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I thought I’d give an update on both the audiobook platform that I started doing this spring and the promo efforts that I’ve made for the past few months.  Maybe it can give some of you ideas for expanding your content’s reach or for marketing it.

ACX—Still steady income for the $0 I put into the process.  Readers are requesting that more books go to audio (several readers wrote that they’re losing their eyesight and can only “read” via audio). I hate admitting that I don’t have the audio rights for the traditionally published books and that I find it less-likely that my publisher will put them on audiobook.

This time, as soon as the latest of my self-published books was published, I immediately put the book up for audition on ACX.  Now I’m already at the point of reviewing the finished audio.  It’s moved things through a bit faster. Thanks to Lia Frederick for narrating.

Free books. I believe that the single, most effective thing I do to move books is to keep one of them free.  I keep one of my titles free at all times by listing it as free on Smashwords and allowing Amazon to price-match it.  I consider it advertising and it’s the only form of real reader-focused promo that I do…except for Goodreads giveaways, which I’ll mention next. I do think, however, that this is probably a better practice for writers who have several or more books out.

I’ve found that the freebie also seems to result in sales for my trad-published titles, even though they’re higher-priced than my self-pubbed books.  My royalty checks have been higher as my self-pubbed sales have grown…even for the books I’ve written under a pen name.  I think that Amazon does a good job putting my other books in front of the readers.  I don’t think that Barnes & Noble does nearly as good of a job in cross-promoting my other titles.

I’ve noticed that although free promos always work well to keep my other books visible, they do especially well if the freebie is one that has lots of reviews.  It’s almost as if the readers are looking at the number of reviews and not the reviews themselves—one of the books that was recently free has 236 reviews.  But its giveaway was not quite as successful as a freebie for another of my titles that has 446 reviews, even though I think the one with fewer reviews probably has more favorable reviews.

So…what does this mean?  I’m wondering if it means that readers can be influenced by sheer numbers—an “everyone is reading it” mentality.  Even subconsciously. 

Goodreads. On that same thread (trying to get reviews), I received a box of ARCs (Advance Reader Copies) a few weeks ago for the book that’s coming out in December.  I was a little surprised to get them, since I don’t always get them except for the first book in a series.  My editor’s assistant asked me how many ARCs I wanted.  The idea these days is to get as many reviews on the upcoming release as possible.  I think, before online retailing became such a huge thing, that ARCs usually went out to various print reviewers…then bloggers, when blogging reviewers became popular.  Now it seems to be readers. I asked the assistant for 18 ARCs for a Goodreads giveaway.

I’ve noticed that giving away ARCs on Goodreads sometimes makes traditionally-published authors a little nervous.  This is because sometimes signed ARCs end up being sold online on eBay…even before the release.  I’ve heard writers talking about it.  It’s against the Goodreads rules, but pirating, etc., has never seemed to hurt me or my sales.

The giveaway for the December book had a good response…Goodreads reported that 1310 people entered it and I had 16 winners, keeping two of the ARCs in case one got lost in the mail or some other problem.  I’ve found that a good approach seems to be to send a message to the winners –you can click on their link when Goodreads sends you the list of winners.  You congratulate them, tell them when you’ll send the books out (I hear that you can get one-stars on Goodreads for not being prompt), and possibly even give them your other contact info so that they can email you or Facebook you, or whatever.  It makes you a bit more human, more friendly—instead of just a calculated giveaway.  I don’t ask for reviews when I send my note, but several readers wrote me back this time (a few on my email instead of using Goodreads) and said that they were excited to have won and planned to write reviews. 

As I’ve mentioned before, I personally don’t find Goodreads a particularly warm and fuzzy environment for writers, so I just pop in, do my giveaway thing, and pop out again.  You don’t have to hang out there to do giveaways…you can tweak your settings so that Goodreads notifies you via email when they’ve picked the winners. You do have to have a physical book for a giveaway there…they don’t give away ebooks.  But your books don’t have to be traditionally published to be entered, either—CreateSpace or Lightning Source works fine.

