Blog

We're excited for you to hear our latest author interview sharing a fresh perspective on how to navigate the creation, publication and marketing of a collaborative book. (What's a collaborative book? It's when multiple authors each contribute a chapter or section to a book that has a shared theme.)

Successful product to profit specialist, Terra Farrar, sat down with us and spoke about her recent adventure with Vervante. Terra guides business owners through the maze of how to capture their intellectual property, turn it into a signature program or product and create a passive income stream. In this Q&A, Terra shares her story – and some great tips – on multi-income producing opportunities in her recently published book, “Skyrocket Your Product Launch Using 12 Proven Strategies from Experts Around the Globe.”
 
Q:  Tell us a little about what inspired your book.
A: There is a growing number of entrepreneurs wanting to help people beyond their one-to-one services and create passive income streams in the process. The problem is, they don’t know how to turn their expertise into the kind of programs and products they can bank on. Fortunately, I know how to solve that problem. It’s my area of expertise. I have a strategy to capture their knowledge and convert it into their own signature program.
 
However, there are many integral components for a dream to experience lift off and soar to success. So I embarked on a journey to find experts who share similar values and are committed to the client’s success. They have become the Dream Team of Experts. By applying our combined expertise, clients are ready to sell the programs and products online, from the platform, to their tribe or community as well as to their existing clients. 
 
As I tell my clients, their idea is a master key to doors of possibilities. A collaborative or anthology project such as this is a powerful business-building tool. For example, I’m using it as a syllabus for my own product creation training program. When in the role of an event sponsor, I use it inside a drawing package to capture leads. Each co-author uses it to fit their business model. In addition, as a published author, so many more doors open.
 
I remember the day the parcel from Vervante arrived containing my first copy of “Skyrocket Your Product Launch Using 12 Proven Strategies from Experts Around the Globe.” It took my breath away. I rushed to my computer and opened the initial email invitation I sent to the potential co-authors. Then I looked at the dates.  It had been only 67 days from email invite to holding the book in my hands! When things are meant to be it’s a matter of getting out of the way, buckling up, and saying “YES.”
 
Q:  Are there any tips you would share with new authors for their own books projects?
A:  Before officially launching your book, first get it into the hands of people you know. For my initial print run, I incorporated a red sticker on the cover saying, “Advanced Reader Copy.” By adding that designation, it’s like saying “expect mistakes inside.” It also became a way for those receiving a copy to know they were part of something special. The readers were much more willing to give honest feedback and forgive our errors. This is also a good time to capture testimonials while implementing further edits and tweaks. For example, once I saw it in print, I decided the inside margins needed widening. I also re-arranged the chapters during this phase. 
 
For the “advance reader copy,” I purposely left off the ISBN and bar code on the back cover. Copies were given away, not sold. Once the edits are in place, remove the red sticker from the front cover and add the ISBN and bar code to the back.
 
One last bit of advice: For a collaborative book project, hire a copy editor to read each of the submitted chapters rather than depend on the authors to give you a print-ready version. We found typos, and incorrect word usage, which would have had a dramatic influence on the reader’s experience.
 
Q:  Are there any surprises you’ve had as a result of publishing your book?
A:  Yes and it’s an income-generating surprise bonus. As people hear my story of going from big idea to printed book in only 67 days, they are hiring me to guide them through the process. I have become the go-to person for those wanting a similar marketing tool for their business. 
 
Q:  Why did you choose Vervante to help you self-publish this product?
A:  A few years ago, I used Vervante for a fiction book I wrote. I was very pleased with their quality and service. I have since referred clients and colleagues who are equally happy. It was a no-brainer to come back to them. I love the no minimum order policy; the ease of tying sales from shopping cart to my print-on-demand Vervante account; and how hands-free they make it for the author.
 
Q: How was your experience using Vervante for your book-publishing project?
A:  Vervante’s customer service has been awesome especially when it came to handling the updates I made to both cover and content. Since I have multiple authors, Vervante makes it seamless for them to set up their own accounts. After uploading revisions, I send an email to my customer service rep who in turn updates everything to each author’s account. This makes it easy for the co-authors and acts like an insurance policy for book consistency.
 
Q:  This book is a collaborative project with contributing authors. What advice would you share with other people who might be considering a similar project?
A:  Choosing your co-authors is very important. My goal was to select people who share similar values. It’s been extremely rewarding to have amassed this group of experts with the readers’ success in mind.
 
In the back of the book is an “About the Dream Team” section. On the even number page is their photo and bio. The facing page features a special program or offer for those readers wanting to dive deeper into the subject matter. Since getting JV (joint venture) ready is part of what I teach my clients, each Dream Team member is a JV partner providing me with a passive income stream from their “what’s next” step for the reader. This is an example of the product to profit strategy I teach. 
 
You can learn more about Terra at www.DreamLaunchAcademy.com. If you enjoyed this article, and would like to be featured in a future Vervante author interview, please email us at customerservice@vervante.com.