Publishing News Roundup Series: How to Relaunch Your Author Image
by Maureen Crisp • September 19, 2017 • Follow
Published in Publishing Tips • No comments
You’ve been working on that great book. It’s done, but you’ve neglected to upkeep your social media. So how do you re-kickstart your author image?
It’s hard to restart that author image. You may have even changed as an author and you want to portray yourself differently. It’s difficult to restart it if you’ve been MIA, but you always can.
The Long Haul Writing Career
Today I was reflecting on my online home. It’s part of the spring cleaning happening here. Over ten years I hadn’t changed much on the blog. Now that I have a little bit of energy and because I have a book coming out in a few months, I’m getting more creative and adding new things like a new books website. What will my writing life look like going forward? I’m in re-launch mode of my writing career.
Jane Friedman wrote an interesting article this week osn whether authors should concentrate on Social Media or their Author Websites. Note: it is now assumed that all authors will have a website. (and if not…why not?)
Kris Rusch has also been looking at author career longevity. How are the mid-listers faring at their respective publishing houses? Do they still have a career? Are publishers thinking about their business in terms of the long haul?
Joanna Penn has just celebrated her sixth year as an author entrepreneur. She breaks down all the things she has learned on her journey and why she has a long term mentality for her writing career. It’s all about the pension plan…
Susan Kaye Quinn has written an interesting article on the Alli blog about going wide – selling on multiple online platforms instead of just Amazon. Susan is a powerhouse of great information. (As we head into the next national children’s writers conference, I am reminded that I interviewed SKQ for a keynote speech at the last conference. She knocked it out of the park!)
If you are thinking about a long career you need to keep your eye on the international markets. Diana Urban takes a look at seven things you can do to get more international exposure.
Book Marketing Tools has an in depth look at how to attract and engage more readers. After all that is what makes a career in the long term. This is a great read and a bookmark post.
The Science Fiction and Fantasy Marketing podcast team interviewed Brian McClellan on the state of epic fantasy in traditional publishing. It is a very interesting interview and some of the things Brian talks about were surprising. A must watch if you are into epic fantasy.
Screenwriters have to be able to characterise quickly in their writing. Knowing common archetypes is a must in their business. Take a look at this list of ninety nine archetypes and stock characters.
In The Craft Section,
10 dialogue errors to avoid– Writers Writer-Bookmark
How to write without filtering– Ava Jae-Bookmark
Insights into your mid point scene– CS Lakin- Bookmark
Police Procedural fact checking– Rebecca Bradley
Translating story beats to any genre- Jami Gold- Bookmark
In The Marketing Section,
Book Marketing in person– Maria Dismondy
Daily deal services– 18 promo sites- Writer Unboxed-Bookmark
How to not be a Bone Head promoter– Janet Reid
4 must haves for your author platform– Chris Well
Changes in Social Media – Frances Caballo- Bookmark
Vital steps in your book marketing plan– Book Marketing tools
How to best optimise SEO on blog posts –Rachel Thompson
To Finish,
I am revisiting a great post by Jane Friedman on the importance of author collectives. This has been on my mind this week as I wrapped up the judging for my stint hosting the FABO Story Writing competition for kids. Fabo Story has been going since 2011- with a few new faces but the same core cast from way back then. That’s a long haul as a collective.
Maureen
@craicer
About Maureen Crisp
Maureen Crisp has been writing her weekly publishing roundups for over seven years. She is a traditionally published children's author as well as indie-published. She lives in New Zealand and is heading the team organising the 4th National Conference of Children's Writers and Illustrators. She is currently trying her hand at writing a children’s book series if she can drag herself away from forever tweaking her Mars novel or obsessing over space.