From Ugly Duckling to Swan: The Narcissist: A User’s Guide
Written by Deb Dorchak - February 2, 2010 2 Comments
Once upon a time there was a baby ebook. It wasn’t much to look at. It was gray and awkward. Anyone looking at it may have turned their nose up at it, dismissing it as another amateur attempt to be bigger than it was. This baby ebook may not have sparkled like some of the other beautiful ebooks in the pond, but all it took was one person to see the potential that lay beneath.
Suckers for Packaging
How many times have you gone into a book store and bought a book simply because you liked the cover? C’mon, admit it, you know you’ve done it a million times. I know I have. Show me a great cover and right away my mind thinks “Ooo…pretty – must be a good read! Must have!”
*BUZZZ* Wrong. Nine times out of ten, it wasn’t a good read and I was sorry I bought it. But damn, that cover was purdy!
Now, think about all the times you passed up a book because you were totally turned off by the outer packaging. Bet you can count the number of times on one hand that you actually bought one of those, huh?
Whether you like it or not, if you want your ebook to sell, it’s got to look good. Sounds pretty shallow, doesn’t it? But Deb! It’s not all about looks! What’s underneath is what matters most!
That may be so, or at least we’d like to think so. Maybe in a perfect world this is the norm. Not in this world.
A Swan in My Email
Last week I wrote about a special collaborative effort between Sirius, Lori Hoeck and Betsy Wuebker. Today, The Narcissist: A User’s Guide is taking flight.
Like a house deemed a “fixer-upper”, Lori’s book had fantastic content. I really felt she and Betsy both put their hearts and souls into it. They wanted this to work, to be big – or at the very least to help just one person.
Well, they did. They helped me. I believed in it too, and knew all the book needed was one tiny push more. It needed a little help breaking out of that shell and shedding its baby feathers. There was a swan in there somewhere and I was determined to help them find it.
Where’s Your Swan?
Do you have a project you believe in? I’m sure you do. The beautiful thing about being so connected in this day and age is it’s not difficult to find someone to partner up with. You have one set of skills you rock at, someone else has another. If you can find the common ground that will help you both get you to where you want to be, there’s nothing wrong with taking a chance to build something good.
Lori and Betsy’s book has grown into something that exceeded their expectations and Sirius is proud to be a part of that. Go on over and get your copy now, you’ll be glad you did.
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Read the Comments
2 Outstanding Responses to "From Ugly Duckling to Swan: The Narcissist: A User’s Guide"
Betsy Wuebker on February 2, 2010 at 12:10 pm | Permalink
Hi Deb – You are absolutely right that this e-book was an ugly duckling. It was so ugly it could’ve worn army boots! I looked at our version side by side with your glorious design and it was like looking at two different planets. Same content, different delivery. Lori and I don’t have enough grateful to thank you sufficiently. You made our content sing, and we’ll be singing your praises everywhere we can. It has been an awesome experience collaborating with Sirius and we are looking forward to more!
Betsy Wuebker’s last blog post… Laying the Keel
Lori Hoeck on February 3, 2010 at 5:03 am | Permalink
“Ugly duckling” is too kind!
Your skills were nothing short of jaw dropping when we saw the changes. It’s as if you tapped into our writer psyches and found the perfect look. How cool is that?
The feedback we’ve received is nothing short of inspiring — for content and design. As Betsy writes, we can’t thank you enough — but we are going to try anyway!
Lori Hoeck’s last blog post… Dark side of narcissism abuses mind and body