Targeting Specific Readers Part One: The marketing conundrum…

Targeting Specific Readers Part One of Three: The marketing conundrum…

Guest post by Steve Moore

In these DIY times, some writers choose to self-publish.  Others still prefer the traditional paradigm. One other (so far), Hugh Howey, author of the Wool SF series, has managed to do both, and keep digital rights separate from paper rights. No matter the choice, PR and marketing for your book these days is in the writer’s hands unless he happens to be an established bestselling author.

I have become a self-publishing or indie author by default, following the yellow brick road from agents to POD to eBooks. I’m content now about where I am except for my number of readers.  In this Land of Oz called digital publishing, you’d think the internet would allow me so many opportunities to acquire readership that I’d have thousands of readers.

Note that I focus on readers. Publishing companies focus on sales; I focus on readers. If reader A reads one of my books and then passes it on to reader B, I’m happy with my two new readers, even though it’s just one sale. (I’m not particularly concerned about piracy for that reason—but that’s another topic.) I’ve priced my ebooks so the temptation to do that is minimal (ebook pricing is yet another topic).  Nonetheless, even if I count readers in that way (in practice, by some multiplicative factor of sales), it’s hard to realize name recognition.  The internet is so big and digital publishing so liberating that bobbing up above the average sea level of competition to become known to a good number of readers is more difficult with each passing day.

About six months ago, I started thinking about targeting specific readers, using my small budget for PR and marketing. If you’re a non-fiction writer of niche books (self-help, construction projects, hobbies, etc.), you have a well defined audience and are probably already doing this. That’s what “niche books” means, after all. For authors of fiction (me), you have a genre (mine is sci-fi thriller), but the demographic distribution (sexes, ages, and locations) associated with your genre is not well defined. For example, I targeted my young adult (YA) sci-fi thriller to young adults, obviously. I’ve been surprised at how many adults liked it too, so much so that I now describe that eBook as “for young adults and adults young-at-heart.”

If a reader happens on my website (this process is not completely random, because of Google and other search engines), she will see at the beginning: “Welcome! Bienvenidos! Readers wanted…. Do you like science fiction? Androids, aliens, clones, mutants, and artificial intelligence? Thrillers and suspense? Mysteries? Detectives fighting crime, counter terrorism, and conspiracies? Fast-paced action and strange plot twists?  Steve’s fiction offers a special treat for readers since it often cuts across all these genres. Take a tour of this website and make yourself comfortable with his storytelling. Take stock of the other information that is available. Readers are most welcome.  It’s all yours to enjoy.”

Besides all those wonderful “key words” the Google bots love, let me point out a few things that just didn’t come to me in an epiphany—I had to put some sweat of my brow into developing them.  First, “Bienvenidos!”  I’m bilingual and my website has a Spanish influence—I’ve even written a few reviews in Spanish because I read fiction written in Spanish.  More importantly, I’m trying to convey the international nature of the settings used in my fiction, from my old haunts in the Boston area, to my new haunts in the tri-state area (Connecticut, New York, and New Jersey), to countries around the world, and to the solar system and beyond.

“Readers wanted…” and “…make yourself comfortable with his storytelling” emphasize what I’m about: I want to entertain you with my storytelling.  There’s a “Buy Now” button on that first page and some prices listed, but, as readers know, those Amazon book pages allow you to peek inside the book without buying.  I’m not twisting arms, and, because I don’t know exactly what might interest you in the book, the peeks serve as personalized excerpts for the potential reader.

The rest of that first paragraph defines my genres.  Having a website like this is part of building an author’s platform.  It targets a specific audience, but it depends on that audience finding the website.  I’ve been worried since the release of my first book about how to (1) drive potential readers to that website, and (2) not annoy people who won’t be interested.  One reader’s spam is another reader’s interesting book release, after all.  While discussing this with other authors, it’s become clear that I’m not unique in having this double-barreled shotgun of a problem.

