Vigilante's Book "Vigilant Kids" Step by Step

[G-Man]

Sex Trafficking is my number one world issue that I care about. It started when I was travelling in Europe with my 1 year old, and I watched the movie Taken for the first time (kid gets kidnapped in europe and sold into sex trafficking). It shook me up so much, I had to go to my kid's bed and sleep with her.

However, I've found it challenging to get involved, as most "in the action" volunteering is reserved for females only.

Any good organizations you can recommend getting involved with?


I like your idea of funding a special forces team... that's real stuff right there. Although, sad, that funding needs to be raised for this. Sounds like it should be in someone's budget.

Sam Childers.

EDIT: @jon.a Are you Sam Childers? There's a resemblance.

 

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[Vigilante]

Sex Trafficking is the number one world issue that I care about. It started when I was travelling in Europe with my 1 year old, and I watched the movie Taken for the first time (kid gets kidnapped in europe and sold into sex trafficking). It shook me up so much, I had to go to my kid's bed and sleep with her.

However, I've found it challenging to get involved, as most "in the action" volunteering is reserved for females only.

Any good organizations you can recommend getting involved with?


I like your idea of funding a special forces team... that's real stuff right there. Although, sad, that funding needs to be raised for this. Sounds like it should be in someone's budget.

This is the organization that I will be funding a mission through : Operation Underground Railroad

We can continue that discussion separately on a new thread at some point though, as I really want this thread to be kept on the tactical points for this subforum of
Self-Publishing / Writing and Authorship

 

[Vigilante]

vigilante. : a member of a volunteer committee organized to suppress and punish crime summarily (as when the processes of law are viewed as inadequate)

It all ties together.

 

[mrarcher]

This first post is a placeholder as I intend to chronicle for you the steps from conception to launch of the kids book I wrote called "Vigilant Kids." This thread will be about process, not content.

I'd be remiss if I didn't give three shoutouts from the very beginning :

• To @MJ DeMarco for your continued inspiration in pushing me towards an Unscripted life
• To @ChickenHawk for leaving breadcrumbs for others here at the forum to follow. We knew you before you were a USA Today Best Selling author. Thanks for chronicling your journey here for those who come behind us
• To all of the forum contributors to the Writing and Authorship channel at the Fastlane Forum. Keep writing, and keep posting. There's gold in these threads

So the progress thread on the "Vigilant Kids" book will include :

• Inspiration
• Writing the Story
• Finding the Illustrator
• Working with the Artist
• Buying an ISBN
• Trademarking a book title
• Working with an Editor
• Selecting Distribution
• Retail price
• Doing things Unscripted
• Creating an event
• Early Marketing / Social Media
• Launch Strategy
• Launch Results
• Impact/Results

I wrote this bullet point list so I don't forget what I want to share with you all, although each subject will probably be done as a single post over time. After I get a lot of this done, feel free to AMA although I am no expert in this, but others will come into this thread to answer your specific questions likely better than I can.

I'll headline each post with one of the topics above in case you are following along, or find this thread years from now. Hopefully it will serve as a good analysis of the steps I took through this journey. The subject matter of the book is not important for this thread, but the process steps is what I intend to capture for you.

Vigilante. Three threads of yours have really spoke to me. You see after failing a business I felt really down. I had to go back to working a terrible day job because I needed money to keep afloat and "it was the only thing I knew how to do." Sitting on my lunch break I read the thread about the guy on his lunch break feeling down for himself (exactly as I was). That hit me quite hard. Then I had read your quote " I convinced myself I was sacrificing on their behalf - but in reality what I was sacrificing was them." That one hurt. I was working 6 days a week somewhere I hated and missing out on so much for what felt like nothing. Then the one that really got me was the one about your friend licencing to nascar. I can't find it now but the point was to just pick up the phone. Don't wait about and look for reasons not to. Just do it. 2 days after reading that I started my next business and I am on the verge of not having to have a survival job working on something I quite enjoy. I know I have clicked the like button but this is my official thank you for sharing. If there is anything I can do to help with your venture ( I can do some web design, wordpress, proofreading etc) then please don't hesitate to ask. And of course I would love to buy your book for my little mr.archers.

