Marketing Tips for Writers

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Recently, I’ve attended several marketing workshops, and here are some good tips that I gleaned from the speakers.

Facebook and Social Media Sites:

Barbara Hinske, with the SinC Grand Canyon Writers, stressed that authors need to go where their readers are on social media. She recommended using Facebook groups as part of your marketing strategy. Set one up for your street team/super fans. Also look for online groups that share interests with the themes in your books.

Trends and analytics change almost weekly on the social media sites. You need to keep up with what’s in and out. Marketing ideas that worked last time, may not work the next time.

Nancy Cohen suggested making a list of all the Facebook groups from your genre that allow book promotions. She has a document with all the links, so when she has a post, it’s a lot easier than trying to find sites.

Newsletter/Email List:

Barbara Hinske stressed the importance of always building your email/newsletter list. This is a key part of your author platform. Make sure you have a signup sheet at every event you do. When I do Facebook parties and take-overs, I always include a link for people to sign up for my newsletter.

Other Resources:

Speakers in both of the sessions I attended recommended the following as resources for authors:

What have you added recently to your marketing toolbox that works for you?

#ThisorThatThursday Author Interview with Lori Robbins

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I’d like to welcome the fabulous Lori Robbins to the blog for #ThisorThatThusday.

Things you never want to run out of:

I never want to run out of coffee! Everything else is negotiable.

Things you wish you’d never bought:

I regret every box of addictive Fudgestick cookies I’ve ever bought. After I’ve eaten them.

A few of your favorite things:

I cherish a set of 1867 Dickens books I rescued from the garbage.

Things you need to throw out:

I need to toss most of my clothes. Someone should Kondo those relics.

Things you need for your writing sessions:

I can’t write so much as an email without coffee, a stack of Post-it notes, and a dozen colored pens.

Things that hamper your writing:

Staring at my calendar is no help when deadlines loom.

Something you’re really good at:

As the mother of six, I’ve got a black belt in worrying and nagging.

Something you’re really bad at:

I’m terrible at organizing photos, although I have enough of them to create a feature-length, stop-action movie.

Last best thing you ate:

The last best thing I ate was a loaf of [my own] home-baked challah bread.

Last thing you regret eating:

I regret eating half a loaf of that same challah.

Things to say to an author:

Your books just keep getting better.

Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book:

What do you do all day, besides write?

Favorite places you’ve been:

My favorite place is Cassis, a tiny town in the south of France, whose inhabitants embraced my American family despite our execrable French.

Places you never want to go to again:

I will never return to an Airbnb where the hosts gave us the wrong keys and we got locked out for hours. And then they yelled at us for not realizing they’d made a mistake.

Favorite things to do:

I love going to the ballet.

Things you’d run through a fire or eat bugs to get out of doing:

I hate talking to mechanics about expensive and baffling repairs to my car.

Most daring thing you’ve ever done:

When I was young and foolish I quit a job without having another job.

Something you chickened out from doing:

In a supreme act of party-pooping, I didn’t go to an axe-throwing event at a wedding.

Besides writing, what’s the most creative thing you’ve done:

I spent many years as a professional dancer.

A project that didn’t quite turn out the way you planned it:

I stenciled random food-related items to the walls in the kitchen. It didn’t look like the picture in the magazine. It looked like a crazed toddler was let loose.

Some real-life story that made it to one of your books:

In Lesson Plan for Murder, the protagonist recalls a bar mitzvah where her family was seated behind the swinging doors to the kitchen. This episode marked the beginning of a real-life intergenerational 100 Years’ War.

Something in your story that readers think is about you, but it’s not:

Although I was a professional dancer and an English teacher, my characters are not me!

About Lori:

Lori Robbins is the author of the On Pointe and Master Class mystery series and a contributor to The Secret Ingredient: A Mystery Writers Cookbook. She won the Indie Award for Best Mystery and two Silver Falchions for Best Cozy Mystery. Short stories include “Leading Ladies” which won Honorable Mention in the 2022 Best American Mystery and Suspense anthology. After ten lean years as a professional dancer, Lori became an English teacher and now writes full-time. She is co-president of the New York/ Tristate Sisters in Crime and an active member of Mystery Writers of America and the Short Mystery Fiction Society.

Let’s Be Social:

Website: https://www.lorirobbins.com/

 LinkTree: https://linktr.ee/lorirobbinsmysteries

 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lorirobbinsmysteries/

 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lorirobbinsauthor/

 Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/lorirobbins99

 BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/lori-robbins

 GoodReads:https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16007362.Lori_Robbins

 

#WriterWednesday Interview with K. T. Anglehart

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I’d like to welcome K. T. Anglehart to the blog for #WriterWednesday!

