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"I am not going to contribute to the denigration of the English language," I told myself haughtily, thus shelving any interest in tweeting.

Them my sister got a freelance job from it. And revolutions erupted as governments were overthrown by tweeting?!?

Perhaps you can say a lot in 140 characters or less after all? Again I looked,  but being someone who shuns reality TV and celebrity gossip, I still couldn’t quite figure out how it could be any use to me. It seemed like a waste of time.

Then a little notice appeared in my inbox about a book for authors like me by a man named John Locke (@DonovanCreed): How I Sold a Million e-books in 5 Months.

It wasn’t the fact that he sold a million e-books that impressed me; it was the fact these e-books were all FICTION and this guy was self-publishing that did. Non-fiction is far easier to market as it is timely and solves a problem. Locke did it with fiction and he'd been writing less than three years.

Locke Perfects the
Waylon Jennings

Getting critical mass behind a fiction book is a feat, more so for the self-published since the mainstream media snubs its nose at us. To succeed, we must literally pull a Waylon Jennings. Locke did it, and to an extent worthy of a Grammy.

Let me explain. When asked the secret to his success Jennings stated that you have to "make them notice you", them being the establishment. Jennings stopped doing what everyone else was doing and focused on what everyone wasn't. Locke did the same, performing the perfect Waylon Jennings and he did it largely with Twitter.

With 23 books, three music CDs and four QDreams programs in several genres, my books sell okay. The series consistently frustrating me is Laid Off Now What?!?. A reference manual for the unemployed, it should flying off the shelves. It wasn’t.

I bought Locke’s book in digital format for $4.99 through Amazon and downloaded Kindle to my MacBook Pro and started reading. Ironically, whilst reading I realized he and I shared marketing frustrations, beginning with his books and received the same results: a handful of sales.

The further I read, the more he made sense. Then I reached the million-dollar nugget. Over the past year I’ve read over a dozen books on SEO and Social Media marketing. What was missing in these books is the practical application coupled with the why. Locke provides step-by-step instruction and challenges the perceived wisdom. Einstein said it best when he defined insanity as doing the same thing over and over again whilst expecting different results.

In retrospect, Locke’s system is brilliant in its simplicity. You’d think as a seasoned marketing exec I could have figured this out. In many ways a marketing exec, like a lawyer, has a fool for a client when self-promoting. Locke's little book lifts the shroud of frustration, sends the fool to detention and provided practical direction to anyone using Twitter for marketing and looking to climb the charts. In my eyes, Locke's star is born.

Tweet, tweet.
 

The ultimate planning guide/calendar for Publishers, Editors, Journalists, Broadcasters, Educators, Brand Managers, Advertising and Public Relations Professionals. The 2012 version includes 660 Individual Daily Events, 284 National & International Weekly Events, 355 Monthly events and 87 religious holidays. Never wonder when 'National Health Month' or 'Talk Like a Pirate Day' is again! 

A strategic planning tool created by someone who understands both sides of the media:
EDITORIAL & ADVERTISING

This comprehensive promotion and editorial planning calendar is one of those very few tools that works on both sides of the media divide.

Today I am a publisher, editor and journalist, who still consults on marketing for various media companies and start-ups.  But I didn't start in editorial.  I started in the cut-throat world of advertising sales and often worked on 100% commission. I learned very quickly what worked and what didn't for bringing in new clients. Whilst selling in print and broadcast, I often created a very crude version of this calendar to bring in new clients or get an agency to pony up some a few thousand more to coincide with a timely national promotion. One of the biggest wastes I see, especially in media sales, is lost opportunity. Knowing that a huge PR push is coming up around a subject in advance gives advertising salespeople a reason to approach new clients and often get additional promotional dollars that wouldn't be available without this knowledge. That's just one way this can be used.

This Promotional Calendar is a tool that will make a huge difference in your editorial, public relations, event or marketing plans.

• The calendar allows Publishers, Editors, Journalists, Broadcasters and Public Relations Professionals to plan trending stories and events far in advance.

• The calendar allows Brand Managers, Advertising, Marketing professionals and business executives to plan product launches, advertising campaigns and other promotional events at the best time to optimize buzz by leveraging the PR of others.

• The calendar allows Tweeters and Social Media professionals to determine trending terms in advance and schedule campaigns that will get peoples' attention with the proper hash marks.

• The calendar provides writers with an annual summary of topics that will be in demand and when.

• The calendar provides sales people and business networkers instant rapport building timely subjects that get you through that awkward first few minutes and make you memorable.

• The calendar gives teachers and educators topics that teach history and current events, the curiosity stimulating lessons with practical meaning.

• The calendar provides salespeople with an edge over their competition by providing timely information to clients that gets them in the door.

These are just a few of the ways this calendar and the information contained within can increase your effectiveness, business and bottom line.

