Congratulations you've written a book and have either found a publisher or gone the self publishing route. Now you need to market it. But you're a writer and have no idea of where to start. You're not alone. A lot of writers don't realise that they will have a second job once they become a published author. Marketing can take more time and effort that actually writing the book! It is however part of the package and essential if you want to build a reputation and sell copies. Don't panic though it doesn't have to be difficult or expensive.

Here's a simple guide to get you started.

Step 1.

Have a website. This is the most important marketing item and your 'home' online. Having your own domain name will look more professional. 

Info to include on your website:

Step 2.

Have a blog. This can be an alternative to step one or an additional marketing tool (but should include all the above mentioned info some where on site). 

Try to post regularly in order to build an audience. A few ideas for content:

• latest book reviews
• info about events you're taking part in
• your life as a writer
• background about your books/characters/settings etc...
• excerpts from your books
• advice to other writers drawing on your own experience
• video book trailers

Use social media. Set up a Facebook page and a Twitter account making sure to personalise your profiles for best results. Feed your blog to post updates automatically to your profiles to save you time. Use these profiles to network and to reach out to your target market but also to build a reputation. You are the brand.

Step 4.

Organise a virtual tour. Now you've started to build an online presence it's time to draw in an audience. During your tour direct people to your website and social media profiles so you can continue to connect with them in the future. It also gives them a way to find out more about you and your projects, hopefully turning them into fans.

Be sure to thank all your hosts and to answer all questions/comments left on posts.

This is a very brief guide just to get you started but should help give you an idea of the sorts of things you need to be doing in order to market your books.

When marketing remember that you are the answer. Who and why should people be interested in you and your books? What are you offering them? Keep this in mind and it should help you stay focussed on your marketing goals.

Have you got some marketing tips to share?

The genesis of this blog comes from the thousands of folks who have attended Larry Brooks’ writing workshops. The consensus is this: “I’ve been attending writing workshops for many years, and I’ve read all the how-to books, and this is not only the best thing I’ve heard, it’s the first time someone has actually shown me HOW to write a novel (and/or a screenplay), structurally and thematically.” The developmental model referenced in that consensus feedback is what Brooks calls “The Six Core Competencies of Successful Storytelling,” which is the topic of his forthcoming book by the same name.

Writing workshops and how-to books come in all flavors and intentions. But rarely is the process broken down into specific developmental criteria, from concept to character to sequence and theme, with a vision for how all the parts come together to become a whole in excess of their parts. This blog is based on that process.

Brooks is a critically-acclaimed bestselling author of four psychological thrillers, in addition to his work as a freelance writer and writing instructor.

His message to all writers who wish to publish is this: the bar is very high, and the market is very crowded. There is only one thing you have control over in this business, and it’s not your career (which is largely out of your hands, to be honest) — it’s your manuscript. It doesn’t need to be perfect, it needs to be better than perfect. It needs to grab an agent or an editor who has seen it all before by the throat and squeeze. This blog is about how you can evolve your work to that level.