My hair is turning
grey. Why? Because I not only write books, but have to concentrate on
publicity. Publicity? Yeah, I know, it’s a bad word—but a necessary one. Maybe
there are those in book-land who love book promotion. Let it be known up front
that I’m not one of them. But, BUT, it is necessary! So as my latest novel, Riptide came out, I bit the bullet and
formulated a plan.
Anyway, here is what
I’ve done which I present with the thought that it might help other reluctant
authors.
First I appealed for
some reviewers and encouraged them to put reviews up on the Pelican site, on
Amazon, Indigo, and Barnes and Noble. The results were not only encouraging,
but astounding. People actually liked, even loved my book! Of course, I’d already
updated my web site and talked about the book on Facebook and twitter.
I wrote a persuasive
one page description of the book which included facts, cost, availability, reviews,
etc. Along with a picture of the cover, I sent this to my email list
encouraging previous readers of my fiction to order the book. Orders began to
trickle in.
Since my home church
had been supportive, I approached the pastor about making the book available on
a Sunday. Some churches are sensitive about selling on Sunday. But since our
church allows the sale of missionary books and music videos from visiting
presenters, the pastor was positive. With a notice in the bulletin for a couple
of weeks, the sales on the Sunday in question were good.
Next I wrote a one
page News Release and presented this in person to the offices of local papers.
Ours is a rural county with several small towns and a very active arts and
writers’ community. The papers readily accept news releases and often use them
almost verbatim. In my case, one of the widest disseminated free papers printed
a very positive article. I was astonished when three different people contacted
me directly as a result of the article. This doesn’t often happen. I’m still
waiting for two other papers to follow suit—especially when I approach them
with specific dates for book readings, launches, and events.
Once one news article
had circulated, it was time to approach local bookstores with whom I have
maintained a relationship over the years. Fortunately, this personal approach
paid dividends. All of the local bookstores have ordered copies from the
distributor. Now I can direct inquiries to these stores. Even Indigo, Canada’s
answer to Barnes & Noble, agreed to list it on their sites due to my
relationship with some of their store managers. It is also available on Kindle,
Kobo, and other e-readers.
The article also
generated interest from libraries. So I took the time to personally approach
the CEO of each of our local libraries with the suggestion they purchase
copies. Most of them eagerly did so, purchasing copies directly from me. In
each case, I offered to either run or participate in a literary evening of
readings and discussion. So far, our nearest library has reciprocated and
scheduled an evening centred on reading from my three novels and discussion of
the role of setting in fiction.
The summer is a great time
to participate in fairs, arts and craft shows, and farmers’ markets. Most years
I set up a table every Saturday at whatever event is taking place. Each of
these cost money necessitating the pondering of whether or not sales will cover
the cost of a booth. This year, due to some health problems, I’ve not been able
to do this as often as I would like.
These same challenges
have made it difficult to schedule a book launch evening at a local coffee shop,
but this is being planned. A book launch where coffee and pastries are
available is a great place to invite friends and writing colleagues. Usually, a
couple of local authors get together to launch their books, give readings, and
answer questions.
The period leading up
to Christmas is an especially fruitful time to set up a book table at local
fairs and Christmas craft shows. People come to these looking for gifts and
what better gift could they buy than a book?
I’ve also found large
bookstores welcome me as a local author offering to sign books during periods
that lead up to Mother’s Day, Father’s Day or Christmas. These stores, however,
need to know far in advance as their schedules are often full and they need to
order books from a distributor.
Finally, service clubs
and churches provide one of the most fulfilling venues to speak at as a writer.
This is especially true if you have a book of local interest or can gear your
talk to something that intrigues or educates an audience. Writers of
non-fiction, particularly, have a ready-made topic on which they can speak. My
book, Through A Country Window,
describes the joys of country life in a general way but also focuses on
fascinating facts about our area of the country. Concerning my book, Church--No Spectator Sport, I often
speak about the discovery and development of spiritual gifts. From my book, Revolutionary Forgiveness, I can address
many questions about how to deal with bitterness, unforgiveness, etc. I find
that people are also fascinated by the whole idea of writing a book of fiction.
How did you become a writer? Where do you
get your ideas from? How do you get published? What advice do you have for new
writers?
While we who are
authors may not be ideal promoters, any effort we can expend will be yield
sales and make our books known. With thousands upon thousands of titles
entering the book business every year, we must do whatever we can to promote
our book, unless we want it to sink into oblivion. (http://www.countrywindow.ca)
Some of the herd moved into the field behind our house the
other day, I grabbed my camera thinking I could get some great shots of the
cows and young elk gathering there. We have a five foot chain link fence
surrounding our yard and tall ponderosa pines, so I felt safe enough. I clicked
away getting terrific shots of these large, sleek brown females in the field.
Zooming in, I caught a close up of a female with a blade of grass sticking out
of her mouth. Mom and calf near each other. With all our rain this year, the
grass practically glows green. Beautiful. The huge bull stood up the hill
across the upper street watching over his herd that slowly grazed along. His
mouth open, nostrils flaring as he sniffed the air, I assumed he was checking
out his girls. I learned later, much later, he was on to my presence. Who knew? 
