Writing. It’s not for Sissies

 

Hello everyone. I hope all is well with you.  I’m back today and I’m talking about how writing isn’t  for sissies. Why do I say this? Because not only after slaving over our masterpiece for hours and days on end (sometimes years), we have to face that notorious foe, rejection. If we’re lucky enough to get published, we then have to market our books and network with other authors.  I know we’re introverts. We like to be in our writing caves tapping away at that keyboard, creating our next masterpiece. Networking and hawking our wares takes a lot out of us. We cringe.

Photo credit: Shiny Things via Visualhunt.com / CC BY-NC

But here’s the thing. Marketing your book once it’s published is in our hands. We have to get out there and let the world know it exists. I was doing just that this weekend. I participated as a vendor in an Expo that my town does every year, and this year they had an author’s corner. I was the only YA author there, and when there were lulls in the traffic, I chatted with the authors beside me. We started talking about marketing our books, and I received a great idea from another author who wrote his book on leadership. His target market was companies, while mine was young readers.

Not only did I get a great idea from him, (I can’t tell you what it is yet, because I want to see if it works)  but I developed a relationship with him. So, if anyone asks him if he knows a great YA series for their child, he’s going to remember me and recommend my books. This is how that infamous word of mouth everyone talks about gets started.

Now the downside of doing expos, craft shows, and book fairs is that we don’t know what kind of traffic we’re going to get, and we don’t know if our target market is going to be there. So pick these with care. I sold quite a few books at this expo and I’m doing another one in June that’s geared toward kids.

These expos can be a lot of work, but once you get the routine down, it’s fairly easy to set up your booth and take it down. I always bring my computer, too. So if it is slow, I can work on my current WIP. That way I don’t feel like I wasted my day.

I believe we must do these physical appearances as well as have a presence online. So pick a social media forum that works for you. Preferably one that your target market also uses and try and build relationships with your followers.

Photo credit: Anne Helmond via Visualhunt / CC BY-NC-ND

It’s important to build relationships with book bloggers as well, or blog tour hosts who have relationships with bloggers. In my opinion, blog tours are essential to getting the word out about your books. They not only provide reviews which every author needs, but they provide exposure as well. This means you’ll have to do some research to find out which blog tour will work best for you. Now, I’ve organized my own tours, done free tours, and paid for tours. The one that has worked best for me is “The Magic of Books Promotions.”

Not only did I get awesome exposure, but I sold the most books I’ve ever sold during a blog tour. This gal works hard for her authors and she’s worth every penny I paid.  I strongly recommend her. Here’s the link if you want to check out her prices.

 

http://magicofbookspromo.blogspot.com/

Finding a good tour company can save an author a lot of time. Precious time we could be spending in our writing cave. That’s where we really want to be, isn’t it?

Thanks for stopping by and reading my post, if you have any ideas you’d like to share with other authors please leave a comment! I’d love to hear from you!