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Monthly Archives: December 2017

7 Best Ways To Build An Authentic Author Brand

December 31, 2017 9:05 am / Leave a comment

100+ The Creative Penn by joanna@TheCreativePenn.com (Joanna Penn)

Branding is one of those buzz-words that can turn off creatives, but essentially, your brand is your promise to the reader.

It’s the words, images, and emotional resonance that people have when they hear your name or your series/book character.

In this article, Belinda Griffin from SmartAuthorsLab shares some thoughts on how to build your authentic brand.

If you’re like most self-published authors, there is one thing you want more than anything else.

Exposure.

That’s the greatest challenge for any indie, raising your author profile and lifting your book above the vast competition.

You’re probably already juggling a dozen or more tools and tactics in the hope of getting more visibility and then someone throws the word ‘brand’ into the conversation.

What on earth is that? Surely more gimmicky marketing fluff that you shouldn’t waste your time with.

But guess what, you already have a brand! Yep, whether you like it or not, and even if you’ve never given it a single thought, you have already branded yourself.

That’s not to say, however, that you have a strong and recognisable brand or one that represents you in the way you may hope.

Fortunately, we can fix that.

An authentic author brand can help you stand out from the crowd and give you the exposure you crave.

And no matter where you are on your author journey, it’s not too late to build yours.

What exactly is a brand?

read now: https://www.thecreativepenn.com/2017/11/10/authentic-author-brand/

How to Get Free Book Reviews with No Blog, No List, and No Begging

December 31, 2017 8:23 am / Leave a comment

100+ KindlePreneur by Martin Meadows /

Learn how to get free book reviews safely without an email list, a fan base or having to beg your friends. A step-by-step how-to that works every time.

How to create a book publicity tip sheet

December 30, 2017 8:22 am / 2 Comments on How to create a book publicity tip sheet

21 Build Book Buzz by Sandra Beckwith /

When Irish children’s author Avril O’Reilly sent a tip sheet to media outlets throughout Ireland, she had immediate success that included newspaper and television exposure for her book, Kathleen and the Communion Copter.

In her tip sheet, O’Reilly offered parents advice for selecting just the right Communion gift for little girls. While her book is fiction, she was able to find a nonfiction nugget she could use to create a tip sheet that offered the media useful information they could use immediately.

What’s a tip sheet?

Finding Your Ideal Audience: A Step-by-Step Guide

December 29, 2017 8:07 am / 2 Comments on Finding Your Ideal Audience: A Step-by-Step Guide

by Kimberley Grabas

Readers of this site already know the biggest secret in publishing: writing your book is only the start.

It’s an amazing start—you’ve done something most people only dream about!—and it’s essential to creating a career as a writer, but it really is only the beginning.

Once you’ve written the book, you need to find readers for it. And as tough as the writing process may have been, figuring out how to attract, connect with, and convert potential readers into adoring fans can seem intimidating.

Take a deep breath.

We’re here to help.

Finding your ideal reader and turning them into a loyal fan isn’t as hard as you think. It takes some solid research, dedication, persistence, and a willingness to experiment, but once you get the hang of a few simple strategies, it’ll stop being a chore and become part of your daily routine as a working writer.

In part 1 of this book marketing series, we’ll explore how you can build your audience step-by-step, starting with figuring out who that ideal audience is in the first place!

Let’s get started.

Sales Tax Basics for Indie Authors

December 28, 2017 7:54 am / 2 Comments on Sales Tax Basics for Indie Authors

In her last post, Carla King advised writers how to avoid paying sales tax twice on their own books. The key is to obtain a resale certificate, sometimes called a reseller’s permit. Once you provide proof of your resale certificate to CreateSpace, IngramSpark, or another POD provider, you won’t have to pay sales tax on…

Helen Sedwick
Legal Expert

sales tax basics for authors by Helen Sedwick for BookWorks.com

There is a flip side to saving taxes—when you resell the books you are required to pay sales taxes on the books sold, although you may collect it from buyers.

Calculating sales tax is ridiculously complex considering we are talking nickels and dimes here. Even I hate it, and I am used to nit-picky forms. While I can’t make the sales tax headache disappear, maybe I can make it easier for writers. I’ve hit the highlights below.

