5 Tips for Marketing Bliss, Part Two by Roseanna M. White

Last month, Roseanna M. White gave us the first two of five tips to help us keep from harming our marketing efforts. Today, she reveals the last three. You'll find Part One and the tips for Making a First Impression and Know When to be Invisible here. -- Sandy

Roseanna: There are things that help a little, things that can’t hurt, and things that are a whole lot of fun, no matter the outcome.

#3 Have a Pitch 

Inevitably, someone in the grocery store or church parking lot or soccer sidelines will ask you, “Oh, you’re a writer? What’s your story about?”

Trust me—it helps to have something to tell them. Otherwise you’re left going, “Oh, well, you know. A guy. And a girl. With some issues. Stuff happens. You know. A little romance, some faith…er…um…”

While you certainly don’t want to sound rehearsed in this situation, do have a concise explanation handy. Mine would go something like this:

Well, it’s biblical fiction, set in the New Testament days—the Church of Rome, actually. My heroine is a slave named Zipporah who can see into the spiritual realm, so there are some pretty interesting adventures she falls into. Especially when I pit her against a woman who has a spirit of divination. It’s not exactly a romance, but there’s a strong love story—I gotta have a love story! Really, though, I wanted to examine the depths of faith and what it would have been like to be one of the first generation of the church. Pretty fun stuff.

As you can see, it’s not formal. I always interrupt myself. I phrase it like a chat. And when I do this with curious acquaintances, they always respond with questions and opinions that allow for a conversation to develop—and a perfect opportunity to hand out a bookmark. ;-)

#4 Make it a Group Effort 

Do you belong to a close-knit writers group? Group blog? Just friends with other authors in the same genre? Pool your efforts!

Some of the most amazing online events I’ve participated in are the monthly Tea Parties hosted by Colonial Quills (www.ColonialQuills.blogspot.com). Every month, new releases by the contributors are celebrated in style, and dozens of readers churn out hundreds of comments, sharing images of the gowns they’re “wearing” and chatting as if they’re at the location specified in the party, complete with “Do pass another of those scrumptious shortbread cookies!” Authors often appear as their characters, promoting their books in the process, and a merry time is had by all. Because these events are monthly, avid readers know to come on the first Friday of every month. But because the guests of honor change, new Facebook events, Google + events, and Twitter hashtags are created so friends and fans can be invited.

The result? Shared efforts combine to create incredibly successful online events.

#5 Be Enthusiastic 

Whether you’re posting to Facebook or talking to someone face-to-face, your enthusiasm goes a long, long way. Make sure your passion for your story comes through. Use a few of those exclamation points you weren’t allowed to put in the book itself. ;-) Don’t play it cool—play it real. Yes, this will occasionally get you labeled “absolutely adorable.” There are worse things, LOL. 

As with many things in life, there are no guarantees in marketing. My mantra with this sort of thing has become “There’s no magic bullet.” Which means no one thing that will make something a huge success. But you can identify things that help, things that harm…and tailor it to you from there!

What other good ideas have you put into practice for selling books? If you're unpublished is there something on your list to try when the time comes?

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Roseana M. White pens her novels beneath her Betsy Ross flag, with her Jane Austen action figure watching over her. When not writing fiction, she’s homeschooling her two small children, editing and designing, and pretending her house will clean itself. Roseanna is the author of 9 historical novels and novellas, ranging from biblical fiction to American-set romances to her new British series. She makes her home in the breathtaking mountains of West Virginia. You can learn more about her and her stories at www.RoseannaMWhite.com.

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5 Tips for Marketing Bliss, Part One by Roseanna M. White

Roseanna M. White uses her experience as both an author and cover designer for WhiteFire Publishing and provides some tips to keep you from harming your marketing efforts in this first of two posts. Part Two will run on December 10. -- Sandy

Roseanna: A rather prolific magazine editor once said, “Nobody knows what sells magazines. Nobody.”

The same is true of books. We all have things we try. Things we are fairly confident in. Things that will certainly work against you if you don’t have them, or that will harm you if you do them. But there are also a whole lot of things that work for some folks and not for other. Or work once for you and not again. There are things that help a little, things that can’t hurt, and things that are a whole lot of fun, no matter the outcome.

I can’t tell you what will, without question, sell books for you. But I thought I’d share some of the things that are always a good idea. =)

#1 Making a First Impression

You can say “don’t judge a book by its cover” all you want, but let’s face it—we all do! A strong, compelling cover will grab a reader’s eye…and a bad one will put them off. Before they ever read a word we’ve written, they see that image, either online or in person.

If you’re working with a traditional publisher, you’ll only have so much input on your cover. Thankfully, their designers have a lot of experience in what sells to their target audience. If you’re publishing a book independently, be sure to choose your designer with care and keep in mind that a small investment can see a big return. You’ll want to make sure you choose images that pop, work well together, and complement the title and theme. Fonts should be, above all, legible! Study the fonts on best-selling books in your genre and see where they tend. Try to keep in mind that online sales usually only have thumbnails of book covers, so title and author name need to be big enough to be seen in a small size. (And yes, I know all this from experience, LOL, as a designer for WhiteFire Publishing and quite a few independent authors too. My portfolio is on my website.)