My first experience with book promotion and advertising as an author was to purchase a marketing package to promote my first book.  While this was POD, any author working with a traditional publisher has the same desires and could suffer the same learning experience: that first marketing package blanketed the whole information and media universe.  In other words, it was indiscriminate spam.  I probably made many more enemies than friends (or readers) with that marketing effort, something I regret, because I’m not really in this to make tons of money.  My goal is just to entertain, remember.

So, for many years, I’ve been thinking about how to go about PR and marketing in a better way.  After my first experience, I’m reluctant to hire someone.  My budget is limited.  I can’t and won’t pay for PR and marketing that is nothing more than spamming the world.  I’ve been trying many different DIY projects.  They vary from the simple (putting a business card in every bill I return by snail mail—they’re paying for the postage) to the elaborate (creating a website and Facebook fan page).  In the next installment, I will focus on a new tactic: Targeting specific audiences on my own, using my knowledge of the readers.

Steve Moore
http://stevenmmoore.com

For Part 2 of this 3 Part series go to:
http://www.writersonthemove.com/2013/05/targeting-specific-audiences-part-two.html

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MORE ON BOOK MARKETING

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The Race

Years ago I would run. More than twenty miles a week on average. But that was years ago. My daughters, who are now about the age I was back then, decided we should create a team and run some fun 5K's for good causes. Great idea, except did I mention I used to run and it was a long time ago?

We ran our first race in March. As an older runner, I made the decision I didn't care about time at all, only finishing the race running. It wasn't the kind of race I had envisioned. For one, the race was at night. The only lights came from glow-in-the-dark bracelets and necklaces. The route went from pavement to gravel to rutted dirt track and then back again. We ran around a body of water. The path tilted. All the while, colored water was sprayed at us at intervals.

Early on I saw an older woman fall. I slowed my pace. I saw there were obstacles that had fallen onto the path. I became afraid and slowed even more. A rock jammed into the heel of my shoe and I had to stop to remove it. 

I had lost sight of my goal - running the race. I lost my ability to keep pace - my daughters were well in front of me. I felt alone. I felt like a failure. I gave up. I walked.

Why would anyone endure such a thing and call it fun?

Probably for the same reason writers write.

Writers face challenges too. They write alone. They face obstacles - family members who don't understand they are working and not just entertaining themselves with a hobby. They fend off callers and the internet. They set goals and then, all too often, give up when they can't attain them immediately. Writing is hard, but it is also incredibly rewarding as long as you don't give up the "race." 

That evening in March it took me a while. I had to do a lot of self talk. Finally I got my head back into the game, as they say. Okay, I wouldn't run the entire race, but I could still run part of it. I found a pace that was comfortable, where I didn't worry about tripping and falling. I kept my head down and ran. It wasn't easy, but each step took me one closer to the finish line.

Writing isn't easy. Keep your head down. Work to remove your obstacles. Don't beat yourself up when you don't achieve the goals you set for yourself right away, instead celebrate your successes. After all, a novel or story is written one word at a time. Find your own pace and finish your race.

_______________________________________

D. Jean Quarles is a writer of Women's Fiction and a co-author of a Young Adult Science Fiction Series. Her latest book, Flight from the Water Planet, Book 1 of The Exodus Series was written with coauthor, Austine Etcheverry.

D. Jean loves to tell stories of personal growth – where success has nothing to do with money or fame, but of living life to the fullest. She is also the author of the novels: Rocky's Mountains, Fire in the Hole and, Perception. The Mermaid, an award winning short story was published in the anthology, Tales from a Sweltering City.  

She is a wife, mother, grandmother and business coach. In her free time . . . ha! ha! ha! Anyway, you can find more about D. Jean Quarles, her writing and her books at her website at www.djeanquarles.com

You can also follower her at www.djeanquarles.blogspot.com or on Facebook

GRAB YOUR STORY BY THE HORNS

GRAB YOUR STORY BY THE HORNS

Guest Post by Gordon Rothwell

I think most writers have hazy, unformed ideas kicking around in the shadowy recess of their brains. And it’s almost impossible to tell when they might pop out. Or if they ever will.

