I hope you enjoy today’s Book Marketing Update. I have decided to take a summer break from my weekly roundup of book marketing and social media blog posts.

So, you won’t be hearing from me again until the fall.

There were some super blog posts this past week so be sure to check out the ones I’ve outlined below.

Have a great summer!

Book Marketing

How To Get Your Self-Published Book Into Libraries – from Joanna Penn and with Eric Otis Simmons: In this podcast, which is transcribed into a blog post, Eric Otis Simmons explains how he pitches and sells to libraries throughout the U.S.

127+ Of The Top Free And Paid Book Promotion Services – from Dave Chesson: This is a comprehensive list of book promotion sites. Dave also shares a downloadable PDF of his favorite sites.

Did you miss the US Book Show? Here were some of the top book marketing takeaways. – from BookBub Partners: Read the highlights from this virtual conference. I agree with this takeaway: “When it comes to digital marketing and advertising, experts emphasized the importance of mastering one tool at a time.”

Books PR & Marketing Questions Answered Part VIII – from Writer Unboxed and by Ann Marie Nieves: If you are confused about the differences between public relations and marketing, check out this blog post.

Publishing

Is Hybrid Publishing Ethical? – from Jane Friedman and by Meghan Harvey: From Jane Friedman: “I’m publishing Meghan’s perspective because I think she’s right that it’s problematic to equate ethical hybrid publishing with a positive return on investment for the author via book sales alone.”

Social Media News

LinkedIn Adds New Elements to ‘Creator Mode’ Including Audio Events and New Audience Growth Opportunities – from Social Media Today: This new feature will benefit nonfiction writers.

Read These Too

ISBN Issues: You really need to read this notice to understand what is happening with ISBNs, especially if you buy your own (and I hope you do) and you purchased a block of numbers in the 2000’s.

Amazon Starts Monthly Book Club – from Publishers Weekly: You can join Amazon’s book club headed by Sarah Gelman, the editorial director for books, or use this feature to start your own group.

They’re (NOT) Gonna Put you in the Movies: Beware Book-to-Film Scams – by Anne R. Allen: This blog post is a must read. (I love Anne’s cautionary tales about our industry.)

Quote of the Week

Welcome to a late yet early bird edition of the Book Marketing Update.

I skipped last week due to the Memorial Day holiday in the US so instead of waiting until Thursday to publish the next one, I am sending this update to you two days early.

So this is an early bird edition, so to speak.

Below are some great posts I gathered over the past week or so. You’ll enjoy every one if you have time to read them.

By the way, I don’t usually discuss on this blog the books I’m reading. But I’ve got to tell you about “Project Hail Mary” by Andy Weir. I don’t ever read sci-fi yet I wanted to read this novel because I’d seen the movie “The Martian” (yes, I’m sure the book was better) and I wanted to read Weir’s next book.

I’m not a science/mathematics/astronomy/physics nerd at all — and there is plenty of science in the book. Yet I loved it. The characters, who are still in my heart, jumped off the page and seemed so real.

I love Weir’s story, too. He blogged his first book, taking and incorporating scientists’ input along the way. So when he self-published “The Martian” and it sold like hotcakes, a publisher scooped him up.

If you are a fiction writer, keep up with your blog. It does help!

Enough from me. Hope you enjoy this update.

Book Marketing

Promote Your Book with Your Values – from Jane Friedman’s blog and by Sonya Huber: This is an intriguing blog post from a writer who, at one point, was marketing her book while contending with long COVID-19 and raising a teen.

6 Ways Your Author Bio Can Help You Sell Books – by Ruth Harris: Not sure what to include in your author bio? Read this post.

Is BookTok Changing the Way We Talk About Books? – from Book Riot: BookTok has changed the way we talk about books. If your readers use TikTok, be sure to read this blog post.

Why testing BookBub Ads Pays Off – from BookBub Partners and by Carlyn Robertson: BookBub is a wonderful resource for writers. Definitely check out this blog post.

Social Media

What happens when you only share Reels on Instagram – from Later: In this interview, the person who switched entirely to Reels saw her Instagram account grow by 60K followers in six months.

81 Different Types of Social Media Post to Amaze Your Followers [Infographic] – from Social Media Today: Not sure what to post on social media every day? Here’s a list for you with 81 suggestions.

Email Marketing

Build Your Email List With Reader Magnets With – from Joanna Penn and with Tammi Labrecque: This excellent podcast episode explains why email marketing is an integral component of book marketing.

How to Grow Your Author Email List – with Tammi Labrecque and from Author Media: “

There is a simple technique to get readers to want to sign up for your newsletter. For decades, this technique has worked for thousands of authors. And it works better than ever today. What is it? Reader Magnets.”

