Paul J. Hoffman presentation: Writing True Crime 

Paul J. Hoffman is an author, publisher, journalist, and actor. A native of Wisconsin, he spent 34 years in journalism, working as a sportswriter, news editor and nearly 20 years as special publications editor in Franklin and Columbus, Indiana, for Home News Enterprises and its successor, AIM Media Indiana.

Paul’s first book, Murder in Wauwatosa: The Mysterious Death of Buddy Schumacher, was published in 2012 by The History Press. It is the true story of the disappearance of an 8-year-old boy in 1925 and the subsequent investigation into the boy’s murder. Wicked Columbus, Indiana, published in 2017 by the same publisher, tells the true tales of some of that city’s more notorious stories.

He is the president and owner of PathBinder Publishing LLC, which he purchased in 2020.

Paul lives in Columbus with his wife, children’s author Kimberly S. Hoffman. They have six adult children and a granddaughter.

 

Join us on November 9 for our guest speaker, Paul J. Hoffman, who will speak to us on writing about true crime.

Paul J. Hoffman is an author, publisher, journalist, and actor. A native of Wisconsin, he spent 34 years in journalism, working as a sportswriter, news editor and nearly 20 years as special publications editor in Franklin and Columbus, Indiana, for Home News Enterprises and its successor, AIM Media Indiana. Paul’s first book, Murder in Wauwatosa: The Mysterious Death of Buddy Schumacher, was published in 2012 by The History Press. It is the true story of the disappearance of an 8-year-old boy in 1925 and the subsequent investigation into the boy’s murder. Wicked Columbus, Indiana, published in 2017 by the same publisher, tells the true tales of some of that city’s more notorious stories.

He is the president and owner of PathBinder Publishing LLC, which he purchased in 2020.

Paul lives in Columbus with his wife, children’s author Kimberly S. Hoffman. They have six adult children and a granddaughter.

Join us on November 9 for the DRS monthly meeting, followed by our guest speaker, Paul J. Hoffman.

• When: November 9, 2024
• Time:  
  • • • • • 11:00 am EST: business meeting
          • Noon:  Speaker Paul J. Hoffman

This meeting will only be zoomed – NO IN PERSON MEETING.

Please use the following link to register. 

Zoom Registration Link

Skeletal Analysis for Authors

Sara Marian will discuss how bioarchaeologists and forensic anthropologists go about estimating age-at-death, sex, and other features of a deceased person’s identity, as well as a crash course in how different types of trauma show up on skeletonized remains.

Sara Marian was raised in the woods by wild English teachers and has been writing for as long as she can remember. She is also a partner in Per Bastet Publications, a small press based in southern Indiana. Her fiction blends genres including fantasy and urban fantasy, cyberpunk and steampunk, mystery, historical fiction, literary fiction and comedy, and she is the author of over 200 nonfiction articles on the Clio history website. Her day job is archaeology.

Join us on October 12 at 11am for the DRS monthly meeting, followed by our guest speaker, Sara Marian at Noon.

• When: October 12, 2024
• Time:  11:00 am EST
• Where:  Middletown Library.

This meeting will also be zoomed. Please use the following link to register. 

Zoom Registration Link

 

Why a QR Code?

Many readers are interested in reading ebooks on their phones or iPad these days. Others enjoy listening to audiobooks while driving, working out, doing housework or just relaxing. Those fans also attend functions like book fairs where they can meet and shake the hand of authors, get to know them personally and learn what is new in their literary journey. They may not buy a signed physical book by you at that time, but they might if you can give them access to a way to buy the non-physical version they prefer right then and there.

You have a book they can buy, but if they’re not interested in the print version, you’ve lost a sale. Once they walk away from your table, there’s very little chance they will purchase that book. Life gets in the way, and they forget all about it.

The QR code is the answer to your dilemma of how to provide them instant access so they can do it immediately. A QR code instantly puts them in touch with the version of your book they want to purchase—while their urge to buy is immediate.

How do You Create a QR Code?

Here’s a step-by-step tutorial, showing you how to do just that on your PC. The process is similar but slightly different when done on an iPad or phone.

On Your PC

Go to your retailer page for the book in question. In the top blue lined box is the electronic address for this page. To the right inside the box is a square. Click on that box.

 

The QR code appears. Download it and save it to a file, where you can access it later for marketing purposes. Do this by clicking the three black dots on the right. A dropdown appears. Click Save As and file it in the location of your choice.

 

 

The same dropdown that allows you to save the file, allows you to copy it as well. Copy it and paste it to a Word document. You can now print it out and take the printout to events, so customers can buy their version from you immediately through the distributor you’ve linked them to.

Via iPad

This process is slightly different when done via an ipad. The dropdown looks like this. Click it. You see the dropdown with icons. Select the bottom one with FOUR squares in it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The QR code comes up. Save it to your file. Copy and paste it into your document. You are good to go.

If you are like most authors, you struggle to write blurbs and tag lines. You’ve crafted a 40-100,000 word novel and need to hone it down to a few words. It sounds impossible, but with this strategy it should be fairly simple

First, you must understand the purpose of burbs and tag lines.

Blurbs summarize what the story is about. Don’t give away the drama, only tell key parts to entice buyers to read the book.

It’s a good idea to write a short blurb and a long one. The long can be back cover copy and be used many places as you distribute the book. The short one is for distribution and ad channels that require fewer words in the blurb. Shoot for a 20-word blurb and a 40-word blurb.

 

Example blurb, from Ruth Rendell’s The Rottweiller:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tag Lines are one-to-two sentences that sell the story, usually placed on front cover. Think of this as advertising or sales copy. It tells the buyer what they’ll get from reading the book—suspense, intrigue, happy ending, magical feelings, whatever your story will provide the reader.

Formula:
1. Hero or heroine
2. Inciting incident
3. Emotional journey to growth
4. What they want/need
5. Disaster that happens if they don’t get it