Promotion, promotion, promotion!!!!
Writing a fabulous book and finding an agent and publisher is no longer all a writer has to do to succeed. Once the editing is done and the cover designed....we as writers need to take marketing and promotion into our own hands. Well, actually.....you should probably start way before that....build a "platform".
I started building my platform before I received my book contract. I got myself on Myspace as a writer-something separate from my personal account, as well as a Fan Page on Facebook. I tried the Twitter thing but at first it didn't really appeal to me. I gave it a second chance and I'm enjoying much more now. I started this blog back in March of 09 as another way to get myself out there and network. It did however, turn into much more...something I wasn't quite expecting. I started to make friends and found great support and camaraderie.
So for some further promotion...for me and also a great place for other writers and romance readers to go.....gotta check this out!! Coffee Time Romance is a great site: book reviews, chats, interviews, contests, free short stories. You can even make an ecard with a romance novel cover to send to your girlfriends!!!! How cool is that????
Coffee Time Romance also has a Youtube page with tons and tons of great book trailers (yours truly is featured under Chick Lit and Contemporary!) Please check it out and share it with your romance-loving friends!!!
And don't forget about my Karma Story Contest!! It's open till Friday!!!
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great post and thanks for the heads up about Coffee Time Romance. I went to the site and it is absolutely wonderful! Not to mention that it is a great page layout and has a wonderful banner. grrr... jealous.
ReplyDeleteOMG I just watched your book trailer!!! It. Is. AWESOME!
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome, Emma! I love to pass on great sites when I come across them!!!
ReplyDeleteAnd Bethany, thank you sooooooooooo much!! It makes me so happy to read your compliment!!! :)
I think you're doing good with your promotion!
ReplyDeleteHey, Stephanie, thanks for the plug! You're a great promoter.
ReplyDeleteyou know what I think about promotion :)
ReplyDeleteStephanie, what an awesome video! I love book trailers. Sometimes they can say more than what is on the back of the book. And thanks for recommending Coffee Time Romance. We love our job!
ReplyDeleteThanks ladies!!
ReplyDeleteDanielle, I had such a fun time at the Lyrical Press chat a few weeks ago! I definity plan on coming back again!
Great post, Stephanie. Promotion is so important, and I agree with you that building your platform should begin before publication.
ReplyDeleteI keep struggling with whether or not to create Facebook and MySpace fan pages for myself, though, when I don't have a book deal yet like you do or an agent yet. I know you said you started pre-book deal. How did you decide you were ready? Did you ask friends & fam on FB to become your fans? (Was it scary doing so? That is honestly what makes me reluctant... admitting to the world that why yes, I really really really want to write for a living).
Guinevere, I made the decision more than two years ago to pursue writing as a career and gave myself a five year time line to make it happen. I was due to have my second child and since I am able to stay home, that gave me 5 years till he'd be starting school. It was scary to make that decision and the fear of what if I didn't make it happen? We'd decided that if I didn't find success (and I define success by bringing in some form of monetary compensation), then I would get a part time job when my son started full day kindergarten. That thought was a huge motivator. I do not want to go back to working for someone else and the fear of putting myself out there quickly faded away.
ReplyDeleteFor that first year I worked really hard on my writing and found small successes, though no money was involved, they were getting me where I needed to go. I started this blog back in March 09...two months before my book contract came in. Then I did a Facebook Fan page...and even now, I think there are only like 5 fans that are not people I know in real life. I stared the myspace page and I admit, I do not go on that as much as i should. I even gave Twitter a try, though it took a second time to really get into it. I am not a hardcore twitterer, but I'm slowly building followers. Oh and Goodreads too. I can't list myself as an author yet...need my book's isbn, but I have an account and I friended a bunch of people who like the same books as I do.
It's nice to have bits and pieces of myself out there...so when I participate in chats or when I post on blogs or on message boards, I have places where people can find me and get to know me.
Promotion is a ton of work...but I'm hoping that when my book comes out, it will all pay off!