Technology now gives independently published books quality to equal that of major publishing houses, and there’s no reason your book publicity can’t be equal too. In fact, in the last 18 months, we’ve seen that independently published authors have more promotional options available to them than many who go the traditional route because they can react more quickly to changing market trends and make decisions to jump on timely promotions.
I go to a lot of author events, and both there and among aspiring authors, I hear the same question repeated often: Is social media worth the time involved? Personally, I think that depends on how you invest that time online.
I’ve done a lot of things wrong over the years when it comes to social media. In fact, the whole point of the three-hour workshop I teach on social media for writers is to teach people how not to do what I’ve done wrong. But the one thing I’ve done right is that I’ve never given up on it. Everything else is fixable. So whether you have five followers or five thousand, you don’t have to be a slave to what you’ve already accomplished. If you’re feeling overwhelmed by the time you’re spending or underwhelmed by your results, take charge. You can do it!
Establishing a positive and sustainable social media presence for yourself comes down to four simple questions you have to ask yourself. It comes down to what can you G.I.V.E.
Goals
One of the classic newbie mistakes of social networking is that we writers tend to start blogs about writing. Do you see me raising my hand? Yep. I have a writing blog. And a twitter feed for writers. Is that going to help me sell books? Probably not. I didn’t think through my goals before I started blogging. I went to a local Society of Children’s Writers and Illustrators meeting with a friend and heard an agent tell us that all aspiring authors had to have a blog. My friend and I decided to begin a blog together. Since we were just starting down the road to publication, what interested us was writing, and ergo, that’s what we blogged about. I don’t regret that at all. I learn by writing, so writing *about* writing was my way to move up the learning curve. Eventually though, I hit the point where I wasn’t learning anything new by creating articles for beginning writers, but I didn’t feel comfortable offering writing advice that went beyond the basics. At the same time, my blog partner had personal issues that took her away from blogging, so for a year and a half, with the exception of the First Five Pages Workshop, I handled the blog on my own. I let myself get overwhelmed. Instead of being able to focus on reading other blogs or craft books or just interacting with other writers via social media, it was all I could do to keep up my “required online presence.”
The solution? I examined my goals. Over the course of my blogging journey, I have met fantastic writing friends and critique partners. I learned a lot, but there is much more I want and need to learn. I want more time to read blogs and craft books, to read everything. I want to encourage and support other writers and connect with readers so I can learn more about what they want to read. Most of all, I want more time to write.
Inspiration
There isn’t any one way to achieve your social networking goals. The most important thing is finding a vehicle that will connect you with a network of people in a way that meets your goals and inspires you as a writer.
Before investing time into any social medium, make sure it will work for you in the longterm. That includes matching the type of medium to your goals and inspiration; they all have different strengths and conventions. Research them and discover which one will help you connect to the audience that will buy your books, help you grow as a writer, or support your emotional needs on the journey.
Any social medium is subject to change. New social media pop up all the time, and they can fade just as quickly. Remember MySpace? Consider who you want to reach, how you want to reach them, and what kind of content you want to provide to find the vehicle that will help you achieve your goals and keep you inspired to continue, and always be open to new ideas.
Viability
Users of different formats of social media have different expectations. Blogging, for example, works best on a set schedule so that your readers know when to stop by to catch their favorite feature. Tweeting too frequently can clog your readers’ feeds and result in them “unfollowing” you, but if you don’t Tweet enough, you can’t build much of a following. Writing long diatribes on Facebook is a great way to get yourself “unfriended.”
Before you jump into a particular social network, take the time to investigate what works for other people on that network, how often you will need to provide original content, and what your “followers” will expect in reciprocity.
With any form of social medium, creating original content takes little time compared to how long it takes to read other people’s blogs. For most authors, it also yields the least success. Social networking is all about being social. Sharing. Giving back. Building up others. If you don’t have the time to do that, then you aren’t creating a network and having an online presence isn’t going to do you much good. If you’re not the kind of person who wants to engage with people, put up a static website and don’t worry about the rest. Really. Chances are, if you don’t like being social–on the Internet or in real life–you aren’t going to be good at it if you force yourself to try, so find a medium that lets you put out the level of social contact with which you feel comfortable. You also have to be careful not to take on so much that your writing time gets sucked away.
