Express Yourself Authors' Conference » Produced by Infinity Publishing

books published by infinity

Infinity Publishing’s
Ninth Annual “Express Yourself…”™
Authors’ Retreat
Friday–Sunday, September 26–28, 2008

Sheraton Park Ridge—Valley Forge, PA
480 N. Gulph Road
King of Prussia, PA 19406
(610) 337-1800

Click Here to Register

“Express Yourself…” 2008 Authors’ Retreat
Tentative schedule. We reserve the right to keep discussion and break times flexible.

Friday
1:00 pm		Meet-and-greet in the Sheraton Courtyard (weather permitting)
1:30 pm		Do you really know your book? Jane M. Martin
2:00 pm		Share your work! Scheduled Readings Moderated by best selling author, Bob O’Connor this creative session kicks off the retreat in response to past participants who wanted to learn more about authors and books at the start of this event.
3:00pm		The Expert Author Publishing legend Dan Poynter teams up with award-winning author Will Hutchison to talk about how you, the author, is viewed as an expert, as well as how to ask experts for blurbs, and work with experts to make your book as accurate as it can be.
4:30 pm		Do You You-Tube? Learn from well-known authors, Devin O’Branagan and Judith Trustone how they are using You Tube to promote their books.The Fine Art of Back Cover Copy
6:00 pm		Networking and Cash bar
7:00 pm		Dinner Keynote Address – Special Sales – Who Needs a Store?Brian Jud
9:00 pm		Story Sharing (must sign up by 4:30pm)

Saturday
7:30 am		Continental Breakfast in the bookstore
8:30 am		What Works (and what doesn’t)? Find out when best selling authors tell what they’ve done that leads to sales success… and what hasn’t.
10:00 am		Break
10:30 am		Legally, Can I Do That? Legal issues that matter to authors before and after they publish are undergoing changes in today’s courts. Bring your questions about copyright, fair use, selling rights and whatever literary laws boggle your mind. Tonya Evans-Walls, Esq.
12:00 pm		Lunch Keynote – Dan Poynter -- to be announced -- Retreat attendees will receive a complimentary copy of Dan’s latest white paper, Virtual Book Publishing: Writing, Publishing and Promoting Your Book Utilizing the Latest Technology.
2:00 pm		Back Cover Copy – A No Brainer? Think again. Well-written back cover copy can lead to sales, and back cover copy poorly written, well… that can lead to a potential buyer putting your book down and walking away. Learn how to make your back cover sparkle! Lead by our own John F. Harnish, prolific writer and creative genius!
3:30 pm		Break
4:00 pm		Harness the Power of the Internet to Make it Pay Off for You! Are visitors clicking on to your website but not ordering your book? Internet marketing expert Penny C. Sansevieri and Web designer Jeniffer Thompson share the secrets of driving more traffic to your site – and converting lookers into buyers!
6:00 pm		Networking and Cash bar
7:00 pm		Dinner Keynote Presentation Big Time Published: It’s Not All its Cracked Up to Be! Former Simon & Schuster author Devin O’Branagan talks frankly about the good, bad, and ugly aspects of having two novels published by a powerful publishing giant.

Sunday
9:00 am		Brunch - Open mic, Door prizes, farewell.
throughout the weekend		Special Sales evaluation of your book Publishing industry statistics indicate that bookstore sales now account for only 40% of all books sold. Meanwhile, book sales to the important non-bookstore market are increasing – a typical order is for several thousands of books. Well-known book marketing expert Brian Jud will report on the success of his new premium sales program, specializing in special sales. He will be available throughout the weekend to meet with authors to evaluate their books for participation in this program. Authors selected for the program are required to provide ten books. Infinity Publishing will provide those ten books to their authors at no cost. You will also hear tips on being more organized as an author and business person, doing great radio interviews, meeting deadlines and word counts, using articles to sell your book. All publishing experts and participating professionals will be available to talk with you throughout the weekend – so there will be no scheduled one-on-one consultations. Please extend them the kindness of first asking if this is a good time to talk. Professional head and shoulders photos will be available throughout the weekend at a deep discount. See our Speakers page for examples of headshots done by Chad Thompson. The conference bookstore will be open on Friday afternoon and all day Saturday. Infinity titles will be discounted 40%, and the bookstore will be open to the public and hotel guests. Retreat attire is comfortable casual.