Bedbug is Almost Here!

A little BEDBUG is coming . . . just in time for Christmas!

* Keep checking back because I'll be posting updates.

Looking for the perfect kids' stocking stuffer? Grab the little BOOK and the BUG in the BAG! 

Pre-orders: contact: thesleepybedbug@gmail.com

Making Money Online: Have You Joined Xomba Yet?

Today marks the start of a new series of articles, entitled, Making Money Online. I will be taking a look at a number of writing opportunities and giving the real goods on same. Readers of this blog know I don't waste time with questionable opportunities, schemes or scams. At Write and Earn a Living, I share what I have done to make money online.

In line with that, The first article to kick off this series is Making Money Online: Have You Joined Xomba Yet? I will discuss Xomba and why I feel it offers one of the best ways to make money online.

Making Money Online: Have You Joined Xomba Yet?
Xomba is a newer kid out of the block, having only been around for a couple of years. If your schedule is full, this is one site you want to make time for.

• Xomba allows you to create short 50-word blurbs pointing to your own pages or pointing to good pages/sites across the Internet.
• Xomba also allows you to create bites, short 150-word articles, which you can use to send traffic to your other pages.

Basically you earn on blurbs (called Xomblurbs) and bites (called Xombites). Making money online has gotten so much easier with this blurb/bite format. Even those pressed for time can create shorter blurbs/articles.

• Not only do you earn from the Xomba site itself, but when readers click on your article links and visit your other monetized pages, you earn again.
• You also earn on your referrals.
  

To sum up, you join Xomba for free, it's not time-consuming--you work at it when you want and where you want--and via four earning channels can make a significant amount of money online.

* For writers who have already created a number of online articles Xomba is the ideal way to drive traffic to these articles and earn a higher amount.

* For newer writers, Xomba allows you to point to other sites and to write short articles. What a great way to make money online!

I see many opportunities come and go--and many of them I would not recommend because, for the most part, they are time-wasters. For all of us trying to make a living online, our time is better spent creating good quality articles at legitimate sites, over chasing every "make money online 'opportunity'" that comes down the pike.

However, that said, I recommend Xomba. There's real potential for those who are willing to submit content on a regular basis. Whether you create blurbs or bites--or both, you earn ongoing monthly royalties by joining Xomba.

Further Reading
Most Excellent Reasons for Joining Xomba

Make Money Online: Build Better Articles

So many of us are submitting content online and trying to grow residual incomes. The article below discusses eight effective strategies that will help you to earn more from your online articles.

You do the work anyway, it pays to implement these steps so that you earn the most from your writing online.

Make Money Online: Build Better Articles

Book News--Book in Mail

Hello Everyone

Just a quick note: today I received my book in the mail!

The publisher and I will work out any final "bugs" and then The Bedbug Who Wouldn't Bite (copyright Melody Rhodes, 2009) will go to print!

As you can imagine, this is an exciting time. I'm very glad that we've reached this juncture and that Bedbug will be released before Christmas.

Once we go to print, I will include announcements at Write and Earn a Living as well as at The BEDBUG Blog.

BookBuzzr: #1 Resource for Book Authors

Hello everyone

Today I want to mention a wonderful resource I came across for book authors--a free widget that displays your book and takes readers inside the pages. Literally! The widget actually tuns pages!

Interested parties can read an excerpt of your book, are treated to illustrations, can read related buzz and, most importantly of all . . . they can BUY your book! Wow! All from the handy attention-grabbing widget!

This book widget will prove invaluable to writers who have authored books and who are looking to actively market them.

For more information, check out my Xomblurb about BookBuzzr: BookBuzzr: World's #1 Free Online Book Marketing Technology for Writers

After you've read my blurb at Xomba, make sure to click the article link so that you can get your own book widget. Soon, readers will literally be turning your book's pages!

* BookBuzzr is used by 2500 authors and 100+ publishers and interest is growing.

Note: If you would like to earn ongoing royalties, Check out what I'm doing at Xomba. If you could create a short blurb such as the BookBuzzr blurb, Join Xomba.

Are You a Published Book Author? Two Sites to Join: JacketFlap & AuthorsDen

In today's post I want to discuss two excellent online sites for book authors

Scenario

• You've published a book
• You are busy promoting and building author credibility
  
• You are trying to advertise
  
• You want to realize sales

Two sites I would recommend for book authors to join are JacketFlap and Author's Den. Why?

• These sites are free-to-join
• You create an author profile + picture.
  
• You list your published work
• You upload your book cover
• You link to sites selling your book

Results are returned when searchers look for you on the Internet. They visit your pages, see your author profile and other information about you. Your books are advertised and this directs interested parties to sites selling your books. End result? SALES.

Let's take a look at each.

JacketFlap

Interested parties can search JacketFlap's vast database of published children's books, thereby finding your book/books easily. They can search by title and/or category. They can search for a book targeting a specific age range.

For example, say someone is looking for recently published bestselling books for 4-8-year-olds. A search at JacketFlap returns a listing of books that fit this criteria. Now, a searcher sees a book that looks interesting and clicks on the title. In this case, let's look at the first book listed: Fancy Nancy: Splendiferous Christmas. The book cover appears, with a description of the book.

Now, here's where the magic begins. Below the cover picture, a searcher sees a listing of sites where the book is sold. In this case, we see: Amazon, Abebooks, Alibiris, Bookfinder, At a Local Bookstore and Find in a Library. A click on any of these links takes a buyer to the applicable page where they can buy the book.

A site visitor can also, from the JacketFlap page, read Amazon reviews of the book and any comments which may help him/her to decide whether to purchase.

• Authors share their author information through buttons on their pages (Twitter, Facebook).
• If an author has a book-related blog, it can be added at JacketFlap so that blog posts stream. This is an excellent method to get the word out about a pending book. I've done this with my Bedbug book series, so that readers who visit my JackeFlap pages can keep abreast of the latest happenings and look at related pictures.
  

AuthorsDen

In similar fashion, AuthorsDen brings together a large community of book authors and is an online site that sees 1400,000+ readers each month. Authors share their bio, blog, books, author events and can link to their websites.

Readers can use AuthorsDen to find their favorite authors and review and purchase books.

• Authors use AuthorsDen to sell their books. For a free membership, an author can post his/her bio, photo, and list one book. If the book is on Amazon, the author can link to it via AuthorsDen, thus driving sales. If the book is available on other sites, the author can include purchasing information.

I've recently set up my webpage at AuthorsDen and will add my Bedbug children's book once it has been published.

• AuthorsDen allows others to become fans of authors who have joined the site.
  
• Authors can click on the Share button to spread the word about their presence on AuthorsDen.
• A Subscribe button allows others to keep abreast of your author news and book releases.

*AuthorsDen now offers exciting publishing options for members.

These two sites are invaluable publishing tools for book authors.