Do you believe that exposure is important to a book? Do you take advantage of the promotional opportunities that come before you in order to get exposure? Do you seek out ways to get additional exposure for your book?
I happen to know that some of you do and some of you don’t.
I’m in the process of offering authors exposure for their books. I’ve broadcast my need for authors to participate in a project that will give their books FREE visibility. I’ve contacted dozens of authors in recent weeks asking them to participate. And the response has been interesting.
First, very few authors have responded to my “broadcasts.” And about 1/3 of those I’ve contacted personally have either neglected to respond or they couldn’t figure out a way to participate.
You’ve probably heard/read me talking about the author’s responsibility. I firmly believe that once you decide to produce a book, you have accepted the responsibility to give it a good ride. The fact that so many books fail or fall by the wayside shortly after being published is testament to the author’s lack of responsibility, don’t you think?
Look at it this way, if you open an ice cream parlor and keep forgetting to or getting too busy to order the ingredients to make the ice cream or if you decide you don’t feel like opening your parlor every day, your business is not going to survive. It’s the same with publishing. If you want to succeed as a published author, you really, truly must find a way to be invested in your project to the point that you make sacrifices. Again, here’s the recipe for publishing success:
• Write a book that is actually needed/wanted.
• Have the book professionally edited.
• Study the publishing industry.
• Make informed choices.
• Commit to the enormous task of promotion.
I often hear authors bemoan how hard publishing and promotion is. Yes, it is—so is maintaining good relationships, staying healthy and fit and running any business. So what? Either decide to do it or not.
I had a discussion recently with another book marketing professional. She brought up the idea of authors hiring people to help them with the enormous amount of work involved with book promotion. I felt like giving her a big high five right through the phone lines as this is something I’ve recommended to some authors for years. And I need to do more of it, as well.
I’m not going to go into a big spiel about who to hire, what types of jobs they can handle for you, etc. as I may devote a blog post to this subject in coming days/weeks. In the meantime, you might have some comments or some experiences you would like to share with me for this pending blog post.
Have you hired people to help you with aspects of your publishing project? Do you have built-in help? Some authors work with a co-author and they spread out the workload. Others have talented husbands or kids who help with the technological functions that keep their businesses going. Send your comments to me at PLFry620@yahoo.com or leave your comments here.
Personally, I’ve hired my grandkids to help me with mundane tasks—such as getting out mailings. As they got older, my grandsons have helped me load and unload large shipments of books over the years. I hired a friend to send out article queries for me once. She also typed an entire book into the computer so I could do a reprint one year. I’ve hired webmasters, editors and proof-readers as well as printers.
What sort of help do you get from family or do you hire out? My readers would like to know. Do you pay your helpers or barter for services/goods?
Stay tuned—this could be an enlightening discussion.
In the meantime, go to my Patricia Fry website and sign up for your free gift