Zara Altair's Blog, page 13

Listen to Your Characters

First, find out what your hero wants, then just follow him!
– Ray Bradbury The Writer’s Surprise GiftWriter’s know when they are in the zone and the story flows. If you use an outline to hit the main beats of your story, you’ll know what you want to accomplish in the scene.
Your characters may be sitting on a park bench in the snow, digging a ditch as Nazi prisoners, chasing the bad guys, or any other scene you have imagined You begin a dialog between characters and all of a sudden they are saying things you hadn’t planned or considered.
Listen To The CharactersIf you are into your story and know what makes your characters tick, when words start coming, listen. Your characters will add new dimension to the scene.
You already know to dispense with banalities--hello, it’s a great day, etc.--and get right to the conversation. Think of your dialog in the same way as the scene: start late, leave early.
Tweet: Think of your dialog in the same way as the scene: start late, leave early.Dialogue that begins in media res (without preamble) is a strong way to begin a scene, drawing the reader in. Dialogue that ends early is a structured way to end a scene or chapter, often with a cliffhanger moment to keep the reader turning the page or, at the end, waiting for the next book in your series.Add To The StoryAs a storyteller, those unexpected words from a character can foreshadow a later moment in the story, add depth to both characters, complicate the plot, deepen the relationship within the story, and other story dimensions.
The benefit of having a rough outline is that as the dialog hints of story change you can make notes in the outline that further incorporate the discoveries as your characters speak. Those surprise moments from the characters often lead to other conversations later in the story.
Character TalkIn order for your characters to have conflict within their conversations, you need to know them inside and out. Know the backstory that is never mentioned that would prompt a character to think, respond, and say the words. Know how the two characters relate to each other with friendship, love, annoyance, hate, or unsuspecting naïveté.
The better you understand your characters, each one, the more surprising words will pop out unbidden. Then listen.

Zara Altair

​Zara Altair writes mysteries set in ancient Italy. Argolicus thinks he has retired, but he and his tutor, Nikolaos, are drawn into puzzles, politics, and murder.

Character Change and Story Dynamic

Choose Your Challenge  ​​Writers come up with many ways to establish the characters in their stories, especially the main character: character interviews, worst fear, early childhood, habits good and bad, etc. What readers want is action.
The easiest way to reconcile your wealth of knowledge about your character and engaging readers in the story is to confront your character with obstacles and challenges. Think of all the character background in the same way you do research:
Click to Tweet: Character background is like research. Only 20% actually shows up in your story. Create the Challenges As a storyteller, not just a character creator, find the challenges that reveal your character. The moment the character responds is the moment your reader is right there with the character. Each scene has some small or large difficulty where the character must respond in thought, word, or deed. When the character cares, your reader cares.
In traditional fiction and many genre’s this scene by scene challenge is the crux of getting your reader to turn the pages. As your character develops through the challenges your reader experiences the changes.
As your story and your main character progress, readers tune in to the changes. By the time your story reaches a climax, your reader knows your character, sympathizes with his situation and the final changes of the culmination of all those challenges along the way.
Your character becomes dynamic through her reactions to the challenges you create.

Wait! My Character Doesn't Change Yes, some stories have a main character whose attributes connect them to a world they must change. The strengths of the character meet the challenges of outside forces and reshape (change) those challenges by enforcing their character traits. Thrillers, crime fiction, and mysteries often follow this story path. Miss Jane Marple doesn’t change. She uses her particular character strengths to reveal (change) the perpetrator.
Raymond Chandler depicts the perfect non-changing PI. This is the essence of a character who uses his attributes to change an imperfect world.

Down these mean streets a man must go who is not himself mean, who is neither tarnished nor afraid. He is the hero; he is everything. He must be a complete man and a common man and yet an unusual man. He must be, to use a rather weathered phrase, a man of honor—by instinct, by inevitability, without thought of it, and certainly without saying it. He must be the best man in his world and a good enough man for any world.