 

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[Vigilante]

Vigilante. Three threads of yours have really spoke to me. You see after failing a business I felt really down. I had to go back to working a terrible day job because I needed money to keep afloat and "it was the only thing I knew how to do." Sitting on my lunch break I read the thread about the guy on his lunch break feeling down for himself (exactly as I was). That hit me quite hard. Then I had read your quote " I convinced myself I was sacrificing on their behalf - but in reality what I was sacrificing was them." That one hurt. I was working 6 days a week somewhere I hated and missing out on so much for what felt like nothing. Then the one that really got me was the one about your friend licencing to nascar. I can't find it now but the point was to just pick up the phone. Don't wait about and look for reasons not to. Just do it. 2 days after reading that I started my next business and I am on the verge of not having to have a survival job working on something I quite enjoy. I know I have clicked the like button but this is my official thank you for sharing. If there is anything I can do to help with your venture ( I can do some web design, wordpress, proofreading etc) then please don't hesitate to ask. And of course I would love to buy your book for my little mr.archers.

Thanks for your note. I fell about as far as anyone can fall and survive, and battled my way back up to the top of the mountain. And you know that you can do the same. Hope your freedom comes fast, and that you leave bread crumbs behind for those who come behind us to show them how you escaped the rat race.

 

[Walter Hay]

@Vigilante, What a great idea. I wish you well. If the book is not yet irrevocably beyond editing, this suggestion might be worth considering:

Although a good old piercing scream can bring attention, calling out "help" will often fall on deaf ears. Calling out "FIRE" is more likely to grab attention.

It would require cool thinking, training, and a disciplined mind before a child would be likely to call FIRE when under extreme pressure.

Walter

 

[Vigilante]

Retail price

One of the last things that had to be done pre-printing was select a retail price. I of course wanted to price this as a Lamborghini equivalent. I have read a lot of kids books over the years, and most of them really suck. My thought process was that if this one didn't suck, it was worth more.

Right?

RIGHT?

Wrong.

On this topic, I had to yield to my resident in-house expert and better half. The chief procurement manager for our household, who buys all of the kids books.

I was shooting for $14.99. We ended up at $9.99. I was unable to do what I do in my regular business, which is recalibrate the market by establishing a superior value and a higher price point. I have to provide a superior value at a fair market price point or regardless of content, people would think they are getting ripped off. All chief procurement officers have a general expectation of the price/value equation for kids books, and if you violate that they may still buy it, but might flame you into oblivion after they receive it.

So pricing, in literature, works differently than in other hard goods.

Lets look at the Millionaire Fastlane on Amazon.
Amazon.com: The Millionaire Fastlane: Crack the Code to Wealth and Live Rich for a Lifetime eBook: MJ DeMarco: Kindle Store

It's arguably the BEST business book for entrepreneurs on the market. And yet? It's $12.99. Granted, it is six years old now, but no less relevant today than when it was written absent me being able to copy the Limos.com business model. $12.99 happens to be roughly the average of the top 10 entrepreneur books currently on Amazon.

MJ's new book will launch at $19.99 with a built in fan base. The book is probably worth 10x that, but $19.99 is the price people would expect to pay for a new softcover book from MJ DeMarco. His last book hit #1 on Amazon in SEVERAL categories (new business, business finance/investing, and others).

My goal on the Vigilant Kids book was not to cash out. It was to reach families across the United States with a new message for a troubled generation. My goal was critical mass, not for revenue but for impact.

So we had to hit the critical mass price point for a kids book. I wanted the highest acceptable threshold for acceptable value exchange. I didn't want to lose money, but wanted to at least be in the black when it came to handing the very expensive distributor/reseller orders.

The price was established at $9.99.

By the way, there are natural consumer price points that we can save for a different discussion on a different thread for a different day. Why is MJ's book $19.99 vs. $18.99? because in the mind of the consumer, there's no difference. That extra buck doesn't matter... it's not going to sway them to buy or not buy.

Why is critical mass for Vigilant Kids $9.99? Why not $10.99? $10.99 is an "in-between" price point. It's an awkward pricepoint in consumer psychology. It literally would be a deal killer for some. If I were going to increase it, the next logical step up was $11.99, but that became overpriced. I will write more on this later, in some other context. But when considering pricing, you need to understand the market, you need to understand the value exchange, and you need to understand consumer retail price point psychology.

And in my case, you need a wife that is smarter than you to keep you from screwing it up, even after a career analyzing consumer behavior. You are emotionally attached to something you create. You need to be able to see your manifesto through the eyes of the consumer, and meet or exceed their expectations.