When I was an advertising copywriter in San Francisco years ago I was always working on print campaigns that demanded catchy headlines. Often, I’d be wracking my poor brain for weeks without success. Then, as I stood under a hot shower head with the water pounding the back of my neck, out popped the winning headline! I also kept a notepad and pen handy beside my bed, just in case my subconscious came up with a brilliant idea while I was catching some zzzz’s.

But there are other more complex ideas that need a long gestation period before they’re ready to make an appearance in the outside world. Take my bullfight story, The Seventh Bull, for example. It took over 70 years before it saw the light of day.

I guess it all began way back in 1940 when I was just a boy sitting in a darkened Seattle movie house watching wide-eyed as Tyrone Power, in a glittering suit of lights, faced an angry thousand-pound bull in Blood and Sand. I was captivated by the pageantry, colorful costuming and spectacle of the sport.

Through the ensuing years, I became a huge fan of the bullfight. I read everything I could find, especially the writings of Ernest Hemingway. I collected cardboard boxes and filled them to the brim with magazine tear sheets and hardback books and paperbacks on bullfighting.

Eventually, as a young adult I saw my first corrida in person in Barcelona, Spain.  That was quite a thrill. But the event that stuck in my mind was another bullfight I attended in the 1960’s in Tijuana, Mexico. I went south of the border from Los Angeles with a group of friends. We wanted to see Antonio Ordoñez, the Number One Matador in the world at that time, in his first appearance outside of Spain. Ordoñez had been featured in a three-part article by Ernest Hemingway in LIFE magazine. Papa’s write up told of an historic mano-a-mano duel between Ordoñez and Luis Dominguin, a darling of the world press and Ava Gardner’s beau.

That entire experience in Tijuana was absolutely surreal. Especially the wild partying at a famous motel after the bullfight. While a strolling mariachi band trumpeted out hot songs equally hot young senoritas clad in tight leather outfits and flat-brimmed sombreros clapped their hands and wriggled their behinds to the delight of a large gathering of Hollywood stars and starlets. Much of what I saw and heard that weekend crept into a corner of my brain and began to percolate.

A half-century later my Seventh Bull tale showed its face to the world when  purchased by MuseItUp Publishing a few months ago. My bullfight story had been growing inside my brain for over 50 years.

If a story is worth developing, you have to dig deep. And find it.

Yank it out by the horns if you have to.

You’re not a Spanish rancher raising high-spirited Miura and Vistahermosa bulls for the arena. You are a breeder of ideas. And if you nurture yours, one day it will come charging out of the chute, past the Gate of Frights, and into the literary arena to give a memorable performance that will have fans cheering: “Ole΄! Ole΄!” and critics raving.

Come on. Grab those horns! And watch what happens!

Gordon Rothwell was born in Seattle and got a BA in Journalism from the University of Washington. As an advertising copywriter—one of the original Mad Men— he wrote material for over 100 major firms in California, including PR for the Apollo lunar space program. He received numerous awards including a CLIO (the Oscar of advertising). He’s also a sportswriter and screenwriter, and many of his screenplays have won and been finalists in the Motion Picture Academy's Nicholl, Acclaim, Chesterfield, Hollywood Symposium, and FADE IN competitions. He’s published articles and stories in numerous men's magazines as well as youth-oriented publications like BOY’S LIFE. He enjoys the fanciful and macabre on screen and in books. Gordon now lives in the shadow of Mt. Shasta, surrounded by a loving family and one sweet pit bull named “Dreamer.”  Mr. Rothwell’s blog address is http://olddognewtricksblog.wordpress.com  And, he can be contacted as “Gordon_Rothwell” on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

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MORE ON WRITING

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Critiques are Essential

Get Started Writing: More Than a Dozen Ways to Build, Maintain, and Even Increase Your Momentum as a Freelance Writer

by Suzanne Lieurance, the Working Writer's Coach

Whether you’re just starting your freelance writing career or you’re wanting to take it to new levels, you need to create momentum and maintain that momentum if you hope to build your business. Here are more than a dozen ways for doing that.

1. Write no more than 3 major long term writing goals on a sheet of paper, and put that paper somewhere where you will see it every day. Read your goals every morning before you start work for the day.

