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	Marketing Your Own Book
	by Susan Molthop

Revised August 3, 2007

First, you need to know what you're getting into. Here are two sites to get you started: Your marketing plan , from Online Book Marketing, and How to Promote Your Book , by Bill Adler, Jr. They want to sell you their services, but they're also giving away a lot of good info.

Now is it time to write a press release? NO! You should have done that BEFORE YOU WROTE THE BOOK. You may not have known the publisher's name or release date back then, but you should have known who your audience would be and how to describe your story in a way that would grab that audience -- in 25 words or less. It's not too late, however. Here's a link to the PRW site, for their 10 Essential Tips For Writing Press Releases.

Naturally, you'll want your own Web site. If this isn't your cup of tea, don't worry. You can design a simple page, like a flyer, and have it on the Internet in a matter of minutes. All it really needs is basic info about you and your books, your email address, and a link to your publisher or an online bookstore for ordering. The rest is all sauce. Hundreds of companies offer free Web space. WARNING: Web sites can become addictive. You could spend more time tweaking your Web pages than it would take to write another book, so be careful.

Get involved in a "community." This is a variation on networking. The difference is that networking means "you wash my back, I'll wash yours." Joining a community means sharing your expertise -- for free -- in the hope that you'll make friends who will want to help you succeed (by talking up and buying your book). These communities can be in the real world (free workshops or seminars) or online (bulletin boards and chat rooms). They work, but they can be very time-consuming and just as big a trap as a Web site, so budget your time wisely.

I am NOT suggesting that you market your own book or sign up for any services. Your time might be better spent working on the next one and leaving the marketing to your publisher.

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