A passion for helping other authors
I first met B. Alan Bourgeois through a rather cheeky exchange on Twitter. A few years ago, when I saw his tweet about the Authors Marketing Event (AME), I replied by asking if they needed someone to give a presentation on the topic of Twitter for Writers. Long story short: he said yes, and I’ve been attending (and teaching at) this wonderful (and FUN!) annual event ever since.
Alan doesn’t just write, he also spends time and energy helping authors learn to promote themselves. And I mean a LOT of time and energy. Frankly, I don’t know when or if he sleeps! Even though I see Alan every summer at AME, there’s always so much going on and he’s always so focused on making the event run smoothly (no easy feat!) that I’ve never really had the chance to ask about him. What makes him tick? I know he writes; I know he loves helping other writers; but why? I just wasn’t sure where all that came from.
After seeing his responses to my interview questions, I have a better understanding of Alan. At the lowest point in his life, he threw himself into helping others. I hope you enjoy learning more about B. Alan Bourgeois in the following 4 Question Author Interview:
1. Tell us about your writing routine, i.e. do you write every day, or at a certain time, or in a certain place, etc?
Alan: I have a double writing routine. First for my book and short story writings, I need to be locked away from TV, phone and other distractions so my mind can relax and I can allow for the spirit or energy to be released and for the story to unfold. I write it out by hand on paper first and then I will edit it via PC.
My second writing routine is for my businesses. As someone who helps authors around the country, it is important to keep them one step ahead of the publishing curve, so when something new is happening, or changes occur in the industry, I drop everything and write what needs to be said. Making sure that the authors are up to date as quickly as possible so that they may succeed.
2. Like you, I’m passionate about helping fellow writers, especially with promotion. My passion was born out of years of isolation and bullying. The internet, and especially Twitter, helped me find my tribe. So I’m curious about you; where did you get your tremendous passion and drive to help other writers from?
Alan: I have had the drive to help people from when I was a teenager. I was able to do this through a lot of programs over the years in a lot of forms. My desire to help authors came from my time as a publisher. While I was getting books published for authors around the world in the early 2000’s, I saw and felt how important marketing was and the massive growth that laid ahead for getting published.
In addition, I saw how some companies were out to just rip off the author with false promises and that just pissed me off. It was these two key aspects that led me to create the organization Texas Authors which is now the Authors Marketing Guild and helps authors worldwide.
When authors work with me and they see success, that is the happiest time for me related to this work. I am tickled to see that happen often. But, like me, an author has to work the programs and be determined in order to succeed.
Alan: In August 2011 at my lowest time in life, I created Texas Assoc. of Authors to help authors succeed. In 2018 I added the Indie Beacon group, which did the same things as Texas Authors, but for authors outside of Texas. In 2019, we merged these two organizations and made it a membership owned business.
As Authors Marketing Guild LLC (AMG), we are able to grow stronger and increase our opportunities for authors to get more exposure and have more opportunities to succeed. While our authors in the Middle East, or Eurpoe and Australia may have slightly different challenges then those in the USA, we work with them to get that help when possible.
It is exciting and scary to see how different countries are publishing books, or facing the changes in the electronic world. All of these challenges gives me more to work with to help authors worldwide.
4. Tell us about the AME and what authors can expect? Do they have to attend in person?
Alan: In 2016 as we continued to grow, we created the Authors Marketing Event (AME) which is an opportunity for authors to learn in person from professionals on how to better market and sell their books. This fun weekend includes the authors gala where we announce the winners of our two book contests, and celebrate being a published author.
In 2017 we began to record the sessions and put them online so people could access the videos and continue to learn all year, or even to refresh their memory during the year. Our events are so full of information, that the attendees leave a bit overwhelmed with the great valuable information, so the videos help keep them on track.
While it is the authors benefit to be at the weekend event in person, we do offer the videos online so they can still connect to the educational process. The videos are available for a fee, but those that attend in person get all the videos at no additional charge. That’s over 24 videos and growing with great tips and tools to help them through the process. Plus, those that attend the event pay less for the event and the video’s then if they purchase access to the videos on-line.
The Authors Marketing Event is a fun weekend event that continues to grow with attendees and value each year.
Learn more about B. Alan Bourgeois:
BIO: B. Alan Bourgeois has been writing for over 30 years in a wide variety of genres and styles. He has won numerous awards for short stories, books and speaking during his career. All of this has led him to become one of the leading author advocates for Indie Authors in the past 7 years. This includes nonprofits and other organizations that have spot lighted Texas & Indie Authors and moved them into the category and recognition of traditionally published authors from New York, Chicago and the West Coast.
Through the years he continues to create programs and events that have gained recognition across the country and in many cases are now being copied in local areas. Yet, as he will tell you, his greatest work is still to come with the publication of two books; Authors Revolution Workbook (2019) and I’m Crazy Great scheduled for release in 2021.
Through both of these books, he will show authors how to regain their control and financial wealth as writers, while also inspiring people from around the world to stay true to their dreams when it means helping others, even at your own cost.
For more information about Alan and his various projects, follow these links:
Books: Books by B. Alan Bourgeois
Twitter: @BAlanBourgeois
Authors Marketing Event info: Authors Marketing Event (AME) [Note from Tui: On February 16, the price for this action-packed weekend jumps from $199.95 to $249. It will go up to $495 by the event date. So if you want to learn helpful book marketing strategies either in-person or online, now’s the time to grab your ticket! I’d love to see you there!]
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