You’ve written your book, and unleashed it to the world. But as your publication date recedes into the past, you notice fewer visits to your website. Worse, your website falls lower in search engines for some of your key terms. 

What can you do? Traffic is the lifeblood of the internet, and it can help to keep your book performing well. How do you get more traffic to your website? 

One of the Simplest and Most Effective Solutions is to Start a Blog. 

A blog might seem to be a lot of work, but it has two major benefits. The first is that it brings people who have already liked your book back for more. The second is that it offers regular content to search engines, which encourages visits to your site more often, which helps to keep your site performing well. 

There's No Way I Can Blog Regularly!

Regular blog posts don’t have to be a daily or even weekly occurrence. In fact, it’s better to start slow and aim for one post a month. Consistency is the key. 

Once you’re accustomed to regular posting you can decide if you’re capable of more. Just remember, it’s better to post less often and keep a schedule, than to churn out posts for a short window only to abandon the blog for months. 

But What Do I Write About?

While the answer largely depends on your target audience, the short answer is: anything. 

Most people who visit your website to read your blog will be looking for your insight. How you present that is up to you. If you wrote a non-fiction book, one of the easiest things to write about is more of what you wrote about in your book. Give additional details or tips, perhaps exercises that your readers can use. 

Fiction authors can also benefit from a blog. Short or side-stories, reviews of books you’re reading, details on upcoming books or just keeping fans informed about your life are all good topics. 

So now that you have an idea of what you can do, have fun exploring all the possibilities with your new blog. 

On average, Americans spend around $1000 on holiday shopping. Between Black Friday and the big day, they are hungry for deals! This makes it one of the best times of the year for many authors to introduce new readers to their work, and to sell more books.

So what are a few things you can do to help get your books to holiday shoppers? PenPower Book Marketing is happy to assist you in the following ways:

1.  Think Local

People like to support the communities they live in, and that includes local authors. One of the best ways to tap into this sentiment is by supporting your local bookstores. Find out if your local store is carrying your book, and if not, ask if they can order some for the local author section or if they will carry a few on consignment with prominent display during the holiday rush.

While you’re there, ask if they have room in their schedule for you to do a reading, book talk, or book signing. This is a great way to work with them by bringing in extra traffic for the event, and for interested readers to hear from you directly.

Finally, don’t forget to add links on your website that point to Indiebound or directly to stores that carry your book.

2.  Think Global

Amazon is worldwide, so your marketing efforts can be as well — through social media that is. Facebook has more than a billion users, Twitter has 126 million, and undoubtedly millions of eager readers on each platform. So how can you reach them?

First, think about the type of readers you want. What are they looking for in a story? Action? Romance? Brilliant deductions? Then think about what sets your book apart from others in its genre. Does your bodice-ripper feature an interracial couple, or are the alien invaders here to save humans from themselves rather than conquer? Give potential buyers something to make them stop, pique their interest so they will want to buy your book. Use appropriate hashtags, along with a few holiday specific ones, and even authors with a small social media following can reach a much larger audience.

Once your social messaging is in place, take it to the next level with ads. Social media advertising can be an inexpensive way to gain new readers.

3.  Think Deals

There’s no denying that shoppers are looking for deals near the holidays, and a limited-time price reduction can tip the scales in your favor.

The easiest way to offer buyers a discount is to mark down the prices on ebooks. Self-publishing platforms make this an easy task through their seller dashboards, and depending on which websites you’re selling through, there may be additional discount options.

Authors published through traditional presses can also highlight deals if their publisher is running any specials. Now’s the time to contact your author representative and ask if there are any pricing deals planned for the holidays, and when those dates are so that the information can be included in your own promotional efforts.

4.  Think Unique

What better gift than one that’s considered for the recipient, and is something unique to them? As an author you can offer this, with signed copies.

A signed book has that personal touch. It shows that the gift giver knows the person well enough to trust that they will enjoy the book, and that they made the extra effort to get something unique to them.

While signings are a great place for people to get these, you can also temporarily offer them on your website. Even authors who don’t offer sales through their website year round can add a temporary page that allows readers to purchase a signed copy. Then, when the holidays are over, just take the page down again. It’s a fantastic way for buyers to get that special touch, and for authors to give something unique for the season.

It may only be August, but the holidays are quickly approaching and it’s time to get your books holiday-sales-ready. Ask how we can help pitch you to local bookstores for signings, create a page on your website for autographed copies, handle your social media accounts. There are so many ways you can take advantage of the upcoming holidays and PenPower is here to help! 

