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"First, decide whether a blog is in order, and if so, what will be its focus?" —MEIER
I promised in my last column to offer some specific ideas for using social media to promote your novel. (Next month we’ll focus on nonfiction.) So, here we go.
As I mentioned last month, new fiction presents some particular challenges with regard to building a platform. Unless you’re already known as a novelist, there are limited topics to blog about, and until your novel is published, you’ll have little to promote. I have several clients who are at the stage of having found an agent, but the book hasn’t been sold to a publisher yet. They want to begin to build a platform through social media. Where to begin?
First, decide whether a blog is in order, and if so, what will be its focus? I think a blog written from the point of view of one of the characters in the novel would be a very cool way to foster interest in a blog and your book. Longtime screenwriter Jonathan Rintels has a brand-new novel out – Lifemobile – featuring a teenage boy with Asperger’s Syndrome. Based on his own experience with his son, the story revolves around an old Corvair that the narrator (the boy’s dad) buys and how the renovation of what Ralph Nader once called “an unsafe car at any speed” – the Deathmobile – actually brings father and son together in a powerful way. Rintels' evocation of the boy, Benji, is so well-done that it would be really interesting to build a blog using Benji’s voice. It would serve not only to promote the novel, but also help people gain an even deeper understanding of Asperger’s.
"There are also the more common uses of social media: engaging Twitter, Facebook and, now, increasingly, Pinterest." —MEIER
A first-time novelist could do this with almost any character in his/her book, creating tangential or entirely new storylines. If written often enough, you would in essence create an ongoing serialized version of the novel.
There are also the more common uses of social media: engaging Twitter, Facebook and, now, increasingly, Pinterest. Well-known novelists who have embraced social media to great effect include Margaret Atwood, who is an active Twitterer, and Janet Evanovich, whose website invites visitors to visit her Pinterest boards
"Almost every author I know also does virtual book tours and interviews with book bloggers . . ." —MEIER
Christopher Moore, one of my favorite writers, uses his blog, Twitter and Facebook to engage his fans whenever he has a new book out. He was an early user of email to grow his fan base, letting them know where and when he would be signing or appearing, and using his blog to talk about his writing process. It helps that he’s really funny.
Chris Bohjalian also uses his Facebook fan page and blog to keep his readers up to date on his comings and goings. Barbara Samuel, who also writes under the name of Barbara O’Neal, engages fans with three different blogs.
Almost every author I know also does virtual book tours and interviews with book bloggers to get their work out into the world.
Do you have a favorite author who embraces technology and social media? I’d love to hear about her – and any other ideas you might have to reach out to potential readers. Email me at marcia@marciameier.com, and visit my website at marciameier.com
About Marcia Meier
Marcia Meier is an author, award-winning journalist, writing coach and developmental book editor. Her book, Navigating the Rough Waters of Today’s Publishing World: Critical Advice for Writers from Industry Insiders (Quill Driver Books, 2010), was named one of “10 Great Books on Writing from 2010” by The Writer magazine. Learn more about Marcia on her web site.
