Bay to Ocean - The Writer's Ally™

Perfect Your Author Platform at the Bay to Ocean Writers Conference — March 9, 2019

Driving down to the Eastern Shore in Maryland is something most people do during the summer. For Ally, it’s become a familiar winter/early spring tradition! She’s honored to be invited once again to speak at the Bay to Ocean Conference on March 9, 2019.

The Bay To Ocean Writers Conference is a one-day nonprofit conference that has attracted and motivated more than 3,500 writers over its history. Attendees come from surrounding states and the District of Columbia as well as throughout the Chesapeake Bay and Delmarva region. With a registration limit that is always met early, the conference has a wonderfully intimate feel and attracts a lot of return attendees. You’ll make new friends, learn new tricks, but never feel overwhelmed in a sea of faces.

The Bay To Ocean Writers Conference features workshops, presentations, and panel discussions on a wide variety of topics pertaining to the craft of writing, publishing, marketing, the Internet, and the intricacies of particular genres. This year, Ally will be giving her action-oriented talk, “Perfecting Your Author Platform.” In today’s highly saturated book market, a strong publicity and marketing campaign requires that authors have a solid platform to get the kind of attention necessary for sales. But what is a platform, what is it used for, and how do you build one? How does it affect your book deal, or whether you get one at all? How does it help you sell more books, whether you self-publish or have a publisher? Let Ally teach you how to evaluate the “planks” you already have and design a blueprint for building a bigger, stronger platform—the most critical tool in your toolbox after the book itself.

Three things this presentation will teach you:

1. What a platform is and what kind of platform you, in particular, will need to get that coveted publishing contract and/or to effectively market your book.

2. How agents and publishers evaluate your platform when considering your work for publication.

3. Specific steps you can take right now to start building on your existing “planks” in order to create a powerful platform that will support your marketing efforts.

Hope to see you there!

Registration is now open and you may register here. For more info about the conference, you may contact Tara A. Elliott & Kenton Kilgore, 2019 BTO Conference Chairs at easternshorewriters@gmail.com.

Book Marketing Street Team: Learn How at the BTO Writers Conference – March 11, 2017

If you live in the MidAtlantic area and you haven’t been to the Bay to Ocean Writers Conference before, you’re really missing out. I’ve spoken at this conference for years now. It’s one of my favorites! Great schedule of informative presentations, opportunities for one-on-one feedback from professional editors, and an all-around lovely community of attendees. And 2017 will be more of the same, which is why I’m so excited to return once again as a speaker with a brand new talk on creating your book marketing street team to sell more books.

Though a lot of our marketing efforts have moved online, many authors still use a “street team” to help promote their books. This collaborative effort can be a powerful way to boost your signal! So join me at the Bay to Ocean Writers Conference on March 17, 2017 (register early because this conference sells out every year!) where I will be speaking about Forming and Using a Book Marketing “Street Team.”

In this presentation, you’ll learn:

what a street team is
how to assemble and coordinate the right team for your book
plus best practices and tips on how to leverage this tactic effectively

This conference is sponsored by the Eastern Shore Writers Association. Join us on March 11, 2017 at the Kent Humanities Building, Chesapeake College Intersection of Rt. 50 & 213, Wye Mills, Maryland.

For more information about the conference, you may check their website or register here. Hope to see you there! And if you’re attending, please drop a note in the comments to let me know. I’d love to say hello in person!

Founder of The Writer’s Ally, Ally E. Machate is a bestselling book collaborator, award-winning editor, and expert publishing consultant who loves using her insider knowledge and experience with the publishing industry to lead serious authors toward success. She and her team live to help make great books happen, whether that means showing a writer how to improve a manuscript, get an agent, or self-publish; or coaching an author on growing her platform to sell more books. Since 1999, she has supported hundreds of authors on their publishing journey and takes pride in serving as their books’ best ally.

Networking for Authors at BTO – March 2016

A couple weekends ago I participated in the annual Bay to Ocean Writers Conference, hosted in conjunction with the Eastern Shore Writers Association. This year I did something new and exciting—the BTO coordinators tried out sessions to facilitate networking for authors, and I hosted one. As with any other endeavor, publishing and promoting a book is much easier when you have a supportive network eager to help you succeed. With the right partners in place, you can get your work in front of exponentially more eyeballs, earn endorsements, increase sales, and find yet more opportunities for positive exposure. The participants learned some tips on how to network productively with book promotion in mind, and worked the room to start forging these powerful, mutually beneficial relationships. I called it “Finding and Working with Power Partners to Promote Your Book.”

