Writing and Publishing News

I’m often asked by authors who are keenly aware of their audience and how to reach them, “What more I can do to promote to this audience?” The author might list the activities they’ve engaged in and even admit that they were mildly successful. “When I do this, I sell books. But I want to sell more books, what do you suggest?”

What do I suggest? Do more of what you’re doing. Solicit more reviews, be guest blogger at more sites that are relevant, go out and speak more often to your readers, ramp up your use of social media—including your blog… If sales increase after you’ve done a promotion, do more promotions. If books fly off the shelves at the local museum gift shop when you offer a discount or book sales increase when you appear at a school, for example, definitely do more of this.

But add to your repertoire, as well. Seek out new potential audiences. Try getting your book in a appropriate catalogs or featured at new sites. Create other items related to the theme of your book and use them to generate sales—an adult color book, note cards, tee-shirts, calendars, etc. Entice people to your website for puzzle challenges, freebies, a hint or quote of the day, etc. in order to attract more potential readers.

When I published my first book, back in 1978, just half of this effort would result in an abundance of sales, however we didn’t have the Internet in those days, so promotion was all done in person or via snail mail—remember press releases and promotional mailings? For authors today, the competition is fierce. You probably didn’t realize this when you decided to enter into the world of publishing. You saw other people producing books in your genre or on your topic and thought it seemed like a good idea. If you’d taken the time to study the industry before getting involved (which virtually no one does, yet definitely should!!!), you’d realize how much time, effort, creativity, and work it takes in order to garner a piece of the pie—sell an abundance of your book.

If your sales have dwindled or they never came about in the first place, it’s probably because you haven’t been asking for sales, pushing for them, striving to get them. You’ve done nothing or just the minimum to get your book noticed.

Tomorrow, I’ll offer additional ideas for promoting your book. In the meantime, be sure to check out my books for authors. Allworth Press has produced four of them—Publish Your Book, Promote Your Book, Talk Up Your Book, and the latest, Propose Your Book. These books are in print, e-book, and audio form at http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=patricia+l+fry+allworth I’ve also created a series of “50-Ways” e-booklets for $1.99 each. They include, “50 Ways to Promote your Novel,” “50 Reasons Why You Should Write That Book,” “50 Ways to Promote Your Ebook” and so forth. http://www.matilijapress.com.

Every author, entrepreneur, produce developer, artist, etc., is thinking ahead to the holidays—to holiday sales, to be more exact. If you’re on the ball, you’ve been planning your marketing strategies for months. You’ve ordered promotional materials. You’re ready to approach your audience/the consumer—or are you?

Some of you are already burned out on the marketing process. You’ve sent out an email blast and you’ve set up several events and without much response. Yeah, you’re ready to strut your stuff—start making those holiday sales, but your audience is not thinking about Christmas, yet. Most of them won’t give holiday shopping a thought until a week—maybe two weeks ahead of time, no matter how much pressure you put on them to order copies now! But that shouldn’t stop you from forging ahead with your message.

This year, I’m marketing a holiday story as part of the Klepto Cat Mystery series—“A Picture-Purrfect Christmas.” I’ve been involved with some kind of promotion every single day for the past two weeks or so and I’ll continue on this schedule until Christmas. So what am I doing in order to promote this book?

This week, I’m:

• contacting reviewers who are new to this series.
• reminding those bloggers and reviewers I’ve already contacted.
• seeking guest blog invitations from appropriate bloggers.
• addressing the Christmas cards I’ll be sending out to clients, colleagues, reviewers, etc.
• blogging at both of my blog sites and being active with my social media accounts.
• checking in with regard to tentative engagements—a signing and an open house where my books are being sold.
• handing out bookmarks.
• commenting at appropriate blog sites.
• arranging for additional interviews for blog sites (I’ve done two already).
• making sure I have plenty of print books to fill orders and to sell while I’m out and about.

That’s ten things I’m doing now and will continue to do over the next seven weeks. I’ll also:

• send out 150 or so Christmas cards with bookmarks and maybe a discount coupon, free sample of our note cards, etc.
• participate in signings and other local events.
• write guest blogs for a variety of blog sites.
• do another email blast promoting the book.
• run a contest or two at my Catscapades blog site.

Believe it or not, while I’m involved in these tasks pretty much daily, I’m writing book 14 in the series and participating in everyday life with family and friends. I even clean house once in a while.

If you want to see sales spike during the holidays, it’s up to you to make it happen. Start now planning your strategy and putting it into action. We’d love to know how you did with it.