A joint blog may be a good solution for writers who may not have a ton of time, or those who are hesitant to jump into social media too deeply. I definitely prefer to have someone to share the responsibilities, the occasional aggravation, and the success. For me, assessing my goals, inspiration, and viability led to inviting new blog partners/mentors to join me at AdventuresInYAPublishing.com and the 1st5PagesWritingWorkshop.com. I also started a new blog for readers called YASeriesInsiders.com, where I have not only author friends helping out, but also a great group of readers who collaborate to collect and share content from all over the web.
If you are considering a joint blog, or any kind of shared media, be sure to leave yourself room for branding. I have had to slowly transition my Twitter feed back to my real name, because I made the mistake of setting it up as a blog-related feed. I have also only recently discovered that we can post on the blog under separate names. Branding is critical in building relationships with your readers and potential readers. Investigate the options available for whatever kind of media you are considering, and remind yourself that you can’t build relationships on anonymity.
Enjoyment
In case you missed that last sentence, let me restate: your online presence is all about relationships. You don’t have to do it, but if you choose to be online, make sure you participate in a way that doesn’t become a chore. Have fun and don’t make it all about you. Make it about the people you like and respect. Share information. Pay it forward.
Consider who you want to reach and what *they* want. Then G.I.V.E.
Martina Boone was born in Prague and spoke several languages before learning English. She’s the acclaimed author of the romantic southern gothic Heirs of Watson Island series, including Compulsion (Oct ’14), Persuasion (Oct ’15), and Illusion (Oct ’16), from Simon & Schuster, Simon Pulse. She’s also the founder of AdventuresInYAPublishing.com, a three-time Writer’s Digest 101 Best Websites for Writers Site, and YASeriesInsiders.com, a site dedicated to encouraging literacy and reader engagement through a celebration of series literature. She’s on the Board of the Literacy Council of Northern Virginia and runs the CompulsionForReading.com program to distribute books to underfunded schools and libraries.
She lives with her husband, children, and a lopsided cat, she enjoys writing contemporary fantasy set in the kinds of magical places she’d love to visit. When she isn’t writing, she’s addicted to travel, horses, skiing, chocolate flavored tea, and anything with Nutella on it.
Baseball has always been a sport I’ve loved. I grew up collecting baseball cards, watching the Boston Red Sox whenever a game was on TV, and playing with the boys in the schoolyard. And still after many, many years, the love of the game is still imbedded me. So much so, that my home office is riddled with pictures and memorabilia of the game.
My inspiration for Dare to Kiss goes a bit deeper. As a little girl I fought hard to play baseball on a boys’ city league. But back in the late sixties and early seventies, girls weren’t allowed to play on boys’ team. It was then I came up with the plot for Dare to Kiss on how a high school girl breaks through barriers to play on an all boys’ baseball team.
It didn’t take me long once I started writing. The protagonist, Lacey Robinson is a girl, who is a lot like myself. She loves the energy of the ball field. She loves hearing the crack of the bat and the roar of the crowd. She loves striking a batter out, but most of all she loves the game, and no matter the consequences, and she’s faced with many in Dare to Kiss, she works hard to push through everyone of them to play the game.
In today’s society it isn’t far off that we could see females in the major leagues one day. More girls are stepping up and showing their talent and skills. Case in point is seventeen-year-old Chelsea Baker who was the youngest female to ever throw at batting practice for the Tampa Bay Rays two years ago, and the first female of Hillsborough County in Florida to make the varsity team. I was so over the moon when I read about her. I mean, wow! I’m envious of any girl playing boys’ baseball.
To compliment Dare to Kiss, JKS Communications had this brilliant idea of an adult coloring book. At first, I couldn’t get my mind around the concept. As an adult, I haven’t colored since an early age. But I doodle when I sit at corporate meetings and color what I draw on paper. So why not have something fun for fans to do. I polled my fan group, and just about everyone was excited. In fact, the fans helped to pick out the scenes depicted in the coloring book. I wanted them to be part of the process, and I can’t thank them enough for all their help. One fan, Jennifer Lowe, who loves the Maxwell Series, bought the coloring books as soon as it was released. She said, “For me, it was a way to connect with the Maxwell Series, but also to get the creative juices flowing.” Not only can fans color, they can read excerpts of the scenes their coloring, which are located in the back of the coloring book.