Hardest thing about being a writer: Treating it like a business, including marketing and putting yourself out there on social media.

Easiest thing about being a writer: Knowing there is nothing else you’d rather be doing.

Words that describe you: Strong-willed; organized; creative

Words that describe you, but you wish they didn’t: Anxious; self-deprecating; sensitive

Favorite music or song: Punk Rock

Music that drives you crazy: EDM. I don’t get it, and I never will.

Something you’re really good at: Eclectic décor! Tying a room together using unique pieces.

Something you’re really bad at: Directions. Spin me around once, and I won’t know which way I came from.

Things you’d walk a mile for: My grandmother’s lasagna; a thrift shop; my friends

Things that make you want to run screaming from the room: A centipede; reality dating shows; florescent lighting

Things you always put in your books: gorgeous landscapes; historically poignant events; life lessons

Things you never put in your books: one-dimensional villains; melodramatic dialogue; smut

Things to say to an author: “When is the TV adaptation coming out?!”

Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book: “I could write a book too…if I had the time.”

Favorite places you’ve been: Loch Lomond, Scotland and Connemara, Ireland

Places you never want to go to again: Paris

Favorite things to do: Antiquing; dreaming up original TV show ideas; hanging out at home, doing nothing in particular with my husband and pets

Things you’d run through a fire or eat bugs to get out of doing: Working in an office; going for a jog; laundry

The nicest thing a reader said to you: “You transported me back home to Ireland.”

The craziest thing a reader said to you: “You should be more sensitive about exploiting the idea of Twin Flames.” (I still have no words.)

Besides writing, what’s the most creative thing you’ve done: I love creative projects! I’ve had a podcast, I’ve refurbished furniture, and I’ve done some painting.

A project that didn’t quite turn out the way you planned it: When I first moved into my new home in Toronto, I was inspired by green and gold bathroom décor…suffice to say, the green I selected did not give off the chic vibe I was going for. My bathroom now looks like it belongs in a Thai Express.

About K. T.:

K.T. Anglehart is an award-winning author hailing from Montreal, known for her enchanting teen urban fantasy, The Wise One, book I of The Scottish Scrolls, inspired by the landscapes and folklore of Ireland and Scotland. The second installment, The Twin Flame, will be released this November. With a background in journalism, scriptwriting, and a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing, she brings a unique blend of literary skill to her works. Outside of writing, Katrina is a passionate advocate for bunnies and enjoys hiking, antiquing, and Netflix binges with her husband in Toronto, where they share their home with three beloved pets.

Let’s Be Social:

https://www.ktanglehart.com/

https://www.instagram.com/kt_anglehart/

https://www.facebook.com/ktanglehart

https://twitter.com/kt_anglehart



Kanban: An Idea for Organizing Your Work

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Kanban is a methodology that focuses on continuous improvement and task management. It’s often used in technology as part of Agile development and also in manufacturing. It was originally developed as part of Toyota’s TPS (Toyota Production System).

It’s a board and a process of organizing and prioritizing your tasks. To learn more about its history and the methodology, check out this link. The goal is to move your tasks through the process to completion. There are lots of electronic Kanban boards that you can track your work. You can also create one on a whiteboard, in a spreadsheet, or on a poster for your wall. When we started, we used a long piece of craft paper. We added columns and used sticky notes to represent our tasks.

The column titles vary slightly, but the idea is to finish items you start before you start something else. When you add tasks to the “wish list” or backlog, you prioritize them according to importance or deadlines. The graphic above has “Ideas,” “To Do,” Doing,” and “Done” as the headers. I usually use “Backlog” for ideas, “Planning,” “In-Progress,” and “Done.” In my IT world, my team does Quality Assurance Testing, so we often have another column under “In-Progress” for Testing.

Each day or every few days, the teams meet for a short stand-up and update their progress. Writing is often not a team-sport, but you can still use the methodology to track your open and in-progress work. The electronic Kanban boards often provide metrics on how long it takes for you to do tasks. This is good for repeatable tasks. It should give you an idea of how long it will take next time, based on past history.

I like the organization that these boards provide. When you’re working on an IT project or software development, there are thousands of little tasks that are key, and you need to keep them in the right order because many have dependent tasks. (It sounds a lot like resarching, writing, editing, and marketing a book.)

Check it out. You don’t have to go crazy with buying an application. You can create a Kanban board in Excel or a Word table or on a large piece of paper. I like using sticky notes because you can easily move them from column to column. And there’s a great sense of accomplishment with that “Done” column is full.

