What is the Electoral College and How Does It Work?

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Electoral College USA map for 2020

What is the Electoral College? Every four years we have a Presidental election and the Electoral College comes into play. This is our uniquely American institution that elects the President of the United States every 4 years.

The Electoral College is a body of electors established by the United States Constitution, which forms every four years for the sole purpose of electing the president and vice president of the United States. The Electoral College consists of 538 electors, and an absolute majority of at least 270 electoral votes is required to win the election. According to Article II, Section 1, Clause 2 of the Constitution, each state legislature determines the manner by which its state’s electors are chosen. The number of each state’s electors is equal to the sum of the state’s membership in the Senate and House of Representatives; currently, there are 100 senators and 435 representatives. Additionally, the Twenty-third Amendment, ratified in 1961, provides that the District established pursuant to Article I, Section 8 as the seat of the federal government (see, District of Columbia) is entitled to the number it would have if it were a state, but in no case more than that of the least populous state. U.S. territories are not entitled to any electors.

Following the nationwide presidential election day, on the Tuesday after the first Monday of November, each state counts its popular votes according to that state’s laws to designate presidential electors. In forty-eight states and D.C., the winner of the plurality of the statewide vote receives all of that state’s electors; in Maine and Nebraska, two electors are assigned in this manner and the remaining electors are allocated based on the plurality of votes in each congressional district. States generally require electors to pledge to vote for that state’s winner; to avoid faithless electors, most states have adopted various laws to enforce the elector’s pledge.

Each state’s electors meet in their respective state capital on the first Monday after the second Wednesday of December to cast their votes. The results are counted by Congress, where they are tabulated in the first week of January before a joint meeting of the Senate and House of Representatives, presided over by the vice president, as president of the Senate. Should a majority of votes not be cast for a candidate, the House turns itself into a presidential election session, where one vote is assigned to each of the fifty states. Similarly, the Senate is responsible for electing the vice president, with each senator having one vote. The elected president and vice president are inaugurated on January 20.

For the Electoral College
The suitability of the Electoral College system is a matter of ongoing debate. Supporters of the Electoral College argue that it is fundamental to American federalism, which increases the political influence of small states by the “plus two” Senate count over the number of state Representatives. The geographic dimension of the Electoral College requires candidates to appeal to voters outside large cities. Parties must form national coalitions with moderating appeals, contributing to the stability of the two-party system. Presently, a decisive choice for president is made without the challenges and recounts in every state that would follow a nationwide popular vote.

Against the Electoral College
Critics of the Electoral College argue that the Electoral College is less democratic than a national direct popular vote and is subject to manipulation because of faithless electors. Opponents argue that the system is antithetical to a democracy that strives for a standard of “one person, one vote” because it can thwart a presidential choice by the voters with a national majority. There can be elections where one candidate wins the popular vote but another wins the electoral vote, as in the 2016 election. Individual citizens in less populated states with 5% of the Electoral College have proportionately more voting power than those in more populous states, and candidates can win by focusing their resources on just a few “swing states”. Credit: https://www.history.com/news/electoral-college-founding-fathers-constitutional-convention

Read more about the US Electoral College

• The United States Electoral College, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Electoral_College

• How to Become President of the USA, https://www.usa.gov/election

• Why Was the Electoral College Created? from History.com, https://www.history.com/news/electoral-college-founding-fathers-constitutional-convention

electoral College 2020 pdf worksheetDownload your own PDF US Electoral College Map Worksheet and track the election results on Nov 3. Click Here to Download the PDF 2020 Worksheet

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New Look, Updates and Changes at ClipArtMaps.com

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Hi all, it has been a busy August and beginning of September. I have been updating and redoing some of my websites. My home and education site ClipArtMaps.com was way overdue for some love. I have several websites that sell clip art maps to business, school, government, non-profits, and home. A while back I set up ClipArtMaps.com as an offshoot of my business map site MapsforDesign.com. It would focus more on the homeschool, education, and teacher market. But I have been to busy to really dig in and update. Over the past two weeks, I have been able to fix and update the site. It is looking and acting much better.

ClipArtMaps.com now carries my World of Maps clip art maps, my printable PDF map sets, and my World of Maps coloring books. Nicely organized and easy to get around. Still, some more work to do, but pretty pleased.

