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is an older post and although you might find some useful tips, any technical or publishing information is likely to be out of date.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
I really enjoy speaking about the topics I am passionate about: writing, book marketing, author platform, web 2.0 tools and more! Here is a short video of a talk I did for the Gold Coast Writer's Association in February. It was a 45 min talk and this is only 3:46 mins.
See below for the video for text information if you don't want to watch.
In this video, you will learn:
- That you need to decide on your author brand before launching into online marketing like blogs, social networking and more
- Horror vs Romance writers – you should have a different ‘brand' on your website or blog as this helps people understand how they fit into your niche. Horror readers will click away from a site with fluffy bunnies on.
- What are you aiming to portray with your online presence?
- Decide on your brand and then put it out there, honestly and authentically
- If you want to write across genre, aim for an author personality blog
- If you don't know how to build your brand, look at authors you like and model them
- Example for horror: Scott Sigler for horror – podcast novelist, now NY Times bestselling author
- Recommended for children's book writers, check out Twittermoms
If you like videos, check out The Creative Penn YouTube Channel.
Thanks to @jeanniemay for booking me as a speaker and your support. I am available for speaking live or as a guest on radio, podcasts, TV and more.
View Comments (3)
Excellent advice, thank you so much! We writers sometimes forget that while writing is an art, publishing is a business, and we need to have a foot in both camps.
I'm not in a place where I can watch this now, but I read your bullets & it looks fantastic - can't wait to see it tonight!
This is right on target, and very commendable. Authors who do not see and treat themselves as brands are going nowhere. After all, book buyers have very many options out there. Authors are never in short supply and thousands of books of all genres hit the market daily. The competition is rife in each genre and each market.