S.B. Alexander writes sexy, new adult and college, sports, paranormal and military romance. She’s a former navy veteran, loves baseball, especially the Boston Red Sox, white powdered donuts, and handbags. She is an avid reader and loves to transport herself into other worlds–ones where vampires and the fantastical exist. Where life is the playground for the impossible.
Her young adult series, Vampire Seals, includes three books, On the Edge of Humanity, On the Edge of Eternity, and On the Edge of Destiny, which have garnered high praise from readers. Her Maxwell series claimed the #1 bestseller’s spot on Amazon UK’s sport’s fiction category and includes three books: Dare to Kiss, Dare to Dream, and Dare to Love.
This post was originally published on Fresh Fiction.
The International Beverly Hills Book Awards ® contest recognizes the best in fiction and non-fiction books across various genres, and JKS is proud to celebrate seven of our talented authors (nine books total!) who have made the list this year. The awards committee focuses on print books and considers cover and interior design, promotional text, aesthetic components and other factors that demonstrate outstanding presentation, in addition to the writing.
We are so excited our JKS winners and finalists in the 4th Annual Beverly Hills Book Awards!!
WINNERS:
The Power of 10 by Rugger Burke – Leadership
Marketing For Tomorrow, Not Yesterday by Zain Raj – Marketing & Public Relations
Things Unsaid by Diana Y. Paul – New Adult Fiction
The Coalition by Samuel Marquis – Political Thriller
FINALISTS:
Indy Writes Books: A Book Lover’s Anthology edited by Travis DiNicola – Anthology
Killer Nashville Noir: Cold-Blooded edited by Clay Stafford – Anthology
The Slush Pile Brigade by Samuel Marquis – Mystery
Blind Thrust by Samuel Marquis – Suspense
Money, Family, Murder by Timothy Patten – Mystery
Congratulations to all of our authors!!
A former award-winning journalist with national exposure, Marissa now oversees the day-to-day operation of the Books Forward author branding and book marketing firm, along with our indie publishing support sister company Books Fluent.
Born and bred in Louisiana, currently living in New Orleans, she has lived and developed a strong base for our company and authors in Chicago and Nashville. Her journalism work has appeared in USA Today, National Geographic and other major publications. She is now interviewed by media on best practices for book marketing.
This morning, a lovely author from Greece and I spoke for over an hour. During this time, she asked many great questions. But it was the last question asked before she hung up that really struck me…
“One last thing,” she said. “Is printing 5000 copies crazy?”
“Well,” I replied, “it depends… what are you going to do with the 5000 units?”
“Sell them I guess” was her answer.
When deciding on a print run number, the decision often comes from how many units can one purchase for a deeper discount. At 5,000 the unit price goes down nicely. What most small publishers fail to recognize however, is that until the books are sold, those unit costs are totally fake. If you pay $15000 for 5000 units of your book and only sell three books, each book cost you $5000.
There is a better way. When choosing your print run number, start from the END (sales portion) of the process and move back towards the printing part of the process.
For example:
If there are 1000 bookstores in your country AND you have a plan on how to contact 500 of them in 2016, AND 150 of those agree to stock 2 copies of your book AND half of them (75) sell two copies of your book (150) and don’t return them you are looking at 150 units in 2016. Even if ALL 1000 bookstores are contacted and HALF of them agree to sell your book and NONE of them return the books they get you are looking at 1000 units.
If Amazon was able to sell 3000 copies of a book like yours, published and promoted by a large publishing house, you can rest assured that you will not be spending the time and money on promoting it that they did. Sooooo I’d shoot for 10% of their sales. AT BEST. That is 300 units.
That is 600 give or take.
Sell 1000 to libraries? Sure! If you have the time to call 500 libraries in 2016 you will sell them! The nice thing about libraries is that they DO buy books and rarely return them.
Let’s look at the total:
Bookstores 150 – 1000
Online 300
Give Aways 600
Libraries 1000
3000 units TOTAL in 2016 and that is ONLY IF you actually take the time and expense to present the books to libraries, bookstores, reviewers and editors. These books will not sell themselves.
How many do you want to print? 5000 makes sense if you are okay with having them for a few years, are willing to do the work to sell them and start with the sales expectations and work backwards.
Want to learn HOW TO SELL more than a few hundred copies? We can teach you. Email Amy at amy@newshelves.com and send her a bit of info about your book and she will come up with a plan for you. (Sales evaluations and plans are always free of charge at New Shelves!)