You don't price your eBook at $20. You don't need to price your follow up to your national best seller at $12.99, and you don't introduce a kids book to a market that doesn't know it needs your message at an egregious retail. Pricing is a science.

 

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[Vigilante]

Doing things Unscripted

We had a bunch of research that I paid to have compiled on launching a book as an unknown author. The bottom line is that if you do things the way everyone else does, you should expect the same results that everyone else gets. There's a bloody sea of wanna be authors who write books nobody ever reads. There are likely some classic works that have never and will never be discovered, because the written words are never seen by scale. We determined that there has to be an extraordinary catalyst in 2017 for an unknown author, with a subject matter that people don't know they need... to break through.

There are currently two traditional methods of bringing a book to market. Spend a portion of a lifetime trying to convince a publisher they care, so they can take 90% of the revenue... or casting it out as a self published work and hope that somebody (anybody?) cares. Both methods can work, but depend on a fair amount of luck and an equal measure of odds stacked against those that follow traditional paths.

So it was determined we had to break the mold in terms of how to do this. We expect extraordinary results, so we have to deploy extraordinary methods. We can't call Fox News and have them put on television (they won't). We have to have Fox News call us and invite us to come on. We can't issue a press release and hope the newspapers pick it up... we need the newspapers to call us because they want to do a story. We can't press SUBMIT on an eBook and hope that people buy it. We need people to go look for the eBook because there was an external stimulus to do so.

I have a friend that runs a huge media organization in a major metro market for Clear Channel / iHeartMedia. In his market, they get several solicitations by authors for air time every week. They put exactly zero of them on the air. You writing your first book... is NOT a newsworthy event to anybody but you.

In order for this to be a best seller, and not a complete waste of time, we need to go... Unscripted .

We're not going to do things the same way everyone else does. We're not going to follow the script.

There's a book you can read called Guerrilla Marketing for Writers: 100 No-Cost, Low-Cost Weapons for Selling Your Work (Guerilla Marketing Press): Jay Conrad Levinson, Rick Frishman, Michael Larsen, David L Hancock: 9781600376603: Amazon.com: Books

which will give you some ideas on how on a next to nothing budget you might be able to get some attention for your work. You are not going to find THE answer in that book, but it can be a catalyst towards how to think about going Unscripted .

To be continued... in the next post I will show you how we created an event to go Unscripted . We're in a 45 day launch countdown.

 

[Vigilante]

Creating an event

The book is going to be formally launched in June at one of the largest book fairs/trade shows in the United States (The Book Expo and then the consumer show a few days later... BookCon in New York).

We bought a booth, a big a$$ booth. Bigger than normal. Why?

Remember I said there are thousands of books now launched per week.

Of those, less than a few hundred independent books will be represented at this trade show.

Of those, less than one hundred independent authors will physically be in attendance.

Of those, most will either be shoulder to shoulder at an "author table" or just attending and hoping to meet people.

We have a booth. A big a$$ booth, and a plan. The companies with booths? Publishing companies. Famous authors... and me.

We're stealing a page from the OVERNIGHT BRAND idea I talked about last year at the Scottsdale meetup. We're going to act like we should be there.

Banner stretching the length of the booth (10 feet).
Book rack full of Vigilant kids books. (bought the rack on eBay)
Take along brochures/rack cards with ISBN code for librarians to order later. (VistaPring)
Maybe cutouts of the main characters. (TBD)
Tee shirts for us to wear in the booth with the Vigilant kids on them. (VistaPrint)

We need attention. We're going to do things Unscripted to get there.

If you are in New York, come by and see us at BookCon.

As if I didn't have enough stuff to do.

 

[Vigilante]

Early Marketing / Social Media

I am completely winging this, and making this up as I go. Right now, we have a Facebook page (Vigilant Kids) which started out primarily as friends and family.

It's a placeholder.

We have a web site, which is also a placeholder.

The book has been quiet launched on Amazon, and Barnes and Noble through Ingram Micro.

We've not done much additional social media yet but will be adding to that in the weeks before the trade show, and thereafter.

I would be receptive to your thoughts on effective social media techniques for authors. For me, I see that as more of a long game than a short game (to use a golf analogy.)

I think the REAL media will come in as a result of a successful launch, and the attention we might get from that. I am not trying to force the media before we are ready for it. I am content for now to let a gradual, organic following develop... believing we can activate their support to become evangelists when the timing is right.

 

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[Vigilante]

We are just about ready to give the second book to the illustrator.

