Status Updates From Sell Your Book Like Wildfir...

Nonfiction authors are supposed to present their expertise based on research or personal experience or both. “If you’ve taken time to research a subject or you have experienced a situation personally, then you’re in a position to speak with authority.” So, 10,000 hours rule.

Try an outtakes back story (prequel or historical events) answering the question, “Why did you write this book”.

Are blog review tours $500 to $2,500 now, or more,m?

Book review blogger kit: cover art, 100-word bio, 1 paragraph synopsis, link to book trailer, link to first chapter, Q&A with author article, contact info.

“In contrast, you could encourage a book club to conduct a service project based on your novel.”
Like host wolf trap settings demonstrations, so members can go out and trap verbal predators in their own words? I’d say that’s a service to society.

“Can your book be used as the basis for a mystery dinner, field trip, supper club, or service project?” Maybe a murder mystery night, since it talks about predators in church, Rob.

If you can’t afford a graphic designer for your newsletter…do not choose Microsoft Word. Try Canva.

Brief bio + value statement: 2-4 sentences about you, then a value statement about the specific result you produce for readers.

Between leaders (with a high-powered title) and readers (could be anyone who passed third grade) there are influencers. They might not have a title but they are the open window that allows access past the shut door offered by a gatekeeper.

The list of 10 Questions to Build a Speech Backwards might be the best part.

So content piracy is a form of book marketing but when setting up a fan club, “don’t let fakers take advantage of the system.” Sounds like talking out of two sides of your mouth, Rob.

The O’Reilly Tools for Change Publishers Conference was discontinued in 2013 because the live annual conference was no longer seen as a forward momentum driver.

“Smile all you can” - sure, Rob, while I talk about how predators destroy churches. Because that doesn’t make me look like a Barbie news anchor.

Also, Google+ is no longer a real social media contender.

As of 2023, Hootsuite is no longer free ($99+ per month). But Zoho Social offers itself as an alternative.

Author website is HQ, social media pages = outposts.

Remember that producers and content creators also need audiences and authors to have a show, so act like a considerate partner and practice. (Fair point.) Even with a condescending host, redirect questions (sidestep the argument) and don’t let him bully you.

“Regardless of whether you write fiction or nonfiction, you must determine how your book can tangibly improve someone else’s life. Then create two or three talking points that explain why.”

So generic email titles like “everything you need to know about (the topic)” reeks of amateur, think like a producer with an audience to wow, but try out titles “on a few friends”. Are they producers, Rob? Doesn’t that also reek of amateur?

So don’t forego “pursuing national-level producers” but “you will typically have more success on your own when you pursue regional and local-level programs.” But don’t post your regional or local interviews because that makes you “look small-time” (p. 85). Make up your mind, Rob!!

Job description of a producer: “the one responsible for planning and executing each specific broadcast.”

Most publisher publicity campaigns last 90 to 120 days but word-of-mouth takes 6 to 18 months (or years?) to develop. “Big media exposure is the exception for the average author, not the rule.” Then why are we talking about landing national news attention?

So this book is written so you can DIY your own publicity….but you should have a professional website custom-built and also a personal assistant? I’d agree that no one but the authors has quite the same level of passion, audience connection, and subject matter expertise but….to whom are you speaking?

“If you talk to a designer who uses techno-words that sound like a foreign language or is a spacey, creative type that hard to understand, then walk away.” Like Spike from Notting Hill.

‘Give visitors a mailing address, business phone number, and working e-mail address’. Or your personal assistant’s phone number (like every author has one of those). What century do you live in, ignoring the fact that “stalkers and dumb questions” happen as soon as a website offers PII?!

Downloadable media kit: pro author bio, 10 interview questions, 3 to 5 testimonials, author Q&A page, headshot, book cover, contact info

Not going to happen anytime soon. “List web links to any published magazine articles you’ve written or any appearances in a major newspaper.”

“If you write nonfiction, develop an ever-growing library of articles or blog posts that expand on your book’s message.”

Some of the advice is a little cringeworthy or dated (“fight back by using more visuals in yore manuscript”) but the resource guide might be useful. Offer a personally collated list of hard-to-find organizations or clubs or studies, and readers might be inspired to dig more.