Next, is Google’s Keyword Planner research! I know, I know…I said this would be simple. Google’s Keyword Planner tool can seem daunting, but trust me. This is an important step, so, for lack of a better saying: Struggle through…
In the ever-changing world of book publishing, one thing always remains a deadly constant: Discoverablity. Without discoverability, many New York Time’s bestselling books wouldn’t even graze the bottom of the list. A new book could be…
Few Americans have ever been invited to an author party, but most say they would love to attend one this year. It’s definitely the most fun way to sell 50 to 250 copies of your new book in a single evening…
Change is tonic, right? In those good ol’ days (say, 1996, when my first book was published), publishers arranged the signings and radio interviews. They also sought out reviewers. All a writer had to do was send postcards, make phone calls, walk…
One of my recent blogs posed the question: Are public libraries relics of the past? In that blog I presented a case for the important role libraries still play in our communities. I recently discovered a reason why…
Bestselling author Ann Patchett says this was her outlook on her writing career when she was a child: “While I thought I might publish something someday, I was sure that very few people, maybe no one at all, would read what I wrote.” As I walked…
What is a Writer’s Platform? If you think of it as a physical thing, a platform is a raised area, like a stage, which would put someone above the crowd to be viewed by everyone at once. Online, it’s a central point to attract fans and future…
One of our Chicago authors posted a pain point associated with developing a launch team. After investing time and money to ship her books to a launch team in hopes of getting reviews of her book, she didn’t see the participation she hoped…
A few weeks ago, someone on Twitter asked me if I recommend any online writing courses. I replied, not with writing courses, but rather with a long list of favorite podcasts! I’ve been on the podcast bandwagon for about two years now, and I cannot…
I must admit that marketing is WAY more than I ever imagined. As an indie author, without a major publishing company behind me, I have realized that marketing and promoting is, for me, much more difficult than writing my books. After completing my…