When to Start Marketing if You’re Unpublished

You guys! NADINE BRANDES IS HERE!!!

I met Nadine almost a year ago at the One Year Adventure Novel Summer Workshop, and she's a lovely person. We didn't have much time to chat then, but I've gotten to know her through social media. I'm in awe of her Instagram account, her blog, and just her as a human being.

When I asked her to post about marketing, I pretended like it was for you guys, but it was selfish. I really wanted to know what Nadine would say! She's a master, and you're going to love it:

Nadine Brandes is an adventurer, fusing authentic faith with bold imagination. She never received her Hogwarts letter, but rest assured she’s no Muggle (and would have been in Ravenclaw House, thank you very much.) This Harry Potter super-nerd has been known to eat an entire package of Oreos (family size) by herself, and watches Fiddler on the Roof at least once a year. She writes about brave living, finding purpose, and other worlds soaked in imagination. Her dystopian trilogy (The Out of Time Series) challenged her to pursue shalom, which is now her favorite word (followed closely by bumbershoot.) When Nadine’s not taste-testing a new chai or editing fantasy novels, she and her knight-in-shining armor (nickname: “hubby”) are out pursuing adventures.

Find her on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, or nadinebrandes.com

Hellooooo teen writers! I’m popping my head in to the cool kid’s club to talk about…marketing. Maybe you haven’t really given much thought to marketing or you’re not sure what it is. Maybe you have given a lot of thought to it and you loathe/love it. No matter where you’re at with marketing, I’m here to tell you that 1) it can be fun (I love it!) and 2) it doesn’t have to eat your soul.

Let’s jump right in, shall we?

When approaching marketing, you need to know that…numbers matter.

You also need to know that marketing is not about the numbers.

Confused yet? Sorry ’bout that. Let me explain. When the day comes for you to pitch to a publisher or click that “self-publish” button, you need an audience. (thus…numbers matter.) Otherwise how will anyone find your book?

But when you’re trying to build an audience and grow a following, it’s all about relationship and being totally you and totally real thus…it’s not about the numbers.

*rubs hands together* Now that that’s clear as mud, let’s get into the nitty gritty. Whether you’re published, unpublished, thinking about self-publishing or traditional publishing, you need to start marketing NOW.

I used to be intimidated by the idea of marketing. I’d start imagining me with a billboard or speaking in front of an audience or forking out advertising money. In other words, I pictured a whole bunch of bo-ring. And that made my little world-building brain want to run and hide. I avoided the word “marketing” or any marketing talk or classes like the plague…until I was published and realize, “Oh. Well…I should have tackled this sooner.”

Then when I tackled it, I ended up liking it.

What is marketing?

There are whole blog posts on this, so I’m going to give it to you in a cute little bow-tied nutshell: marketing is finding a “tribe” or following of people who are interested in what you write/do.

AKA: Marketing is finding virtual friends. Hundreds of them. And don’t worry introverts, you can still do this without having to become an extrovert!

What does this look like?

It looks like presence. Online. You need to be online, have a place to connect with others and grow a following. That could mean through having a blog, or through a Twitter, or a Facebook page, Instagram, an email newsletter, Tumblr, or even Snapchat. The fact you’re reading this post means you know how to use technology.

Marketing starts with being accessible. Building relationship with other readers, other writers, etc.

You need a constant place that is constant where people can find you and follow your shenanigans.

Example: Let’s say you hang out here a lot on Go Teen Writers. You connect with other commenters, you guys chat a bit. But if they don’t have your e-mail address or your Twitter handle or your snapchat code…how will they find you if they want to see what you’re up to or how your writing is going?

So pick a social media as your “base camp” of sorts. And then start directing people there.

Be real. Be you.

The #1 rule of marketing is be real. I know it’s tempting to create a façade in social media, but friends and readers like authenticity. As you grow as an author and as your books go out into the world and crawl onto other people’s bookshelves, your readers are going to be watching you. They’ll want to feel like they can connect with you, probably just like how you wish you could connect with your favorite author. You don’t want to meet a cardboard cut-out or a plastic smile. You want to feel like you know them.

And that’s what your readers will want from you. Authenticity.

That doesn’t mean sharing every single little thought or vent. It doesn’t mean exposing your entire private life and letting them read your journal. It just means being real. After all, don’t we all want to be accepted as we are?

When/How do you start?

Start now. Take a look at what social medias you’re on. One? Two? Ten? Try to limit yourself to 1-2 favorites and direct your focus there. Twitter and a blog? Be fully present and invite people in.

Comment on other people’s blogs. Like, retweet, reply to other people’s tweets. ENGAGE. Make friends and let them know what you’re doing. And your numbers will slowly grow. Then, when you tell that agent or that publisher about your book—they’ll see that you have a following and they’ll realize that you take writing seriously enough to interact with your readers.

A few tips

•           Focus on 1 to 2 marketing platforms. If you try to be active on all of them, you’ll burn out.
•           If you’re not comfortable with social media, start gathering e-mails for a quarterly newsletter to send writing updates to people. E-mail newsletters are gold! They grow slowly, but they’re worth it!
•           Try to create social media platforms under your writing name. A Twitter handle like @Iluvbooooks45996 is going to get lost on the internet. And people won’t remember it. Use your writing name and start “making a name” for yourself. J
•           Do what you enjoy! If you hate blogging, maybe don’t start a blog. If you love photography, jump on Instagram and join the #bookstagram community. If you like doing videos, start a Booktube (Youtube) channel.
•           Read up on marketing. My favorite book on marketing is The Extroverted Writer by Amanda Leudeke. It’s short and BRILLIANT.
•           Observe your favorite authors. What are they doing on Twitter or Tumblr or their newsletter that you like? Take notes.

What makes you nervous about marketing? Or, on the flip side, what makes you excited about it? (Pepper me with all your marketing questions!)