Are You My Reader?
(Top Strategies For Self-Promotion)
"I am writing for myself and strangers. This is the only way that I can do it..."
-Gertrude Stein
“To write what is worth publishing, to find honest people to publish it, and get sensible people to read it, are the three great difficulties in being an author.”
-Charles Caleb Colton
Being a writer is a truly solitary profession –- there are no assistants who can take your place if you have a sick day or go on vacation. Your work reflects intimately how you feel both physically and mentally. Faced each day with only one's thoughts and a keyboard, it can feel like the most daunting task in the world to put idea to page in the hopes that one day someone will pay money to read your book. Each word is an exercise of creativity, discipline and self-doubt. Finally, after what feels like an eternity of edits, the manuscript is sent off and the book you labored over for months (maybe even years) is out of your hands and ready to take its journey through the publishing system. This is where an author’s responsibility to their career is just getting started – not ending. After all of the time and effort an author puts into writing a book, they must also assume an active role in placing themselves and their work in front of readers.
“There is no such thing in our business as treading water. It is a sink or swim industry,” says best-selling author Gayle Lynds (THE LAST SPYMASTER, St. Martin’s Press June 2006), co-president of the International Thriller Writer’s organization with author David Morrell. “Educate yourself about the business, learn about the industry,” she continues. “You cannot succeed at something if you don’t understand how it works. It is utterly critical for new authors to understand the business. If your books do not sell you will find yourself out of the business very quickly.”
One of the things successful authors understand is the importance of networking. Learn as much as you can about the genre you are writing within and the people involved. An easy (and important) way to do this is to join a group or organization targeted to your genre. Do you write thrillers? Join the International Thriller Writer’s organization (www.thrillerwriters.org). Horror? Join the Horror Writers Association (www.horror.org). Romance? Romance Writers of America (www.rwanational.org). Mystery? Mystery Writers of America (www.mysterywriters.org). There are a number of stellar organizations out there - many writers belong to more than one.
Joining an organization is not as important as how you use the resources –- membership in groups like this can help provide you with information and a solid footing for furthering your contacts. Attend as many conferences and workshops as you can afford. “Educate yourself and at the same time make friends without using them,” Lynds advises. “Volunteer as much as you can, you will find yourself working with people much farther along in their career than you are.”
Invest time in learning about the media, publishing and your genre. This just doesn’t mean knowing the top book reviewers at the top papers nationwide – get to know the publications and reviewers who are important to your genre(s) and the industry in general. (Note that websites for some of the organizations listed above often cite publications of importance to a particular genre, information only available within the membership portion of the site itself.) Create a system for keeping track of your contacts and research (and update it regularly).
Follow industry trends. Knowledge is power, be in a position to talk with fellow authors and others in the industry intelligently about the business and especially the genre(s) you are writing in. Know which authors are driving your genre(s) and their work, read as much as you can. Successful writers are usually voracious readers.
Know your bookstores. Even if you hire someone to do your publicity work for you, it is important for authors to have an intimate understanding of the stores, especially the genre stores. (Again, count this as a benefit of joining an organization. Many groups have lists of stores which are active members of the group.) Learn which stores influence bestseller lists regionally and nationally. Successful independent stores have newsletter lists in the thousands and the ability to hand sell your book to a targeted group of people. They also “talk” to one another and influence regional and national best seller lists. If your publisher won’t pay for a tour, use your personal resources. Drive your own car and stay with generous friends.
Finally, create a website for yourself –- an essential tool in the internet era. Browse a variety of author websites (especially bestsellers) and create a website of your own based upon those that you like. Make sure your site is interesting, professional and easy to use.
Thriller writer Blake Crouch, author of DESERT PLACES and LOCKED DOORS (whose work I highly recommend, you are in for a real treat), a relative newcomer to the publishing world, has applied many of these techniques with great success. Recommendations by supporters such as Jon Jordan, publisher of Crimespree Magazine, many independent stores and authors including my father (who recommended Crouch’s work in his monthly newsletter) spiked an increase in sales and a random call from the producer of a major television show.
Press kits, mailings and advertising campaigns aside, the most important thing an author can do is stay connected and informed.
Happy writing! Sarie Morrell
Please address questions for Sarie to ReadersRoom2@aol.com.
