Many
writers work hard, not only at their craft, but to market and promote their
books as well. Yet, some authors don’t
try hard enough, or worse, they look for an easy way out. For a number of writers, they approach book
publicity and marketing like a slip-and-fall con artist.
The
other day I was walking home from work to catch a train at Grand Central
Station. I came upon an alarming
landscape. A man was lying in the
gutter, eyes closed, arms outstretched like a cross, on his back. A cab was less than a foot from him. I asked bystanders what happened. Several said he hit into the cab. I said, “You mean the cab hit him?” They said no, he fell/walked into the cab as
he was turning the corner. It was a fake
accident.
The
guy in the street was hoping to get a payoff from his shenanigans.
The
man in the street had several french-fries in his right hand, holding tightly
to them like they were gold. It was not
a natural position for a guy who supposedly was struck by a cab and laying on
the street flat on his back. No way he
holds onto the fries. Not one fell to the
floor.
There
are people looking for easy pay days, even those willing to lie, cheat, steal,
and scam their way to a check. Just
watch Showtime’s Shameless and you’ll agree.
But for authors, there are no shortcuts to riches. Writers must work hard and intelligently to
elevate their brand and become successful authors.
Writers
must hammer away with social media, speaking engagements, traditional media and
even telemarketing. They have to try a
number of things at their disposal, but they can’t do the equivalent of
flopping in front of a car and getting a windfall insurance settlement.
Writers
have to embrace a strong work ethic. They must dedicate time and resources to
promoting and marketing a book, perhaps at a 3 to 1 ratio of marketing to
writing time. You build a following, maintain it, and then grow it some more.
You sell, sell, sell – and then sell some more.
You establish your brand and then reinvent it and remind others you
exist. It’s non-stop. Publishing is not a game that you win once
and are set for life.
I
guess years ago the slip and fall approach would be similar to a writer or
literary agent building up a book-to-be to generate a huge advance – and then
the author delivers crap or doesn’t help on the promotions. But those days, if they ever existed for a
few, are long gone.
Writers
must persevere through the grind. Or they
can give up and hit a cab.
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Brian Feinblum’s
views, opinions, and ideas expressed in this blog are his alone and not that of
his employer. You can follow him on Twitter @theprexpert and email him
at brianfeinblum@gmail.com. He feels more important when discussed in the
third-person. This is copyrighted by BookMarketingBuzzBlog © 2015
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