THE ART
OF PROMOTING:

Advice From the Trenches

by Kerrie Flanagan

Author book promotion is not what it used to be. Both traditional and newer online strategies are needed to create an effective marketing plan because publishers now expect authors to carry the majority of the PR responsibilities. Marketing can feel overwhelming for an author but the good news is there are those who have found success in navigating this vast territory.

PLAN AN EVENT

To ensure a good turnout at a book signing or book launch, put in a little extra time to make it an event people will remember. Acclaimed YA author Laura Resau has perfected this idea over the years with the release of each of her books.

“Be creative and think outside the box,” says Resau. “Include all ages if possible. Create a fun, lively, warm atmosphere. Make it a party that YOU would attend.”

For the launch party of her fourth book, The Indigo Notebook, set in Ecuador, her Ecuadorian friend danced and explained the folklore behind the dance. With her latest book, The Ruby Notebook, set in France, she hired an accordionist who played while the young kids danced and the crowd enjoyed French pastries. She sets aside time to read excerpts and autograph books.

To promote the event, she uses listservs, her blog, Facebook, an e-newsletter, plus she enlists the help of her friends and writing group members to spread the word. She also sends postcard invitations with the book cover image on front.

“I think people are more likely to come to the release if they have the postcard hanging on their fridge staring at them every day for weeks before the event,” she says.

An event can also happen online. For three years in a row, Christina Katz, author of Get Known Before the Book Deal and Writer Mama, hosted The Writer Mama Back-to-School Giveaway where she gave away a book on her blog every day for 30 days.

“I connected fellow authors with readers and in the process got to know my readers a lot better,” said Katz. “One thing authors need to understand about marketing books today is that if you are not having an ongoing conversation with your fans, you are really missing out on the wealth of opportunities.”

SPEAK UP

LeAnn Thieman, co-author of 11 Chicken Soup for the Soul books including the New York Times best-seller, Chicken Soup for the Nurses Soul, finds radio is an effective promotional outlet.

“There are over 10,000 radio stations in the United States, many with hosts looking for people to interview every day,” said Thieman. “When I am going to be in an area for a speaking event or even just visiting, I call the local stations to see if they are interested in interviewing me on my topic, one I creatively relate to what’s happening in the world today.”

She advises authors to send a copy of their book and a synopsis to the station before the interview. Provide them with questions they can ask and have three to four talking points of your own ready. Weave your own sound bites and messages into the interview, but never overtly promote your book.

Greg Campbell, the best-selling nonfiction author of Blood Diamonds: Tracing The Deadly Path Of The World’s Most Precious Stones, found promoting himself as an expert speaker to universities, nonprofits and trade shows to be an effective way to promote his books.

“When Scott Selby and I published Flawless: Inside the Largest Diamond Heist in History,” Campbell said, “we searched for major trade shows on security and offered to speak to attendees about the real-life security failures described in the book. We ended up as keynote speakers at the International Security Conference in Las Vegas, with about 500 people in the audience.”

With the help of their publisher, Selby and Campbell arranged to have the local Barnes & Noble set up a table to sell books at the event.

GET SOCIAL

Most authors would agree that staying connected with readers via social media is crucial in any successful publicity plan.

Campbell recently had social media thrust upon him by a pair of fans disappointed in his anemic online presence. They set up a Facebook author fan page as well as an author page on Goodreads.com for him. It pushed him to embrace social media.

“The fact that it took my readers to force me into this realm proved that there were readers out there hungry for information and new content,” he said. “Even if it’s just 140-character tweets. My education into this realm is continuing, but I plan to begin tweeting and blogging about the content of my newest book several months before it hits the shelves. In this way, I hope to have primed the pump and created online buzz for it long before it’s available.”

Jane Porter, author of six novels, including her latest, She’s Gone Country, makes a point to stay connected with her readers.

“Sites like Facebook and Twitter have proved invaluable in providing a different platform to meet with my readers and spread the word,” said Porter. “The more accessible you are the more readers get a chance to listen to what you have to share.”

Romance author Ashley March finds blog tours highly successful. “I researched blogs and online romance community sites which had good followings and scheduled around 20 days where I visited each website with either an interview or guest blog. I always included a giveaway as a way to create more enthusiasm.”

She attributes the buzz and success of her debut novel, Seducing the Duchess, with this blog tour.

PARTNER WITH YOUR PUBLISHER

Although publishers do expect authors to take on the role of publicist, it doesn’t mean they are not willing to help at all. With her debut novel March took the lead and found her publisher eager to support her efforts.

They sent her book to every major romance reviewer online, provided her with her books to use as giveaways and when she couldn’t reach someone at a blog she really wanted to visit, the publisher coordinated that specific blog visit for her. Because of the publisher’s support, her March Madness blog party was a success.

“Throughout my debut experience,” says March, “I truly felt like we were partners, and that’s a great feeling to have.”

Katz sums it up best. “Consistent and constant self-promotion are key to publishing success, regardless of whether you self-publish or traditionally publish…It’s not any one self-promotion technique an author uses, it’s using all of them.”