Writing and Publishing News

What have you done this week toward the promotion of your book? What will you do this weekend? Do you have plans for promoting it next week? Next month? Or have you run out of ideas, energy and enthusiasm for book promotion?

After all, you didn’t sign up to be a promoter when you decided to write a book did you? Maybe not as far as you are concerned. The typical author focuses on writing and producing a book with little thought about how he or she will generate sales. Some of you are at a total loss when it comes to book promotion. But here’s the reality: The author is responsible for promoting his or her book. And when you stop promoting, the book will die.

So let me ask you again, what did you do this week to promote your book? What will you do this weekend? What plans do you have for promoting it next week? Month?

Here are a few ideas for this Easter weekend:

1: Locate three websites related to the subject, theme and/or genre of your book and see if you can become involved. How? Participate in their forum, ask to have your book reviewed for their newsletter or offered as recommended reading at the site. Open a line of communication with the director and find out if they need articles (or stories) for their site or newsletter or if you could help in any other way which might afford you some publicity for your book.

2: Start a blog and vow to post at least three times per week. What will you write? If your book is nonfiction, post information, resources, news items, instructions and so forth related to your book topic. Share your perspective with others who are interested in this subject. If your book is fiction, create a blog around the theme of your story or the genre. Share some of your experiences as a writer and maybe some of your stories.

3: Locate three magazines or newsletters where you could submit articles or stories designed to promote your book. Study the submission guidelines and write a query letter or submit a story, for example. How do you use articles or stories to promote your book? By demonstrating your knowledge and/or talent through the article or fiction piece. You mention your book and ordering information in the bio at the end of the submission. People who find you credible in your field or who like your style of writing will be interested in purchasing your book.

4: Stop in at a local independent bookstore and arrange to have your book placed there. It is easier than you might think. While the mega-bookstores are run by corporate headquarters and managers are held to rigid policies, independent bookstore owners are often pleased to carry good books by local authors.

5: Contact a reporter or columnist at a local newspaper with a story idea. Or ask about an interview. Does your book topic fit in with one of the regular columns—cooking, pets, parenting, seniors, health, business, finance, etc? Ask about a book review for the appropriate column. Some newspapers run book review columns. Or simply come up with an interesting angle on your story and pitch it to a columnist or reporter.

6: Locate three new publications where you could get your book reviewed.

7: Find three places where you could possibly do a book signing, demonstration or reading—bookstores, specialty shops related to the theme of your book, house parties, group meeting, etc.

There you are. Pursue these seven book promotion ideas this weekend and you could ultimately sell dozens of books that would otherwise remain stored in boxes in your garage or storage unit.

Learn more about book promotion and how to develop your own marketing plan by taking my online course, Book Promotion Workshop. http://www.matilijapress.com/course_bookpromotion.htm

Check out the six other courses offered by Patricia Fry: http://www.matilijapress.com/courses.htm

This entry was posted on Saturday, April 23rd, 2011 at 4:52 am and is filed under Book Promotion. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.