Writers Abroad

As Jo is away taking a well-earned break with family in the UK, I’m standing in for the ‘This week’ slot.

There’s a lot going on right now. First and foremost, of course, is

1. Foreign Flavours: published last Monday and by Wednesday had already sold 58 copies and made around 122 euros profit. No doubt Jo will update us on sales on her return. The marketing effort by everyone has been brilliant: the press release went to as many outlets as we could think of and it’s already appeared on several websites plus members’ blogs, been Tweeted/Facebooked etc, members are on radio shows and are planning book launches.
2. NaNoWriMo starts tomorrow, 1^st November. Good luck to all our intrepid novelists and don’t forget there’s a NaNo Forum under Writing Projects so you can share your successes or woes.
3. The Bragging Stool has been busy this week: Jill has had an article accepted by Freelance Market News on naming your characters; two of Paola’s poems are on the Flash 500 humorous verse longlist; and Chris A’s ‘The Pain Taster’ was read on Milwaukee Public Radio’s show ‘Flash Fiction Friday’. Well done all three.
4. Jo has contributed this week’s blog – some very helpful tips for marketing your book, fresh from the experience of the Anthology.
5. This week’s Monday Muse prompts are courtesy of Nicola and since I need hardly remind you that today is Halloween, prepare yourselves for some scary musing.
6. The November Challenge opens tomorrow. The chosen comp is Fable’s Fortune Short Story Competition on the theme of Forbidden Fruit. There are also the monthly Writing Mag and Writers’ News comps with a closing date of 14^th December – see under the Competitions tab - plus any alternative challenge you'd prefer to post.
7. There’s no informal chat this coming Sunday but there will be one on Sunday 13^th November at 11.00 CET.

Let me know if I’ve forgotten anything.

Finally, some good advice from Ernest Hemingway, ‘Write drunk, edit sober.’

Marketing your Book

When you self-publish, you don't access to a team of professional, paid helpers who will organise everything from A-Z. You are head cook and bottle washer. And as we very well know, books don't sell themselves. Marketing isn't a skill that comes easy to writers but it's an essential one. Here are five tips that I've picked up on my learning curve within the scary world of self-publishing.

• Start talking about your book early - to writing and non-writing friends, local press, on blogs, websites and social networks. Whet their appetites with snippets and set a date for full exposure

• Infiltrate all the social networks with information on a regular basis leading up to and after publication date. This is particularly important for self-publishing and enables you to connect with the wider writing world easily and without much effort. So Facebook, Twitter, Linked In - where ever and whenever you can.

• Plan a book launch - either to tie in with publication date or after. Key things to a successful launch are:

     - Organise venue, a library, coffee or book shop are ideal

     - Invite people you know might be interested and will probably buy

     - Invite the local media - press and radio

     - Provide nibbles and snacks - morning coffee or afternoon teas 

     - Have a short reading from the book, by either yourself or some other local dignitary

     - Have marketing material available for people to take away - widen the networks wherever you can

     - Be prepared to take orders for books and make sure that people pay for copies they take away on the day!

• Plan some guest blogs with other writer friends so the word gets around to their social networks and readers - try to find those which reflect the genre of your book and where your book may be more likely to be purchased

• A personal blog or website is essential and acts as the 'shop window' for your book - you may also attract random visitors and potential readers that you may not have accessed elsewhere

Self-publishing is not an easy option, nor is it just a matter of uploading your project and pressing 'publish'. That is just the beginning and you'll find yourself in roles from office boy (or gal) to marketing director and you can't afford to be shy!

1. Paola has again provided our Monday Muse with some scenarios and a seasonal photo.
2. Vesna has submitted our weekly Blog about writing lethargy and how NaNoWriMo can help kick it out!
3. Foreign Flavours is officially published today. Please shout about it where ever you can - now you have the correct information
4. The October Writing  Challenge is still open and the November Challenge will open on 1st November
5. On the Bragging Stool this week, we've had Chris A with an interview over at Fictionaut and a lovely tale, Paola has been published at Travel Through History with her Ankara article and and Vesna has been awarded a Highly Commended atWriters Forum.
6. We had our forma  Chat yesterday Sunday 23 October - if you didn't make it the minutes are in the Meeting Room, next informal chat is Sunday 13 November 11am via Skype.
7. I'm away in UK from 27th Oct - 7 Nov so Vanessa will be doing this slot, Nicola is in charge of Monday Muses, I shall provide a blog for 31st and Marit is due to blog on 7th November.
    

Quote of the Week

"I can't write five words but I can change seven."
Dorothy Parker