Missed Some Great Writers' Links on Twitter?

Hi Everyone, Here are some great writers' links I have tweeted recently, that might interest you for your expat/business/personal writing endeavors. Enjoy!

5 Crippling Beliefs That Keep Writers Penniless and Mired in Mediocrity
http://bit.ly/hQaTFY

Expat Writer Jo Parfitt Says Thank You for the Suitcase Years
http://bit.ly/gTDgxj

Writers: What is it Like to be Outed?
http://bit.ly/g0zLWv

12 Signs Your Novel Isn't Ready to Publish
http://bit.ly/lIs1Lz

8 Ways Writers Can Make the Most of Online Video
http://ow.ly/4Kcq1

12 Places Authors Should Look To Develop a Strong Web Presence
http://bit.ly/awOv2S

Some Tips for Expat Freelance Writers
http://bit.ly/ks7wT3

17 Great Information Sources for Authors and Writers
http://bit.ly/kRdNah

What Works: Promo for Ebooks
http://bit.ly/ix2FzW

To follow me in 'real time' and keep up with even more great expat links on Twitter, please click here.

If you reading this blog post online and you are not already an Expat Women member, please support us and sign up here to receive our monthly, motivational newsletters.

Thanks for your support and I wish you a wonderful day/evening! Andrea @andreaexpat

Missed Some Great Writers' Links on Twitter?

Hi Everyone, For the writers among us, here are some great writers' links I have tweeted about recently that might interest you. Enjoy!

Great 'How-We-Did-It' Story from the Successful Expat Harem Writers
http://bit.ly/em66pT

Behind-the-Scenes on how a BLANK book got to the Top of the Amazon Charts
http://bit.ly/goSSig

Social Networking Sites for Authors? Squidoo's: http://bit.ly/ha1yXj and Tony Eldridge's: http://bit.ly/gibxGL

Starting an Expat Writing Career? Amanda's Story
http://bit.ly/eZtdWF

10 Reasons Why Authors Love eBooks
http://bit.ly/i2c7C0

Authors: How Print-On-Demand Changed My Life
http://bit.ly/f8I7Ir

Behind the Scenes of a Powerful Book Launch Video
http://bit.ly/gHr868

Best Selling Kindle Author Karen McQuestion Gives E-Book Advice To Authors
http://bit.ly/hMhP1D

How To Ensure Your Book Has Legs
http://bit.ly/gvTB33

Top 10 'Marketing Tips For Authors' Posts Of All Time
http://t.co/xz0JKCs

Where Do E-Book Buyers Live (in the U.S.)?
http://huff.to/eBTBx5

Another Story on the Amazing Success of E-Book Millionaire Amanda Hocking: 26 year old Kindle Self-Publisher
http://bit.ly/gVWeeg

Can An Agent Help Self-Published Authors?
http://bit.ly/i1ecXr

Excellent! 12 Places Authors Should Put Their Book Online
http://bit.ly/hZsXPm

Do You Always Have New Things In The Pipeline?
http://bit.ly/hW5XE3

5 Things Stand-Up Comedians Can Teach You About Self-Publishing
http://bit.ly/fJZfGc

Understanding How Book Discounting Works and Your Options
http://bit.ly/eTXSqn

Savvy Book Marketing Secrets: 52 Experts Share Insider Tips for Selling More Books
http://bit.ly/SavvySecrets

10 Buzz-Building Secrets Every Writer Should Know
dld.bz/WfAF

27 Things You Can Do To Promote Your Book! Before, During and After Launch Date
http://bit.ly/e9znc8

Top Book Fairs For Authors
http://bit.ly/fw4H1r

To follow me in 'real time' and keep up with even more great expat links on Twitter, please click here.

If you are not already an Expat Women member, please support us and sign up here to receive our monthly, motivational newsletters.

Thanks for your support and I wish you a wonderful day/evening! Andrea @andreaexpat

Writers: Missed Some Great Writers' Links on Twitter?

