By Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig
Kirkus Reviews interviewed me Tuesday for an author profile in the indie section they’ve got now. I had a nice talk with Sarah Rettger, who is writing the story.
One question flustered me, though, and usually does whenever I’m asked it. What type of promo has worked well for you? I answered, as I always do, that I don’t actually really promote. I do build up my name as a platform online (Twitter, blogging), but that’s mostly to increase my profile in Google rankings so that readers can easily find me. This strategy appears to work since readers seem to have no trouble finding me.
My lack of promo is something that I’ve always felt guilty about, though, especially for my Penguin books. I feel, there, as if I’m letting an entire team down by not promoting. I don’t feel that way for my self-published books because no one is making profit on my sales except me…and whatever retailer sold the book.
I’ve been encouraged in the past by Penguin to do some small-scale promoting. I suspect that they’re baffled by my platform, which is clearly writer-centric. As I’ve mentioned before, I’m not marketing to writers…I’m connecting with them. But it makes things difficult when Penguin does ask me to do a bit of promo—a tweet, for instance, for a giveaway they’re doing for one of my releases. I’ll do it when asked…but I’m tweeting writers. You know? It doesn’t make sense to me. So what I’ve done is promote their giveaway on my Riley Adams Facebook profile instead. That’s a place where I’m mainly connected to readers. If they directly ask me to do something, I’ll try to figure out a way to do it (usually).
What I’ve done in the past as promo:
Radio interviews
Skype interviews
Podcasts
Blog tours
Reader conferences (I’m with my author friends at the circa 2010 Malice Conference in the photo above…and we did have fun. Always love spending time with writers.)
Guest posts on Penguin’s various blogs
Emails to extended friends and family (ugh)
Facebook updates
Goodreads giveaways
Bookmarks
Author panels at libraries and bookstores
Signings
Postcards to bookstores and libraries
The absolute worst…cold calls to bookstores
As a side note, I never paid for ads. Not in magazines, not on local radio, not on Facebook, not on Goodreads. I didn’t feel as if I was making enough to justify ads.
But I even, for my first Penguin release, went on a very centralized book tour with several other Penguin authors. I enjoyed being with the other writers…although public speaking and appearances are stressful for me and I was exhausted afterward. There was an additional problem, too—I guess some of us are just going to feel guilty no matter what, because while I was feeling good about the promo I was doing, I felt guilty about not being at home with my kids. Parents can’t win in the guilt department, of course.
And, y’all, this sort of promo is expensive. The tour, the conferences. I’m a midlist writer. I should have been writing.
And don’t think any of the promo really did any good. I haven’t noticed that sales have declined since I’ve stopped this stuff. And I have a lot more time to write and am a lot less stressed.
At some point I hit upon the perfect excuse. I frequently had three or four releases in a year…was I seriously going to do heavy promo for each launch? I figured that promoting that number of releases would irritate friends and family and spam readers and writers. If readers wanted to find out about releases, they could sign up for my newsletter or follow me on Facebook…I didn’t need to try to stick my new release in front of them. Besides, Amazon’s marvelous algorithm (however it works) always seems to kick in after a few days.
What I’m doing now:
Goodreads giveaways occasionally
Facebook announcement of releases
Updated website
Reader newsletter
Fussy Librarian
As for ads/paid promo, one exception is that I may consider BookBub soon since I’ve heard some good stuff about it (Joanna Penn’s piece from April of last year, for example).
The biggest thing that I do to promote is to write more books.
With my book releases for my publisher, I did feel pressure to promote in the first few weeks after the launch. That could be tough to do—especially if I was under deadline for another book at the time (which was frequently the case).
