Last week I talked through the first five of nine ways you as authors can use to find your readers.
These were all lessons I’d learnt from a pile of marketing books I’d read over the last month. The post was too long to have it all in one blog, so here are the second half of the ‘ways’.
The first five ways included:
You can see the details of those ways here.
As writers we play the infinitely difficult Where’s Wally of reader spotting. But locating those pesky readers is more tortuous than tweezing your granddads nasal hair, and yet, it is THE most important thing we do.
As I draw nearer to handing my book to beta readers, the prospect of completing it, having to press publish and my labour of love subsequently disappearing into the utterly saturated Amazon rainforest of books, never to be seen again, is becoming frighteningly real.
In an attempt to prevent the only people buying my book being mumsy and wifeypoos, I read 3 marketing books last month:
Joanna Penn’s How to Market a Book
Nick Stephenson’s Supercharge Your Kindle Sales
And Tim Grahl’s Your First 1000 Copies
The whole point of my blog is to share what I learn on this sanity testing journey to authordom and what did I learn? Well, I’m resolute on the fact finding your readers will always be the holy grail of authorlyness and because it’s the holy grail, not all of us will find it. BUT, I also learnt a whole heap of other neat tricks to help us along the way, as well as finding an answer to the 64 bergillion dollar question, should an author blog…?
I learnt a shit ton of stuff, so I’ve split this post into two.
So here are 9 ways to help you find your audience, this week I bring you way one to five. (more…)
I hate this post. I do. My eyes were achy from rolling so hard by the time I even sat down to write it. But I HAD to because, as much as I feel like I just Peter Panned my shadow, (ok my soul), and handed it to Captain Devil-Hook, there is no question that these tactics work.
Here’s the thing: My mum, loves me to the ends of the Earth, which means she reads these posts. All of them.
*waves, shouts ‘love you mum’*
As much as I adore the fact mumsy reads them and tells me they’re wonderful. I’d rather like some unbiased feedback. I mean, mum thinks most things I do are good… amazing even.
Although now I think about it, she doesn’t know about the time I… 100% not finishing that sentence.
We all write for a variety of reasons: some blogs are therapeutic, some are started to meet the amazing community and others to build platforms. Whatever the reason, even if you start not caring whether anyone reads your stuff, something happens the moment you get, likes, comments that aren’t your mum, or your first spike in stats.
Realisation.
That’s what happens. The realisation that someone you don’t know, just read the words you wrote. For writers, that ignites the flame of desire. AND WE WANT MORE. More readers, more followers, more stats. (more…)
Sacha Black 