For New Authors Only— Marketing Tips

Dear Author,

Congratulations on your new book!

You must be proud, relieved— and perhaps coping with strong drugs?

Anyway, my hat's off to you— now more than ever!— because today’s bookselling climate is not for the faint of heart. Or perhaps even the sane.

I have some advice, and then a pitch. It's brief, but I am dead serious about all of it!

Blogging

If you are not blogging about your new work— I cannot recommend it enough. I'd suggest starting an account at Typepad, Vox, or Blogger, or Wordpress— just to get started. Many services are free or offer you a trial period.

What should be in it? How often should you post? The answer is, you don't need to figure that out up front. You'll get a feel for it, as you go along. I look up many of my favorite writers, to see if they have a web site. I aim to follow their footsteps!

The great thing about blogging is that you have the prerogative to keep changing your mind. Having something for people to see is about a thousand percent better than nothing.

This may sound obvious, but it often settles on deaf ears. Two years ago, I started advising my Best American Erotica authors to start blogs if they hadn't already, to promote their writing and publishing— their point of view.

Most of them rolled their eyes and declined.

However, the handful of newbies who went for it— all have book deals now. The established authors who took the plunge into the new world, have seen what a lifeline it is to their royalties and future deals.

And the people who said, "it's not for me," are... invisible and ignored, even though they are great, great, writers.

Obviously, I won't be able to continue telling such stark stories as the bookselling and Web climate evolve. But at this point, it is that black and white.

Blog or Perish.

Marketing

I always wanted my publishers would advertise my book in The New Yorker and Vanity Fair, but they rarely did. I certainly couldn’t afford it.

But nowadays, I market my work in blogs that cater to my audience— and it’s been a revelation.

Blog promotion and ads are cheap, cheaper than fuel costs to an uncertain bookstore signing. I am now a convert.

But Where?

I look for blogs that talk about either my work, and my passions. Technorati is my workhorse to research that sort of thing.

Then there's my blog, Susie Bright’s Journal. Filled with fellow travelers!

On my blog, you’ll get over 100,000 sympatico people a month checking you out, people who are looking for their tribe. You might want to advertise here— or not— but believe me, you have to get the word out somehow, or it will be like a page fluttering to the floor in an empty room.

How to Do It:
The Geek Way, or The-Live-Person-Helping-You-Way

I run all my ads through a bloggers' ad agency called BlogAds.

You can create an ad for my blog in five minutes by clicking here: LINK.

Or, if that is too intimidating, email my ad rep, the lovely Lanae Ball.

Lanae will organize the whole thing with you, by email or phone.

AND, if you think this is something you'd like your publisher, or publicist to do, by all means forward it to them. —I have just become a relentless DIYer!

Finally, if you're a blogger who already has decent traffic and want to start running your own ads, write me about sponsoring you at BlogAds.

But What About Reviews?

Reviews are fantastic, and I write as many as I can.

The awkward part is that I can't keep up with the hundreds of review copies I receive, AND, the timing or the context isn't always ideal for the author. That's where advertising, on your own terms, becomes a salvation.

At first I felt guilty about this, like ads were "second best," but now I realize they do as well, or better, as my review links, plus there isn't the constant strain on the editorial side.

What Made Me Do This?

I started blogging because I was pissed about the last election, but then it blew my mind how many books I was selling.

At first, I took ads only as a lark, but then I saw that they were actually working. They were also a lot cheaper than some of the other crazy things I used to do, like drive across the country with books piled in the trunk. I recommend that once, maybe twice, but not every year.

My blog drives a tremendous amount of traffic to the people and things I feature, especially the ads with compelling pictures and copy.

I’ve come to see that I have a big enough audience that my blog can be sustained through advertising, and that it sustains the advertisers, in turn.

I only invite people to advertise on my site who I respect. I turn down ads that I wouldn’t give my personal endorsement to. I have some funny stories about that...

Let Me Know

You have a wonderful new baby and I hope you get the appreciation you deserve.

If you think it’s worth a whirl to try blogging, or a blog ad on my site, I’d love to hear how it turns out for you.

All my best— and much, much ink,

Susie