With the digital revolution, there’s now the so-called “long tail” of publishing. The important thing is to look at sales as something that take place for a long time…over the decades of our career. Writer Joanna Penn interviewed industry expert Jane Friedman and there’s a fascinating transcript of their conversation on Joanna’s post “Money, Writing And Life With Jane Friedman.” I’ve read the article several times over the past couple of weeks and found something different and interesting each time. Highly recommended for any career-minded author. Regarding the topic of promo, Joanna Penn stated: “…most books sell very few copies every day, whether you’re indie published or traditionally published, but hopefully that continues for a long time, that is the business model, small over time.” Jane Friedman responded: “Right, and I hope that traditional publishing gets away from this launch mentality. I think slowly we’re getting away from that. I think the independent authors have been so good at pointing out to the larger community, ‘Let’s not focus on the first three months or six months, because the real potential is over the career.’”
So this is where I am with the issue. Convinced enough that promo doesn’t help to avoid doing it…but still susceptible to guilt when asked about it!
How about you? What sort of promo have you done…and what were your thoughts on the outcome?
Seems a lot of your promotions were in the real world. I hate those. Not good in front of people.
The blog tour and Goodreads giveaways are my focus. And I’ve never paid for an ad either.
My publisher tried BookBub, and the results were amazing. I think with your genre, they would be ten times better than mine.
Alex–They were just really, really stressful for me. And I recently read an article that stress is incredibly bad for creativity.
I just don’t think I have it in me to do another blog tour. A guest post here and there is fine, but I think that’s all I can manage.
I see a BookBub promo in my future. :)
If I actually thought being in front of people would sell books, I’d be in the highest heaven. I’d rather be in front of a group speaking than at my desk writing. One of the very few things I love more than writing.
But the few times I’ve done live events, gotten in front of people, sales have been zero, or nearly zero. It’s ineffective because it’s no way to build a relationship, which is what works in the long run (and the long tail.)
Joel–I love to hear when writers enjoy public speaking! Diane Wolfe is like that, too. It’s something that I don’t enjoy until about 5 minutes into it. :)
And I’m with you…most times I’ve spoken on panels, the sales have been negligible/nonexistent. Usually everyone is hurrying out to get to the next panel/speaker. Exceptions are Malice Domestic (sold a few) and a panel I did at the Marshville, NC public library–I think I sold half a box of books there. I’ve never seen anything like it. Those folks came with their pocketbooks (all the other writers on my panel had the same sales). Amazing. Other than that–as you say, there’s no relationship being cultivated there.
I’ll have to arrange a book launch at our marvelous local library; tie it to a presentation about how to write or something else I could pretend to know about.
Joel–Sounds like a great plan!
I miss all the physical appearances and interviews, but they were time consuming. Fortunately I do have one book I can pitch to writers, but that doesn’t work with the other six.
You really should try BookBub. It’s worth the investment.
Diane–I’ve got nothing to pitch to writers…ha!
Another endorsement for BookBub!
Elizabeth – I’m with you about promo. I know it’s important to let readers and others know about anything new. And social networks are the way to do that these days. At the same time, in my opinion, there is definitely such a thing as overdoing it. Not only does that become obnoxious, but it also takes away from what we should be doing – writing. I think concentrating one’s promotion on a few things (e.g. Goodreads giveaways, FB announcements and so on) is smarter. Find out where readers are, promote there with a few things, and then…write. I like the idea of newsletters, too. Thanks for that!
Margot–Social media is a lot less-costly and allows us to focus our efforts on the areas we’re interested in. Makes life so much easier, too!
I’ve done a few things–a school carnival, bookstore appearances, TONS of bookmarks to local libraries. But it’s all just a drop in the bucket. You have to figure where your time is most valuable…but it’s also what YOU want to do. I did the cold calls to bookstores and managed to get local bookstores to carry my books, but it was uncomfortable. Mostly I just wanted to reach out and introduce myself. A lot of it, though, is vanity. Some authors love to go around and look important. You have to ask yourself if what you’re doing is to promote your book or to get attention? Many writers simply want to write…and writing good books is a big part of finding an audience. I won’t do bookmark mailings next time–I’ll offer them to librarians, but I think a postcard mass mailing will be MUCH less expensive, enabling me to reach out to more libraries and schools statewide.
Stephanie–I think you’re right about the lower cost of the postcard mailings. I haven’t done it in probably 4 or 5 years, but it was fairly cost-effective, considering. But time consuming!