Hi Everyone, If you are an aspiring, or a professional, writer, here are some of my recent writer-related tweets that might interest you, as you write your expat stories and/or you write for business or pleasure:

Highly Recommended: 52 Great Blogs For Self-Publishers http://bit.ly/i4keQx

5 Strategies for Success as a Freelance Writer http://bit.ly/g6QpM5

Inspiring: Interview with self published, single dad, whose income went from poverty level to US$25k this quarter http://bit.ly/hOENKz

Just Discovered: 50 Things Under $50 To Help Promote Your Book (2009, but still great tips) http://huff.to/gaua80

Tips to help you overcome writer's block, by one of world's leading thinkers http://bit.ly/czJxKr

23 Websites (http://bit.ly/aM56LE) and 23 More Websites (http://bit.ly/d8ClJj) To Help Make Your Writing Stronger

Some good answers to the "How do you prevent a PDF/e-book from being shared?" question: http://su.pr/1otRLj

3 Ways To Capture/Visualize Your Literary Goals http://bit.ly/g58Sff

Thinking of Getting Bloggers to Help Promote Your Book? Advice: http://bit.ly/g80qxh

Writers: How to Find Paying Magazines with Keyword Research http://bit.ly/etmQH4

Writers: Tips For Checking Your Book Proofs From The Printer http://bit.ly/gpvn9e

How to Sell More Books on Amazon http://bit.ly/hcMNsL

Next Big Market For eBooks? South Korea http://goo.gl/uhBn8

Writers: Seen Duotrope's Digest? Free resource site listing publications that might take your articles... http://www.duotrope.com/

Recommended: 7 Secrets for Amazing Author Websites http://bit.ly/dXZ42f

Writers: 12 Ways To Create A Mailing List That Will Sell Books http://huff.to/gjACcX

Writers: Book Designer, Book Shepherd, Book Doctor or Book Producer: Which One Do You Need? http://bit.ly/ewpOx4

Writers: Tips for Setting Financial Goals for Your Book http://bit.ly/fD3vDN

Authors: Thinking of Using a Pseudonym? http://bit.ly/eYMrIh

6 things wannabe expat writers must know featuring Jo Parfitt http://nblo.gs/bGuhp

Is This The Biggest Book Promotion You Have Ever Seen? http://bit.ly/fSyxTg

Want To Get Published? Watch interview with John Wiley and Sons rep at Blog World 2010 http://bit.ly/fNiYSJ

Do You Make These Press Release Mistakes? http://bit.ly/hIhSCq

Writers: Success Story: Karen van der Zee: 35 Romance Novels Published! http://bit.ly/g3NTQm

How do you get Google to notice your eBook? http://oreil.ly/e4HoYJ

Influencers 2010: On Writing, Publishing, Blogging, Marketing and Entrepreneurship http://bit.ly/gI4R85

If you would like to follow me in 'real time' on Twitter, my Twitter ID is @andreaexpat, or you can just click here. Twitter is surprisingly easy, once you take a look.

Best wishes, enjoy your day/evening! Andrea :-)

ps. My apologies if this text/font comes through too large. I'm still adjusting to a Mac and my Mac doesn't talk well to Blogger, apparently. Thanks for your understanding. Andrea.

Update (1 week later): Sorry Everyone. The title was originally "expat" links. It should have been "writers' links". It has been amended now. My sincere apologies for any confusion. 

Missed Some Great Writers' Links On Twitter?

Hello Everyone, If you are an aspiring or a professional writer, here are some of my recent writer-related tweets that might interest you, as you write your expat stories and/or you write for business or pleasure:

Behind-the-scenes of an expat publishing success story!
http://bit.ly/9gv5F0

Authors, marketers, Job-hunters: Build your visibility by volunteering!
http://bit.ly/cnIc0g

Do book titles sell books?
http://bit.ly/b3i2JC

9 Book Design Tips That Authors Need To Know
http://bit.ly/9Vpr62

How Tucker Max Got Rejected by Publishing and Still Hit #1 New York Times
http://su.pr/2HIYQn

Rushkoff: Why I left my publisher in order to publish a book
http://bit.ly/dvho6F

10 People Writers Need In Their Network
http://bit.ly/d0p342

Interview with Author of "You Turn: Changing Direction in Midlife" - 40+ stories about midlife turnarounds
http://bit.ly/9emMcL

Writers, Authors, Self-Publishers: Are You Building Your Platform?
http://bit.ly/bta0RD

Voice Over Tips from @getinthehotspot: I used http://www.voice123.com/ got about 8 quotes ranging from $5000 - 500! Strange to hear someone else reading your book aloud

7 Secrets To Ebook Publishing Success
http://bit.ly/93rA2E

If you would like to follow me in 'real time' on Twitter, my Twitter ID is @andreaexpat, or you can just click here. Twitter is surprisingly easy, once you take a look.