He will take no man’s money dishonestly and no man’s insolence without a due and dispassionate revenge. He is a lonely man and his pride is that you will treat him as a proud man or be very sorry you ever saw him.

The story is this man’s adventure in search of a hidden truth, and it would be no adventure if it did not happen to a man fit for adventure. If there were enough like him, the world would be a very safe place to live in, without becoming too dull to be worth living in.

Change is the Story Key Call it change or transformation. Whether your character changes or changes the world around, the key to movement and dynamism in your story is the obstacles—great and small-—that build story tension and keep the reader turning pages.
Infographic from Reedsy Reedsy came up with a great illustration of different dynamic characters. Different dynamics for great story.

Zara Altair
Zara Altair writes mysteries set in ancient Italy. Argolicus thinks he has retired, but he and his tutor, Nikolaos, are drawn into puzzles, politics, and murder.

The Secret Source of Support: Fellow Writers

Fellow writers provide a rich source of knowledge. You can use this knowledge to expand yours. From writing groups to indie author idea exchanges you can build your personal knowledge base on writing and publishing skills.

New writers, especially, can fall into the trap of spending hundreds and sometimes thousands of dollars on writing and publishing courses. Before you do that seek out fellow writers for critiques of those courses before you buy in by midnight tonight.

I’m not saying don’t take courses. Education is beneficial. First get feedback on the cost reward of the program. Build a network of fellow writers to learn which courses and which paid blog or advertising spots will serve you well. Ways to Plumb Writing Wisdom There are many ways to gather invaluable knowledge for other writers and authors.

Join a critique group - before you self-edit, and then send your manuscript to an editor, your critique group will help you find your blind spots from punctuation, spelling, typos, and grammar to plot holes.
Join a local writing group - this may cost you a few dollars a year, but you will meet a wider circle of writers and authors and have the opportunity to attend group events where you can expand your knowledge even more.
Join an online group - expand your knowledge globally by exchanging ideas with fellow writers. Social media like Facebook and Google+ have groups and communities where you can exchange ideas, get reviews of courses and paid advertising opportunities, and even get feedback on book cover ideas. Keep in mind the writers are not graphic designers. Or get suggestions on cover designers familiar with your genre. Get tips on what works and doesn’t work with Facebook fan pages, Amazon marketing, Facebook marketing, genre specific book descriptions, or just dealing with Amazon and other book retailers.
Join a professional writers organization - a good choice is one that is genre specific. Join forums to where authors discuss details of publishing and marketing.
Attend conferences - meet writers, agents, publishers and learn from experienced authors. If you are working with a limited budget, find one that is close to reduce air travel, stay with a friend to reduce hotel costs. Remember that much of the great conversation and discussion happens outside of the formal presentations. Socialize.

By the time you have expanded your circle of writing and author friends you will know more about how to improve your own writing, where best to spend your writing budget, and you will discover tips and resources you would not have imagined if you had not connected with other writers.
Keep Meeting Other Writers These suggestions are the tip of the iceberg when it comes to learning from other writers. You’ll find offhand remarks that change your thinking and tips that refine your writing, your publishing skills, and your professionalism.

Zara Altair

Zara Altair writes mysteries set in ancient Italy. Argolicus thinks he has retired, but he and his tutor, Nikolaos, are drawn into puzzles, politics, and murder.
She consults with a select group of writers as The Story Bodyguard.

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Setting: What's In The Room

Domestic Details Setting is important in any story. In historical novels, setting details give the reader a sense of what is around the characters. Without setting the characters are "floating in space" with nothing to ground them to surroundings. 
In the video of the mosaic discovery, the details of vibrancy and varied images are a fine example of the style of flooring in Italy and the Mediterranean.
Setting details are the perfect way to enrich historical fiction without an overload of info-dump. When characters in The Roman Heir gather in a new room to meet the murdered man's widow, the description is brief  but sets the tone of the meeting.