2. Develop your weekly action plan (also called a marketing plan) every Sunday night. Don’t give up on this. Make sure you create your action plan every week and stick to the plan as well as you can each week.

3. Expand your network - think of ways to help promote others as you continue to promote yourself.

4. When you face an obstacle or challenge, think “outside the box” to come up with a way around this obstacle or a way to meet this challenge. Don’t be stopped by the first little obstacle or problem that crops up.

5. Start every day with positive thoughts and maintain these thoughts. Let go of any self-limiting thoughts, feelings, or actions. Just BELIEVE that you can accomplish anything you set your mind to doing even if you aren’t sure HOW you will do that. You’ll figure out HOW as you go along.

6. Be confident when you tell people you are a writer. Create a tagline that tells them exactly what you do. For example, your tagline say, “Freelance Writer, Author, and Speaker.”

7. Attend at least one writers’ conference, course, or workshop every year - more often if you can afford it. Get to know the people in charge. Volunteer to help out at the event.

8. Get business cards made, then pass out your business card everywhere you go. Leave cards on the bulletin boards in coffee shops, book stores, grocery stories. Leave your card in the bowls at restaurants to win a free meal. Make sure you have plenty of cards with you at all times. Give your card to friends and tell them to give the cards to people they may know who need a writer.

9. Create your own e-books, special reports, workshops and teleclasses to sell, then work with other writers who can help you promote them.

10. Write articles for article directories on a regular basis - at least one article written and submitted every week.

11. Write a press release about some new aspect of your business every 6 weeks and send it to local publications and have it distributed online. There are many free online distribution services available.

12. Continue to grow your mailing list any way you can. Read articles about growing your mailing list at ezinearticles.com. You’ll get plenty of suggestions in these articles. Get creative and think of new ways to add to your mailing list.

13. Visit blogs of other well-known writers in your field and leave a meaningful comment, along with your name and URL. Develop an online relationship with these people. It will help you acquire more readers.

14. Be sure you belong to at least a few listservs for writers. Then stop lurking! Become active! Get to know the other writers on these listservs by leaving comments, asking and answering questions, and by providing information about jobs, publishers, editors, etc. whenever you can.

15. Join at least one or two professional organizations for writers. Take part in their events. Volunteer to be a group leader or organizer.

Follow some or all of these 15 suggestions and you're sure to keep moving forward with your freelance writing career!

Suzanne Lieurance is an author, freelance writer, writing coach, speaker and workshop presenter. She is a former classroom teacher and was an instructor for the Institute of Children's Literature for over 8 years.

Lieurance now lives and writes by the sea in Jensen Beach, Florida. She offers The Morning Nudge free every weekday morning to writers who need a little inspiration and motivation to get their writing done.

Your Website Images - Be Careful What You Delete

If you're like me, you upload images as needed for your posts, like the one to the left here.

Once uploaded, those images sit in your Blogger Images File. If you use WordPress, it's the same thing - you upload the images and they're saved in your Media File.

This is all great. You have the images saved on site to be used again if needed, as part of your online marketing strategy.

BUT . . .

Yesterday, I decided to tweak my Google+ account. I edited my work information, changed the header (more on that below) and I deleted some of the albums cluttering up the Photos File.

This would seem like a good thing, right?

Not so much.

What happens is, as you upload images to your Blogger site they're saved in your Google+ account in Photos. Google creates a name for the album it creates of your site's images.

This is where haste makes waste comes a knockin' on the door. I knew some of the albums were connected to my Blogger sites, but it wasn't a thought in my head, as I deleted the album for this site.

SO . . .

The BAD thing that happens when you delete images or an entire album related to your Blogger site is those images are no longer available for your site. Where you added an image (that you just deleted) to a post a year ago or yesterday, it's no longer there. It's GONE.

The images you thoughtfully added to your posts from your Blogger Images File are GONE. In their place are grey circles.

SO, BEFORE YOU DECIDE TO DELETE YOUR IMAGES, BE SURE YOU HAVEN'T USED THEM IN YOUR POSTS!

