I need your help. Part of building your PLATFORM is recognizing you need others to help you along the way. That’s true for you. It’s true for me.

As we’re approaching the launch of my new book, I’ve decided to try something different. I am inviting 100 of my readers to join me in creating a special “Platform Launch Team.” It’s a peer group of people who are willing to roll up their sleeves and help get the word out about the book.

My new book, Platform: Get Noticed in a Noisy World, has just started shipping to bookstores. The official publication date is Tuesday, May 22. In a moment, I’ll tell you why you should WAIT until then to buy it.

First, let me tell you a little about the book.

Thomas Nelson just released the full version of The Voice Bible translation. It represents the combined work of more than 100 Bible scholars, pastors, writers, musicians, poets, and artists.

The goal of this new translation was to allow the one divine Voice speak through the unique and diverse human voices who wrote the books of the Bible without attempting to homogenize the final product. The Voice does a masterful job of capturing the passion, grit, humor, and beauty that is often lost in other translations.

Launching anything new is tough. If you’re like me, you have more on your plate now than you can say grace over. How in the world could you make time for one more thing?

That’s what I thought back in December when I first started thinking about launching a new podcast. I had already been doing a podcast based on an adult Sunday school class I teach. But, after 83 episodes, I stopped in May of 2011.

If you’re an aspiring author, have ever wondered what happens to your book proposal after it arrives at the publishing house? Sometimes, I’m afraid, the acquisition process appears to be a sort of “black box.” Proposals are inserted into the black box and then disappear—for weeks. At some point they pop out. Most are sent back to the author with a rejection letter. A precious few actually become a book.

But what happens while the proposal is inside the box?

In this post I want to describe the internal proposal review process. If you have ever wondered how in the world publishing houses decide what to publish, this post is for you.

I admit, when I hear someone suggest that you can take your blog posts and turn them into a book, I am skeptical. But when I really thought about it, for all my skepticism, and as much as it pains me to admit it, my first book, To Love Is Christ, came about just that way. Let me explain.

On August 1, 2002 I made a vow to God. He and I weren’t on the best of terms at the time, and when I finally got fed up hearing myself complain, or filling my journal with more whine, I decided to do something dramatic. My strategy was both simple and logical. That morning I decided since the Scripture tells me that God is love, I would write every day for one year on that one subject, love. That was it. That was my strategy.

I have now been using the Kindle Fire for about a month. I thought I’d weigh with my impressions thus far. This isn’t intended to be a thorough, technical review. It is simply my view as a publishing professional and e-reader enthusiast.

I have been a fan of the Kindle since Amazon introduced it in 2007. I have bought every iteration since then and have been pleased with the evolution of the device. The simplicity, battery life, and integrated buying experience have been delightful.

Last week, FrugalDad published an amazing graphic about Amazon. Since 1994, Jeff Bezos, the CEO, has steadily grown the company. I knew it was big, but I had no idea how big.

This infographic is worth studying in detail. No author, retailer, or publisher can afford to ignore this behemoth. (Don’t miss the question at the end. Please leave a comment! I’d like to know what you think.)

I have yet to meet an author who thought his/her publisher did enough marketing or who was satisfied with the royalties received. Most have the fantasy of writing the book, submitting the manuscript, and then sitting in a lawn chair next to the mailbox, waiting on those big checks to show up. The reality of publishing and the source of real income is a quite different picture.

Several years ago Mark Victor Hansen, author of Chicken Soup for the Soul, told a small group of us author wannabes something that revolutionized my approach to writing. He said, “Everyone I meet wants to write a book. I tell them, ‘Write your book. Do a great job. Now you’re 10% finished. The remaining 90% consists of marketing, promoting, developing ancillary products, etc.’”

If you are writing a book—or thinking about it—you have no doubt considered self-publishing. Thanks to recent developments in technology, it has never been easier or less expensive.

A few years ago, we launched a self-publishing division at Thomas Nelson called WestBow Press. We did so in partnership with Author Solutions, the largest self-publishing company in the world. They have proven to be great partners.