If one does not know to which port one
is sailing, no wind is favorable.
—Seneca the Younger
Your introduction to the Marketing Beast happened when you first crafted a query. Whether you think of that beast as a beauty or a monster or both, and whether you want to pet it, shoot it, or run from it, it’s going to play a big part in your career. You want people to hear about your book. If they don’t hear about it, they’re unlikely to buy it and read it. You wrote it, so clearly you believe in it. Now it’s time to let others know it’s out there.
I grew up without a TV and saw very few movies. Books—and my own mind—were my entertainment. I loved books. Really, really loved them. But that didn’t mean I had a single clue about marketing when my first book was published. At that time, I thought all books automatically appeared on bookshelves in bookstores. People bought them, and that was that. Nothing could be further from the truth. To explain, I’ll share a little of my own experience getting acquainted with book marketing.
Right after The Seer and the Sword came out in paperback (after doing really well in hardcover), I visited the Tattered Cover in Denver—one of the biggest bookstores in the world. I went there to browse and, of course, ended up in the teen section. There I saw massive displays holding multiple copies of a few chosen books that were published by large houses. No one walking into the teen section could have missed those displays—they rose up from the floor and dominated the view.
However, I had to hunt for my own book. Eventually I found a copy tucked away, spine out, on a shelf stuffed with paperbacks by dozens of authors. I would never have found it if I had not been looking for it. And I realized right away that the catchiest cover in the world cannot reach a reader when only the spine of the book is visible on the shelf. Then I looked for a book I admired by another author. It was nowhere to be found. I asked a clerk if the store carried it. They didn’t, but he offered to order it for me.
Later, I discovered that it’s common for writers to find their books spine out in a bookstore. It’s even more common not to find them at all. Why? Because there’s only so much shelf space and only so many marketing dollars.
If your book doesn’t have a conspicuous place in bookstores nationwide, does it mean you’re not a good writer? Of course not. Your book can receive many honors (as mine had) and still not be very visible. Getting a good spot on retail shelves is all about a complicated mix of sales pitches, name recognition, random chance, and other ingredients that defy analysis.
your advance
indicates the size of the
marketing budget
How do you know whether your book has a chance of getting prominently displayed in retail outlets and online banners, with the cover facing out? One reliable indicator is the amount of your advance. A large advance—in excess of $100,000—means more risk to the publisher and thus more marketing for you. The bigger your advance, the more likely that the publisher has decided your book has a good chance of making it onto the bestseller lists.
Is it good news for you if you get a large advance? Usually. However, a big advance for a book that turns out to be a sales flop can sink your career—because if a publisher puts a boatload of money into an advance for a book that flounders, that publisher is not going to buy your next book. (Henceforth you may have to adopt a pen name.)
How do big publishers decide which authors get large advances and good media marketing campaigns? Well, prolific authors with a groundswell of word-of-mouth, authors such as J. K. Rowling, Stephenie Meyer, Sarah Dessen, M.T. Anderson, and Lauren Myracle, are good candidates. An extra boost in marketing for such an author will capitalize on the momentum of his or her sales and increase them even more.
But that doesn’t mean every author who starts to develop a following will get a marketing boost. Many, many books are left to make it—or not—on their own. Why?
marketing is expensive
Publishers cannot afford to put up the cash to make a splash with every title they print. Most new authors are not aware that for a book to become a mega bestseller with sales in the millions, the publisher must order huge print runs—at considerable cost. (By the way, it’s less expensive to print a million copies of one book than 100,000 copies each of 10 books.) Media campaigns are not cheap, either; they require concerted placement, lots of savvy, and plenty of dollars.
If a writer has name recognition already—by being famous outside of the world of books—a publisher can capitalize on that. Instead of working to create new name recognition, the publisher can draw attention to the fact that a celebrity has written a book. For example, when pop star Madonna entered the children’s book market, her name was her passport to royal marketing. Her book had a first printing north of a million copies issued in dozens of translations. (Unknown writers who had struggled for years to hone their craft, only to find that their books would not receive much attention, weren’t very thrilled to see their sales overtaken by a celebrity’s book. But large publishers have made the argument that giant bestsellers keep them solvent, which is what allows them to publish unknown authors.)
To further confuse things, every once in a while authors with no sales history at all are picked for star treatment. Maybe their publisher spots a niche in the market and gambles that a particular book, by filling that niche, can justify a big-budget marketing plan. Maybe there’s something about the author’s life story that lends itself well to the creation of a marketing angle. And maybe the book is just such a page turner that nobody can put it down!
