Marketing
The Concept of Platform
The concept of a writer’s platform get’s talked about a lot and is very confusing since you tend to get a difference answer depending on who you ask. Well I was doing dishes and this thought came to me:
No matter what you’ve written you need to be able to answer three questions.
1. Who is going to buy my book?
2. How are they going to know it exists to buy it?
3. Why would anyone want to read my book, aka, what are your credentials?
Bam! That’s what makes up your platform.
For example:
1. I write YA fiction so I figure my audience is going to be YA readers
2. How will I get the news out? Well, I belong to the Willamette Writers, I’m involved in the Arts Alliance of Yamhill County, I am in close contact with my local schools. It’s a start .
3. Well, while I don’t have any previous fiction published, I read a lot and blog book reviews in my genre regularly. You have to know your market and part of that is reading the books in it.
A wonderful book on platform building is by Christina Katz, and is called Get Known Before the Book Deal.
To find out more about it, visit her site:
The Gifted Series: Book Trailer
Something that you are seeing more of is the concept of commercials and/or trailers for books. Honestly, I’m surprised that it’s taken this long to become more popular and I feel that it still has a ways to go. I think that as a society we rely too much on t.v. and/or internet to tell us about things and that includes new books. It only makes sense that trailers are a step in the right direction for book marketing. I still don’t see many trailers on t.v, but I have have seen a few. Anyway, I stumbled across this trailer for the Gifted series by Marilyn Kaye. It looks like a good read. The Gifted Series trailer can be found here:
http://www.publishersweekly.com/flashVideo/element_id/2140398090/taxid/34194.html.
Marketing
I know some writers think that if they have a great book that their editor loves then it will surely makes it’s way to best seller status. Yeah, I use to think that too, a long time ago. There is one thing you have to remember, you may write because you love it, but for publishers, it’s a business. Writer’s should always be honing their craft but you also have to learn about the business end, and I don’t mean contracts and royalty checks. I mean marketing. As a writer you will need to know how to market your book. While I was at the Willamette Writer’s Conference, I attended a workshop called Red Hot Internet Basics with Penny Sansevieri. Now I do not consider myself a ‘basic’ internet user. I honestly thought I would sit there and hear the same old same old about have a website, have a blog, get on facebook, etc. While she did talk about these things, she talked about HOW to make them work for you. HOW to use them to market. It was an incredible workshop. Her website is http://www.amarketingexpert.com
It offers a free newsletter that has really helpful tips. I recommend subscribing to it. She also has a book out, Red Hot Internet Publicity. I haven’t read it yet, but it’s on my to get list.
She talks about using Google Alerts and being active on other sites to help get your name out there. Also she talked about using www.twitterfeed.com to feed your blog to your Twitter account. She provided some great info and I recommend signing up for the newsletter, which is also packed with marketing tips. Just go to her site and a box pops up to sign up for the newsletter. http://www.amarketingexpert.com
Hybrid Books
I read an interesting article today, talking about Hybrid Books. The concept of authors incorporating other forms of media into a “book” and in my opinion it’s impact on the very definition of reading. I thought that it was an interesting concept of adding video clips and sound to say an e-book. I’m all for exploring new media, creativity is creativity but I also feel that the more that is given in the form of visual and even audio, means less for the reader’s own imagination.
One area of the article that struck me as interesting was Harper Collin’s “The Amanda Project” as having an online community that may very well end up adding to the plot of future books. That is very interesting. I think it might bring fans and authors together, hopefully in a positive way. That kind of interaction is needed and I think will keep readers attention between book releases.
It will be interesting to see how this concept of a hybrid book develops and what it means for new authors trying to enter the market.
The whole article can be found at http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/01/books/01book.html?_r=2
Pitching Series: Stand and Deliver
So, you’ve written the perfect pitch. You’ve practiced until you’ve got it memorized. So you’re done right? Not quite. When we speak we use different tones, inflections, gestures. It’s important to incorporate all of that into your pitch. No one wants to listen to someone recite something from memory in a monotone voice, with their arms glued to their sides. Practice your tone inflections and gestures. Remember to speak slowly. The rate that you should speak will feel too slow to you, but will be just right for your listener. Nervous? Don’t worry, no one else can hear your heart pounding, they can’t see if you are shaking, and they won’t mind if you pause once in awhile to catch your breath. Breathing while pitching is important–it will help you keep a good pace. Also, pay attention to your audience. If they laugh at a joke, then pause, let them laugh, and then continue. Don’t try and talk over them. So, now that you’ve practiced with your tone and gestures, you are now read to stand and deliver your well practiced pitch.
Pitching Series: Get Help!
So you know all the basic parts of the pitch, but you are still having problems, turning your 80,000 word masterpiece into a three minute pitch. Yeah, I had a lot of problems creating my pitch too. That’s why I got help. I turned to my writer’s group and they helped me hone in on what needed to be said and what didn’t. Never be afraid to ask for help and if you don’t already belong to a writer’s group–join one. A good group will provide you with priceless help by critiquing you and encouraging you. Plus, practicing in front of other people will help put you at ease. Once you have your pitch fully written, it is important to practice, practice, practice.
Pitching Series: Why should I care?
The why should I care aspect of the pitch should be throughout the pitch with a big push at the end. We previously talked about what your character was doing and how you need to mention what they are feeling throughout the plot. Knowing how the character is feeling, helps us a reader connect with them more, and makes us care what happens to them. It’s also good to summarize the main dilemma at the end of your pitch, but don’t tell me the ending. If an agent or editor asks, then tell them. Now this is only true for pitching–not the synopsis, which needs to have an ending. Remember, the point of the pitch is to hook your audience and make them want to know more, to make them want to read your book.
Pitching Series: Where and When?
It’s important to mention where your story takes place, normally. This is especially true if we are dealing with historical fiction; time travel; or fantasy worlds. So if it’s relevant to your story be sure and mention where it takes place, and if necessary when it takes place. An editor/agent will want to know up front if you are pitching a historical novel set in Greece, vs a modern story in small town USA. They will also want to know if this is present day Earth, futuristic, or a whole new world that has yet to be discovered. You would also want to mention if you are dealing with an alternate reality. Where and When are two things that should be in the beginning of your pitch.
Pitching Series: What?
You’ve narrowed down your book to the main character, now you have to tell the person that you are pitching what they are doing. The key thing to remember here is make it interesting and don’t overload them with details. Sure, you probably have several subplots, but your pitch is not the place to mention them. What is the key plot line? What is your main character doing? What is driving them to do it? Typically when I think of what is driving a character I think about what the character is feeling. So as you are creating your pitch, be sure and mention what your character is going through. Were they stunned when something happened? Were they betrayed? Were they in a state of disbelief? Often the emotional high points or low points in a book coincide with plot points.
Pitching Series: Who’s your main character?
I previously talked about the 5 Ws. So we are going to focus in on that. Who is the main character? Most plays have a lead, maybe two. If your book was a play, who is the star? Let’s look at a common book. Twilight. It’s arguable that Bella and Edward are the leads, but really it’s just Bella, especially since it’s told from first person. In the Harry Potter series, it’s Harry. Yes, I’m trying to use obvious examples. Both of these books have a whole cast of characters, but narrow your pitch down to just one person and maybe their enemy. The character you want to focus on is the character that drives your plot and that we come to care enough about to keep turning the pages. That is the only character who really needs to be in your pitch. So, who is your main character?
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