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Marketing Advice from Best-Selling Author S. Jae-Jones
Posted by Cynthia on May 10, 2017
Building anticipation for an unknown debut Young Adult author is not easy, unless you have an author as engaged with her audience as S. Jae-Jones. Readers started shelving her book, Wintersong, as early as April 2016, almost a year before its publication in February 2017. The author regularly shared creative content that showed she knew her audience (a make-up tutorial, anyone?), built her newsletter list, and leveraged her connections with other authors. Of course, all this built-up anticipation resulted in the book making the New York Times bestseller list.
We asked JJ to share some of her secrets of her marketing success.
Wintersong received an incredible amount of pre-publication buzz, and now more 50k people have it shelved at to-read. How did you manage that as a debut author?
To be completely honest, I'm not entirely sure how the pre-publication buzz happened or rather, how much I personally had a hand in it. I think buzz is a combination of luck, timing, and a commercial pitch. The luck portion is entirely out of your hands, but I do think you can affect the other two.
Having a commercial pitch is not necessarily about having a commercial IDEA; rather, it's finding a way to be able to succinctly relate the premise of your book in an engaging way that hints at a story to come. Easier said than done, I know, but there is a bit of a trick to it. For example, the basic pitch for Wintersong was about a young woman who journeys underground to rescue her sister from the clutches of the Goblin King. In one sentence, I have the protagonist, the setting, the stakes, and the antagonist.
I used to work in publishing, and my old boss used to ask me what the "handle" of a book was. The "handle" is a simple, straightforward, easy way to wrap your mind around a project, what you can pick up and carry with you. If you find it difficult to write a commercial pitch for your own book, maybe practice it for other books or movies that you love before settling on your own.
As for timing, some of that will be up to chance, but I don't think it hurts to start talking about your book as early as you can. I do think there can be instances of too fast, too soon, but getting the word out about your book via your social media channels (if you have them) is not a bad idea. Announce when your book goes up on Goodreads. Announce when it becomes available for preorder. Announce when you get a review. Talk about the writing or editing process.
There is a five-touchpoint theory of marketing in that a customer comes into contact with a product five times before making a decision about whether or not to buy. The earlier you start, the more time you have for readers to come in contact with your work.
You have many authors, including Roshani Chokshi and Marie Lu, review the book ahead of publication. How did you get those other authors to review your books? Any advice for authors if they don’t have connections through a publisher?
Make friends. Friends will do you favors. They will also reach to other friends to ask for favors, and so and so forth until you realize you are at the center of an enormous web of connections, muahahahaha. ;-) I'm being facetious, but also in deadly earnest. How do you make friends? Well, that's a little harder to answer, but the best relationship are formed over shared misery, in my opinion. This means seek out other writer friends, either online or in person. There are Facebook groups of other writers or message boards where you can find critique partners if you're more comfortable building relationship via the internet, or you can attend conferences and author events if you have the time and funds.
The one caveat to this technique is that it takes time to build these relationships. In the cases of Marie Lu and Roshani Chokshi, I became friends with them either before their books sold, or before their books became published. Most of my writer friends who blurbed my book are actually my critique partners; they read everything I write before it's even the apple of my publisher's eye. As with the first answer, there is no simple, quick solution to success.
What’s your favorite thing to explore on Goodreads?
I love tracking my reading. On a personal level, it illuminates trends in what I seek out and why, plus it also sheds light on gaps. If I'm too heavy on one genre, then I will try and branch out. I use Goodreads much more as a personal tool than as a marketing one.
How do you engage with readers on Goodreads? How has that changed since you joined the Author Program?
I joined the Author Program straightaway. I found the "to-read" stats the most illuminating, because I could track spikes in interest. For example, there was a large spike in "to-read" adds after I revealed my cover via my newsletter. Another when Marie Lu reviewed it on Goodreads. Another when I did a blog interview. Those stats helped shape what I was doing promotion-wise before publication. I interact with readers by answering questions submitted to me via Goodreads, although I will admit that the closer I got to publication, the less time I had to interact.
How do you plan to keep the momentum going for Wintersong? The old saying in publishing goes that nothing sells backlist like frontlist, so I am working on the sequel.
Next: Building a Marketing Timeline on Goodreads: Infographic
You might also like: Marketing Advice from Author Fred Van Lente
Goodreads Authors can subscribe to the Monthly Author Newsletter by editing their account settings.
Posted by Cynthia on May 10, 2017
Building anticipation for an unknown debut Young Adult author is not easy, unless you have an author as engaged with her audience as S. Jae-Jones. Readers started shelving her book, Wintersong, as early as April 2016, almost a year before its publication in February 2017. The author regularly shared creative content that showed she knew her audience (a make-up tutorial, anyone?), built her newsletter list, and leveraged her connections with other authors. Of course, all this built-up anticipation resulted in the book making the New York Times bestseller list.
We asked JJ to share some of her secrets of her marketing success.
Wintersong received an incredible amount of pre-publication buzz, and now more 50k people have it shelved at to-read. How did you manage that as a debut author?
To be completely honest, I'm not entirely sure how the pre-publication buzz happened or rather, how much I personally had a hand in it. I think buzz is a combination of luck, timing, and a commercial pitch. The luck portion is entirely out of your hands, but I do think you can affect the other two.
Having a commercial pitch is not necessarily about having a commercial IDEA; rather, it's finding a way to be able to succinctly relate the premise of your book in an engaging way that hints at a story to come. Easier said than done, I know, but there is a bit of a trick to it. For example, the basic pitch for Wintersong was about a young woman who journeys underground to rescue her sister from the clutches of the Goblin King. In one sentence, I have the protagonist, the setting, the stakes, and the antagonist.
I used to work in publishing, and my old boss used to ask me what the "handle" of a book was. The "handle" is a simple, straightforward, easy way to wrap your mind around a project, what you can pick up and carry with you. If you find it difficult to write a commercial pitch for your own book, maybe practice it for other books or movies that you love before settling on your own.
As for timing, some of that will be up to chance, but I don't think it hurts to start talking about your book as early as you can. I do think there can be instances of too fast, too soon, but getting the word out about your book via your social media channels (if you have them) is not a bad idea. Announce when your book goes up on Goodreads. Announce when it becomes available for preorder. Announce when you get a review. Talk about the writing or editing process.
There is a five-touchpoint theory of marketing in that a customer comes into contact with a product five times before making a decision about whether or not to buy. The earlier you start, the more time you have for readers to come in contact with your work.
