Comments on A Newbie's Guide to Publishing: Who Knows You?

Have you seen my website howtopublishabook.org?It'...

2008-02-11T14:33:00.000-06:00

Have you seen my website howtopublishabook.org?

It's composed mostly of video blog interviews with authors.

To every author, their own book is one of the most...

2008-01-15T04:00:00.000-06:00

To every author, their own book is one of the most important things in their lives. I guess it's important to remind ourselves that, to a reader, it may be good, they may really enjoy it, but that doesn't mean they are going to do anything to spread the word for us. To them, a good book is just one of many, many good things in their lives and, unless they have a real personal reason, they are just not going to further it. (Even giving my own book to close friends, who are then genuinely complimentary about it, it's real hard to get them to do something very simple to help it along, like giving me a quote, or telling their friends.)
To give the example in terms of something other than a book; if you were to find a new line of unusual, tasteful greeting cards, what would you do? You might buy one, but would you actually tell other people?
...no, neither would I.
And that seems to me to be the difficulty, this huge gap between someone knowing that something is good, and them taking any step, however small, to help that thing along. Even if they only, on average, told one other person, at least it would continue. But if they, on average tell 1.001 people, then the word spreads.
And if they tell two people...

A great deal of fame revolves around confidence.Wr...

2008-01-14T17:44:00.000-06:00

A great deal of fame revolves around confidence.

Writers have often been blind-sided by the fact that we really do have to put ourselves out there. Famous writers aren't the ones who live a hermit life in a tranquil mountain cabin pounding pages on their old typewriter.

The ones who make it get out amongst the people, they write for the people, and they have the self confidence to believe that what they say and write deserves to be heard by as many people as possible.

The bit that always bothers me is how do you estab...

2008-01-14T10:16:00.000-06:00

The bit that always bothers me is how do you establish a nucleus of fans, rather than just lots of isolated hits, who like you but then forget? A group, who have all read you, and discussed, seem to me much more likely to spread the word...

JA, my writing group buddies think I'm nuts to blo...

2008-01-14T09:34:00.000-06:00

JA, my writing group buddies think I'm nuts to blog or have a myspace.

I call it the "Paris Hilton" effect: creating the illusion of fame and success. We live in a celebrity driven culture to the point where becoming famous is even a prime motive for becoming a murderer. It's a sad fact of life, but celebrity matters.

So many writers I know who have first books coming out are scrambling to get some name recognition.

While I'm working on my WIP, I'm already working on name recognition for myself - I don't think you can start too soon.

There's always gold in your posts, Joe. The best f...

2008-01-11T15:16:00.000-06:00

There's always gold in your posts, Joe. The best for me: "It all begins by looking inward and analyzing what you're doing." Or as my s.o. puts it, you gotta try different things and then be honest about the results. And ask, did I make my best efforts here?

I also agree with Stacey, I've done a lot of promotion for others, much easier. I can write a fabulous resume, for somebody else. And helping others is a great way to get known.

I thought about writing a blog. But there are alre...

2008-01-11T15:09:00.000-06:00

I thought about writing a blog. But there are already enough novelists blogging about the process of writing, getting an agent and getting a book deal. You're one of the best, Joe. Thanks for all the valuable information you give.

The only real thing of value I have to offer readers is my novels. I've been posting them on my site for 1.5 years, and now have three complete mystery books and one serial novel posted for free reading.

I figure it's my only way of building 'fame.' Currently, my site is at 30,000 page views per month and growing. Most people like the books and keep coming back for more. And some people are buying the paperbacks.

I guess the big challenge is getting people to take you seriously as an author. Not that I'm trying to write The Great American Novel. I just want to entertain.

One of these days I might make a serious attempt at finding an agent. Or just keep self-publishing. Either way, you are exactly correct, Joe. You've got to have a certain level of fame before you can sell a lot of books.

Robert Burton Robinson

There should be a class on helping others. It's am...

2008-01-10T16:00:00.000-06:00

There should be a class on helping others. It's amazing to me how easy it is to make friends simply by helping other people.

I rarely ever do anything anymore, writing/speaking/TV-wise, unless I'm putting someone else in the spotlight and selling their books.

It's much easier to brag about someone else without looking like an asshole, than it is to brag about yourself.

People see my name gazillions of times each day, a...

2008-01-09T15:41:00.000-06:00

People see my name gazillions of times each day, and I don't have to do anything. :)

Good stuff, JA. I like the concept of real value,...

2008-01-08T16:14:00.000-06:00

Good stuff, JA. I like the concept of real value, which could be applied to a lot of different fields.

About bragging:Remember Barry Sanders, RB of the D...

2008-01-08T15:26:00.000-06:00

About bragging:
Remember Barry Sanders, RB of the Detroit Lions? I believe it was his father who advised him that when he scored his first NFL touchdown, instead of doing a end zone dance, he should act like he'd been there before.

Good advice.

Off-topic but...don't forget to check with your fr...

2008-01-08T10:10:00.000-06:00

Off-topic but...don't forget to check with your friend about the 4 boxes of books I have ready to ship to him.

