#IWSG: Flying High

It's that time again. Insecure Writers Support Group meets once a month online where writers share and encourage each other.  IWSG is the brainchild of Ninja Captain Alex J. Cavanaugh Thanks, Alex, for starting this group and keeping it going. And thanks to this month's awesome hosts Nancy Gideon, Bob R Milne, Doreen McGettigan, Chrys Fey, Bish Denham, and Pat Garcia!

There is nothing like the euphoria of having a new book released. Whether it’s your first or fifteenth, the feeling is the same. You do a happy dance, shout “whoo-hoo” to anyone who will listen, kick back for about ten minutes, then it’s back to work. Nobody knows about your brilliant book—except friends and family—unless you tell them. So it’s promo time.

Now some people liken promotion to going to the dentist. It’s a necessary but onerous chore. I see it as part of producing a product. You may have the world’s best invention, but if people don’t know about it you aren’t going to have many sales. Although I find the Go Daddy commercial obnoxious—the one with the woman and her family doing a happy dance because she got her first sale that wasn’t to family—it’s on target.

Did you know there’s a secret to effective promotion? No? Well, no one else does either. We try Twitter, Facebook, blogging, websites, Pinterest even. Does any of it work? Who knows? Since I’m self-published, I can go to all the vendors where I uploaded my book (Amazon, B&N, Kobo, Smashwords) and see how many books sold that day, week, month. But what influenced a reader to buy the book? Word of mouth advertising works best for me as a reader. Remember when booksellers did that? “If you like so-and-so author, try such-and-such. Wouldn’t it be great if people who really like our books, shouted it all over the internet? Maybe that’s what reviews are for? Ya think?

The upshot is we do our best, some DIY, some paid advertising. We cross our fingers and hope.

My euphoria is starting to wear off after a week plus since the release of THE PROTECTOR. I’m not flying quite so high. Still levitating a couple of inches off the ground, though. 

Here’s the blurb for my newest science fiction romance:

After tavern owner Rissa Dix rescues two girls from a slave ship, she must rally the townsfolk to prevent traffickers from returning. Mining heir Dillan Rusteran has loved her for years. Little do they know that by rescuing more children they're tangling with a trafficking ring that puts Rissa in danger.

The Protector is available at Amazon B&N iTunes Kobo Smashwords

Click here to find others on the Insecure Writers Support Group Blog Hop. Or go to IWSG on Facebook to see who’s blogging today.