Make friends. Friends will do you favors. They will also reach to other friends to ask for favors, and so and so forth until you realize you are at the center of an enormous web of connections, muahahahaha. ;-) I'm being facetious, but also in deadly earnest. How do you make friends? Well, that's a little harder to answer, but the best relationship are formed over shared misery, in my opinion. This means seek out other writer friends, either online or in person. There are Facebook groups of other writers or message boards where you can find critique partners if you're more comfortable building relationship via the internet, or you can attend conferences and author events if you have the time and funds.
The one caveat to this technique is that it takes time to build these relationships. In the cases of Marie Lu and Roshani Chokshi, I became friends with them either before their books sold, or before their books became published. Most of my writer friends who blurbed my book are actually my critique partners; they read everything I write before it's even the apple of my publisher's eye. As with the first answer, there is no simple, quick solution to success.
What’s your favorite thing to explore on Goodreads?
I love tracking my reading. On a personal level, it illuminates trends in what I seek out and why, plus it also sheds light on gaps. If I'm too heavy on one genre, then I will try and branch out. I use Goodreads much more as a personal tool than as a marketing one.
How do you engage with readers on Goodreads? How has that changed since you joined the Author Program?
I joined the Author Program straightaway. I found the "to-read" stats the most illuminating, because I could track spikes in interest. For example, there was a large spike in "to-read" adds after I revealed my cover via my newsletter. Another when Marie Lu reviewed it on Goodreads. Another when I did a blog interview. Those stats helped shape what I was doing promotion-wise before publication. I interact with readers by answering questions submitted to me via Goodreads, although I will admit that the closer I got to publication, the less time I had to interact.
How do you plan to keep the momentum going for Wintersong? The old saying in publishing goes that nothing sells backlist like frontlist, so I am working on the sequel.
Next: Building a Marketing Timeline on Goodreads: Infographic
You might also like: Marketing Advice from Author Fred Van Lente
Goodreads Authors can subscribe to the Monthly Author Newsletter by editing their account settings.
Building a Marketing Timeline: Infographic
Posted by Cynthia on May 08, 2017
Though it might seem like bestsellers happen overnight, it takes months of planning to get a marketing plan in place before the book is out. What does that kind of plan look like? Here's a handy infographic that outlines the broad strokes of a pre-publication marketing campaign on Goodreads. You can read the details on this previous post.
Next: Five Writing Prompts for Mystery Writers
You might also like: Quotes About Reading and Writing
Goodreads Authors can subscribe to the Monthly Author Newsletter by editing their account settings.
Posted by Cynthia on May 08, 2017
Though it might seem like bestsellers happen overnight, it takes months of planning to get a marketing plan in place before the book is out. What does that kind of plan look like? Here's a handy infographic that outlines the broad strokes of a pre-publication marketing campaign on Goodreads. You can read the details on this previous post.
Next: Five Writing Prompts for Mystery Writers
You might also like: Quotes About Reading and Writing
Goodreads Authors can subscribe to the Monthly Author Newsletter by editing their account settings.
Five Writing Prompts for Authors During Mystery Week
Posted by Cynthia on May 01, 2017
What makes a good mystery novel? A crime is committed—not necessarily on a dark and stormy night—and readers want to know: Who committed the crime, and why?
Some writers may shy away from writing mystery novels because, quite frankly, it’s hard! Story lines are often complex, readers need to be kept guessing, and characters need to have an interesting backstory.
But you read the advice from the experts: Start writing. Approach questions from Ask the Author (find it on your Author Dashboard) as if they were writing prompts. Try it out answering the question "What mystery in your own life would make a good book?" during Mystery & Thriller Week on Goodreads.
If you're all out of questions, here are five writing prompts to get you going:
Share your story with your readers on your Goodreads blog, your writing section, or in the comments below. Share it on social using #MysteryWeek. Ready, set, write!
Posted by Cynthia on May 01, 2017
What makes a good mystery novel? A crime is committed—not necessarily on a dark and stormy night—and readers want to know: Who committed the crime, and why?
Some writers may shy away from writing mystery novels because, quite frankly, it’s hard! Story lines are often complex, readers need to be kept guessing, and characters need to have an interesting backstory.
But you read the advice from the experts: Start writing. Approach questions from Ask the Author (find it on your Author Dashboard) as if they were writing prompts. Try it out answering the question "What mystery in your own life would make a good book?" during Mystery & Thriller Week on Goodreads.
If you're all out of questions, here are five writing prompts to get you going:
Share your story with your readers on your Goodreads blog, your writing section, or in the comments below. Share it on social using #MysteryWeek. Ready, set, write!
Writing Tips from Mystery and Thriller Writers
Posted by Cynthia on May 01, 2017
Readers love asking their favorite authors questions, especially when it comes to advice about writing! As we celebrate Mystery Week on Goodreads, get inspired by some of these bestselling mystery and thriller authors. Don’t be afraid to ask any of these Featured Authors for their tips about writing, and make sure your own Ask the Author is enabled from your Goodreads Author Dashboard and you answer the question, "What mystery in your own life could be a plot for a book?"
“Rather than outlining your plot in chronological order, try outlining your plot as if it were a candle burning at both ends. Begin the process by writing your first and last chapter simultaneously. It may be helpful to make the protagonist’s circumstances in these two chapters as different from one another as possible. This will require your character to undergo a series of changes between the beginning and end...changes that can serve as pillars on which to construct the middle of the book.”
“The advice would be to everyone who wants to write: start it. But specifically, if you want to be a suspense writer, something I did that was extremely helpful may work for you. I wanted to see how Daphne Du Maurier was able to give the suspense to Rebecca that made that book a classic. I wrote the first paragraph and the last paragraph of every chapter and did a synopsis of what went in that chapter. It was a wonderful way to see how she built suspense in such a subtle manner.”
“I think that what drives a thriller need to be something that matters, like a family member. It needs to have a sense of momentum, that the story is like a boulder rolling down a hill, picking up speed with each chapter. And, as much as possible, a little twist, or something, at the end of every chapter to make you want to go on to the next one. If I get at all bored while writing the story, I know the reader will be bored, too. I have to keep myself interested.”
“When you write psychological crime, you spend a lot of time thinking about *why* this specific character would commit such an immense crime as murder - and the answer is often (not always) rooted deeply not only in the individual character, but in the flaws and priorities of the society around him or her.”
“Inspiration comes from different sources at different points in the process. When I'm just starting a book, thinking about the main character and the premise, inspiration really can come from anywhere: the news, conversations I overhear between strangers, magazine ads, other books I'm reading. When I'm in the midst of writing, inspiration may take more of a problem-solving mode: if x happens, what then? If y, then what? I will often find images in magazines or online that resonate with the story I'm writing — something that gives me an idea of what Nick Heller's DC loft looked like, or the resort in Power Play, or the hideout in Buried Secrets. A writer's magic words are, "I can use this."”
