Active and Passive Book Promotion

Sometimes, as authors, we tend to forget about our earlier works. We focus on a recent publication and mentally store previous books in the attic.

I'm guilty of that to some extent. I find myself expending lots of time and energy in promoting a new release. That's probably a good thing to do but I think authors should also look at their catalog and make sure some titles aren't forgotten.

Since the publication of "Old Ways and New Days" last October, I've used various outlets to spread the word about the coming-of-old-age novel. I'd like to report that it has resulted in the book reaching the upper echelons of best-seller lists, but that hasn't been the case, unless you view "upper" in the off-the-chart categories.

But being published by a small publishing house -- Wings ePress -- it's difficult creating a buzz about the novel. That's why I and most authors urge readers to leave reviews and/or ratings on websites such as Amazon.com, B&N.com, Goodreads.com and others. That's a word-of-mouth promotion that can bring more attention to our books.

Recently I've promoted "Shooting Star," a young adult novel about a boy trying to gain acceptance on a team that has aspirations of winning the high school basketball title. Although it was published nearly five years ago, it's a timely (it's basketball season)  and timeless story that's received little promotion. 

After the "Shooting Star" promotion, I'll turn my attention to "The Bully List," which was published nearly three years ago. It's also a young-adult novel, focusing on bullying in a middle school. 

I also try to promote other titles at writing conferences, book signings and similar events. And they're passively promoted on my website, Facebook, Amazon, and other sites -- including this blog page, if you haven't notice.

I try to limit the promotions on places such as Facebook and Twitter. Too much and it becomes unwanted spam. I want to attract readers, not turn them off. 

I confess I don't like promotion but it's a necessary part of the publishing process. I know quite a few authors who have books with large publishing houses, and believe it or not, they find themselves doing many of the things that I do with my novels. And most of them don't like it either; they'd prefer to be writing.

Do you have any marketing tips?

Until the next time....