Visit the Bookstore!
December 13, 2008 by admin · Comments Off
Before you leave today, now’s the time to load up on books by all our spotlight authors, workshop presenters and even attendees. So, Don’t forget to stop by the BOOKSTORE. Remember, books make great gifts!
Participants Only – List Your Link!
December 13, 2008 by admin · 26 Comments
Okay, listen closely. This is a link only post. (And this is for those who actually participated, so we can have everyone’s info in one spot.) If you do NOT follow directions, you will be deleted. If you DID NOT participate, you will be deleted. Also, do not include your pitch or your book title, your company bio, or any of that for this post. So, please follow my lead and share your link and the info as shown.
(Did I say you will be deleted if you don’t follow directions? LOL. Just wanted to say it one mo’ time.)
Example:
RAWSISTAZ Literary Group – http://www.rawsistaz.com (Book Club)
Maya Angelou - http://www.mayaangelou.com (Author)
(And it is okay to post more than one link in a reply vs sending a million replies.)
Spotlight Ad – Let’s Talk Live Radio
December 12, 2008 by admin · 4 Comments
If you can not view this ad, CLICK HERE.
10 Ways to Promote Your Writing During the Holidays
December 12, 2008 by admin · 12 Comments
10 Ways to Promote your Writing Through the Holidays
Presented by Dee Stewart
We have a few more weeks before Christmas, Kwanzaa, Watch Night and New Years. Bookstores have geared up for holiday shoppers, so no instore events for you to grab at the last minute. Public libraries have geared up for holiday reading events, so no author readings for you to participate in at the last minute. So what do you do? Table selling your books until 2009 or do you take advantage of Holiday Cheer? I say take advantage. Here are 10 ways to do promote your writing through the holidays.
1. Host a free children’s book drive at your local library.
It’s not too late to schedule a meeting room or space at your local library or church bookstorefor a free children’s book drive. If you plan it now, you have time to get a local reporter and local vlogger to the event. Invite the public to drop off new books to the library for either giveaway or for the libary’s children’s section. On your event day have holiday punch and cookies and invite the public to pick up their free children’s book.
2. Give your book to local coffeehouses to include in holiday gift baskets.
Next week I meet with a popular lil house in my town by request of the owner. He loves authors and great books. And he’s Christian. We’re going to talk gift baskets with my client’s books inside and whether the spot will the my new spot for my Winter Reading Series. Local Atlanta Authors, let’s do this.
3. Host an Under the Dryer Book Signing at a Beauty Salon.
Have you ever been in a beauty salon? The long wait, the old reading material. What if someone was selling a book I could read while sitting under the dryer. Bingo!! A client of mine sold out this weekend doing this event.
4. Write a Christmas story and have it published in your local community paper or regional magazine.
I wrote a story for Precious Times Magazine a few years back titled “Kissmas Time” from that story I received so many invitations to write articles for other magazines. I have a mailing list of people interested in my book (whenever that comes.) And I have had speaking engagement requests since that story.
5. Sponsor your local Girl Scouts or Boy Scouts Christmas Parade Float.
I just participated in my town’s annual Christmas parade. Loads of fun. I saw many familiar faces and have become a friend of the mayor. Yippee. Just because I’m out and about in the community. Sponsoring a float, making a banner, providing costumes, or just chaperoning kids in the parade will put you out in the community. People will become familiar with you. If you are an author, have the kids pass out bookmarks with candy attached to them or take your little Christmas story package it up and give it out to those on the parade route.
6. Read Christmas Stories at your local elementary school media center.
If writing is your life long passion, if you write for a young adult market, a soccer mom market, then get yourself to your local school and read the coolest book to kids. Host a Santa letter party.
7. Host an Online Book Giveaway, but not your book, instead giveaway:
· one you know your readers want like Ted Dekker’s Kiss that comes out in January, or
· one tied to the holidays like a Paula Dean Holiday Cookbook, or
· give away a book to your friends you know are afraid to buy, but would love to read (for instance Carleen Brice’ Buy a White Friend a Black Book Month Project)
promote the giveaway and the winner by sending a press release to the winner’s local paper.Put the book in a gift basket from your local coffeehouse, Avon lady, you know what I mean…
8. Host a Holiday Book Party at a local restaurant
Publisher and author Dwan Abrams will be hosting a party this weekend in downtown Atlanta to celebrate her birthday, the holidays, and her fourth novel book release Married Strangers. The event is free to attend. It is also a book drive for a Women’s Prison Literacy Project. She’s got localebrities, book reviewers and bookstore managers popping through. The event has been promoted on local gospel radio stations, online mags, local papers, and to anyone within two paces of her.You do know now is the time to throw a party?
9. Build a tip sheet
Center the sheet around your book’s theme and the holidays, submit the tip list as filler for major local magazines and online magazines your readers read. My client’s can pull these tip sheets out throughout the year and tweak the
10. Be a frontdoor vendor at your local bookstore.
Ask your local bookstore if you can set up a table on the weekend to sale your books. Ask for two tables. One to sell your book and another to giftwrap patrons book gifts as a free service to the bookstore. All bookstore chains allow authors to do this. However, some bookstores will only talk to publicists or publishers.