To learn more about the book I’m promoting, go to: http://www.matilijapress.com/Klepto-Cat-Mysteries

Authors must think ahead. We don’t just write a book and then market it. We must plan the book; consider the audience and their needs, think about the timing of the project, and design it to suit the purposes. Then we write the book with the audience in mind so that it is cohesive, well-organized, and/or entertaining. When it comes to marketing, it’s also important to plan ahead. Who will you market to, where are they, what strategies will attract this particular audience, and so forth.

In the offices of Patricia Fry and Matilija Press (home of many books for authors and the Klepto Cat Mystery series), I’m preparing for the holidays. And I have been since June.

I planned and wrote a Christmas story as part of the Klepto Cat Mystery series. And now I’m in promotion mode—yes, even in October. I’ve been announcing the book to fans, reviewers, bloggers, friends, clients, colleagues, and family, suggesting it as a sweet read for the holidays and a lovely gift. It’s early, but many people procrastinate. Bloggers and reviewers might plan a special holiday event and I want to be included. Reviewers often have a long list of books to read. I want to get on that list so they’ll review my book before the holidays.

I’m lining up events, signing up for events, as well as taking advantage of other opportunities. For example, I’ll bring books and accompanying note cards to a reunion I’m attending soon. In fact, I’ve presold a dozen books to attendees already. Naturally, I’m donating books and note cards for the raffle.

I’ve ordered extra bookmarks to insert in my Christmas cards. And, in fact, I’ve had Christmas cards made with the charming cover of the Christmas book, which I’ll send in late November or the first of December.

I tried to sign up for a large event that occurs this month locally, but was too late to get a booth. I’ve noted the sign-up date for next year. I may or may not have a new Christmas book next year. If not, I have a dozen other books in the series I can sell. By then, I’ll probably have close to seventeen books in the series—which is another way I’m planning ahead.

If you’re writing or marketing a book and it’s conducive to holiday reading and/or giving, don’t waste another second. Start planning your promotional strategies now. Consider:

• Who is my audience?
• Where are they?
• What’s the best way to approach them?

Then move forward:

• Plan activities and events. (Signings, home parties, give-aways, blog-a-thons, be guest blogger, use social media in creative ways, etc.)
• Seek out appropriate activities and events. (This could take a whole lot of time and effort—but it’s worth it.)
• Sign up for appropriate activities and events.
• Design methods of getting word out about your book.
• Offer something more—a free gift with purchase, additional merchandise, etc.

Learn more by studying my book: Promote Your Book by Patricia Fry (Allworth Press). You’ll find it at Amazon.com and MatilijaPress.com.

For sweet holiday reading—and gift-giving, order A Picture-Purrfect Christmas, a Klepto Cat Mystery. Available for your Kindle and also in print. http://amzn.to/1kAI8I2

Order autographed copies here: http://www.matilijapress.com/Klepto-Cat-Mysteries/Picture-Purrfect-Christmas.html.

Order Klepto Cat Mystery note cards here: https://matilijapress.com/shop/product/klepto-cat-mystery-note-cards

For a couple of weeks now, I’ve been engaged in promoting my Christmas book—the 13^th in the Klepto Cat Mystery series A Picture-Purrfect Christmas. What a wild, crazy, and busy ride. One thing that occurred to me as I journeyed down that bumpy marketing road this time is that my books—and probably yours—have more than one audience and more than one profile of people who should receive the promotional material.

For me there are readers/fans (gotta love-em); reviewers (so important); bloggers seeking guests posts, books to feature and so forth; magazine/ezine editors at large, for publications related to my topic, and those for organizations I belong to; and then there are family, friends, and acquaintances who may or may not now or in the future read one of my books. As I work my way through my email list of nearly 2,000 addresses and research new online opportunities by way of blogs, ezines, etc., I continue to meet new fans and reviewers and I continue to add to my lists.

Keeping it all straight can be a challenge. Maybe some of you have ideas for doing that. As for me, I keep changing my way of organizing this process.

I also prepare different material with unique messages for each group of people I approach. While I want to invite reviewers and bloggers and editors of appropriate sites and publications to request a review copy or consider interviewing me, for example, my readers/fans receive something designed to entice them to scramble to Amazon and purchase the latest book. I send something more personal to reviewers and bloggers who’ve embraced the Klepto Cat Mysteries in the past and have given me lots of press. I present a more formal pitch to those who haven’t responded before, offering another brand of enticement and, of course, all the information they need. Likewise, I try different approaches with each book for potential readers at large—hoping this one will cause them to order a book for themselves or consider buying one as a birthday gift or for Christmas giving. An enticement might be a discount or a special gift.