For the technical side, I am using WordPress with Woo Commerce. On top of that Elementor for design and layout. Getting much better at using this software. I also tie in Gumroad.com for some of the bigger files. Production help also by my web guy, Brian Johnson of BKJ Productions.

Learn How to Upload Your Paperback Book to KDP/Amazon

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Learn how to upload your paperback book to kdp amazon

Learn How to Upload Your Paperback Book to KDP Amazon

Publishing your book is super cool. Most of us who are self-publishing use the KDP/Amazon publishing site. With just a little instruction the process is very smooth.

In this training learn how to upload your paperback book to the KDP/Amazon site for publishing on Amazon. Using my new book, European Country Maps Coloring Book I take you through the upload and publishing steps.

In this training, I cover adding your details, content, rights, and pricing:
• Book Title
• Series
• Author & Contributors
• Book Description
• Keywords
• Categories
• ISBN
• Print Options
• Uploading your Manuscript and Book Cover
• Launching Previewer
• Territories
• Pricing & Royalty
• Publishing
• Followup Email

 
Buy the Training

European Country Maps Coloring Book, New Release

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Announcing the release of my newest coloring book, European Country Maps Coloring Book, 46 Blank, Outline, and Detailed Country Maps for Coloring, Home and Education.

In this book, you will learn about and color the countries of Europe in European Country Maps Coloring Book, 46 Blank, Outline, and Detailed Country Maps for Coloring, Home, and Education. Includes France, United Kingdom, Italy, Sweden, Germany, Spain, and 40 more. Learn and color blank, outline, and detailed maps of the European Countries.

The blank outline maps are great for learning the geography and layout of each country. Each country map is presented in two ways, a map of their administrative districts or political borders, including capitals and several cities. Plus, a blank outline map of each country. Many maps include the surrounding border countries.

Perfect for coloring, home, and education. Students can trace the outlines of the map, study and highlight countries and features on the blank maps. Maps can be photocopied for sharing with your children or students. A great resource for students and teachers.

Blank Outline and Detailed european country maps sample

The printable, blank, outline maps in this handbook can be freely photocopied by a teacher or parent for use in a classroom or for home school lessons.

Blank Outline and Detailed European Countries Included: Albania Map, Andorra Map, Austria Map, Belarus Map, Belgium & Luxembourg Map, Bosnia and Herzegovina Map, Bulgaria Map, Croatia Map, Cyprus Map, Czech Republic Map, Denmark Map, Estonia Map, Finland Map, France Map, France, Administrative Districts, France, Provincial Boundary, Germany Map, Greece Map, Hungary Map, Iceland Map, Ireland Map, Italy Map, Kosovo Map, Latvia Map, Liechtenstein Map, Lithuania Map, Luxembourg Map, North Macedonia Map, Malta Map, Moldova Map, Monaco Map, Montenegro Map, Netherlands Map, Norway Map, Poland Map, Portugal Map, Romania Map, Russia Map, Serbia and Kosovo Map, Slovakia Map, Slovenia Map, Spain and Portugal Map, Spain Map, Sweden Map, Switzerland Map, Ukraine Map, United Kingdom Map, Vatican Map

To purchase a paperback at Amazon, CLICK HERE

To purchase a PDF, CLICK HERE

10 Steps for Creating and Publishing Your Book

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Self-publishing your book is just the coolest thing. Self-publishing has been around for years but more along the lines of vanity presses. Now self-publishing actually means you are the publisher and you are in control. For me, this new era of self-publishing means print-on-demand through sites like KDP/Amazon.com or Lulu.com or e-books through Kindle/Amazon or devices like the Kobo or Nook. We produce our books and we control them. We decide how much money we want to make, the rights, and pretty much how they sell.

1. The Type of Book You Are Making One of the first decision you will need to make is what kind of book are your releasing. Is it a text only fiction book, a picture book, a non-fiction how to book, a children’s book, a paperback, an e-book, or both the list is pretty big. Depending on what you decide will determine where you publish and the process you will go through to make the book. With all of the options today you can very often pick several, and I recommend you do make different kinds of books. I often start with the print version and then move to e-book, but the other way around works fine also.

