A Publisher's Conversation with Authors: Keeping Blogs Relevant, Building Audience

 

It is Tuesday. Time to tall turkey. Monday's madness is over, and Wednesday will take us over the hump, so Tuesday it is--for some serious discussion with authors. Tuesday talks mean to address authors in waiting and self-published authors who would like to go a more traditional route or who would at least like to take their steps with a publisher by their side.

Today's topic is blogging as a form of marketing. Specifically, how to keep posts relevant and how to build audience, which, of course, go hand in glove.

Here are some thoughts on the topic:

Find a nexus between your book and a current event:

• Check out new health findings. Our Cancer Diary posts, for example, report on the latest cancer research in addition to our regular posts. The research can be considered a current event. If, for example, you have a book about aging, perhaps some new information on that topic has appeared in the news, or new discoveries about child development if you have a book on parenting, and so on and so forth.
• Political events are always good attention grabbers, but only if they correspond to the book content.
• Social happenings are another kind of current event. They can be from the entertainment world, the sports world, or just about anything that society likes. If they like the event, and your book is related in some way, they will like your blog post -- and your book.
• Follow the news. You will always find some nexus. Use it.

Heard about some interesting discovery not in the news or not yet in the news? Can you tie it to your book? Report on it.

• We, of course, post about forthcoming books. You might report about something you have heard in your workplace or in the content circles you hang around with that are related to your book topic. Be the first to share new information or even tentative information.
• Have you or your friends or some local entity made a discovery related to your book? Report on it.
• Are you working on something that might lead to your own discovery? Talk about it step by step, week by week, as it unfolds. 
• Do your research; every week do some literature review of what has been recently published. Share what you find that is connected to your book.

Has someone related to you, in your community, or among groups you associate with died? Seriously. 

• Obituaries, in memoriam posts, and reflections are very popular in my experience; you can connect to people who are remembering people of consequence to them by finding the nexus between your book and that person and showing empathy; find some supportive way to comment in your blog. 

• It may be a bit sad, but everyone likes to be remembered even if they do not know about it. What memory connects with your book content?

• Collect comments by your friends or others on the deceased person and write a supportive post connected with your book.

Is there a topic du jour? Something everyone is talking about? Nationally or locally?

• Share your opinion. Connect it to your book.
• Share someone else's opinion (who is saying what in your local media, who has published what, etc.). Connect it to your book.
• Collect opinions of your friends, neighbors, colleagues, other groups. Collate the information and draw conclusions. This is called a round-up article, and they are highly effective when shared in a blog post (or even a journal, magazine, or newspaper).

Bottom line: Thinking beyond your book and using your blog to connect your book and real-life events can effectively help you to build your audience.

Lesson for today's Tuesday talk: Responding to "what is out there" in your environment and connecting it to your book can bring about interest in your book -- and, likely, book sales. 

 Read more posts about publishing HERE.

The Tuesday talks reflect real discussions between the management of MSI Press LLC and our own authors or those would-be authors who come through our doors but don't make the cut--yet. If you have a topic that you would like addressed, leave the question in the comment section. Chances are, in our 18 years of publishing first-time and experiences authors, we have had a conversation with one of our authors that we can share with you.

                             

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