Bonus, contact your bookstore every week to see if any big time authors had last minute cancellations for their Holiday In Store Events. But be prepared to get books to them on short notice. You can do that right? If not, you might not to sign up for my BMP coaching sessions in 09.
If you read the lines, you will see that the most important thing here is to become a part of your community. The holidays are the best and most opportune to do this. There’s something to say about holiday cheer. It comes once a year. Take advantage of it.
This month Christian Fiction will host it’s last 1 question interview series of the year. The question is what’s your favorite Holiday book. Send me a private message with your answer, blog site address, and book blurb, and I will post your answers on the blog.
Related Posts:
· Pay it Forward Fall: Gifting Your Service
· How to Maintain Peace through the Publishing Process
· 10 Book/CD Release Party Don’ts
Dee Stewart is a bookseller, multimedia journalist, novelist, publicist and now talk show host. She is also inspirational book reviewer for Romantic Times Magazine, Atlanta Satellite Bookseller for The Mocha Bookstores, and owner of Christian Fiction Blog. Her writings have appeared in: Spirit Led Woman, Gospel Today, Advanced Christian Writer, Atlanta Christian Family, Mosaic Literary, Precious Times, Vertical Fix just a few. In 2009 she will begin hosting book marketing coaching sessions for Christian artists. Follow her on Twitter at DeeGospel. Or visit her site at www.deestewart.com.
Don’t forget every Tuesday at 8pm EST join Dee and her gal pal, EIC of Good Girl Book Club Magazine, Marina Woods on Dee & Marina Reports on Blog Talk Radio. It’s a current events talk radio show discussing book publishing, media, and Christian entertainment from a progressive Christian WOman’s point of view.
Spotlight – Santa Baby 2008 Virtual Book Tour
December 12, 2008 by admin · 2 Comments
Have YOU missed the past 12 days of the Santa Baby 2008 Virtual Book Tour sponsored by TheGRITS.com and All the Buzz Reviews? Well, it’s not to late to go back and catch up on this wonderful 12 Day celebration of romance authors…just in time to add their books to your holiday shopping list.
Friday Spotlight – Literary Professionals
December 11, 2008 by admin · 63 Comments
In addition to our industry professionals panel today, we are also spotlighting some of the best literary professionals on the net. Join me in welcoming: Marlive Harris (MsGRITS) of TheGRITS.com Literary Services, Pam Perry of Ministry Marketing Solutions, Ella Curry of EDC Creations, Sylvia Hubbard of Motown Writers Network, LaShaunda Hoffman of SORMAG, 3 Chicks on Lit (Nakea, Tiffany & TuShonda).
Marlive Harris – http://www.thegrits.com/literaryservices
Marlive Harris, aka MsGRITS, is the founder and business owner of The GRITS COM Literary Service, a niche web publicity service created in 2003 that develops online book campaigns for authors and publishers.
Pam Perry – http://www.ministrymarketingsolutions.com
Pam Perry is the founder of Ministry Marketing Solutions, Inc. a marketing consulting and public relations agency that brings a high level of understanding of positioning, branding, and promoting products and services that target the African American Christian Market (AACM).
Ella D. Curry – http://www.edc-creations.com/EDCCreationsMagazine/index1.html
Ella D. Curry is the president and CEO of EDC Creations, a marketing and branding firm in Prince George’s County Maryland, a radio show host, marketing director, and literary advocate. She is also the founder of Sankofa Literary Society which empowers independent and/or self-published authors through mentoring programs, Internet workshops, marketing and brand coaching.
Sylvia Hubbard – http://motownwriters.homestead.com/
Sylvia Hubbard is an author, lecturer & coordinator of Motown Writer’s Network and owner of Hub Books Publisher/Distributor. Established in 2000, the Motown Writer’s Network provides literary education and events in metroit Detroit.
LaShaunda Hoffman – http://sormag.blogspot.com
LaShaunda is the founder of SORMAG, an award winning online magazine for readers and writers of multi-cultural literature.
Book Spotlight Ad – Every Woman Needs a Wife
December 11, 2008 by admin · 22 Comments
If you can’t view this eBlast, visit http://www.rawsistaz.com/Naleighna-Kai-eBlast.jpg.
Book Spotlight Ad – The Knees of Gullah Island
December 10, 2008 by admin · 10 Comments
Can’t view this eBlast? Visit www.rawsistaz.com/dwightfryer-eblast.jpg
Free Promotions for Attendees on BAN
December 9, 2008 by admin · 9 Comments
www.blogtalkradio.com/Black-Author-Network
Call in number: (646) 200-0402
Happy Anniversary to 3 Chicks on Lit
December 9, 2008 by admin · 4 Comments
- 3 Chicks on Lit Anniversary
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Recent Posts
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- Visit the Bookstore!
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- Participants Only – List Your Link!
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- Spotlight Ad – Let’s Talk Live Radio
- Author Spotlights (Saturday)
- Workshop – Top 10 PR Secrets for Christian Authors
- 10 Ways to Promote Your Writing During the Holidays
- Workshop – So You Want to Write
- Sharing Literary Resources
- Spotlight – Santa Baby 2008 Virtual Book Tour
- 4 Hrs of Literary Fun this Saturday
- Friday Spotlight – Literary Professionals
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