article by
Cindy Vine
Sometimes all we start off with is a dream. A dream to be a published author. In our free time we write, cursing distractions, but determined to get that book out. Unfortunately, having the dream and writing the book is not enough. You are expected to be a marketer as well and do all your own marketing. For many authors this is the challenging part. You are already restricted with time, many holding down a full-time job and writing on the side, the very idea of doing one’s own marketing is almost enough to give up the dream.
Let’s just get one thing straight. Marketing is not door to door selling or parking your car in the parking area of the local mall selling books out of the trunk. Internet marketing is very different and involves creating your author platform. This can be done in the comfort of your own home and will take up an hour or two of your time every day if you want to do it properly.
There are FIVE ways you can build your author platform. There are other ways but these are the most important.
Article writing – join a site like Hubpages.com and write articles about some of your favourite subjects. You can earn a little bit of money on the side, but most importantly you get your writing out there, amass loyal followers and start building yourself a presence on the web.
Social media – whether it’s tweeting on Twitter, status updates on Facebook, pinning pictures on Pininterest, or participating in groups on Linkedin, Goodreads or Shelfari, social media is the way to connect with would-be readers and get your name out there.
Website – it is imperative that you set up an author website or a book website. You don’t have to know much about designing websites to be able to do it. You don’t have to spend a fortune either on hiring a web designer. All you have to do is go to a hosting provider like Go Daddy, buy a domain name, and sign up for Wordpress through Go Daddy. The templates are designed for the technically-challenged, all you have to do is follow the instructions. There are many tutorials available for free on the net if you want to get a little more elaborate, that will explain step-by-step what you need to do.
Blogging – sign up for a blog at Wordpress or Blogger. Try and come up with original content, always include an image, keep your blog posts short about 300-500 words, controversial and humor is good and promote your blog posts through your Social Media. Part of blogging is not just writing your own posts but also commenting on other blogger’s posts. It’s all about making those connections and getting your name out there. She Writes is a great blogging site for women. You can get your blog listed there, join groups and make connections with like-minded people who would probably love to support you by reading your blog.
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Virtual Book/Blog Tour – this is another great way to get your name out there in cyberspace. Writing guest posts for other bloggers, being exposed to a different set of followers, all this helps to build your author platform. You can sign up with different marketers like Virtual Book Café to get them to organize and manage your blog-hopping tour. Or if you have friends with blogs you can arrange it all yourself but that can be a little time-consuming especially if you are already stretched for time.
Your author platform is something you need to get working on as soon as you make the decision to write a book. Don’t try and do everything all at once, you’ll become far to overwhelmed. Start off with baby steps. The blog, the website, social media. But remember to restrict your author platform building to a couple of hours a day otherwise it can take over your life! Good luck!