2. Deciding on the Publishing Platform At the top of everyone’s list is Amazon.com. Pretty much the largest distributor of books on the planet. Amazon has two options. You can go with print-on-demand paperback through their KDP/Amazon division or e-book with KDP/Kindle. Some books work great on both platforms and some a little better on one. Kindle works great on books that are pretty much mostly text. But more and more picture books are going that way also. Generally, most people recommend setting up your own book accounts on Amazon and for all of the other platforms using a service like BookBaby.com or Smashwords.com

3. Book Design and Production Book design and production involves the look and feel of your book. If you are going with a printed book you have tons of layout and design options to choose from. Depending on which platforms you choose you can really have a lot of fun with the design and layout. If you go with KDP you are producing a black/white or color paperback. If you select a site like Lulu.com or Blurb.com you have many different binding, printing, and cover options.

Going electronic you have the e-book or pdf routes or both. E-book usually means a Mobi file on Kindle with Amazon.com or e-pub on sites like Kobo, Nook or iTunes. Instead of Mobi I would recommend using the new Kindle Create software for creating your ebook. It is fantastic. There are actually about 80 different platforms but most people focus on about 10. The e-book route can also be a little more limiting in terms of design but in terms of distribution, it is global. It is amazing, one little text file and you can sell all over the planet.

Book design and production includes designing and laying out all your book parts. Cover, title page, table of contents, chapters, references, resources, bios, all the parts. It also means setting up all of your publishing and marketing accounts.

4. Developing Your Title, Your title is one of the most important tasks you will undertake in finishing your book. Your title asks a question and should then answer it for the reader. If you are producing a non-fiction book we should know what your book is about from the title. Using Google, Amazon and YouTube search we should be able to narrow down your title ideas to a key phrase. Your book needs to stand on its own when you are not there to explain it.

5. Cover Designs Selling your books on-line these days usually means your readers will never pick it up. They won’t discover it in a bookstore or sitting on a shelf. It may never exist in paper. Very often all we get to see is a thumbnail of the cover. Making that cover work at a small size is super important. Your title is one of the most important tasks you will undertake in finishing your book. Your title asks a question and should then answer it for the reader. If you are producing a non-fiction book we should know what your book is about from the title. Using Google, Amazon, and YouTube search we should be able to narrow down your title ideas to a key phrase. Your book needs to stand on its own when you are not there to explain it.

6. Working with the Print-on-Demand Publishers and Amazon.com There are some technical aspects to book publishing and loading them up to the distribution sites is one of them. We work with you to produce your book in the correct formats for each site. Is it the right size, are the pictures set up correctly, are all the links for all your connections set up correctly. Is the cover graphic correct, are all the internal graphics linked right, do you have a good book and author bio description, how about your keywords. Each site is similar but different.

7. Developing a Web-Based Marketing Plan Your book marketing starts almost the day before you need it. You start writing, you start marketing. Set up a blog, get your FaceBook group going, your Pinterest, your Twitter account, how about building your mailing list so that you have some fans ready to buy when you are done.

8. Using Social Media, YouTube and Traditional Marketing Traditional advertising for self-published books is almost non-existing. It is all about Social Media, Facebook, YouTube,  and Twitter. But some of the traditional marketing still exists and should be looked at when marketing your book. It is kind of the wild west out there in terms of what platforms to use and how to use them. And to make it more fun it changes every day. A great way to market your book is using Facebook Live and on-line live streaming. With tools like Facebook live and Steamyard you can reach the world through live video.  Take your message to the world and sell your books at the same time.

9. Developing Your Book Blog One of the most powerful platforms for marketing your book is having a book blog. On a blog, you can talk about the characters, build an e-mail list, have your media kit and bio. Many people now write their books right in their blog, using all of their new content to attract Google, readers, and fans. Your blog becomes the center of everything about your book. It is the hub for all your social media and other marketing efforts. It is key and I guide you through the process of setting one up.

Self-Publishing SECRETS, Create, Publish and Launch Your Book

10. Re-purposing Your Content This is last but one of my favorites. You have written your book, you have all this cool new text, what else can you do with it. If you are making a non-fiction book about your business how about a workbook to go along with it. Take your book, record it and you have an audiobook. Make a PowerPoint presentation, record it and you have a video, you have a course. Are there images that can be turned into products on sites like CafePress.com and Zazzel.com? Could you turn the book into a course, our use it to attract consulting clients. The list goes on and on.