#ThisorThatThursday Author Interview with Rosalie Spielman

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I’d like to welcome the fabulous Rosalie Spielman to the blog today for #ThisorThatThursday — Fall Edition!

A few of your favorite fall traditions: My husband and I are happy when we are able to go on our long walks on the weekends again. It’s too hot in the summer, especially for our dog, so it’s a relief—and a joy—to feel those first few days of crisp air!

Something autumn-related that you’ll never do again: Go to a “Back to School Night” at a school! Yay for college-aged kids!

Favorite fall treat: Homemade pumpkin-pecan scones. Yum!

A fall treat that makes you gag: Anything with licorice or anise.

Something you only do in the fall: Rake leaves.

Something you’d never do in the fall season: Rake leaves that are “mine.” We have no trees, so all our leaves are leaves that abandon the the neighbors. LOL! We have no trees, and yet I am constantly raking…

Favorite autumn beverage: London Fog Latte.

A drink that gives you a sour face: Pumpkin Spice latte. I do like Chai, but “PSL” is too much spice.

Favorite fall smell: Freshly fallen leaves.

Something that makes you hold your nose: Not-so-fresh, rotting leaves.

Best fall memory: I love going to fall festivals, and the Kurbis festival in Germany was particularly wonderful. (Kurbis = pumpkin)

Something you’d rather forget: Also in Germany, the time a woman pointed me out, in my witch hat, and exclaimed that I looked so much like a witch since I even had “the witch nose!” Um. That’s my actual nose, but thanks?

A tradition you share with others: Boo bags!

A tradition that can be retired: Boo bags!

Best thing you ever cooked/baked in autumn: One year, I made an herbed and garlicy, super buttery dinner roll wreath from scratch for Thanksgiving. So good.

Your worst kitchen disaster: Same recipe, different year…the bundt pan leaked butter, making smoke fill the kitchen and the fire alarm go off. AND to top it off, they ended up dry. Lol!

Favorite place you spent a fall day: Sitting on my porch with a Chai and one of my pumpkin-pecan scones! I even like to take my laptop and do some writing out there, or some reading.

The worst place to spend a fall day: Inside.

Favorite pumpkin spice item: Pancakes! Having said that, I’m not a huge fan. I like pumpkin, not so much the spices without the pumpkin. (I’m looking at you, Starbucks.)

Something that should never be pumpkin-spiced flavored: Pretty much everything?

Best Halloween costume ever: It’s not mine, but one of the costumes for my kids. One year, he wanted to be a certain Star Wars character. My sister had given the kids goatherder cloaks from Tunisia, which had been George Lucas’ inspiration for the Jedi capes. My son’s cape was pretty large on him, then we got a scary black fabric mask with glowing round eyes and put up the hood… Voila, a Jawa!

Worst Halloween costume disaster: The same year my son was a Jawa, my little Kindergartener wanted to be Princess Jasmine. I found one somewhere and she was an adorable little Jasmine. But, walking along with her brother, all the other parents knew exactly what my son’s costume was, but couldn’t guess my daughter’s, despite the little broach with the character’s face... Poor little thing was so bummed out.

About Rosalie:

Rosalie Spielman is a mother, veteran, and retired military spouse. She was thrilled to discover that she could make other people laugh with her writing and finds joy in giving people a humorous escape from the real world. She writes for the multi-author Aloha Lagoon mystery series and her own Hometown Mystery series.

She currently lives in Maryland with her husband in a rapidly emptying nest. For more information on her books or to subscribe to her newsletter, go to www.rosalie-spielman-author.com, follow her Facebook page (Rosalie Spielman author), Instagram (Rosalie.Spielman), or join her Facebook readers’ group, You Know The Spiel. Rosalie strives to provide you a cozy escape...one page at a time.

Let’s Be Social:

Website: www.rosalie-spielman-author.com

Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063501963689

 Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/760076150762688

#WriterWednesday Interview with H. M. Gooden

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I’d like to welcome H. M. Gooden to the blog for #WriterWednesday!

A few of your favorite things: I’m going through a little bit of a sticker and planner phase. I’m pretty sure it’s a procrastination technique, but it’s so pretty I can’t stop!

Things you need to throw out: I need to get rid of the things I keep saying “oh, but it’s too good to throw away, but not good enough to donate”. Clearly, if I don’t think it’s good enough to donate, it should go in the garbage, but…

Hardest thing about being a writer: The hardest thing about being a writer is finding the time to write. Between work, kids, health, life, etc., I feel I could get so much more done if I was able to be sequestered in a monastery away from all distractions.

Easiest thing about being a writer: The ideas. I have way more ideas than time, and I find opportunities everywhere.

