There are differences between what some people consider to be a successful writer or author, but in most cases everyone wants to be a professional writer.
Question is: do you have what it takes?
If you ever had the courage to call yourself a writer, you probably saw the amazement and slight disbelief in your conversation partners’ eyes. A writer? Is that something that can actually pay the bills? What are you writing?
Many of us have this image of the writer: a person, who is doing something for a living, but she finds herself regularly typing away in her spare time, and after a considerable amount of time, she shows her writing to other people. And guess what, it turns out to be a best seller! And she has become a millionaire, within the blink of an eye. So finally, she can be a writer, because she now has financial security. She can write whatever she wants, actually.
And there the millions of others, who do the same thing, but fail at producing a best seller at the first try. Why? Well, obviously because they are not talented enough.
This is how we generalize. Simplistic, yes, and of course, could not be further away from the truth.
I have some bad news for some of you: talents actually do matter. If you don’t find writing easy, enjoyable, and if you don’t get positive feedback regularly from people outside your family (professors, editors, random people on the Internet, friends with decent tastes and honest words), chances are you are chasing a profession that is substandard (for you).
But with hard work, you can still get there. Problem is: it is real hard work and does require a certain amount of talent as well. Read more…
Benefits of Authors Blogging
In our previous blog article Why Fiction Writers Need to Blog, we discussed the importance of blogging for writers and what to blog about. In building upon this topic, here we discuss the benefits of blogging and how it can be a great supplement to your overall marketing strategy and author platform.
As you write and plan out future articles, there is no question that you will become more proficient at blogging and more confident in your writer’s voice, but you will additionally be building your author platform by gaining an online audience you would otherwise not have, just by having a static website. While the benefits of blogging appear endless, some are more important than others. Below are my top five benefits to authors blogging that helps to expand your platform and in order of importance. Read more…
Fiction writing is a fantastical, imaginary place, both for you, the writer, and for anyone reading your piece. But writing the most creative, wondrous book or short story doesn’t mean you’ll actually find anyone to enjoy it like you know they would, if only they knew about it.
The truth of the matter is there are a ton of fiction writers out there, and we all want our voices to be read. Sure, you can tell everyone you meet that you wrote a great book, and sure, they might actually go read it. But chances are they’ll forget about it as soon as they walk away.
Here’s where blogging can come in handy. Read more…
In this day and age, most self-published authors know that securing book reviews is very important to their overall marketing strategy and is a necessity for creating that initial buzz around their book. At the end of the day, reviews influence other buyers. But not all reviews are created equal. If that were the case, every author applying the same marketing principles would have an equivalent outcome.
Let’s explore this further and assume your work is good or even great. You have already received Amazon reviews from friends, a few buyers, and some bloggers (with spotty followings) who received a free copy of your book. This is a great start, but what’s next? Are your book sales flowing in? I can’t imagine so. The reason for this is because you haven’t penetrated your market (with enough repetition) to a level that will ultimately affect your book sales. In order to penetrate your market, you must be potent. You will need to be visible wherever your target audience is hanging out.
In this blog post, I have outlined 2 strategies, among many, for getting book reviews that actually have an impact on sales. Read more…
Administrative, Marketing, & Creative Services for Authors and Speakers
These days, it’s important for any business to maintain a presence on social media, but when it comes to authors in particular, I believe that being active on book marketing sites and GoodReads is more cost-effective and a better use of your time if wanting to connect with readers and selling more books. One of my preferred strategies for generating book reviews, building a buzz, and converting readers into fans and buying customers is to host a GoodReads Giveaway. Read more…
I need an agent!
Over the past few months, I’ve been asked (and tested) by many clients to answer this question. And although the answer is not as cut and dry as most would hope, the truth is more and more literary agents are opening their doors to the self-published community. This comes as no surprise with all the success stories posted online about how one author turned his self-published ebook into a best-seller, but it still doesn’t resolve the question.
In my pursuit for more knowledge and bettering the services we offer clients, I’m tickled pink to declare we’ve scheduled interviews with two top literary agents in New York (that offer representation of self-published writers) to throw more light on this subject. Don’t forget to check get back later in the month – we’ll post their Q&A sessions.
In the meantime, since we promote many self-published authors, I will share two areas you should be working to improve, that can facilitate selling more books and getting consideration from agents.
- Amazon and Goodreads Reviews: I know I’ve said this in earlier posts, but I’ll say it once more. The more reviews you have on these two sites, the better your rankings will be. Take advantage of Amazon’s Free eBook Promotions or Goodreads Book Giveaway in the beginning. People tend to follow others, and the more people who hear about your book, the better your sales will be. Great rankings are impressive and agents view these sources before deciding if they will invest in an author.
- Author/Book Promotions: Most self-published authors are confused where to put their time wisely or they haven’t yet put aside a marketing budget. While a national book tour or promotion campaign may fall outside of what you can afford to do, you will need a firm presence on Facebook, Twitter and especially Goodreads. There’s also a difference between standard website design and author websites. Before going off on your own author campaign or creating your own website, consult someone who knows your category and the publishing industry. It’s critical for authors to interact with others and their target readership, and having a creative plan and PR strategy first, packs a powerful punch in the final stages. Literary agents will also ascertain your previous marketing efforts.
For more information about our administrative, marketing, and creative services for Authors and Speakers – schedule your free 30-minute consultation today.
Cyrus Webb of Conversations Live interviews Author, Speaker and Fitness Pro Tamara Jackson.
Of all the PR and promotional strategies we use to promote our Author and Speaker clients, booking internet radio interviews is my top favorite approach. Internet radio makes it easy for us to reach a broader audience, and with many shows that interview guests in all different niches, it is very effective for aligning our clients with the right fan base.
My favorite internet radio platform and the one we use to promote our clients is Blog Talk Radio (BTR). BTR has provided us an excellent opportunity to promote our clients’ books, e-courses, and knowledge in specific areas or expertise. As opposed to paying for scripted radio spots that rarely convey enough substance to connect with your audience on a personal level, interviews on BTR are featured spots, more personal, and completely free to conduct. Interviews can run anywhere from 30 minutes up to an hour. Read more…
Getting your book into libraries is a great move for any author, but it’s not as straight-forward as you would think. Two important steps in the process (that I also advise my clients on) is understanding how libraries purchase their books and what is the best way to approach them/sell your book.
How Libraries Purchase Books:
Collection Development is the process of selecting books and other materials for the library. The Librarians who specialize in this area are called Collection Development Librarians or Collection Managers. As with any company or product, purchasing decisions are majorly based on product reviews. The same decision-making process is applied to purchasing books. For sourcing books, Librarians turn to major book review journals and are also influenced by consumer demand or requests made by library visitors. A Librarian can also get ideas for future book purchases from flyers or book sell sheets they receive by mail, attending library trade shows, and searching online stores and communities such as Amazon and GoodReads. Before you begin the library submission process, Read more…
While some consider book sell sheets to be unnecessary these days to promote a book and is an old fashioned method of promotion, I couldn’t disagree more. I can bear this direction of thinking if the slumping sales of paperbacks are the reason (as the publishing houses no longer in business used them), but most of the time the former ways of doing something are those that are proven with experience and the newer ways are yet to be determined. Grounded on this alone, I believe book sell sheets are an industry standard we should not forget about.
In my 3 years of experience working with authors, developing cost-effective book marketing plans, and writing my new eBook Book Marketing & Publicity: A Strategic and Effective Marketing Campaign Any Author Can Implement – I have come to determine there are limited opportunities where an author can promote their book for free or talk around it. At some stage, Read more…
