Posts by Rachel Thompson
Is Expecting People to Help You Market Your Books Lazy? A Discussion.
If your book marketing plan is: “Well, it can’t hurt to ask,” as you inundate someone’s PM, DM, or email with “Buy my book!” (aka ‘drive-by’) spam, I think you’ll agree with me when I say, you can do better. You’re not only annoying people, you’re potentially headed for account suspension or worse, fines.…
Read MoreHow To Succeed as an Author? The Secret You Already Know
What differentiates authors who succeed from those who don’t? It’s a secret you already know: Do the work. There’s no getting around it, and for those of us who love what we do, we don’t want to! We are fascinated by the process of writing and publishing, sales and marketing, and really anything that has…
Read MoreHomophones: What they are and How to Identify Them, Part I by @GrammarGEditing
Homophones: What they are and How to Identify Them, Part I By Wendy C Garfinkle (Grammar Goddess Editing) Many words in the English language look or sound alike but have very different meanings. Examples include aisle and isle, aloud and allowed. It’s easy to confuse them, and things like spellcheck won’t catch the error;…
Read MoreDo You Need To Blog? What Authors Need to Know Now
If you are an author, you should be blogging. Plain and simple. Why? Blogging increases visibility, creates connections with readers, builds relationships on of social media, boosts SEO, and helps to promote your book(s) without having to resort to “Buy my book” spam. During our most recent #BookMarketingChat on Twitter (join us any Wednesday, 6pm…
Read MoreThis is Why Authors Shouldn’t Do it All by guest @evatopialit
What’s better? To be a jack of all trades or to specialize in a particular skill? Naturally, there are arguments for either choice depending upon the circumstance. Let’s say you’re an athlete and have suffered torn cartilage in your knee; you’ll want to consult with an orthopedic surgeon. After all, they’re experts at what they…
Read MoreThe 4 Most Effective Book Marketing Strategies That Work
Updated 2/10/2020 Must I Market? I’m asked this a lot and I’m constantly amazed by the sheer number of writers who are about to release their first book, or have already released their first book, and have zero marketing in place. Nothing, nada, oftentimes less than zero. They remind me of the college kid who…
Read MoreHow Will an Author Platform Make You a More Successful Author?
*Updated 2019* (This post is for those in need of understanding book marketing. We’re not here to discuss the craft and art of writing, which is another subject entirely, and something, I would hope, each author has spent many hours on already.) Every day I hear prickly, sometimes even angry authors, discussing the evils of…
Read MoreHow to Use Social Media Management Tools to Promote Your Book with guest @LilachBullock
Promotion, as an author, is a lot of hard work. Particularly as an indie writer, it can be very difficult to stand out on social media and grab potential readers’ attention. But, if you have a good tool to help you manage your social media, you can not only save a lot of valuable time…
Read More10 Tips To Up Your Book Marketing Skills Right Now
Many authors are intimidated by the thought of marketing their books. As I mention in this post on my blog recently, the concept of an author platform makes most writers run away or start talking to the dust bunnies in the corner. What Is Book Marketing Anyway? The basic premise of book marketing is this: write…
Read MoreHow To Best Optimize Your Blog Posts for SEO
When I talk with authors about optimizing their blog posts for SEO (Search Engine Optimization), most look at me as though I’m speaking in tongues. And maybe I am: SEO is a different language when you think about it. Authors aren’t socialized to learn this stuff. It’s only through understanding the importance of book marketing,…
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