So, that’s about it for how things are going for audio and promotion—and what works for now.  Being flexible is good in this business…what works one month may not work the next.  We should just be prepared to change course.

What have you found that’s worked promo-wise lately?  Any thoughts about Goodreads giveaways?  Anyone doing ACX?

I’m new to outlining and sometimes there’s an element that’s missing when I draft outlines—complexity.

I think that’s because I usually add more layers to my books after the first draft is finished.  Unfortunately, I won’t have finished the first draft when I submit an outline to my editor…I won’t even have started the book… and it won’t occur to me to add the complexity into the outline before I send it (at least, it hasn’t before).  This means that I ordinarily get feedback on my outlines that state “could you please add some complexity to this mystery?”

(Note to self: it will save us all a lot of time if I take that step before submitting the next outline.)

I’m imagining that I’m not the only one who gets this kind of feedback from an editor…at least, I hope I’m not.  Luckily, there are quite a few ways to make a mystery less cut-and-dried or easily solved.  Some ideas:

More suspects. You have to be careful here, because if you have too many suspects, then readers can get lost.  If you already have quite a few suspects, then really take a look at them.  Is one of them less-likely as the murderer?  Can you add to their motive or give them more opportunity to have committed the crime?  Can you, in other words, make that suspect appear more suspicious?    

A motive that is different from the motive you’ve originally promoted as the one tied to the murder.  You’ve got greed or financial gain as the motive for the murder—with a cast of characters who all have something to gain from the victim’s death.  But you could suddenly reveal either a different motive or a suspect with an additional motive—revenge, anger, ambition, jealousy.  Maybe the suspect is trying to cover up a different crime. 

Point to a different suspect toward the end of the story.  One way to help make the killer’s identity more of a surprise is to subtly direct readers to a completely different suspect very close to the end of the book. 

Have your suspects both lie and tell truths.  In my books, I’ve got my suspects feeding my sleuths a variety of different information.  Some of it leads the sleuth to clues.  Some of it functions as a red herring.  At times, it’s hard for the sleuth to distinguish the truth from the lies and it makes it more difficult for her to solve the mystery when she isn’t sure the information she’s receiving is trustworthy—or if the source of it is.

Obfuscate. Give suspects secrets that have nothing to do with the murder.  One reason that your suspects would lie is if they were trying to protect their secrets.  Most people have things they’d rather no one else knew about.  This is especially easy to write if your book is set in a small town—folks don’t want the whole town to know their business when they have to live and work closely with a small number of people. There are old scandals, petty crimes, or illicit relationships they’d like to keep to themselves.  These secrets function as roadblocks, red herrings, and detours for our sleuths.

Another victim.  Just when your readers think they’ve nailed the right suspect—kill the suspect. :) Or, kill another likely suspect and give the most likely suspect a great alibi.  On that note…

Locked rooms, iron-tight alibis.   If you add a bit of impossibility to the story, it not only adds complexity, it helps break up endless suspect interviews.  Then you can gradually offer glimpses how these situations are possible.

Parallel subplots.  Bonus points if you can connect a subplot that develops a character to the mystery somehow.  Maybe it can get the sleuth out of hot water or provide a clue to solving the case.  Tie-ins are interesting.

Basically—what can you do to make this story twist a little?  Brainstorm ways to play havoc with the sleuth’s investigation.  Can you derail it temporarily? Send it off in a different direction?  There are ways to add complexity without taking it so far as to frustrate the reader (which we don’t want).

Some of these fixes will also work with other genres.  You can expand on it, too.  How do you see writers in your genre add complexity or twists to their stories?

What exactly is “voice” in fiction?

An engaging story “voice” captures us from the first sentence and beckons us into the story world. Literary agents and acquiring editors always say they’re looking for fiction with a captivating, fresh, natural voice. Then when asked to define the term, they hesitate as they try to capture the elusive “je ne sais quoi” qualities of a voice that is unique and original, a voice that engages readers and compels them keep reading.