This year, since I have a Christmas story to share, I ordered Christmas cards with the book’s cover on them and I’m collecting mailing addresses for key people—reviewers, colleagues, organization heads, and so forth. That has been a complex and complicated research project. Do you know how many people do not have a street (or even POB) address on their websites/blog sites? The process is taking some creative maneuvers along with some straight-forward activities such as emailing the individual asking for an address.

That’s working out nicely, especially since several of the people have asked for my address in return. How nice, now I have something to look forward to in my mail box come December, as well.

Yes, my Christmas card is more than a heartfelt greeting. It is also designed to prod the recipient to consider purchasing my Christmas edition of the Klepto Cat Mystery series as a gift for someone or several someones on their holiday list.

Let me know if you’d like to receive my special Christmas card offering this year. It may also include a bookmark. PLFry620@yahoo.com

Are you taking advantage of the season? It’s summer, you know. And what do people do during the summer months? They travel, they take time off work and relax around the house, and they visit friends and family. Many of them use this down time to catch up on their reading.

Think about it, you see people reading in airports, on planes, at the beach, while riding in cars on the freeway. And we read in private, too—at home in our backyard while the kids play in their kiddy pool, in the den after dinner, and in bed before lights out.

I’m sure you’re thinking that at least a portion of those readers should be reading your book. And they will be if you’ve written a book in the genre they enjoy, if it is written well, and if they know about your book and can easily locate and purchase it.

Don’t think like a hopeful author who has no concept of business—who simply wants to write and be read with little effort. In order to sell books, you must take on a business stance and start thinking like the CEO of your book. In business, we consider our customers and our competition and make sure we provide a unique product or service that is needed/wanted by a large group of consumers. Then we spread the word, advertise, widely promote the product or service so the consumer is aware of it and becomes interested in making a purchase.

If you want to sell your book, you must promote it. If you want your book to sell widely and continuously, then you’ll need to keep on promoting it.

If you still don’t grasp the concept of book promotion, please do your summer reading with my book, “Promote Your Book, Over 250 Proven, Low-Cost Tips and Techniques for the Enterprising Author.” It’s at Amazon in print, Kindle format, and audio. http://www.amazon.com/Promote-Your-Book-Techniques-Enterprising/dp/1581158572/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1435146447&sr=8-1&keywords=promote+your+book%2C+over

Klepto Cat Update

We’re still cranking out the mysteries here in the Matilija Press offices this summer. My 11^th Klepto Cat Mystery, PAWSitively Sinister debuted this month. And the reviews are stunning! Check all 11 mysteries out: http://amzn.to/1kAI8I2

As a reminder, the cats are ordinary cats—some of them doing extraordinary things. Only the people talk. These are cozy mysteries or light mysteries with a little humor and romance woven through. Try one this summer, you’ll probably get hooked.

I teach and preach about the importance of marketing for authors. Here are a couple of examples from my own recent experiences. As you know, I’m currently promoting my Klepto Cat Mysteries. I’m also still working with other authors on their projects—editing and consulting.

When a new book in the Klepto Cat Mystery series comes out, I immediately go into high marketing mode. My book suddenly becomes a product and I am the CEO of the company that has produced the product. (This is the attitude authors should take whether they self-publish, become independent publishers or go with a traditional publisher.)

Here is one result of my promotional efforts for the latest Klepto Cat Mystery, “PAWSitively Sinister.” It’s an incredibly positive 5-star review. http://www.mikishope.com/2015/06/book-review-pawsitively-sinister-klepto.html

Fran Silverman is the founder of the Book Promotion Newsletter and she’s a talk radio advocate. She made a connection for me with Lana at Talk Zone and we did a radio interview yesterday. Listen here: http://www.talkzone.com/episodes/199/DBI061615.html

This morning, I had a note from a librarian in New Hampshire who has ordered all 6 of the print books and wonders when the other 5 Klepto Cat Mysteries (now on Kindle) will be available in print.

Next week, I’m being interviewed for a TV show. This invitation came about when a colleague mentioned my new venture in mystery-writing to a producer.

Folks, none of this would have happened if I wasn’t actively spreading the word about my books with every publication. It isn’t luck or happenstance. It takes thought and planning and action. Thought, planning, action.

For more precise and detailed guidance with your writing or publishing project, be sure to read “Publish Your Book” and “Promote Your Book.” Soon to join these books is “Propose Your Book, How to Craft Persuasive Proposals for Nonfiction, Fiction, and Children’s Books.” I’ll be making an official announcement soon.