Marketing by Sally Franklin Christie

Marketing, is a word that strikes a note of fear in the heart of every new writer. Marketing, Promotion, Elevator Pitches, Niche Markets, Fan Base, Social Networking and Blogging are only a few buzz words in the writing community. There is no need to fear.

The Writer’s Chatroom is a great place to help sort through the question of what to do after you have a book to market. It is even better to hang out and learn about this aspect of writing before your book is ready to read.

Most aspects of marketing are fun. The more you learn, the less mystifying it is and you can approach it with the same energy that glues your fingers to the keyboard while you get your story written.

There are many ways to work through the maze of buzz words and techniques. I’ll give you three to get you going. You found your way here to TWC, that is a very good start.

Learn the vocabulary. Google the terms.

Ask other writers how they do it. While some say writing is a solitary sport, the internet has made it impossible to exist in a vacuum.

Begin to take full advantage of social networking sites. It won’t take long to build up a group of friends and their friends ask to friend you.

When I began my Tarot Reading Business I used a book called Getting business to come to you
~ Paul Edwards (Author), Sarah Edwards,. While it deals mainly with Print Media, the advice on niches, presentation, marketing techniques and business planning make it worth its considerable weight.

Another book I found useful is Writing for the Web
~ Crawford Kilian. This book helped me understand what a random reader sees when he or she lands on a web page. It reinforced many of the ideas from Getting Business to Come to you.

The Writer’s Chatroom and Audrey Shaffer offer an excellent forum on Branding and Promotion and the feedback from the leader and participants makes enrolling very worth your time.

I’ve covered three things to dampen your fears, and three of my favorite recourses and I’ll end with three cautions.

Do not make marketing more difficult than it is. You are probably already promoting yourself and don’t even realize it.

Do not try to do three things at once. It doesn’t mean you won’t someday become the best juggler in the world of marketing, but no one should start with every ball in the air. Begin with one aspect, for me, it was as simple as switching from screen names to my real name.

Do not stop writing while you learn to market. Although selling your work is a hoot, after it is sold you need something else to sell. Your readers will expect it.

This is my first Blog Post at TWC and I want to say that without you, our readers, our chat participants, and our guests, we would be a hollow, empty and very dull site. I am honored to step up my role as a participant to that of Moderator and hope to be as helpful and kind to each of you as you have been to me.

by Sally Franklin Christie