In a nutshell, the ideal “voice” is that natural, open, charismatic tone and style that pull us in and make us feel like we know the characters well — and want to get to know them better! A strong, compelling voice will bring your characters and story to life on the page. Voice is personality on paper.

How can we develop an appealing voice?

Here are some concrete tips to help you develop a captivating voice for your fiction.

~ Relax your writing and let it flow.

Many of my editing clients are (retired) professionals or academics who want to try their hand at writing fiction. I help them shake off the constraints of their formal, “correct” writing background, especially if it includes graduate degrees and a lot of legal, academic or business writing. With my guidance, they develop a more casual, accessible, appealing voice and tone for their fiction.

If your writing tends to be overly correct and/or wordy, you’ll need to concentrate on paring down those long, convoluted sentences and replacing abstract or pretentious words with strong, concrete, evocative ones. Focus on writing in a clear, direct, accessible, casual style that evokes the senses and appeals to the readers’ emotions.

~ Write to one person.

To help develop an intimacy with your readership and a conversational tone, create or choose one single person you’re writing to, who is warm, friendly, open to your ideas, interested, and intelligent.

Create an ideal reader. Write a brief description of their age, gender, background, home and work situation, personality, and interests (which of course include reading your kind of writing!). Get to know them a bit by giving them some positive attributes that will help you feel comfortable and open with them. Then target your writing to this person. Relax and let the real you come through.

~ Read and imitate writers whose voice you really enjoy.

Don’t copy their words verbatim, of course, but immerse yourself in their story world, told in their unique voice. Read their books aloud to really internalize the rhythm of their language, the phrasing and expressions and word choices that appeal to you so much. Then of course adapt the cadence and rhythm and attitudes and vocabulary to your own situation.

~ Write a chapter in first person, then change it to third person.

One author whose voice I love is Janet Evanovich, whose spunky, quirky heroine, Stephanie Plum, narrates her story in first-person point of view. But it’s hard to write first-person well, and it can be limiting, as you’re confined to scenes where this character is present. Also, first-person isn’t always the best choice for, say, a thriller, as you want other viewpoints in there, too, notably that of the antagonist.

But try writing several pages or a chapter or two in first-person (“I”), to develop your main character’s unique voice, then just go back and rewrite them in third person (he/she), with as few other changes as possible.

~ Read your story out loud to test its authenticity and easy flow.

Your writing should have the rhythm and comfortable familiarity of spoken language. If it doesn’t flow easily, go in and streamline the language to take out the convoluted sentences, clunky phrasing, and fancy-shmancy words. Or hire a trusted writer friend or reputable freelance editor to go through it for you to take out anything that sounds too formal, wordy, or erudite.

~ Write in deep point of view or close third.

This means the story is unfolding mainly through the thoughts and reactions and emotions and attitudes of your protagonist. Even descriptions of your setting should be filtered through your protagonist’s (or other viewpoint character’s) preferences, views, and mood. This ensures that your whole novel has a great, unique voice, not just the dialogue.

~ Give each character his or her own voice.

When you’re writing dialogue, each character should sound different, with their own unique speech patterns, word choices, and slang or pet expressions, based on their milieu, upbringing, education, and personality. For help with this, listen in on all kinds of conversations, both in real life and on TV and in movies.

Develop an ear for how different people speak. To improve the idiosyncratic speech of a character in your novel, try journaling in their voice, in first person. Just write freely, using lots of attitude! Eventually, you’ll get into their rhythm and find the words that seem to suit them best.

~ Add emotions and attitude.

Bring your characters and scenes to life by showing your character’s feelings and reactions to things. Evoke as many senses as you can to draw the reader into the story world. And show your character’s moods and attitudes not only through her words, thoughts, and actions, but also through the tone and wording of the narration, which is really her observations of and reactions to the people and events around her.

