1001 Ways to Market Your Books: For Authors and Publishers, 6th Edition

by John Kremer

Today's most complete handbook on book marketing.

Genres: Writing, Business, Nonfiction, Reference

704 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1986

About the author

Book marketing expert John Kremer is the owner and publisher of Open Horizons as well as the webmaster at http://www.bookmarket.com, http://www.myincrediblewebsite.com, and http://www.bookmarketingbestsellers.com.

He is the author of 1001 Ways to Market Your Books; Book Marketing Magic: How to Sell Your Novel, Children's Book, Memoir, or Nonfiction Book Like a Pro; The Complete Direct Marketing Sourcebook; Do-It-Yourself Book Publicity Kit; and Celebrate Today. He is also creator of the Relationship Matters Marketing course.

As a book marketing consultant, his clients include a self-published author who has sold over two million books, a new age publisher with 60 titles, and a $100 million publisher with a rapidly growing list of 1,000 titles.

John is the founder of The Book Marketing Network social network for book authors and publishers (http://www.thebookmarketingnetwork.com).

You can find him on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/johnkremer.

John Kremer is 73 years old. His wife Gail, a storyteller, is author of Little Fox and the Golden Hawk. They live in Taos, New Mexico, where they take care of two dogs named Becky Bonefinder and Poe Happy Runner.

Reviews

[Melanie Mole · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every single time I read this book I learn more. This book is so good that I have now read it 6 times. John Kremer really shows that he is a book marketing genius in this book. I have lost count of the number of ideas he has given me about book marketing. He tells us what to do before your book is published, during the process, and afterwards. His ideas are often cheap and easy to understand. Really easy to relate to and a cracking good read! I recommend that you go and buy a copy today.

[Danusha Goska · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book really lost me when it told me that if I win a Nobel Prize that will increase my sales. It also didn't help that the book told me that if I were reviewed in the New York Times, that would increase sales, too. It also reminded me to spell and punctuate properly, and to carry business cards. It won't shock anyone to learn that I knew all this already.

Another problem I had with the book. The title is misleading. It really ought to specify that it offers 1001 ways to market relatively easy to market books. If, for example, you have written "The Ultimate Guide to Poodle Grooming," you probably already know what the book will tell you – attend conferences attended by those who groom poodles, advertise in poodle grooming magazines, and try to get excerpts of your book published on poodle grooming websites.

For those who write literary books, "1001 Ways" has scant few suggestions.

Also, the book is a bit out of date on some matters, given how rapidly technology changes. Fax machines are not as important as they used to be.

The information in the book was arranged in too haphazard a fashion for me to easily assimilate it, and the book actually promotes itself within the pages of the book, for example, buy more copies of this book and distribute them. I'll pass.

Writers have tough lives. Writers' most frequently received pieces of mail are rejection letters. Writers are desperate to find ways to market their work. I fear that this book makes a false promise to a desperate population.

[Valentinno Valentinno · Rating 5 out of 5]

John Kremer, 1001 Ways to market your Books is ideal for author’s looking for marketing tips that actually work. It’s a great tool if you want to learn the marketing aspect of the business, and it also helps author’s take a more active role in promoting their work. In this 700 page marketing Bible, Kremer covers a great deal of useful information from online sales, how to get celebrity endorsements, off beat advertising, selling your books overseas, how to make the bestsellers list, marketing tips from other authors, etc. This is a book I would recommend to anyone who is an author trying to push their book and create a buzz.

[Marti Melville · Rating 5 out of 5]

Trepidation was the term I'd use to describe my attitude when I glanced at this 700 page "how to" book. I had just finished writing another novel and was not prepared to launch into a book of this size. However, the name intrigued me. I needed to know exactly what each 1001 ways entailed in order to be successful as an author.

Not long after opening the cover, I found myself drawn into the meat of this author's experiences and realized that this book contained all that was needed to move forward with a successful marketing plan for my novel. Unwittingly, my highlighter was taken up and the pages marked and referenced for my own use. John Kremer has complied an amazing list of ideas and steps to take for any publisher or author to successfully market their inventory. The book reads more as an in-depth reference list than as a book read cover-to-cover. Indeed, that is not how this author intended it to be utilized and wisely so. Various aspects of marketing books are presented for all levels and areas of authorship, publishing, agency, distributing, etc. The reader will be impressed with his ability to reference any area of immediate attention and find the answer listed within the pages of this book.