Aemilia Atia, Philo’s mother, had left her bedroom and gathered everyone in the entertainment room when she learned of the guest. The floor was covered in a dizzying array of black and white mosaics and the walls were painted with intricate scenes of trees and flowers and young people playing musical instruments in nature. Braziers, next to seats, warmed the room from the winter cold. Slaves brought trays of gustum: small tidbits of fruit, cheese, and salads for nibbling placed on platters and bowls around the seats, but no one was eating.

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 Homes at the time of the story (512 A.D./C.E.) were highly decorated. A floor plan of the house in Ostia illustrates the elaborate mosaics in every room. Even the kitchen had designs on the floor, though not as elaborate as other communal rooms. In the scene with the widow, the characters are gathered in the room marked number 10.Vibrant WallsItalian homes of the time were not limited to vibrant and intricate flooring. Walls were painted in bright colors often with detailed figures. These are the walls in the "side room" where Argolicus first sees the body of the murdered Patrician.  Our current Western decor--from rustic to industrial to modern--is far from the colorful indoor life of Italian life at the time of Theodoric.  
Visual imagery is a powerful aid in writing research, especially for historical genres. I find myself looking at images as I write scenes to help me get into the story.

Zara Altair
​Zara Altair writes mysteries set in ancient Italy. Argolicus thinks he has retired, but he and his tutor, Nikolaos, are drawn into puzzles, politics, and murder.
Here is Argolicus' home in Ravenna in Felix Ravenna: A Mosaic , my work in progress.

Get to The Story: The Beginning

L—d! said my mother, what is all this story about?
​ The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman  Laurence Sterne

When readers begin your story, they want to know certain elements, and very soon. Gone are the days when the scenic, lingering beginning of Thomas Hardy’s The Return of the Native will draw in a reader. In modern preference, readers want to know the genre, the protagonist, and the story right away.

New authors may struggle with introducing required story elements without getting to the story.

The other day I began reading a “suspenseful spy thriller.” Chapter One consisted of a finely detailed conversation “introducing” the main character in his everyday world but without one iota of suspense. The chapter was filled with finely detailed descriptions of the setting, the protagonist’s appearance including down-to-the-buttons attire description, tools used with experience, and backstory about a family member. I began to wonder if this was a romance presented in the guise of a thriller. If it had been billed that way I would not have purchased the book, much less started reading. OK, I’ll give the author a break. Maybe the story starts in the next chapter.

Nope! Chapter Two presented the “save the cat” details of the protagonist caring for an ailing family member and a long description of a native talent built to professional standards. Now I was curious: when does the story start?

Finally, in Chapter 3, the intrigue starts. The author had already lost me. My curiosity drove me to find where the story started but I had lost interest in the story. I stopped reading. The Pitfalls of the Beginning In the first few pages of your novel, you need to get the reader into the story. I am certain that the author of the spy thriller believed she had met story essentials by portraying the protagonist’s normal life, showing that he was empathetic, and illustrating his unique talent. In doing so, she left the story behind.

In a recent article literary agent Peter Miller described his pet peeve in opening pages of a novel:

I enjoy when writers can find a balance between exposition and mystery. Too much accounting always ruins the mystery of a novel, and the unknown is what propels us to read further.”
– Peter Miller, PMA Literary and Film Management

​

Writers need to find the balance between the “accounting” and the initial intrigue that makes the reader wonder what will happen next. In order to get your reader to keep reading get them to care about the character and their story dilemma. Readers want a sense of this is only the beginning how is it going to get worse?

Other major novel beginning pitfalls:

The tone of the narrative immediately. Reassure the reader that the genre you promised is what is in the story.
Minimize descriptive details at the beginning. No laundry lists of features either of the protagonist or the setting. Sprinkle details as the story progresses.
A gratuitous hook that is there just for excitement but is not part of the story--often a sex scene.
Backstory - the protagonist thinking or dreaming about what happened before.
Adjective and adverb heavy sentences. ​

Start the Story No matter how many books your read or formulas you consider for writing a story, at the beginning engage your reader. Reassure them that the story you promised feels like the genre they want, gets your protagonist in action right away, and delivers a dilemma that keeps them reading for more.  

