December has been a month of speaking on finding your book’s audience and learning to speak to your book’s ideal reader to convert them into buyers. Once you’ve figured out your target audience, how do you reach them? Countless ways. Here are a few basics—4 MUST DO things on every author’s list to success:
1. Build an author website (and keep it up to date).
Include important links to buy your book, an author bio and picture, and a blog. Above all, make sure your website looks professional and easy to navigate. You can purchase a URL and build your own professional-looking website for a few bucks a month.
2. Schedule a book launch, where you sign, read, and answer questions.
Hold contests and giveaway prizes to generate buzz about your book. Giveaways and contests can occur online or offline at local bookstores. Get everyone as excited as you are!
3. Use social media like Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram to reach your readers.
Remember the 3 major rules to building a platform of loyal readers:
- Share exclusive content
- Interact regularly with your readers
- Regularly update your content
Think about what your book’s ideal reader would want to hear about, and post that type of content. Most target readers enjoy hearing about what the author is working on—consider sharing a first draft of a scene from your book, or what you’re researching that day for your book.
4. Keep writing books.
There’s a reason why I tell my clients again and again that the most successful authors are those who have written many books. The most prolific writers (Agatha Christie, Danielle Steele, Dr. Seuss, JK Rowling) have written 85, 120, 44, and 9 books, respectively. They have created massive fan bases because of the sheer number of books they’ve written. (Keep in mind, though, these need to be quality books—which underscores the importance of having a good editor on your team).
Follow these 4 rules, and you’ll be well on your way to becoming a successful author with a loyal following of readers. Got this down, and ready to learn more? Check out 5 Proven Insights from the Most Successful Self-Publishing Authors.
Book editor Kristen Hamilton is the owner and sole employee of Kristen Corrects, Inc., where she provides manuscript editing services for traditionally and self-publishing authors. Several authors whose books she has edited have won awards and have topped Amazon’s best sellers lists.
Reading is Kristen’s passion, so when the workday is over, she can usually be found curled up with a good book alongside her four cats. She loves watching cat videos and scary movies, eating pizza, teaching herself French, and traveling, and she is likely planning her next vacation. She lives outside of Boise, ID.