So break free from the constraints of your background, education, and any work-related writing, and write the story only you can write, with your unique experiences and personality, in your own direct, open, interesting voice. Don’t hold back — relax and reveal yourself.

Copyright © Jodie Renner, September 2013

– Readers – Can you share some novels where you’ve particularly enjoyed the voice?

– Writers – Do you have any more tips for finding an authentic, appealing voice?

 [GIVEAWAY: Jodie will gift an e-copy of one of her books to two lucky people who comment below. Please specify in your comment whether you’d prefer “Sizzles” or “Thriller.” Good luck!]

Jodie Renner, a freelance fiction editor specializing in thrillers and other fast-paced fiction, has published two books (& e-books)to date in her series, An Editor’s Guide to Writing Compelling Fiction: WRITING A KILLER THRILLER and STYLE THAT SIZZLES & PACING FOR POWER (Silver Medal winner in FAPA Book Awards, 2013). For more info, please visit Jodie’s author websiteor editor website, or find her on Facebook or Twitter.

Twitterific links are fed into the Writer’s Knowledge Base search engine (developed by writer and software engineer Mike Fleming) which has over 23,000 free articles on writing related topics. It’s the search engine for writers.

November 13-14:  Get Read – Marketing Strategies for Writers: Dan Blank’s We Grow Media is a  two-day online conference for authors looking for promotion strategies–and, ultimately, readers.  Speakers include Porter Anderson, Chuck Wendig, Dan Blank, Jane Friedman, Therese Walsh, and many others.  (I’m one of the scheduled speakers and am also am serving on the advisory board.)  More information about the conference and registration information can be found here.

If you use the discount code elizabeth, you receive $20 off the conference price.

There’s a new resource for writers—whether you’re writing your first book, trying to query agents or editors, or whether you’re working on promo.  It’s Alex J. Cavanaugh’s Insecure Writer’s Support Group website.  There you’ll find pages of links to resources—writing tips, publishers, agents, queries, self-publishing, marketing, contests, and publications for writers. Alex is a friend and frequent commenter here and very active in supporting writers. Thanks to Alex and his helpers for compiling the information for the site.

6 steps to creativity: http://dld.bz/cRwPQ @authorterryo

New Site Links to Writing Tips; Pubs, Agents, Queries; Self-Pub; Marketing; Contests; and Publications: http://dld.bz/cRCMS @AlexJCavanaugh

Murdering sleeping victims in crime fiction: http://dld.bz/cRwY3 @mkinberg

Unforgettable Picture Books: http://dld.bz/cR8Ev @womenwriters @cerrieburnell

Characters: Wealth and Glamor: http://dld.bz/cR8QJ @camillelaguire

Suddenly, conferences are all about the writers: http://dld.bz/cRA2u @Porter_Anderson @jpfine @psexton1

Tension-producing confrontations between characters in crime fiction: http://dld.bz/cRCCH @mkinberg

Novel Revision: Twenty-page Sessions : http://dld.bz/cRE4u

Trendy Hotel Wants You to Finish Your Novel in One of Their Rooms: http://dld.bz/cRE5e @theAtlanticWire

A free directory of cover designers, formatters, freelance editors, and more: http://bit.ly/nolbXq

The Search Engine for Writers: http://hiveword.com/wkb/search

4 Ways to Improve Your Writing: http://dld.bz/cPz2m @ava_jae

How to handle personal attacks on social media: http://dld.bz/cQtW4 @ellynangelotti

There is no perfect publisher: http://dld.bz/cQvsc @literaticat

10 Rules for Writing New Adult Fiction: http://dld.bz/cQ4Jd @cathinnorway

Thinking or doing–what’s more important for creatives? http://dld.bz/cQBMV @tannerc

Why Your Blog’s About Page Is Completely Wrong: http://dld.bz/cQBQF @JFBookman

The Grief Writer: http://dld.bz/cQd8K @elephantjournal

Five Words to Eliminate from Your Writing: http://dld.bz/cRcAF @SandraPeoples

Make sure every scene accomplishes at least two things: http://dld.bz/cRcBr @projectmgmahem