To learn more about creating and publishing your book check out my newest book Self-Publishing SECRETS, Create, Publish and Launch Your Book. Available in PD

17 Ways to Promote Your Book with a Blog Post

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Blogging your book

  1. Promote your posts Rather than simply writing content for your blog, you will get much more traction by posting a bit of the content elsewhere in order to lead readers back to your blog postings.
  2. Send the first few paragraphs to your subscriber list with a “read full article” with the permalink leading back to the blog post.
  3. Post the permalink on social media. It’s likely you have several social media accounts. These are ideal places for you to position your blog posts.
  4. Take short snippets from your blog post and use those as tweets. Within a 5 – 10 minute period, you can literally write 25 tweets, if you simply take the content out of your blog post.
  5. Use hashtags to gain more traction. For example, if you have a book on dog training, you could use #dog #dogtraining #dogs as some of the hashtags.
  6. Post on Social Network groups you belong to that permit you to do so. Not all groups allow you to self-promote, so be sure to adhere to the group rules.
  7. Post the blog post to Slide Share. It’s amazing how quickly you can get hundreds of views for your posts on Slide Share. Invite readers to go to your blog to read more posts you’ve written.
  8. Post the full article on 3 – 6 top article directories. In the resource box you can direct readers back to your blog with something like, “For more articles by _____________ go to _____________.”
  9. Add your post to blog communities. There are plenty of locations that allow you to promote your blog post.
  10. Add images specific to the topic you are writing about. In the case of your book, an image of the book cover is always a great idea. Pixabay is a great resource for royalty-free images
  11. Stay on top of comments posted about the post and respond in a timely manner. The more interaction you have with your readers, the better.
  12. Keyword optimize your post and headline. This is essential for getting the most out of your efforts.
  13. Add a video to your post. More and more every day, video plays an important role in gaining interest and traction for your efforts. A short 30-second video can do wonders for generating interest.
  14. Ask readers to take some type of action at the end of the post. This could be to leave a comment, opt-in for something, buy your book, or simply hit one of the social media share buttons. The more you can get readers to take action, the better.
  15. Have various ways visitors to your blog can get on your subscriber list. Offering something that solves a specific problem will generate more opt ins than something that is too generic.
  16. Put portions of your blog post in an autoresponder (AR) sequence leading back to the original post by way of the permalink at the end of the AR message.
  17. With high-trending topics, make the media aware of your post. You never know what can happen as a result. Include an invitation for other bloggers, media, and those with a large reach to interview you for their podcast show, blog, or be a featured expert on a virtual summit.

To learn more about publishing your book, check out my latest book, Self-Publishing SECRETS, Create, Publish & Launch Your Book

New Workbook MasterClass on Making Your Own Workbook, Checklist, Lesson Plans and Journals

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Workbook MasterClass

Workbook MasterClass
I am very excited to announce my new Workbook Masterclass.n this Masterclass you will learn how to take your book, coaching, consulting, or teaching and turn the content into a Workbook, Checklist, Journal, or Lesson Plan for your readers, clients, or students. Take your book and create a product from it that you can sell. Increase the value of your consulting, coaching, and teaching.

In this masterclass, we will discuss how you can create workbooks, checklists, journals, and lesson plans from your content. This masterclass is perfect for anyone who has an existing business, self-help, or how-to book. Or if you are a coach, consultant, or teacher. If you are developing a book this class will also help you think about how you can structure your book and if you can add a workbook to it. I bet you can.

Three Case Studies
I really love the three cool interviews I have included with the Masterclass on how each person made their workbooks. We have Grahame Rees on creating a book from your workbook. Ed Gaskin on his book and 2 workbooks on teen violence and Nancy May on how to create and market a workbook from her new 911 book. Check out Grahame’s above, lots of great tips on how to use a workbook to support your projects. The other two are on the inside and are filled with great ideas for creating your Workbook, Lesson Guides, Checklist, and more.

Who is this Masterclass for?
This class is perfect for any author that has a business, self-help, or how-to book. Or a consultant, coach, or teacher who needs a companion workbook, teacher guide, journal, or more for their clients or students.