You might hope to be among those fortunate authors who get picked for bestseller treatment, but if you’re not, remember that those authors do not necessarily have an easy time of it. The pressure to turn out top sellers is intense and can be hard to sustain.
Major marketing campaigns are no guarantee of success. Publishers must contend with the utter unpredictability of the marketplace. Sometimes a book fails to sell even after heavy publicity. Readers just aren’t captivated. What should have been a superstar turns into a black hole for the publisher. Then again, a book with a $100 marketing budget can come out of nowhere and shine, shine, shine. When this happens, publishers must scramble to order a big enough print run to fulfill the public’s desire for copies or lose sales. Many times, the wave is missed.
Midlist Books
What about “midlist” books—books that never make the bestseller list but have respectable sales in the tens of thousands? They often go out of print because their publishers can’t justify the cost of continuing to print and warehouse them. They may be excellent, but they didn’t build a following in time.
A bit of good news for novelists: Young adult novels are given a little more leeway in the marketplace than novels for adults. YA books are allowed more time to find their way with readers in libraries and schools, whereas novels for adults can live and die in the space of 3 months.
Bottom line? Unless you have a large publisher that decides to put the money and energy into hyping your book—a rare occurrence—do not expect huge displays in stores or tours paid for by the publisher. You and your word-of-mouth cheering section will be picking up the slack. Yes, if you’re serious about your career as an author, you may have to pump some of your own money and brainpower into marketing.
marketing yourself
There are some basic things you can do to help your publisher sell your books. (Also true if you self-publish.) One is to get an author website. Another is public speaking. And of course, there’s always networking—through blogs, social networks, and the like.
Author Websites
Author websites have become almost essential. You want to have a presence on the web. The norm for authors is to get your full name (or pen name) dot com. If the name is already taken, you can opt for dot net or dot biz. Your site should reflect your personality as a writer. It’s a good idea to keep it updated, too. (I know that sounds like obvious advice, but I frequently forget to update when I get super busy with everything else.)
Public Speaking
I’ve found speaking to be one of the best ways to generate interest in books. You can speak at local libraries, schools, writers’ conferences, and other forums. How do you let people know you’re up for speaking? Network. Be available. Let connections develop. Attend gatherings of authors and readers when you can. Talk to media specialists and let them know you’re available for school programs. Working with teens can be a lot of fun. By visiting high schools and middle schools, you get a chance to meet the teens in your reading audience and interact. “But,” you say, “I’d rather dance with a tornado than speak in public.” If you feel that way, you’re not alone. Many writers are introverted by nature or have no experience with public speaking. So if you’re a shy soul or you’ve never given a talk, you might want to start a course at Toastmasters (http://www.toastmasters.org).
Getting Known Without Making
Public Appearances
If you’re too intimidated by public speaking, there’s always the Internet. Some schools will set up chat rooms for writers or do e-mail interviews. Blogs—if you find a niche that no one else is covering—can help you build an audience. So can interactions on social networking sites, where fans can find you and then spread the word among their friends.
Book Signings
When I throw a book release party at a local store in my own region, plenty of people show up to celebrate with me (and buy my book). But in places where I don’t have a big network of friends, book signings are hit or miss—and my experience jives with those of other authors. Therefore, traveling to far-flung cities in hopes of building a following may not be the best use of your time or your marketing budget. It’s much easier and more satisfying to do a blog tour.
Blog Tours
Whatever your writing niche happens to be, there will be bloggers posting about it. By guest blogging or interviewing on various blogs, you can increase exposure to the market that’s waiting for you, and you can return the favor by letting your friends and fellow authors know about the blog sites you visit.
Copromotion
Sometimes, it just feels more natural for writers to talk up someone else’s books than to talk up our own. And lately, simpatico authors are banding together, taking turns mentioning each other’s books, cohosting interviews, holding book parties together, and just generally supporting each other.
advice from
marketing experts
I’m not an expert on social media or blogging, so I got in touch with people who are, and I asked them for interviews. They kindly obliged.
Tricia Lawrence
http://www.realbrilliant.com, http://www.authorblogger.net
Bio: Tricia Lawrence is an associate agent with Erin Murphy Literary. She has worked as a book editor since 1995 and advised authors about their writing, marketing, and social media since 2005. Since 2012, she has concentrated solely on helping her author clients build successful careers. Tricia only accepts submissions by referral or if you’ve met her at a conference.