Being “good enough”, creatively:  http://dld.bz/cRcB2 @tannerc

“Don’t ask what I’m writing.” http://dld.bz/cRcDf @NYTimes

Author Taglines: http://dld.bz/cRcDx

Use Alltop to quickly go through ebook and publishing news: http://dld.bz/cRcD5 @ebookfriendly

16 Ways to Get Motivated and Break out of the Slump: http://dld.bz/cRcDA @brianleeshl

Intuitive Writing: http://dld.bz/cRcDD @juliegray

The Art of Writing Great Google+ Posts: http://dld.bz/cRcDG @copyblogger

7 Clever Tricks to Help You Edit Your Ebook: http://dld.bz/cRcDP @thewritelife

The Problem with Writing About People You Know, and 3 Ways to Solve It: http://dld.bz/cRcEj @Write_Tomorrow @write_practice

3 Ways to Simplify Your Writing Life: http://dld.bz/cRcEx @lydia_sharp

How to Write Effective Endings: http://dld.bz/cRcE2 @ava_jae

5 Ways to Describe Emotions Without Making Your Character Feel Too Self Aware: http://dld.bz/cRcEH @Janice_Hardy

Do You Know Your Story’s Subtext? http://dld.bz/cRcER @jamigold

25 Blogging Tips for Fresh Bloggers: http://dld.bz/cRcEW @ryanhussey

7 Deadly Sins of Prologues: http://dld.bz/cRcEY @KristenLambTX

Passion: How To Tap Into Yours Every Time You Write: http://dld.bz/cRcF9 @livewritethrive

How 1 author sells 70-75 books a day: http://dld.bz/cRnG6 @LauraPepWu

Marketing for Introverts: http://dld.bz/cRnG9 @Laura_Gallier

Crime writing–poisons: http://dld.bz/cRnHA @karencv

Common issues in academic writing: http://dld.bz/cRnHB @laurelgarver

In writing, there is no recipe: http://dld.bz/cRnJv

The 3 Pillars Of Selling More Books: http://dld.bz/cRnJx @ebooksandkids @digibookworld

Exploring Story Concepts Prior to Writing: http://dld.bz/cRnJP @fictorians

Literally vs. Figuratively: http://dld.bz/cRnJQ @brianklems

What being married to a non-reader has taught one woman: http://dld.bz/cRnJW @kelleemoye

Nannies featured in crime fiction novels: http://dld.bz/cRnKf @mkinberg

WOOL & Brilliant Marketing: http://dld.bz/cRnKh @juliemusil

The Truth About Writing Advice: http://dld.bz/cRnKk @ava_jae

4 Famous Rejections to Give Any Aspiring Writer Hope: http://dld.bz/cRnKm @paperblanks

Emotionally Investable Characters: http://dld.bz/cRnKn @YAMisfits @LylaWrites

4 Tips to Write a Novel That Will Be Adapted Into a Movie: http://dld.bz/cRnKr @write_practice @monicamclark

Making Time to Write: http://dld.bz/cRnKu @losapala

Female Characters in Fictional Roles: http://dld.bz/cRnKw @mooderino

5 Steps for Restarting Your Book Marketing Efforts After a Break: http://dld.bz/cRnKz @duolit

Using Taste to Further Your Fiction: http://dld.bz/cRpbR @JodiLMilner

A guide to creating better blog content: http://dld.bz/cRpca @aliventure

Setting Free the Poets: http://dld.bz/cRpcK @asheresque

1 writer/illustrator’s  love-hate relationship with rejections: http://dld.bz/cRpdg @MiGWriters @inkyelbows

10 Evil Gremlins of Writers Block Doom a Good Story: http://dld.bz/cRpdm @AdriennedeWolfe

Writing Short and Funny for the Internet: http://dld.bz/cRpdq @scriptmag @StephanyFolsom