Best wishes, enjoy your day/evening! Andrea :-)

Expat Women: Can You Share A Story?

Hi Everyone, This is a call-out to all expatriate and repatriate women... Living abroad fills your treasure chest with a wealth of stories. We would love it if you could please take the time to share at least one of your stories with our readers in our stories section here.

We have around 300 reader-submitted stories in total (but not very many submitted this month) and we are always looking for fresh, interesting, well-written submissions. It is a really popular section of our site for our readers, so please, contribute if you can. We would love to hear from you.

Thank you so very much in advance! Andrea

Missed Some Great Writers' Links On Twitter?

Hello Everyone, If you are an aspiring or a professional writer, here are some of my recent writer-related tweets that might interest you, as you write your expat stories and/or you write for business or pleasure:

How Do Authors Really Make Money? Another brilliant, in-depth blog post by @tferriss http://bit.ly/b9y63r

Seth Godin gives up on traditional publishing? http://bit.ly/d9TYA1

Authors: Do You Have Various Editions Of Your Book? http://bit.ly/a9MhqK

Expat Focus podcast with British author in the U.S., Toni Hargis http://bit.ly/d6Sz8b

Tips for Announcing Your New Book Via Email http://bit.ly/aQ4qNj

11 Articles Full of Tips To Market and Promote Your Book http://bit.ly/cswjnA

Writers and Authors: A Self-Publishing Review of Lightning Source http://bit.ly/arIoth

Big welcome to Twitter to @Tonihargis, at long last, author of Rule Britannia http://bit.ly/a19RuS

Media List Checklist for Writers, Authors, Publicists http://bit.ly/bd6EvX

Tips For Writing Online Book Reviews http://bit.ly/9TI4wx

8 Reasons Self-Publishing is Entering a Golden Age http://bit.ly/cyDwi8

Writers: Thinking of Self-Publishing? What To Do When Your Book Is Not Printed Properly http://bit.ly/cCcQS0

6 Ways Authors can Profit from their Books “After the Sale” http://bit.ly/aiODzg

New authors and writers can display books for only £125+VAT at London Book Fair, April 11-13, 2011 http://bit.ly/9Bq8FU

Selling your book? Follow BEAExhibits for weekly updates for BEA11 http://bit.ly/a155b4

If you would like to follow me in 'real time' on Twitter, my Twitter ID is @andreaexpat, or you can just click here. Twitter is surprisingly easy, once you take a look. And I try not to overtweet.

Best wishes, enjoy your day/evening! Andrea :-)

Expat Writers & Creative-Types: Missed Some Great Twitter Links?

Hello Everyone, I hope your week has started really well!   For the keen writers amongst you, here are some of my recent tweets that might interest you, as you write your expat stories and/or you write for business or pleasure:

Be Inspired: Writer, former expat, self-publisher Tania McCartney http://bit.ly/cwZbFG

A must-read case study about publishing: Aimed at writers creative entrepreneurs: http://bit.ly/d8rg2p

5 Tips To Maximize Your Book Publicity http://bit.ly/atvE0y

Entrepreneurs and Writers: Thinking of stopping your blog in favor of email newsletters? http://bit.ly/dvCsee

Freelance Writers: What Should You Be Paid? http://bit.ly/aa2b2I

6 Personality Types Who Will Fail As Writers: An Editor's Opinion http://bit.ly/92QPGG

Writer's Abroad competition http://bit.ly/csTkhG Entries due October 15th.

New book launching August 8th to help you create e-books for the Apple iPad http://bit.ly/bXMGVu

Writers: Selling Foreign Language Rights http://bit.ly/bdBf9R

Writers: Great Links & Info on Self-Publishing: Should You Or Shouldn't You? http://bit.ly/bs5aWW

Writers in Paris: Short Story Contest For Stories About Paris: 200 Euro Prize & Best 12 Published http://bit.ly/9l6nWx

10 Tips To Help Consultants & Coaches Write A Short E-Book To Attract Clients http://bit.ly/auC5iM

21 Ways to Get Publicity and Increase Sales http://bit.ly/azzZpz

Amazon Kindle Conspiracy: Chris Brogan http://bit.ly/b0UEWo Versus: iPad http://bit.ly/9c05ir

