The Book Marketing Network

For book/ebook authors, publishers, & self-publishers


The number one reason readers buy a new book is because they are familiar with the author’s work, have enjoyed them before and can reasonably expect that their hard earned money will not be wasted.

This is fine if you are an established NY Times Bestselling author with a huge following. If you’re a relative newcomer like me (VEXING THE VISCOUNT is my 3rd Emily Bryan title in the crowded field of historical romance) this is not a comforting thought.

The second reason readers buy a book is because a friend recommends it. Ok. This is something I can work on, but the trick is that word of mouth can be slow and today’s publishing reality is that an author needs to build a readership as quickly as possible.

Word of “mouse” moves at the speed of cyberspace. And the recommendation of a trusted book blogger is very like a recommendation from a friend. So I decided to embark on a 50day/50blog VEXING THE VISCOUNT tour leading up to the date of its release (February 24th!).

The first thing I had to do identify the blogs I hoped to guest at. This involved some surfing and asking for recommendations from my writer friends. Then I contacted blog owners and arranged a schedule.

This was a mostly positive experience. Juggling the calendar was the trickiest part, especially when I’d confirm a date with one blog owner and another would email me with an acceptance, but only for a date I’d previously arranged. That’s why I occasionally have more than one blog scheduled for each day, and a few trickling in after the release date. My itinerary is posted at www.emilybryan.com.

Then there were some mix-ups as the tour progressed. A few blog owners had some life issues which meant they couldn’t host me and one had a computer on life-support over at the Geek Squad. So I improvised and hosted the tour myself at www.emilybryan.blogspot.com a few times.

This was fine. I developed a fun core of blog “touristas” (you know who you are!) who were happy to visit my house on the spur of the moment.

As the tour continues, I worry that my posts might become repetitive for those readers who join me daily for my trip through cyber-space. I tried to hit a number of different facets about VEXING THE VISCOUNT. I blogged about Georgian financial debacles, the life and times of courtesans, Roman Britain, the Jacobite rebellions, and Daisy and Lucian (my hero and heroine) in detail. I shared about my path to publication, writing tips, and an insider’s look into my publisher’s offices in New York. I’ve posted several excerpts from the book. I began to bless the names of blog owners who sent me questions to answer or a topic to write about--anything to prick my creativity.

And now I’m on the last leg of this marathon—10 days to go. I have to admit it’s been mentally draining (partly because I was also under a deadline for a holiday novella as well--just typed THE END this week!), but this is the best type of promotion I could have arranged for VEXING THE VISCOUNT.

You see, I was diagnosed with colon cancer and had surgery in December. (I’m doing well, thanks. The cancer was caught early and had not spread—Thank you, God! And I’m rather like a reformed smoker, encouraging everyone to have a screening colonoscopy because I had NO symptoms at all.) I'm recovering from major surgery and what other type of promo could a writer do in her jammies?

But the best strawberry in this situation has been meeting and visiting with so many readers on all the blogs. I love answering their questions and finding out what they consider a good read.

Reading a book is a conversation between the reader and the writer. A little one-sided, though. This has been my opportunity to be on the listening end.

And I’d love to hear from YOU. Please leave a comment or question. Anysia at Booklorn has already set up the rules for my giveaway today and posted a review (Thank you!). Visit Booklorn to enter!

PS. If you’d like to read an excerpt from VEXING THE VISCOUNT, please visit http://www.emilybryan.com/Vexing%20the%20Viscount.htm . My goal is always to give my reader a giggle with the first line!

Enjoy!

Views: 8

Comment

You need to be a member of The Book Marketing Network to add comments!

Join The Book Marketing Network

© 2024   Created by John Kremer.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service