You work with writers on integrating social media, blogging, and other web tools to market their books. What’s the most effective combination for writers of YA?
YA writers have so much opportunity to interact with their audience: readers, buyers, parents, librarians, and teachers. I often start by calming social media nerves. As a YA writer, you have put some time in to learn to write YA; thus, you will not become proficient using social media, blogging, and web tools overnight. It too takes time. But not all your time. First, set strict boundaries around your time. I recommend one hour a day to study, learn, interact, observe, blog, etc. If you want to spend more, fine. But you should be getting it down to a nice steady dose and then you stop and you go write. We are writers first of all! Second, find your passion. If you love writing about true love, or friendship, or secrets, or compassion, or you notice there’s a theme in everything you love to read and write, go there. Don’t try to use social networks and become a person that you aren’t passionate about. Third, find authors or bloggers you resonate with and watch how they deal with social media and blogging. Do they blog once or twice a week? Do they feature other authors or talk about the writing process only? Do they discuss a theme completely unrelated to writing? What pieces of their social media, blogging, and web tool strategy could you use?
What are the most common mistakes you see YA authors make in marketing?
Freezing up because of nerves. Thinking that they are terrible at marketing, when really, the best marketing (the one that is proved over and over and over) is word of mouth. Social media marketing is simply telling people about your book, about how you wrote your book, about other authors you like to read, about themes you are fascinated by and can’t stop reading or writing or thinking about. If authors simply followed their passion and did not clam up, but used every chance they could to talk about what they care the most about, marketing would be the easiest part!
What are some approaches for shy or private writers to take advantage of the web?
Nowadays, writers can do so much from the privacy of their own home office. Used to be, an author had to get up and get dressed, put on pantyhose (yeck!), and go out and visit bookstores, schools, and libraries in person. There are still opportunities for that, but these days, it can all be done via e-mail, Skype, Twitter, Facebook, Google+, YouTube (no pantyhose required!), and more. The opportunities for an introverted writer (I’m one too!) to be able to be more comfortable while still interacting with their readers are amazing. I’m so grateful I can record a video (and delete it if I am all nerves) rather than have to stand up and do it live without any additional chances to redeem myself.
Why and how do writers set up blogs? What’s a good length for a typical blog post? Is it important to add graphics or pictures to each blog entry, or does it matter?
A writer can set up a free blog on Wordpress.com, Blogger, Tumblr, or LiveJournal in about 5 minutes. Those are great practice, because you can figure out if this blogging thing fits you (some writers I work with prefer to record videos—called vlogging—rather than write anything other than their manuscripts) and if you’ve got enough to write about to sustain a blog in the long term. However, I think a serious writer should consider adding a hosted blog (through Wordpress.org) to their website. This should not cost thousands, but it will cost. Check with your writer friends for website/blog designer referrals.
A great blog post runs around 550 words; however, you can run them shorter. What worries me are blog posts that are longer. This means you might want to edit yourself a bit more before posting. By all means include images (there are places to get images for free all over the Web; some Flickr accounts allow you to use their images provided you link back appropriately) if you care to. Images help convey information that would take a thousand words. You can blog quite successfully without them, but most readers prefer them.
Tell us about the role of guest bloggers.
A guest blogger appears on a blog (with their YA novel or as an aspiring YA writer) as a way of raising visibility online. Guest bloggers answer questions from the audience or from the host blogger, typically in written format. Sometimes, the guest blogger will appear in a video with the host blogger in the form of a Skype chat, or as Libba Bray and Maureen Johnson have done so successfully, together in the same room, volleying questions, answers, and jokes back and forth. Being a guest on someone else’s blog is an honor; however, it is up to you to decide which blogs you would like to appear on. Be sure to mention it on your own blog and social media networks to drive traffic and generate comments and followers.
What is the role of a web marketing consultant? How do writers find a good one, and what can they expect from the process? What’s realistic and what isn’t?
