Wow, 2018, and still no flying cars.
I missed posting last month, I was celebrating my
twenty-fifth wedding anniversary with my beautiful bride, Katie.
We went east to lovely Cape May, New Jersey, where we stayed in a
B&B that was built in 1863!Cape May is right on the beach, and is better known as a summer vacation spot. But in December they decorate the nineteenth century village to look like a Christmas Card. It was magical!
I want to talk briefly about marketing. I’m new to this so, I’ll not be offering a silver bullet that will bring your work to the attention of millions. Sorry, but if you know where the Lone Ranger
may have dropped some of his precious ammo, please, let me know.
What I have learned thus far is that marketing is difficult,
expensive, and dangerous.
“Dangerous?” you ask, “Mike, how is it dangerous?”
Being expensive, marketing has its charlatans. There are
people out there who will offer you thousands of book buyers, and hundreds of positive
reviews, for a given price.
Some will even openly sell you reviews. The more you pay, the
better the review. Then they publish it to their website, which, they claim, is
seen daily by tens of thousands.
Thankfully, Cheryl, of PRP, has steered me away from a bunch
of these.
I am sure there are legitimate individuals, and companies,
out there who will effectively market for you.
I am also sure it will not be cheap.
I am also sure it will not be cheap.
The trick is to avoid the bogus, and then select from the
real marketers, those that will provide the best bang for the buck.
I’m sure that, like me, you get dozens of unsolicited emails
daily with marketing offers, and other writing/publishing related deals that
are guaranteed to put you and your book at the top of the NYT best seller list,
and keep it there for weeks.
My guess is that 99.99% of all that is garbage.
After giving this problem considerable thought, I have
figured out how to actually accomplish all that; thousands buying your book,
hundreds of positive reviews, and eventually, weeks at the top of the
bestseller list.
That’s right, a jewel of wisdom for certain success…and for
only $29.95!
No, just kidding.
But there is a method, it’s not easy, in fact it may be the
hardest way of all.
The secret is…write a good book.
Be the best writer.
To do this you have to go back to school, you have to learn
the art, the trade, the techniques. For many of us this means a return to basic
English. Not all of us, mind you, I am well aware that some of you are masters of
the English language, to rival Winston Churchill himself.
Anyway, that’s my advice, gleaned from my limited experience
thus far.
I would dearly love to hear from others. What have been your
experiences, have you had success marketing your work, if so, how, who did you
go with, if you went with anyone?
Did you attend any seminars on writing that other might seek
out? How about online courses?
Well, there’s my rant. I hope it starts a discussion. Post your comments here so that we might all help one another.
Speaking of marketing, I would be remiss were I to fail to
mention the pending release of my third novel, Across a Sea of Stars. If you
like action, adventure, space opera, and romance, I believe you’ll love number
III in The Unborn Galaxy series ― Across a Sea of Stars.
Read books I and II of The Unborn Galaxy -- before the release of book III, Across a Sea of Stars.
Follow me on Face Book: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100010275572869
Mike, I'm really looking forward to getting ACROSS A SEA OF STARS "out there"-- I'm really enjoying it--you're making a sci-fi reader out of me!
ReplyDeleteHAPPY ANNIVERSARY!
Thank's Cheryl. I knew you'd see the light. ;)
DeleteMike,
ReplyDeleteYou have a timely article in regards to marketing and publishing. It's becoming increasingly important for authors to do their own marketing. My philosophy is do what you can to market your books at the no-monetary-cost level before you spend much, if any, money for paid advertising. Of course, there is the time cost--meaning you have to put the time into doing your own marketing. But even that can be planned and carried out without a total disruption of precious writing time, family time, work time, and leisure time. I have shared a marketing opportunity in the Prairie Rose Publications YahooGroup, and I'll have it also posted to the other Imprints loops just as soon as Yahoo decides to "play nice". So, watch the FireStarPress loop for information.
Thanks Kaye. I'll be all over that!
ReplyDelete