I also presented during a more traditional session: I did “Polishing Your Work for Publication,” one of my most popular talks full of great tips and techniques for writers at all experience levels. This talk introduced the most common problems that plague written works and offer simple ways to identify and resolve them in your own manuscript. Participants received tips on improving their work to keep readers’ attention, polishing their manuscript at the technical level, and getting objective feedback before they submit or go to press.

In addition to these public sessions, I also did a few private one-on-one sessions with authors who signed up in advance. It’s always a joy to “talk shop” with fellow writers and dig into their work to see how they can improve and better share their stories.

Thanks for the extra materials and the excellent presentation. I attend these types of conferences to pick-up ‘nuggets’ – bits of information that I didn’t already know, a handy tip, a good website referral, etc as well as to hopefully meet a few new people that I’d like to keep in touch with as my writing career develops. You have provided both. Thank you. – Larry Garnett, Author & Illustrator/Artist

The conference was sponsored by the Eastern Shore Writers Association, a nonprofit organization of writers from across the tri-state Delmarva Peninsula and happened last March 12, 2016 at the Kent Humanities Building, Chesapeake College Intersection of Rt. 50 & 213, Wye Mills, Maryland. For more info about upcoming events, please visit the Bay to Ocean conference website.

Ally to Teach and Guide Networking for Authors at BTO in March

I hate being cold, but every winter I drag myself out of the house and down to the Eastern shore of Maryland. Why? Because I love participating in the annual Bay to Ocean Writers Conference, hosted in conjunction with the Eastern Shore Writers Association. This year I’m doing something new and exciting—the BTO coordinators are trying out sessions to facilitate networking for authors, and I’m hosting one. As with any other endeavor, publishing and promoting a book is much easier when you have a supportive network eager to help you succeed. With the right partners in place, you can get your work in front of exponentially more eyeballs, earn endorsements, increase sales, and find yet more opportunities for positive exposure. Come learn some tips on how to network productively with book promotion in mind, and work the room to start forging these powerful, mutually beneficial relationships. I’m calling it the “Finding and Working with Power Partners to Promote Your Book.”

I’m also presenting in a more traditional session: I’ll be doing “Polishing Your Work for Publication,” one of my most popular talks full of great tips and techniques for writers at all experience levels. This talk will introduce you to the most common problems that plague written works and offer simple ways to identify and resolve them in your own manuscript. You’ll receive tips on improving your work to keep readers’ attention, polishing your manuscript at the technical level, and getting objective feedback before you submit or go to press.

But

In addition to these public sessions, I’m also doing a few private one-on-one sessions with authors who signed up in advance.

The conference is sponsored by the Eastern Shore Writers Association, a nonprofit organization of writers from across the tri-state Delmarva Peninsula and is happening on March 12, 2016 at the Kent Humanities Building, Chesapeake College Intersection of Rt. 50 & 213, Wye Mills, Maryland.

For more info, please visit the Bay to Ocean conference website.

Bay to Ocean Writers Conference–February 22, 2014

This year I was thrilled to be invited back for one of my favorite annual events, the Bay to Ocean Writers Conference (BTO). Since 1998, this one-day conference has been held at Chesapeake College with a mission to “inform, encourage, and inspire writers and help them unravel the mysteries of the ever-changing publishing business.” To that aim the conference offers workshops, presentations, and panel discussions that bring writers and industry professionals together to explore a spectrum of the craft, from writing to marketing a book.

Each year the conference has grown steadily larger and more popular to the point that I now often find myself giving my presentations to a room brimming to capacity with a great mix of faces from all corners of the industry.

My talk this year (my fourth so far at BTO) was a “5 Step Self-Publishing Success Strategy.” It was very well-received and I was so pleased to hear afterwards from the conference organizers that attendee feedback called my presentation “a Master class” in self-publishing!

With statistics continually showing this indie method of publication is on an exponential rise, with no signs of fading as a passing fad (lucky for those us who are fans of it!), it is such an interesting time to teach self-publishing. The BTO conference, with its aim of keeping writers up-to-date with these kinds of transformations, is a perfect forum for encouraging and informing people who are keen to take advantage of the DIY approach but need some more information on how best to do so. As I mentioned in my presentation description, to navigate your way to self-publishing success, you need a plan designed for your type of book and you need to be aware of the unique opportunities and limitations of the industry.

Here are some other responses from attendees of the presentation:

[Ally’s] impressions were so clear and concise that they encouraged me to tweak my manuscript rather than toss it. I am delighted and enthralled all over again with the thought of finishing this story. Thank you for lending your talents.— Kathi Donegan, novelist

Ally’s outstanding knowledge of publishing was most informative. I could go on for numerous pages in the copious notes that I took and treasured at the end of this hour and a half workshop. She projects extraordinary compassion for writers and her ability to communicate is incredible.— Fran White, author of Family Secrets

Check here for more of my posts on the subject of self-publishing!

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