The Author’s Guide to Marketing
By BETH JUSINO
WINNER: 2015 Independent Publisher Book Awards Bronze Medal, Writing/Publishing
Like it or not, marketing has become part of every author’s job. But believe it or not, marketing doesn’t have to make you miserable.
In The Author’s Guide to Marketing, publishing insider Beth Jusino guides you past the one-size-fits-all formulas and over-hyped fads, and shows you how to build a strategy that works with your unique time, talents, and resources. You’ll find dozens of ideas that will help you launch and sell your book both online and off, and a template for you to organize your own personalized marketing plan.
Whether you’re self publishing, traditionally publishing, or are just thinking about publishing at some point in the future, this is the resource that will help you take your career to the next level. You might even find some things that you’ll enjoy.
This is a comprehensive and accessible guide for writers who know they need to market, but don’t know how to get started. (And it has some good reminders for writers who’ve been doing this for a while, too.)
Available wherever books are sold, including:
Sneak Peak
“To write what is worth publishing, to find honest people to publish it, and get sensible people to read it, are the three great difficulties in being an author.” — Charles Caleb Colton
By now, you’ve probably discovered that publishing is a long and sometimes winding path. There’s a lot more to it than you probably expected. But you’re persevering, and joining the ranks of writers and artists and inventors who have gone before you with an exciting new product in hand and a similarly bewildered expression on their faces.
“I’ve made this thing. Now what?”
You’ve got this vague idea that part of what happens next is this nebulous thing called marketing, even though you’re still wondering how this book fits into your dream to write a great novel (or memoir, or self-help book, or whatever has captured your passion).
To be a writer, you needed to write. But if you’re ready to think about the transition to published author, you also need to get ready to become the CEO of a startup business—the Business of Author You. Your book is your product, and it can’t launch without your help. There are contracts to sign, partners and contractors to manage, decisions to make about artwork and copyright and the pesky serial comma. And then there’s marketing.
You’re still getting used to calling yourself an author. Now you’re supposed to be a marketer too?
Yep. Congratulations!
No, seriously.
If you approach it the right way, this marketing thing can be an opportunity, not a chore. In fact, if you give me a chance, I’ll show you how you might even enjoy your role as Chief Marketer of You.
“Writers are like farmers: The harvest comes, but only after you toil for a few seasons.” — Cheryl Strayed
We’re here to build trust, share stuff, and make friends. That’s all warm, fuzzy … and vague. You’re a mystery novelist with a full-time job and a family. How does a platform fit into your life?
That’s what Julie asked me. She’d landed a contract with a small publisher for her first book, a women’s novel about a Southern family caught up in a legal battle over their adopted child, and she understood that most of the marketing would rest on her shoulders. Her book was a year from release, and she needed a platform that worked with her audience as well as her “day job,” writing, and family. We explored various options and came up with a pre-release platform plan that helped launch her book into a crowded market (it’s a tough sell when your competition is Jodi Picoult). I’ll tell you more about the plan at the end of the chapter. First, let’s talk about you.
Your opportunities to build a reputation are as diverse as the kinds of books and readers in the world. But when you’re starting out, an answer like that isn’t helpful. So here, as examples, are five popular ways that aspiring and new authors grow successful platforms. These all support book sales when you have a book to sell, but what sets these platforms apart is that they’re primarily relationship builders, not sales channels. (No, you’re not going to sell a lot of books through your Facebook page, but you’re going to build relationships that eventually lead to sales.) These are long-term, audience-building commitments that will support you not just for your first book, but for your entire career.
Mix and match to find your perfect style, or use these as inspiration to build your own path. No one expects you to do all five. In fact, it’s better if you choose, and really commit, to developing a couple at a time.
Each of these opportunities, on its own, could be the subject of a whole chapter, or even a whole book. But here’s enough to get you started.
But don’t take my word for it…
"If you’re looking to learn about the reality of marketing your own book, this is the gold standard."
“Beth Jusino has created a smart resource for authors who are serious about understanding their marketing responsibilities and who want to take control of building their unique platforms. This is a book that will help authors succeed. I love it. In fact, I’m going to be buying copies for my clients!”
“Beth provides a refreshingly candid resource. If you want your new book to do more than simply sit on a shelf (real or digital), The Author’s Guide to Marketing should be required reading.”
“This one will stay on my bookshelves (highlighted, sticky-noted and underlined in red pen!)”
“Finally! A smart, functional, and realistic author guide for selling more books. Buy Beth’s book immediately and benefit from her decades of experience, her clearheaded thinking, and her uncanny ability to help even the most perplexed authors succeed.”
“For many authors, the concept of marketing is like a monster hiding in the closet. The Author’s Guide to Marketing offers a hand to hold, a bravery tonic, and a rational approach to demystify that monster.”