Zara Altair
Zara Altair writes mysteries set in ancient Italy. Argolicus thinks he has retired, but he and his tutor, Nikolaos, are drawn into puzzles, politics, and murder.
She consults with a select group of writers as The Story Bodyguard.

Get Ready for Your Book Launch

Start Your Launch Plan Early Don’t wait until you novel is finished before starting to plan your book launch. A successful book launch contains many activities, and they need to be planned well in advance. New novelists need to start planning when they are about half-way through the story. Yep, the mid-point of your story is a good time to start planning.

If you haven’t finished setting up your author platform, now is the time to make certain everything is in place. Keep growing your email list.  Add names on your street team (beta readers) list. At launch time you will rely on those fans and beta readers to spread the word and write reviews once the book is out.

You are going to be coordinating many activities the week of your book launch. Plan for the time.

Review your categories and keywords for your book.Start designing your cover so it will fit and yet stand out in your genre. Search for blogs that will promote your book at launch. Use both free and paid resources. Refer to list below for starters.Plan your promotion budget
For your first book, do as much as you can and stay within your budget. It is possible to create and market your books inexpensively at the beginning (your first book). Your success on Amazon and other book distribution platforms takes time. The more you write and produce, the greater potential for growth. Many authors start seeing a spike in growth once the third book is published. As you publish more books, you’ll not only grow your audience, but will become better at the book launch process.

The Best Tool Jenny Blake created a powerful and detailed spreadsheet of actions to take for a book launch. The  15-Tab Book Marketing Spreadsheet is free and helps authors become organized and stay organized at the time of a book launch. Tabs include: online promo, offline promo, advance copy distribution, book tour, a planning calendar, and more.
Download the spreadsheet.
Read the details on each tab
Copy the spreadsheet and name it with the title of your book. You can use this spreadsheet to plan a book launch for each book.
Select the tasks that you want to do and that are within your budget. Ignore the others.
Start researching people and places to promote your book. Fill in the spreadsheet for your new book with names and contact information.
Use the calendar tab to make certain you perform the tasks in a timely manner. You’ll see that work begins several months before the book is released.
The spreadsheet is developed for a traditionally published book, but independent authors follow the same procedures. This is a fantastic tool to keep you sane at book launch time. Don’t forget to send Jenny a thank you.
Resources For Free BooksIf your book is free at launch time, here are some resources to promote free ebooks.

Freebooksy freebooksy.com
BKnights bknights on fiverr
Free Kindle Books http://fkbt.com/for-authors/
Book Gorilla Author page http://blog.bookgorilla.com/authors-would-you-like-your-own-bookgorilla-authors-page-totally-free/

Kindle Book PromotionsIf your book is on sale or even full price, check out these paid resources for spreading the word.

Kindle Nation Daily http://kindlenationdaily.com/ — A variety of paid options
Book Gorilla http://www.bookgorilla.com/ — 
Ereader News Today http://ereadernewstoday.com/ — scroll down to the bottom of the page to submit your book.
OHFB (One Hundred Free Books) https://ohfb.com/advertise/ — Offers listings for free and deeply discounted books.
The Fussy Librarian http://www.thefussylibrarian.com/for-authors/ — Carefully read the submission guidelines to make sure your book qualifies.

Organized Planning is the Key Book launch time will be busy. Start now to plan, gather the right resources, set target dates, and coordinate emails with your fans and street team. Mark every task on your calendar. When launch day comes, you'll be busy, but in control.

Zara Altair
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Zara Altair writes mysteries set in ancient Italy. Argolicus thinks he has retired, but he and his tutor, Nikolaos, are drawn into puzzles, politics, and murder.

The Used Virgin in Top 2%: Huge Thanks to All My Readers!

Thank you to all The Used Virgin readers This morning I woke up to this notice in my email. I was surprised and thrilled. What a great way to begin Spring.
I am especially grateful to readers because the book reached this level without advertising. That means, you, the reader, found it on Amazon and decided to read. 
About once a week I receive suggested Categories for my books, but I don't change the categories. You have verified that category selection on Amazon leads readers to the right place.
Thank you all for helping to make The Used Virgin ​ a leader on Amazon.


