Writer Unboxed

Please note: Susan Schwartzman, an independent book publicist, is one of WU’s new contributors. This is her first official post!

We keep hearing the bad news: publishers laying off dozens of staff, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt not acquiring new books until further notice, budgets being slashed – which, of course, means publicity budgets that were rarely that generous in the first place.

The good news is this: there are many things an author can do that costs absolutely nothing and that will translate into booksales.

For those of you who are tightening your belts for 2009, make a New Year’s Resolution to do as many of the following as you possibly can:

• Create a website (A must if you don’t already have one)
• Website optimization
• Blogging & guest blogging
• Freelance book reviewing on websites that review books
• Virtual tours
• Myspace and Facebook

Websites & Website Optimization

If you are technically oriented and patient, and have the time to design your website and keep it updated, that’s great. Otherwise, treat yourself to a webmaster for 2009. A good webmaster will improve the chances of your website having a high Google ranking as well—which is ultimately what website optimization is all about.

Blogging & Guest Blogging

This is another great way to get your name out there. You should have your own blog to let loyal and potential readers know what you are doing, when and where you will be speaking, conferences you will be attending, and the progress of your latest writing. They’re a great place as well to post op-ed pieces and stimulate a lively discussion, which can also serve to increase your readership.If you are a debut novelist or trying to build a fan base, you should also respond to as many blogs related to books and publishing as possible, time permitting. Always identify yourself as an author, and provide the title of your latest book. A famous author who is very proactive at promoting herself, began chatting up a blogger who wrote about her pet dog. Turns out the author had the same breed. They began sharing dog stories and developed a relationship. When the author identified herself as a novelist, she had a new fan.

Guest Blogging

I encourage all of my clients to guest blog. I usually come up with ideas and angles for my clients, but this is something you can do for yourself. For example, Nick Stone, whose latest thriller is THE KING OF SWORDS (HarperCollins; December 2008; Hardcover), lives in London but sets his novels in Miami. He blogged for several websites about why he writes about Miami and how he can write such vivid and realistic descriptions about a city that is so foreign to his native London. For other websites, Stone blogged about the Tarot, why he plotted a novel around a Tarot card, and how a Tarot reading influenced his life.

Freelance Book Reviewing

Start researching all those websites that review books, and offer to be a book reviewer. Most websites are hungry for qualified book reviewers because they the pay is nominal. Although most websites pay little or nothing at all, the payoff will translate into book sales! (Of course, identify yourself in your by-line as an author and always mention the title of your most current book.)

Virtual Tours

Publishers with limited budgets are now offering virtual tours for their authors. And even authors who are fortunate enough to have the budget to tour are complementing their geographical tours with virtual tours. How does a virtual tour work? You network with four or five authors who have written a book in a similar genre, or whose work you admire, or who share your publisher. The key is that their books must be coming out in the same year as yours. Therefore, each author in the group blogs about each other’s book at the time of its release. This way you are getting exposure to an already established fan base of the authors who blog about you, and those fans will be inclined to read other books that one of their favorite authors recommends.

MySpace & Facebook

MySpace and Facebook are yet other ways to maximize your exposure to the reading public. They are free and easy to set up. Like blogs, MySpace and Facebook are an integral part of viral marketing on the Web.

In conclusion, in today’s competitive climate, you want to do as much as you can to generate a buzz, and because of the Internet, the 21st Century’s golden fleece, you can get your name out there to tens of thousands, if not millions, without spending a dime, in a virtual minute. For an author, that is worth its weight in gold.

Susan Schwartzman

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