Top 10 Ways Authors Can Use Twitter http://bit.ly/aaUXMp

How To Make Money Selling Your E-Books http://bit.ly/92crhD

Speaking For Free To Promote Your Book Or Business? http://bit.ly/bzZvau

Should Published Authors Go to Conferences? http://bit.ly/9qNgXA

Great Idea To Get Your Book Into Chain Stores http://bit.ly/ExpatWomen98hWlz

Writing with a co-author, Chris Brogan style http://bit.ly/bqC70T

Want to write about your life experience abroad? See Jo Parfitt's tips in Khiruna article http://bit.ly/boJGfI

Build A Killer Brand In 6 Steps http://bit.ly/chTMLs

4 Ways To Get Great Speaking Engagements http://bit.ly/a3zS9f

Writing a book? Agent Rachelle Gardner says to bore yourself with menial tasks to clear your mind http://bit.ly/bQTS3u

Case-study for writers and publishers: John T. Reed: A successful "folk-art self-publisher" http://bit.ly/9FABXK

Is It Important To Keep In Touch With Clients, Would-Be Publishers & Allies? http://bit.ly/bAYxOO

What Should You Ask An Agent Who Wants To Represent You? http://bit.ly/djouTA

If you would like to follow me in 'real time' on Twitter, my Twitter ID is @andreaexpat, or you can just click here.  Twitter is surprisingly easy, once you take a look.  And I try not to overtweet. 

Best wishes, enjoy your day/evening!  Andrea :-)

What They Don’t Tell You About Successful Product Launches

Hi Everyone, When reading a great article today on ProBlogger by Darren Rowse, entitled How To Get Things Done When You're Feeling Overwhelmed, (interestingly, it has been retweeted nearly 500 times, so it seems that those of us feeling overwhelmed are certainly not alone!)...

I came across another great article by Darren: What They Don't Tell You About Successful Product Launches - which I watched first in video form (Darren is very genuine and great to watch and listen to - I highly recommend the video), but then I read the transcript as well.

Essentially, Darren says the following (but in a more animated way and with more anecdotes):

1. Build a Content Base.  He emphasized that this does not happen overnight, but that a genuine content base takes time.  He said he has been building his online content base over the last 8 (!) years.

2. Build Relationships.  "Every day you have the opportunity to take yourself closer to that big launch by getting to know someone else on the web, whether that be a potential reader, whether that be another blogger, whether that be just someone who’s interested in the same kind of stuff as you on Twitter, you never know where those relationships will take you."

3. Build Your Skill Set.  Add to your repertoire daily.  Learn new things. Connect more dots.

4. Build Your Email List.  Build a greater audience, over time, and be rewarded with a bigger launch impact.

Darren concludes:

"I guess the point of this video is not to come up with a conclusive list of things that you can do that will take you closer to your, your goals one day, but it’s to get you to think about what you can do today, what you can do tomorrow and to think about some of those little things that will take you closer to your ultimate goals.

Set yourself some tasks this week. Just little things that you can do, posts that you can write, people that you can interact with, just features that you can add to your blog, new skills that you can learn. All of these things will take you closer to that ultimate goal.

It’s great to have the idea of a big product launch in the back of your mind, but at the front of your mind needs to be these sorts of daily activities that will take you closer to that."

I highly recommend Darren's video. Have a great weekend!  Andrea

Expat Women: Can You Share A Story?

Hi Everyone, This is a call-out to all expatriate and repatriate women...  Living abroad fills your treasure chest with a wealth of stories.  We would love it if you could please take the time to share at least one of your stories with our readers in our stories section here. 

We have around 300 reader-submitted stories now, but we are always looking for fresh, interesting, well-written submissions.  It is a really popular section of our site for our readers, so please, contribute if you can. We would love to hear from you.  

Many, many thanks!  Andrea

Want To Submit An Article For Expat Women?

Hi Everyone, We are regularly asked how a volunteer contributor could submit an article to our main Expat Women site.  Luckily, we are always looking for quality, well-written articles, so if you have any ideas/ articles, we invite you to please follow these 3 steps:

(1) Browse http://www.expatwomen.com/ to find what types of articles we publish and what article ideas we have already published (this is important because we try to avoid publishing the same ideas twice); 

(2) Send your article plan or your completed article (ideally 1000-1200 words, full of useful information and practical tips and/or anecdotes) to contactus@expatwomen.com; and

(3) We will review your plan/article and give you feedback about whether we might publish it on our site and/or what edits we would like made.

