Writing a novel is no easy feat, but there’s still a lot more to do once that work is done. As a first-time fiction author, how will you get the word out? What do you need to know to market your book effectively?
There are countless resources out there for budding authors, but there are some simple ways you can start promoting your book now. Set aside a few minutes each day to dedicate to marketing your book and incorporate these simple tips into your marketing plan:
Publishing Your First Fiction? Follow These 5 Marketing Tips for First-Time Fiction Authors
1. Start Building Your Author Platform Now
If you are working on your first book, you need to be building your author platform now. If you are already a published author, it’s not too late — you can still start growing your following and increasing your online presence.
But why do you need an author platform at all?
The truth is that in today’s competitive book market, writers of all kinds have to rely on their own marketing efforts — especially when they’re starting out. The traditional publishing model has changed significantly over the past few decades; these days, it’s easy for anyone to start putting their work out there — which is both an advantage and a challenge.
You can easily create an author platform for yourself. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy: a simple one-page site will do the trick; include a professional-looking portrait, some basic details about yourself and your writing, and links to your social media profiles.
The good news is that building an author platform doesn’t have to be complicated or time-consuming. A few simple steps will give you a solid foundation from which to grow:
- You can use a simple author platform like AllAuthor to create your own account.
- You can add all your books and personal bio to this platform and use this as an author landing page.
- You can include all your details to this AllAuthor profile — your social media handles, your book’s buy link, your personal info (as much as you want to provide) and many more.
2. Write Guest Blogs and Articles
If you want to increase your readership, one great way of doing this is by writing guest posts on other blogs or websites. It’s an excellent way to build credibility for yourself as an expert in your field and market your book through backlinks. It’s also a great way to build up your reputation with other bloggers who might write about your book on their own sites.
There are several websites that accept blogs from fiction authors. Start by searching online for websites relevant to your books, such as those based on their genre or target audience, and check if they accept guest posts. Make sure you read their guidelines carefully; some will require exclusive content, while others might have a specific word count or style they want you to follow. This will help you get noticed and build up a name for yourself as an authority in your niche.
3, Make Sure Your Book Description Is SEO-friendly
We can’t stress how important it is to optimize your book description — and this is something most first-time fiction authors miss out on.
Don’t just assume that everyone will find out about your book from word of mouth. The internet has made it easier than ever for people to find books they might like, but if they can’t find yours, then they won’t buy it.
Make sure that when people search online for books like yours, your title comes up. You can improve the visibility by optimizing the book description to ensure that they rank well when people search for books like yours. If you sell ebooks, make sure that the product descriptions on retailers like Amazon are keyword optimized so that your titles show up in relevant searches.
4. Connect with the Author Community
Since you’re a new fictional author, it’s best to make friends with other authors to learn from their experiences. Surrounding yourself with like-minded creatives will help get your name out there and possibly lead to some co-marketing opportunities in the future. You can also connect with authors through AllAuthor Pool, send them messages, check out the Author Tips section and learn from the experienced ones.
5. Participate in Author Interviews
No one said that a new author has to struggle to make it to the top. As an author, you’ll have a lot to say and this is where your interviews come in.
Since you’re new to the world of fiction, not many would know about you, your background and how your book will be. So an interview will help bolster your book promotions and add credibility.
At AllAuthor, we conduct author interviews that get published on our website as well as our social media handles. Once you sign up, you can request an interview and our team will come up with a personalized set of questionnaires made just for you and your book. This will help you talk more about your new fiction book, vision, and personality and resonate with your target audience.
Wrapping Up
It is no secret that the book publishing world has undergone a significant shift in the last few years. What authors used to rely on publishers to do, publishers can now be responsible for themselves. With a self-help platform like AllAuthor, you can market your books in just a fraction of the usual publisher’s marketing budget. And you can now have a professional profile and all the assistance you’ll need to market your books and get more eyes on your first release.
First-time fiction author and new to AllAuthor? Create your own account now.