 

[Walter Hay]

I suggest that you go completely over the top with your booth. I have done my share of exhibiting potentially boring products and I know that many people become like zombies as they wander the aisles. This is why I used demonstrations to great effect.

It's very hard to grab attention with a static display, so here's my suggestion: Use a demonstration of the need for your product. This idea should be modified appropriately, because you know your subject and your target market.

Stage a mini drama, preferably live, but if necessary by video on a huge screen. The kid/s don't have to be molested, but the slimy character scares them, so they scream. The slime ball has to look the part. The whole thing can be as melodramatic as the "Perils of Pauline". (Showing my age now.)

Repeat, repeat, and repeat, as often as you are allowed and with the screams as load as you can get away with. Have part of your fixed display directly relating to the show.

Walter

 

[KLaw]

I suggest that you go completely over the top with your booth. I have done my share of exhibiting potentially boring products and I know that many people become like zombies as they wander the aisles. This is why I used demonstrations to great effect.

It's very hard to grab attention with a static display, so here's my suggestion: Use a demonstration of the need for your product. This idea should be modified appropriately, because you know your subject and your target market.

Stage a mini drama, preferably live, but if necessary by video on a huge screen. The kid/s don't have to be molested, but the slimy character scares them, so they scream. The slime ball has to look the part. The whole thing can be as melodramatic as the "Perils of Pauline". (Showing my age now.)

Repeat, repeat, and repeat, as often as you are allowed and with the screams as load as you can get away with. Have part of your fixed display directly relating to the show.

Walter

Totally agree with going over the top. In addition, maybe instead of having just cutouts...Have mascot sized vig kids in costumes roaming around the show. Passing out excerpts (w illustrations) from the book w your booth info.

 

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[Roli]

Buying an ISBN Number

Much like UPC codes, there is the authentic way to buy ISBN codes, and an aftermarket way.

If you are writing a book, and don't know what an ISBN code is, click here

All ISBN numbers originate with Bowker. See ISBN US - ISBN US

If you buy one from a reseller, they're much cheaper, but problematic. When you buy directly from Bowker, you "own" the ISBN and can fill out a bunch of permanent registration information in your name. When you buy from a third party, it can be much cheaper but you will never "own" that ISBN as the companies you care about (including Amazon, Wal-Mart and others) won't recognize you as the owner of that code.

This is very interesting, and news to me; I just wanted to ask, surely once you buy and use the code, nobody else can use it so in that way it's yours isn't it? If anybody searches it your book will come up won't it, or how does it work?

I bought a bunch of UPC/EANs for very cheap and so I just assumed they were mine now; am I mistaken?

Awesome work on the book by the way, my wife is going to be writing a parents' guide book (she's currently a preschool teacher) and I will get her to study this thread, so thanks for all the info and progress.

 

[Walter Hay]

Totally agree with going over the top. In addition, maybe instead of having just cutouts...Have mascot sized vig kids in costumes roaming around the show. Passing out excerpts (w illustrations) from the book w your booth info.

Wouldn't be permitted at the exhibitions where I have had a stand.

Walter

 

[KLaw]

Wouldn't be permitted at the exhibitions where I have had a stand.

Walter

It was just the first thing that popped into my head. Never been to an actual book selling convention. I was thinking more of trade show conventions. They've got scantily dressed models passing out literature.

 

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[samsara]

Have mascot sized vig kids in costumes roaming around the show.

I like this idea

 

[KLaw]

Make your own sundae bar. Who doesn't like ice cream. Plus, ice cream tends to make us all remember childhood.

 

[AmericanSpartan]

I suggest that you go completely over the top with your booth. I have done my share of exhibiting potentially boring products and I know that many people become like zombies as they wander the aisles. This is why I used demonstrations to great effect.

It's very hard to grab attention with a static display, so here's my suggestion: Use a demonstration of the need for your product. This idea should be modified appropriately, because you know your subject and your target market.

Stage a mini drama, preferably live, but if necessary by video on a huge screen. The kid/s don't have to be molested, but the slimy character scares them, so they scream. The slime ball has to look the part. The whole thing can be as melodramatic as the "Perils of Pauline". (Showing my age now.)

Repeat, repeat, and repeat, as often as you are allowed and with the screams as load as you can get away with. Have part of your fixed display directly relating to the show.

Walter

Having a kid scream and everyone in the area looking at the both would make a pretty powerful point of the lessons being taught in the book. Just make sure you become good friends with your neighboring booths as the ear piercing scream of a child would get old after the first one lol.

