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How do self-published authors get noticed?

Promote yourself on social media Popular influencers know the importance of posting regularly, plus how and where to showcase their personal brand. I say where because you don't have to be present everywhere. The most important part is to figure out on which platform your audience is and start being present there.

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Newbies in the literary world have a hard time getting noticed today. And it's no wonder. Millions of books are published each year, among which approximately 1.7 million are self-published.

Knowing how to get noticed as an author is pretty important.

Maybe only a handful of people know about your books right now. No worries. With quality content, readers are on their way. But it will take a bit of effort to get popular among them. So, read on as I've put together a list of tips on how to get noticed as a new author—before and after getting published.

Let's get started.

Before Getting Published

Understand the basics of writing & publishing

As with any activity, start with the basics. You will have a massive advantage over your competitors if you know a thing or two about editing, printing, publishing, and how to advertise your work. To better understand how to get your book noticed, get acquainted with the publishing industry. Good authors are those who write well and who understand their role in the publishing process. They know what tasks to perform and when to outsource to qualified specialists. For example, if you need a book promotion campaign to be effective, but don't have experience with it, you can hire a professional who can handle advertising more efficiently than trying to take everything upon yourself. In the meantime, you can get on with the more critical tasks, like writing. Also, at the initial stage, it would be wise to connect with authors who already have publishing experience. They can give you practical advice, share their failures and successes, and recommend worthy agents and editors.

Most writers are happy to help, don't be shy!

Start a blog

Creating a blog is a must-have. People spend their free time on the internet and get most of their information online. A blog is a powerful communication channel for demonstrating your professional skills and abilities.

Here are a few key reasons why writers start blogs:

You can write about industry topics, post short stories, and share your thoughts on anything you find engaging and exciting. Readers usually connect with this type of content. You can review other books on your blog. This helps showcase your writing skills and establish yourself as an expert in literature. You can tell your blog followers about upcoming books. You can also create powerful lead magnets and gather email addresses, which you can use to send relevant emails about new books or events to your audience. Thus, if you're eager to get noticed as a new writer, starting a blog will surely get you one step closer.

Submit your work to literary magazines

Creative or literary magazines are great places to go if you're looking for ways to get your writing published online or in print. You can meet and connect with other authors too. One example of such a magazine is Lucent Dreaming, founded and run by Jannat Ahmed. Her independent magazine is published twice a year. Its primary goal is to help newbie writers. Thanks to this project, many talented people have discovered ways to get recognized as writers.

Let's take a look at the benefits of publishing in literary journals:

Effective advertising of yourself as an author and your work to a large and interested audience.

Invaluable experience in the publishing process.

Interaction with editors who can point out your mistakes, helping you grow.

Literary magazines publish works on any topic and genre. You can definitely find a niche that suits you. The process of submitting your work to a magazine is similar to submitting a manuscript to an agent. Be sure to:

Follow the submission guidelines.

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Aspiring authors can get their first recognition by publishing in such journals, helping them feel confident in their creative paths.

Choose between traditional publishing and self-publishing

"How to get my writing out there?"

If you want to publish a book the traditional way, you have to send it to a publisher. But the alternative self-publishing route is becoming more and more popular. Remember what I said about those 1.7 million self-published books per year?

If you prefer the second option, take care of the following things before publishing your book: Edit your book to perfection; if necessary, you can seek help from a competent editor. The cover is the face of your book. Make it as eye-catching as possible. Take the time to format the text to make it readable and comfortable to the eyes. To publish your manuscript hassle-free, we recommend using a self-publishing platform that can help you at every step of the publishing process. With PublishDrive, easily publish and distribute your books to numerous stores worldwide.

Once Your Book Is Published

Build your own brand

The term "author brand" may sound like a corporate label, but it's not. An author's brand is everything that represents you, from your tone and style of writing to your author's website and everything you post on the internet. Building your brand is an ongoing process, bringing out what makes your work unique. The beauty of it is that you can frame it however you want people to perceive you. This is why it's important to set a few important aspects related to your author's brand, such as:

Website colors;

Website fonts;

Social media accounts;

Professional headshots and other photos;

Topics to post about on your website and social media.