[image error] Zara Altair
​A Happy Author

Read an E-Book Week March 5 - 11

Celebrate Electronic Reading Smashwords presents Read an E-Book Week, March 5 - 11, 2017. 

​The Used Virgin is just one book among thousands participating. Grab your free copy and join in the celebration.

Mark Coker, Smashwords founder, interviews  the Read an E-Book Week creator Rita Toews.  








​For one week each year, Rita Toews, 61, a soft-spoken mother of two and grandmother of one, sits at the center of the ebook universe.
Operating from a spare bedroom in her home in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada with her cat Lola by her side (“Every author needs a cat,” she says), Ms. Toews is the creator and chief ringmaster of  Read an Ebook Week , an annual international celebration of ebooks that kicks off its seventh season this Sunday March 7.
Read an Ebook Week brings together ebook retailers, publishers, authors, device-makers and untold thousands of readers who join in this international literary event of ebook discovery, and yes, gluttony.
For the one week only, publishers and authors offer thousands of original ebooks for free and at deep discounts to encourage book lovers around the globe to give ebooks a try.
Ms. Toews, with her website at  ebookweek.com , acts as a centralized clearinghouse to help readers locate participating authors and retailers.
By harnessing the collective promotional power of thousands of enthusiastic authors and readers who funnel traffic through Ms. Toews’ web site, participating authors, publishers and retailers see large spikes in traffic and downloads during the week.
To learn the story behind Read an Ebook Week, I posed a few questions to Ms. Toews:
[Mark Coker] - What do you hope to achieve with Read an Ebook Week?
[Rita Toews] - I hope to introduce electronic books to people who have been skeptical about them in the past. I also hope to give Joe and Jane E. Author a place to get their writing noticed. Now that the traditional publishing houses have shown an interest in e-books it is hard for the unrecognized author to spread the word about their books.
[MC] - What was your inspiration behind Read an Ebook Week?
[RT] - When I began writing I quickly learned there were few publishing houses willing to take a chance on a new writer. 

While taking a writing class at the University of Winnipeg, I was approached by the instructor with a request - would I assist an elderly gentleman with his memoirs. I jumped at the chance and thus began a wonderful relationship with my co-author, Mr. Alex Domokos. Mr. Domokos’ memoirs are fascinating. He served as a slave laborer in Russia for 6 years after WWII. When he was returned to Hungary the communist government deported his entire family because they were members of the upper class. He and his wife escaped Hungary in 1956 but were forced to leave their child behind. The novel is entitled The Price of Freedom. 

We later wrote several novels together, including The Centurion, Prometheus and Ten Chocolates From the Box. As a sole author I also wrote several children’s stories - Kelly’s Baby Brother, Christmas Stars and The Bully. I realized the only way we would get any of our work published was if we did it electronically. 

We were among the first authors to embrace e-books but the general public was very cautious of the new reading technology. It was hard to promote our books or to get anyone to listen when we requested publicity.
It came to me one day that if all authors spoke at the same time we stood a better chance of making an impact on the public. I registered Read an E-Book Week with Chases Calendar of Events so e-authors had “legitimacy” when they sought publicity. It worked. I would approach our library and say “It’s Read an E-Book Week” and the librarian knew from Chases that it was, so I could set up a display. The same when I approached TV and radio stations. 

The first years [starting in 2004] were pretty quiet as I figured out what worked and what didn’t, but as e-books became more popular the event grew. I’m very happy with the results of 2009 and anticipate a good response in 2010. 

