Please Welcome the Authors From The First Turning Point!

I'm Jacquie Rogers, a Co-captain of 1st Turning Point, and author of two books and a few short stories. I'd like to start off by thanking Jenny Gilliam for having me here today. Thanks, Jenny!

1st Turning Point was born when three writing buddies decided to share what they'd learned about promotion as they sailed the treacherous waters to publication.

I'll quote the explanation from the About Us page:

Thanks for stopping by 1st Turning Point, a fun place for writers to teach, share, and learn about that first turning point in your career—self-promotion and marketing. The story of your career opens with the decision to write a book, the inciting incident is learning the craft and writing that first piece. But what comes next is just as important if you plan to become a career novelist. It’s your first turning point.

These days, we need to begin building an ‘author presence’ before signing that first contract if we want to sell enough books to win another contract. No longer can we wait to start selling ourselves until we have a book coming out. We have to start while we have the time to prepare physically and financially for the promotional marathon to come. 1st Turning Point is a home for all writers, but especially those who are unpublished, newly published, self-published, e-published, orphaned, small-press published, etc. Whether you write novels, short stories, lyrics, or poetry, we’re here for you. Come inside and take a look around, read some of the helpful articles, see what online and live classes/workshops are coming your way soon, check out the beneficial list of resources, and share some of your own experiences and wisdom with others.

We had some fabulous prizes during our debut month of May, and we'll continue our month-long tradition but offering more prizes in June. To enter to win June's Grand Prize, all you have to do is subscribe.

More importantly than prizes, we have an awesome Crew and a terrific lineup of articles. Some of May's articles include:

• Let’s Talk About Platforms by Ann Charles
• Promote that Book! by Lillian Cauldwell
• Marketing: The Basic Concept (WIIFM) by Jacquie Rogers
• Be Shameless by John Klawitter
• Foolproof Secret #33 by John Klawitter
• Francesca Prescott: How She Scored Two Magazine Interviews
• Life. Change. Adventure by Leanne Shawler
• What Do You Mean I Need a Platform? by Wendy Delaney
• Independent Reviewers Do It by the Book: Crystal Adkins
• Seize the Book by Amber: Hooked by Amber Scott

We're excited about June's articles, too. Here's what we slotted:

• June 1: Leanne Shawler--Why an Unpublished Author Should Go to Conferences
• June 3: Rowena Cherry--LinkedIn
• June 5: Ann Charles--Promotion for the Unpublished: Are You Really Ready to Begin?
• June 8: Robert W. Walker--Going for the Blogosphere!—Online Opp in Marketing and Promo
• June 10: Amber Scott Reviews
• June 12: Eilis Flynn--TBA
• June 15: Interview with Twitter King Solomon Sonaria
• June 17: Judith Laik--Entering the World of Promotion, Part 1
• June 18: Judith Laik--Entering the World of Promotion, Part 2
• June 19: Lillian Cauldwell--Advertising Basics
• June 22: Gerri Russell--TBA
• June 26: Deborah Schneider--Librarian of the Year
• June 29: Shelli Stevens--Share the Love

We're considering a weekly contest for commenters, but you'll have to come to the site to see if that happens.

I hope you'll join us. We've had great turnout and are growing faster than expected, so you won't want to miss anything!

1st Turning Point
Contact: 1st Turning Point

Speaking of contests, to enter to win a Down Home Ever Lovin' Mule Blues baseball cap, all you do is make a comment. Easy Peasy! Winner will be selected one week from today.

Jacquie Rogers

Down Home Ever Lovin' Mule Blues (See the Book Video featuring Justin Saragueta)
Jacquie Rogers *** Myspace *** Twitter *** Facebook
Faery Special Romances * Book Video * Royalties go to Children's Tumor Foundation, ending Neurofibromatosis through Research