My recommendation is for every author, agent and publisher to own a personal copy of 1001 Ways to Market Your Books. I plan to continue utilizing the information, advice and suggestions listed within its pages now as I market my current novel and in the future as I work through the next in the series.

I have already recommended 1001 Ways to Market Your Books to several other authors I have the opportunity to associate with and will recommend it during an upcoming lecture for my local Writer's League in October.

Today is the day to get started on marketing your books. You can do this now with 1001 Ways to Market Your Books.

Marti Melville
Author of Midnight Omen Deja vu
www.martimelville.com

[Judy Seaberry]

Awesome information

[Karen Nespoli · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was recommended to me as a new children’s book author. I have no background in marketing and was starting to panic before the release of my book. This book spelled things out for me in a clear and concise way. It provided a better understanding of marketing and I was able to apply many of the ideas. Whenever I need a new idea for marketing I know exactly where to look!

[Leslie Tayloe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book on how to market. I recommend it for every author even if you believe your publisher will market for you! Great tips for the publisher as well as the author.

[James Fant · Rating 5 out of 5]

What Did I Get Out of “1001 Ways to Market Your Books” by John Kremer? Everything—For Now.

I know that’s a long title for a review. But it’s a really long book, filled to the brim with tools and information for book marketing. John Kremer pooled his extensive research and experience into a voluminous guide that he encourages readers to highlight, note, and litter with Post-Its.

Each chapter is broken down into sections filled with loads of material. Each header’s type is boldface which makes it easy to locate pertinent information. And each marketing tool is conveniently numbered. Kremer makes it easy for authors and publishers to use the book as a daily reference.

“1001 Ways…” tells authors and publishers how to build their products and place them properly, how to care for customers, and how to build strong relationships with distributers, marketers, and media outlets. It details approaches for opening new markets and even talks about methods for creating New York Times and Amazon Best Sellers, giving testimonials from authors and publishers that have created successful bestseller campaigns.

I got everything that I needed from this book—for now. I say ‘for now’ because book business and communication trends are ever evolving. And I’m sure, or at least hopeful, that John Kremer will publish subsequent editions that will deal with those evolutions.

[Tami · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are hundreds of books on book marketing and promotion but 1001 Ways to Market Your Books is the original. This book spans just over 700 pages. It is filled with information about the realities of the publishing world (including shockingly honest facts how the New York Bestseller's list is crafted) helpful hints, and very specific ways to increase book sales.

Much of the material in this book is written specifically for publishers. However, usually at the end of sections, the author will include little tip boxes to show the author how to modify this wisdom for his or her own part in the process. For the self-publishing author, this book is doubly valuable.

I wrote notes as I read through this book and came up with tons of potential marketing ideas. About the only critique I would offer is that I would have liked to see more low cost ideas. Most authors just don't have the budget to take advantage of a lot of these tips.

[Susan Sylvia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is ESSENTIAL for anyone who wants to sell books. Listen, authors, marketing is NOT a dirty word. And lucky for you, this book pretty much takes you by the hand and gives you the tools to make it seem doable. It's a huge book and you may think it a daunting task to try to do 1001 things, but John Kremer puts a lot of great ideas out there for you in smart, digestible chunks. Even if you don't sit down and read it cover-to-cover, buy it, skim it, pick out a few things to do immediately and keep the book handy at all times. There's always something new in here that you can implement. Enjoy the adventure!

("Date I finished" does not apply to this book. It's never finished and it keeps on giving!)

Susan Sylvia – Book Designer/Publishing Mentor
http://www.StaircasePressDesign.com

[Mostly Sapphic Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'll give this book 3 stars because it was the greatest comedy book I've read in a while. I was seriously crying with laughter at suggestions like "Rent a blimp." "Buy an RV and stick your face and book cover on the side of it." "More personally address your readers with phrases such as 'Dear Plant Lover.'"

I'm sure there are some actual helpful suggestions in here (that are of average quality, hence an average 3 stars), but a lot of this book seems ridiculous and outdated. You could tell the author was coming up with the most ludicrous ideas just so he could hit the 1001 ideas mark.

