Promoting Your Novel

Ask Your Local Bookstore If They're Willing To Sell Autographed Copies Of Your Novel

Most bookstores are getting with the times. Self-publishing is no longer synonomus with 'inferior book'. ePublishing is the new wave of bookstores, so local bookstores are beginning to clear a shelf for authors who supply their own books on consignment. They make money that way, so they're happy.

Always Carry A Couple Copies Of Your Book In Your Car

That way, you'll always be ready to make a sale.

People Love Freebies

From candy with your info card taped on it or hanging off it, to pencils and pens with your logo on it, they'll take these items home, along with your business card or promo packet. If you do pens, be inventive. The only pen I ever stopped to read and admire was one that said 'This pen has been stolen from the desk of _________'   It was cute. Different.  Decades ago, we all had to wear the same hair and dress style to be considered respectable. Today, being singular in flair gets the attention. Being unique with your promo slogans and ideas will get more lookers.

Be Creative About Promoting

Remember, epublishing success depends on us changing the way people have been buying books for hundreds of years.  ePublishing sales grow each year. The number of epubbed authors making a cushy living grows every year, too. We may be the 'new' business on the block, but it's destined to get huge. More and more people are enjoying shopping on line. Especially now that customer service in stores is a dead art. Probably 15 out of 20 people you ask on the street don't know they can buy great books on line that they can't get in ordinary bookstores. So, talk, talk, talk to everyone about your books and here to buy them. Also consider that because on-line shopping is new, and identity theft rising every year, new shoppers are leary of using their credit/debit rds this way.  The fact is, your credit card information can be stolen by a clerk in a store more easily than some hacker on line because their are more store clerks in the world than hackers. You can counter people's fears by talking to everyone about your wonderful on-line purchases. This is subliminal promo. If you love shopping on-line,  your confidence will imprint in their mind. Instead of avoiding buying  something they want on line, they'll remember your glowing report and perhaps risk it themselves. I was once one of those wary people. But knowing that on-line sales grew every year, I decided to try it. Now, I love shopping on line more than I do going to a store because I can shop all over the world and someone always has what I want, unlike stores more and more who only 'get what corporate sends them' even if it's not what I need.

Arm Yourself With Promo Supplies

As I said, I'm a do-it-myselfer. I want control over my supplies, and it's cheaper, leaving me with money to spend on other types of promo. I make colorful flyers and review cards with my MS Word program. I have a business card program. I even bought a paper cutter to trim my products professionally. I created a bookplate for the inside of my books, listing all my other books and their loglines. I use a glue stick to paste them in. I've recently begun 'marketing' laminated Memo Pads with my book infomation on the front and back. Everyone needs a memo pad, so I'm offering something they want. Every time they use my memo pad, other people see my info. Even my young daughter has become a good promo girl. One day, I was sick, doing the grocery shopping after work. I was in no mood to promo. As I packed the bags, I heard her ask someone near us: 'Would you like a free memo pad?' I had to smile. That was cute. And successful. Few people say no to a free memo pad because it's a very handy item to have. And they certainly don't refuse her. When they read they front cover, a conversation usually erupts about my books. This has been so successful that I've placed small, 'Free - Take Me!' bowls with local merchants at their register.  Customers invariably ask these merchants about the pads. They explain. So, that means I have local merchants promoting for me, too.

Get Famous for Something Else

It's no secret that the publishing business is savagely competitive. Saying you want to make a living selling books is akin to saying you want to be a rock star. Many try, few make it. Not only do booksales go down in the U.S. every years, but with modern conveniences well in place, everyone has time write a book. To say that getting known in this field is  hard, is an understatement. So, get famous for something else.  Run a charity drive to fund the local soup kitchen/church or some other worthy charity. Newspapers like to report this kind of news for free. And you'll create a promotional forum for your books. Is it self-serving to run a charity for promo? I can't judge. But I do know respected companies do it all the time. So why not you? There's no  harm in doing some good in your community to promote yourself.
Become a popular reporter or free lance writer. You can then mention you're a writer in your credentials. The possibilities are endless.