Sometimes I think it is all a dream. After years of stories running around in my head I finally decided to write them down. Knight of Runes was published November 14, 2011 by Carina Press. I thought I had a lot to learn about story writing but that was only the tip of the author iceberg. I quickly learned that to drive people to buy my book I would have to learn how to promote it and building my brand.
The first things I did was get my web site, blog, Facebook, and Twitter accounts set up. I opted for a professional, Rae Monet, to design and develop my we site. I linked my blog, Facebook page and Twitter so I could cross populate medias. With things set up, I planned my promotion.
I used a simple spreadsheet to track everything:
- List of bloggers
- Scheduled a virtual book tour with 20 stops
- Paid advertising: Eye on Romance, Romance Sells, Kindle Boards, Romance Junkies
- Group paid ad with other Carina Press authors: RT and RWR
- I hired a publicist, Binney to help me with reviews
I also made branded swag:
- Tattoos
- Trading cards
- Magnets
- Chapter book
- Pocket tissues
- Always something chocolate
I went to Nationals, RT, and my own NJRW conferences to meet writers and readers.
During the year my sales were three digits each quarter. At the beginning of the second year Harlequin picked up the book for their paranormal book club. This meant the book would be in print. I haven’t gotten the final information but preliminary sales were over four digits.
When I looked at my April statement I was surprised. I was eligible for PAN.
Congratulations. You did the first thing right, which was to write a great book. then you learned how to promote it. I appreciated your telling us how you did it, as promotion remains a big mystery to me. I would love to know which of those efforts was most effective, if you have a breakdown (or even a hunch).