By mid-2014, self-published authors began taking home the bulk of all ebook author earnings generated on Amazon.com, while authors published by all of the Big Five publishers - Penguin Random House, HarperCollins, Hachette, Macmillan and Simon & Schuster - combined slipped into second place, according to the January 2015 Author Earnings Report.

While self- or indie-published authors closely follow the costly dispute between Amazon and Hachette over retail and wholesale ebook pricing, titles of all genres are faced with increasingly competitive markets, says publishing sales coach Kim Staflund.

"ISBNs - International Standard Book Numbers - continue to experience enormous growth with each successive year, and in the past decade we've seen a gold rush-style of exponential growth due to the self-publishing movement," says Staflund, founder and publisher at Polished Publishing Group (PPG), www.polishedpublishinggroup.com, which supports a business model in which authors take a proactive, entrepreneurial approach.

"To be a truly successful author who can sell enough books to earn a profit and possibly even become a bestseller, you must treat book publishing, sales and marketing as your own business. The same holds true whether you take today's supported self-publishing route or you go with a traditional trade publisher."

Staflund outlines some necessary points for making a book title a success.

•  Writing to be read takes an entrepreneurial spirit. If you want to earn a profit or even become a bestseller, a writer must treat book publishing, sales and marketing as your own business. That's true whether you're taking the self-publishing route or you use a traditional trade publisher to produce your book. If you don't expect to invest time or money in getting the word out, or assume that your publisher is solely responsible for outreach, you'll likely be disappointed by the few books that you'll sell.

•  An overview of what it means to be proactive. With so much competition today, you need to get in front of customers and communicate with them in a clear and consistent manner. You do this by virtue of book signings, readings, craft sales, art shows, media tours, social media campaigns, speaking engagements, book reviews and whatever else you can think of whenever and wherever you can. You "pound the pavement," as they say in the sales world.

"Another aspect of what it means to be proactive is to have a polished, professional presentation of your content," Staflund says. "This requires additional help including a professional editor, designer, and proofreader. You may also require an indexer, ghostwriter or publicist."

•  Your book: a project deserving of communication and a plan. Inspiration for a great book idea is necessary but insufficient for a successful project; you also need a plan. Establishing a deadline is a good start. When can you reasonably have it done by, and how much time each week will you need to write to meet your deadline? You'll need to accept this commitment, and let close loved ones know about your goal. Family and friends will appreciate your aspiration, give you your time and space, and possibly even help with your project. Additional drafts will be necessary, but at some point you'll have to know when to say when. Also, the ability to handle constructive criticism from outside eyes is essential.

"Again, it's important to remember that writing is just one of many phases in the lifecycle of a book," Staflund says. "If you want your book to have a life outside of your own mind, you'll need to appreciate the aforementioned criteria."

About Kim Staflund

As the founder and publisher at Polished Publishing Group (PPG), www.polishedpublishinggroup.com, Kim Staflund works with businesses and individuals around the world to produce professional quality audiobooks, ebooks, paperbacks and hardcovers using a supported self-publishing business model. As a bestselling author and sales coach, she shows authors how to sell their books using all the effective traditional and online tricks of the trade. Staflund has a substantial sales and sales management history combined with over 20 years of book publishing experience within the traditional and new publishing markets.

Robin Oliveira, author of the 2015 All Iowa Reads selection My Name is Mary Sutter, will appear to discuss her novel during two Quad City area appearances on Thursday, April 23.  Presentations will take place at noon at the Moline Public Library (3210 41^st Street) and at 7 p.m. at the Bettendorf Public Library (2950 Learning Campus Drive).

Robin will share what inspired her to write this Civil War era novel, her research process, and the historical and fictional characters that bring her story to life.  She will also share her discoveries from her eight years of research and writing, including slides and photos of rare Civil War artifacts from the National Archives.

These events are free and open to the public.  Robin Oliveira's appearances are generously sponsored by Friends of the Moline Public Library and Friends of the Bettendorf Public Library.

# # #

Mortgage Credit Certificates offer qualified Iowa home buyers up to $2,000 in annual federal income tax credits  

(DES MOINES) - The Iowa Finance Authority (IFA) today announced that eligible first-time Iowa home buyers may purchase a home and reduce their federal income tax liability by up to $2,000 a year for the life of their mortgage. Approximately 400 Iowa home buyers are expected to benefit from the program, which is now available for new purchases through a network of Take Credit Participating Lenders throughout the state.  

"The Take Credit program will provide an additional incentive to first-time Iowa home buyers as we move into the spring home buying season," said Iowa Finance Authority Executive Director Dave Jamison. "Hundreds of Iowa families will be able to both realize their dream of homeownership and benefit from a significant reduction in their federal income taxes."  

