That title makes it seem like I've done a first step. Which I have, I suppose, but barely. Truth is I hate promotion. I hate anything that feels like promotion. If I can do it passive/aggressively - that's the kind of promotion I'm all for. This is what I do now:
I have a website (a brand-spanking, slick slick slick new one coming up soon, thanks to Simone!)
I'm on facebook - but I tend to ignore it, mostly because I can't figure out how to use it without feeling like a knob.
I have this blog - which doesn't feel like promotion and frankly, I doubt I've sold a lot of books because of it, but that said - it's my favorite thing! I also blog on the superromance eharlequin blog. I like blogging. It's passive/aggressive. At least the way I do it.
I go to conferences and give talks. I have an article in the RWR in June. I send out books to a few review sites to be reviewed. Because I think there are a few websites that a good review can change your sales.
That's all I do.
Here's what I am going to start to do: run monthly contests from my slick and shiny website. Figure out Facebook. Maybe twitter. Though I hate the idea of it more than I can say. But that's it. That's all that I can think of.
What do you guys think works? Honestly. What do you think is an absolute-have-to-do-it-or-you're-a-idiot promotion tool. Does any of it work? Are we all just screaming into the abyss?
6 comments:
We're screaming into the abyss.
Not that I'm feeling fatalistic or anything . . .
So true! Everybody is so busy promoting themselves (myself included) that you begin to wonder if there are any people out there to promote to?
I don't think there are any must dos.
I've heard a few publicists at conferences say to do stuff you enjoy, and maybe to push yourself just outside your comfort zone.
I think you'd like Twitter. But maybe only if you had a phone you could do it from. Because it kind of needs to be easy to do when you think of "saying" something. I am coveting a new phone right now...
Oh, and this goes without saying, but I think the only must do, if there is one, is to make sure your new editor knows you're willing to do whatever their publicist wants (within reason). Getting your publishing house to do stuff will be way more effective than anything you can do on your own...
Hi Molly! Your Super showed up today! I'm sorry you had such a hassel getting to me, but the third time's a charm, right?
Note - I tried to send you a message via your web site and it errored. I made several attempts. You might have Noveltalk check into it.
Karen W
Molly, everyone on Facebook feels like a knob. Facebook is 8 billion knobs!
I like Twitter, when it doesn't annoy me. Too much author promo on there, IMO as a reader...
New website coming soon, I swear. And we'll fix the email thingy posted above.
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