I recently attended an awesome webinar, hosted by bestselling author, Arielle Ford, and marketing guru, Mike Koenigs. Together, they talked about why some authors make it big, while so many other authors fail.
You can hear part of their discussion at: http://tinyurl.com/3p2q5cc
Because Arielle has worked all aspects of the industry (author, literary agent, publisher), she's definitely worth listening to. She talked about what publishers and agents really look for and what successful authors always do first. Do you want to know what that is?
The biggest take-away for me was to create a book with the end in mind or, in other words, start with the marketing first before you even begin to write. Publishers are looking for an author with a platform. A platform includes your "hook" and why your material is better than anyone else's, but also includes your fan base and how you can prove to a publisher that you already have "x" number of adoring fans who will buy your book the minute it hits store shelves. While we authors love to think our writing is all about the craft, publishing houses are more interested in the saleability of our work. Being an author also means having a head for business.
So here's a tip....begin branding yourself even if you haven't started writing that Great American Novel yet. Create a platform and name for yourself that will get people talking even before your book comes out. Publishers are looking to authors more and more to participate in the marketing process. Long gone are the days when an author handed over a manuscript and the publisher did all the rest of the work to bring the book to market. There is much an author can do to increase the success rate of her book.
Check out the following video to hear more about what Arielle has learned from her many successful years in the industry: http://tinyurl.com/3p2q5cc
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