Something you’re good at: Does procrastination count as a skill set? I amaze myself sometimes how could I am at procrastination. Then there are other times I’m remarkably good getting a multitude of things done all at once. This is a skill I call “procrastitasking”. In fact, there’s a high probability I’m doing it right now!

Something you’re bad at: Extremely bad at realistically estimating time a project will take, and/or the time available to complete it in. Most of the time I have found as an adult I build in extra time buffers as a result, but even then, it can be tight!

The last thing you ordered online: I think I ordered another pair of leggings from Amazon. The Satina brand ones are seriously comfortable, and less than 20$ Canadian, which is huge. I wear them pretty much anytime I’m not in scrubs or trying to make sure my jeans still fit.

The last thing you regret buying: I don’t regret the product, but I hate when I buy something online and I think I’ve paid for shipping already, then I get dinged with a second shipping charge before they’ll deliver it. The product I bought was a gorgeous writing box, but the shipping ended up being the same as the cost of the box itself, which was disappointing. Still love the box though, so that is good.

Things you’d walk a mile for: I’m from rural Manitoba, so you must walk at least a mile to go anywhere unless you have a car or are riding your bike, and then it’s way over a mile.

Things that make you want to run screaming from the room: About 75% of the noises that my children emit. I know nature wants me to let them do things themselves, but why must they make so much noise? If I had a mute button my homelife would be perfect!

Things you always put in your books: All my books, both fiction and non-fiction, have elements of magic. I can’t help it—the world is so amazing and mysterious; I still haven’t found another way to explain most of what happens without falling back on the elements of fantasy.

Things you never put in your books: That is so tough! I don’t know the answer to this. I wouldn’t deliberately create a hero/heroine that was a terrible human, but otherwise I think anything is on the table.

Favorite places you’ve been: I love travelling, but haven’t had a chance to go anywhere since having children. The places I’ve really loved were Scotland and Wales, but I have a very, very long travel list.

Places you never want to go to again: Oh, another toughie! I’m not keen on going back to terrible places in my past but wouldn’t want to make someone who loved a place upset when I call their favorite corner of the world terrible. I don’t really have anywhere I hate, but I’m not big on anywhere crowded in general.

Favorite books (or genre): I love anything and everything with magic. Paranormal Romance, Fantasy, Sci-fi- any genre with characters I can get behind.

Books you wouldn’t buy: I’m really not into military books of any kind- fictional or non-fiction. I did read many throughout my education, but they were always too painful to read. That much death and destruction is not my idea of entertainment, and I see plenty of death every day, so I’m looking for more love and light in my relaxing material.

Favorite things to do: I love to read, write, spend time in nature and snuggle my 4 cats and dog. And of course, spend time with family.

Things you’d run through a fire or eat bugs to get out of doing: Do Brussel sprouts count? I have and would eat grasshoppers over those.

Most daring thing you’ve ever done: I have to go with trying out being a trapeze artist- I nearly died! (I mean I didn’t, but nearly had a heart attack trying to jump.)

Something you chickened out from doing: scuba diving. Still not sure if I couldn’t do it because of my ears, or because the feeling of claustrophobia I experienced in the bottom of the cage was very unexpected.

Do You Invest in Your Writing Career?

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You as an author are your brand, and you need to treat your writing as a business. Here are some ideas of ways you can invest in your learning and your craft.

  • Do you have a professional membership in a writing organization? Many like Sisters in Crime have local chapters. These groups can help you with training, programs, ideas, and writing opportunities. Mine are invaluable. I cherish the friends and the networking opportunities they afford. My first traditionally published work was a short story in a Sisters in Crime anthology.

  • Do you have a professional headshot? Selfies and candids are fun, but you need a professional photo for print media and the web. Selfies don’t have enough dpi (dots per inch) resolution, and if you try to enlarge it, it looks fuzzy. Invest in a professional photo. It’s one of the first things I spent money on.

  • Do you invest in your training or learning? Professional organizations often have programs or learning opportunities. Check out online programs, YouTube videos, your local library, and your local colleges. Many offer low-cost or even free courses on a variety of topics that can help you on your writing journey. Don’t forget blogs and online magazines. There are tons of articles out there with good advice.

  • Is your computer secure? Your writing is valuable. There is nothing that will make a writer cry faster than losing part or all of a manuscript. Make sure you back up your files.

    • You need to make sure you upload patches and updates when they come out. These fix vulnerabilities in your applications or operating system. The longer you wait, the longer you’re vulnerable.

    • Make sure you have anti-virus software on your computer and make sure it’s up to date.

  • Do you have a brand?

    • A logo for you and your books are nice. You can use it on your website and your socials.