Good point that we should focus on what *we* want to do and what’s within our comfort zone.
“The biggest thing that I do to promote is to write more books.” Amen!
The most I’ve felt able to do/comfortable doing for the first two books (I’m writing the third now) are a blog tour, posting an announcement on my site, and emailing friends and family. But I’m just in my early stages of author-hood, so I’m hoping I can build up a newsletter email list to help get the word out more effectively in the future.
I’ve felt the same way about ads, too – not making enough yet to justify the expense.
Oh, and let’s not even get started on trying to get reviews of my books…
Fab post, Elizabeth – thanks!
~Kathy
P.S. – I’d love to pick your brain sometime about when to commit the money for going the audiobook route! I’d love to do it sometime (and folks have asked me), but not sure I can justify the expense.
Kathy–I just started doing the newsletter in December…but boy, I wish I’d started a long time ago. Easy way to let the most interested readers know about our books.
As for audiobooks–I spent…nothing! I know that sounds amazing, but it’s true. I picked the royalty-share option at ACX and it costs nothing, but you split the royalties with the narrator. Worked out really well for me and I broadened my readership. Have to recommend it.
Wow! I had no idea that was an option, but I hadn’t really looked into it. That’s what happens when one assumes. *smacks forehead*
So cool! Thanks for letting me know!
Kathy–I’d assumed the same thing, until I checked it out. Good luck with it!
I suspect promotions work for a certain kind of reader, in particular, those who only browse for books on the best seller lists. But I think most books have an audience that doesn’t pay attention to the hype.
And funny, but a lot of us are turned off by the hype. I was thinking about the big Hachette hullabalo all over the news lately, and my reaction as a reader was “They’re removing pre-order buttons? Thank goodness!” Because, as a reader, when I discover a book I want to buy, and then I discover I can’t actually get it, I feel bait-and-switched.
Much better to find a book, and not only be able to get it, but to be able to get a bunch of books in the whole series I didn’t know about. That’s a glorious moment.
So yes, for the midlist writer (the writers who tend to be most beloved of a loyal audience, btw) patience really is a virtue.
Camille–I think you’re right. It usually is a turnoff to me when I see a really big push for a book. So frequently it’s a book that didn’t need one.
I don’t like pre-orders, either. The only time I do them is when my son wants a book that’s not out yet. I just pre-order so I won’t forget it.
Hi Elizabeth – what you’re saying makes a lot of sense .. especially as you don’t like being out front much .. and your approach has worked … you’ve slowly built up a following of readers and just done your thing around them and what you want to do ..
On top of that you offer us great posts about all sorts of authorly, writerly informational articles! The long tail makes sense … and the pennies gently roll in .. cheers HIlary
Hilary–Pennies it is! But for a long period of time…yay!
And you’re so right about not wanting to be out front much. Whew. It’s exhausting.
I’m with Kathy: “The biggest thing that I do to promote is to write more books.” Thank you thank you thank you.
Since writing more books is almost as much fun as public speaking (for me) it’s nice to hear someone say what I also believe is the best way to market myself. Now I get to have fun doing it the right way.
Joel–If we saturate the market with our well-written books, we have it made! :)
Best advice is more books following first, second, third…and so on. Yes you can promo the heck out of book one, full onslaught, but then, when are you writing?
I like the face-to-face stuff more. Haven’t done much widespread work in this area and think I’ll wait until book 2 and 3 are out (or close.) Lots of free type stuff, giveaways, etc. Some success but certainly tailing off after a couple of months. I plan to re-energize later in summer with a couple of coordinated events (and at least book 2 ready to go!)
Dean–You’re right…there’s no time to do both full-time promo and writing.
You’re good to do face-to-face promo. That’s hardest for me. You’re smart to have a hiatus before resuming when book two is ready to release.
Elizabeth, I’m amazed at all you do!
FYI, I’d never heard of Fussy Librarian. I just submitted my book. We’ll see what happens.