"I am writing for myself and strangers. This is the only way that I can do it..."
-Gertrude Stein
“To write what is worth publishing, to find honest people to publish it, and get sensible people to read it, are the three great difficulties in being an author.”
-Charles Caleb Colton
Being a writer is a truly solitary profession –- there are no assistants who can take your place if you have a sick day or go on vacation. Your work reflects intimately how you feel both physically and mentally. Faced each day with only one's thoughts and a keyboard, it can feel like the most daunting task in the world to put idea to page in the hopes that one day someone will pay money to read your book. Each word is an exercise of creativity, discipline and self-doubt. Finally, after what feels like an eternity of edits, the manuscript is sent off and the book you labored over for months (maybe even years) is out of your hands and ready to take its journey through the publishing system. This is where an author’s responsibility to their career is just getting started – not ending. After all of the time and effort an author puts into writing a book, they must also assume an active role in placing themselves and their work in front of readers.
“There is no such thing in our business as treading water. It is a sink or swim industry,” says best-selling author Gayle Lynds (THE LAST SPYMASTER, St. Martin’s Press June 2006), co-president of the International Thriller Writer’s organization with author David Morrell. “Educate yourself about the business, learn about the industry,” she continues. “You cannot succeed at something if you don’t understand how it works. It is utterly critical for new authors to understand the business. If your books do not sell you will find yourself out of the business very quickly.”
One of the things successful authors understand is the importance of networking. Learn as much as you can about the genre you are writing within and the people involved. An easy (and important) way to do this is to join a group or organization targeted to your genre. Do you write thrillers? Join the International Thriller Writer’s organization (www.thrillerwriters.org). Horror? Join the Horror Writers Association (www.horror.org). Romance? Romance Writers of America (www.rwanational.org). Mystery? Mystery Writers of America (www.mysterywriters.org). There are a number of stellar organizations out there - many writers belong to more than one.
Joining an organization is not as important as how you use the resources –- membership in groups like this can help provide you with information and a solid footing for furthering your contacts. Attend as many conferences and workshops as you can afford. “Educate yourself and at the same time make friends without using them,” Lynds advises. “Volunteer as much as you can, you will find yourself working with people much farther along in their career than you are.”
Invest time in learning about the media, publishing and your genre. This just doesn’t mean knowing the top book reviewers at the top papers nationwide – get to know the publications and reviewers who are important to your genre(s) and the industry in general. (Note that websites for some of the organizations listed above often cite publications of importance to a particular genre, information only available within the membership portion of the site itself.) Create a system for keeping track of your contacts and research (and update it regularly).
Follow industry trends. Knowledge is power, be in a position to talk with fellow authors and others in the industry intelligently about the business and especially the genre(s) you are writing in. Know which authors are driving your genre(s) and their work, read as much as you can. Successful writers are usually voracious readers.
Know your bookstores. Even if you hire someone to do your publicity work for you, it is important for authors to have an intimate understanding of the stores, especially the genre stores. (Again, count this as a benefit of joining an organization. Many groups have lists of stores which are active members of the group.) Learn which stores influence bestseller lists regionally and nationally. Successful independent stores have newsletter lists in the thousands and the ability to hand sell your book to a targeted group of people. They also “talk” to one another and influence regional and national best seller lists. If your publisher won’t pay for a tour, use your personal resources. Drive your own car and stay with generous friends.
Finally, create a website for yourself –- an essential tool in the internet era. Browse a variety of author websites (especially bestsellers) and create a website of your own based upon those that you like. Make sure your site is interesting, professional and easy to use.
Thriller writer Blake Crouch, author of DESERT PLACES and LOCKED DOORS (whose work I highly recommend, you are in for a real treat), a relative newcomer to the publishing world, has applied many of these techniques with great success. Recommendations by supporters such as Jon Jordan, publisher of Crimespree Magazine, many independent stores and authors including my father (who recommended Crouch’s work in his monthly newsletter) spiked an increase in sales and a random call from the producer of a major television show.
Press kits, mailings and advertising campaigns aside, the most important thing an author can do is stay connected and informed.
Happy writing! Sarie Morrell
Please address questions for Sarie to ReadersRoom2@aol.com.
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home