Why contribute? Well, apart from the fact that you desperately love helping us, if we publish your contribution, it:

• may be featured on our home page (which is a fabulous opportunity to 'boost your brand' because we receive over 30,000 unique visitors a month to our site now, with most of these visitors coming via our high-profile home page);
• may be included in one of our monthly newsletters (sent out to our nearly 9,000 members worldwide); or it
• may be published solely on our Expat Women site (which means it can still be read by potential clients and it can still be found by the big search engines).

So if you have some expertise to share, do not be shy, write your ideas out clearly and get in touch, anytime.

Warmest thanks, Andrea.

Kickstarter: Get Inspired, Get Creative

Hi Everyone, I read a fabulous case study today by Craig Mod (via The Book Designer).  It documented Craig and his co-author Ashley Rawlings' experience in using Kickstarter to buy back the rights of their book Art Space Tokyo (which sold out it its first year then was never reprinted by its publisher) and re-launch their book.

Craig's case study intrigued me:

"$24,000 in 30 days, a room full of books in 60 & a new way of publishing in 90... In April 2010, Ashley Rawlings and I used community fundraising to raise nearly $24,000 to breathe new life into our book, Art Space Tokyo. My goal here is to outline what we did and why we did it, with the hope of inspiring anyone with an itch, gumption and a good narrative, to do the same. To bring beautiful, well-considered things into the world."

If you are a published or wannabe writer and/or if you are interested in self-publishing and/or you are an entrepreneur wanting to think more creatively, I highly recommend reading Craig's case study.

But beyond that, I encourage all of you to visit Kickstarter.com.

Kickstarter's premise is to give you a platform to promote your creative project idea, then help you open it up for community funding on their site.  You nominate the funding goal and the timeframe, then supporters of your project can pledge money to kick-start your project, in return for the benefit or experience you promise to your supporters.  If you do not meet your funding goal in the required timeframe, no one pays their pledge.  So the challenge is not only to come up with a cool project, but to get as many supporters as possible in your nominated timeframe, so that you reach your goal and your project goes ahead.

Whether or not you have a creative idea, this site are very inspiring.  Immerse yourself in the site's creativity, and who knows, maybe it will ignite a new spark of creativity in your own ideas...

Have a fabulous week! Andrea

Expat Writers: Paris Writing Contest

Hi Everyone, If you are an expat (or former expat) in Paris, and you fancy yourself a clever writer, read on...

"Paris Writers News is launching its first contest for the Best and Most Delightful Stories about Paris.  Twelve stories will be selected for publication in a collection of short stories about Paris.

Love, hate, expectation, desire, dreams, discovery and disappointment in the world’s most beautiful city. All themes, periods and approaches will be considered. What we’re looking for: a great story, well-told. Humor, wit and luminous prose, please apply!  All authors welcome, published and unpublished.

Entry fee: Ten Euro
Deadline for submission: November 30, 2010

After a pre-selection by the Editorial Committee, twelve distinguished judges from the literary community will each select one story for publication.  The Best and Most Delightful Stories about Paris will be published in paperback, e-book and POD in the fall of 2011."

Click here for more details and good luck to our expat writers in Paris! Andrea

Meet Danish Authors Lina Lauridsen and Line Morkbak: Be Inspired By Their Collaboration

Hi Everyone, Some time ago, Lena Lauridsen and Line Morkbak wrote to us and told us their 'good news story' of across-the-globe collaboration to write Verden Kalder (The World is Calling), an inspirational guide for Danish families living abroad.  Their book shares the experiences of more than 100 Danish expat families from 69 countries, and covers a wide variety of expat issues, including: culture shock; life as a trailing spouse; pregnancy and childbirth abroad; raising children; and repatriation.

Unfortunately their book is not yet available in English, so we are not profiling their book on our main Expat Women site.  However, we thought that Lena and Line's online collaboration was a real inspiration to other expat women wanting to write/collaborate with co-authors abroad, so we wanted to profile these two great ladies here on our blog instead...

Expat Women: Lena and Line, congratulations for your great achievement of collaborating long-distance to write your book. Whose idea was this book and how was the idea conceived?

Line: The idea was conceived while Lena was living in Mexico.  Lena and her husband had just moved abroad, and Lena went from having her own career to being a 'trailing spouse'.  After navigating the transition, she became pregnant and gave birth to her first child.  During this whole experience she wished she had some sort of resource or guidebook to help her through the process – a book that would reassure her (and other trailing spouses and new mothers abroad) that all of her thoughts and feelings were “normal.”