Included in the Masterclass
• Workbook Examples, great examples to model, Video
• The Hidden Treasures in Your Content, Video, we look at your books, coaching, consulting, and teaching.
• Key Workbook Tips and Ideas, Products You Can Make from Your Workbook
• 3 Case Studies by Workbook creators, Videos
• Workbook MasterClass Book, PDF Book
• The Workbook Tips and Resources, PDF Book
• Publishing and Marketing Your Workbook, Video
• Design Tips 101 for Workbooks, Video
• Making Your Cover, Video
• Workbook Elements Templates for MS Word, PowerPoint, and InDesign
• 3 Live Zoom Training Sessions, Applying the Templates


Buy Workbook Masterclass

Release of The Self-Publishing Manual: Create and Publish Your Own Print and e-Book

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Self-Publish manual buy from AmazonI am pleased to announce the release of my new book, The Self-Publishing Manual: Create and Publish Your Own Print and e-Book, by J. Bruce Jones

The Self-Publishing Manual takes you through the book publishing process from beginning to end. It answers your questions and shows you how to publish your book. The book is organized into three parts.

Part 1 covers key publishing questions such as where do I publish? How do royalties work? What is an ISBN number? How to create a KDP/Kindle Print Book or a Kindle E-Book and how does copyright work?

Part 2 is an overview of the creating and publishing process. The Self-Publishing Manual breaks it down into 12 clear and easy to understand steps. We start by creating the content, then design and layout, and finally publishing and marketing.

The Self-Publishing Manual includes three checklists, the Self-Publishing Checklist, the Launch and Marketing Checklist, and the Best-seller Checklist.

Part 3 is the bonus section, we learn how to launch our book as an Amazon best-seller. How to create a book using my Top Ten Technique and we wrap up with a publishing resource list. The Self-Publishing Manual contains the latest information on KDP/Kindle publishing.

Part 1. Key Question to Ask Before You Begin

Part 2. Writing, Creating and Publishing Your Book

  1. Writing Your Book
  2. Collect Your Graphics Assets, Images, Pictures, and Charts
  3. Key Elements that Your Book Should Have
  4. Editing Your Book
  5. Pre-Edit Printed Proof
  6. Six Different Options for Publishing Your Book.
  7. Creating a Kindle e-book, Including a Kindle Formatting Guide
  8. Creating a KDP.Amazon/Amazon Print Book
  9. Creating a Quick Print Book
  10. Uploading and Publishing Your Book
  11. Launching and Marketing Your Book
  12. Re-purposing Your Book Content for Additional Products

Part 3. Bonus Content

Making an Amazon Best-Seller • Best-Seller Checklist • Top Ten Technique for Creating a Book • Publishing Resources

Bruce Jones is an international best-selling author. He has created or authored over 40 published books. The Self-Publishing Manual shares Bruce’s secrets from over 30 years of graphic design and book publishing.

The Self-Publishing Manual is available at Amazon in both paperback and Kindle e-book.

Print Paperback Link

https://www.amazon.com/Self-Publishing-Manual-Create-Publish-Book/dp/1791870643

Kindle e-Book Link

https://www.amazon.com/Self-Publishing-Manual-Create-Publish-Book-ebook/dp/B07MC59MDZ/

I Want to Publish My Book But I Don’t Know How, New Book From J. Bruce Jones

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I am pleased to announce the release of my new book I Want to Publish My Book But I Don’t Know How: Everything You Need to Know to Create an e-book or Print Book, Available in Print and Kindle

“I want to publish my book but I don’t know how to do it, please help me.” In my How to Publish Your Book Facebook Group I get some version of this question more than any other. Usually the book is written and that is as far as the author has gotten. Where do I start? What do I do? How do I publish my book? I have just published, now what do I do? These are really big and often confusing questions. So, let’s dive in and see if I can give you some direction and the basic overview of how you can publish your book.

I Want to Publish My Book But I Don’t Know How is set up in three parts depending on what your questions or needs are.

Part 1. Key Publishing Questions. Part 1 takes you through many of the basic questions that people ask about publishing their book. I talk about where to publish, what is print-on-demand, what is an ISBN number, CreateSpace, Kindle and how does copyright work.

