Happenings at Whizbang Books

I may have made internet history.

Last month I created the Whizbang Books Online Catalog. I did it with a blog. So, if it's a catalog in blog format, does that make it a blogalog? I've never seen another blogalog. If somebody else has, I'd like to know about it.

You can now go to the Whizbang Books Online Catalog and find information about all the Whizbang books and other products I sell. You can even see and read about (and buy) my books from the days before I started Whizbang books.

Why make a catalog in blog format? There are three reasons:

1. A blog is easy to establish, modify, and otherwise work with.
2. Blogs are free.
3. The Google search engine seems to favor blogs.

The only drawback I can see to a simple blogalog it that I can not offer click-and-buy-it-RIGHT-NOW-with-a-credit-card convenience. The conventional wisdom is that if I offered internet credit card purchasing, my sales would at least double and maybe even triple. I do not doubt that. But, still, I resist. I guess I'm just an old fashioned sort of guy. I'll come around to credit cards... someday... maybe.

The blog format does allow me to make a mail-in order form, of sorts. And I will take PayPal payments. A lot of my business is done with PayPal. You can use credit cards through PayPal. So I guess I do take credit cards.

Someday I'll get myself a real web site, not just a blogalog. But it'll do the job for now. Here's that link again: Whizbang Books Online Catalog

Whizbang Garden Cart Contest Winner
Last year's Whizbang book release was Anyone Can Build a Whizbang Garden Cart. To help spread the word and create some interest in the Whizbang Cart, I decided to sponsor a Whizbang Garden Cart Contest for 2007.

The contest ended on December 1st of last year. There was only one entrant so there was one winner. The first prize of a $100 gift certificate to Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds went to Don & Caleb Underwood of Nebraska.

You can read the winning details here.

Whizbang Garden Cart Contest for 2008
So you missed out on winning a prize in last year's cart contest. Too bad. But I've got good news. I will be posting information about the 2008 Whizbang Garden Cart Contest at the garden cart blog this weekend.


New Catalogs Carry Whizbang Books
I am pleased to announce that the Whizbang Garden Cart book is now featured in the 2008 Murray McMurray Hatchery catalog. It's also in the Pinetree Garden Seeds catalog.

By the way, it was a real surprise to see that The Lovely Marlene (my wife) is also featured in the Pinetree Garden Seeds catalog. There is a picture of her with the cart.

Pinetree and the Territorial Seed Company catalog are also carrying my book, The Complete Guide to Making Great Garlic Powder.

I have not yet received my 2008 Heirloom Acres Seeds catalog but I see from the Heirloom Acres web site that they have now added the Whizbang Garden Cart book, The Whizbang Chicken Plucker book, and the Whizbang Chicken Scalder book to their offerings. Heirloom acres already carried my Great Garlic Powder book and Writings of a Deliberate Agrarian. So, now, Heirloom acres and Cumberland Books have the distinction of being the only two places that sell ALL of my Whizbang books. And I am most appreciative!

My Next Book Project
it is January. A new Year. Time for me to get going on another Whizbang book. As mentioned here in the past, I have plans to publish a FREE online how-to book (in blog format, of course). I still intend to do that. But I've decided to first publish another paper and print book.

I'm researching and gathering material for this project now. The book will be something different for me. It will center around American agrarian history and culture. The book will be inspiring, entertaining, instructional, and practical. Anyone who appreciates rural living and rural history will appreciate and enjoy this next book. That's all I can say for now. I hope to have the manuscript to the printer by the end of March.

Less Blogging Ahead
I've been blogging here at The Deliberate Agrarian for almost three years now. I love to write about Faith, Family, & Livin' The Good Life. I have alot yet to say and share and, Lord willing, I will blog here for a long time to come. But for the first quarter of this year, as I focus on my next book, I expect to blog less than in the past. I hope you will be patient with me and stop by every so often.

Best wishes,

Herrick Kimball

6 comments:

Fabian Fibonacci said...

-> Have you seen the software from Google called Sketchup? I am sure paper and pencil is what you require for most of your design but a fellow at work showed me the software today and some work he had done in it and I was quite impressed. Thought you might be interested.

http://www.sketchup.com/

-> Any garlic powder left?

-> Hopefully your readers are using a tool like Google Reader. No need to check in on your blog, when you post it shows up in reader!

Anonymous said...

Does this mean you changed your mind about selling the Whizbang business?

-Ellendra

Herrick Kimball said...

Hi Etahn-
I will check out sketchup.
Yes, I do still have some garlic powder left. Not much, but some.
I guess I better check into Google Reader. I don't even know about it myself. Thanks for the info.

Hi Ellendra-
Yes.
"Fatigue makes cowards of us all" (Vince Lombardi).)
I was feeling overwhelmed and tired when I wrote the blog about selling the business. I pulled it the next day.

I think you were one of the people who contacted me? I thought I e-mailed you about it. But I was having problems with my Outlook Express.

I've decided to stay the course. Thank you.

Unknown said...

Herrick,

Good choice on not selling the biz. A lot of what is your brand is you, personally. Not sure another could get the same value from it at this point.

On the blog-a-log - no way to link directly to paypal to pay for the items - using cash or credit? I see other web sites doing it - but not in a blog. Maybe look at some, view the source on the page and see if the html is portable to your blog? Just a thought.

John

Unknown said...

Herrick,

Here is a link to an article on how to get the html for a buy-it-now and add it to a web page. Probably worth a try if you can test it out on blogger...

http://forums.digitalpoint.com/showthread.php?t=625362

Dan said...

Dear Herrick,

I'm a stay-at-home dad of three (daughter and two sons) and I homeschool. Wife of 13 years is an ER nurse and, though I have an MA in Counseling, she does better with making $$. We're a Christian family and are involved regularly in our church (I have a BS in Christian Ministry).
Recently I've discovered that some really deep urges and desires could likely be met by homesteading. I'm a Master Gardener and have always loved country life and farm animals. My grandparents were homesteaders too. Now all I have to do is get out there and do it. Until I can get some land, I'm gonna step up my production right here by doing more canning, freezing, etc.

Look forward to reading more.

Dan Ferren in Indiana