Sue Collier | July 7, 2010
Guest blogger: Dana Lynn Smith
This post, the third of a three-part series on building an author platform, highlights the importance of connections. Part one of this author platform series covers branding, while part two discusses reputation.
When selling your book, it’s not just what you know, it’s who you know!
To sell books in today’s marketplace, you [...]
Sue Collier | May 28, 2010
When I first read this article by Garrison Keillor, I kind of chuckled to myself—I mean, how seriously can I take the opinion of modern publishing from the dude who hales from the (albeit fictitious) “little town that time forgot and the decades cannot improve.” Obviously, he would prefer that the publishing world stay just [...]
Sue Collier | May 28, 2010
Let’s face it: Unless you are a celebrity, traveling the country and hitting up bookstore after bookstore for signings is probably not going to sell many books. You’ll more than likely spend way more for travel than you’ll make in book sales. Enter the virtual age. From the comfort of your own home or office, you [...]
Marilyn Ross | February 8, 2010
Promoting fiction is never easy. Yet you can craft a manuscript that has built-in promotional and sales angles. It simply takes some forethought and creative planning. By following the secrets revealed below, fiction writers can greatly enhance their chances of getting print, radio, and TV exposure.
1. Provide a local angle. Set your story in a [...]
Sue Collier | February 1, 2010
If there is one thing about promotions I try to impress upon authors, it’s that reviews sell books. The process for obtaining reviews can be somewhat overwhelming, though, so here is a step-by-step approach.
Well in advance of your publication date (at least two or three months), gather your list of potential reviewers in print, broadcast, [...]
Sue Collier | January 18, 2010
In the old days of promotions—before the Internet came along and changed the way we do pretty much everything—you had two options for garnering attention for your product or service: advertisements and the media. But now you have the World Wide Web as your oyster. And a new paradigm, with terms like “Twitter,” “friending,” “LinkedIn,” [...]
Sue Collier | November 19, 2009
If you are even remotely tapped into the publishing world, you’ve heard all about the new Harlequin Horizons, wherein authors can pay $600 to $1,600 for their book to be “published.” (Hmmm…sounds like a vanity press to me.) This might be a fabulous idea–if you’re Harlequin. And that is probably true only in the short [...]
Sue Collier | August 27, 2009
Putting together a radio and television promotion campaign is much the same as dealing with print media. In fact, we can use the identical Available for Interview promo package. Be aware of one difference, however: In electronic media, formats and personnel change as often as bed linen. It’s a pressure-cooker world, making radio and TV [...]