A Conversation with Kimberly A. Davison-Fujioka,
Author of "Tutoring: Complete Home Business Guide"
 |
| Featured Author, Kimberly A. Davison-Fujioka "Tutoring: Complete Home Business Guide" |
Why did you feel you had to write TUTORING: Complete Home Business Guide?
I wrote my non-fiction book because I had worked as a successful tutor for many years. The techniques and methods of making money that I used are all included in the book. I wrote it to share what I had been doing myself. I wanted other people to tutor as a way of making an income. I really enjoyed tutoring and met many lovely people over the years. Actually I met my husband while tutoring. He was a medical student at the University of Pittsburgh Medical School. I was teaching ESL at the University of Pittsburgh. In addition, I tutored part-time. I advertised in the Pitt News. He answered my ad and the rest is history. (My husband is from Japan.) While I cannot promise that you will find a husband through tutoring, you will certainly meet interesting people.
Where do you get your ideas?
My ideas come directly from my own experience. I taught for many years; and I have a master’s degree in teaching. I have been in the teaching and tutoring field for over 20 years. I have written and published many professional articles on teaching methods. During the years I taught, I developed teaching methods and published my positive results in professional journals. The teaching methods I developed for a classroom, I modified for individual and group tutoring sessions. I outline these applicable methods in the second part of the book. These are used by teachers all over the world. (When I was a teacher many teachers who had read my published articles, contacted me with the positive results they had by applying my teaching methods.) In this book, I explain very simply how to use the methods.
Do you ever experience writer’s block and how do you overcome it?
I don’t experience writer’s block. However I do have many conflicting obligations- family, friends, work and writing. It is difficult to balance it all. I make a plan and schedule that is doable and then I stick to it. I make a scheduled time to write. I outline my book then I write one section at a time. Each chapter has several sections. I have written 5 books. Each one has taken me about 8 to 10 months to write. When I write a book, I work on it daily for 4 to 10 hours. After it is totally written, I edit the book. I hire a proofreader to proof it before I send it to press. I always get a proof (post press) from the printer so I can look it over one last time. If there are errors in the proof, I correct them before I let it approve it for full printing. (Recently, printers are encouraging authors to proof online instead of waiting for the physical book in the mail. I never do that because examining the physical book is very different from an online view. I want to see what my readers will see before I approve it. I usually make changes, usually because something doesn’t look right on the page.)
What advice would you give to aspiring writers on the writing and publishing process?
I would say, “Write about what you know.” For example, if you write a novel then have the setting be a city you know well. If you write about something of which you know little, you will have to do research. If you write a mystery, have the main character be in a profession that you are familiar with. For example, if you are a computer programmer who knows a lot about software and programming then the murderer could be in that same profession. The idea is that the story and characters are more believable if your details are accurate. If you write about something you know, all the details will be there.
How do you market your work? Have you found some avenues to be more successful than others?
I have one piece of advice: Marketing yields better results when done from the micro level. In short, pinpoint your audience or reader then focus marketing efforts on that group. (In other words, don’t attempt to market to a broad audience because you cannot please everyone; and if you try you’ll lose that precious few that will really love your work.) First, you must discover your audience. (This is not as easy as it seems.) Locate groups of people through directories on the internet. For example, if you write a mystery that involves drugging horses at a race track, maybe horse lovers would be interested in your book. Look for groups in yahoo groups, google groups and on Facebook. Look at blogs for people who are interested in horses and market your book there. However, maybe another niche audience would like that type of book, for example, people interested in poisons or forensics. The key is to use niche marketing techniques to locate interested readers. Secondly, be willing to guest post on a blog. When you guest post, you can promote your book. Have a book trailer made and upload it to the internet. Put it on You Tube, Goodreads and as many places as you can. Fiverr.com is a great place to find low priced marketing services like book trailers and testimonials. If you sell your book on Amazon, you can put your book trailer on the Author’s page. You can also upload video testimonials on the author’s page. Of course you need to have a web page for your book where readers can read some of the content and then purchase it. On this website they can read about you. Make sure you have lots of photos. Check out my book website: www.tutoringasuccessfulbusiness.com My site is pretty basic but it provides an overview of the book and the graphics convey that tutoring is a job where you are helping people.
If your book was made into a movie, who do you picture playing each part?
I would want it to be a PBS documentary program on how entrepreneurs are taking control of their lives by becoming successfully self-employed. I would want to be chosen as one of those individuals who decided early on in her life, to be a “do it yourself” kind of person. The other entrepreneurs would be selected from many diverse fields. The tone of the documentary would be upbeat, stressing that finding employment is not about looking outward, trying to fit into someone else’s mold. But the future of employment would be based upon looking inward to recognize one’s talents and then starting a business that can benefit others.
********************
About the Author:
I am a professional editor. I own my business, English Writing Help, Inc. (www.englishwritinghelp.com) I edit master’s theses, PhD dissertations and professional research. I also edit books. I taught English at the university level from 1982 to 2007. I taught at the University of California Davis and the University of California Berkeley as well as Saitama University in Japan. I have a master’s degree in English Literature and a PhD in Applied Linguistics. I am now writing a novel set in Pennsylvania.
********************
Synopsis:
- Set up your own Tutoring Business
- Decide What to Tutor
- Find Students who need a Tutor
- Establish your Hourly Rate
- Advertise your Services for Free
- Tutor Online Using Skype and other Video/Audio Messaging Services, Webcams and Audio for Teaching Online
- Create a Virtual Classroom
- Maintain Regular Monthly Income
Kimberly is an experienced ESL (English as a Second Language) teacher with 25 years of experience under her belt. In the second half of this book, she teaches you how to:
- Teach international students
- Speak English
- Make a Lesson Plan
- Teach the Beginning Speaker of English
- Teach English conversation using Pictures
- Teach English conversation with Podcasts
********************
FOR MORE INFO:
Website: http://www.tutoringasuccessfulbusiness.com
Twitter: cchttps://twitter.com/kimsenglishwrit
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kimberly.fujioka
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/kimberlyfujioka/
*****************
BUY THE BOOK:
Amazon: http://amzn.to/12MWFlM