Top 10 mold-breaking fantasy novels: http://dld.bz/cRpdv @guardianbooks

11 things happy authors don’t do: http://dld.bz/cRpdx @rachellegardner

Embedding Sensory Details in Your Writing: http://dld.bz/cRpdy @julie_gray

Feminism in Romance Novels: http://dld.bz/cRpd3 @IzzyFarhi

Write, Direct, Repeat: Working with Line Producers: http://dld.bz/cRpdC @scriptmag @kim_garland

No Words on the Page, But We’re Still Writing: http://dld.bz/cRpdJ @fictionnotes

The Amazon Ad That Scared The Crap Out Of Apple’s Top Executives: http://dld.bz/cRtnr @passivevoiceblg

Forget the Facts, Tell a Story: Why Braveheart is a Classic Despite its Inaccuracies: http://dld.bz/cRtnB @worldsofstory

On Keeping a Notebook: http://dld.bz/cNNhm @SarahNumber4 @parisreview

Twitter for Authors: Book Marketing and Publicity with Social Media: http://dld.bz/cRtnG @PublishingGuru

10 Ways to Defeat Obscurity: Tips for Authors Who Want to Get Noticed: http://dld.bz/cRtnW @writerplatform

Atypical Protagonists: Six Anti-Heroes From Great Works of Fiction: http://dld.bz/cRtpb @readlearnwrite

Getting Back to Work and into the Rhythm of Writing: http://dld.bz/cRtpc @noveleditor

Reward yourself for writing: http://dld.bz/cRtpe @JennaAvery

Why Writing Horror Is–And Should Be–Hard: http://dld.bz/cRtxt @kevinlucia

10 Tips for Critiquing Other People’s Writing: http://dld.bz/cRtx2 @writing_tips

10 great books that made awful movies: http://dld.bz/cRtNd

Literary Agent Says TV is Where it’s At: http://dld.bz/cRtRs @NYFA

Why 1 Christian writer isn’t interested in writing Christian fiction: http://dld.bz/cRtR4 @kevinlucia

The 20 Best Books in Translation You’ve Never Read: http://dld.bz/cRtRD @publisherswkly @chadwpost

Good Quotes on Life, Writing and Art: http://dld.bz/cRtRT @artsylliu

15 Ways to Move Forward Faster as a Writer and Author: http://dld.bz/cRtRW @ninaamir

How to Make a Depressed Character Likable: http://dld.bz/cRtSn @janice_hardy

One frequently negative reviewer decides to ‘bury the hatchet’: http://dld.bz/cRtSv @pageturner

There are no shortcuts to mastering our craft: http://dld.bz/cRtSA @EdieMelson @novelrocket

25 ways to improve your writing in 30 minutes a day: http://dld.bz/cRtSR @RitaKarnopp1

How 6 of 1 Writer’s Books Became Amazon Best-Sellers in 1 Month: http://dld.bz/cRtTe @KMLoganWriter

How to Avoid the Slush Pile: http://dld.bz/cRtTM @stefanvucak

7 Ways To Integrate Your Writing & Your Day Job: http://dld.bz/cRtTR @LittleReadings

10 personal essay writing ideas: http://dld.bz/cRxau @nytimes

How to Craft Perfect Posts for Facebook, LinkedIn & Twitter: http://dld.bz/cRxaK @hubspot

How to Make the Most of Your Chapter Endings: http://dld.bz/cRxaS @ava_jae

The Rule of Twenty: http://dld.bz/cRxaU @authorterryo

The Johnny Cash Approach to Novel Writing: http://dld.bz/cRxen @bentguy1

A Career Versus Publication: http://dld.bz/cRxeR @kristinerusch

7 Ways to Get Extra Mileage From Your Blog Posts: http://dld.bz/cRxfx @heidicohen

4 Tips on the Publishing Experience: http://dld.bz/cRxkq @writersdigest

Sci-Fi Storytelling for Screenwriters– Structure, Budget, & What’s Next: http://dld.bz/cRxkt @scriptmag

