The Rest of the Job

Whether an author is traditionally published by one of the big houses or independently published, they are expected to do the marketing. Help to build the buzz around a new book or promote the backlist. It's part of the job if you expect to be a professional. Traditional publishers aren't going to throw any weight behind you if you don't do your part, and if you're independent, well, the only weight you'll be throwing around is your own. 

I've been spending the time before Horned Owl Hollow goes to market trying to generate ideas that will entice readers to buy it. I made a trailer! (You can view it here if you haven't already seen it on my social media.) I've created graphics with teasers (again, which you might have seen if you follow my social media). I've scheduled ads to run and I've been looking at snippets to share (you'll see one of those next week after I get edits back from my editor). I also plan to contact the mansion that inspired me to see if they'd be interested in hosting an author event.

I just want to say, marketing is not my strong point, but it's a necessary part of the "authoring" process if you want to garner interest in your product. Hey - watch Shark Tank once and you'll hear about all the ways the entrepreneurs try to build sales. I'm trying to get the marketing scheduled and out of the way so I can focus on edits when they come back, and get the book to market on time. 

Once Horned Owl Hollow goes live, I'll start the work on the next book, which requires research I have yet to do. When I wrote my first book (The Treasure of St. Paul/Touched by the Sun), I didn't visit Italy, but did intensive research. After having visited it years later, I did a creditable job, but seeing it with my own eyes, there are other things I likely would have included. With that being said, I'm pretty proud of how much I "got right." The book has since been remaindered (out of print), having been published more than 20 years ago. It didn't stand up to the test of time, and I've honed my craft quite a bit since then. My next book will take place in Spain, at least partially, and this time I plan to rely on personal experience rather than travel guides and books and personal interviews. I still remember interviewing one woman about Pompeii who said there was absolutely no way I could write about it without seeing it. She read my book when it was done and said she was very impressed that I could capture it as well as I did. That's the thing about research. Half of it ends up on the cutting room floor, and the other half is molded with my own unique spin. Still, you have to get the basics right, even when you're making stuff up.

So, while you're waiting with me for the final "polished" product, you can still preorder (because that's part of the marketing process, doncha know). Preordering reserves your copy, the final version, which will be available on release day (February 21). Just click on the book cover below and it will take you to my webpage and all the buy links. Oh, and the other marketing tool that would really help me out here - word of mouth. Tell all your friends!