Expat Women: How did you meet and/or know of each other?

Lena: We were both members of an online Yahoo-group: Danish Mothers Abroad. We “met” during an online discussion and started e-mailing each other.  Line was about to start up her consultancy firm “CultureCrossing,” so we had many mutual interests and shared ideas.  I asked Line to co-author the book, with the idea that two writers’ perspectives could create an even better book.  At this point we had not yet met face-to-face – we communicated primarily through e-mails and Skype conversations.

Expat Women: What were some of your challenges and how did you overcome them?

Line & Lena: Our first challenge was the time difference (Lena was living in the United States and Line in Slovakia) and the fact that it was difficult to meet in person. (We only met twice during the writing process.)  We had to establish some ground rules for communication very early on.  Misunderstandings are common in a virtual environment and the collaboration could have very easily turned disastrous.  We always asked for clarification when in doubt; we explained everything to each other in detail.  We had all our plans, deadlines and so on, in writing, making it easy for us both to keep track simultaneously.

Once we had the structure for the book in place, we divided the chapters between us.  When one of us completed a first draft, the other took over the editing.  We sent the drafts back and forth so many times that it is difficult for us to know now exactly who wrote what!

Expat Women: What efforts have you made to gain business support for your book and what has been the reaction?

Line & Lena: Going to publishers was a learning experience. We got three “no’s” before we settled on an agreement (it is difficult to publish a Danish book, as the market for Danish books is quite small).  During a meeting with Boersens Forlag (which is the publisher in Denmark on business issues) the editor first turned down the project, but then came up with the idea of getting Danish international companies to support the book financially, making it a smaller risk for the publisher.

After some negotiation, a deal was made that if we could find approximately US$35,000 in sponsor money from Danish companies, they would publish the book.  We managed to find four companies who said 'yes' and we achieved the required sponsorship in only three months. We even got an offer from one of the most influential CEOs in Denmark to write our book's Introduction!

Expat Women: Where do you each live now?

Lena: Line still lives in Oregon on the West Coast with her husband and two children.  I repatriated back to Denmark however in September 2008.

Expat Women: Thank you very much, Lena and Line! We look forward to seeing the English version of Verden Kalder in the future, and wish you and your book the very best success!

Expat Writers: Missed Some Great Links?

Hi Everyone, I hope your week has been going really well!  For the keen writers amongst you, here are some recent tweets that might interest you, as you write your expat stories and/or you write for business or pleasure:

11 Great Tips To Become A Better Writer http://bit.ly/cErW73

The Rise of the Author Entrepreneur http://bit.ly/aoH7WP

Top 10 List of the Worst Possible Self Publishing Mistakes http://bit.ly/d1Q3HY

Writers: Have an amazing real-life story? (US residents) GLAMOUR magazine's $5k contest http://bit.ly/axD0N3

Great, Quick, Agent Tips for Authors, Writers and Publishing wannabes: http://bit.ly/cn6cer

Forbes.com: How Self-Publishing Can Lead To A Real Book Deal http://bit.ly/bkWrjN

58 Freelance Writing Jobs for Wed 14 July http://bit.ly/9BipIC

Resources For Writing Memoir http://bit.ly/aDsNQO and http://bit.ly/bAQTKr

Self-Publishing? How Much Discount Should You Set Online and For Bookstores? http://bit.ly/crLou3

Great, honest Self-Publishing Lessons by a mother who wrote about Autism http://bit.ly/9ZxObJ

iPad's ePub: The "Book" of the Future? http://b2l.me/sbc9t

POD Index and Self-Publishing Analysis: Which company should you use? http://bit.ly/agIB7q

Amusing overview of the print industry for writers and publishers! http://bit.ly/95DRWX

Are You Ready To Write Your Book? Checklist from Expat Author and Writers' Mentor, Jo Parfitt http://bit.ly/dk4tD6

Creative Commons: What Every Self-Publisher and Expat Blogger Ought to Know http://bit.ly/cvQVfq

Expat writers: Pitfalls of Self-Publishing Packages http://to.pbs.org/9euXUX

Getting Your Book Into Stores http://to.pbs.org/bUqgkO

15 Tips for Great Book Cover Design http://bit.ly/bQnT0V

Are you a writer discouraged by rejection letters? http://bit.ly/bOnJpN

Great advice for writers "Media Kits: The Ultimate Author Publicity Tool" http://bit.ly/cTKVFg