What Sales Are Subject to Sales Tax?

Social Media Content Tips for Authors – What to Post

December 27, 2017 7:50 am / 3 Comments on Social Media Content Tips for Authors – What to Post

Many people are confused about what they should say in their social media posts. Figuring out successful social media content strategies can be challenging and there is no one-size-fits-all. Authors often ask me, “If I can’t always post about my own books, what am I supposed to say?” You may remember the 80/20 rule: 80…

Frances Caballo
Social Media Expert

social media content tips for authors by Frances Caballo for BookWorks.com

Many people are confused about what they should say in their social media posts. Figuring out successful social media content strategies can be challenging and there is no one-size-fits-all.

Authors often ask me, “If I can’t always post about my own books, what am I supposed to say?”

You may remember the 80/20 rule: 80 percent of the time, you promote your colleagues, other writers, and great posts, and 10 percent of the time, you can promote your books, readings, and awards.

If you’re still feeling confused about how to best present the information you’ve curated, don’t worry. Just keep reading and you’ll learn how to write the best social media updates.

The Writer’s Guide to Social Media Organization via @writerunboxed

December 26, 2017 7:43 am / 1 Comment on The Writer’s Guide to Social Media Organization via @writerunboxed

31 Writer Unboxed by Guest

Flickr Creative Commons: Animated Heaven

Today’s writer is busier than ever, and social media can be demanding. Writers have established goals, developed a brand, and know their readers. The best way to stay on top of our career is to incorporate organizational skills into social media.

I continue to explore methods to use social media effectively and efficiently. I believe social media can be handled in thirty minutes, leaving us free to do what we do best for the rest of the day—write.

Here are 7 ways I’ve learned to categorize social media into a manageable—and enjoyable—process.

How To Leverage The Power of LinkedIn To Market Your Non-Fiction Book

December 24, 2017 7:31 am / Leave a comment

5 The Creative Penn by joanna@TheCreativePenn.com (Joanna Penn)

Most book marketing help is focused on Facebook or Instagram these days, but did you know that LinkedIn is the most popular networking site for professionals? And that the average income on LinkedIn is higher than on any other platform?

So, if you’re a non-fiction author, in particular, you can use LinkedIn to reach your target market. Here are some tips from Happy Self Publishing.

Your manuscript is finally complete after weeks of editing, you’ve chosen a cover design from hundreds of different options, your formatting is finalised and your Amazon Author Page is set up and ready to go.

Congratulations – you’ve managed to get everything together before self-publishing your book!

We hate to break it to you, but now comes the hard part.

Increase Engagement in Your Marketing with Visuals

December 23, 2017 11:32 am / Leave a comment

17 The Book Designer by Frances Caballo /

By Frances Caballo

You know the saying that a picture is worth 1,000 words? It may be true but what’s proven is that a photo is better than text when it comes to social media engagement.

As much as you may think that you prefer text over visuals, perhaps because you’re a writer, your brain can process images 60,000 times faster than text.

Yeah, your brain prefers visuals.

This helps to explain why images are so important in our marketing, whether we put them on Twitter or add them to our blog posts. And it accounts for the rapid growth of social media platforms such as Pinterest, Snapchat, and Instagram.

8 Ways For Authors to Waste Their Money

December 22, 2017 11:28 am / 1 Comment on 8 Ways For Authors to Waste Their Money

300+ The Digital Reader by Nate Hoffelder /

Publishing a book can get quite expensive. A good cover designer can cost hundreds or thousands of dollars, and the editorial costs alone can set you back even more.

While there are many important expenses, there are also many ways to spend money and get nothing useful back. For example, take the Bowker SAN. This costs $150, and is basically a way for you to list your physical address in a Bowker database – something you can do with your website, or dozen other services, at no cost to yourself.

I recently polled a number of experts, including David Gaughran, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Joel Friedlander, Victoria Strauss, Jane Friedman, and Hugh Howey. The following post lists a few of the things they thought were a waste of money.

The first items was suggested by Robin Sullivan, business manager and wife of author Brian Sullivan.

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