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Don’t make these mistakes.
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Nice tips Neil. I really like and agree with 6, write what you enjoy and don't write about hunky vampires just because they are 'big' and 'relevant' right now.
Justin wrote: "Nice tips Neil. I really like and agree with 6, write what you enjoy and don't write about hunky vampires just because they are 'big' and 'relevant' right now."Also, hunky vampires are about three trends ago. Aliens are the new vampires.
Excellent board post and thanks for sharing your experiences. Nice blog too. Aliens, vampires, zombies, and "50 shades" type of books... not for my style.
Yep, thanks Neil...I enjoyed reading your post.
Oh and aliens, vampires, zombies, 50 shades, anything and everything... Bring them on... I love them all! :P
One of the problems with vampire is that most storytellers focus pretty much on the generic type - The fact is that there are dozens of different vampires that exist in folklore if people can be bothered to look.
Some great points there. Especially about spamming readers. Ugh, I hate that. I've had writers friend me only to turn around and spam me several times a day. That does nothing but turn me off and now I'm wary of accepting any author invite. I agree write what you want. If you're not passionate about it why bother? You're probably not going to get rich and famous with a novel anyway. If you want to write about hunky zombies who enjoy kinky sex, go for it. I might even buy it if it's well written, beta read and edited.
Lots of good points. Authors need to contribute to the social media sites they visit. I post short stories to some of these sites, but I also make it a point to comment on issues, to compliment a poster when they've made a good post, and to tweet the links of those who have reviewed or interviewed me, and not just the links to the reviews or interviews of my work, but of others.
Thanks for the tips. I agree with what you are saying. Social media is not for selling, it is for dialogue and discovery. I also picked up the 80/20 rule from a blogger named Brian Thompson. 80% engagement on social media earns you the right to 20% selling. Cheers. Bob D'Eith
Author
Nice summary Neil. I'd add a corollary to number 5 - don't give up. Some currently highly successful authors (note Fifty Shades above) started writing and publishing decades before they made it to major sales. Technology has leveled the playing field for market entrance, but it's also created a crowded playing field. It can take a long time to find an audience.
Good tips, Neil, especially the one about writing for yourself and not following trends. JK Rowling wrote for herself and look where it got her.
Neil wrote: "My father always told me that it's okay to make mistakes, it's how you learn. Well, I'm about to tell you the mistakes I've made while marketing and promoting my books so that you don't have to go ..."Thanks Neil. Sounds like good advice :-) Rory
Very interesting and good tips. Thanks for sharing! There are some people and/or companies that offer to help you market your work. What do you think of their services?
Neil wrote: "My father always told me that it's okay to make mistakes, it's how you learn. Well, I'm about to tell you the mistakes I've made while marketing and promoting my books so that you don't have to go ..."Great advice. I read a post today that basically said give me marketing advice so I can sell a lot of copies of my book and quit my day job. Oh, oh.
I think it's good to keep in mind that your writing for yourself and for your fanbase if you've come around to building and establishing one. All other potential readers will come naturally but your not writing for the unknown readers your writing for again, yourself and those you already know will enjoy your work.
Right on Neil. Good points. I've recently started racking up the mistakes of my own. I feel that if I could go back in time and give myself advice, the odds are good that the past me would not listen. You kind of have to make the mistakes sometimes in order to understand the value of what you learned.Whoah, just got a little sci-fi. Sorry.
Good points. I've learned the hard way to write what I want and to alter try to find a genre it fits into because marketing does require it to fit somewhere. Unfortunately.
A writer should get better with time and effort. People are not born knowing how to put a story together.
Number 1. When posting on forums don't just promote yourself with no other redeeming information. When I first started out I'd post summaries of my books and links to buy them on sites that specifically said no self-promo. I didn’t listen. The result: I got banned from these sites and all the networking they could have provided. Provide content marketing material when you post. Writer’s are always interested in information that can help readers find their books.
Number 2. Don't write articles that tell people how they are going to feel about your book. For instance, don't write a blurb that says, "This is the best book you'll read all year". Statements like that really turn off the reader. Let the reader decide if they like what you’ve written.
Number 3. Don't believe the hype that paying for click advertising or putting up banners are going to increase sales. The most important driver of sales is word of mouth through social sites and networking… using grassroots marketing. If you’re looking for the prestige that comes from seeing your book ad on a popular website, then go for it. But statistically, it's a very small percentage of people that will actually buy the book through a paid advertisement. Sorry, but it’s a fact.
Number 4. Don’t think that by spamming social network sites that you’re somehow going to go viral (meaning tens of thousands of people clicked on your info) and sell a million books. Most social network site followers don’t want to see you blurbing about your book a dozen times a day. They would rather watch kittens playing piano.
Number 5. Just because you wrote a book, published it, and sold a few copies, don’t think you’re going to be able to quit your job and retire. That only happens to lottery-winning writers. I’ve had a few tweets and postings go viral and it led to just a small increase in sales. It’s a cool feeling knowing so many people have checked out your stuff, but not profitable.
Number 6. Write for yourself and don’t try to copy what’s out there just because what’s out there is selling now. Be original and write what you want. That’s the only true way of gaining a loyal reader following.
So there you have it. These are the mistakes I made early on in my writing career that cost me loads of time and briefly damaged my professional online persona. Do the exact opposite of these six things and I guarantee you’ll see your sales rise and people will begin to notice you.
I also wanted to let everyone know that I have two promotions going on tomorrow. One from Ereader News Today and one from ChoosyBookworm.com. I highly recommend that authors try to promote on both sites. ChoosyBookworm is a free service and Ereader News Today gets paid on commission. They don’t make any money from your promotion if you don’t. I think that’s one of the best deals there is for exposure on the internet.
To learn more about my books and myself, please check out my blog: ALWAYS WRITING.
http://www.neilostroff.blogspot.com