"Dammit, Jim, I’m a Writer, Not a Book Marketer!"

I’m a writer. I love everything about writing: dreaming up new stories, outlining, writing, and editing, editing, and editing some more. And I love sharing my stories with readers.

But I am not a book marketer. 

I don’t know how to sell stuff. I’m an introvert. I’m shy, and I’m modest. I hate tooting my own horn.

You can write the best book in the world, but no one
will buy it if you don't know how to market it.

So what’s an introverted, shy, and modest writer like me to do? “If you build it, he will come” only happens in fields of dreams. In reality, you can write the world’s greatest book, but no one will ever read it if they don't know it exists. You might as well have consigned it to the proverbial desk drawer. 

The reverse is also true. I've seen terrible writers sell tons of books because they are amazing salespeople. These are people who could sell anything, and books are just another product to them. Of course, I'm not one of those people. 

At least there are two things about book marketing I do know: I know how to write a good blurb, and I know how to design a great cover. Of course, both of those are step two in the process of marketing. Those things don’t matter if you can’t convince people to check out your cover or your blurb to begin with.

It’s that first step. That's the real problem for me. How do you get the right people to check my book cover and my blurb? And by “the right people,” I mean potential readers who are likely to enjoy my books; because I know that once they do check them out, the books will sell themselves. 

For example, how do I get proud geeks to check out Why My Love LifeSucks? Or how do I get girls who love fantasy novels to check out Toren the Teller's Tale? And how do I get teachers who are looking for a fun book that boosts self-esteem to combat bullying to check out Dan Quixote: Boy of Nuevo Jersey? How do I get Ride of Your Life into the hands of people who need to believe that there can be a happy ending after a deadly tragedy? 

I don't know. Do you? 

I need to think like, Gilbert Garfinkle, the hero of The Legend of Gilbert the Fixer series. I need to apply his method for fixing things to this problem I have with marketing. 

Step one, I need to break it down to its parts. And here they are:

	Pros	Cons
1. Blogging, guest blogging, and blog tours	It’s all based on writing and graphics (my strengths); I have plenty of material; I can make it specific to my books; except for paid blog tours, it’s free; I can assemble useful blogs into a nonfiction book, which I can sell. (See 8)	Who will read it? How can I get people to read it? How do I find blogs that would be interested in my books? (The Indie Book Blog Database is a good place to start: http://hampton-networks.com/) There are affordable blog tours available in certain categories (I did two Bewitching Blog Tours, one for Toren the Teller's Tale and one for Ride of Your Life, and that worked well enough for both), but some categories don’t have them. Some tours are way overpriced, and there’s no guaranty anyone will see your posts. In the end, this could be a lot of work with no return on the time (and possibly money) invested in it.
2. Goodreads, LibraryThing, and other contests	Free, except possibly the cost of printing and shipping paperbacks to "winners."	Most of the people who participate are more interested in getting something for free than in your book. A giveaway on LibraryThing of 75 e-books resulted in only one Smashwords review that can be summed up as “I want a free copy of the next book in the series.” Still, I haven’t tried Goodreads yet, so that might be worth a try.
3. Facebook and Facebook advertising	Except for advertising and promoted posts, it’s free.	I hate tooting my own horn. I don’t want to be “that writer,” the annoying one who constantly screams, “Buy my book!” on Facebook. Ugh. But I will keep up the little bits of advertising I do for $1-2 a day. I just need to experiment with tweaking those for different audiences and with different content. I also need to keep interacting with my Facebook friends and groups.
4. Twitter	Free. Fun. Hashtags make it easier to find the right audience, and I can join Twitter chats on suitable topics.	Time consuming. And once again, the squeaky wheel gets the grease (and I’m not comfortable with squeaking). Twitter is better geared for the salesman than the writer.
5. YouTube	Words and images together, two things I’m good at; another form of storytelling, which is always fun. I love storytelling in all its forms!	Time consuming when done right, and with generally very little return on time invested. I could consider Vlogging, which is less time consuming, although I don’t feel comfortable in front of the camera. Maybe getting comfortable in front of the camera is something I should work on…
6. Pinterest	Pinterest is fun.	I have no real idea how to use it for book marketing.
7. Publish a picture book	I’ve already written and illustrated a few dummies. Parents love book readings at libraries and bookstores and will buy the book for their small children. I can also do paid elementary school classroom visits.	I’ll need to redo my picture books so that they’re under 24 pages, which will make them cheaper to publish in full color. That could be a lot of work. This won’t help me sell my middle-grade and teen novels.
8. Publish an adult nonfiction book	Makes it easier to do library and bookstore visits that will attract people who will buy my  book, since you can give a helpful presentation on the topic of your book to adult book buyers. Also makes you more attractive for radio and TV interviews. You can assemble blog posts into a nonfiction book, so that would let you accomplish two things at once.	Unless the topic of the book somehow relates to your other books, this won’t sell your other books.
9. Publish a Jewish book	Like an adult nonfiction book, this will open me up to giving presentations at synagogues, Jewish schools, and JCCs. I already have a finished book based on my mom’s childhood years in Jerusalem at the time that Israel became a state, but I’d like to expand it to include the life stories of four generations of women in my family in the Holy Land. I also have a semi-autobiographical, funny, middle-grade novel about growing up in a modern orthodox Jewish family, which I've written but haven't published yet.	I don’t want to be categorized as a “Jewish author.” Yes, I’m Jewish, but I write mostly comedy, science fiction, and fantasy. This audience is unlikely to spill over to my other books. I don’t want to be pigeonholed. Plus, I'd have to spend time editing and possibly illustrating this book, which would take time away from my other books.
10. Paid advertising (Google, TV, radio, magazines, websites)	Potentially a lot of exposure	People generally tune out ads, and they’re expensive! Plus, how can you be sure it’s the right audience?
11. Become a celebrity	People will buy anything a celebrity is selling.	The easiest way to become a celebrity is by doing something humiliating. No thanks!
12. Email newsletter	Relies on writing and visuals, and only those interested in it would sign up.	People generally ignore newsletters in their email inbox. Why would they open mine? Plus I’d need to pay a service to run it properly.
13. Approach bookstores	Getting my books into bookstores would be great.	They generally won’t take indie published books. Selling them on consignment is a possibility, but I don’t know how that works. I could do an event, but that works best for picture-book reading or nonfiction presentations.
14. Approach schools and libraries	Many writers make more money from school visits than they do from book sales. I have a great school program about bullying and self-esteem for Dan Quixote, and another good one on analyzing and writing fiction for my other books.	Who do I approach, how do I approach them, and how do I convince them my presentation is worth spending more on than another writer’s?
15. Podcsasting	Similar to blogging, but with a different audience, an audience that is on the move, driving somewhere or exercising. I have the equipment, like a great microphone.	I tend to get nervous when it’s just me talking to nobody. Sometimes I cough or say things wrong. With an autistic teenager at home, there's rarely any peace and quiet. And I don’t know if I have any material for the podcast listening audience that will draw them to my books.
16. Attending fairs, conferences, and suitable conventions	Fun, and I can definitely pick the right audience for each book (Toren the Teller’s Tale for Renaissance Faires or DragonCon; Why My Love Life Sucks for Sci-Fi, Trekker Cons, and ComicCons; Dan Quixote for education conferences)	Costs a lot, and unlikely to be worth the money. (However, I might be able to get speaking engagements at some of them, and they might even pay.)