Top 8 Cover Design Tips for Self-Publishers http://bit.ly/9SAxRQ

It Wasn't Easy: Frustrated Self-Publisher Escapes DIY Trap: http://ht.ly/1VroJ

Podcast: On Frugal Book Promotion http://bit.ly/by8Ne9

500 Entries For Agent Rachelle Gardner's Writers Contest. Who Had The Best One-Sentence Book Summary? http://bit.ly/ExpatWomenba5KDS

Will Literary Agents Really Read Your Query Letter? http://bit.ly/cqKpJD

Apple grabs 22 percent of e-book market with iBooks http://is.gd/cGfLP

5 iPad Applications for Self-Publishers http://bit.ly/aQiWSa

Promoting your book? 16 Book Fairs in the U.S. this Summer http://bit.ly/9ydV7w

Fellow expat writer Rebecca Otowa in The New York Times! http://nyti.ms/bKFeBH

And do not forget our home page feature this month, Write Your Life Stories, with Jo Parfitt. :-)

Happy reading!  Andrea

Expat Writers: Top 10 List of the Worst Possible Self-Publishing Mistakes

Hi Everyone, For all of you expat writers and (current and wannabe) self-publishers among us, this link is for you. 

It's from The Book Designer blog and it's in David Lettterman style: a top 10 list, starting from 10 and rolling out worst self-publishing mistakes, right down to number 1.  Enjoy!  And good luck with your own self-publishing efforts!  Andrea

Expat Women: Do You Have A Story To Share?

Hi Everyone, Do you have an expat story to share about an experience you have had abroad?  If so, we would really love to hear from you, because every month we select a winning story to showcase in our monthly newsletter and we are always in need of great stories!

Read The Stories here. Submit your story here. Thank you!  Andrea

Expat Women July 2010 Home Page

Hi Everyone, We have just uploaded our Expat Women July 2010 Home Page. Please take a look, share it with your friends and tweet about it for us. Thank you!

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Business Idea
Surf Haven Bali
Janine Hall
Janine Hall combined her career skills with her passion for coaching, surfing, yoga and well-being to create Surf Haven Bali, a luxury boutique surf and yoga spa retreat. Her guests experience an adventure of a lifetime and leave recharged and refreshed...
Read more...

Relocation
To Relocate Or Not To Relocate?
Louise Wiles
Currently over 200 million people worldwide are living abroad... But how do you decide if relocating is right for you? Expat coach Louise Wiles takes us through 8 steps to making your 'best decision'...
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Writers
Write Your Life Stories
Jo Parfitt
We talk to British author, publisher and writer's mentor Jo Parfitt, about her new Write Your Life Stories program and learn from her advice about writing, common mistakes for newbie authors, a checklist for writers wanting to publish their book and more...
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Expat Confession
How Do I Start A Business?
Expat Women Girlfriend
I have been here in Europe for eight months and I am now at a point where I have accepted that I can no longer work in my old profession and need to look for alternatives. I would love to start a business and I have a few ideas, but which idea should I pursue and how do I start a business abroad?
Read more...

Girl Scouts
USA Girl Scouts Overseas
Sandy Thomas
USA Girl Scouts Overseas (USAGSO) provides the Girl Scout program to American girls living outside the United States and those attending American or international schools abroad. USAGSO's Director, Sandy Thomas, talks about how USAGSO has been fostering responsible global citizens since 1925...
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Not A Member Yet?
Just a reminder that our blog is separate from our main site, so if you are reading this blog post online or you are only subscribed to our blog, you will not automatically receive our Expat Women monthly newsletters. To receive our newsletter this month (which will be sent out a little later than usual, due to the holiday season) and to go in the running to win our monthly prize of a complete set of Explorer Publishing's Mini-Guides, please sign up today to our main site ExpatWomen.com, and also receive your link to our free e-book of Winning Stories!

Thank you very much and have a fabulous July! Andrea

Learn From An 86-Year-Old Entrepreneur Who Has Sold 100,000 Knitting Books

Hi Everyone, I read an interview today from Mom Invented®'s Tamara Monosoff, who we featured last month for her new book, Your Million Dollar Dream (affiliate link).

Tamara talked to 86-year-old Betty Lampen who is a knitting pro and who has sold 100,000 copies of her books since 1991. 

