The Writing Process: Advertising Our Work by Rebecca Seaton

 

The Writing Process: Advertising Our Work by Rebecca Seaton

 

Advertising works: I've bought books by all these authors!

Why should we advertise our work? It can seem big-headed after all. Well, when you write your piece, you probably have an audience in mind, an idea of how people might feel when reading it, even what you get from writing about that theme. And we can’t wait for others to do it for us. For those self-publishing, the advertising is all part of the work but even for those with an established publisher, there is an expectation that you will help spread the word.

When to advertise can also be a question. Rather than just waiting until the end, it’s well worth advertising your work in while it’s in the process, building excitement with potential readers – and sometimes encouraging you when it feels like you’re getting stuck. When the work is complete, advertising it as a finished piece adds another dimension to the information you’ve teased so far.  

How can we advertise? Beta readers are our first step. They have had that ‘sneak peek’ after all! What have they particularly enjoyed? Make this a feature of your promotions. Friends and family are also usually keen to hear about our work and likely to talk about it to others. Make sure they know a bit about it, the main characters, the genre, the intended audience. Our social media and networks are also places to grow awareness and excitement of our writing. I wasn’t convinced about this initially but followed advice to start with one thing at a time. Use the media that works for you and expand as you grow in confidence and experience.

Branding can help

Reciprocate others – sharing is a good thing. It’s not just about ‘If you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours’, if you genuinely like their work, they might also like yours. When you know how hard it is to begin advertising your own work, it’s a good prompt for you to encourage other authors: while engaging with them you may be conscious of the readers you know who would like their work.

Advertising isn’t big-headed – it’s how we share. We don’t want to hide our light under a bushel, we want it shining brightly so that perfect audience can find it, whether that’s a readership of millions, or the one person who needs to hear that word at that time.

#amwriting #amwritingfantasy #ACW     

 

Rebecca earned second place in the 2017-18 Pen to Print Book Challenge with her first novel, A Silent Song. She is currently writing her next novel, part of a fantasy trilogy.