I’m not a fan of promo, and don’t want to bombard my friends with info. I’ll mention it on social media when important stuff happens, but that’s it. Friends want to know, so I tell them, but I definitely don’t bug them about it. I don’t like it when I’m bombarded and I wouldn’t want to do that to anyone.
I’ve been fascinated by the “long tail” of publishing, and I’m so encouraged by it. I think you’re right…the best way to promote our books is to write more books.
Julie–I think I heard of Fussy from our friend Alex.
I really love the idea of these books that we’re writing earning for us thirty years from now. But it also makes me think about our literary estates (not a cheerful topic, but important, considering). I know Kris Rusch and Dean Wesley Smith have a whole series of posts on it and choosing a literary executor.
After studying what several authors I admire had done, I experimented with promotions last year to get an idea of what would work for me and what wouldn’t. KDP Select free days resulted in lots of downloads, a rise in the free charts, some sales, and some reviews. I did paid promos for the event, some of which I felt were more successful than others. The book tours (which included giveaways with ebooks, paperbacks, bookmarks, postcards) were very good and generated some sales and reviews. I also did Goodreads giveaways independently, which again got the books in front of about 2000 fresh pairs of eyes.
The consistent advice I see from authors who are established and making a living out of their writing is what you’ve said. The best promotion is to write the next book. Make it as good if not better than the last one. And have a smashing cover. The second piece of advice is that the process of gaining readers, sales, and reviews is a marathon, not a sprint. Some genres will always do better than others. Be patient.
Louisa Locke did a great post recently where she compared the impact of her relaxing her promotional efforts on her sales. It didn’t make much difference (but she does have a relatively well-established readership). But she does advocate planning a few promotions a year, nothing too time consuming.
Bookbub has been impossible for me to get into so far. I believe they get a lot of requests for my genre, although they do seem to feel my books don’t really fall into their required genres (I tried thriller and action-adventure. My Amazon tags do appear to cover plenty of genres so not sure what’s going on there!). I used to suspect that the number of reviews influenced their decisions but some of the book recommendations I’ve received from them have had less than mine.
Book Gorilla, Book Sends, ebooksoda, and Book Blast are the other relatively fresh competitors on the market. Have had no problems getting into the first three. Haven’t tried Bookblast yet.
My conclusions?
Keep writing the next book. Have a 6 month marketing plan and use a calendar to figure out what task you need to do and when. Once you do it the first time, you will get faster at it. I plan to do about at least 6 promos a year, i.e. every alternate month. Plan them around your new releases. ebookbooster is great for getting on lots of sites and I have used them several times so far. Look out for unexpected promo opportunities (e.g. invitation to guest post on blogs or participate in interesting giveaways).
Above all, don’t let it become so much of a chore that it stresses you out! :D I enjoy multitasking, so for me, it’s an enjoyable challenge.
AD–Your approach sounds very thoughtful and open to experimentation. And you’re right–some genres will find success sooner than others, some genres will fit in better to particular types of promo, etc. Really, if I were being smart, I’d do what the most-successful authors in my genre are doing…interacting with readers on Facebook. It’s just not my platform, sadly–I have a tough time over there.
Good point about patience in this business.
And…I think what you’re doing is working. I’ve seen you all over the place!
Facebook is a strange animal. I mostly interact with other authors, bloggers, and close friends at present. As a reader, I never thought of interacting with my favorite authors on their social media platforms :) I still see myself as part of that older generation who lived half their lives not knowing what the heck social media was ;)
Now that I’m an author, I know I would like to engage more with readers. Many of my FB contacts are my readers. But I suspect some old fashioned fans (like myself) may still be reticent about interacting directly with authors they like. It kinda takes away from the “glamor”?
I’ve been doing a couple of 99c promos & Goodreads giveaways recently, that’s probably why, LOL ;)
AD–I have three different Facebook accounts–remarkable for someone who doesn’t like FB! :) But one is for family and so I’m more present there (but I *still* don’t like it). And I’m with you…right at that cut-off where computers are still new to us (even though I was on email, etc. back in the mid-90s).
