I’ve been creating free 50-way reports for authors at my PatriciaFry.com website for a couple of years. I’ve done four of them, and I have a new one ready to post. So watch for the announcement.
Have you thought of doing this type of promotion for your nonfiction book? Can you come up with a list of 50, 25 or even 10 tips, ideas, resources or little-known-facts/trivia related to the topic or theme of your book? It’s a good exercise for creating presentations, articles and new books on your topic as well as freebies for your readers. Here are some examples that might help you get started:
1: For a how-to or informational book on aviation, gardening, horse racing, selling a house more quickly, foods/cooking, family finances or organization techniques, for example, consider the following: 10 of the easiest (most fun) planes to fly and why; 25 flowering indoor plants you can grow; 10 tips for betting the horses; 50 tips for making your house more appealing to a buyer; 25 ways to create more attractive dishes; 50 ways to help your kids learn money awareness; 25 ways to become more organized.
2: Some nonfiction books are more conducive to the list—for example, travel, parenting and educational. But you still might be able to come up with interesting and educational list items for a memoir (10 things you didn’t know about my home country or state; 25 ways to sell your art; 25 tips for curing cancer…), for true adventure (25 ways to stay safe in the wilderness, 10 things every horseback rider should know…) or a scientific book (10 ways to get the most out of a visit to an aquarium, 25 bugs and beetles you want in your yard…)
3: You can provide lists for fiction, too. I know an author who writes western romance novels. She offers readers lists of old west trivia. Fun stuff. If your book is set in another century or country, if it features or touches on a real event or person in history or if it has a supernatural, spiritual, lesson aspect, consider lists of little-known facts, interesting trivia, revealing details and so forth along these lines.
If you are an author, you know your book inside out. But many of you have never dissected your story or your nonfiction book to the degree that you should in order to adequately describe it, write powerful back cover copy or a press release, prepare a fascinating speech or use material and innuendoes from your book in order to promote it. Maybe this will give you something to think about.
Once you come up with your list, share it here with my readers.