With so many books released each year it can be difficult to find a way to stand above the crowd. Friends, word of mouth, and social media are just some of the valuable tools an author cab utilize to promote a book, but one of the best ways to reach more potential readers is through media interviews and endorsements. Print and broadcast media (radio and television) appearances and/or mentions can reach thousands of potential readers at once. And many of the audience members or listeners may already have an interest in your genre or niche.

But, with thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television programs, it can be difficult to narrow down options and target those venues most likely to highlight your book. At PenPower, we do the work for our authors by researching the venues that are in alignment with your subject matter.  We look for venues that offer a similar target audience, and we reach out with a professionally-designed media kit which includes an informative book page, press release, author bio, author photo and some Q&A’s. Notably, this leaves you, the author/writer, with more time to focus on your own writing and creative endeavors.

Print

If you think about it, there’s probably a newsletter, newspaper, or magazine for readers interested in what you have to say! Industries and interests large and small have dedicated publications bringing subscribers the latest news, trends and information relevant to them, and for authors there’s no better audience than one whose interests align with the subject matter of your book. Reaching out to these outlets is one of the best ways to get a book in front of an eager customer!  

Some examples of publications that have featured PenPower authors include Golf Tips Magazine, New Mexico Stockman, Atlantic Monthly, Modern Loss, The Jenny McCarthy Show, New Mexico Living, Fine Lifestyles Magazine, Wellbeing Journal, Open to Hope, Paradise Valley Lifestyle, Coast Magazine, Focus on Women, Nation of Change, and USA Today.

Radio

With its reach and presence in everyday life, radio is an excellent source of news and entertainment. Music, news, and niche programming are all available to listeners at all hours of the day, and with so many options there are multiple programs that look for unique ways to focus on topics relevant to their listeners. From local interest stories to shows that have a particular focus there is no lack of opportunity in radio. PenPower authors have appeared as guests on several radio shows, including: The Richard Eeds Show, Transitions Radio, Radio Café with Mary-Charlotte Domandi, Kids First! New Mexico, Cline’s Corner with Lynn Cline (KSFR), Report from Santa Fe, and KUNM Women’s Focus with Susan Thom Loubet. 

Television

Television interviews are an ideal way to connect a face with a book, and may offer deeper insights into the inspiration and driving factors that guide an author’s process. Television also has the advantage over radio of being able to connect your provocative cover and illustrations to your work.

PenPower authors have appeared as guests on television shows including New Mexico Living PBS Santa Fe & Albuquerque, Hutton Broadcasting, local Oregon, Arizona and New York  affiliates.

Contact PenPower Book Marketing today to learn how we can help your book achieve greater success in print and broadcast media venues!

Authors and readers know that winning an award adds distinction to a book, and lends honor and prestige to the author. A flashy award sticker placed on the front cover of an award-winning book serves as a light-catcher and attracts the attention of potential readers, editors, print and broadcast media and publishers. At a glance, these light-catchers inform the reader that a book has been deemed worthy of an honor by those “in the know.” And winning means more sales!

That’s why it’s always an exciting time at PenPower Book Marketing Services when any of our authors receives an award for their efforts. This spring is no exception, as several of the talented authors we have the pleasure of working with have received high honors and praise for their books. We could not be any more proud!  

Two of the authors we represent received nods from the acclaimed IPPY awards, and a first time children’s author received back to back Gold Awards from the highly esteemed Mom’s Choice Awards while another of our young adult authors also received a Silver Award from Mom’s Choice. Finally, another author is a winner in the Southwest Book Design and Production Awards sponsored by the New Mexico Book Association. As you can see, there’s a lot to celebrate, buy and read!  

Bronze - Traveling Light, a novelita

Silver - Hopi Tea, a Murder Mystery

Silver – The Imagination Warriors

Gold - Navigating Change

Gold - The Rocking R Ranch Series

Congratulations to our authors.

There are countless people for whom writing a novel is on their ‘to-do’ list. It seems only natural since creating and telling stories are integral parts of the human experience. Yet, whether due to time, motivation, or the dreaded writer’s block, it’s an achievement that far more begin than finish. In fact, so much emphasis is placed on the initial goal of writing a novel, that some may reach the end of their book and wonder “Now what?”

There are those that will be satisfied in the act of completing their story, and may choose to end their journey as an author there. But many want to share their tales with a wider audience, and for them, the words “The End” are merely the beginning of the process.