So those are the options for step one, each with its pros and cons. I guess if there were one clear easy answer, everyone would be doing it.

I hate having so many choices, particularly when every one of them has its drawbacks. Do I waste my time this way or that way? Do I embarrass myself this way or that way? Do I feel awkward and inept in this context or that context? It’s quite a predicament.

All I know is that I’d rather be writing.

So what do you think I should do? What would you do in my situation? How would you handle marketing a middle-grade or YA humorous fiction, fantasy or science-fiction novel? What do you think works, and what doesn’t? 

I hope you'll leave your thoughts in the comments below. 

Writers, how to make social media work for you

So after reading Author 101: Bestselling Secrets from Top Agents, I came to the conclusion I needed to work on my blog if I wanted to sell my books. Easier said than done.

Not knowing how to go about it, I picked up Zoe Winter's wonderfully informative Smart Self-Publishing: Becoming an Indie Author. While the book deals mostly with indie publishing--including publishing to Kindle, working with Smashwords, creating both a production and marketing schedule, and much more--it did include a brief overview of social media for writers, including the importance of having a blog to connect with readers. Zoe Winters also recommends starting a newsletter, because someone might subscribe to your blog and never look at it again, but people who subscribe to your newsletter genuinely want to read what you have to say (particularly if it involves freebies and contests, like her newsletter does).

So that led me to another wonderful book, ProBlogger: Secrets for Blogging Your Way to a Six-Figure Income, which has a ton of helpful information about successful blogging in general.

But I still didn't know how to apply what I had learned to my blog. I mean, I'm a fiction writer. I write books for kids and teens. Wasn't there a book that could tell me step-by-step how a fiction writer could use social media to increase his or her platform? Fortunately, there is.


The Best Social Media Guide Specifically for Writers

We Are Not Alone: The Writer's Guide to Social Media by Kristen Lamb is like having a smart, funny friend who will take you by the hand and show you exactly what you need to succeed and how to do it.

For example, about halfway through, the book has a recap with a list of the first things you will need:

• A brand name (the name that will appear on your book)
• A list of your goals divided into three categories:

1. Strategic Career Goals (where you want to be in five years) 
2. Strategic Marketing Goals (to create the image you want associated with your brand)
3. Ten Tactical Goals (the things you plan to do to achieve your publishing goals, like creating a blog and following the blogs of potential readers.)

• A collection of content material--like pictures and videos--to help support your brand
• 10-15 posts (500-1,000 words each) related to your topic to serve as strategic content
• Three bios of different lengths
• A detailed profile of your reader and consumer demographic

What each of these things are, why you need them, and how to make them work for you are covered in great detail, as is so much more.

For example, when it comes to your brand name, the author explains how important it is for it to be the same name as the one that will appear on your books--because even if you do all the right things when it comes to social media, no one will be able to find your book when they're looking for one written by @LemurLady27.

She also explains that your readers aren't your fellow writers (although you should still network with them) or people who read books like they're chewing gum. "Yup, that one's finished, now I think I'll try fruit flavored." Your readers are the people who generally don't read that much, but will read your book because you wrote it just for them. It's like the way Harry Potter made readers out of non-readers. That's your ultimate goal.

All of this is just the tip of the iceberg, so if you're a writer who's been frustrated by social media because you don't know where to start or why it's not going as you hoped, this is the book for you.

And now it's time for me to start working on those 10-15 articles for my strategic content. I have so many ideas I can't wait. Thanks, Kristen Lamb!