“I don't see why a work of mystery or any other "genre" fiction should not be literary. Some of the best, most intelligent, literary writing today is coming from writers in what people term "the mystery genre" - and it's in mystery that readers are exposed to fiction dealing with the sharp end of societal problems, historical events, etc. The fact that a mystery takes the reader through chaos to some sort of resolution speaks to the human condition - through the lens of mystery we see humanity at its best and worst.”
What advice resonates the most with you? Share your thoughts and your own advice in the comments below. Then check out what else authors can do to make the most of Mystery Week.
Posted by Cynthia on May 01, 2017
Readers love asking their favorite authors questions, especially when it comes to advice about writing! As we celebrate Mystery Week on Goodreads, get inspired by some of these bestselling mystery and thriller authors. Don’t be afraid to ask any of these Featured Authors for their tips about writing, and make sure your own Ask the Author is enabled from your Goodreads Author Dashboard and you answer the question, "What mystery in your own life could be a plot for a book?"
Dan Brown, author of The DaVinci Code
“Rather than outlining your plot in chronological order, try outlining your plot as if it were a candle burning at both ends. Begin the process by writing your first and last chapter simultaneously. It may be helpful to make the protagonist’s circumstances in these two chapters as different from one another as possible. This will require your character to undergo a series of changes between the beginning and end...changes that can serve as pillars on which to construct the middle of the book.”
Mary Higgins Clark, author of Where Are the Children?
“The advice would be to everyone who wants to write: start it. But specifically, if you want to be a suspense writer, something I did that was extremely helpful may work for you. I wanted to see how Daphne Du Maurier was able to give the suspense to Rebecca that made that book a classic. I wrote the first paragraph and the last paragraph of every chapter and did a synopsis of what went in that chapter. It was a wonderful way to see how she built suspense in such a subtle manner.”
Linwood Barclay, author of No Time for Goodbye
“I think that what drives a thriller need to be something that matters, like a family member. It needs to have a sense of momentum, that the story is like a boulder rolling down a hill, picking up speed with each chapter. And, as much as possible, a little twist, or something, at the end of every chapter to make you want to go on to the next one. If I get at all bored while writing the story, I know the reader will be bored, too. I have to keep myself interested.”
Tana French, author of In the Woods
“When you write psychological crime, you spend a lot of time thinking about *why* this specific character would commit such an immense crime as murder - and the answer is often (not always) rooted deeply not only in the individual character, but in the flaws and priorities of the society around him or her.”
Joseph Finder, author of Vanished
“Inspiration comes from different sources at different points in the process. When I'm just starting a book, thinking about the main character and the premise, inspiration really can come from anywhere: the news, conversations I overhear between strangers, magazine ads, other books I'm reading. When I'm in the midst of writing, inspiration may take more of a problem-solving mode: if x happens, what then? If y, then what? I will often find images in magazines or online that resonate with the story I'm writing — something that gives me an idea of what Nick Heller's DC loft looked like, or the resort in Power Play, or the hideout in Buried Secrets. A writer's magic words are, "I can use this."”
Jacqueline Winspear, author of Maisie Dobbs
“I don't see why a work of mystery or any other "genre" fiction should not be literary. Some of the best, most intelligent, literary writing today is coming from writers in what people term "the mystery genre" - and it's in mystery that readers are exposed to fiction dealing with the sharp end of societal problems, historical events, etc. The fact that a mystery takes the reader through chaos to some sort of resolution speaks to the human condition - through the lens of mystery we see humanity at its best and worst.”
What advice resonates the most with you? Share your thoughts and your own advice in the comments below. Then check out what else authors can do to make the most of Mystery Week.
Seven Clues for Authors Participating in Mystery Week
Posted by Cynthia on April 17, 2017
It would be a crime if you missed this opportunity to promote your books! Mark your calendars and get ready to participate in Mystery & Thriller Week on Goodreads, May 1 to 7. We’re shining the spotlight on page-turning mysteries, thrillers, and suspense stories and need all the help we can get from savvy authors. Here are seven ways you can engage with readers on the site during Mystery Week:
1. Enable Ask the Author. Don’t leave your fans in the dark—allow them to reach out to you with questions about your books, your writing habits, or your murder weapon of choice.
Find Ask the Author on your Goodreads Author Dashboard. New to the platform? Read Best Practices for Ask the Author here.
2. Answer the special Mystery Week question. Your first mission, if you choose to accept it, will be to respond to the special mystery-related question from Goodreads via Ask the Author. Be generous with your response: your answer might show up on our rotating list of authors on our Mystery Week landing page. Find your special question in the Ask the Author section of your Goodreads Author Dashboard.
3. Use #MysteryWeek in all your activity. You’ll be able to cross-promote your Goodreads activity on other social media channels, and help readers will discover your content.
4. Write a 5-sentence original mystery. Anthony Horowitz, Charlaine Harris, Dennis Lehane, and many others will be recommending books and sharing original content to kick off the week, but readers will always want more! Post to Twitter, ATA, on your Goodreads blog, or in your writing section. Find writing prompts here.
5. Leave clues about your new book. Share a veiled version of your cover, reveal the murder weapon (but not the victim), or disclose the location of your new book setting by posting information to your blog. Fun thought: Use the whole week to leave breadcrumbs for your fans!
6. Join a mystery group. There’s a group for every reader, and if you love solving mysteries as much as writing them, considering getting involved in one of our groups on Goodreads.
7. Browse our list of top 100 mysteries and thrillers. Readers love seeing what their favorite authors are reading, so we'll be sharing our list of the top mysteries and thrillers on Goodreads for you to browse and to shelve to your personal shelf!
Not a mystery writer? That’s ok! We’ll be sharing writing prompts and writing tips from bestselling authors throughout the week to help get the ideas flowing. Take the opportunity to expand your writing skills, connect with other writers, or simply get inspired! We’ll be at the edge of our seats to find out what you come up with…
Find more inspiration on how to prepare for Mystery Week from mystery writer Fred Van Lente here.
Keep an eye on the Goodreads Blog check out our Featured Authors taking questions, browse the mystery giveaways, and join the conversation on Twitter using #MysteryWeek starting May 1.
Next: Marketing Advice from Best-Selling Author Fred Van Lente
You might also like: Romance Authors Make the Best Marketers
Goodreads Authors can subscribe to the Monthly Author Newsletter by editing their account settings.
Posted by Cynthia on April 17, 2017
It would be a crime if you missed this opportunity to promote your books! Mark your calendars and get ready to participate in Mystery & Thriller Week on Goodreads, May 1 to 7. We’re shining the spotlight on page-turning mysteries, thrillers, and suspense stories and need all the help we can get from savvy authors. Here are seven ways you can engage with readers on the site during Mystery Week:
1. Enable Ask the Author. Don’t leave your fans in the dark—allow them to reach out to you with questions about your books, your writing habits, or your murder weapon of choice.
