Tag: marketing advice

If I Was Starting Over as an Indie Publisher

indie author starting overI’ve been publishing for just under three years now, so although not a grizzled veteran of the publishing wars, I’m not a noob, either. Like most of us, I hang out in a lot of the places writers gather: internet message boards, Facebook groups, LinkedIn groups, Google+ groups, etc. It seems inevitable, when I meet someone who is new to self-publishing, that I get some version of this speech: “You were lucky. You got in while “free” was still a goldmine/when reviews were easier to get/when the competition wasn’t so tough.”

I don’t feel defensive when I hear that, because, maybe they’re right. Maybe, if I was launching my first book into today’s climate, I would struggle mightily to get any traction at all. The more I thought about it, the more I wondered — what would I do if I was starting completely over? Continue reading “If I Was Starting Over as an Indie Publisher”

5 Creative Ways to Sell Books

elle-marie-authorGuest Post
by Elle Marie

As authors, we’re often focusing on how to sell books. What about where? For seven years I’ve been trying various ways to sell my books with mostly underwhelming results. In fact, I’ve dubbed myself the Queen of Fails. However, when I thought to focus on WHERE instead of HOW, I started to see some success.

You never know where you might make a sale. Sure, there are your usual bookstore signings and online retailers. But it’s a good idea to keep a stash of hard-copy books ready in case an unexpected opportunity arises. Like these: Continue reading “5 Creative Ways to Sell Books”

Basic Marketing for New Authors

Marketing 101 for authorsOkay, you’ve done the hard work of writing your book and publishing it. Now you can sit back and relax, right? Uh, no. Not even close. Now the real work starts: marketing.  I know, just the word makes you break out into cold sweats, right? What do you do? How do you start? Relax–sit back, breathe, and let’s talk about the first basic things you should do. Continue reading “Basic Marketing for New Authors”

Publicists: A View from the Other Side

hunger-413685_640 pixabayMelissa Pearl’s post about her experiences working with a publicist got me thinking about the publicist experience from my end. I’m contacted by publicists on behalf of authors quite often. Those interactions can be both good and not so good, both in what I experience and, at least from my limited perspective, how well the publicist accomplishes the author’s goal in hiring them.

I’ll start with the proviso that a publicist might not be a publicist. Depending on what kind of publicity you want, there are other terms that might apply. I’ve been approached by publicists for the obvious things such as writing a story about or interviewing the author, to the less obvious like an offer of a guest post or soliciting reviews, sometimes as part of a blog tour. A blog tour operator is an example of a publicist with a very specific focus. The same could be said of someone at a small press who wears multiple hats, including that of publicist. Some authors hire personal assistants who, as part or all of their duties, function as publicists and marketers. Keep this in mind, not only in considering my post, but in evaluating whether a publicist makes sense for you and, if so, how. Continue reading “Publicists: A View from the Other Side”