[MC] - How do you measure the success of the event?
[RT] - Since the event takes place in cyberspace the only measure I have of its success is the traffic on the Read an E-Book Week website, which grows each year. Occasionally a participant will contact me and say - “I had over 2,500 visits on my website during Read an Ebook Week.” That’s nice to hear.
[MC] - What’s new for Read an Ebook Week 2010?
[RT] - This year I wanted to bring in the companies that are generally behind the scenes in the e-book industry. I wanted software companies, e-book device manufacturers and cellphone companies to participate. I achieved that. Raymond Kurzweil’s Blio e-reader is a partner this year, as is PocketBook reader. Aldiko, the Android phone e-reader app is also a partner. Several large e-book retailers are also participating. Among them there is Kobo, All Romance E-Books, Diesel Ebooks, BooksonBoard and, of course - Smashwords.
[MC] - How has perception and awareness about ebooks changed since you startedRead an Ebook Week?
[RT] - Several years ago when I would bring my Hiebook e-reader to my local book club meetings, the ten members would scoff at me. At our meeting last Tuesday three women pulled out their new e-book readers and proudly showed them off. 

To learn more about Read an Ebook Week, visit the official web site at  http://ebookweek.com .

Follow Mark Coker on Twitter: www.twitter.com/markcoker

Zara Altair
​Zara Altair writes mysteries set in ancient Italy. Argolicus thinks he has retired, but he and his tutor, Nikolaos, are drawn into puzzles, politics, and murder.
She consults with a select group of writers as The Story Bodyguard.

Author, Don't Be Shy

You Want Readers. Tell Them About Your Books. When readers see your header on your website or on social media like Facebook, Twitter, Google+, or anywhere else, do they know your genre right away? If you don't tell them, they won't know. They're not going to scroll down your page or your social media posts to try to discover the type of story you tell. More importantly, you are missing potential readers by hiding that information. Even a header with book covers may mislead them. Tell them right up front. Romantic fantasy. Horror. Thriller. Entice new readers with a straightforward tip on your genre.

Take a look at the image above. Are you ready to read Miranda's books?

I'm a member of several author groups. Recently in two groups there was a call to post Facebook pages and websites. I was astounded at how many headers told me nothing about the books. I had to dig around--these were fellow group members--to discover the genre or look for books by the author. Their headers were as mysterious as the one above.
Your Name, Author. Won't get you readers. Your responsibility as an author is to let readers know what you write.  Appeal to readers who resonate with your story elements. Your Name, Author, may be an ego boost but does not invite your core readers to find out more or buy your books.
Simple Promotion Adding a bit more for your readers will help new readers discover you and lead to more book sales.Your NameYour Genre - A tagline.Where to buy your books Adding your genre and where to buy your books directs the right readers to your books. Big name authors often have just their name in the header, but indie authors need to work just a bit harder.

Graphic designers don't always know about marketing. If you hire someone to create your header give them explicit direction and the actual words you need on your header.

If your budget is limited, Canva provides simple, easy to use templates or you can create your own from scratch. I used a simple template to create the image for this article.  Robust Author Promotion  Your header is the first visual people encounter when they reach your website or social media site. Give potential readers the basics. You want readers who love your genre. They will be happy to discover a new author if you give them the right clues. 

However much you prefer writing to building your author platform, give the platform a boost with simple cues for your reader audience.

Zara Altair

Zara Altair writes mysteries set in ancient Italy. Argolicus thinks he has retired, but he and his tutor, Nikolaos are drawn into puzzles, politics, and murder.
She consults with a select group of writers as The Story Bodyguard.

Reality for New Novelists

Start Now To Gain Your Promotion Skills If you are starting a new novel and you think your fabulous, creative, innovative, engaging, exciting story will sell itself. Welcome to reality. It won’t sell itself.

You may dream of people reading your book and sharing their enjoyment with others. Before that happens, readers need to know about your novel. The best way to get started letting others know about your novel is through your author platform.

Your book will be competing with thousands of other books. You need to entice and win your readers to select your book out of the thousands of books out there. If you write in a popular genre, you need to differentiate your story from your competitors. Your author platform is the way you connect with your readers and fans. Provide information about you, the author, and your books on your website.

Every author needs a marketing platform. The time to begin is while you are working on the first novel. Whether you decide to self-publish or seek traditional publishing you will need your author platform.

