changing tunes, or taking a different trail, or shaking it up--Marketing

Just to be honest at the outset, I'm tackling a subject here that I don't know much about--the dreaded m word that every self-published author fears.  I'm working on book seven now and have been hoping that sales will pick up because of so many books in the marketplace, but alas, I still have not found my tribe. This year I've spent more money on this, doing newspaper ads here in Tucson and paying for ads online. I've also found two or three places that for a nominal fee will tweet an ad for your book. http://masqueradecrew.blogspot.com/ is one of them. BooksGoSocial.com, a site based in Dublin, does reviews and features books for a nominal fee. Also has an awesome blog with many tips for writers.

A problem that I have which may not be your problem at all, is that I sign up on these sites, pay with paypal and then forget about them--apparently my mind has no follow-up ability. And following up is VERY important! (especially if money changes hands)

When posting on FB, blogging or tweeting, try and be consistent. By that I mean do it often, not do it the same. I've heard that posting early in the morning or late in the evening is the best time to reach readers. And don't just advertise yourself, try and expose who you are aside from being an author. And interact if you can with whatever subjects interest you.

 I'm still struggling with Twitter when it comes to this. I guess it's the hashtag thingy that I find somewhat confusing. Maybe you can start a sort of thread by adding # whatever? and then see who responds...just putting a tweet out there doesn't seem to do much since I've posted questions that get no answers. For some reason I'm getting more and more followers and I'm not sure why. I'm muddling along with it and trying day by day to figure it out and respond in kind.

Facebook is an entire other world. I haven't been posting on my author page and have been told that I should. And according to my source, this should happen five to eight times a week! Doesn't always have to be about the books, in fact it's better if it isn't. (confusing, right?) I see people filling up the page with automatic posts. I do not want to do that no matter how entertaining they might be. If I personally do not have time to look something up and then post about it, forget it.

All in all be yourself.

Thank you for reading and I appreciate any and all comments!

can't stop writing

This title can be taken two ways:
1. I cannot stop myself from writing, which is how I meant it
2. To be successful you can't stop writing

I'm thinking positively about how things are going because I have the sense that there is a momentum building. I don't look at my 'stats', I don't lament the fact that there aren't a hundred downloads a day. I don't wish for more than I have.

Yesterday two people from my yoga class purchased one of my books. I was thrilled and touched. Every little bit helps. Word of mouth is a big seller. I haven't forgotten all the sites where my book is listed. I'm working on a promo in June on the Indie author promo site. For a mere $25 they will:

• Posts advertised to over 234,574 of IBP’s combined followers from Twitter, Google +, Facebook, Reddit, Digg, Stumbelupon and more
• One month of Sidebar Advertising
• Choice of guest post, author interview, book blurb/excerpt feature
• Free use of Free Days and Cheap Books databases
• Author/book listed on “Authors We Featured” and “Books 4 Sale” page
• Book cover advertised and archived on Facebook, Pinterest and Google+ with links to Amazon
• Your post stays on our highly optimized site for the duration of IBP

This is bronze--they also have other packages to choose from. 

I'm tweeting more. Not necessarily about my books but sometimes tangentially--also about subjects I care about deeply like Monsanto's take-over or the Tar Sands pipeline and animal welfare. Have noticed more people following me. Not sure why when I check out their profiles. Sometimes it's their form of advertising, other times I can't discern the reason. In any case I usually follow back.

I'm working on two books at the same time. One is the sequel to Gypsy's Quest and the other a completely unrelated story that takes place in the desert. This is helpful because when I'm stuck on one I go to the other. Still working out whether it's a good idea to publish them at the same time. Perhaps there should be a month between them?

How is marketing going for you? Any new ideas popping up? Delighted to hear any and all comments.

Thank you for reading!