Troy's Friend Comments

Check out my new blog:
http://beautifulbond.blogspot.com/

Some great tips to help self-published authors:

http://www.montanacoauthor.com/2015/0...

As I descend deeper into the abyss known as marketing for Stranger’s Dance, I can’t help but ponder on if my progress is due to current, self-propulsion, or just a lack of buoyancy (knowledge of the industry). I have learned a few valuable lessons though:

Paid ads do little, if anything to help with sales. I learned this years ago when marketing my book and classes on canine behavior for law enforcement along with self-defense classes. Perhaps if I had a massive budget it would be worth the return but on a fixed income it has proven of little value.

Giveaways and free e-book limited time offers work well for getting attention to your book and getting it out to readers who have no connection to you. It may seem counter-intuitive to take a loss financially at that time but think of it as paid advertising but only this actually works at getting people to read your work.

Stepping out of your safe and secure bunker of introversion is mandatory. I’ve gotten a lot of sales just by being someplace with lots of people and talking with them about the book. In essence you need to sell yourself along with the book. I don’t mean that in a perverted way, it’s just that you have to put on a smile, shake hands, and interact with humans. Mind you, I’ve know this for many years having run several small business but I share it for anyone who may be considering writing, publishing and then marketing a book.

Interaction with potential readers and fellow authors is a good thing. Do it! Be it on Goodreads or other venues, it is a great opportunity to get word out about your book but also to see what other people are working on or struggling with.

Social media is more powerful than you realize. I’ve seen on multiple occasions how a single positive post can result in three or four sales within 24 hours. Encourage people who have given you positive feedback to share what they thought about your book with their friends through social media and have them include a link to your website or where they can purchase the book. It really can make a difference.

With that said, if you have read Stranger’s Dance and liked it, please take a moment to write a review on Goodreads, Amazon or Barnes & Noble and also tell others about it on your favorite social media sites. It really helps.

Thanks and best of luck on your writing efforts.

I was interviewed recently on the process I went through to write and self-publish my debut novel, Stranger's Dance. Here is a link to the interview:

http://www.montanacoauthor.com/2015/07/

Thank you all who signed up for the giveaway of five signed copies of Stranger's Dance. Unfortunately only five winners were possible. For the remaining 595 people stay tuned as I will be doing Kindle promotion soon.