Launch

I’m trying out a new concept for me. I learned about this from the fabulous people at WG2E when we were getting ready to publish our horror/paranormal anthology, Tales From The Mist. It’s a soft launch of a new book. Now, I have to admit, I was a little confused about this concept when we first enacted it. To me, it looked like we were just publishing our book earlier than we had planned, and, indeed, it did kind of work out that way because I’m not totally sure we did the thing right. It worked out really well in the end, but I’m now in the process of trying it again with my new novella (short story?) Storm on the Horizon.

I planned, and let it be publicly known that I was publishing the short story (novella – I really can’t decide which to call it, it’s somewhere in between), Storm on the Horizon, which is be a prequel to my Regency-set paranormal romance, Magic In The Storm. I told everyone who would listen that it was coming out on February 14th, Valentine’s Day. You see, it works out perfectly for a Valentine’s Day launch because the hero’s name is Vallentyn – not at all connected with the saint or the day dedicated to romance, but you’ll have to read the book to find out more. J

And then, I did something odd (perhaps) – I actually published the book yesterday. No, I wasn’t lying when I said that the official publication date is February 14th. It’s just that I want and need reviews so that when I hit the publication date and really start hitting hard with the marketing of the book (although, not very hard, it is just a short story, after all), I’ll have some reviews up there already – at least I hope so! I’ve sent out word to a number of people and places (friends and Goodreads groups) that I’m looking for reviews. Obviously, I can’t get reviews if people don’t have a place to post them, so it has to already be published, ergo, it’s a soft launch. It’s out there, but not fully marketed yet.

Now, I’ve got to spend the next two weeks trying to get some places to really market the book. Any suggestions on places that have worked for you?