Now, when you see a post with a grey circle in place of an image, you'll know why.

The Google+ Header

Google+ now has a bigger header and I created three different headers for my account. The dimensions specified are 480X270 and I made them to the correct size. I uploaded the first one and it appeared blurry, so I created a completely new one, uploaded that one, and it too was blurry. I repeated the process with a new third header and sure enough it was also too blurry to use.

Since this didn't work out I had to use one of Google's header designs and I'm not thrilled about it. A header should be site/genre relevant. While the image is beautiful, it has nothing to do with my work. I also don't like the new bigger header - it just takes up way too much website real estate space.

Here's what it looks like now:

I guess I'll ask the woman I use at Fiverr to create a header for me to see if her's will work correctly.

Happy marketing,


Karen Cioffi
Award-Winning Author, Freelance/Ghostwriter
Author-Writer Online Platform Instructor

Create and Build Your Author/Writer Online Platform


P.S. PLEASE DON'T FORGET TO SIGN UP FOR THE WRITERS WORLD newsletter (top right sidebar).

P.S.2 If we're not already connected on GooglePlus, please add me to your circles - I'll add you to mine: https://plus.google.com/107054879622971281466/posts

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ACX - Narrator Sienna Beckman - Guest Blogger

Guest Post by Sienna Beckman
Posted by Elysabeth Eldering

Since I've been posting my progress with the audio book side of things, I thought I'd let my narrator for Finally Home show you her side of things.  I have received the files but haven't had a chance to go through it yet as work has been rather hectic.  I'm shooting to go through the audio files this weekend and possibly the first part of next week.  For the release of the audio book, I've put Finally Home back in the KDP select program.  I'm offering it as a free download Monday and Tuesday, so if you haven't already purchased a copy or would like to gift a young girl who enjoys Nancy Drew mysteries my book (which is similar to a Nancy Drew mystery), next week will be the time to do so.

GUEST POSTING - SIENNA BECKMAN

My name is Sienna Beckman and I’m an actor based in Los Angeles, California. I’ve been recording audio books for about 4 months and have loved all the learning experiences. Both of my parents read aloud to my brother and me when we were growing up, so telling stories has always been a big part of my life. I studied music (piano and trumpet) and played soccer growing up and was very focused on those activities. When I was required to be a part of my 8th grade operetta, Guys and Dolls, I discovered my love for being on stage. I was in several plays in high school and my passion only increased. I attended Occidental College in Los Angeles and earned my Bachelor’s Degree in Theater Arts.


Becoming a narrator through ACX was very easy. They make all of the audition files and contracts very accessible and straightforward. When I’m looking for a new project, I will search through available titles for books that fit my voice type. It’s especially exciting when I find one that requires an accent, because I love accents and it always adds an extra challenge for me. Then I will record an audition file and send it in to the author via the ACX website.  (Audition files are submitted by the author and are usually a few pages or a chapter to get a feel how the narrator will read the characters and the story itself.)

(Of note, Sienna does read the books first before she starts recording.)  When I hunker down with each new book I’m going to record, the process is always slightly different. Depending on the amount of time I have, how long the book is, and how many characters, my process always begins with notes. I make a list of all of the major characters, some minor ones too, and decide how I’m going to shape their voice. Because audio books have no visual aid, it is up to me to create a very distinct line between characters, so the listeners don’t get confused as to who is talking. In my notes I also make notes of pronunciation questions I might have. My voice is best suited for young adult fiction and some fantasy novels.  If there are unusual names or countries or worlds that I don’t know how to pronounce. I always like to check with the author beforehand, if I have any questions.

When I actually get to recording, the chapter breaks are perfect break markers for me. I will record each chapter and then be able to take a break and rest my voice for a few minutes before continuing. There are several techniques to recording audio books, but my method is as follows: if I misspeak or make a mistake, I allow the software to keep recording and simply back up to the beginning of the sentence, or to the last logical point where I can easily make an editing cut, and begin again. This way I can keep my rhythm and continue along with telling the story. If I were to stop the recording and delete the outtake right then, I would lose momentum and the story telling would suffer.

