survive just fine without bookstore orders, it remains the case that when people want to buy books, they generally go to bookstores for them, and without bookstore sales, the income for many small press publishers can be artificially low.
There are services which a small publisher can use…for a fee. Publicists will offer to write press releases for a fee (which may or may not be used by the recipients), marketers will write up a business plan for a fee (which may or may not result in spectacular sales even when followed), representatives will take small press books to various book fairs for a fee (where the attendees may or may not stop to place an order), various organizations will include small press books in their mailings to libraries and bookstores for a fee (which may or may not get trashed upon arrival) and internet experts will promise to place the publisher’s web address on the front page of every web search (which users may or may not click on). All these fees (and many service fees start at $300 or more) add up, and publishers could spend hundreds of dollars on services which may or may not yield results.
Getting attention is often difficult. Small press publishers will find that very few people will consider a novel from an author they never heard of. Readers have never heard of the author because small press books are seldom reviewed in major newspapers, and authors of small press books are seldom featured on national television. Awards committees tend to focus on books from major publishers, and awards that are open to smaller presses are generally overlooked by the national media.
Despite all this, small press publishers carry on. We share with the larger publishers a delight in discovering a truly great manuscript and bringing it into print. In fact, small presses take pride in publishing outstanding books that larger presses will not consider, not because the manuscript is poor, but because the mainstream publishers are unwilling to take a risk on them. Because independent publishers are less visible, we must work much harder for our books. Our titles must look better and the content must be more accessible. We must explore every avenue to reach readers, even when our efforts are scorned or ignored. What mainstream publishers do, we must do ten times over, to get even one-tenth of the results.
In this economic climate, the small presses need the support of readers even more. Independent publishers are worth checking out. Small press web sites are full of information, and often their quality is comparable to the larger presses. The time invested to research small presses can uncover great treasures.
Joan Marie Verba
Publisher, FTL Publications
Posted by Publisher at 3/1/2009 7:33 PM
The next Thunderbirds novel will be Deadly Danger, which will concentrate on Virgil Tracy (just as Action Alert! concentrated on Scott Tracy). All the Tracys, nonetheless, will appear in the novel.
The ISBN has been assigned: 978-0-9653575-9-3
The projected publication date will be determined later.
Posted by Publisher at 2/23/2009 3:58 PM
FAB is the newsletter of The Official Gerry Anderson Appreciation Society (Fanderson). Issue 60 included a very nice article about the Thunderbirds books and provided the address for reading chapter 1 (ftlpublications.com/countdown.htm).
Posted by Publisher at 7/25/2008 7:12 PM
I now have a file on Twitter for brief updates. Go to http://twitter.com/ftlpublications
Posted by Publisher at 7/6/2008 7:54 PM