So if you’ve written a novel and are now looking for those next steps, here are some next steps.

Revise and Edit

“If a sentence, no matter how excellent, does not illuminate your subject in some new and useful way, scratch it out.” - Kurt Vonnegut

There is an oft-quoted piece of literary advice, “Kill your darlings.” Attributed to more than one famous author, the phrase is ubiquitous as one of the earliest next steps in the process of writing. Namely, sometimes you have to make sacrifices for the good of a story.

However this is difficult to do when the writing is still new. In his book, On Writing, Stephen King suggests setting a newly finished book aside for at least 6 weeks. This allows an author to distance themselves from the monumental task they just completed, and come at the editing process with a fresh eye.

Create a Plan

“A goal without a plan is just a wish.” ― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

There are now over a million books released each year between traditional and self-published titles, and any serious author will need to strategize to determine where their book will fit into the market. Whether they intend to query agents for a publishing contract, or go it alone, they will need to create a plan in order to give their book the best chance of success.

Self-publication authors will have more logistics on their plate (cover, placement, reviews, etc) than authors with a contract from a publishing house. However, both will find that marketing is an essential part of the process. They will need to determine where their target audience is, and communicate with them there. For some it could be a social media campaign, for others media appearances, while there are those who will shine at trade shows and conventions. No matter which is best, getting the word out early is critical to building pre-sales and creating buzz.

Launch and Ongoing

“Not all marketing people are writers, but all writers must learn to be marketers.” ― Joanne Kraft

Launch day comes with a feeling of elation, and also a new set of challenges. Continued promotion is critical to the success of the book. Word of mouth from existing fans will bring in new readers, but this is the time to use that enthusiasm to build more. If an author has not already submitted their work for consideration for literary awards then it’s time to do so. In addition a book’s release means that copies will be on hand for events and signings.

Even past the initial rush of launch, an author must consider how much maintenance to put into their marketing. This may come in the form of promotions or continued social media presence. And if one plans to continue writing they also need to consider how to bridge and keep interest from readers high going into the next book.

Do you need help preparing your book for publication? PenPower Book Marketing can help. From editing and revising through launch we can be your partner in crafting a strategy to give your book its best chance of success. 

“Literary prizes should honor good books.” - Jennifer Szalai, New York Times Book Review

The literary awards season is an exciting time of year for us at PenPower Book Marketing. We often enter our authors into appropriate awards, but there is always a thrill when one of our own is selected as a finalist or awarded a prize.

However, there is more than just the elation that comes with each shortlisted title or recipient. For while an award honors the individual greatness of each book, there is also the increased notoriety that comes with the titles, a valuable commodity in itself. Or as Szalai puts it, “The true currency of prizes is recognition -- in scarce supply as books struggle to cut through the glut of our crowded culture.”

There is truism in the statement. Each award celebrates the works and the authors, but they also have a way of elevating the books in question; raising them from the sea of new titles that come on the market every year. They provide a robust endorsement that sets a work apart from its peers in ways that are invaluable to new and upcoming authors and can set them on the path of success as authors. Award stickers placed on covers act as 'light catchers,' drawing potential readers in, while increased exposure online encourages a larger and more robust audience. 

Yet with so many awards to choose from, it is a daunting task for new authors to discover which they should enter. Luckily, an experienced partner can provide key guidance in steering a book towards the awards that are most suitable for them, helping to secure that critical recognition that fuels a book’s future.  

This year we are proud to have four standout authors either as recipients of notable awards, or in finalist lists. Congratulations to:

1. Marc Romanelli - Mom’s Choice Silver Award for The Imagination Warriors

2. Jerry Brown - New Mexico-Arizona Book Award Finalist for Awaken Your Inner Golfer

3. Victor La Cerva - New Mexico-Arizona Book Award Finalist for Letters to a Young Man in Search of Himself

4. Diane Lynn - New Mexico-Arizona Book Award Finalist for Missing

Let PenPower Book Marketing Services help you discover which awards are best for your book.

Here at PenPower, we're firm believers in the value of books as great presents for the holiday season. In our humble opinion, there's nothing better than curling up at the end of the day with a new book next to a crackling fire. (Bonus points if it's snowing.) What's more, there really is something for everyone - from the mystery junky on your list to the fine art aficionado and everything in between. If you're looking to jumpstart your holiday shopping, check out these recently released titles!

Happy Reading!

We're still in the process of getting it up and running, but it should be under way soon!