Find Ask the Author on your Goodreads Author Dashboard. New to the platform? Read Best Practices for Ask the Author here.
2. Answer the special Mystery Week question. Your first mission, if you choose to accept it, will be to respond to the special mystery-related question from Goodreads via Ask the Author. Be generous with your response: your answer might show up on our rotating list of authors on our Mystery Week landing page. Find your special question in the Ask the Author section of your Goodreads Author Dashboard.
3. Use #MysteryWeek in all your activity. You’ll be able to cross-promote your Goodreads activity on other social media channels, and help readers will discover your content.
4. Write a 5-sentence original mystery. Anthony Horowitz, Charlaine Harris, Dennis Lehane, and many others will be recommending books and sharing original content to kick off the week, but readers will always want more! Post to Twitter, ATA, on your Goodreads blog, or in your writing section. Find writing prompts here.
5. Leave clues about your new book. Share a veiled version of your cover, reveal the murder weapon (but not the victim), or disclose the location of your new book setting by posting information to your blog. Fun thought: Use the whole week to leave breadcrumbs for your fans!
6. Join a mystery group. There’s a group for every reader, and if you love solving mysteries as much as writing them, considering getting involved in one of our groups on Goodreads.
7. Browse our list of top 100 mysteries and thrillers. Readers love seeing what their favorite authors are reading, so we'll be sharing our list of the top mysteries and thrillers on Goodreads for you to browse and to shelve to your personal shelf!
Not a mystery writer? That’s ok! We’ll be sharing writing prompts and writing tips from bestselling authors throughout the week to help get the ideas flowing. Take the opportunity to expand your writing skills, connect with other writers, or simply get inspired! We’ll be at the edge of our seats to find out what you come up with…
Find more inspiration on how to prepare for Mystery Week from mystery writer Fred Van Lente here.
Keep an eye on the Goodreads Blog check out our Featured Authors taking questions, browse the mystery giveaways, and join the conversation on Twitter using #MysteryWeek starting May 1.
Next: Marketing Advice from Best-Selling Author Fred Van Lente
You might also like: Romance Authors Make the Best Marketers
Goodreads Authors can subscribe to the Monthly Author Newsletter by editing their account settings.
Marketing Advice from Best-Selling Author Fred Van Lente
Posted by Cynthia on April 10, 2017
Fred Van Lente has been a professional writer for eleven years, and his comics and graphic novels have earned him #1 spots on the New York Times bestseller lists, numerous awards, and have been the basis for feature films. This July, Quirk Books is releasing Van Lente’s debut novel, Ten Dead Comedians, which early Goodreads reviews have described as “an entertaining homage to Agatha Christie...but with a cutting edge and a lot of hilarious happenings.”
Before his publicity campaign hits overdrive, he was kind enough to answer a few questions about his marketing campaign on Goodreads.
What has been your favorite thing to explore on Goodreads?
I really like being able to organize my books into different shelves so my readers have more of an insight into the writing process. I write a lot of non-fiction too, so hopefully it's interesting for readers to see things like the works that went into Ryan Dunlavey's and my upcoming Action Presidents OGN series from HarperCollins.
Your Ask the Author answers are hilarious. What’s your approach to responding to questions, and how do you generate new ones?
Ha! Thanks. They are a lot of fun. I did a few self-generated by Goodreads, and that I think encouraged other users to ask. The rest are all from Goodreads users themselves. I just try to be short and to the point and as funny as possible... kind of like my regular writing style, I guess!
What has been the most effective marketing strategy for getting the word out about your book?
The bulk of marketing, really, is just telling people the product exists—it's informative in nature. Too many writers, it seems to me, think of marketing as "getting people to want to buy", and in my experience that's the wrong concentration. The marketer isn't in the desire-creation business, the author is. You need to create books people want to read, and, you know, that comes in the what-book-should-I-write stage and a lot of your battle's already won or lost before the book actually comes out. The book's either something that people want at that particular historical moment, or it isn't. It's an uphill battle to generate interest out of thin air. So the best marketing materials, I've found, are the work itself—advance copies and ARCs. Goodreads obviously has a couple of programs that are great for that.
That said, for my debut novel, Ten Dead Comedians, the marketing team at Quirk Books has had all sorts of amazing ideas, including running a Clue-like competition at signings and events like Book Con, and as a promotional giveaway-slash-leave-behind, they created great coasters promoting the book. Ten Dead Comedians, is an Agatha Christie-style murder mystery involving stand-up comics, so the coasters are meant to invoke a comedy club with a two-drink minimum. So they have both that informative aspect—here is the book, here is what it's about—but they also convey a spirit of fun and excitement around the novel, hopefully encouraging that interest to buy. So it's the best of both worlds, marketing-wise! Can't wait to start handing these out in a couple of weeks.
How has your activity on Goodreads changed since becoming an author vs. using it as a reader?
I am lucky enough to have been a professional writer for eleven years, mostly in the comics and graphic novel field, so I was already a pro by the time I started using Goodreads. But for years I used it just as a fan of books myself. Now that the debut novel is coming out I decided to really upgrade my author profile on the site. I have a Goodreads blog now that updates via RSS feed both to my own web site and my Amazon author's page, so it's been very useful to me as I embark on this new and pretty awesome stage of my career.
You share how you format a comics script. How has writing and publishing a novel been a different experience?
Comics are a weekly rush to the printer on every level—for the writer, for the artist, for the production team, for the sales force. It's a grind that chews out a lot of people and spits them out. So I am very happy, with a novel, to take nearly a year on a single work, and then work with the team at Quirk Books to bring the book to market over a period of months. It's the difference between crash-landing a jumbo jet and steering a cruise ship out of port. One is much less stressful! But then, I've pretty much been doing comics exclusively for almost a decade, so I guess I am probably biased... (laughs)
Have questions for the author? Leave them in the comments below! Fred Van Lente will be responding to questions from authors on Tuesday, April 18.
Missed your chance to ask him a question? Ask him on his profile page and be sure to follow him to see all his activity!
Next: Five Things Writers Need to Know Before Publishing Their First Book
You might also like: Marketing Advice from Author Gail Carriger
Goodreads Authors can subscribe to the Monthly Author Newsletter by editing their account settings.
