Lulu News

by Lauren Parker Senior Communications Specialist
September 10, 2008
Comments (5)

What Makes a Good Press Release? How to get the word out in 5 steps

In Events, Lulu News, Lulu on the Web, Marketing Tips, Tips and Tricks —

In the world of blogs, tweets and social networking, creating buzz around your book is easier than ever. But how do you reach reporters from traditional media? The traditional press release is still a great way to let people know of your newest book project.

Wait! How to I achieve fame and fortune with a traditional press release you ask. We can’t guarantee fame and fortune but with these five steps and a little elbow grease, you will be well on your way.

Try these steps when putting together your next release:

1. Keep the editor(s) in mind. Hundreds of releases vie for their attention each week, so make yours relevant and accurate.

2. Write your press release!  Keep these things in mind while crafting your release-

  • Be catchy! Write a headline that grabs attention and summarizes your main point. Then, because the first paragraph is often the only one that’s read, make sure it covers who, what, when, where, why and how.
  • Be brief. Keep your release to one page or 400 words. The end.
  • Be current. Highlight something about your product in your release that’s relevant to current events.
  • Be available. Make sure you put your current contact information (E-mail, phone number, fax…) so that those that are interested can reach you.

3. Create a relationship! With your local lifestyles, arts section, book reviewers, local bookstores and editors. The more they know about you and your book the more willing to read your press release.

4. Send it out! Either to a targeted list of regional and local reporters or an e-press release over a news wire service - choose a list that you can handle when following up.

5. Ask for help. If you’re having trouble, visit Lulu Services and look into a professional press release.

by Lauren Parker Senior Communications Specialist
September 3, 2008
Comments (6)

Excited by Lulu.com? Let the world know!

In Lulu News —

Calling all Lulus! We need you to raise your voice and shout from the rooftops how Lulu energizes you by handing over control of publishing and profiting from creative content like novels, photo books and calendars. Be part of the Lulu Groundswell!

Groundswell, the book written by Forrester Research analysts Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff, focuses on how people use technologies to get the things they need from each other, rather than from traditional institutions like mammoth corporations – a trend and principle on which Lulu.com has built its company.  The book has become the ultimate guide for the Lulu team, as we seek to give YOU the best, most innovative social tools to collaboratively create, market and sell your creative works and interact directly with your audience, whether it is one reader or 10,000.

So naturally, we entered the Second Annual Forrester Groundswell Awards, in the ‘energize’ category and your reviews will help spread the word about how Lulu helps authors through our community.

Here’s how you can review Lulu.com:
1. Go to http://www.forrester.com/Groundswell/energizing.html to see the Lulu entry.
2. Go to the Lulu listing and click ‘Review’.
3. Rate Lulu and write a review of how you think Lulu is doing when it comes to energizing you as an author.
4. Click submit.

It’s that simple!

A widget user? Member of the Facebook Lulu group? Always ready for the next post from the Lulu blog team? Let us (and the judges) know how you connect to your audience and other Lulus through the offerings on the Lulu community page:

People like you, ready to connect with you...

People like you, ready to connect with you…

by
August 15, 2008
Comments (1)

Fighting CF with Bikes and Books

In Author Spotlight, Lulu News —

With the awesomeness that is the Olympics going on, there are lots of inspiring hero stories being told.

But not every hero is at the Olympics. There are people out there doing heroic things everyday. One hero we recently discovered at Lulu is Walter van Praag. He might not call himself a hero, but I think he is.

Last year, in order to raise awareness of Cystic Fibrosis, Walter, his wife and a small crew rode what they called The Great Cystic Orient Fibrosis Express, or COFE. They cycled the route of the Orient Express, from Paris to Istanbul. That’s over 2400 miles! Walter himself has Cystic Fibrosis (CF), and did this ride to inspire healthy people, people living with CF and people with other disabilities.

Since the ride was completed last year, Walter has published two books on Lulu: Coughing the Distance: Paris to Istanbul With Cystic Fibrosis, a book chronicling his adventures on the ride, and Walter and the Mucous Monsters, a children’s version written by his wife.