A social media strategist/web marketing consultant/PR firm, publicity firm is all the same—helping a writer sell more books and become more visible. While old-school PR and publicity firms and consultants are fast coming up to speed on this new social media approach, web marketing consultants and social media strategists are often a bit more cutting edge. You can expect to pay several thousand dollars for a range of services—from banner ads to guest posts to blog tours to NPR or television appearances. The more the firm or consultant does, the more it costs you; thus, I am a big fan of bootstrapping it. Pay a consultant the initial money to learn the tools, and then use them yourself. Be present in your promotion and marketing activities; don’t expect to farm it all out in the beginning. As you sell more and more books, you can hire virtual assistants or interns, but for now, figure out what you really want to do and how you can learn it yourself. You’ll save yourself money in the long run.
What about e-mail newsletters? Are they helpful for unpublished writers, or just published writers? Are there any legalities YA writers need to be aware of when posting links to sign up for their newsletters?
An e-mail newsletter is a great way to further engage with your audience. Usually, these are for published writers who either have had books come out already or are waiting for their publication date. These newsletters offer a quick solution to let everyone know about upcoming appearances, promotions, book news, etc. As to legalities, YA authors will be offering newsletter signups for the gatekeepers—librarians, parents, teachers. I don’t advise creating newsletters for kids. Publishers, parents, teachers, and librarians would need to be involved anyway, if kids were signing up for newsletters.
For unpublished writers, especially for those writers who have a very strong theme or passion that they write about, an e-mail newsletter on the subject of their passion—in other words, a themed newsletter—might be something to think about before selling the book. This is frequently used in nonfiction publishing and is called building a list. For nonfiction books (not usually kids books), having a list is a big part of the book proposal. This practice has not yet made it all the way over to YA writing, but you can certainly use it if it fits your subject matter.
Kerrie Flanagan
Bio: Kerrie Flanagan is the Director of Northern Colorado Writers (NCW) and a freelance writer with articles in national and regional publications. She is a frequent contributor for WOW! Women on Writing, and six of her essays have been published in various Chicken Soup for the Soul books. Through NCW she provides 200+ members and other writers with the tools, encouragement, and information needed to find success.
Why and how do writers set up blogs?
Blogging is a great way to stay connected to readers, to hone your writing skills, and if you are a nonfiction writer, a way to position yourself as an expert on your topic. I started my blog, The Writing Bug (http://www.the-writing-bug.blogspot.com), because I have a passion for supporting and encouraging other writers. With the blog, I can connect with those writers, share resources, inspire them, provide insight into the publishing industry, as well as drive traffic to my website.
The two most popular blogging platforms are Blogger and WordPress. I chose Blogger because it’s free and allows you to monetize your blog with advertisements. They also have great features and design elements at no extra cost. WordPress has different levels, so with the free version, you can’t monetize your blog. They also have different features that you can pay for like extra storage, custom design, and premium themes. They are both good, so you have to decide what features are best for you.
What do you consider to be the biggest benefit of blogging? Are there any drawbacks, and if so, what are they?
Blogging provides me a platform to write and connect with a community of writers. I also get to write about what interests me. While I want to make sure my posts are well written and grammatically correct, it is a more relaxed venue. If I had a novel out, it would provide me a way to get to know my readers. The biggest drawback to blogging is the time factor. It is important to make sure it doesn’t interfere with your regular writing.
What’s a good length for a typical blog post? Is it important to add graphics or pictures to each blog entry, or does it matter?
When people are reading online they usually have limited time, so it’s best to keep blog posts short: somewhere between 200–400 words. Paragraphs should only be a couple of sentences long, with a space in between each. (Don’t indent.)
Graphics and photos will catch readers’ attention and help to break up the content, so I try to add these whenever possible. Be sure to get permission before using copyrighted images.
What has blogging done for your career as a writer? Is a blog a good forum for publicizing books?
Since my goal is to help other writers on their writing journeys, most of what I publish has to do with writing. I use my blog as a platform to position myself as an expert in this field. I share my thoughts, provide resources, inspire, encourage, interact with other writers, and link to my published articles from the blog. In terms of my career, it has helped tremendously by establishing my credibility as a writer and as the Director of NCW.
For those who write books, a blog is an excellent way to publicize a novel and connect with readers. But in order for it to be effective, you need to be consistent with how many times you post each week, spend time visiting and commenting on other blogs, and interact with those who comment on your blog.
Any advice for writers about following agent/editor blogs?
Following agent and editor blogs is a good thing. It provides insight into that person and what they may or may not be looking for in queries and manuscripts. A lot of times they will share queries they liked, what type of stories they would love to see more of, pet peeves, recent acquisitions, information about their clients’ books, and the list goes on. Interacting with them by leaving comments is good, but be sure to remain professional.