Start Your Blog Now!

Writer’s Guide to Marketing, Redwood Writers’ Blog

By Frances Caballo for Redwood Writers

To market your book, you need a blog.You have spent years crafting your novel or anthology of poems and now you’re ready to send it out into the world. You’re trained as a writer but what about marketing? This series of blogs will endeavor to help you master the next steps to selling your book. 

You’ve published your book (or made it available as an e-book), signed up for Facebook and Twitter, and you have a website. At last you can do a few readings, ask your Redwood Writers colleagues to buy a copy, and relax. Right?

Wrong!

You need a blog. Search engines love websites that continually add new content and blogs are an easy way to achieve that objective.

How often should you blog? Some people blog daily while others blog once a month. If you can blog twice a week, that would be
best.

If you can only blog once a month that’s okay. Just start one and keep it going. And don’t forget to use this platform to promote
your book.

How to Use Your Blog to Promote Your Book 

Here are a few topics that you can use when your brain clouds over and you can’t come up with a new post.

  • Discuss how you researched the background for your book. Which libraries or resources
    were most helpful? What did you learn from the experience?
  • Assume the voice of one of your characters and have them talk about the book.
  • Create a vlog (a video blog) now and then and interview some of your readers.
  • Write a blog for an upcoming book reading/signing or write a post about something humorous or marvelous that occurred at your last reading.
  • Talk about the setting in your book.
  • Feature an excerpt and explain why you like it (aside from the fact that you wrote it!).
  • Write about your rejection letters.
  • Prepare a post about your marketing challenges.
  • Explain why you wrote this book.
  • Is your book topical? Tell people why you chose to write it now.
  • Is your book for young adults? Explain why you targeted that audience.
  • Are you thrilled with the jacket cover? Tell your readers how you found your designer and how you worked
    together.

I could continue but by now I’m certain you have your own ideas so please share them here so we can learn from each other.
Thanks!

About the Author: Frances Caballo, owner of ACT Communications, has 22 years of communications and resource development experience. She has worked with small businesses and local, regional and national nonprofits at all levels of management. Presently, she is the Social Media Editor and board member for Redwood Writers. She specializes in helping writers, small businesses and nonprofits with their social media marketing, external communications, and fund development needs. Frances is bilingual in English and Spanish.

 ©Frances Caballo 2011 – This post cannot be reproduced without the expressed permission of the author.

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