Walter has lived a life full of adventure and excitement, and shows that living with a disability is far from limiting. His adventurous spirit and athleticism has helped him far exceed the expected lifespan for someone with CF. With COFE and his books, Walter is showing the world how un-limiting disabilities of any type can be.

by Lauren Parker Senior Communications Specialist
August 12, 2008
Comments (5)

Tips & Tricks: Book Previews - Entice your Reader without Even Trying

In Howto, Lulu News, Tips and Tricks — Tagged: , ,

In an earlier blog post, Nick talked about the benefits of having book previews. Here we’re going to talk about how to create and what things to keep in mind for a great book preview.

If you’re anything like me, reading the description of a book isn’t enough for me to buy it. It’s a start, but those first few pages are key. Many times I find myself standing in the bookstore with almost the first chapter read when I start heading to the checkout counter. That’s what a book preview is! When the description isn’t enough, a book preview is a great way to draw people to your book.

A couple of things to consider when setting up your preview:

  • Are you just previewing the first pages of your book (The table of contents, the copyright page, a blank page, etc) or are you previewing enough that the reader can get a feel of what the book (or CD) is about? Don’t waste your time or your reader’s time with the first pages of your book. If they are pages you would skip in the bookstore, pretty sure the reader will do the same for your book. Give them something they want to read!
  • Preview doesn’t equal the whole book… unless you want to. Put up what you are comfortable with. If you do want to put up more than a few pages, think about having a free download of the first few chapters.

Now on to the how-to… Step-By-Step Preview Generation

Continue Reading »

by Cary Allman PR Intern
August 8, 2008
Comments (1)

Go for the Gold with Lulu.com

In Lulu News —

Four years have finally passed, and you know what that means - no not a lunar eclipse - the Olympics! Today, the opening ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics will mark the official start of the competitions. Let the games begin!

Every new Olympics brings stories of inspiration, courage, and perseverance; and even though you may not be in China to personally witness them, Lulu has plenty of stories of athletic glory that are sure to give you goosebumps.

When you think of world-class runners several notable names come to mind- Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Carl Lewis, and, of course, Steve Prefontaine or “Pre.” Steve Prefontaine – Rocketman (), written by Bree Donovan and the late runner’s, sister, Linda Prefontaine, is the true story of Pre told through the eyes and voice of the fictional character Owen Morgan.

Continue Reading »

by Nick Popio Social Networking Team Lead
August 6, 2008
Comments (15)

iRead, You Read, We All Read On weRead

In Events, Lulu Blog, Lulu News, Lulu on the Web, New Features — Tagged: , , ,

weRead LogoWe have some great news, Lulu has teamed up with weRead! If you aren’t familiar with weRead yet, you might recognize it under it’s previous name, iRead, the popular social networking application for book lovers.

Now, in addition to publishing your books on Lulu, weRead will enable you to connect with well over two million readers across a variety of social networks. You can even create your own author page, and  interact with your fans!

Another feature of weRead is that it has the complete catalog of all books in print. Readers will be able to rate your mystery and adventure book against “The Da Vinci Code”, and your period romantic comedy can be easily compared with “Pride and Prejudice”.

weRead’s discovery and recommendation engine allows users to find the types of books they will be interested in quickly and easily.  Who doesn’t want more people finding, reading, and sharing your book?

weRead works on many of your favorite networks including:
• Facebook
• MySpace
• Orkut
• Hi5
• Bebo
… even your own blog or website!

To get started, you can either:
•    Go to http://www.weread.com and register for an account, or
•    If you already belong to a social network listed above, simply follow the link to install the application on your profile

To help you get more familiar with weRead, and what you can do with it’s features, we will be doing a series of posts focusing on how you can use weRead to promote your work and interact with the largest possible audience of consumers. Some of the topics we’ll be covering include tips for setting up an author page on weRead, and using weRead to market your work.

