As an independent author myself I understand the muliple jobs of trying to get
your book into the hands of readers. You need to take on several different jobs such as your own publisher, promotor, editor, and the author. So how do we handle all these different tasks effectively? 1. Divide your time properly. Even if that means breaking down your day into segments. Put a time limit on each segment. For example, you can spend one hour a day on promoting, one hour on editing, etc. 2. Create a work ethic. This is espeically true during the creative writing process. We tend to write when we get a brilliant idea or when we are passionate about writing. But let's be honest. There are days that we just don't feel that passion. Even during those days still try to continue writing. Who know? Maybe something good will come of it. 3. Have a proper work environment. I notice with myself, if I am writing anywhere near a T.V. I become easily distracted. I find it best to sit in a place that is quiet and void of any interaction. This may be true for me but not others. Some like listening to music or sitting in the park. Whatever works best to get your creative juices flowing, I say go for it. 4. Find free book-marketing webinars. I just watched a webinar hosted by Brian Judd. I found it very useful and informative. It gave the name of some important sites to join to gain recognition and traffic to your websites. This is was very useful because I didn't waste time sifting through all the not so great ones. It lead me to excellent sites to get my name out there and recognized. Also, it gave the sites of press release help sites and publishing sites. The webinar gave a lot of useful information on marketing. 5. Calculate your budget. Know how much you are willing to spend and stick to that limit. Remember, it's not about how much you spend to get your book noticed. It is your time and consistent effort. Also, most importantly it's how well your book is written. 6. Find your target audience. I know you have heard this time and time again but it is true. Knowing who you are trying to attract to your book is important. It plays an important role in how you market your book. This way you know what groups or stores you are going to send your press release/announcements to and a free copy to entice them. This will narrow your focus and save a lot of wasted time. 7. Be different. By knowing your target audience, reasearch what other books are available in the same genre. See what they are like then be different. We all need to make our books stand out from the rest. We have to think of what our book will offer that potential reader that they haven't experienced before. 8. Prioritize. Know which areas you need to spend more time on and which can be set aside for a bit. 9. Don't give up. Sometimes you can feel like this is more than a hassle than you expected. You just wanted to do what you love best, and that is to write. Who knew so many tedious tasks would have to go along with it? Also be patient. Most books don't reach their sales peak until it has been out there for a few years. So this means not giving up on your book. Even when it is finally published and out on the shelves, you still have to promote and market it for quite some time. Remember why you wanted to write that book in the first place and focus on that. 10. Have fun. Sounds simple yet it isn't. It's not that fun doing all these different tasks yourself. I try to make it fun by being creative with it. I love creating flyers, mailers, announcements, etc. Remember you are a writer so you are creative to begin with. In the end this is all done to get your book out there
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