Posted by Cynthia on April 10, 2017
Fred Van Lente has been a professional writer for eleven years, and his comics and graphic novels have earned him #1 spots on the New York Times bestseller lists, numerous awards, and have been the basis for feature films. This July, Quirk Books is releasing Van Lente’s debut novel, Ten Dead Comedians, which early Goodreads reviews have described as “an entertaining homage to Agatha Christie...but with a cutting edge and a lot of hilarious happenings.”
Before his publicity campaign hits overdrive, he was kind enough to answer a few questions about his marketing campaign on Goodreads.
What has been your favorite thing to explore on Goodreads?
I really like being able to organize my books into different shelves so my readers have more of an insight into the writing process. I write a lot of non-fiction too, so hopefully it's interesting for readers to see things like the works that went into Ryan Dunlavey's and my upcoming Action Presidents OGN series from HarperCollins.
Your Ask the Author answers are hilarious. What’s your approach to responding to questions, and how do you generate new ones?
Ha! Thanks. They are a lot of fun. I did a few self-generated by Goodreads, and that I think encouraged other users to ask. The rest are all from Goodreads users themselves. I just try to be short and to the point and as funny as possible... kind of like my regular writing style, I guess!
What has been the most effective marketing strategy for getting the word out about your book?
That said, for my debut novel, Ten Dead Comedians, the marketing team at Quirk Books has had all sorts of amazing ideas, including running a Clue-like competition at signings and events like Book Con, and as a promotional giveaway-slash-leave-behind, they created great coasters promoting the book. Ten Dead Comedians, is an Agatha Christie-style murder mystery involving stand-up comics, so the coasters are meant to invoke a comedy club with a two-drink minimum. So they have both that informative aspect—here is the book, here is what it's about—but they also convey a spirit of fun and excitement around the novel, hopefully encouraging that interest to buy. So it's the best of both worlds, marketing-wise! Can't wait to start handing these out in a couple of weeks.
How has your activity on Goodreads changed since becoming an author vs. using it as a reader?
I am lucky enough to have been a professional writer for eleven years, mostly in the comics and graphic novel field, so I was already a pro by the time I started using Goodreads. But for years I used it just as a fan of books myself. Now that the debut novel is coming out I decided to really upgrade my author profile on the site. I have a Goodreads blog now that updates via RSS feed both to my own web site and my Amazon author's page, so it's been very useful to me as I embark on this new and pretty awesome stage of my career.
You share how you format a comics script. How has writing and publishing a novel been a different experience?
Comics are a weekly rush to the printer on every level—for the writer, for the artist, for the production team, for the sales force. It's a grind that chews out a lot of people and spits them out. So I am very happy, with a novel, to take nearly a year on a single work, and then work with the team at Quirk Books to bring the book to market over a period of months. It's the difference between crash-landing a jumbo jet and steering a cruise ship out of port. One is much less stressful! But then, I've pretty much been doing comics exclusively for almost a decade, so I guess I am probably biased... (laughs)
Have questions for the author? Leave them in the comments below! Fred Van Lente will be responding to questions from authors on Tuesday, April 18.
Missed your chance to ask him a question? Ask him on his profile page and be sure to follow him to see all his activity!
Next: Five Things Writers Need to Know Before Publishing Their First Book
You might also like: Marketing Advice from Author Gail Carriger
Goodreads Authors can subscribe to the Monthly Author Newsletter by editing their account settings.
5 Things Writers Need to Know Before Publishing Their First Book
Posted by Cynthia on March 13, 2017
Many writers dream of becoming published authors: to have their words read by millions of readers; to hold their manuscript in a book form; to see that book in bookstores and libraries; to get glowing reviews on Goodreads or in the New York Times.
They think that once they hit "publish" on a self-publishing platform or hand their final, edited manuscript over to a publisher, their work is done.
In reality, many writers quickly realize how much more they are expected to pitch in on the marketing front. They realize that books don’t just magically appear in bookstores, and that readers won’t drop everything and read the book the second they first hear about it.
To help you avoid surprises, here are five things writers need to know before publishing their first book:
When you see a book shoot magically up the best-seller list in the first week it is published, understand that it took many people many months of work to put it there. It takes traditional publishers so long to get from acquisition to publication because they are setting the stage for the release: writing the marketing & publicity material for the sales reps to use with the buyers, mailing out media review copies, securing interviews and reviews, putting together the advertising creative, and more.
As an author, you’ll need to have the patience and foresight to plan out a complete marketing campaign. This can start as soon as you finish the manuscript: establish your online presence, start building a mailing list, and introduce yourself to the local publishing community.
Book promotion means you will need to balance talking about yourself and your book and talking about other things people care about (for example). You will need to engage with your readers. You will need to sign books. You will need to charm booksellers. And you will need to tell your story over and over again, answering the same questions, remaining positive and friendly throughout.
Remember that you wouldn’t be a published author without readers, so work hard to make every interaction a great one. Also know yourself well enough to recharge your batteries between events, and let your publicist know to be selective with the types of interviews you do.
Quick tip: Ask the Author is a great way to engage with readers, as it allows you to select which questions to answer, and when to answer them. [Read tips about using Ask the Author here.]
You might think your book will only find it’s way into the hands of readers who will think it’s life-changing, but sooner or later someone will not like your book. No book is for everyone, and the most important thing to realize about a negative review is that it’s just one person’s opinion. Don’t take it personally. Instead, leave it alone and then get the beverage of your choice, and look up your favorite book on Goodreads. Chances are there are many negative reviews of it!
Respect personal preferences, and never try to change someone’s opinion about your book. If you’re worried you’ll get affected by reading reviews of your own book, don’t read them (yes, it really is that simple!). If you suspect it violates our review guidelines, flag it so our team can take a look at it.
One way to avoid reading your own reviews is to stay occupied by reading other people’s books! This is the best activity to engage with readers on Goodreads and build a following [read more about building a following here].
Share your passion for reading and show off your talent for writing by reviewing books on Goodreads. Start by reviewing books you loved in childhood, move on to books that inspired you to become a writer, and then tackle the current best-seller list for more recent titles. Remember: Goodreads is a community for readers—these are your people! Connect with them, and trust they will discover your own work that way.
If all goes well, readers will devour your work and immediately want more. You need to have something ready to share with them, whether that’s a short story or a preview of the second book in the series. Keep the same writing schedule as you had before your work was published. You might transition from being a writer to being an author by publishing your first book; publish more than that and you have a career.
What do you wish you had known before publishing your first book? Share it in the comments below!
Next: Movie Studios Find Love and Results on Goodreads
You might also like: For the Love of Books - Quotes About Reading and Writing
Goodreads Authors can subscribe to the Monthly Author Newsletter by editing their account settings.
Posted by Cynthia on March 13, 2017
Many writers dream of becoming published authors: to have their words read by millions of readers; to hold their manuscript in a book form; to see that book in bookstores and libraries; to get glowing reviews on Goodreads or in the New York Times.