This post was written by Amy Collins and originally published on newshelves.com
Have you ever watched an interview on television and couldn’t help but feel that something was drawing your attention away from the person’s message? Perhaps it was what they were wearing.
People shouldn’t make judgments based on your appearance, but some will, even subconsciously. Certain colors, patterns and types of clothing can create unintentional distractions on camera when they would typically go unnoticed in everyday situations.
While there are always exceptions to every rule, here are a few tips to keep in mind for your next television interview:
Don’t wear white, black, red or green. Cameras are sensitive, and these colors can be harsh on screen. While white tends to glow, black will absorb light, and bright red hues can be distracting. Green also interferes with digital backgrounds. Solid blue and pastel tones are generally a safe bet.
On that note, stay away from patterns, including stripes, plaid and small designs. Again, cameras pick up everything, and some designs can create visual interference.
The general rule for attire is business casual. Avoid wearing short skirts, dresses, shorts or other revealing clothing. It’s also a good idea to look online for recent interview clips to get an idea of the set and see what other guests have worn in the past.
Before an interview, remove any jewelry that moves, makes noise or could hit your microphone. This includes dangly earrings, bangle bracelets and long or bulky necklaces.
Avoid brand name logos and words on your clothing. You want viewers to hear what you are saying, not your T-shirt.
Angelle joined the Books Forward team in 2014, and her experience and dedication has led to her being named our lead publicist. Her distinct pitching style and effective research has secured media coverage for our authors and their books in Vanity Fair, Buzzfeed, The Associated Press, The New York Times and USA Today, as well as countless regional media outlets.
Our authors love Angelle’s meticulous attention to detail and unwavering commitment to their vision and their books. Other publicists frequently spend time learning from her — how to ask probing questions, find the right person to contact and craft a successful pitch.
She began her professional career at news outlets across the country before surrendering to her love of books. An award-winning journalist whose own work has appeared in local and national publications, including NPR, she is tenacious in finding the right angles to utilize for each campaign and connecting with the right reporter for the job.
Angelle can usually be found at a concert, working on Mardi Gras costumes or taking photos of random cats that she meets wandering around New Orleans.
So often we hear from authors who are interested in publicity but are also cash-strapped from having already spent vast resources on preparing their books for publishing. Self-publishing is especially expensive and authors have to make huge upfront investments before their books even see the light of day.
Indie authors have the extra expenses of publishing their book that a traditionally published author does not incur. It’s important to budget for publicity for a book just as you would budget for a book cover, editing, formatting, distribution and all other aspects of publishing – no matter if you hire a publicist or choose to do your own promotion.
Unfortunately self-publishing has such an expense tied to it that a lot of people budget for everything to create the book and nothing to get the word out that it even exists. Kind of like the old saying, “If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?”
It’s scary to commit to the unknown. I get it. As a former journalist, I was very skeptical of publicity and if it actually made any sort of difference. After more than seven years as a book publicist, I can without a doubt say it does. Just at JKS Communications alone we have seen indie authors hit bestseller lists, become the go-to expert interviews for major mainstream media, receive daily book club requests, start movements, and even land six-figure publishing deals.
Every publicity campaign will differ in scope depending on the book, genre, author, messaging, budget and other factors. But one thing is for sure – without any publicity, your book will get lost among the millions published each year.
I wish for authors that writing the book would be the end of their hard work. That on its own is an incredible feat. But book publicity has become increasingly important over the last decade especially with the ever-changing publishing industry.
So regardless of whether you hire a publicist or not, treat publicity just as you would any part of publishing your book. Publicity is just as important as your cover, your content, your distribution, your editing and everything else that goes into not only making the book, but making it known.
A former award-winning journalist with national exposure, Marissa now oversees the day-to-day operation of the Books Forward author branding and book marketing firm, along with our indie publishing support sister company Books Fluent.
Born and bred in Louisiana, currently living in New Orleans, she has lived and developed a strong base for our company and authors in Chicago and Nashville. Her journalism work has appeared in USA Today, National Geographic and other major publications. She is now interviewed by media on best practices for book marketing.
Twitter, (social media in general), is an opportunity to interact with the world in 140 characters or less. But how do you best use those 140 characters?
