Platform

Today my guest at Terry’s Place is Linda Gordon Hengerer. Linda is a member of Mystery Writers of America-Florida Chapter. She has co-chaired SleuthFest, their annual writers conference, for the past four years.

The first book I wrote was non-fiction, and I have written several articles for one of our local papers; all use my real name. I’ve been working on a mystery series and a fairy story, and thinking about the platform for each.
It used to be enough to write a great story. Now, in addition to writing a great story, an author must also provide a platform. If you are a new author a publisher wants to see what you are doing (or will do) to help get the word out about your book, and how many prospective buyers you may have. If you are an established author, a publisher wants to see that you are engaging your readers to keep them interested in your series or standalone books between releases.
What is platform? It is everything that you do to present and market yourself to the public, especially potential buyers. Platform includes your website, your blog, your social media presence (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc.), and any live presentations you do (workshops at conferences, classes, TV and/or radio). It also includes guest blogging on other author’s blogs, such as Terry’s Place.

Every post, tweet, or pin won’t be an active request to buy your book, but it should tie in to your brand.  What is your brand? It is who you are as an author. Do you write cozies? Horror? Mysteries? Thrillers? Romance? Paranormal? A mix of any of these, or something else? Your website should reflect your brand. A romance author’s website should not have the same feel as a mystery author’s; you want the website to evoke the tone of your books.
Nora Roberts is a well-known romance author who writes straight romance, romance with paranormal aspects, and romantic suspense. Under the pseudonym J. D. Robb she writes a futuristic suspense series. Her brands and websites are different for each author name, although you can access each one from the other’s website. You know that a Nora Roberts story is essentially a romance, and you know that a J. D. Robb story is essentially suspense. If you like both, you know that under either name she delivers great stories with wonderful characters. If you want to read romance, Nora Roberts is your girl. If murder and mayhem are your cup of tea, then J. D. Robb is a go-to author.
If you feel strongly about writing in different genres, keep in mind that you may be splitting your potential audience for one genre. Publishers like to see an author polishing their skills in one genre, so they can build an audience in that area. J. D. Robb had established herself as an author of futuristic suspense with 11 stories over six years before the publisher revealed that Nora Roberts was writing under a pseudonym with the release of the 12th story in the series.
Writing in different genres will also increase your non-writing work; if you develop separate brands and platforms, you’ll spend time updating each one. You don’t want to take too much time away from writing, and hiring someone to do some non-writing work is an option. Your best time is spent writing the stories your readers want more of.

For more about Linda, visit her website, for links to her non-fiction books about football and wine; check back to see the links to her mystery and fairy stories. Her blog about her perspective on life as a Jersey girl living in Florida is here. She also blogs about football here.