#2 Know When to Be Invisible

There are so many horror stories these days about authors getting nasty over negative reviews. My advice: don’t. Not just “Don’t get nasty,” don’t respond at all. In fact, my personal opinion is that reviews on retailing sites like Amazon shouldn’t ever be responded to by authors (others disagree with me, LOL). Amazon is for readers. Reviews there are written by readers, for readers. They don’t expect authors to even read them, much less respond to them. Keep it that way. That sends a silent message to readers that they’re welcome to express their opinions without fearing that you’ll be down their throats about it. And opinions do sell books! Let reader-focused places remain just that. Now, when you’re invited to a blog that has reviewed your book, by all means chime in thanking the reviewer for taking the time to read and write a review! That, in my opinion, is the time to respond and engage.

Roseanna will share tips three through five on December 10. You won't want to miss them! 

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Roseana M. White pens her novels beneath her Betsy Ross flag, with her Jane Austen action figure watching over her. When not writing fiction, she’s homeschooling her two small children, editing and designing, and pretending her house will clean itself. Roseanna is the author of 9 historical novels and novellas, ranging from biblical fiction to American-set romances to her new British series. She makes her home in the breathtaking mountains of West Virginia. You can learn more about her and her stories at www.RoseannaMWhite.com.

My Journey to Publication by Roseanna M. White

One of the things I love about Fortifying Fridays here on Seriously Write is that we provide opportunities for authors to share their personal journeys to publication. It’s inspiring and encouraging to learn that we not only have similar experiences along the way, but that each path is still different. God has a unique plan for all of us. Today, author Roseanna M. White shares her journey. Enjoy! ~ Dawn

My Journey to Publication

by Roseanna M. White

It was a Tuesday morning. My kids had spent the night with my mother-in-law the night before, and she’d just dropped them off so I could take them to Story Time at the library. I had the bag of books ready to take back, so grabbed it and my purse and rushed the kids out to the car, got them buckled in. At which point I realized I’d forgotten my car keys—so I rushed back to the door. Which my husband had locked behind us, and I’d just left my house keys in the car. Argh! A second dash up and back—though of course, hubby heard me and now had the door unlocked. He started to open it for me, then turned to the ringing phone.

I stepped inside just as he said, “It’s your agent.”

My agent? My pulse, already raised from those dashes up and down the driveway, jerked up a couple more notches. I took the phone, answered. And heard, “Are you sitting down?”

“I am now,” I said, sinking onto the step-stool in front of the sink.

“Well, it’s finally happened! Summerside has bought Annapolis.”

I think my response was something along the lines of “Glory hallelujah!” But I can’t be sure, I was in such shock, LOL. I listened in a daze as she went through the contract points with me, half my mind worrying about the fact that the kids were still in the car, parked in the garage. Hubby soon took care of that worry and pulled the car around for me, but let me just tell you—the giddiness to follow made it mighty hard to sit still during Story Time. ;-)

See, it had been a lot of long, hard years leading up to that phone call. I finished my first novel at 13, my second at 16, two at 18, and 8 in the four years of college. I’d attended conferences, I’d honed my craft. I formed a critique group, I’d even helped my husband launch a publishing company. But I’d begun to think that God’s will for me must not be a big publisher. Begun to think that He must want me devoting all my time and attention to WhiteFire Publishing.

And after years of fighting Him on that, I had finally said, “Okay, God. If that’s what You want, okay. Help me flourish here.”

Then that morning in March, I saw where the Lord had been leading me all along. After a rejection from Summerside on a contemporary idea, He’d opened the door for a historical, which was where my passion truly lies. And in the year since then, He’s also followed up another rejected-contemporary that Harvest House was considering with a three-book historical deal that will begin next January.

When I look back on this long journey, I sometimes can’t believe that it’s been 15 years since I first typed “then end” in a book, sent out my first queries. Only five since I got really serious about it and began going to conferences and investing in my would-be career, but still. That’s a lot of years of work, a lot of exploring my voice, my preferences, my niche. A lot of years of wondering, “How long, Lord? How long?”

But oh, how blessed I am to sit here now and see that this, now is what He planned for me all along. Now I get to help my husband’s dream-company grow. I get to write for two other wonderful houses too. I’ve signed with a fabulous agent and am building the career I’ve prayed for, for so very long. And I thank Him for all those rejections. Because they led me straight to the place He wanted me, and where I’ve always yearned to be.

Roseanna M. White grew up in the mountains of West Virginia, the beauty of which inspired her to begin writing as soon as she learned to pair subjects with verbs. She spent her middle and high school days penning novels in class, and her love of books took her to a school renowned for them. After graduating from St. John’s College in Annapolis, Maryland, she and her husband moved back to the Maryland side of the same mountains they equate with home.

Roseanna is the author of two biblical novels, A Stray Drop of Blood and Jewel of Persia, both from WhiteFire Publishing (www.WhiteFire-Publishing.com), Love Finds You in Annapolis, Maryland from Summerside Press, and the upcoming Culper Ring Series from Harvest House beginning in January 2013.

She is the senior reviewer at the Christian Review of Books, which she and her husband founded, the senior editor at WhiteFire Publishing, and a member of ACFW, Christian Authors Network, HisWriters, and Colonial American Christian Writers.

To learn more about Roseanna, please visit http://www.roseannawhite.com