by Phyllis Zimbler Miller, @ZimblerMiller
Yes, as self-published and traditionally
published authors learn sooner or later, writing a mystery is only part of the
journey. Marketing that mystery can be a
much more difficult and time-consuming part of a published author’s existence.
And that marketing can be murder – on
your psyche, your time and your wallet.
Why?
Because there are so many online promotional opportunities today that
enable authors to stay in front of their computers and promote their
books. But where to invest one’s efforts
and money (leaving some time to write mysteries, of course!) to get the most
bang for your buck?
The answer is probably different for each
author depending on a book’s genre, theme, etc.
For example, if you love Twitter and do not love Facebook (me), then you
may not want to devote tons of your limited promotional time to Facebook. Another author who loves Facebook and does
not love Twitter would not want to spend tons of time on Twitter.
What I find most perplexing is the
opportunities missed by authors on the elephant in the room – Amazon. On many book pages on Amazon the cover and
title do not convey what the book is about.
Nor do the cover and title appeal to the target audience.
Recently I realized that I was somewhat
guilty of this error myself. I have
been adding or revising subtitles of my fiction books to better “signal” the
story.
We all know that people glance very
quickly at information online before deciding whether they are interested in
learning more. If your book cover says
“for adults” and your story is “for children,” then you have a major disconnect
in what you are portraying.
Authors need to evaluate all their book
covers from their audience’s perspective.
This realization led to my changing the
cover of my spy thriller CIA FALL GUY.
As someone who many years ago had a security clearance, I thought the
manila envelope on the cover would have meaning to readers. That is, until I realized that this was
“insider knowledge” and I needed a cover that immediately portrayed
mystery.
A subtitle can go a long way towards
correcting this issue of confusing potential readers. For example, my novel CAST THE FIRST STONE
has the subtitle A REBECCA STONE MYSTERY to immediately signal the story is a
mystery about a protagonist named Rebecca Stone.
(I actually wanted to use A REBECCA STONE
COZY MYSTERY but decided that made for too long of a title and subtitle. But who knows? I may still add the word “cozy” because,
thanks to the ease of changing a subtitle on Kindle, I can change the subtitle
at any time.)
Then there is the question of what author
name you are using. An author writing a
Middle Grade novel told me she used her first and middle initials rather than a
first name because her book had a male protagonist. Someone had told her that this might help her
book appeal to boys.
From many years ago I do remember this
theory (and, yes, J.K. Rowling uses initials).
But today, with your author photo on your Amazon book page, I think
using your own first name if you are a woman makes more sense as this is a more
personal statement.
And online promotion is all about
personal connections.
(This author also used a somewhat sexy
author photo on her Amazon book page. I
suggested that this type of personal was not ideal for her target
audience. A straight-up head shot would
be better.)
The most important thing to remember in
book marketing is the expression “Rome wasn’t built in a day.”
Thanks to the Internet, your book doesn’t
disappear after a couple of months on a bookstore shelf. Your book can be around indefinitely. This means that you can plan your marketing
strategy for the long run and not overwhelm yourself trying to do everything
NOW.
In conclusion, it is important to support
other authors online. We are not in
competition with each other even if we write in the same genre. We are collaborators encouraging readers to
buy our books.
Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of
fiction and nonfiction books, including TOP TIPS FOR HOW TO PUBLISH AND MARKETYOUR BOOK IN THE AGE OF AMAZON. Her cozy
mystery CAST THE FIRST STONE will be free on Kindle May 2-4 at http://amzn.to/SLYBJY
She blogs on book-related topics at www.PhyllisZimblerMiller.com and
her Amazon Author Central profile is at www.ZimblerMillerbooks.com