At some point in your authorial career you’re going to have to tackle the dreaded M-word.
No, not magic, although that would be pretty cool if we all got wands and the ability to move objects from across the room at the flick of a wrist just because our book released.
No. I’m talking about MARKETING of course.
Now 125,000 years ago (dates are approximate), I went to college a fresh-eyed young Madeline and actually got a business degree in Marketing. So, the prospect of having to do marketing on my books is not exactly the dreadful monster it is for some.
But …
It still wasn’t exactly my favorite thing to do. Let’s face it, just like you, I’d rather be writing. Or reading. Or laying out a book. Or cleaning my house. Or weeding cacti out of the yard. By hand. With no gloves.
You get the idea.
For a long time, marketing to me (especially in the age of social media) was a lot of just sort of yelling into the void and hoping someone heard. And, that’s of course because I was looking at it all wrong.
I was talking about books and my books and publishing, but I wasn’t talking to anyone in particular. I wasn’t building a community.
And that, my fellow writers, is what’s at the heart of all good marketing: BUILDING COMMUNITY.
I went to a webinar recently led by the lovely author/entrepreneur Rebekah Manley. The focus was on media and publicity kits, but she too stressed the importance of community in all aspects of life – including the professional. Especially the professional. In fact, she literally called community your greatest asset.
For some time now, I’ve been attempting to build a community – ever since I started the very first version of this blog, Buried in the Slush Pile, nearly 20 years ago. It’s what I’m trying to do with my Monday morning newsletters and over on my social media.
I’m building my community of writing friends and peers – those that are just starting on their publishing journey and those with dozens of books out. We’re all in this writing and publishing boat together. And isn’t that a rather lovely place to be?
As Rebekah points out, “Your community got you through the writing process. What made you think you’d carry the torch by yourself after publication?”
At its best marketing is simply a continuation of that process of building and communicating with your community.
Build your community and then add me to it.
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