Smart readers know better than to judge a book by its cover (or maybe not), but what about judging a book by its title? A book title exists not just to identify the book, but also to make a statement about what’s inside. Readers will gain their first impression of your book from either its […]

How to Tell if Your Author Photo Is Sending the Right Message
Last night, after I finishing a book, I found myself curious about the author. So I googled for images and found several pix. In the old days, this would be unthinkable. How many of Charles Dickens’s or Jane Austen’s readers knew what they looked like? But nowadays, an author photo is a vital part of […]

Discover How You Can Use Promotional Items to Draw Attention to Your Books
We may in the business of selling books, but we can diversify into other products—both for sale and promotion—to make sure we always have something interesting to offer our readers. Following are some ideas for items you can personalize to advertise your book. Bookmarks are one of the most versatile, inexpensive, and dispersible products you […]

See How Easily You Can Grow Your Author Mailing List
An author mailing list is easily one of the most important marketing tools. The larger your mailing list, the more people you’ll be able to reach with all your important news: book releases, book signings, contests, giveaways, awards—and on and on. The trick to maintaining an effective email list is first convincing readers they should sign […]

Find Out This Overlooked Ingredient in Successfully Marketing Your Book
There’s a key to marketing, which, once we understand it, unlocks the entire frustrating, overwhelming mystery. What is this key? Likability. What we sometimes miss in the ubiquitous phrase “self-promotion” is that because we’re promoting ourselves, we have to be just as appealing—and sometimes more so—than our products. In a rather interesting exercise, I made […]