Here is what some big name authors across multiple genres have been tweeting about lately. (Examples pictured below.) In a snapshot: politics, movies, boredom, sports, inspiration, contests, quotes, blogposts, etc. Each of these accounts represents very different styles of Twitter feeds, which is good news for people coming to Twitter for the first time. It tells us … there are many acceptable ways to Tweet.
But if you’re asking about the best way to Tweet, let’s look closer.
Neil Gaiman, author of American Gods has 2.35 million followers, and he’s tweeting about being bored in a cab. Then he offers an invitation to ask questions, which he answers. In a world where conversations with Neil Gaiman would typically be limited to three seconds at a signing event, I have a unique opportunity because of Twitter.
It is a glass door into the life of a celebrity. (In this case, you are the celebrity.)
Janet Evanovich, a number one NYT bestselling author, has nearly 40 thousand Twitter followers and she primarily uses her Twitter feed for promotional advertisement of her novels. Whereas John Green, young adult author of The Fault in Our Star, uses his feed to … share … whatever comes across his unique mind: politics, DFTBA items, birthday shout outs, etc. He has 4.8 million followers. What does this tell us?
It isn’t the place we go shopping for items; it’s the place we go shopping for sameness. This is why the number of Twitter followers does not translate specifically to sales. Janet Evanovich sells more than 40 thousand books, and John Green doesn’t sell 4.8 million copies with every new release. If you made a Twitter account to sell books, you might be disappointed with the results.
With these concepts in mind, consider a Twitter feed that is a reflection of your self—a place where you are providing sameness and searching for sameness. Marketing guru Simon Sinek says, “People don’t buy what you sell, they buy why you sell it.” Twitter puts that why on display and opens up doors of potential friendship. Early in my career, I listened to Jon Acuff give some great advice on utilizing social media. “Remember,” he said. “You’re asking for a friend, not a favor.” As you set about your 140 characters, ask for a friend.
When you’re gearing up to launch a new book, building buzz can be difficult, even for seasoned authors who have a loyal following of readers. The fact is, there are regularly more than 300,000 titles released by traditional publishers every year in the United States while the non-traditional publishing sector churns out more than 1 million books annually, according to Bowker. So what’s the bottom line? There is a lot of competition out there.
One of the most worthwhile ways of breaking through all the noise is with the media. This can come in the form of interviews, book announcements or reviews –though reviews are becoming increasingly less common and more difficult to secure because of shrinking newsrooms and resources.
Interviews are the best way for readers to connect with the people behind their favorite books on a deeper, more personal level. It gives readers an opportunity to get a behind-the-scenes look into the writing filling their home libraries, or even get introduced to new voices in the literary world.
Just about every writer wants “big media” attention like the New York Times or National Public Radio, but they shouldn’t underestimate the power of local media. Similar to a grassroots movement, local media can help build buzz on the ground level. It’s a good place to start, especially for new authors who are just getting their feet wet. A feature in a local newspaper or a spot on a morning news show is a great starting point for bigger things to come.
Big or small, every media outlet will consider a few factors before setting up interview or other types of coverage. Knowing the questions that journalists will ask themselves before covering a new book can be invaluable. Here are a few questions they may consider:
Angelle Barbazon is currently a publicist for JKS Communications. She is an award-winning journalist who worked for various print newspapers across the country and NPR before succumbing to her love of books.
Angelle joined the Books Forward team in 2014, and her experience and dedication has led to her being named our lead publicist. Her distinct pitching style and effective research has secured media coverage for our authors and their books in Vanity Fair, Buzzfeed, The Associated Press, The New York Times and USA Today, as well as countless regional media outlets.
Our authors love Angelle’s meticulous attention to detail and unwavering commitment to their vision and their books. Other publicists frequently spend time learning from her — how to ask probing questions, find the right person to contact and craft a successful pitch.
She began her professional career at news outlets across the country before surrendering to her love of books. An award-winning journalist whose own work has appeared in local and national publications, including NPR, she is tenacious in finding the right angles to utilize for each campaign and connecting with the right reporter for the job.
Angelle can usually be found at a concert, working on Mardi Gras costumes or taking photos of random cats that she meets wandering around New Orleans.
Located in:
New Orleans, LA
Nashville, TN
New York, NY
Atlanta, GA
Montreal, Canada
Phone: (615) 212-8549
Email: info@booksforward.com
