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How do I sell/promote my new Self-published book?
04-06-2014, 05:46 AM
Post: #1
How do I sell/promote my new Self-published book?
Hi, I have self-published a book and am looking for a little direction regarding how to make a little; even if it's a trickle of money from it.
Marketing is not my strong point; I put so much energy into writing and editing it and designing it all - now it's like starting another project, just to sell one copy! Any ideas would be appreciated.
So far, I have contacted my counties library and they are in the process of ordering copies for local libraries (finger's crossed); and, I have sent it to a local magazine to possibly be reviewed. I am also looking into speaking to larger book stores about them purchasing copies.
I have had a Harley Street counsellor review my book and have a website to advertise it - can you think of anything else I can do please.
I think its a good book, but, its about finding the right people who want to read it.
It is called A Year In June by P A Thwaite and my website is http://www.allativycottage.com

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04-06-2014, 05:55 AM
Post: #2
 
free press releases, social networking Smile

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04-06-2014, 06:00 AM
Post: #3
 
Well, congrats on writing a publishing your book. I think social media is obvious. If you don't have twitter or facebook or a blog, then start those. Of course, if you don't plan on participating much on them then it might not be worth your time, but then again, you have to make it worth your time if you want to sell books.

Get on twitter and start following people. Comment on their tweets. Retweet their tweets. Interact with them. THen, when you tweet somethign about you or your book, they're likely to show you the same respect and retweet it to all their followers. With blogs, follow other writers and reviewer blogs. Make regular comments and become active on their blogs. If you get in good with them and they start recognizing your name because you're now a part of their blog then this makes it easier for them to say yes if you want them to review your book or let you do a guest blog post. You have to give it out if you want it in return. Visit some self-published authors twitter, blogs, and facebook pages and see how they handle it and get ideas from them. You can set up a facebook author page, but you need to get a certain amount of likes before you can customize it. Network. That's part of it. Also, dont' over-advertise yourself or your book. That's how you loose fans on facebook and followers on twitter. No one wants to hear everyday or many times a day about how they should buy their book or how great your book is. So, keep those types of posts to a minimum if possible. For instance, I read from a publicity agent that for every 2 facebook posts you make on your author page about your book, make 10 other posts about things other than your book, such as your personal life, for example. Readers wnat to know more about their authors on a personal level, so if you're comfortable with sharing then share. Visit some author twitter accounts and see the types of things they share with others about their personal lives. I mean, you dont' need to mention every time you're going to the toilet. Just things that will help people connect with you on a personal level.

There are many self-published review blogs, so that's your next step. Again, make sure you're active on their blog and comment on their blog posts. Follow their blogs. Try to be the first to comment so they're more likely to read it. Big Al's is just one (can't remember the address, just know about it because of a lot of controversy from a month or two ago about one of the books he reviewed).

And, of course, make sure you put forth your very best work. One way to kill your book and future books is if you start getting a bad reputation for putting out crap. If you can afford a professional editor then hire one. Writers are not capable of editing their own books to perfection. Hire a professional cover designer if you have to. Lots of readers aren't attracted to books that look like they were created in Paint. And, if you can afford it, hire a company to help with promotion and marketing and publicity.

As for your website, make your "excerpts" a little more professional-looking. Don't have the paragraphs bunched up like that. I'm also confused about why you posted short excerpts from different chapters. Usually authors tempt people with large excerpts from the beginning of the book. Some times they'll offer a whole chapter or two so the reader can get a feel. Here, you're picking and choosing short excerpts and this makes me, as a reader, think you're picking the very best and if I read the book then I might be disappointed by the rest. I'm not saying this is true, this is just the impression I"m getting from your excepts. Look around on different author websites and see how they offer their excerpts. It's always good to go with what has been proven to work.

this is a personal annoyance, so take it with a grain of salt. Telling me how I should feel after reading your excerpts is mind-numbing. I almost left the page without reading. Except, since I want to help you and offer you advice, I decided to trudge through it. Don't tell a reader how they'll feel after reading your book. Let your words in the book speak for themselves. In other words, let the sample you've given speak for itself. You dont need to tell me how great your book is. It should speak for itself. Show, not tell. Lastly, It's a short book and it's over-priced. Consider pricing it competively. A 159 page paperback is not worth $19.
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04-06-2014, 06:06 AM
Post: #4
 
*Do a page for it on facebook
*Add it with the description of it on shelfari.com and goodreads.com
*Assign free copies to those who can review it for you for example on youtube or such sites
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04-06-2014, 06:21 AM
Post: #5
 
Figure out who your target audience is. One mistake I've seen self-published authors make is overestimating the size of their target audience -- they say "oh, it's a book for all ages!" or "everybody would like it!" Nice as that sounds, it just isn't true. Come up with the types of people who would like your book -- either an age group, or people with a particular interest, or people who are fans of a specific genre or author -- and then figure out how to target them. If it's, say, older women, maybe rent a booth at a crafts fair, or join a group where a lot of other women will be.

Networking online is also a good idea, though it can be hard if you've never done it before. If you are on Facebook or Twitter, see who the most influential people are for your target market of readers. Make a list of them, and try to network with just 3 or 4 of them every week. Saying "I need to meet people on Twitter" is a large and nebulous goal -- breaking that goal down into smaller parts can be a huge help. For example, I write young adult fiction, and every week my goal is to participate in 2 YA-related Twitter chats, network with 2 other unpublished authors (who I've targeted as being good writers who have interesting things to say), and 1 published author.

Also, I had a look at your website, and I think there are some improvements to be made.

First off, you need a good copy editor. There are a number of misspelled or misused words (e.g., "no peaking" should be "no peeking"), comma splices, and an odd reliance on semi-colons.

Your excerpts (not "exert," as you have it spelled) don't tell me very much about what to expect in the book. I still have trouble figuring out what it IS -- is it a memoir of your years at the cottage? a book of stories about woodland creatures? a therapeutic self-help book? It's really hard to tell. When I look at a website for a book or an author, I look for a synopsis first. A one-paragraph or two-paragraph straightforward blurb would go a long way toward lessening readers' confusion.

And you can't be wishy-washy on the genre, either. You seem to be touting the therapeutic benefits of the book, and talking a lot about what it will do to a reader's emotions, and so forth. Honestly, this is a place where the old adage of "show don't tell" comes into play. Don't tell me how the book will make me feel -- show me! Do this through the synopsis / blurb, the excerpts, and so forth.

And regarding the excerpts, I think posting the entire first chapter of the book would go much further in terms of engrossing the reader than the three short excerpts you have up now. Dropping the reader into the middle of the book and not letting them get a handle on what the story is and who the characters are will not go a long way in enticing readers to read more. Even commercially published authors will post several chapters (always the first chapters, by the way) of their book on their website to get readers interested. If there's a big hook / cliffhanger at the end of a chapter, that's a great way to have readers clicking straight over to a "buy" link because they have to know what happens next!

Hope this is helpful!
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