Part 2. Writing, Creating and Publishing Your Book. Part 2 is an overview of the creating and publishing process. I have broken it down into 12 steps. We start with creating the content. Then print or e-book, what is involved and how do you do it, interior and cover. We move to publishing your book, how and where it is done and then one of my favorite topics, re-purposing your content for additional revenue. Includes the Self-Publishing Checklist.

Part 3. The Bonus Section. In the bonus section I cover four topics; how to launch your book as an Amazon best seller with a Best Seller Check List. How to create a book quickly using my Top Ten Technique and we wrap up with a resource list.

Part 1. Key Questions to Ask Before You Begin

My Story, Learning to Write at 53

Part 2. How to Write and Publish Your Book
Writing the Book
1. Writing Your Book
2. Collect Your Graphic Assets, Images, Pictures, and Charts
3. Key Elements that Every Book Should Have
4. Editing Your Book
5. Pre-Edit Printed Proof
6. Six Different Options for Publishing Your Book.

Creating the Book
7. Creating a Kindle e-book, Including a Kindle Formatting Guide
8. Creating a CreateSpace/Amazon Print Book, Inside and Cover
9. Creating a Quick Print Book

Publishing Your Book
10. Uploading and Publishing Your Book
11. Launching and Marketing Your Book

Re-Purposing Your Book’s Content
12. Re-purposing Your Book Content for Additional Products

Self-Publishing Checklist

Part 3. Bonus Content
• Making an Amazon Best Seller
• Best Seller Checklist
• Top Ten Technique for Creating a Book
• Publishing ResourcesI am pleased to announce the release of my new book I Want to Publish My Book But I Don’t Know How: Everything You Need to Know to Create an e-book or Print Book, Available in Print and Kindle

I Want to Publish My Book But I Don’t Know How is available at Amazon.com
Paperback
Kindle

5 Day Book Marketing Challenge Releases, Give Your Book a Footprint in the World

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5 Day Book Marketing Challenge Schedule

5 Day Book Marketing Challenge Schedule

I am is please to announce the release of the 5 Day Book Marketing Challenge for anyone who is trying to market their book. This Challenge is free to all participants and is being held in the How to Publish Your Book Facebook Group.

This challenge is designed for authors who currently have a book on Amazon and need to tune up their marketing and give it more life. But also new authors who will find it valuable as they begin to launch their books will find it valuable. Marketing your book is essential for publishing success. The Challenge is being released in Facebook over 5 days plus a Prep Day to a get ready and a Success Day at the end. Starting this weekend, July 29, 2017.

5 Things to Do to Market Your Book

5 Things to Do to Market Your Book

We will start with Day 1, July 31, on Monday July 31 and building a Media Kit, Day 2 we dive into your Amazon sales page, Day 3 is Social Media Day, on Day 4 we are going to make a simple Book Trailer Video and Day 5 we learn about Author Websites and Blogs. There is a companion book, 5 Things to Do to Market Your Book and a Workbook to record your success. Both books are available in the Facebook Group. Hope to see you and much success to marketing your book.​

 

 

5 DAY BOOK MARKETING CHALLENGE SCHEDULE

VIDEOS AVAILABLE NOW
Day 0: [Prep Day] Live

COMING NEXT
Day 1: [Media Kit Day] July 31, 2017
Day 2: [Amazon Day]
Day 3: [Social Media Day]
Day 4: [Video Day] YouTube/Facebook Live
Day 5: [Website Day] Author Website and Blogs

BONUSES
Day 6: [SUCCESS DAY] Rinse and Repeat Day Plus Bonuses

I hope you are already members of the How to Publish Your Book Facebook group if not click this link and join, https://www.facebook.com/groups/HowToPublishYourBo…​

The How to Publish Your Group on Facebook now has over 2,000 members and is a great place to meet authors, as questions about self-publishing and launch your books.

Thank you again for being part of this publishing community and much success with your books

J. Bruce Jones Is the author and publisher of over 40 books, including the Book Marketing Checklist for Self-Publishing, Available on Amazon. I love teaching other people how to make and publish their own books. There is nothing like seeing an author hold their own new book in their hands.

Bruce is the creator of the 5 Day Book Marketing Challenge, to learn more or to purchase the full Challenge course with Bonuses please click here, 5DayBookChallenge.com