Agents want to see you platform before they represent your book. Many agents will not accept a book unless you have a platform designed and in place.You will co-promote with a traditional publisher. The reason the agent wants to see your author platform is that publishers want to know you put energy into promoting your book(s) as well.If you are self-publishing, you will spend time weekly if not daily promoting your work.​ How to Start Your Author Platform Creating your author platform takes time. Don’t try to do everything at once. Give yourself a month to set up these nine beginning author platform activities. Setting these things up now teaches you a very useful skill for authors: dividing your time between writing and marketing. If you are serious about your author career, you need to learn this time management skill.

1. Write a description of your book. You will probably revise this many times, but write one. Pretend you are writing the blurb for the back cover.

2. Write an author bio for yourself. You will need several. A short one, 25-30 words, to post at the end of articles or on social media that does not allow for a long description, like Twitter. Then write at least two more, a 100 word bio and a 300 word bio. If you hire a publicist, or decide to do your own publicity, you may want a 1000 word biography as well. You will probably rewrite these many times as well, but start with something now.

3. Create a formal portrait of yourself both color and black and white. You can do this yourself with a plain background or hire a professional photographer.

4. Create a cover image for your book. You’ll want this for your website and any promotions you may do.

5. Create a giveaway for readers who join your email list. This can be a short novella, a chapter from your book, background about the theme of your story.

6. Create a website. You can use free website services like wordpress.com or Weebly to get started. If you have time and resources, you can become more involved and intricate with a self-hosted website using wordpress.org. You will need to monitor and update the self-hosted website for updates or hire someone to manage the site for you. If you have a large budget, you can hire a website designer to create the site for you. Make sure you have access to add and change text.

Basic pages for your website.An introduction to you as an author. Your bio and some words about why you are writing the book.A page just for the book. Give potential readers a taste of the book with the book description and a short excerpt. Once your book is published, you will add links to where readers can buy your book.A blog page. Most free and paid website services include a blog page. Update this with articles on a regular basis, at least once a month if not more regularly. The key is to be consistent.  
7. Start your email list for readers and fans. There are a number of services that provide email list services. To begin, you can start with a free service like MailChimp. As your list grows, you may want to consider a paid service such as Aweber or Infusionsoft.

Set up your email list. Add yourself to the list to check that all your emails go out. Write a sequence of welcoming emails for your autoresponder (MailChimp, Aweber, etc.). 

Create your invitation to join the list (landing page). Entice people to join with your free giveaway.

Create a sequence of emails to go to people who join your list. Write a sequence of welcoming emails for your autoresponder (MailChimp, Aweber, etc.). Email welcome sequence and timing:

     1. Thank. Introduce yourself and your books. Link to the free giveaway. 1st day.

    2. Did you miss the download? Short and sweet. My quote. History is different people are the same. 3 days after 1st.

    3. 3 days after previous. A bit more about how you started writing the books. Social media connection links as well as Amazon Author page and website.

    4. 1 week after previous. Personal what I do. Pets. Activities, Photos of life. Invitation to read one of your books with link.

    5. 1 week after that.  Invitation for free books forever by joining the beta readers group.

8. Set up social media accounts for yourself as an author. This is separate from any personal social media accounts you may have on places like Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or any one of a number of other sites. Create an Author Page on Facebook.

9. Start educating yourself about book promotion.

If you have a large budget, you can hire professionals--website designer, social media manager, email list creator, etc.--to do any of these tasks for you. The important action is to start setting up and using your platform now.  Successful Authors Manage Writing and Promotion Time If all of these activities to set up your author platform seem like work, they are. If you are serious about your novel, you want to give it the most attention you can through your author platform.

If you start now, while you are writing your first novel and work on your author platform in tandem with your writing, you will be well positioned to create a successful book launch.

Zara Altair

Zara Altair writes mysteries set in ancient Italy. Argolicus thinks he has retired, but he and his tutor, Nikolaos are drawn into puzzles, politics, and murder.
She consults with a select group of writers as The Story Bodyguard.