I hope you’re as excited as we at Lulu are about our new partnership, and be sure to keep an eye out for more Lulu and weRead tips & tricks.

by Cary Allman PR Intern
July 31, 2008
No Comments

The Truth is Out There

In Author Spotlight, Lulu News —

One of my favorite responsibilities that go along with being a Lulu is exploring our site for new and intriguing titles.
Intriguing is exactly what came to mind when I stumbled across Alien Interview (http://www.lulu.com/content/2144178) while looking for books on Lulu. Maybe it had been all of the old X-Files episodes I’d been watching, but I had to learn more.
Notes from RoswellAlien Interview, edited by Lawrence R. Spencer, is a compilation of letters, interview transcripts, and personal notes from the late Matilda O’Donnell MacElroy. MacElroy was an Army Air Force nurse stationed at the Roswell Army Air Field in the late 1940s. In a letter sent to Spencer, MacElroy claimed that these documents were based on a series of interviews she had with an extraterrestrial.
Luckily for us, Lawrence Spencer was kind enough to shed a little light and answer some of my questions via email…

Continue Reading »

by Lauren Parker Senior Communications Specialist
July 25, 2008
Comments (5)

It’s a Bird… It’s a Plane… It’s A Lulu Comic Creator!

In Lulu News —

With the frenzy around Batman’s Dark Knight, The Incredible Hulk, Iron Man and Hellboy II: The Golden Army all gracing the big screen this summer, everyone seems to have comics on the brain, and I’m no exception.

Personally, I’m a fan of Wonder Woman, and am waiting with bated breath for Lynda Carter to don the Lasso of Truth, to pass her trusty bracelets on to her daughter, or well, any kind of Wonder Woman movie really. Unfortunately, there have been holdups in getting one released, so until then, Delilah Dirk is my new ‘shero’.

Who’s Delilah Dirk? She’s the funny, sly, sword-wielding heroine of Delilah Dirk and the Treasure of Constantinople by Tony Cliff. Set in the late 19th century in Constantinople, the story centers on an army captain of the Ottoman Empire who finds his job and life on the line after Delilah Dirk, his most important prisoner mollywops a guard and escapes to freedom. I’m not the only one who is hip to Delilah and her adventures – Tony and his comic heroine have been nominated for an Eisner Award in the category for Best Single Issue. We here at Lulu wish Tony the best of luck, and are crossing our fingers that he walks away with the prize during the ceremony this Friday.

If you are looking for your own ‘shero’ here are a few titles you should look into:
• A. Furuichi and S. Yoshinaga - Nemu Nemu
• Wapsi Square: 2001-2004 - Paul Taylor
• Girls With Slingshots Volume 1 (2nd Edition) - Danielle Corsetto

by Nick Popio Social Networking Team Lead
July 21, 2008
Comments (8)

Major News To Announce Down Under!

In Lulu News — Tagged: ,

You know, I promised myself I wouldn’t make any clichéd references to Australia, but I can’t help myself. When I was told that we were partnering with a printer in Australia, the old standbys (”G’day, mate” and “put another shrimp on the barbie”) immediately came to mind. I told myself I was better than that, that I could be creative and witty without resorting to tired clichés, but apparently I was wrong.

None of that is important though. What is important is that we are partnering with our sixth printer, and that it means a more faster and more efficient experience for our friends in Australia, Asia and surrounding countries. While these benefits may not affect you directly, take comfort in the fact that we’re constantly trying to improve our services and that means you’re likely to see more direct benefits soon, maybe even with our next release!

by
July 15, 2008
Comments (2)

Ice Cream Dreamin’ at Lulu.com

In Events, Lulu Blog, Lulu News — Tagged: , , , , ,

Hey, Lulus! Did you know that July is National Ice Cream Month? Of course it is! Who doesn’t get excited about the thought of a big ol’ ice cream cone during these hot hot summer days? We at Lulu understand this, and want to do our part to ensure that you can locate and create content for all of your ice cream desires.

If summertime has you pulling the ice cream maker out of winter retirement but feeling anything but inspired by your standby vanilla recipe, check out these two books:

Of course, even if July is National Ice Cream Month, it’s still bathing suit season. For healthy and delicious recipes, there’s the The Dessert Diet. Following the same concepts as the Zone Diet and the South Beach Diet, this book has real desserts that are actually healthy!

If you think your homemade chocolate-caramel-coconut-macadamia-triple fudge fantasy or your strawberry-blueberry-blackberry-raspberry-very berry sorbet is the best thing ever, why not share it? Make your own book of ice cream recipes and sundae creations, low-fat, high-fat, all-dairy, non-dairy, whatever! Just be sure to include lots of drool-worthy pictures!

And if all of this happy ice cream fun is a little too sweet for you, check out Scream for Ice Cream for a fun summer scare. After reading it, you might want to think twice next time you hear the ice cream truck driving down your street!