This takes us to the next step.

Create a professional website

You might argue that promoting your books through social media is preferable, and that an author website is unnecessary. But if you want people to perceive you as a professional, you can't do without a dedicated website.

Your website should contain the following data:

An About the Author section with contact information,

Your biography with photos of your books;

A section with news, upcoming book releases, competitions, etc.;

Links to all Internet resources and addresses of stores where people can buy your books; Social network icons with links that take people straight to your social media accounts. A well-constructed social media strategy can wield so much power. Popular influencers know the importance of posting regularly, plus how and where to showcase their personal brand. I say where because you don't have to be present everywhere. The most important part is to figure out on which platform your audience is and start being present there. One thing is for sure: creating a Facebook Author page can be impactful. This is a great option, especially if you don't have a website yet. Here you can communicate with your audience, share valuable information from the literary world, notify them about upcoming book releases, create polls, and ask for feedback. Be consistent. Try to post regularly so that you stay in front of your followers all the time. Be visually consistent. Help people recognize your posts while scrolling. If you use the same colors and style every time you create an Instagram post, people will associate them with you. Try using the same colors you used on your author website.

Use hashtags so that people can reach you faster.

Don't get carried away with self-promotion. Besides advertising your book, most of your posts should be content your followers can use and learn from.

Join groups of like-minded people

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Find like-minded people to make it easier for you to get extra motivation and inspiration. Connect with people interested in the same topics as you and who overcome the same difficulties and obstacles. This will help you develop and feel part of a group from where you can learn many things that resonate with you. You can often find them in writers' Facebook groups, book launches, or weekly book club lectures. Attending these events will help you get plugged in with the literary community.

Enter literary competitions

Participating in various literary competitions is another way to declare yourself as an author. More people can discover you, who may later become your readers. You may also receive a certain amount of criticism and feedback that can be useful for your further progress as an author. Meet well-known authors, publishing industry representatives, and potential buyers at these events. There's a chance that someone will notice your talent and offer a contract. Don’t miss out on the opportunities to gain invaluable experience, hone your writing skills, and expand your network of contacts.

Gather a few reviews

Before buying or reading something new, users pay attention to reviews. Customers rarely buy when there are zero reviews.

I'm sure you went through the same process at least once.

I'm sure you read reviews as well. If the reviews are negative or nonexistent, chances are that people will abandon the shopping process. These are the realities of modern e-commerce, and you should reckon with them.

So ensure your book has at least a handful of book reviews.

I know, I know. How can you have reviews if no one has bought your book yet?

The answer is: you have to build an ARC team. ARC stands for Advance Reader Copy, which is a copy that you distribute to reviewers to read and review before release. An ARC team is the list of people who sign-up to receive that copy of your book.

Tap into more marketing tactics

And finally, once you've launched your book, get familiar with a few top-notch promotion tactics. If you choose the path of self-publishing without clever marketing, you may not get the success you need and deserve. After you get your writing published, we recommend learning more about how to market your first book.

Here is a quick checklist of what you should do:

Start with a pre-order period : Generate buzz before the actual book launch. Throw a book launch party : Create a fun and effective event and invite people to it through social media or email. Schedule a price promotion: After launching, try offering your book at a discounted or free price. Buy promotional spots: Advertise your book through newsletters and other promotional sites. There are sites, such as Freebooksy, where people are on the lookout for free books. Buy Amazon ads: With Amazon Marketing Services (AMS), get your books in front of visitors based on related titles, keywords, and consumer interests.

Conclusion

The writer's path is unpredictable, and there isn't a one size fits all type of process. Good thing there are still a few general steps you can take towards self-promotion. Competition in the literary environment only grows yearly, further complicating the process. Thus, planning how to get exposure as a writer can take a lot of time and effort. Keep in mind that PublishDrive can help you with self-publishing along with book promotion services to help get you noticed.

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