1. Find readers: Book clubs are becoming more popular and people who are members of one book club are often members of others. Talk about grass roots marketing. A place to start is 
2. Twitter and you: Okay, so we all needed something else to do, right? Doesn’t matter. Twitter is becoming part of the author’s life. I recently ran across Market News: August 2011
It appears the publishing market may be picking up. Recently, at a writer’s conference in New York City, I noticed authors got offers from editors during the conference—not just “send it’s.” And several agents said they picked up new clients.
Ebook sales up over 150 percent
The Association of American Publishers (AAP) said in its recently released report that sales are up in almost all categories. Professional books and K-12 books showed significant losses. The biggest gains are in digital formats with ebooks up more than 150 percent and downloadable audio books up more than 22 percent.
Google jumps into ebook reader fray
Google announced on its blog on July 11 the iriver Story HD reader for its own digital bookstore. Carried by Target stores, the reader looks like a first generation Kindle, includes wireless access to Google ebooks, and retails for about $140.
Moody transitions fiction line to River North Fiction
Moody says it is expanding its presence in the fiction market by transitioning Moody Fiction to River North Fiction—and it says it’s looking for writers. The focus is on novels that are “redemptive in content and community-building.” Deborah Keiser continues as the acquisitions editor with Brittany Biggs as editorial assistant and social media lead. A quick look at the new titles list made me think “historical fiction.”
Intermedia offers unique self-publishing model
Started as a public relations firm formed by a group of Christians, Intermedia Publishing Group has a model that promotes authors as well as publishes their books. And for a quarter to a third of what I’ve seen other subsidy publishers charge. The firm does design work, editorial work at all levels, and distribution, along with a list of other services, as part of their initial fees. And they act as a speaker’s agent for their authors.
The downside is they are aimed at writers with modest goals. Authors with aspirations to sell books numbering mid-four figures or higher will probably find themselves at another house. But authors who achieve that level of success will probably get an offer from a traditional publisher anyway.
God bless you and the work of your hands.