CHOOSE YOUR PACKAGE
2011 Event, Editorial & Promotional Calendar includes over: 449 Individual Daily Events; 179 Weekly Events; 332 Monthly National & International events; & 75 religious holidays Organized pictorially, chronologically and alphabetically. Digital   BUY 2011 Digital $9.95 BUY 2011 Paperback $14.95 +s/h	Buy Both Together and Save! Whether you choose the paperback or digital versions you receive the PDF  versions of the books to use now and the wall calendars.  With the digital versions you also receive the e-books formatted for Kindle, Nook, Sony and other e-reading devices.  Digital package is $16.95 and the Paperback Package is $28.95 +s/h.  BUY Both Digital $16.95   BUY Both Paperback $28.95+s/h	2012 Event, Editorial & Promotional Calendar includes over: 660 Daily Celebrations; 284 Weekly, 355 Monthly National & International events & 87 religious holidays. Organized pictorially, chronologically, alphabetically and by category Digital   BUY 2012 Digital $9.95 BUY 2012 Paperback $19.95 +s/h

Guess which religion has a specific day each year set aside for love and romance? The holiday is considered the most joyous of holidays in this faith and marks many historic events as well as the both commitment and love as the key ingredients of a successful marriage. What I will tell you is that holiday falls on August 15th this year and August 4th next.

Can you name the only ethnic group on the planet with its own International Day of Solidarity proclaimed by the United Nations? Here's a hint: they've been maligned, persecuted, dispossessed and ultimately occupied for nearly 70 years. Their day is November 29th each year. 

Which sex do you think has more holidays, men or women? You might be surprised.

Aside from teachers and health related workers, which profession do you think seems to have the most 'be kind to' and 'honor' days? There are a lot of jokes about them...and they're not used car salesmen...or politicians. Come to think of it, we haven't found a single 'love your local politician day' in any nation.  Perhaps...just thinking aloud, there is a message there...?

While we're at it, there are two days named for the same mathematical symbol, one is March 14 and the other is July 22. If you're a fan of numerology, you'll figure it out. What about things we use every day? Sunglasses were invented in 1200 AD, (yeah, that long ago.  Who knew?). Can you guess which country they were invented in? They're not known today for their inventions, rather for their ability to mass produce cheaply. Okay, that's one of the tidbits in the 2013 book but if you subscribe to my Tweets or newsletter, you'd know.

The point is, if you're curious, you'll love the calendar!  If you enjoy history, you'll devour this calendar. If you're like my sister who LOVES schedules and planning, you will be infatuated with this calendar. Personally, I'm allergic to schedules, yet even I enjoy the calendar because I thrive on information and love learning. Anything that points me to something new I didn't know fascinates me; this calendar is full of things I'd never even heard of until I started researching.  You don't even have to be a journalist or in marketing. This is a trivia cornucopia that is always in season! I've found it exceptionally useful for small talk, getting people interested at networking events, chatting up perfect strangers at the airport, flirting with the guy behind me in the super market queue. 'Did you know today is ________ ' sure beats 'where are you from' and 'how do you spend your days' for opening lines. That's the superfluous fun part of this. Fun is good.

TURNING DATES INTO CASH

The serious part, if you are in business or the media, this book is your secret weapon. How many times have you been listening to the news and a reporter has mentioned 'Today is _____ week' and if you'd known that, given your product is a perfect fit, you would have leveraged it and ridden the wave of publicity and buzz. But you didn't know. Opportunity lost. 

And teachers? They love this.  The little daily factoids provide a way to energize the class and get them to pay attention...at least for a few minutes. Another thing teachers love, especially in large cities like New York, Miami and Los Angeles, the religious and cultural holiday notations allow teachersto connect with their students and acknowledge what makes them special. A 'Happy Holi' or ''Festive 15 of Av' can go along way toward creating rapport.  That goes for co-workers and clients too.

Available in a 11 X 17 2-color printable PDF and in ebook versions for Kindle, Nook, iPad, Sony and other readers, this invaluable resource will put you leagues ahead of your competition and allow you to better plan and anticipate upcoming events and trends like an insider.

Each page of the promotional calendar includes daily events, weekly promotions, holidays, monthly observations, historical facts in an easy to read printable format. This is a screen shot from the 2011 Wall Calendar.  Actual size is 17" X 11". Your High Resolution Wall Calendar can be blown up to poster size or reduced to 8 1/2 X 11.
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For the 2012 book, we've also added listings by CATEGORY. We organized this book to appeal to several styles of research and learning.  Some people like things chronologically.  Others need visual cues.  Still others like alphabetical order, and of course key word searches by category. Regardless of which style works for you, the book is arranged to provide you quick access based on pictures, chronology, alphabetical and subject.

FREE WALL CALENDAR
WITH EVERY PURCHASE
 

I always used one of the big desk calendars I could scribble on, you know the ones that look like blotters?  I also had another calendar on the wall that allowed me to see a quarter at a time.

With every purchase, whether digital or paperback you also receive a 13 page 11 X 17 promotional wall calendar with all the events, holidays and observations included PLUS ample space to add your own local events and holidays  to the calendar. Specifically designed for cubical and office walls!  A $20 value. Details within each book.

This is a calendar of ideas. Each year we’ll add more events and points of interest. There are thousands of special weeks and days. If you have to plan stories or marketing campaigns, this calendar will make your life so much easier, (not to mention making you the ultimate trivia king or queen) whether you work in the media, market products or teach future generations.