5 Comments

This is great thank you. I have never thought to do this but it sounds like something I would actually enjoy doing! I am self published and after publishing a few years ago I burnt out. It turns out writing and publishing a book is just the start of a new mountain. Anyway I did virtually no marketing. I am just considering now how I can market my own book creatively and authentically so this is great for me. Appreciated ❤️

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You're very welcome! I totally hear what you're saying - it's REALLY hard to write a book, and then to market it is even harder. Throw in the demands of self-pub on top of that and... 🤪 when I say I think we can all learn something from self-pub authors, I really mean it. I think you're some of the most creative, tenacious people in the industry.

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Ah that’s on a good day. On a bad day I feel like I failed 🫣 but I am in the middle of doing it again so must just be crazy!

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I’m a great fan of book bloggers. They are not a fan of me. Earlier this year I contacted personally and politely probably 15? Or so to see if they would like an advance copy of my book. Many didn’t respond. Others politely said they were too busy. One asked if I paid (?) and one lovely book blogger read my book and gave a very thoughtful review that I cherish. Thank you to @lbrbsblogs https://www.instagram.com/p/C7FDWOuLRAY/?igsh=OXp1bHZiOTU2Mncy

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Ahh I'm sorry to hear you haven't had a great experience, Alison. Were the contacts you made 'cold' or did you contact anyone you had already nurtured a relationship with? If it's the former, then a 1 in 15 result isn't actually as bad a result as you might think. One of the things Clare mentioned to me was that often book bloggers will be more receptive to people they've already had connection with - even if that's simply social media conversations - which is a very human thing, I think. I'll be asking Tilly about this next week though - about how authors can build relationships in advance of publication - so make sure you come along, or watch on replay for some ideas.

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