Interesting take and comments. I think self promo...

2008-01-08T08:33:00.000-06:00

Interesting take and comments. I think self promotion is very cool. Name recognition is exactly what its about. You can become famous, be the subject of conversation and lore, but the time span from the time we live our infamous moments (or products) to the time to wide distribution can be from seconds to eons.

Robert G.
Become Famous

Writers should celebrate occasionally. Celebrating...

2008-01-08T06:20:00.000-06:00

Writers should celebrate occasionally.

Celebrating eighteen times a day, in every forum on the net, is cringe-worthy.

The line between informing and bragging isn't a thin one. Just about everyone can spot it---with the notable exception of the one bragging.

I like it when authors tell me they're getting pub...

2008-01-08T00:51:00.000-06:00

I like it when authors tell me they're getting published in their blogs. Not in the sort of way where they're posting daily about it, but an announcement when a new book or story is out is useful. Possibly I'm alone in this?

About brand name recognition, there's this from Sc...

2008-01-07T20:15:00.000-06:00

About brand name recognition, there's this from Sci-Fi Weekly, with Tasha Robinson interviewing George R.R. Martin.

Why do you use the "R.R." in your byline?

Martin: A writer's name is his trademark. It's the thing the reader has to remember to seek out your work again, and it has to be memorable. George Martin is a very common name; there are a number of other George Martins who write, there are a number of George Martins in other fields. The "R.R." makes it distinctive, and people seldom forget it.

The same could be said for Thomas John Boyle, who became T. Coraghessan Boyle, and possibly this very cool writer I heard of called J.A. Konrath.

There's also Samuel Clemens, who went with Mark Twain - both a riverboat depth and a saloon tab.

A good way to gain name recognition is to kill som...

2008-01-07T19:44:00.000-06:00

A good way to gain name recognition is to kill someone. Sam Shepard did this by way of proxy - born Samuel Shepard Rogers, one of the reasons he changed his name was because of a doctor named Sam Sheppard who killed his pregnant wife in 1954 - it created a sensational trial the likes of OJ and gave "Sam Shepard" instant name recognition. In fact, I was in a bookstore in NH once and from down the aisle heard a woman say, "Sam Shepard - isn't he the doctor who killed his wife?" Whether he was or not, she had his book in her hands.

That was fascinating. I've thought a number of the...

2008-01-07T19:33:00.000-06:00

That was fascinating. I've thought a number of these points before, but not in so cohesive a fashion. Thanks for sharing.

Here's an actual post from today, a good example: ...

2008-01-07T19:21:00.000-06:00

Here's an actual post from today, a good example:

"I finished the copy edits on [UPCOMING BOOK]!!! That doesn't come out until July... so get [MY OTHER BOOK]instead."

Yeah, right, I'm going to rush out and get it.

Thanks for the insight, and I couldn't agree more....

2008-01-07T14:02:00.000-06:00

Thanks for the insight, and I couldn't agree more. When I started the blog, I decided I did not want to post anything that couldn't help others with their own writing. It is not a "hey look at me!" blog (I hope). Thanks for the great stuff you post here. It has been quite helpful.

Robert--It's never too early to begin spreading na...

2008-01-07T13:40:00.000-06:00

Robert--

It's never too early to begin spreading name-recognition. But heed what Anon said.

Shouting "ME ME ME!" will only annoy.

It's about what you have to offer. If all you're offering is praise for yourself, you won't become viral.

I know a few writers like this. They post every tiny bit of good news, and scour the net for people talking about them so they can chime in.

Never agree with someone who thinks you're cool. Thank them, but reinforce their observation by being cool, not by calling more attention to yourself.

Singing your own praises isn't cool.

If you're offering good information and entertainment, then the next step is helping people discover you. You do this through trading links, giving out freebies, offering your expertise, networking, appearances, and many other ways.

If all you're offering is a stage for people to applaud you, you aren't going to help your cause.

Blasting a name everywhere isn't the end of the st...

2008-01-07T13:24:00.000-06:00

Blasting a name everywhere isn't the end of the story. There must be substance and the person behind the name must be a quality person. Otherwise, it's form over substance, which will always fail in the end.

For example, I see some authors posting a new blog about each and every little thing: I GOT A GOOD BOOK REVIEW! I'M GOING TO DO A BOOK SIGNING! I GOT 38 ACCEPTANCES THIS YEAR! I look at that stuff and think, "What a jerk." The person got my attention all right. But the decision I made, based on the message the person sent, was a negative one.

So, blast away but have a message and be a quality person, not just a mindless blaster.

How much of this can be done before you are publis...

2008-01-07T13:01:00.000-06:00

How much of this can be done before you are published do you think? I am nearing the completion of my first novel, and a few months ago decided that I would start trying to promote myself before I actually found an agent/publisher. I started a blog, I try to update it regularly with interesting content, but it is a slow process to get people to even know your blog exists. What other avenues can someone do before they are ready to start the actual promotion of a specific book? Or is it too early?