Immediate Opportunities for Writers

by Gary Fearon, Creative Director, Southern Writers Magazine

Whenever a new edition of Southern Writers hits the proverbial stands, I enjoy doing the math and totaling how many different writers we have promoted during our six years of publication. As of the new May/June 2017 issue which debuted yesterday, that number comes to 1100.

What each of these writers have in common is the street savvy to self-promote.  Whether they share their writing experience with other writers via an interview or by contributing an instructional article, we are proud to provide promotional opportunities for veterans and virgins alike.  With that in mind, I'm going to clue you in on some brand new promotional opportunities you can take advantage of right now.

Multi-author articles in the magazine are a crowd favorite with our readers. One of the upcoming special features below would be an entertaining way to promote your latest book.

TITLE WAVE
Sometimes your original book title doesn't make it past the cutting room floor. Got an interesting story about one of your books and how the title changed? Maybe ALL of your books had different titles to start with!  Whether you changed them or your publisher threw you a curveball, tell us all about it (and the philosophy behind the change, if known) in a paragraph or two. Be sure to include a high-res JPG of the relevant cover. This will be a fun article and you should be part of it!
​(Deadline for September 2017 issue: July 17th.) 
http://www.southernwritersmagazine.com/promos-2017.html

WHERE WRITERS WRITE
You spend endless hours there every week, slaving over a hot keyboard, creating brilliant sentences. You're probably there right now, reading this. We want to see it!  Writers (and readers) love to see where authors do their thing. Grab your camera or smartphone and send us a high-quality photo of your office, writing nook, picnic table, wherever you spend the most time writing your masterpieces. If you're in the photo, even better! (And if there's a copy of Southern Writers in the photo, even better!) We'll show your latest book cover next to the photo.  Please include a paragraph about why your favored spot works for your writing.
(July feature is full. Deadline for the September 2017 issue: July 17th.)​ 

http://www.southernwritersmagazine.com/promos-2017.html

SIGNINGS AND SELF-PROMOTION
This photo op is your chance to show off your mad self-promotion skills when it comes to book signings. Have a high-quality photo of your table or booth at a bookstore or writers conference? Tell us about your strategy in designing the display, or share an interesting story related to that signing. (Yes, we'd love to see you in the photo, too! 

Or perhaps you've come up with a creative giveaway item for your next appearance or online promotion. Bring it on!
(Scheduled for the September 2017 issue: deadline July 17th.)​
http://www.southernwritersmagazine.com/promos-2017.html

SUITE T
If you're reading this, you're probably already aware that this very blog features guest authors every Monday, Wednesday and Friday (with staffers on Tuesday and Thursday).  Much like the magazine, posts run the gamut of writing information and inspiration. More than 3 million visitors have visited Suite T, and that number grows by the day. Get your two cents in by writing a guest post. Submission guidelines for Suite T are at http://southernwritersmagazine.blogspot.com/p/guest-posting.html

SHORT STORY CONTEST
Tired from typing your latest tome?  Get short with us!  Our annual Short Story Fiction Contest is a chance to win $250 plus other perks including being on the cover of our special short story publication this summer.  The deadline in June 15th, 2017. Entry details can be found at http://www.southernwritersmagazine.com/shorts.html

There you have it: five things you can get in on today to get the word out. So grab your camera or start burning up that keyboard now.  You know you want to!

The Most Popular Blog Posts

by Gary Fearon. Creative Director, Southern Writers Magazine

At Southern Writers we stay so busy putting out the magazine, keeping up with contests, updating our social media, liaisoning with authors, and making up words like liaisoning, that it often surprises us when we step back and look at the results.  A couple of weeks ago, for example. we gratefully acknowledged the milestone of one million pageviews here on the blog, a number that has since grown by over 90,000 additional hits.

We take humble pride in every achievement, big or small, but more importantly, we try to assess the why of success.  In the three years of doing this blog, we've noticed a few interesting things about the patterns and behaviors of blog visitors.  Today I thought you might enjoy a rundown of our most popular blogposts of all time, and my guesses as to why they lead the pack.

Before I even start, I would be remiss not to mention the outstanding authors who guest blog on Suite T several times a week.  Depending on their own popularity and social media savvy, they often jump to the front of the line and stay there for a day or more.  But in general, the following posts are the stalwarts that keep returning.

