Making of a CMA book in the 21st century

[SPJ]

I like to devote this thread to both readers and writers of CMA or any MA books.

I will post the stories and conversations with my brother on our experiences in putting out a CMA book in English.

Why English and not Chinese? My brother asked.

Because if the text is in English, it may reach a wider audience. If it is successful, the book will be translated in Chinese and other languages later.

Feel free to jump in and give your feedback anytime.


:D

[SPJ]

1. What about? CMA has a lot of stuff.

I think we will write about principles with examples.

2. Why not specific moves with pictures?

I think these should be left to the teachers. Besides, there are a lot of video info in VCD, and DVD in the market. Pictures in the book format may not be as good as those in DVD's.

3. I read the manuscripts. It is easy to read the principles with examples. But the quizzes, big brother or Da Ge are way too hard?

I merely reposted the titles or Q's from principles just given in the chapters.

I decided to drop the quizzes in the future.

4. What the books about?

I think that the books are to help people understand CMA and give them study tips or review materials for students learning from a teacher.

[SPJ]

In the long run, the books will be a good reference source for the general public.

But I really do not want to translate things already written into English only.

I have notes from the classics (Quan Jing), lessons with teachers, and my own study notes.

So in essence, the books are my notes or my reviews and own interpretations from my learning.

But to be balance, I will only write a certain part about my own interpretations and for the most part, the texts are from the teachings passed down from generations plus my own understandings.

So that there is a continuation of knowledge.

People will read about what has been said and what I think about them.

[SPJ]

I said that do you know how hard it is to write about moves and apps?

No wonder that in old Chinese MA books, there were only drawings and names. They are called the boxing notes or Quan Pu.

There are also poems in details of the moves, apps, tactics and strategy etc. These are called the boxing bible or Quan Jing.

Yes. I agreed that a picture may save a thousand words. In the future book, there will be pictures.


5. What are the costs?

It costed me 20,000 $ last year. The publishing costs are about 3,000 $. But news wire, ads in USA today over labor day weekend (3,000$), ads in KFTC and IKF monthly etc costed more.

6. What are we going to promote the books other than running ads?

I think that we have to promote ourself, so that people know about us.

I sent the hardcopies to Amazon.com so that people may look inside before they buy them.

I hope that the public libraries start to collect them. Then people may read by loaning the books without cost.

I started to post in MA forums so that people know about us.

Most of the info are considered "secrets". But I have to disclose some info so that people may know a little bit about what we know.

But I still do not disclose too much in the forum. Because the students should get all those info directly from the teachers.

However, I may discuss about the principles and still leave the specifics and "secrets" to the students' teachers.

[SPJ]

It was raining all winter. There was even a Tsunami storm in the India ocean.

My manuscript for Tai Ji 13 Shi is already written before the holidays.

But we needed a day with no rain, so that we may have pictures taken.

I have the light grayish top of Tang clothes or Tang Zhuan and dark pants. This way it may indicate Tai Ji with 2 opposing Yi or colors.

The rains finally stopped in Southern California.

We went to the nearby Acorn park, I "posed" in Tai Ji postures on a cemented trail. The background is in the park.

The publisher book cover designer superimposed the Tai Ji Diagram behind me with the opposing colors. It turned out fine. I love the designs.

It would take them 2 more weeks to insert 64 images and format the text.

Then it started to rain again. Of course the rest of the country is covered with snows.

[Yum Cha]

All your comments indicate you are devoted to Chinese martial arts, yet your website uses images of Japanese Martial arts.

I suggest this may damage your credibility a bit, I would replace them with more Wushu-ish images.

I think most martial arts readers would differentiate wushu from traditional martial arts, regardless of the contention by wushu practitioners that it encompases all traditional chinese martial arts. I don't think you can be all things to all people. I would look at narrower topics, and go for the most depth you can.

Gool luck on your project.

[SPJ]

Thank you very much for your feedback.

