So you want to have your book published ?

If you are an unpublished author and looking to publish your first book the following is a guide to help you get started.

Prior to submitting your book to a publisher, getting some feedback to boost your confidence and as a way of ensuring your piece is up to scratch may be a consideration. If you belong to a writers group it may be a good idea to get a critique from fellow writers. It is always a good idea to hire an editor to help with grammar and other mistakes you may have overlooked, plus consider a literary agent to improve your chances of getting a deal with the better known publishers, but tread with caution and never pay any upfront fees. If you decide to use a literary agent it is perhaps best if you agree to a percentage of what you make after signing a contract with a publisher. In this way the agent is more likely to be committed in providing a quality service. In saying all the above it is not imperative that you use a literary agent, today access to online information is at your disposal and self publishing is steadily becoming a first option, although this is not necessarily as simple and straight forward as it may sound.

Always bear in mind never to pay a publisher to print your book or any other upfront fees, this is not usual practice and you should beware of any publisher requesting such payments. It is more common amongst the well-known publishers to offer an advance payment or flat fee to you, and to also agree a percentage of the sales of your book.  In the case of royalty payments due to you, a percentage agreed by yourself and the publisher is made in advance. Remember just because you may have paid a publishers upfront fees they can always later decide not to have you as a client.

Once your book has been checked and you are ready to approach a publisher or publishers, to keep organized make notes of who you have approached, and any comments made, use this information to keep track of your progress. It is common to receive rejections for a variety of reasons so be prepared.

Here is a list of just some of the requirements
you may be confronted with:

- The name and a description of your book

- The nature of the agreement with the publisher and term e.g  license
  agreement and the period the agreement, which is normally the life of the
  copyright. There may also be other rights to consider such as; foreign
  translation rights, electronic rights, Film/TV rights,

- Future Royalties Advance and other payments.

- Delivery of manuscript plus any additional material i.e Illustrations,
  photography etc.

- Advertising and promotion

- Protection against loss & other Insurance Provisions

- Copyright Ownership


A  wealth of useful related resource can be found here: ArtString

Learning Systems - For The Artist In You

Learning Systems that offer comprehensive packages aimed at teaching you not just guitar and music related subjects, but other topics like; painting, photography, careers and more...

Legacy Learning Systems prides itself by offering a number of seriously comprehensive multimedia training courses that are also undaunting and fun. I took a stroll through the Systems setup and I must say I was very impressed, there are only a few other examples out there that can compare.

So thorough and thoughtful is the Legacy Learning Systems overall service, I even came accross areas in their documentation that makes considerations for; left-handed guitarist, recommended starting ages for children (being 7-9 with supervision), easy payment plans and a student support forum. These guys really have you covered!

The lessons are systematically structured in a simple step-by-step flowing succession. The current products come in what may be separated into two categories; the Learn & Master and the Home School Editions and ranges from guitar, piano, drums, ballroom dance and painting. You can view each product in detail by clicking the links below.

Current Products:

Gibson’s Learn & Master Guitar
Learn & Master Piano
Learn & Master Drums
Learn & Master Ballroom Dance
Learn & Master Painting


+ The Home School Editions

Beside the products mentioned above other subjects are in the pipeline or are already in circulation as I write. All with the aim of replying to those “I wish I could.... ” dreams, that people have, Legacy Learning Systems endeavors to fulfill these wishes. To give an idea of what else can be expected, some of the topics mentioned include arts, career, cook, hobbies, sailing and surfing...


You can visit the Lagacy Learning Sytems website here.

Publish Post

Learning at your fingertips - Learning to play the guitar

Learning at your fingertips - Guitar Learning Systems
 

I remember when I first started learning guitar many years ago whilst still at high school. During our lunch break on a Wednesday, a few friends and I would visit the music room situated in a building which, from memory, resembled a tower with stairs that lead to various rooms on different floors, a place seldom visited was this music room.

I recall during tuition at the time being frustrated at not  being able to hold down a simple ‘C’ chord due to the painful fingertips caused through holding down the ‘steel’ strings. Getting over this phase is generally the very first hurdles needed to accomplish before really starting to learn the guitar, and that’s when the real fun and satisfaction begins...

I remember during this time listening to pro guitarist creating magical sounds whilst playing almost effortlessly, sometimes the sound not even seeming to match how little movement being performed.

(above) Steve Krenz, accomplished musician and educator.

“Wow I want to play like that!” I would say to myself, and then go on to think how long it would that take and how much would it cost and whether I could find the time to attend dedicated classes.

Nonetheless, this was not the best behaved high school, and soon after our lunch time guitar lessons showed on the radar, other students decided to interrupt, with games of - knock, knock, ginger (or Ding-Dong Dash).

Needless-to-say our guitar lessons soon came to a premature halt.

Today, as the world embraces a technology that creates accessibility to almost any form of information you may think. There are so many Learning Systems available that you can study both at your own pace and with the capability of instant revision, all at your finger tips. This includes learning the guitar.

Which is why Glamour-Digital-Music have been looking at top guitar and music learning systems that you can use for perfecting your guitar skills, at home all in your own time, at your own pace and if you’re interrupted you can always start over.

If you are looking to learn and play the guitar using a comprehensive and neatly packaged system, both the Jamorama and the Guitar Success packages are great options, however between the two you can decide which best suits your budget.
(I will add a few more packages once they have been reviewed, in the meantime any suggestions are welcomed)

1. Jamorama

Jamorama provides a Step-By-Step Downloadable Course as part of its complete guitar learning system, the packages available include; The Standard and The Deluxe Editions plus the impressive Jamorama Hardcopy.

To begin with, the impressive Jamorama Hardcopy comes complete with Jamorama Books, DVDs and Software, and retails at $149.95 USD + Shipping. This is your definitive package allowing you immediate access to the online courses whilst you wait for your delivery.

The Standard Edition is for beginner to advanced students and focuses on chords and strumming. Geared towards having you quickly playing, the Standard Editions now contains extra material from its previous versions and retails at only $49.95 USD


The Deluxe Edition is for the student ready to play solos, scales and lead, and provides the student with lessons that will build a repetoir for playing those famous songs we all know and love. complete The package includes the whole process of learning the guitar, from strumming, muting and bending, to timing and reading music. The Deluxe Edition retails at $99.95 USD

With The Deluxe Edition you also have access to SongPond.com from here you have additional access to learning to play your favorite songs.

2.Guitar Success System

The Guitar Success System comprises of a number of downloadable items for learning, this includes 3 ebooks, audio and video formats. Here is a list of what you’ll get for  $47.00 USD
- Book 1: Beginner (37 pages, 12 lessons)
- Book 2: Intermediate (35 pages, 12 lessons)
- Book 3: Advanced (55 pages,16 lessons)including, 101 Tips On Improvisation & Soloing
- 3 Complete Sets Of Professional Audio Play-Alongs!
- Guitar Success Learning Resources Toolkit!
- 130+ Step-By-Step Guitar Video Lessons!

Plus other bonuses