The Character Therapist: Displaced Anger and Multiple Personalities: http://dld.bz/cRxkx @jeanniecampbell

20 Places to Publish Personal Essays: http://dld.bz/cRxk4 @meghancward

How to Pick up Your Writing Pace Whether You’re a Tortoise or a Hare: http://dld.bz/cRxkA @Rogenna

Creating Your Own One-Sheets: http://dld.bz/cRxkD @MBTPonderers

5 Examples of Extraneous Hyphens: http://dld.bz/cRxkF @writing_tips

A Key Book Marketing Principle That Authors Must Learn (or Not Forget): http://dld.bz/cRxkM @janefriedman

7 Awesome Crime-Fighting Duos In Books: http://dld.bz/cRxkT @colleengleason

The Mathematics of Writing: Is There a Formula for Creative Success? http://dld.bz/cRxmg

What To Do Once You’ve “Finished” Your Novel: http://dld.bz/cQGpA @RoganBarbara

There is no perfect publisher: http://dld.bz/cQvsc @literaticat

Five Words to Eliminate from Your Writing: http://dld.bz/cRcAF @SandraPeoples

50 Cliched Dialogues to Ban From Your Script: http://dld.bz/cR8Z5 @Mentorless

Content marketing–5 Ways to Tell Stories that Sell: http://dld.bz/cR9ae @b2community

Three Most Common Story-structure Pitfalls: http://dld.bz/cR9am @KMWeiland

Making the Switch from Nonfiction to Fiction Writing: http://dld.bz/cR9av @jJodieRennerEd

5 online writing tools to boost your productivity: http://dld.bz/cR9az @tessawegert

Don’t Let Your Characters Act Like Idiots: http://dld.bz/cRAQa @JamesScottBell

The opening act – what the reader needs to understand: http://dld.bz/cRAQb @nailyournovel @KMWeiland

How to structure a premise for stronger stories: http://dld.bz/cRAQ2 @thewritermag

How to style quotations in a novel: http://dld.bz/cRC86 @glencstrathy

6 Ways to Add Video Marketing to Your Author Social Media Mix: http://dld.bz/cRC87 @wherewriterswin

Science fiction is no longer a boys’ club: http://dld.bz/cRC8V @salon @PolicyMic

What if Emily Dickinson attended a writing workshop? http://dld.bz/cRC8Z @Writers_Write

Writing Secondary Characters: http://dld.bz/cRC9d @Ventureadlaxre @ScottLynch78

How-to conquer self doubt and write anyway: http://dld.bz/cRC9u @thefutureisred

Exercising Your Craft: 3 Writers Who Get Physical: http://dld.bz/cRC9w @pshares

Use multiple tools to promote your work: http://dld.bz/cRCAj @stevebuttry

US vs. the Rest: is American English Taking Over? http://dld.bz/cRCAp @TDMcKinnon2012

How To Turn On Your Muse: http://dld.bz/cRCAy @write_practice

Package a story pitch to catch the editor’s attention: http://dld.bz/cRCA2 @thewritermag

How to write a killer script: http://dld.bz/cRCA8 @WaleOwoade

10 Ways to Fake a Professional Edit: http://dld.bz/cRCD2 @thecreativepenn @skolbwilliams

Writing books–with only 2 pages a day: http://dld.bz/cRCDE @writerunboxed

8 Book Marketing and Diversification Tips to Make Money: http://dld.bz/cRCEc @karencv

The Furby Way To Make Your Script Stand Out: http://dld.bz/cRCEd @raindance @jurgenwolff

Writing Powerful Sentences: http://dld.bz/cRCVw @RachelPhifer1

Why Film & TV Need the Novel: http://dld.bz/cRCVA @shalvatzis

Does writing in different genres turn off readers? http://dld.bz/cRCVC @tobywneal

