Congratulations on your new book! Maybe it’s complete, maybe it’s a work in progress. No matter what phase you’re in, you’re probably wondering what you should be sharing with potential readers to get them excited about reading it.
Hopefully, by now, you’ve also established your writing platform. If not, what are you waiting for? An author website is a great way to connect with your readers and to help new readers discover your work. You can start a website in a matter of a few minutes once you’ve selected a platform. Personally, I use WordPress for my self-hosted website. The user interface makes creating the site, and subsequent blog posts, incredibly easy. They offer cost-effective options to fit any budget.
Once you’ve created your beautiful, new website, you’re ready to start telling your readers all about your upcoming book.
What Inspired the Story?
A snippet of conversation, a photo, a writing prompt. Writers get inspiration from any number of places. When I wrote my first book, the original idea came from a conversation with a friend. These are the kinds of stories your readers will connect with. So tell them!
Your Writing Process
This is an idea that can lend itself to multiple posts:
How do you outline your stories?
Do you use vision boards?
What music do you listen to when you’re writing?
Do you type or handwrite your stories? Why?
How do you develop the world where your story will take place?
How do you develop your characters?
The list goes on. Giving your readers a behind the scenes look at your creative process helps them connect not only with your work, but also with you. They feel a part of it, giving them a feeling of being vested in your work.
Your Research
Are you working on historical fiction? A story routed in ancient mythology? Tell your readers about the process of researching your story. Incorporate photos from your research trips. If you interviewed someone, publish the interview (or just a portion). Be sure to get your subject’s permission first.
An Interview with One of Your Characters
This probably sounds a little odd. After all, we’re talking about fictional characters. So we’re basically talking about interviewing the voices in your head. But this is a great way to show your readers your development process without just telling them about it. Plus, it introduces your character’s voice to your readers. It gives them a feel for the tone of your story, without having to release any of it.
Think about your character as if they were an actor/actress giving an interview about their upcoming movie. What would you ask them? This is also a great exercise to identify any holes in your character development, but that’s a different discussion.
Join 5,500+ Followers
As a thank you for registering for our email list, you’ll receive free printable reading journal templates and a bonus 100 book reading list! Members of the email list also receive an exclusive discount code for my Etsy store: MapleStreetStudioHRS.
Interview Yourself
Let’s face it, handling your own publicity, as an indie author, is a challenging and time consuming process. So make use of your own author platform by conducting an interview with yourself. Build a list of questions and answer them honestly.
An Excerpt or A Chapter
Giving your readers a sneak peek at a portion of your book is a great way to get readers excited about its release. Depending on the length of your chapters, you may want to select only an excerpt. Provide an introduction, setting the stage for what your readers are about to enjoy. Keep the excerpt to about 1,500 words. Enough to give a flavor of your writing without giving too much away.
The Book Blurp
Ask any writer the worst part about writing a book and I would be willing to bet many would say writing the blurp for the back cover. So use this opportunity to get some feedback from your audience. Use a call to action statement in your post to solicit feedback from your audience.
The Cover Art
Don’t just release the cover art. Tell the story behind it. Did you work with an artist? Develop it yourself? What’s the underlying meaning behind it that makes it the perfect fit for your book? Cover art development is an interesting process. Talk about it!
Count Down to Your Release
You’ve made your final edits, selected your cover, perfected your blurb. Set up a countdown of posts the week leading up to your book. This is a good time to refresh earlier posts where you’ve talked about different aspects of your writing process and your story. Use your most popular posts to help create anticipation and buzz about your new book.
Do you have ideas for pre-release blog posts? Share them in the comments!
[Updated July 2, 2022] You’ve slaved away for weeks, months, possibly years creating your masterpiece. You’ve edited. You’ve proofread. You’ve tweaked the formatting. You’ve agonized. You’ve probably even cried a little. Hey, we’ve all been there! But you’ve finally hit ‘publish’ and launched your book. Now comes the hard part. Marketing. Fortunately, this article is…
Why Does Proofreading Matter? Whether you’re working on a professional document, an academic assignment, or the next great American novel, nothing kills your credibility with your reader faster than poor editing. Spending a little extra time polishing your document is worthwhile. But running a simple spell check isn’t enough. While great for catching misspelled words,…
[Content Updated July 2, 2022] Why Do Book Reviews Matter? Book reviews are an important way to support the work of authors you love. They are a simple way to thank your favorite authors for the work they do. Readers select books based on recommendations. So leaving reviews on sites like Amazon and Goodreads are…
As a thank you for registering for our email list, you’ll receive free printable reading journal templates and a bonus 100 book reading list! Members of the email list also receive an exclusive discount code for my Etsy store: MapleStreetStudioHRS.
This page contains affiliate links. This means for any purchase made, I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you.
Jewish Children's Books The Mitzvah of Teaching Children The Torah commands us to teach our children and with Rosh Hashanah fast approaching, so too is the start of the religious school year in many synagogues and temples. As a teacher myself, I'm also preparing for the return to the classroom. I teach a group of …
April Short Story Feature One of the highlights of my tenure as a member of Toastmasters was coordinating a Murder Mystery theme meeting. Keeping members engaged and motivated to continue working toward their goals can be a challenge. So in an effort to liven things up a bit, I worked with a few other members …
Attention writers! This month's short story contest theme is: A Short Story Inspired by Your Career Entries must be received by midnight April 24th, cst. Selected stories will be featured during the month of October. Read on for further guidelines. Short Story Contest Guidelines Stories are to be 1,500 to 3,000 words. All genres welcome. …
Read Along with Me This week, I'm looking forward to enjoying a pair of thrillers. The first is a spy thriller, The Man in the Corduroy Suit. Author James Wolff draws on his own experience working in the British government for this series. And my second selection, The Hand that Feeds You by Mercedes Rosende, …
Are you enjoying the interviews, book reviews, and short story features? All of this is offered at no cost to the authors I work with. Please help me keep it free by making a contribution. Thank you for your support!