When you’re thinking about a potential title for your book, I strongly recommend that you do the following: 1) Check on Amazon to see if other books already have that title I’m surprised by how often I come across an article or blog post that mentions someone’s new book, and when I go to Amazon […]

People often ask me what the term “digital marketing” means. In my opinion, it’s pursuing any online exposure that will help potential readers find you. Digital marketing can be an effective way to spread the word about your book because it doesn’t cost much – if anything – more than your time and energy. Here […]

My friend Cathy Livingstone wrote a clever (and useful) book called Bubbe, Mimi & Gigi: The Best Grandmother Name Book Ever. The guide recently received a glowing review in grandparents section of About.com, which described it as “a perfect gift for a grandmother-to-be and an especially cool way to let a mom know that she’s about to […]

We’ve all heard the saying “you need to spend money to make money.” The same applies to book marketing. Giving away books now can help you sell books later. Offering a free copy of your book can crack open some doors that otherwise might remained closed. For example, you might send a copy to: A […]

Last fall my friend and fellow author Karen McQuestion invited me to participate in a blogroll. My first reaction was “What is a blogroll?” But once I learned the answer, I quickly agreed to participate, because I knew it was a good opportunity to get potential readers to come to my website and Amazon author detail page. […]

Making the first chapter of your book (or books) available on your website is a smart idea for two reasons: 1)    It gives potential readers who visit your website the opportunity to check out your work at no cost 2)    It gives you a tool for driving potential readers to your website I now have seven published […]

No matter who publishes your book, it’s important to do what you can to promote it. That means reaching out to many different organizations, which takes time, energy, and a lot of following up. To keep track of your efforts (and your progress), I suggest creating a master spreadsheet with a separate page for each type […]

I recently received a tweet that left me scratching my head. A woman tweeted (to me, not to the world), a photo of herself holding a book. There was no accompanying note, no greeting or explanation, nothing. And she wasn’t holding up one of my books, so it clearly wasn’t a fan tweet. Huh? I […]

Book club organizers are always on the lookout for what to read next, so why not throw your hat in the ring? Offering to attend a book club in person is a great way to spread the word about your work and establish a personal connection with your readers. Plus it’s a lot of fun! Most […]