The program provides eligible home buyers with a tax credit against their federal income tax liability every year for the life of their mortgage. The amount of the tax credit for the 2015 program is set at 50 percent of the mortgage interest paid, up to a maximum of $2,000 per year, for up to 30 years. The remaining mortgage interest may be taken as a deduction from taxable income if the home buyer itemizes.    

Eligibility for the Take Credit Program requires home buyers to meet household income and purchase price limitations and meet the definition of a first-time home buyer. The federal income limits vary by county, the limits currently range from $65,300 to $111,300 per year.  A purchase price limit of $250,000 applies statewide with the exception of federally Targeted Areas where the limit is $305,000. A first-time home buyer is defined as someone who has not owned their primary residence in the past three years but also includes home buyers purchasing in a federally Targeted Area and military veterans who have not previously financed a home using a tax exempt bond program.

"This program will help to fuel an already healthy Iowa real estate market," said Iowa Association of Realtors CEO Dave Bert. "Statewide home sales have increased five percent over February of last year, home prices have increased and they are selling faster. The Take Credit program provides even more incentive for first-time home buyers to act now - this is an exciting time for home buyers."

"Interested home buyers can apply for a mortgage credit certificate through a Take Credit Participating Lender as part of their financing process. Home buyers will need to have approval of the mortgage credit certificate before they close on a home so they should ask their lender about this opportunity early in the application process," said Jamison.

The mortgage credit certificate was authorized by Congress in the 1984 Tax Reform Act and capacity for the program is derived from an annual allocation of tax-exempt bond volume cap from the U.S. Treasury Department. The 2015 Take Credit Program has an allocation of private activity bond volume cap sufficient to issue mortgage credit certificates for mortgages totaling approximately $42 million. The certificates are available on a first-come first-serve basis and the program will be closed for further reservations once available funding has been exhausted. More information is available at IowaFinanceAuthority.gov/TakeCredit.

###

WASHINGTON, DC ? In a resounding win for the First Amendment, a federal court judge has granted The Rutherford Institute's request for a permanent injunction against the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) barring Metro officials from preventing guitarist Alex Young from engaging in "busking," or performing in public places for tips, near DC-area Metro stations. The permanent injunction, entered by U.S. District Court Judge Beryl Howell, comes on the heels of WMATA's concession that it would not challenge Judge Howell's prior ruling, in which she concluded that restrictions on Young's busking under a WMATA rule forbidding "commercial activity" near Metro stations violated the First Amendment. Attorneys for The Rutherford Institute attorneys filed suit against WMATA in July 2014, arguing that the above-ground, "free" areas of WMATA transit stations where Young performs are traditional public forums where members of the public are entitled to engage in speech and expression under the First Amendment. Affiliate attorney Jeffrey L. Light assisted The Rutherford Institute in its defense of Young's First Amendment rights.

"In an age when journalists are being persecuted by the government for protecting their sources, activists are having their communications monitored by government agents, and musicians who criticize police state tactics are being charged with making unlawful threats, this ruling is a timely reminder of how critical the First Amendment truly is and how vital it is that we remain vigilant in defending it at every turn," said John W. Whitehead, president of The Rutherford Institute and author of A Government of Wolves: The Emerging American Police State. "As Benjamin Franklin proclaimed, 'Whoever would overthrow the liberty of a nation must begin by subduing the freeness of speech.'"

Alex Young is a 27-year old guitarist who performs in public and accepts donations from passersby. Although Young does not actively solicit donations, he does set out his open guitar case in order to receive tips from members of the public who enjoy his performance. Among the places where Young performs are the above-ground, "free" areas of WMATA transit stations. According to regulations promulgated by WMATA's governing authority, persons are allowed to engage in "free speech activities" on WMATA property, so long as the activity is in above-ground areas and is at least 15 feet from a station entrance, escalator or stairway. According to the complaint, Young was busking at the Ballston Metro station on the sidewalk abutting N. Stuart Street in November 2013 when he was approached by a Transit Police officer and ordered to cease playing and accepting tips. The officer accused Young of engaging in "panhandling" and threatened to arrest him if he did not move elsewhere.

In a separate instance in October 2013, Young was ordered to cease his public performing at the West Falls Church Metro Station. A Transit Police officer told Young that because he was accepting donations, he was engaged in "commercial activity" that is prohibited by WMATA regulations. In filing suit against WMATA, Rutherford Institute attorneys alleged that the above-ground, free areas of Metro Stations are considered traditional public forums, areas where speech and expression is given special protection by the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment.  Additionally, Young's performing in public, or "busking," is a time-honored activity that courts have consistently found to be fully protected by the constitutional guarantee to freedom of speech.