Publishing

The Hybrid Publisher Debate: Do You Have the Right Mindset? – from Jane Friedman and by Debbie Weiss: “In short, grouping all hybrid and paid-for publishers together is far too simplistic, and picking the right publishing option depends on every author’s own thorough self-assessment. Like the legal disclaimers state, individual results may vary.”

Read These Too

88 Books to Bring Your Summer Alive – from The New York Times: “The season’s thrillers, true crime, romances and plenty more will delight readers of all stripes and feathers.”

2022 International Booker Prize Winner Announced – from Book Riot: “Tomb of Sand is the first book originally written in any Indian language to win the award and the first novel translated from Hindi to be recognized in the prize’s history.”

Quote of the Week

This week’s Book Marketing Update is a simpler version.

I decided to focus entirely on book marketing news. Hope you like this tidier version.

Have a great weekend and keep writing. BTW: There won’t be a Book Marketing Update next week due to the US holiday, Memorial Day.

Book Marketing

Why do good books fail to sell while poorly written books fly off the shelves? – from Author Media: “As an author, you must realize that some people are afraid to buy your book because they don’t want your book to make them feel guilty if they don’t finish it. These readers need to know what benefit they’ll gain from reading your book.”

I’ll Be Fine if You Don’t Read This Article – by Rick Lewis and from The Writing Cooperative: “What if instead of trying to capture the attention of other people we offered to FREE it? Imagine having the largesse we’d need to happily remind them, ‘I’ll be fine, and so will you, if you decide not to read this article.'”

Writing, Independence, And Selling Books Direct – from Joanna Penn and with Derek Sivers: Joanna Penn is consistently on the front lines of technology within the writing and book marketing spheres. Be sure to read this post.

How Bad Marketing Can Destroy Your Author Brand, Lose Friends, and Influence Nobody – by Anne R. Allen: “Bad marketing is worse than none. And I’ve seen some breathtakingly bad marketing strategies recently. I assume authors are hiring cut-rate online marketers who have more experience selling real estate in Mumbai and knock-off designer sunglasses than books.”

Quote of the Week

“When your story is ready for rewrite, cut it to the bone. Get rid of every ounce of excess fat. This is going to hurt; revising a story down to the bare essentials is always a little like murdering children, but it must be done.” — Stephen King

I hope you enjoy today’s Book Marketing Update.

I found a lot of great blog posts this past week that will help you to sell more books. However, if you only read one article, please read “Is It a Steal?” This article provides an important lesson for those authors pursuing a hybrid publishing deal.

Enjoy the blog posts and keep writing and publishing!

Book Marketing

9 Ways Authors Use Crowdfunding Platforms to Reward Readers – from BookBub Partners: “… crowdfunding can be a powerful tool for authors. In addition to helping authors fund future works, crowdfunding and subscription platforms can provide new ways to build relationships with readers and reward avid fans.”

How to Run a Kickstarter Campaign for Your Book with Jonathan Shuerger – from Author Media: It can be expensive to be an indie author. Honing your craft, finding editors, and paying for book cover designs can all add up to a major expense. Check out this podcast/blog post to learn how to get started on Kickstarter.

Common BookMarketing Failures – from Alliance of Independent Authors: This blog post captures input from a Twitter chat that the Alliance of Independent Authors hosts every week.

Writing, Independence, And Selling Books Direct – from Joanna Penn and with Derek Sivers: “Why is writing so important? How can we pursue true independence as authors? How can we stay open to technological change while still focusing on the fundamentals of craft? Derek Sivers talks about these things and more.”

Publishing

Is It a Steal? – from The Society of Authors: Please read this article if you are about to publish and are being enticed by a hybrid publisher.

How To Self-Publish Your Book On Amazon – from The Writing Cooperative and by Rick Govic: This post takes writers through all the steps to self-publish a book, including how to format a book and create a cover.

Social Media

TikTok for Authors: The Ultimate Guide – by Jason Hamilton and from Dave Chesson’s blog: “TikTok has become all the rage among authors lately. Authors from all over are tapping into the culture of “BookTok” and making a lot of money doing it. But is TikTok really worth it?” (Heck yeah!)

BookTok’s Impact on U.S. Books | Adult Fiction Gets a BookTok Bump – from Now in Entertainment Podcast: Find out how BookTok is fueling US book sales.

Read These Too

Creativity: How to Unlock Your Hidden Creative Genius – by James Clear: How to Unlock Your Hidden Creative Genius: In this article, the author shows “how creativity works, how to find your hidden creative genius, and how to create meaningful work by learning how to make creative thinking a habit.”

Wanna Be a Paperback Writer? The Scoop on Writing Series Books! – by Melodie Campbell and from Anne R. Allen and Ruth Harris: Interested in writing a series? Check out this post.

Quote of the Week

“Show me a writer who’s in control of their story 100% from beginning to end, and I’ll show you a boring book.” Stephen Monteith