They think that once they hit "publish" on a self-publishing platform or hand their final, edited manuscript over to a publisher, their work is done.
In reality, many writers quickly realize how much more they are expected to pitch in on the marketing front. They realize that books don’t just magically appear in bookstores, and that readers won’t drop everything and read the book the second they first hear about it.
To help you avoid surprises, here are five things writers need to know before publishing their first book:
1. Bestsellers are not created overnight.
When you see a book shoot magically up the best-seller list in the first week it is published, understand that it took many people many months of work to put it there. It takes traditional publishers so long to get from acquisition to publication because they are setting the stage for the release: writing the marketing & publicity material for the sales reps to use with the buyers, mailing out media review copies, securing interviews and reviews, putting together the advertising creative, and more.
As an author, you’ll need to have the patience and foresight to plan out a complete marketing campaign. This can start as soon as you finish the manuscript: establish your online presence, start building a mailing list, and introduce yourself to the local publishing community.
2. You will need to be an extrovert.
Book promotion means you will need to balance talking about yourself and your book and talking about other things people care about (for example). You will need to engage with your readers. You will need to sign books. You will need to charm booksellers. And you will need to tell your story over and over again, answering the same questions, remaining positive and friendly throughout.
Remember that you wouldn’t be a published author without readers, so work hard to make every interaction a great one. Also know yourself well enough to recharge your batteries between events, and let your publicist know to be selective with the types of interviews you do.
Quick tip: Ask the Author is a great way to engage with readers, as it allows you to select which questions to answer, and when to answer them. [Read tips about using Ask the Author here.]
3. Not everyone will like your book... and that is ok!
You might think your book will only find it’s way into the hands of readers who will think it’s life-changing, but sooner or later someone will not like your book. No book is for everyone, and the most important thing to realize about a negative review is that it’s just one person’s opinion. Don’t take it personally. Instead, leave it alone and then get the beverage of your choice, and look up your favorite book on Goodreads. Chances are there are many negative reviews of it!
Respect personal preferences, and never try to change someone’s opinion about your book. If you’re worried you’ll get affected by reading reviews of your own book, don’t read them (yes, it really is that simple!). If you suspect it violates our review guidelines, flag it so our team can take a look at it.
4. Read books, not your own reviews.
One way to avoid reading your own reviews is to stay occupied by reading other people’s books! This is the best activity to engage with readers on Goodreads and build a following [read more about building a following here].
Share your passion for reading and show off your talent for writing by reviewing books on Goodreads. Start by reviewing books you loved in childhood, move on to books that inspired you to become a writer, and then tackle the current best-seller list for more recent titles. Remember: Goodreads is a community for readers—these are your people! Connect with them, and trust they will discover your own work that way.
5. Keep writing.
If all goes well, readers will devour your work and immediately want more. You need to have something ready to share with them, whether that’s a short story or a preview of the second book in the series. Keep the same writing schedule as you had before your work was published. You might transition from being a writer to being an author by publishing your first book; publish more than that and you have a career.
What do you wish you had known before publishing your first book? Share it in the comments below!
Next: Movie Studios Find Love and Results on Goodreads
You might also like: For the Love of Books - Quotes About Reading and Writing
Goodreads Authors can subscribe to the Monthly Author Newsletter by editing their account settings.
Movie Studios Finding Love & Results on Goodreads
Posted by Katie Boyer on February 27, 2017
Posted by Katie Boyer on February 27, 2017
Movie studios are increasingly turning to Goodreads to build excitement and awareness for their films. This is especially true for book-to-film adaptations where movie marketers can tap into a ready-made, highly-social audience at scale with the existing fans of an author and book.
One example of Goodreads helping a movie find its fans is Love & Friendship, a Lionsgate film, which came to theaters in May 2016. Thanks to Goodreads being a top performer compared to other outlets for the Theatrical Release campaign, Lionsgate ended up booking two additional campaigns with Goodreads to drive more sales.
While Love & Friendship is based on the relatively unknown Jane Austen novella, Lady Susan, the fan base for Jane Austen—who has more than 4.3 million ratings on Goodreads—is significant. In the initial Theatrical Release campaign, Goodreads therefore worked with Lionsgate to leverage this interest and achieve their two campaign goals:
1. Reach a core target audience of females 35+ to build awareness of the film.
2. Drive traffic to the film's website and ticket sales.
Goodreads built a campaign comprised of targeted, high-impact placements across our site, which allowed Lionsgate to reach the right target audience at scale. Some of the high-performance placements included:
The overall campaign Click Through Rate (CTR) performance for the Theatrical Release Campaign was very strong, thanks to the quality of the creative and the popularity of the genre/author. Due to these results, Lionsgate determined Goodreads was a top-performing site compared to other outlets and they therefore dedicated additional budget for a Theatrical Boost campaign.
The team identified the top-performing placements from the Theatrical campaign and focused on even more granular targeting based on age and gender. As result, the boost campaign had strong performance which was inline with the original theatrical campaign.
Increasing Purchase Intent:
Based on the success of the first two campaigns, Lionsgate tapped Goodreads to promote the Home Entertainment release. The campaign's objective focused on positioning Love & Friendship as a must-own title for fans of Jane Austen books and films, as well as fans of similar genre book titles.
Goodreads recommended focusing the budget on a product that directly drives sales – our custom Personal Selection Email. This product allows a client to target fans of the author and drive directly to a (retail) purchase page.
The client's agency contact, Rachel vanEssen, gave the Personal Selection Email rave reviews:
Overall, the three campaigns exceeded the client's expectations and met campaign objectives. Some of the factors that contributed to the campaigns' success include:
Love & Friendship is a great example of how Goodreads can support the full lifespan of a film, from Theatrical pre-release, premiere weekend, ongoing support and on through the Home Entertainment release.
If you're interested in promoting entertainment campaigns on Goodreads please reach out to your Account Manager or email us at advertising@goodreads.com
Next: Six Ways Authors Can Participate in Romance Week 2017
You might also like: The Essential Guide to Promoting Nonfiction Books on Goodreads
Goodreads Authors can subscribe to the Monthly Author Newsletter by editing their account settings.
One example of Goodreads helping a movie find its fans is Love & Friendship, a Lionsgate film, which came to theaters in May 2016. Thanks to Goodreads being a top performer compared to other outlets for the Theatrical Release campaign, Lionsgate ended up booking two additional campaigns with Goodreads to drive more sales.