After all of the tracks are recorded, then comes the editing and mastering process. This is the most time consuming part of being an ACX narrator by far. As the narrator, I am also the producer and editor, and must be responsible for making the completed files sound professional and ready to be sold online. I have to go back, listen to all of the tracks, and delete all of the outtakes. Or if I say a sentence or a phrase two different ways, I have to decide which way I like best. Then I have to go through the tracks and take out any background noise there might be, soften any speech plosives or mouth sounds I might have inadvertently made, and make it all sound seamless. Then I export the files as mp3s, and they are ready to be uploaded to ACX.

Along with audio books, I also write, produce, and record my own audio podcast, called “At the Beep.” It is a passion project that I began in the New Year that is about environmental and social awareness. Each week I highlight a different individual who has dedicated his or her life to making the world a better place. There is so much negativity and selfishness and greed corrupting the world in this time, and the premise of my podcast is that, on the flip side of that, there is also so much love, conscientiousness, and dedication to peace, health, and happiness. There are so many people out there who are so passionate about finding innovative, intelligent, and accessible ways for the general public to learn to live a green, healthy, clean, and un-wasteful life. A few of my highlights have been the Straus Family of Straus Family Dairy and Creamery, Medea Benjamin of the women’s anti-war organization Code Pink, Father Gregory Boyle of Homeboy Industries, and Joel Salatin of Polyface Farms.

Please subscribe to my podcast by searching “At the Beep” on iTunes. I aim to spread happiness, helpfulness, and awareness in the most accessible way possible.

Please visit my website for more information or if you would like to contact me.  You can also follow me on Twitter @siennagrace89

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Posted by Elysabeth Eldering
Author of Finally Home, a middle grade/YA mystery
blog
website

Finding Inspiration through Words and Pictures with Sarah E. Sauer

When I was little, I dreamed of one day owning my own horse and being a vet at a zoo. I felt a special connection to animals. However, all that changed suddenly when I was diagnosed, at age seven, with brain cancer. The surgery, chemo and radiation treatments were horrible. In fact, in order to get me to cooperate during my treatment, my parents promised me an animal at the end of every treatment cycle. It was from my animals that I gained strength to endure my illness. 

Animals have helped me in ways that no person ever could because animals aren't judgmental. They don't care if you have hair, can't walk that well or whatever the reason might be. They just love you for you and not for your appearance or abilities. 

My high school photography teacher first noticed my talent and encouraged me to share my love of animals through my photography. She told me I had the potential to tell stories through my pictures. While attending classes in early childhood development, I was given an assignment to create something that would show how I saw my role as an early childhood teacher. Even though I knew my dream of being a vet was over, I would not let go of my dream of working with animals. I wanted to combine my love of animals with my future career in early childhood education. I decided to put together a children's book that would develop an appreciation in children to see the beauty and detail of all animals. I want children to look further and see more than just an animal and see the smile on the elephant's face or the tear in the horse's eye. 

The cancer and its treatment left me with limitations. Despite the fact cancer took many things from me, it did not take my love for life, especially my love for animals and wildlife. I hope I can tell stories through my pictures and words that will teach young children how precious life is and how we need to take care of the world we live in.

*****

Sarah E. Sauer is a childhood brain cancer survivor. She is also an animal lover. Sarah’s love of animals was something she drew on for strength throughout her illness. In her first children’s book, Sarah shares her love and respect for wildlife animals through her photos she took for her high school digital photography class. Sarah is currently studying early childhood education and hopes to share her love and knowledge of animals to promote and develop an appreciation of wildlife in young children. She currently lives in Corydon, IN with her family and her horses, llamas, donkey, cats and dogs.

Sarah E. Sauer’s animal photography children’s picture book, What Do You See When You Look at Me? engages her young readers with bright and colorful photos and invites them to see more than just an animal but to look at the beauty of each creature in detail.

Find out more about Sarah E. Sauer and her book at the World of Ink Author/Book Tour, visit http://tinyurl.com/carfswr