J. L. Willow

If you ask a writer what the most difficult part of getting a book from a computer onto a shelf is, they’re most likely not going to respond with ‘writing.’ Although this might sound crazy for those who are currently writing and asking themselves, “How is this easy?”, it’s not easy. No part of the publishing process can be qualified as easy. But if I was to put the parts of publishing a book in order from easiest to hardest, though, it would be publishing, writing, and then marketing. Yes, you read correctly: marketing is the hardest part.

If you’re having a hard time believing that, don’t worry. I was with you until not too long ago. It wasn’t until I actually started marketing my book that I realized how difficult it would be. When you’re writing your book, the only person you’re competing against is yourself. When you’re marketing, you have to compete not only with the person you’re selling to but all of the other books out there. You have to convince someone in a concise period of time that your book is better than all the others, worth their time and worth their money without sounding contrived or over-bearing. So you can see where marketing can be a challenge.

When it’s time to start marketing, social media is your best friend. You have the ability to contact hundreds of thousands of people within seconds at just a tap of your device. As a writer, it’s important that you start utilizing this amazing opportunity if you’re not already. I’ve mentioned before that you should begin marketing your book before the actual launch. Using social media to create a name for yourself can be the perfect way to begin doing so.

You don’t want to constantly be talking about your book, especially if it’s not launched yet. Your followers are following you not so they can constantly hear about your book (that’s just an added bonus for you). They’re following you so they can get to know you. When your readers get to know a little bit more about you, they’re much more likely to pick up your book when it does launch. They’ve made a connection with you now, gotten to know you a little bit better. You’re not just a random book-salesman now — you’re a friend.

So for those of you who are publishing a book sometime in the future, hop on as many platforms as you can. For those of you who are already using social media, use them as much as you can! People want to know you, so give them what they want. It’ll help make connections that will easily span across the distance of telephone signals.

I practice what I preach! You can find me on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and Goodreads! Just click the links above to check them out 🙂

Are you using any social media? If so, which ones? I love connecting with my readers and fellow writers!

Just keep writing, just keep writing  . . .

— J. L. Willow