You know, some of the readers who contact me most frequently are my oldest readers. I wouldn’t have thought that (because, like you, I’d never dream of contacting my favorite authors online). Not so many middle-aged readers reach out, though.
I love this post! I’ve been thinking about how to handle my debut (when it eventually happens), and I hate the pressure of trying to knock something out of the park. I think I’ll be much more likely to announce it on my blog, newsletter, and social media–no more than a few times–and then let it go and move on to the next thing.
I admire you so much, so I love the “permission” implied by you and this post. ;)
Jami–The pressure, yes! It’s this awful guilt…guilt that we’re somehow letting ourselves/our book/our publisher down if we don’t promote. But…I seem to have gotten over it. :) At least, until it becomes an interview question…ha!
Besides, Jami, you’ve got a high degree of visibility on the web. A really established platform. You’re already good!
Elizabeth, I’ve always found your blog to be a nice place to rest. I think we are soul sisters.
My debut month is about to hit and I think I’ve set my entire household on edge leading into my June 3 book launch party. I started Toastmasters in January so I wouldn’t completely melt on stage. I may even be able to look people in the eye and still remember what I was going to say.
My plan is to have a one-time big launch (because no one knows who I am and I feel I need all the publicity I can get) and then, scale it back to a comfortable level like you describe. It’s like the big party when I got married, announcing to the world my new life, and then settling into that new, regular life where I just do my thing. Because, yes, I’m pretty stressed out right now!
Shonna–Thank you. Yes, I think we might be soul sisters! I was talking about Toastmasters with my husband just the other day. He is doing more speaking for his job and we talked about doing it together. But…with as little public speaking as I do, I wasn’t sure about the time investment. I do have one nifty trick–I have questions on my lecture notes. That way it doesn’t sound rehearsed. So my index card, instead of having a paragraph of notes, will say something like “When did you first become interested in writing?” Then I just answer my question and it sounds natural and I don’t forget what I was going to say.
I’ve been in your shoes. There has been trickle-down-stress in my family around releases. I think it even trickled down to the pets!
I do think the big release can be a nice celebration of a huge milestone for a first book. Enjoy it! Then you can relax a little more. Congratulations to you!
I like your tip about outlining using questions. And you’re right that Toastmasters is a commitment–if you’re going to participate the way the program intends. What surprised me about joining was the friendships I’ve made. They are a welcoming bunch who completely understood my fears. I’m not sure how long I will continue as I still have to talk myself into going each week. (Kind of like going to fitness class–the hard work is getting there in the first place.) But I am pleased with the progress I’ve made.
This has certainly been on my mind. I’ve held off saying much about my next series, since Memory War is coming out so soon, but I do have a book launch and blog tour planned. I like Bewitching Book Tours for their promotion work, and I’m going to use them again for it.
That said, I do feel less pressure to make a big deal out of Lady Raven, and part of that is because I’m self-publishing it, and I’m really the only one depending on it doing well. I’m aiming to continue releasing two books a year, one way or another, from now on, so I probably do need to consider just how much work I should be putting into promotion, especially considering I’m not yet lucky enough to be able to write full-time.
But I can’t help but feel like I need to be doing more!
Paul–Isn’t that a nice feeling? Knowing that no one else is depending on our sales? It makes me feel a lot less stressed about my lack of promo. And you’re so right–it’s very time-consuming to do this promo, especially if you’ve already got a full-time job taking you away from writing.
Just ignore that guilt! :) I do. Most of the time.
Guy Kawasaki has some fantastic tips regarding how to deliver an effective presentation or speech, and Elizabeth, your idea of using questions is a great strategy. You don’t want to sound rehearsed because if you lose your place mid sentence, it’s too easy to get flustered. He is a very charismatic speaker and actually just a nice guy. You can see him on TedTalks also in addition to his website. Hope this helps!
Austin Mystery–Oh, I love TED Talks! I’ll check it out. I can use all the help I can get. Thanks!