Are You Looking for Magic?

 

By Terry Whalin @terrywhalin

From my experience in book publishing and working with authors, most of them are looking for magic. They may or may not call it magic but they are searching for an instant way to sell books--without doing anything for that sales process to happen. If that were possible, it would be magic.

Authors want to write and it’s important to learn the storytelling skills then craft a book for the marketplace. This foundation is important. Join a critique group and get feedback on your book. Hire an outside editor to help you shape the book. Gather endorsements and work with the right publisher to launch your book into the world. Each of these steps take effort and are important to the foundation of your book. 

Then boom, your book enters the world. How is it selling for you? Are you happy with those results? Most authors are not. Instead of complaining or moaning about how much you dislike marketing, I want to give you a different course of action in this article. I hope you will keep reading and take it to heart.

First, you need a little reality check. Publishing experts say between 6,000 and 11,000 new books are published every day. That’s a lot of competition for your book. With a different mindset and action plan, you can sell your book. Someone has to hear about the benefits of your book a dozen or two dozen times before they purchase your book. You can touch your reader in many different ways but here’s the critical part: as the author you have to do it. Sure you can hire others but at the end of the day you have to take your 100% responsibility for your actions.

I’ve spoken and worked with hundreds of authors. Here’s a couple of recent examples. Last spring, an author came with a new book manuscript and wanted it published in June. In his contract he asked for bonus clauses if it reached the bestseller list and had an intriguing marketing plan. I applaud the pitches but how did the author take action? When this book  released to the bookstores, it had zero pre-sales (which tells me the author didn’t work at presales). On release day, this book sold less than 100 copies and mostly through a large online retailer. This situation can be changed but the author has to take steady and continued action.

Also last week I spoke with a second author about his lackluster sales. He told me he was marketing his book once a quarter. How can you reach readers and remind them of your book with limited actions? It simply does not move the sales needle with good reason.

I’m convinced authors with successful book sales leave traces about how they achieved these sales. Other authors can follow these traces for their book but they have to take persistent and consistent action. Also they have to experiment and try different options. 

In April 2016, I wrote about the success of Chicken Soup for the Soul and how the authors achieved it. Follow this link to read the entire article. Here’s a key paragraph with a valuable link:

“Often I read about someone who is an “overnight” success. They have suddenly skyrocketed on to the national front through a book or a YouTube video or a media outlet. Yet if you carefully examine the life of that “overnight” success you will learn (as I have) the person has been faithfully in the trenches and taking action. Many people tout the best-selling success of Chicken Soup for the Soul by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen.  Throughout the first year of this series, each author followed the “Rule of Five.” It is a stellar example for each of us.” 

If you want to be the exception and sell more books, it can begin at any time--even with an older book which isn’t selling. As the author you take consistent and persistent action. If you need ideas and action steps, get John Kremer’s 1001 Ways to Market and Sell Your Book which is over 700 pages. Try different methods and ideas--which means taking consistent action.

The process isn’t magic but involves something author resist: hard work. I may want to be a professional athlete but I’ve never invested the hours and days into learning that craft. Any of us can learn the craft of writing and marketing. What actions are you going to take from reading this article? Let me know in the comments below and then keep moving forward.

Tweetable:

While authors might not label it, many are looking for magic to sell their books. This bestselling author gives the simple truth for success: consistent hard work. Get the details here.  (ClickToTweet)

Throughout my many years in publishing, I’ve co-authored over a dozen books and reviewed thousands of submissions (no exaggeration). As a part of the process of working with these authors, I speak with them about their dreams and plans. Many of these authors have  unrealistic expectations about what will happen with their published book. Many aspects of the details of publishing are outside of anything an author can control. I wrote 10 PUBLISHING MYTHS to give authors practical help. You can get decades of insights in 10 PUBLISHING MYTHS for only $10, free shipping and over $200 of bonuses.

Subscribe to Terry’s Newsletter:

During the last year, once a week I’ve been sending a short free newsletter. Just follow this link to subscribe. When you are added to the newsletter, you will receive a FREE 87-page Ebook which is packed with insights for every writer.

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Since 2004, I have blogged about The Writing Life over 1,800 entries and one of the top 27 content writers. With this simple form, each week you can get my new articles, encouragement and insights at: https://t.co/W6uU64u6aA

Become a Bestselling Author

 

By Terry Whalin @terrywhalin

What does it take to become a bestselling author? There is no simple formula to follow. If a step-by-step process existed, every book would become a bestseller--which does not happen. Instead there are simple practices and experiments each author has to make in this process of learning how to tell others about your book.

