We're constantly amazed by the clever, unique, brilliant and beautiful books and products our customers create. Today we’d like to introduce you to publisher Diane Windsor (pictured) and her client Julie Samrick's book, Murphy's Miracle.
The story behind Diane and Julie's journey
Q: What inspired Julie to write this book?
Murphy's Miracle - One Dog's Wild Journey is based on a true story. Julie's friends' dog, Murphy, was missing in the El Dorado National Forest for almost two years, and then was miraculously found! Julie fictionalized what may have happened to Murphy during the time she was missing.
Q: What advice would you give for others who are thinking of writing a book?
As a publisher, I'm responsible for editing, formatting, cover design, etc. But the most difficult part is marketing. You can have the best book ever written available, but if people don't know about it, it won't sell. It's so important to develop a marketing plan that includes multiple strategies. And it's important to be creative - think out of the box when it comes to marketing! For example, when Murphy's Miracle was released I partnered with our local animal shelter, and it benefitted both of us. Also, marketing is a long-term part of publishing a book. It's not only at launch, but for as long as the book is available.
Q: What do you and Julie love most about this book?
The story is all about never losing hope. The Brauns, Murphy's family, never gave up that she'd come home one day. Also, I love the cover. That's an actual picture of Murphy, and I love it!
About "Murphy's Miracle"
Murphy Braun is a five-year-old golden retriever who loves her family, and loves doing everything with them. This includes going on camping trips in the beautiful ElDorado National Forest. But one camping trip didn’t go as planned. Murphy was lost in the forest; no matter how hard her family searched, they couldn’t find her. She spent many months alone in the wilderness, fighting to survive. Will her family ever find her?
Learn more
Learn more about Julie Samrick’s book by clicking HERE.
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Your creativity inspires us and your success deserves to be shared!
We're constantly amazed by the clever, unique, brilliant and beautiful books and products our customers create. Today we’d like to introduce you to Shira Gura, Creator of The S.T.U.C.K. Method®, author of the award-winning book Getting unSTUCK: Five Simple Steps to Emotional Well-Being, and host of the Getting Unstuck podcast. Shira shares her inspiration for creating a unique card deck that works in harmony with her book and in helping people to embrace her teachings and get unstuck.
The story behind Shira's Consideration Cards
Q: What inspired you to create this card deck?
I actually originally had an idea to write another book, "365 Considerations," but then I realized a few things: a) card decks are "in" now, b) using cards is a unique and different way to work with Getting Unstuck than a book, c) card decks are portable, accessible, and effective in any moment, whereas books are more of a "shelf" thing once you are done reading them, and d) they would be great giveaways or add value to a course I offer.
Q: What advice would you give for others creating card decks (or any other type of product)?
Varying your products is important. It helps build your brand and it gives the impression to your customer that your brand is serious and growing.
Q: What do you love about this product?
I love that the cards are versatile, that I can give them as gifts, that they can be used in a variety of ways (both personally and professionally), and best of all, I love that people are buying them!!
About Consideration Cards
The S.T.U.C.K. Method® is a self-coaching tool that empowers you to get “unstuck” from emotionally challenging situations in your life and in your relationships. There are five steps to the method: S=Stop, T=Tell, U=Uncover, C=Consider, and K=OK. While the steps are not necessarily always easy to implement when in the midst of a “stuck” situation, they are simple and illustrate the possibility of being able to flow from a place of emotional turmoil and distress, to a place of clarity and inner peace in any moment.
This deck includes 52 concise, yet powerful, Consideration Cards as a support to get you unSTUCK.
The 4th step in The S.T.U.C.K. Method®, “C” for “consider,” guides you to become less reactive and more deliberate in challenging life situations by pondering alternate viewpoints. The Consideration Cards are meant to be used in conjunction with The S.T.U.C.K. Method® to help you broaden your perspective, heighten your curiosity, and reflect on suggestions from an objective source. When you are struggling to cope, these cards can guide and support you, and prompt you to redirect your focus.
Getting unstuck is not a one-stop process, but rather a skill that is cultivated through continuous repeated practice.
If you enjoyed this article and would like your Vervante product featured in our newsletter and blog email [email protected] with the following information:
250-word overview of your product
URL link for the landing or sales page for the product
High-res image(s) of the product and/or author
Your creativity inspires us and your success deserves to be shared!
At Vervante, we’re dedicated to making the process of creating, selling and shipping your books and products as easy as possible. Today we’re pulling back the curtain to give you a behind-the-scenes look at how the process works.
Sales Orders
To start the process, an order is placed. We accept orders from ANY shopping cart, retail channels such as Amazon, or distribution in excel or a csv file. You can also log into your Author Account and manually place an order via your Vervante Author Dashboard. Details about processing orders from your shopping cart can be found HERE.
Printing, Processing and Fulfillment
Next, the book is either printed on demand, or pulled from stock we are storing for you in our warehouse. Here’s how that works:
Printing on demand is when we print only the amount ordered, at the time we receive the order. For books or products printed on demand, you pay only the cost of printing plus postage for shipping.
Bulk orders can be printed and stored in our secure warehouse, ready to be pulled and drop-shipped when you need them. If we print books or products in bulk, hold them, and then drop ship on demand there are small order and pick fees. These are to cover the cost of the shipping package/box and the labor to pull the item from inventory.
For products printed or produced for inventory, including items you supply to us to ship, we have an online inventory reporting system. We keep track of your inventory and the online reporting is updated in real time and your inventory is decremented in real time as orders are shipped. You can set reorder levels for each item so you will be automatically notified when your inventory reaches a specific level.
Amazon Marketplace: If your book or product is listed and sold via Amazon, they take a 15% discount plus $1.80 per transaction fee for each sale. Amazon pays Vervante for transactions and we post the Amazon credits to your Vervante Author account weekly. You set the retail price for the book in Amazon Marketplace and customers pay for the shipping.
Shipping
Once we receive and process your order, it will be shipped according to the method you or your customer have indicated. We charge postage based on weight and destination. We do not have a flat shipping fee and we do not inflate the postage rates.
We ship anywhere in the world using USPS and UPS services and keep you up-to-date on its status. Here's how it works:
Orders are completed and prepped for shipping, the package is scanned, and shipping labels are applied.
Products are mailed according to your preferred shipping method.
Shipping confirmation emails are sent to recipients with tracking information.
Order information such as status and tracking numbers are posted to your account online.
We hope this brief overview of the journey your books and products take from shopping carts to satisfied customers was enlightening. If you have any questions about the process, please feel free to reach out to our publishing pros by email or phone. We're here to help!
Q: What inspired Julie to write this book? 
About "Murphy's Miracle"
The story behind Shira's Consideration Cards
The S.T.U.C.K. Method® is a self-coaching tool that empowers you to get “unstuck” from emotionally challenging situations in your life and in your relationships. There are five steps to the method: S=Stop, T=Tell, U=Uncover, C=Consider, and K=OK. While the steps are not necessarily always easy to implement when in the midst of a “stuck” situation, they are simple and illustrate the possibility of being able to flow from a place of emotional turmoil and distress, to a place of clarity and inner peace in any moment.
Sales Orders