Book Promotion Tips for Authors - What I Learned at JRW's The Writing Show
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l-r Karen Chase, Sarah Lapallo Beck, Angela Dominguez, and Ellen Whitfield - James River Writers' "The Writing Show"
Recently, I attended James River Writer's "The Writing Show." The topic was Discoverability: Beyond Social Media with Sarah Lapallo Beck, Angela Dominguez, and Ellen Whitfield. Here are some of the things I learned about book and author promotion.
- Being an author is a job, and you need to be professional.
- You need a unified presence (e.g. website, give-aways, blog, social media sites, etc.)
- Always do your research on agents, publishing firms, and those you hire to assist you with your book.
- Networking is key for authors. Go to conferences, book events, and join writers' groups.
- Newsletter swaps are a great (low cost) way to expand your audience. Find another author who does a newsletter, and be a guest or do a take-over of his/her newsletter. When you share, you introduce your book to new readers.
- We almost always think about editing and proofreading our work. Sometimes, we forget about our marketing materials and website. Make sure that your materials are as polished as they can be.
- As an author, you need a press or media kit.
- Make sure that you have a professional author photo (no selfies).
- Blog tours are a great way to get the word out about your book and you as an author.
- Make sure you have an elevator pitch for your book. Write it out and practice it. It needs to be a few sentences with a hook. Your goal is to create a connection and for people to want to buy your book. Practice delivering your pitch and find others who will critique it for you.
- Look at your promotional materials and social media sites.Find ways you can improve.
- If you're sending out advance reader copies (ARCs) for reviews, and they're ebooks, you may want to explore companies like NetGalley and BookFunnel.
