OLD POST ALERT! This is an older post and although you might find some useful tips, any technical or publishing information is likely to be out of date. Please click on Start Here on the menu bar above to find links to my most useful articles, videos and podcast. Thanks and happy writing! – Joanna Penn
You might have noticed that one of the themes of this blog is “Get out there and do it yourself!”
Take control of your own writing destiny. Don't wait for someone to give you permission, don't think someone else will market you, don't take rejection as a lifetime No. Just get up and do it, whatever it takes to achieve your dream!
I met up with these guys, Anthony Puttee and Kev Webb, at the Brisbane Writers Festival. They are the authors of ‘Dream Raider: A Johnny Marsh Adventure'. Check out the brilliant cover!
I met them on Twitter @JohnnyMarshNet and discovered they are local, so we met up and did a video about the book and what they are doing to market it.
Highlights in text are below the video.
What you can learn from ‘Dream Raider':
- Have a striking cover aimed at your market. The green monster is brilliant and these large banners had people stopping and looking, including a little boy who was just fascinated. This will stand out in bookshops with the almost luminous green.
- Plan a series. By sub-titling the book ‘A Johnny Marsh adventure', they are establishing a brand over multiple books which will last longer than just one title.
- Get started on your marketing earlier. They started 4 months prior to launch, but starting as early as possible is better. Also, go multi-media to reach your audience. Kev and Ant have done a podcast and will do more, as well as giving away free merchandise and online extras at the site. All this takes time to build, but it is worth it for people to find you online.
- Have fun! The guys are enjoying their journey and having a laugh, as well as trying to sell the book. Their book launch recreated Hollywood with special effects and their energy to succeed is infectious. After all, what's the point if you're not having fun!
- Keep your day job and work nights on your book. The guys have spent many hours with the book and also the website as well as working fulltime. The book is a labor of love but they are fulfilling a dream!
- Persistence. It's not in the video, but Kev and Ant have been working on this for 13 years and after a lot of rejection, they went with “partnership publishing”, which is a form of self-publishing with a small press. From what they have learned, they may go with a print-on-demand model depending on where their sales come from.
You can find Kev and Ant at JohnnyMarsh.net where they have a podcast, a blog, free downloads, and competitions.
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