Forward Movement and Stephen King

Not only does Annette Cole Mastron share consistently good insights from her own writing journey, she is quick to praise other great authors.  A focus on Stephen King has led many visitors to find this particular blog post, which is currently our most visited.  I don't know the exact hit count as of today, but it rivals the number of times King cusses in his book On Writing.

METADATA - What Is it? Why Do Authors Need It?
Our editor, Susan Reichert, has a knack for picking important topics that authors may not have had time to look into themselves.  If you don't know what metadata is, you're probably not getting the kind of response you wanted from your website.

5 Ways Authors Can Promote Their Books
Susan strikes again with another post that triggers self-marketing ideas many haven't thought of.

Story Plots from Carrier and the Sistine Chapel
This post by Doyne Phillips is often the frontrunner in the Suite T popularity contest.  If you've ever wondered how air conditioning and The Vatican can help you with your writing (and haven't we all), this is the post for you. 

Dance with the One What Brung Ya
Once again, Doyne — the man we call The Emperor — rules.  Don't be misled by his folksy charm.  He's a shrewd business guy whose insights bat .1000 every time he steps up to the plate.

You'll notice that some of these blog post titles are very straightforward, while others leave something to the imagination. I myself attempted an experiment which was quite successful when I posted Kate Middleton is Expecting.  That week the numbers were very impressive, when the post became its own self-fulfilling prophecy.  But just like the headlines it reflects, it was a flash in the pan and soon fell behind the Stephen Kings and Sistine Chapels that have more enduring staying power. 

I hope you enjoy revisiting these classic posts as much as I did.  If there are topics you'd like us or our guest authors to cover, drop us a line. Or better yet, be a guest blogger yourself.  Follow the Guest Posting link for submission guidelines, and see if you can write the next post that stays on top.

The Trenches of Marketing

By J.P. Jones

Today authors are finding themselves in the trenches of marketing whether published with a large publishing house, a small vanity press, or going the route of self-publishing.Thanks to the world of advanced technology,  marketing doesn't have to dominate all our time. Here are 3 top tips to help get your marketing off on the right track.

1. Change the way you think about marketing. Marketing is not the enemy. It can be fun! Many people feel marketing is boasting or tooting their own horn. In reality, marketing is simply what you do to start conversations around your product. Think of marketing as a bridge that allows you to connect with people and find common ground.
Example: Recently at a family member's funeral, I met cousins and relatives I never really got to know. In conversation, one of the first things we do naturally is asking the other person what they do for a living. They answer, we reply in kind with our career story. That's marketing in a nutshell. You're telling someone what you do and why it's interesting to you. The same idea applies to anything you've written. For instance, while I was chatting with relatives, the subject of Facebook came up. I love that topic, because I can talk about my first book, “Market Yourself: A Beginner’s Guide to Social Media” and it’s a great segue for

me to mention my book. There we have a marketing bridge. When you change the way you think about marketing, you will see opportunities around you, even in daily routines.

2. Use tools you already have.

The best marketing strategies are created around something you're already doing. If you find yourself constantly sucked into Facebook, make sure you talk about your latest writing, editing frustrations, character development, or anything else related to what you do in your daily writing routines. It may sound simple, but I can't begin to tell you how many books I've sold from my personal Facebook account just because one day I'm venting about something related to my writing!

3. Take advantage of “Free” marketing.

Paid advertising is a wonderful marketing venue. Whether it's through catalogs, magazines or newspapers. I also encourage you to take advantage of free marketing venues.  I talk about that in my new book, 31 Days of Marketing. Each day we tackle a new marketing opportunity you can tap into— many are free! A couple of the best free opportunities out there are:

Social Media: Most social media outlets are free to join. Look into Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Google Plus, LinkedIn, etc. Find other authors using them to garner ideas for promoting your own books!

Blogging/Guest Blogging: It doesn't cost anything to start a blog. Check out  Blogger or Wordpress. They allow you to get up and running with no fees. Write a guest post for other established blogs. It’s a great way to spread your name and showcase your writing. Be sure and check the guidelines for being a guest poster here on Suite T.

Digging your way out of the marketing trench, you’ll be amazed how quickly you turn your marketing efforts into book sales.

For more information visit www.lifeafterpublishing.com.

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JP Jones is the author of Market Yourself: A Beginner’s Guide to Social Media and 31 Days of Marketing to be released October 20. She is also one of the hosts of Life After Publishing, an event created to help authors learn how to market themselves—and get the recognition they deserve. Learn more at www.lifeafterpublishing.com