| Motivation - On Remembering Love
Book marketing – does it ever have you longing for the good old days of solitary writing before you published? How did the love of writing turn into the business of book marketing? What is the connection between the two?
Only a tiny fraction of authors can wash their hands of marketing. For most, marketing is a key part of publication. For self-publishing authors, marketing is everything.
As an author myself, the deeper I get into my own book marketing, and into the experiences of other authors, the more I come back to focusing on the love for writing. One hears often that “every person has a book inside” Still, very few complete the journey from scratching down the first idea to seeing their book in print.
I want to offer an invitation. Declare publishing victory now. Don’t wait until you’ve sold 100 or 1,000 books or whatever sales goal you’ve set. Declare success now. Whether you choose the date you finished your manuscript, or first saw your book in print, choose an anniversary date and celebrate. Celebrate completing the life dream of writing your book. Then turn to marketing.
Book marketing is a series of good steps and missteps. For my first book, One Wheel – Many Spokes I received not one but two Publishers Weekly reviews, including the famous “colored box.” In 30 years my publicist had never had this happen before. I confidently printed 10,000 books, then slaved to sell 3,000 of them. For a long time I did not consider this a victory. Now I realize that a few of those individual book sales were worth the whole process, including the invitations to speak at universities, the people who wrote me how their lives were changed, and the offer from the president of Cevado Technologies to create American Author Websites. Book publishing changed my life.
If you’re like me, and like almost every other author, publishing your book will change your life in ways you never dreamed. Along the way, keep hold of the love and the passion that started your publishing journey. Market often. Celebrate even more.
Good wishes,
Lars Clausen
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