Using NetGalley to Promote Your Book
I’ve written
three stories and for the first time, based on input from my tour host, I used
NetGalley to get an advanced reader copy (ARC)of my last novel (Preordained)
into the hands of readers. Readers from all walks of life (bloggers,
librarians, book sellers, reviewers) are all registered on NetGalley. I’ve
gotten free reviews posted on Goodreads and retailer sites through NetGalley.
The only caveat is that if you submit an ARC, the posted reviews are based on
your incomplete manuscript. Some reviewers don’t post the fact that their
review is based on an ARC. Overall, I found the results to be great and I plan
to use NetGalley for future releases.
Self-Published Authors and B&N
Prior to
Preordained, I used both Amazon and IngramSpark to get my eBook and paperback
versions of my stories listed on retailer sites. This time, I decided to
publish my eBook myself on B&N, Kobo, Apple, and Google. Self-publishing on
B&N has given me direct access to sales metrics and price promotion
services. You can easily pre-schedule price drops for specific timeframes on
short notice.
Tips for Working with an Illustrator
For my children’s
chapter book titled Ralphy the Rabbit, I visited the Society of Children’s Book
Authors and Illustrators website and found Lorian Dean, a wonderful
illustrator. She was professional, punctual, and had a fully formed project
plan that we used. Her plan helped me to get the requirements nailed, she
performed the design work, I reviewed and supplied feedback, and then she
delivered her completed work, all on time and on budget. There are tons of
reasonably priced illustrators listed on their site. Each of them has displays
of their work posted to allow you to review samples of their illustrations
prior to engagement with them. I provided an overall description of what I wanted
depicted in each chapter and Lorian did the rest. It was a great experience
Backstory and the Hidden Story
Development of a
backstory is a key component I use to construct my character actions and
motivations before the start of my stories. I also use it to identify the key
event that triggers the first page of chapter one. Each of my novels also
contain a puzzle the main character must solve, making the hidden story another
key component I need to compile and keep the story spine intact. Although my stories
are primarily thrillers, they all have a whodunit big bad guy and development
of the hidden story before embarking on writing the manuscript helps me to
reduce the amount of time to complete the body of work.
Before publishing his debut novel in 2016, he served over 27 years as an information technology professional working initially for the US Navy, and then the Department of the Navy and various fortune companies. He’s a UCLA writing program alumnus who writes mystery thrillers and children stories. He has three wonderful kids who he enjoys immensely. Writing is his passion and his goal with each story is to capture the imagination in the opening pages and keep it engaged to the story’s riveting conclusion.
Catch Up With Mr Wallace On: davidlwallace.com, Goodreads, Twitter, & Facebook!
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