Word choice: http://dld.bz/cRCW6

Author Media Kit Components: http://dld.bz/cRCYV @Girl_Who_Reads

The Audience is in Control – Give People What They Want at a Reasonable Price: http://dld.bz/cRCZm @passivevoiceblg

11 Creative Film Interpretations You Probably Hadn’t Considered: http://dld.bz/cRCZx

Why Book Reviews Are Important On Amazon: http://dld.bz/cRCZ8 @JeanetteCates

6 Ways Twitter Lists Can Help Build Your Author Platform: http://dld.bz/cRCZH @JFBookman

Ten Commandments of Book Marketing: http://dld.bz/cRCZK @bookbuzzr

Writing emotions: http://dld.bz/cRCZQ @glencstrathy

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I recently had someone email me asking how he could most effectively promote if he had no time at all to promote.

I know there have got to be plenty of writers in the same fix.  If you’re new to publishing and you start researching how to market your book, you could end up very overwhelmed, fast.

The problem is that our books don’t sell themselves.  It’s fine not to do any promo, but we can’t expect to be making money if we don’t.

I asked the writer how much time he actually had.  If he really had as little as he said (which was basically no time), I figured he could at least:

1) Be part of a group blog in your genre with a large cast of contributing writers.  There’s a big if with that, though.  IF you have a decent bio at the bottom of the post, links to your website, and preferably a book cover or a headshot to go along with your post every month.  I’ve seen it all with group blog posts. I’ve seen bylines that only had first names.  I’ve seen no attribution at all.  I’ve seen bios that were so cutesy that they gave no promo info at all…never linked back to a website or a buy-link or a book page. I’ve searched on Twitter for authors of posts and came up with several writers and had no idea which was the blogger.  Pointless for someone who is trying to promote by spending the little amount of time they have in blogging.

2) Guest post.  Guest posting on a blog with good traffic (frequent commenters, a lot of followers)  can bring you some new readers.  You can decide how frequently this guest posting will take place. I know some writers who have a regular gig contributing to some sites…they’ll have a guest post every month or every couple of months.  Again—it’s important to make sure your bio, links, and cover are on these posts.

3) Goodreads.  This can be an intimidating place for writers because it’s intended as a reader community and you’ll run into rough reviews there sometimes.  But it’s also a good place to go where the readers are. So often in our promoting, we’re networking with other writers.  Set up a profile there and link to your book.  It doesn’t take long.  If you have a print copy of your book (even from CreateSpace, etc.), then you can enter your book in a free giveaway there.  Just decide how many copies you’ll give away, if you’ll open it to international readers or domestic only, and the dates that folks can enter the giveaway.

If you think you might have a little more time…but not much more:

Choose a social media platform that isn’t too intimidating for you and post updates regularly there.  You don’t have to be on them every day and you don’t have to spend gobs of time there when you do log in. You can choose how frequently you do it—twice a week? Once a week? You can even use a free program like SocialOomph to automate the process…but then you’ll need to respond to any comments for your updates, so automation only goes so far.  Twitter and Facebook are all about interaction. Well…except if you’re what’s considered a “broadcaster.” I’m a broadcaster on Twitter—I send out tweets but don’t interact on my page. On Facebook, I engage in conversations.  Google Plus is another option, although you can’t automate there. 

The catch: although you’re promoting, these updates you post don’t need to all be about your book. The key is developing a brand for yourself and raising your online profile.  So post a variety of different things—cross-promote a friend’s book, share a news story (perhaps one that even ties in with your book’s theme somehow if you want to tie-in), even…well, post pictures of your pets.  I hate to say that, but honestly, we’ll get a lot less scorn and a lot more love on social media from readers if we post pictures of our cat instead of asking people to buy our book.

Blogging?  I love blogging and having my own blog, but it’s probably not effective for someone on a real time crunch because you should post at least regularly…once a week at minimum I think. 

That was my advice, but I’m interested in hearing yours.  If you only had a small amount of time to devote to promo, how would you spend it?