While Love & Friendship is based on the relatively unknown Jane Austen novella, Lady Susan, the fan base for Jane Austen—who has more than 4.3 million ratings on Goodreads—is significant. In the initial Theatrical Release campaign, Goodreads therefore worked with Lionsgate to leverage this interest and achieve their two campaign goals:
1. Reach a core target audience of females 35+ to build awareness of the film.
2. Drive traffic to the film's website and ticket sales.
Driving Awareness
Goodreads built a campaign comprised of targeted, high-impact placements across our site, which allowed Lionsgate to reach the right target audience at scale. Some of the high-performance placements included:
- Book Page Takeover – Targeted Roadblock to popular Jane Austen book pages at 100% Share of Voice (SOV).
-
Homepage Roadblock – One-day 100% SOV takeover of the signed-in Homepage on premiere date.
- Personal Selection Mailer – Customized email to fans of Jane Austen announcing the movie's premiere. (Personal Sections Mailers are extremely effective and are becoming a favorite tactic for many marketers on Goodreads.)
Book Page Takeover
Homepage Roadblock
Personal Selection Email
The overall campaign Click Through Rate (CTR) performance for the Theatrical Release Campaign was very strong, thanks to the quality of the creative and the popularity of the genre/author. Due to these results, Lionsgate determined Goodreads was a top-performing site compared to other outlets and they therefore dedicated additional budget for a Theatrical Boost campaign.
The team identified the top-performing placements from the Theatrical campaign and focused on even more granular targeting based on age and gender. As result, the boost campaign had strong performance which was inline with the original theatrical campaign.
Increasing Purchase Intent:
Home Entertainment Campaign
Based on the success of the first two campaigns, Lionsgate tapped Goodreads to promote the Home Entertainment release. The campaign's objective focused on positioning Love & Friendship as a must-own title for fans of Jane Austen books and films, as well as fans of similar genre book titles.
Personal Selection Email
Goodreads recommended focusing the budget on a product that directly drives sales – our custom Personal Selection Email. This product allows a client to target fans of the author and drive directly to a (retail) purchase page.
The client's agency contact, Rachel vanEssen, gave the Personal Selection Email rave reviews:
“This was definitely a great way to let Jane Austen fans know about the movie and let them immediately purchase it. I'd love to utilize this product in the future, specifically with titles that already have a strong fan base; it's proven to be an effective way to really reach and engage super-fans within the Goodreads community.”Thanks to the spot-on targeting, the email realized open and engagements rates that exceeded client expectations and was integral in achieving Lionsgate's goal of driving purchase intent among Jane Austen fans.
Exceeding Customer Expectations
Overall, the three campaigns exceeded the client's expectations and met campaign objectives. Some of the factors that contributed to the campaigns' success include:
- Goodreads' unique genre and author targeting,
- Our behavioral targeting based on a user's book preference, and
- The Goodreads team's ability to be quick and nimble with ad placement optimization.
Love & Friendship is a great example of how Goodreads can support the full lifespan of a film, from Theatrical pre-release, premiere weekend, ongoing support and on through the Home Entertainment release.
If you're interested in promoting entertainment campaigns on Goodreads please reach out to your Account Manager or email us at advertising@goodreads.com
Next: Six Ways Authors Can Participate in Romance Week 2017
You might also like: The Essential Guide to Promoting Nonfiction Books on Goodreads
Goodreads Authors can subscribe to the Monthly Author Newsletter by editing their account settings.
Turn It On: Six Ways Authors Can Participate in Romance Week
Posted by Cynthia on February 06, 2017
We’re turning up the heat all over the site and our social to celebrate the stories that set our hearts aflutter: it's Romance Week! Any author is welcome to participate in Romance Week on Goodreads, February 6 – 14. Here are six simple things authors can do to get in on the action:
1. Enable Ask the Author. Don’t just tell your fans you love them; show them how much you do. Readers jump at any chance to interact with their favorite authors, so tell them to submit questions to you via Ask the Author on your profile page.
Find Ask the Author on your author dashboard when you’re signed into your account. It’s ok if it’s your first time: read Best Practices here.
2. Use #RomanceWeek in all your activity. This allows readers to discover your content across social channels, and gives you the chance to amplify your message to all those participating.
3. Tell us a love story in 14 words. We've compiled a few of our favorites for the launch, but we always want more! Post yours to Twitter, on your Goodreads blog, or in your writing section.
4. Tease us with something new. Excite readers by sharing an excerpt of your upcoming book in your writing section, or a glimpse at your next cover on Goodreads via your blog.
5. Vote on your favorite fictional couple. We want to know: Which characters have the best love story? In addition to answering the question via Ask the Author (check your Author Dashboard), add your candidates here. Remember, you can’t add or vote for your own books, but you can choose between Katniss and Peeta, Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth, Romeo and Juliet, Gideon and Eva, and many others!
6. Browse our list of top 100 romance books and shelve the books you want to read! Romance authors were readers first, so show off your passion.
Of course, these guidelines don’t mean savvy romance authors should limit their creativity. We love to see what you come up with to make the most of this opportunity. Let your readers vote on their favorite cover model, share the most romantic line you’ve ever read (or written), or recommend your favorite romance books. Pretty much anything goes!
Keep an eye on the Goodreads Blog, check out our growing list of Featured Authors taking questions, browse the romance giveaways, and join the conversation on Twitter all week using #RomanceWeek.
Next: Romance Authors Make the Best Marketers
You might also like: Five Things to Remember When Engaging on Goodreads
Goodreads Authors can subscribe to the Monthly Author Newsletter by editing their account settings.
Posted by Cynthia on February 06, 2017
We’re turning up the heat all over the site and our social to celebrate the stories that set our hearts aflutter: it's Romance Week! Any author is welcome to participate in Romance Week on Goodreads, February 6 – 14. Here are six simple things authors can do to get in on the action:
1. Enable Ask the Author. Don’t just tell your fans you love them; show them how much you do. Readers jump at any chance to interact with their favorite authors, so tell them to submit questions to you via Ask the Author on your profile page.
Find Ask the Author on your author dashboard when you’re signed into your account. It’s ok if it’s your first time: read Best Practices here.
2. Use #RomanceWeek in all your activity. This allows readers to discover your content across social channels, and gives you the chance to amplify your message to all those participating.
3. Tell us a love story in 14 words. We've compiled a few of our favorites for the launch, but we always want more! Post yours to Twitter, on your Goodreads blog, or in your writing section.
4. Tease us with something new. Excite readers by sharing an excerpt of your upcoming book in your writing section, or a glimpse at your next cover on Goodreads via your blog.
5. Vote on your favorite fictional couple. We want to know: Which characters have the best love story? In addition to answering the question via Ask the Author (check your Author Dashboard), add your candidates here. Remember, you can’t add or vote for your own books, but you can choose between Katniss and Peeta, Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth, Romeo and Juliet, Gideon and Eva, and many others!