I have to talk to my website manager to do some changes.

[WanderingMonk]

OMG

$20,000 USD to publish and advertise?

I hope you get your money back.

May be you should submit some articles to KFTQ, etc. that way, you can promote your books in the aritcle (or at the end of the article), get pay some money, and get some additional exposure instead just buying ads.

here's an idea that you might not want to try (but since I typed it up already, mind as well include it)

get your students to spar against some mma people. narrate how to apply CMA principle against these opponents and have your student demo. video tape it and post it on the web with an ad at the end for your book. the taping and edit part might cost a bit, but it all depend how computer incline you are. the more incline, the less the cost. since video edit software are readily available and include with some capture card. finding a mma guy who will be willing sparring dummy might cost a bit.

that will get you a lot more interest right away. but, that might not be the crowd you want to attract.

[SPJ]

7. Books in color and the pricing.

If it is in black and white, we may print up to 200 to 300 pages with a reasonal price to consumers.

If it is in color, the publisher said that it only goes to 120 pages with a comparable price to the buyers.

So I chopped the texts.

A book with 50 images or more is called a picture book. Which means the text has to be even shorter or not as important as the pictures.

I have to cut the number of images down to 64. I cannot cut any more. But the number exceeds the 50 norm. Of course, I will be charged more.

Now I really have to cut the texts to accommodate the pictures.

I ended up with a miminal text. It is almost like reading a note book.

Anyway, the text is from my Chinese notes anyway. So the book has all the essential points with no excess wording at all.

But I hope to get as many points as possible across to the readers.

I hope the new format will work for the readers.

[SPJ]

WM;

Yes, it is very expensive to run a decent ad especially on a national level.

I have a 5 day full time job and business to run.

I wish I have more time to write articles for mag.

Thank you very much for the advices.

I have a script for the mag. I need time to finish it and have pictures taken.

With the passing of many of my teachers in Taiwan, I made a commitment to write books on CMA, may be one book per year.

I also allocated some funds to do that every year.

[SPJ]

I may reconsider my ad campaign.

I am looking into ad in the Blackbelt mag.

Even though that mag targets karate and TKD schools and students.

But I may be able to reach these crowds by doing so.

[SPJ]

I discussed some Q and A with the book designers over the phone.

They are formatting down to the last chapter.

I will receive a CD of proof galley.

For the text only, the publisher is using website to download or correct the proof. So that there is no mail or paper per se.

For a color book with many images, the most efficient way is to mail me a CD.

Because, it would take forever to download the images.

Talking about publishing paperbooks in the 21st century.

;)

[SPJ]

It is an inner half of a circle.

You move your hand from the waist with palm side down circularly inward and upward with palm side facing upward.

The move is lead by the pinkie. The pinkie and the thumb close up a little so the hand is like holding a cup or there is some depth in your palm.

See the pinkie is pointing upward a little. This is Yang Zhang. Palm side facing downward is called Fu Zhang.

This is inner circling or Nei Xuan.

The hand may be reversed back to hip while the other hand circling upward.

When the 2 forearms cross and pass each other is called He or close your center line or Tai Ji.

When the hands separate is called Kai or open Tai Ji.

My palms and 2 hands have a yin and yang and change roles.

The inner half circular movements of my hand and arms is half of a Tai Ji circle.

There is a small Tai Ji circle around my wrist by changing palm sides facing up or down and vice versa.

There is a big Tai Ji circle in front of my chest/abdomen area by movements of the forearm and the elbow.

The waist and knee are not joining in yet.

In short, it is a yin and yang Tai Ji posture with palms and forearms. I draw a Tai Ji circle in front of me.

The background has a Tai Ji diagram with opposing Yi's to my hand form, meaning that my hands have Yin and Yang, and my mind is on the opposing Yang and Yin. We are ready to change.

My body and my mind both have Tai Ji.

Cheers.

:D