We could learn a lot from Betty.  For example:

1. If you have an idea, give it a go!

2. "Never give up. There is always somebody out there who is interested. You just have to find them."

3. You do not need 60 - 100 thousand words to publish a best-selling book. Nor do you need to be the world's leading expert. Betty's books were only 18 pages long (!) and I have a feeling she is not the (only) world expert on knitting.

Questions for You: Do you have an idea for a book?  If you are not writing your book, why not? 

Andrea

Writers, Authors & Self-Publishers Be Quick! Online Conference May 12-14

Hi Everyone, I just discovered what looks like a really great online conference, if you are a writer, author and/or a current or wannabe self-publisher... 

It is the Self-Publishers Online Conference and it is being run May 12-14 (US Pacific time).  You can listen 'live' for free, or you can pay US$97 for the downloads (if you have a credit card from one of these countries: United States; Australia; Canada; England/Great Britain; Ireland; New Zealand; or Northern Ireland) as I just did, so you can listen later at your convenience.

But hurry... it is almost May 12, so if this conference sounds like you, check it out quickly.  Best wishes, Andrea.

SUMMARY OF THE AGENDA

Day 1 - May 12 - Writing/Publishing

Keynote: Dan Poynter
Self-Publishing Past, Present, and Future

Marcia Yudkin
Writing Without Angst

Writing & Publishing Roundtable: Q & A

Susan Daffron & James Byrd
Finish Your Book the "Publishize" Way

Mark Levine
How to Avoid Publishing Pitfalls

Hobie Hobart
From Book Cover to Blockbuster Brand: How Choosing the Right Book Cover Can Launch Your Business


Day 2 - May 13 - Promotion

Keynote: Fern Reiss
How Self-Publishers Can Thrive in Today's Publishing Climate

MJ Rose
Buzz Your Book

Promotion Roundtable: Q & A

John Kremer
Book Promotion 101: The Secrets to Book Marketing Success

Kate Bandos
DIY Book Promotion

Internet Publicity: How to Leverage Social Media for Profit


Day 3 - May 14 - Build Your Empire

Keynote: Mark Victor Hansen
How to Become a Wealthy Writer

Peter Bowerman
Build Your Own "Well Fed" Empire

Empire Building Roundtable: Q & A

William Patterson
How to Turn Your Product Line into a Fortune

Janet Goldstein
The Platform Manifesto for Authorpreneurs: Grow Your Visibility and Tribe to Grow Your Sales, Success, and Satisfaction

Peter Winick
Develop and Execute a Strategy to Monetize Your Platform

Twitter Updates For Writers: What Have You Missed?

Hi Everyone, If you are interested in 'all things writing' but you are not following me on Twitter, here are some writers' tidbits (not mentioned already in this blog) that I have tweeted recently, that you might enjoy...

Are you a mother and a writer? 6 writing opportunities for you http://bit.ly/cAE7jN Thanks to @HOHWWriter

12 steps to your Amazon bestseller - Tips from Stephanie Hale on @JoParfitt's blog http://bit.ly/cVdb4U

Opportunity for writers age 18-34 to be a Glimpse Correspondent for National Geographic http://bit.ly/aaDjiH via @WriterAbroad

London Book Fair went ahead, but attendance down 20%, numerous exhibitor stands empty & Tony Blair event cancelled http://bit.ly/csxF5e

Book Expo America (BEA) coming up next month! May 25 - 27 New York Headlined by Barbra Streisand http://bit.ly/a155b4

2010 Expat & Work Abroad Writing Contest Winners http://bit.ly/bMuwM6 Special congrats: Expat Women member Wendy Hollands (runner-up)!

Want to sell your books? Best 5 tips from book promo seminar in London last weekend thanks to @JoParfitt http://bit.ly/aozFzh (scroll down)

Writing and/or just about to publish a book? Read Anna M.Clark's experience on literary agent blog @rachellegardner http://bit.ly/cMH6hu

Excellent interview with expat author of Career In Your Suitcase @joparfitt about publishing and marketing your books http://bit.ly/bRuBl

Huffington Post List of 50 best book people on Twitter! RT @Thandelike @riverheadbooks http://ow.ly/1wvmV

Writers’ workshops around the world http://bit.ly/ddBcyp RT @Thandelike

How to judge, and sell, a book by its cover http://bit.ly/8YAGGA RT @JoParfitt

If you would like to follow me in 'real time' on Twitter, please click here. Thanks, Andrea.