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This is a long one, so I’ve decided to split this blog into two parts, before and after.

As of this time what to do after having a book published is only speculation on my part, and I’m counting on any readers I have who have gotten published to please give me their insight.  And speaking of insight, one of the influences for this blog is the very informative Publishing Insights (http://publishinginsights.org/); it’s one of my favorite writing blogs and the information shared has been extremely helpful to me, and I would like to take the time to plug it.

The other inspiration came from my wife after watching an episode of Mike and Molly.  The character of Molly had made the transition from school teacher to writer and published a book, and honestly the release of it was one of the more realistic portrayals of a writer on TV in a long time.  She had no huge release party by her publisher, and no one wanted to buy her book.  There you go.  After watching it, my wife turned to me wondering what could be done to successfully sell a book once you’re done writing, revising, and gotten it published.

This is something I’ve wondered about myself; you see I have two novels I’ve written that are unpublished because I’m still working on them with revisions and edits.  It’s part of a trilogy that I have planned in a universe that I’ve filled out quite nicely, and I have several breakout characters from this universe that I think would make for more great stories.  So let’s say I submit the finished product and some publisher decides to print it.  What do I do next?

This is not a rhetorical question, I really want to know, anybody out there with advice?  Anyone?  Anyone?  Bueller? Bueller?

Okay, I’ll wait until later for any comment.  Until then I’ll continue.

See, there lies the great unknown mystery, at least to me.  Because, as many of us know, the days of the publisher throwing a grand release party with champagne and caviar and then funding multi city book tours are over for many first time writers.  That is unless you have a boatload of fans that are definitely going to buy your book and give the publisher a hit.  Writer’s Digest calls this a writer’s platform (basically a platform is what are you doing to make yourself visible to others so they will see you as writer).  Unfortunately for most, if you have a popular platform, writing is probably not even your number one priority.  Here the book is just one of many aspects of marketing for this particular platform because the “writer” is either a celebrity or has some kind notoriety that put them on the forefront of modern culture and really stands out.  (I say “writer” because more than likely a professional ghost writer is involved).

Let’s face it, the duck redneck guys, or a female T.V. chef nearing disgrace who uses a lot of butter and sugar are already famous to begin with.  Because of television they already have a fan base, and thus a platform, so when they publish a book the publisher is going to throw a huge party and invest in a multi-city signings at major book stores because they know these people are going to sell.

This is a classic catch-22.  Because you have fame you have a platform, so now you have a publisher.  But to get a publisher it helps to have fame and a platform.  And unless you’re already a brand with a fan base it can be hard if you are just purely a writer for writings sake.  It’s enough to drive you crazy.  Or grow a beard and act racist, or become a T.V. chef and act racist.

So what about those writers who actually write, are successful, and immediately get on The New York Times Bestsellers list?  Two of the best examples of writers with esteemed careers and a huge following are Stephen King and J.K. Rowling.  After all, the very fact is they have a name and if they were to release a book, people would go nuts and their publishers would rent Disney Land to launch if they could.

And I’m pretty sure when their first books came out they were probably low key affairs.  It wasn’t until after they exploded that their release parties and nationwide book tour were all expenses paid by the publisher.

The fact of the matter is those glory days are gone when a young hopeful would be given the keys to the kingdom.

So what I’m trying to figure out now is what I can do to push my book in order to get maximum visibility.  The following is only speculation since to date I do not have a book printed.  I have only published a few short stories and some poems, and also this blog for the general public to view.

From my own studies, one of the most important things to do, even before your book is out, is for you to sell yourself as a writer to everyone.  That means you have to go out and raise awareness.  And also the most important thing is this, tell everyone, especially yourself (because honestly the hardest part for some of us when it comes to selling ourselves is ourselves) that you are a writer.  And you are here to stay.

So as a writer here are a few ideas I have that you can do to raise your profile before you publish your first book:

1: Build a platform using the internet.  According to other writers and Writer’s Digest, one of the best ways to do that is to start a blog, (pssst it’s what you’re reading right now…gotcha!).  Create your own website, use Twitter, Facebook, and from there you plug it to everyone.  And you have your friends and readers to pass it on to everyone they know.  Raise that damn flag and let it flap.  Oh, and post regularly.

2: Submit short stories and start a buzz.  In the same format, enter writing contests (legitimate ones) and if successful you will start getting interest in other aspects of your writing career.

3: Join an established writers group.  By joining a writing group that has established writers, but takes in novice authors, you are part of a group that can be conducive to a creative atmosphere.  Anything that gets you writing has to be a good thing.

4: Form your own writers group and start grounding yourself with other writers to get established.  You learn from each other with growing pains if you are constructive; you can help each other become better writers.  And if you become an established writers group, you get buzz that has other writers wanting to join you.  The advantages of an established writers group can help lead you to the next step.

3: Network with other writers (which, if you’re part of a writing group you’re halfway there).  Writers who have other writers who collaborate for input and feedback in their lives live longer than writers without other writers and collaborators (wait, I think that statistic is actually related to having cats and dogs in your life).  Regardless, whether it extends your lifespan or not, if you have become associated with established writers and start getting feedback from them, then you have an advantage in getting your work noticed by others.  These established writers will reach out to those who support their platform to tell them that you are a good writer and they should be reading you.  And in reverse you plug these writers to your platform and tell your followers to read these people.  Remember sharing is caring.

4: Open mics or any forum for public readings that you can get invited to.  This can be for poetry (most of the readings I have attended have been predominantly poetry based), but some even do short prose or a chapter from a book to spark interest, and if you’re a musician you perform and then mention your other artistic endeavours.  If you can form interest in your work now, when you have a book you have homegrown support.  If there are no places that do poetry readings in your area maybe you can arrange something with a local coffee house or bar with a lot of space.  If you are part of a writers group, maybe all of you as a whole can organize a function at a local place and then use all your contacts and social media to advertise and get people to your reading.  And if you do organize the open mic make sure that at the end of the night you (and anyone else involved in putting it together i.e. your writers group) take credit for starting something wonderful.

Part II next week.