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| Lesley Ann McDaniel |
Marketing our books can be challenging—even more so for us introverts. We’d rather sequester ourselves and just write. Can you relate?
So today, author Lesley Ann McDaniel visits Seriously Write, offering encouragement by sharing tips that will help make promoting easier for all of us. ~ Dawn
Book Promotion for Introverts or
Nobody Told Me I’d Have to Talk to People
Nobody Told Me I’d Have to Talk to People
introvert noun
in·tro·vert | \ ˈin-trə-ˌvərt \
1. a reserved or shy person who enjoys spending time alone.
2. the opposite of extrovert.
I was an introvert way before it became trendy. Since back when being quiet and shy were considered traits that needed to be cured rather than cultivated.
Thank goodness times have changed.
Unless I miss my guess, most writers are more introverted than extroverted. It’s not that we don’t like people. But interacting with them—especially more than one of them at a time—depletes our energy. For us, the ability to spend the majority of our time alone is what makes us able to produce the amount of work necessary for success at our craft.
Which is why the business side of writing—telling the world you have something to say—can be so daunting. To the introvert, talking about ourselves and our work feels not self-confident but self-serving.
Here are a few suggestions to help make self-promotion productive and maybe even fun.
1. Decide what you want from your writing.
If writing is more of a creative outlet for you than a way to earn a living, embrace that. Just because it’s a calling doesn’t mean it has to be your full-time business.
2. Let your online presence do the talking.
An appealing, professional-looking website or Facebook page can go a long way to sell you and your work. Let that be your virtual home where people can get to know you.
3. Respect your comfort zone.
We each have our own unique skill set. Recognize what you’re best at and focus on that.
4. Gently expand your boundaries.
Look at opportunities like speaking, teaching, and doing author events as opportunities to increase your skills. You might even learn to enjoy them.
5. Schedule time to recharge before and after interactions with other people.
While your more extroverted peers are relishing that post-meeting networking time, there’s no shame in retreating to your writing cave.
6. Hire a marketer.
If your budget allows, hiring a pro to do some or all of your rooftop shouting could be a great option.
7. Be selective about what you choose to share about yourself.
Lots of writers have no problem sharing personal details via social media, blog posts, and newsletters. Remember, you can still be warm and real without disregarding your boundaries.
8. Join a promotion group.
If you’d rather brag on other people than yourself, then finding a group of fellow writers who can honestly recommend each other’s work might just be your style.
Remember, while it’s not realistic to expect any kind of business to flourish with no promotion, a quality product is essential. Keep honing your skills as a writer and you might find your confidence growing. Even if you prefer to keep quiet, make your writing something that’s worth shouting about!
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| Jill Came Tumbling After |
Book 2, Madison Falls series
Jill Martin has finally kicked her alcoholic husband to the curb. So where is the hope she’d expected to feel when she finally took control of her life? Finding herself with no money, two small children and a stack of unpaid bills, Jill has little choice but to look for the one thing her husband refused to find—a job. When she gets hired at the new factory that’s about to open in Madison Falls, she’s on top of the world. Until she begins to suspect that the owner has a plan to illegally dispose of their toxic waste.
Now Jill is faced with an impossible choice. If she blows the whistle, everyone who’s counting on the factory for employment will lose their job. But if she keeps her suspicions to herself, future generations will have to deal with contaminated groundwater. Will Jill be strong enough to make the right decision…or will her boss do whatever it takes to keep her quiet?
Madison Falls. Home of faith, love, peach pie…and a dollop of danger.
Paperback Available on Amazon here.
Kindle Edition Available in Boxed Set, Exposed here.
Between working as a homeschooling mom and as a professional theatre costumer, Lesley has completed several novels. She would have done more by now if she didn’t also occasionally stop to clean the house and fold the laundry. Fortunately, she loves to cook, so no one in her family has starved yet.
A native Montanan and a Big Sky girl at heart, Lesley now resides in the Seattle area with her family, three cats and a big loud dog. In her spare time (ha!) she chips away at her goal of reading every book ever written.
To connect with Lesley and learn more …
Website: www.lesleyannmcdaniel.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/LesleyMcDaniel
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/lesleyannmc/boards/
