Whilst reading earlier today the report from last week’s Publishing Laid Bare Conference — a yearly conference on the state of the industry, set up by my publisher, Legend Press — I found myself focusing on one particular sentence:
The conference, once again, addressed some fantastic points (follow these links to read part one, part two and part three of the report), but this in particular is something I’ve been thinking of fairly constantly since the publication of If I Never.
The problem of invisibility and how it should be addressed, I feel, can’t be emphasised enough. Promoting one’s book is vital. This, after all, is the frontline product. But I feel that if we are looking to publish more than just one book, it’s also vital to build a sense of the person behind the work. An author’s name becomes recognisable through the finished product, of course (if we’re lucky enough to gain that kind of popularity!), but today we also have the benefit of various electronic media, as well as more traditional methods, which can be used to work and interact with people, to discuss ideas, to, when necessary, debate vociferously — and in so doing create a better understanding among potential readers of just who the author actually “is”.
It may not sit comfortably with some to think in terms of “brand”, or to consider themselves as part of the product — Gary William Murning™ feels a little odd even to me, a shameless self-promoter — but in this highly competitive business I’m not sure it’s something we can necessarily avoid. If you take what you do seriously as a writer, if you want it to be read by as many people as possible, these approaches must at least be considered.
(And, yes, okay — I’ll admit it; Gary William Murning™ doesn’t feel in the least bit odd! I actually quite like it!)
Two sample chapters of If I Never can be read here.
To buy your copy of If I Never, please click here.
Gary, creating a platform and marketing are essential for authors. We seem to be as the grains of sand on the shore – if we don’t create visibility we’ll have a tough time selling our books.
Thanks for sharing this.
Well put, Karen. Still surprises me just how many writers don’t get this, though.
Great post and, for me, you are mentioning a lot of critical mindset shifts.
As you know, this is something close to my heart, as I believe that we can change our life and our business success, one shift at a time.
When you say “to consider themselves as part of the product!”, I would even go further and say that this is vital for all authors (and all of us really, who are offering something to our audience) to realise that we are part of the brand and our personality will have a huge impact on the buyer’s decision. Some entrepreneurs may not push themselves as THE brand of their products or services as it would not be appropriate or necessary, but if we focus on authors, it is ABSOLUTELY key.
The author is THE brand, it is her/his name on the book and her/his image is so important; it is important and as you know from my recent posts about selling (oups, did I use the dreaded word
, adding our own touch, our own personality is giving us that edge, that competitive edge as no one can be ourselves.
So, I would encourage all authors to really commit and decide that from now on, they are the brand and thanks to this shift and being themselves, they will create more awareness of their books, which will therefore impact the selling numbers. By doing that, realise that you will build up your visibility and thus, spread the news about your books, which is probably why you wrote these in the first place, for other people to read them
So, GO FOR IT, Be your authentic you!
I find your focus on personality especially helpful, Frederique. This is something I myself have found. I’m someone, as I think you know, who enjoys interacting with people and having fun with them — so this is something I’ve tried to utilise. And it definitely seems to help immensely.
Thanks for your input!
A good example of “Author being a brand” in the traditional sense is the likes of Kellerman and Grisham.
Most of their books have their name in HUGE writing on both the front and the spine- often even more so than the title itself.
This is because the author has such a following, that it doesn’t matter what the title is- the fans will buy it for the name.
However, a more contemporary way of creating a brand identity is to use (as you put it) “electronic media” such as blogs like this and social methods such as YouTube, Facebook and Twitter. Some of which I can see you use yourself.
I’d like to point you in the direction of one such author- John Green (http://johngreenbooks.com/) who had already released a novel before starting a project with his brother on YouTube (this goes by various names- Vlogbrothers, Brotherhood 2.0 & Nerdfighters to name the main ones).
However with this project, grew an online community that is, for the most part, very passionate about his works but also about the ‘nerdfighter’ community itself.
By creating and taking part in various online communities, he has brought together alot of readers and given them the opportunity to have a perspective into the writing process and experience a connection to him that readers would never get by simply reading the books or interviews.
Granted, the target audience may differ from your own (He writes for the “Young Adult Fiction” market)
I’d never heard of the guy until I stumbled across some video’s made by him and his brother Hank on YouTube- I’m now hooked on his work, the community that is based around it and can’t wait for more novels from him.
His writing is good, but the fact that myself- as a reader- can connect and communicate with John as well as with the rest of his fanbase on such a personal level enhances the whole experience, and it certainly hasn’t worked too badly for him as a marketing tool- even if he hates to admit to it.
You can never get a lasting connection with the author by only reading the books- it’s by Blogs like your own and through other Online methods that you can really understand the person behind the brand.
And isn’t that why all Authors want in the end, a lasting connection with his/her audience?
Yes, this has very much been my experience, Anthony — though, in many ways, and still “growing” my readership/fan base.
I think the fundamental difference, for me, between the old way and the new is that, with the likes of Grisham, their books themselves created the “brand name”. We know of Grisham because of his books — whereas today many of my readers tend to know about me before the books I write. Everything is so much more competitive that that we as writers now have to think in slightly different terms, considering, where we can, business strategies etc. Can be tough, but, I must admit, I quite enjoy it. It’s just another creative challenge, I think.
And I completely agree; the lasting connection between writer and audience is extremely important. Thanks for the comment!
Shameless sums us up exactly Gazza! But it’s got be done to get anywhere, hasn’t it? Hope you’re keeping well, mate. Catch up soon.
It certainly has, mate! And, let’s face it, we love every minute!
Will drop you a line ASAP. Kicking back a little at the moment after finishing my latest epic tome!