6. Browse our list of top 100 romance books and shelve the books you want to read! Romance authors were readers first, so show off your passion.
Of course, these guidelines don’t mean savvy romance authors should limit their creativity. We love to see what you come up with to make the most of this opportunity. Let your readers vote on their favorite cover model, share the most romantic line you’ve ever read (or written), or recommend your favorite romance books. Pretty much anything goes!
Keep an eye on the Goodreads Blog, check out our growing list of Featured Authors taking questions, browse the romance giveaways, and join the conversation on Twitter all week using #RomanceWeek.
Next: Romance Authors Make the Best Marketers
You might also like: Five Things to Remember When Engaging on Goodreads
Goodreads Authors can subscribe to the Monthly Author Newsletter by editing their account settings.
Romance Authors Make the Best Marketers
Posted by Cynthia on February 06, 2017
It’s a truth universally acknowledged, that a successful indie romance author in possession of a good brand, must be incredibly marketing savvy. Thus is certainly the case with Alexa Riley, author of the recent New York Times bestseller Everything for Her (Carina Press), who first starting self-publishing with KDP and has amassed 159,000 ratings on Goodreads and nearly 20,000 reviews in just a few years.
Alexa Riley is the pseudonym of Melissa K. and Lea R., two women who share a passion for writing insta-love, over-the-top, sweet, and cheesy love stories. Goodreads interviewed them via email to share their success story during Romance Week. “People ask us all the time how is it possible for two people to write as a team, but for us we’ve never known another way,” they explain. “We both wrote our first book as Alexa Riley, so we’ve developed our flow from day one. We also joke that we don’t think we could ever write a book without the other one, and we’ve yet to try it.”
Alexa Riley published about 30 books last year, and plans to deliver around 2 per month going forward. Readers have learned to trust the brand with delivering their favorite kind of romance. “We are big believers in branding yourself as an author. If you want a readership to trust you, then you’ve got to be able to deliver the same thing to them each time in a new and exciting way,” they said.
Both Melissa and Lea had started out blogging and knew the romance book world pretty well before embarking on their first book, Owning the Beast in 2014. But for their career to succeed they had to brush up on their marketing knowledge pretty quickly, and they credit their early giveaways and building up a mailing list as their most successful early marketing strategies.
Goodreads also played a part in interacting with readers in a non-self-promotional kind of away. “Getting to talk to readers and share what you love to read is big. Not only that, they can see when I tell them a new book is out,” the authors say. Melissa Anthony, the product manager who signed them on at Carina Press, was impressed by their ability to promote across platforms. “When I saw the Goodreads screenshot giveaway they did a few months ago, it gave me pause because it was such a smart and simple way to get readers sharing on both Facebook and Goodreads platforms and uniquely promote their book at the same time.”
Having officially-crossed over into hybrid-author territory, they value to the merits of both traditional and self-publishing. “Going with a traditional publisher gave us a market we hadn’t been able to tap into before, and grew our fan base,” they say. “With indie authors, the best thing you can do is widening your net to reach as many people as possible, and Carina Press gave us that opportunity. We still enjoy our self publishing, and wouldn’t ever give it up.”
Sweet surprises await fans of Alexa Riley, as Lea and Michelle show no plans of slowing down. “The best advice we ever received is to keep writing. We always tell people to keep putting words on the page. The way the market moves now is so fast, that you’ve got to be able to keep up with the demand. And romance readers are ravenous.”
Next: For the Love of Books: Quotes About Reading
You might also like: Indie Authors Share Their Secrets to Creating Successful Self-Publishing Careers
Goodreads Authors can subscribe to the Monthly Author Newsletter by editing their account settings.
Posted by Cynthia on February 06, 2017
It’s a truth universally acknowledged, that a successful indie romance author in possession of a good brand, must be incredibly marketing savvy. Thus is certainly the case with Alexa Riley, author of the recent New York Times bestseller Everything for Her (Carina Press), who first starting self-publishing with KDP and has amassed 159,000 ratings on Goodreads and nearly 20,000 reviews in just a few years.
Alexa Riley is the pseudonym of Melissa K. and Lea R., two women who share a passion for writing insta-love, over-the-top, sweet, and cheesy love stories. Goodreads interviewed them via email to share their success story during Romance Week. “People ask us all the time how is it possible for two people to write as a team, but for us we’ve never known another way,” they explain. “We both wrote our first book as Alexa Riley, so we’ve developed our flow from day one. We also joke that we don’t think we could ever write a book without the other one, and we’ve yet to try it.”
Both Melissa and Lea had started out blogging and knew the romance book world pretty well before embarking on their first book, Owning the Beast in 2014. But for their career to succeed they had to brush up on their marketing knowledge pretty quickly, and they credit their early giveaways and building up a mailing list as their most successful early marketing strategies.
Goodreads also played a part in interacting with readers in a non-self-promotional kind of away. “Getting to talk to readers and share what you love to read is big. Not only that, they can see when I tell them a new book is out,” the authors say. Melissa Anthony, the product manager who signed them on at Carina Press, was impressed by their ability to promote across platforms. “When I saw the Goodreads screenshot giveaway they did a few months ago, it gave me pause because it was such a smart and simple way to get readers sharing on both Facebook and Goodreads platforms and uniquely promote their book at the same time.”
Having officially-crossed over into hybrid-author territory, they value to the merits of both traditional and self-publishing. “Going with a traditional publisher gave us a market we hadn’t been able to tap into before, and grew our fan base,” they say. “With indie authors, the best thing you can do is widening your net to reach as many people as possible, and Carina Press gave us that opportunity. We still enjoy our self publishing, and wouldn’t ever give it up.”
Sweet surprises await fans of Alexa Riley, as Lea and Michelle show no plans of slowing down. “The best advice we ever received is to keep writing. We always tell people to keep putting words on the page. The way the market moves now is so fast, that you’ve got to be able to keep up with the demand. And romance readers are ravenous.”
Top Three Marketing Tips
- Define your brand. This requires you to think about what you will write and what you won’t write. Keep your branding consistent so readers can immediately recognize your books and know what to expect.
- Make it easy for readers to contact you. Readers looking to connect with Alexa Riley can find links to Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, Instagram, Amazon, and Tumblr on the website.
- Build a mailing list. This is your direct line to your readers for whatever you wish to share with them, and alerting them to new releases when they’re available.
Next: For the Love of Books: Quotes About Reading
You might also like: Indie Authors Share Their Secrets to Creating Successful Self-Publishing Careers
Goodreads Authors can subscribe to the Monthly Author Newsletter by editing their account settings.