Let me begin with a bit of a reality check about book publishing. Some publishing experts estimate there are over 11,000 new books published every day. This number includes the self-publishing titles but that amounts to a lot of print material pouring into our world. Depending on how you publish, your publisher may or may not do much to market and sell your book. 

As the author, you have the greatest passion and interest in selling books. You may not like marketing. Some authors say they hate it. Those feelings are valid. I encourage you to push beyond those concerns and actively work to tell others about your book. Someone has to hear about your book at least a dozen times before they decide to purchase the book. There are many ways to tell others about your book. Pick one or two, then use that method to stress the benefits or reasons readers should get and read your book.

The repeated process of telling readers about your book can become boring. Don't let it and instead change it up and use different methods, tools and systems for this process. On a regular basis I read that social media does not sell books. You want to become active on social media for the exposure to the benefits of your book to readers in a steady stream of information. It’s the reason publishers and literary agents are interested in your social media numbers. They use this information to evaluate your actions and exposure in the marketplace.

The foundation of every good book is the storytelling and the writing. As writers, we have to find the right topic then produce an excellent manuscript. Work with freelance editors and others to shape your story into the right foundation. Then select a way to publish your book which will make it easily available to your readers. Broad distribution is another critical element in this process. When your book is going to release, gather a team of friends to read the book and write a series of honest reviews to be published in multiple online places. This season when your book is new is also an opportunity to book radio and podcast interviews about you and your book. 

How do you break through the noise of the marketplace and get attention for your book and message? From my experience, it comes from consistent and persistent author action.  

Recently a prospective Morgan James Publishing author asked me about the sales of my book, Billy Graham, A Biography of America's Greatest Evangelist. I’ll admit I do not watch my sales numbers on Amazon or Nielsen BookScan or the publisher author portal. My book on Mr. Graham released November 4, 2014 and I went to Amazon Author Central which lets every author look at the sales numbers for the last two years. I discovered my book has sold over 10,000 copies during this period. Here’s the evidence:

In 2014, the original version of my biography was out of print. I’m one of the few living biographers of Mr. Graham and he was in poor health. Through Morgan James Publishing, I updated and revised my old book with new stories from interviews. Also I gathered a foreword and endorsements then checked every word of the final content with the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association--even though I worked outside of the organization. When the book launched, I hired an outside publicist who scheduled over 50 radio interviews. After these interviews, I collected the recordings and stored them on my own website where they are continually available. You can learn more about my biography in the online press room I built for this book.

How did my book become a bestselling book and continues to sell long after the release? Every day since the book released, I’ve been telling others about the benefits of my book in various words and images. Also I worked with my colleagues at Morgan James to create the audiobook version. Follow this link to hear a sample of the audiobook. My persistence and consistency continue to get readers interested and learn about the life of Billy Graham. 

If you have a book that isn’t selling in the marketplace, it is not too late. The reader doesn’t care about your publisher or the release date. Instead if you tell them about it, they will be attracted to your story and the benefits for them from your book. I encourage you to take persistent and consistent action. It doesn’t happen overnight but can happen if you work at telling others.

What insights are you seeing for your book in this article? Which actions are you going to take for your writing and your book? Let me know in the comments. I’m eager to learn from you.

Tweetable:

How can you become a bestselling author? While there is no formula, this prolific author and editor gives authors the actions and specifics.  (ClickToTweet)

During my decades in publishing, I’ve spoken with hundreds of writers about their dreams and plans. Many of these authors have  unrealistic expectations about what will happen with their published book. Many aspects of the publishing process are outside of anything an author can control. I wrote 10 PUBLISHING MYTHS to give authors practical help. You can get decades of insights in 10 PUBLISHING MYTHS for only $10, free shipping and over $200 of bonuses.

Subscribe to Terry’s Newsletter:

During the last year, once a week I’ve been sending a short free newsletter. Just follow this link to subscribe. When you are added to the newsletter, you will receive a FREE 87-page Ebook which is packed with insights for every writer.

Get these articles on your email: 

Since 2004, I have blogged about The Writing Life over 1,800 entries and one of the top 27 content writers. With this simple form, each week you can get my new articles, encouragement and insights at: https://t.co/W6uU64u6aA