 

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[MJ DeMarco]

@Vigilante -- here's a good booth prop idea to consider...

 

[Vigilante]

@Vigilante -- here's a good booth prop idea to consider...

View attachment 14665

I like the concept. We have an even creepier one on file. I will use it. Good idea.

 

[luniac]

book arrived, great artwork, simple and useful read for young kids.

You know, kids these days are hooked on touchscreen devices.
With that artwork style, and perhaps some simple animations you could make a cool little kids game.
just a thought.

 

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[Eskil]

Following this thread for a possible future book launch. I have too many ideas, lol... Thanks for sharing this @Vigilante

We blow through 30-40 picture books from the library every week.

• 7 out of 10 are in the "never, ever, read again" category.
• 2 out of 10 I'd read a 2nd or a 3rd time, because they had good pictures, but lame text (or vice versa)
• And then 0.5 or 1 out of 10 are awesome and are just really well done.

These are the books that made it past the cutting room floor.
70% of the cream of the crop in kid's books is just awful.
There are literally so many untapped niches in kid's books.

THIS! My kids are 16 and 18 now but for years and years through their younger years, we used to buy them lots of books or get them frequently at the library. There were so many times I couldn't help but think "damn...these authors really underestimate children's intelligence". I mean, kids are often smarter than we give them credit for - yet the majority of kids books are SO damn politically correct or sugarcoated. Write children's books that are more a bit more honest and real (within reason of course, and age appropriate) - and you can be onto something that most other authors aren't doing.

 

[Vigilante]

Launch Strategy

Press releases are a dime a dozen in this space. We decided the launch "event" had to have a reasonable chance of resonating, which is why we chose to spend some money at the upcoming trade show in June. The expenses are high for this event with no guaranteed ROI, but the exposure should be good.

Doing things differently to achieve different results. We may crash and burn, but this will not be one of those moments later in life where you wondered what might have happened had you been more proactive.

A June launch gives the book plenty of time to germinate before the Christmas selling season. We are getting some small trade orders (from book stores ordering a half dozen copies, etc...) which is fun at this early hour. Nothing to write home about yet.

So I have this big a$$ booth. Bought a banner from VistaPrint (8x10) like this:

and bought a rack that will be full of Vigilant Kids books from eBay like this :
Wire Display Rack 10 Tier Trade Show Event Stand Magazine Book Pamphlet Holder | eBay

Working on adding some of the media suggestions per above.

Spent five hundred dollars on a vendor that will bring in a table and chairs to the booth, but it was either that or sit on the floor and I thought that might be awkward.

We also had some rack cards printed from VistaPrint that the book buyers and librarians can take home with them if they want to order later. They also have lead retrieval systems at the show for any interested buyers that we can follow up with later.

I hate trade shows. Long days. Pain in the a$$. Hard on your feet. This one will be two days with industry buyers, and then two days open to the general public for their BookCon event in New York. If you are in New York, come on by and visit me. You have to pay to get in to the show, but once you're in, we are in booth 1966.

 

[Eskil]

Doing things differently to achieve different results. We may crash and burn, but this will not be one of those moments later in life where you wondered what might have happened had you been more proactive.

Have you thought to try out the influencer route too? Along the lines of reaching out to some passionate parenting / mom type vloggers, even child trauma or child psych channels on Youtube and have them talk about the book. Get a VA to do the grunt work of compiling the list and even the initial contact if you don't want to.

 

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[Vigilante]

Have you thought to try out the influencer route too? Along the lines of reaching out to some passionate parenting / mom type vloggers, even child trauma or child psych channels on Youtube and have them talk about the book. Get a VA to do the grunt work of compiling the list and even the initial contact if you don't want to.

If I do this right, they will call ME. Changes the leverage.

 

[Eskil]

If I do this right, they will call ME. Changes the leverage.

Oh they will! But some promotion upfront can drum up some initial awareness of it too, to where people start asking bookstores if they carry it, etc.

 

[Vigilante]

For any of you who listened to the Mind Your Business podcasts, that is my son Luke at the Vigilant Kids booth at BookExpo. The show is underway, and we are hoping for some media attention today.

 

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[#nowhere]

Wish you the best for the trade show!

 

[MidwestLandlord]

The show is underway, and we are hoping for some media attention today.

Awesome! Love the Vigilant Kids t-shirt!

Let us know how it goes, eh?

Good luck!