Basic Marketing Steps for the Newbie Writers & Authors

By: Tanya Eavenson

Published and unpublished writers often hear how important marketing is. So let’s start with some basic ways to market yourself. Here are a few things you should have already been doing before or while writing your book.

Attend writers’ conferences. There are many different conferences to pick from, so find one that best fits your needs. For those starting out, try to choose a conference that offers mentoring appointments. Meeting with a published author who knows the business is a wonderful opportunity, but they’re also able to point you in the right direction in your writing career. Here is a link to a list of conferences to check out. http://oaktara.com/conferences

Start a blog or join a group blog with other writers. Before starting a blog, visit other blogs to get an idea of what type of content you’d like to post and how many times a week to post. Once you’ve gotten an idea, it’s time to find a blog that will suit your needs. I would suggest a free blog from either Wordpress or Blogger. I use both, but I’ve found Blogger to be somewhat easier for first time users. If you’re more of a technical type and like bells and whistles, Wordpress might be more your speed.

When joining a group blog, make sure you find out about the details before joining. The type of content they want you to post and how many times a month you’ll be responsible for posting.

Connect with people, including family, friends, and readers, using different social media outlets.

Guest post on other blogs. Find blogs you enjoy visiting and contact the authors to see if you can be a guest blogger.Now for those who want their novels to succeed, which is all of us, here are some marketing musts and one final thought.

Start a website. There are websites to purchase and some for free. Find which type of website fits your needs. I recommend buying your own domain name. I’ve purchased several from Hostgator and they are wonderful, always answering my many questions and happy to do so. http://www.hostgator.com/

Blog tour: Set up certain days around the time your novel is set to release and invite people to those blogs to learn about you and your novel.

Ask for influencers. Find others who will be willing to help you promote your novel before the release date and then after. Ask them to post reviews, for guest appearances, to tweet, and to use other types of social media. For authors who are about to embark on their first release, here is an important tip I’m learning as my debut novel Unconditional released in January of 2013.

You can never do too much to promote yourself, and you can never do enough. So relax. Enjoy the moment, because your debut novel only comes once in a lifetime.  

What marketing steps have you taken as a writer?

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Tanya Eavenson and her husband have been in the ministry for fifteen years teaching youth, adults, and counseling. Tanya enjoys spending time with her husband, and their three children. Her favorite pastime is grabbing a cup of coffee and reading a good book. Tanya is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and writes for Christ to the World Ministries sharing the Gospel around the world. You can find her on Twitter at @Tan_eave and contact her at her website www.tanyaeavenson.com  Want to learn more about writing? Stop by her blog http://guidedgirls.blogspot.com