    • Your platform (website and social media sites) should have the same look and feel (e.g., colors, fonts, etc.). My first work was published in an anthology with a red and black cover, so I did all my graphics in those colors. A publicist told me later that it really didn’t reflect my writing style. She told me to use pastels since I write cozy and funny mysteries.

    • Make sure that your readers can identify your sites. A professional photo and a logo go a long way to help with this. If your photo is a flower, readers often don’t realize it’s your author page.

    • Make sure that your site, your biographies, and book lists are updated regularly. People don’t visit outdated or inactive sites.

    • This sounds like Captain Obvious, but it’s true sometimes. Make sure visitors to your website and socials know you are an author. Your banners, posts, graphics should all promote your books and services.

What else would you add to my list?

#ThisorThatThursday Author Interview with J. M. Donellan

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I’d like to welcome J. M. Donellan to the blog today for #ThisorThatThursday!

Hardest thing about being a writer: Writing.

Easiest thing about being a writer: Writing.

Favorite foods: The tears of my enemies.

Things that make you want to gag: Dagwood dogs. They are satan’s snackfood.

Favorite music or song: My all-time favourite song is Unfinished Sympathy by Massive Attack. I still remember the moment when I first heard it on the radio and everything just froze. I couldn’t believe music like that existed, it sounded like it was from the past and the future at the same time. It was soul, electronic, hip-hop, orchestral. There’s entire worlds in that song. Speaking of music, I made a playlist for Rumors of Her Death because I’m a huge music nerd, you can check that out here.

Music that drives you crazy: If you play Nu-Metal anywhere in my immediate vicinity we are going to have a serious problem.

Something you’re really good at: Being wrong.

Something you’re really bad at: Admitting when I’m wrong.

Things you always put in your books: Dark humour and Nina Simone references.

Things you never put in your books: I’m very aware that this could offend a lot of people in the crime and mystery writing community, but I personally have no interest in writing about hero cops. In TV writing they sometimes call it ‘copaganda’, I think that if you’re going to talk about police you need to be addressing the systemic problems of police violence and corruption. I’d like to see more stories about activists and outsiders trying to redress the wrongs of an unjust system rather than celebrating the people who enforce it.

Things to say to an author: “I bought ten copies of your book, wrote reviews about how much I loved it, had the title tattooed on my arm as a conversation starter, requested it at my local library, and I named by firstborn after your central protagonist.”

Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book: “I only read books written by reality TV stars.”

Favorite places you’ve been: I’ve been fortunate enough to travel extensively, and Ladakh, Havana, Luang Prabang, Quito are all up there for me. However, I lived in Lisbon for a short time while I was working on Killing Adonis and I fell completely in love with it. I shared a little apartment with a cat named Pinga and drank too much wine and sat on the rooftop reading and watching the sun set over the city. I had a recently broken heart and my first major publishing contract and it was a very strange and liminal time. My wife and I went back there for a wedding a few years back and the city felt like an old friend.

Places you never want to go to again: High school.

Most daring thing you’ve ever done: I went on a New Year’s eve white water rafting trip in northern Laos that the guide assured my friend and I was ‘beginner level.’ We both had some experience with rafting, were nevertheless knocked out of the boat and into the freezing rapids about half a dozen times. Nothing like scrambling for your raft while your legs are going numb and a cascade of water is trying to smash you into a rock. Good times. We very carefully packed a bottle of champagne that miraculously survived and drank it in our little jungle hut that night. Still the best champagne I’ve ever had, I think the adrenaline really lifted the flavour.

Something you chickened out from doing: Answering this question.

The coolest person you’ve ever met: I generally think that our societal obsession with celebrity is borderline pathological. I don’t really care about fame, but I do admire talent. That said, I once interviewed the Coathangers, a punk band from Atlanta, and they just oozed cool. It emanated from them like ectoplasm.

The celebrity who didn’t look like he/she did in pictures/video: I did a supernova Comic con event with Jack Gleeson aka Joffrey once and I was like “did someone bring their kid to this event or did he just sneak backstage?” Then I realised he probably made more money that month than I’ll make my entire life. Cool. Cool cool cool cool I’m fine with it.

Besides writing, what’s the most creative thing you’ve done: This is cheating because it’s (partially) still writing, but I collaborated with a choreographer, sound designer and dancers to create a series of dance/poetry collaborations that we performed as part of the World Science Festival and other events. Had my poetry fact checked by scientists, that was a novel experience.

A project that didn’t quite turn out the way you planned it: During the worst of the pandemic I worked on a story-based video game I was really proud of. Taught myself some basic coding, worked with some cool people. We were getting ready for the beta release when the company crashed. That’s the tech world for you, I guess.