It really was good for a laugh, though.

[Michael Newton · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has it all. And that's both good and bad. Seven hundred pages of information on how to market books, but some of the information is geared toward authors, some to publishers, and some to both.

I would have given this book five stars if not for the fact that so much of it is wasted on me as an author. Also, this book would have benefited from an index. It's still a great book and worth reading at least once if you are in the book business as an author or a publisher.

[Keith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow! Just a ton of information here. This is a big book, and it serves more as a reference for me. I can't imagine reading it cover-to-cover - but it would be impossible NOT to find very useful ideas within. If you're serious about marketing your book(s) you should probably have this on your desk, dog eared and highlighted. Important to note that this is for authors AND publishers, so all info might not be relevant to every reader. But not to worry. There's more than you need.

[Heather · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was hoping for so much more from this book. My books are self-published novels, and that unfortunately means that a lot of the suggestions in "1001 Ways" simply didn't apply to me. I DID like the "get out there and do something every day" message and I've been doing that, but this is not the book for specific advice for self-published novelists. I'm still searching for that book.

[David Donaghe · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book to be an excellent source of information weather you are a publisher, an author or a self published author and are trying to market your books on your own. I recommend it to anyone who has wrote a book and is trying to market it.

David H. Donaghe
Author of Monroe's Paranormal Investigations
and The Tale Spinner.

[Angela Samuels · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is actually a reference guide and introduction to the book publishing world. I'm an author's assistant and I refer to this book a lot. As I read this book there is always something new that I didn't know.

John's Kremer has a website that is great supplement to this book, http://www.bookmarket.com/.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of KILLER information in this book on how to market your books. Some of it is dated, at this point, but it is still useful! It was recommended to me by Essence Bestselling Author Tia McCollors and I have not parted with it since. It's a little pricey at $28, and there's no e-book, but like The Writer's Market, it's worth the investment.

[Anna Merrill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enormously helpful, comprehensive book. As an independent press, some of the tactics the big boys use to market their books were shockingly expensive (and surprising). I will never walk into a big box store and buy a book again, I can say that much after reading this. Even if you're an indie or self-pubbed author, there's something in this book for everyone.

[Michael Slavin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a big book and covers almost anything you can do to market your book. It is a little overwhelming. This book made me slow down and realize I could not to everything and needed to select the areas that would give me the biggest bank for my buck (and time). every writer should have this book as a reference.

[Kenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kremer is entirely on top of the self-publishing game, and a heavy-duty player on the Internet. I get his almost daily email newsletter (www.bookmarket.com) and it's priceless. He's also available for personal questions and discussion. A top-notch guy and his book is a great help.

[Ari · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great reference book, although some of the links and websites are dated. Unfortunately, that happens since the Internet is constantly changing. There are lots of good tips here for marketing your books, hundreds of things you'd never think of on your own. Excellent resource for authors.

[A.L. Sowards · Rating 4 out of 5]

The edition I picked up was published in 1998, so it was a little old, almost comically so when it talked about technology. Still, it gave me a good education on what the publishing industry was like a decade and a half ago, and it sparked several pages' worth of ideas.

[Pat Brannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have recommended this book to other writers more times than I can count. It has a massive amount of PR information in it and so many of the tips can be used by other businesses. I bought my copy several years ago and I still haven't reached the end of the book yet.

[Ann Addley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very extensive list of promotional information for any writer or publisher. Though I suspect some of the info may be slightly out of date, the share size of the book means that it covers all the bases and provides a great checklist for your marketing plan

[Bill Frank · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best book on all aspects of book marketing I've read. I keep it handy on my bookshelf at all times.

[Pete Grondin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book must become my main marketing reference book. I'll be abstaining from fiction for a bit while I learn more about marketing.

[Margo Bates · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is THE guide for authors, and a must-read for anyone who writes a book. Tips, talks, links, the best information available. Constantly updated. Check out his on-line newsletter.

[Rodney Winters · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent resource for marketing a book. Full of helpful tips.

[Steve Coscia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good marketing ideas.

[Terri Weeding · Rating 5 out of 5]

Huge. Comprehensive. Best-selling author testimonials. Use it as a reference. Don't,for heaven's sake, read it from cover to cover!