A Publisher's Conversation with Authors: How to Wake Up a Sleeping Book


 

It is Tuesday. 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. 

As a follow up to last week's conversation about books long in the tooth, let's talk about sleeping books (a slightly different topic but one that has much in common with last week's conversation. e seen some books come to life after a long period of dormancy. Some approaches that have worked are:

a.      Finding an Influencer…wow…the one book that found one came alive after 10 years and has remained one of our bestsellers ever since even though the Influencer is no longer involved.

b.     Send to a legacy award competition; if an award is received, the press release can be brushed off and re-distributed—and we get lots of opportunities to social-media that information around (and usually the competition showcases it on its site as well).

c.      Get some new book reviews; share those widely, including with us; again, we can amplify.

d.     Publish some articles related to the topic of the book and use the book as your source of credibility. If the publication has a wide enough circulation, it should bring some attention to your book.

e.      If we have an e-book version, let us know that you would like to run some promotions for the book.

f.       Work with us on SEO. Let us know that you would like to do an SEO check on your book—but only if you are ready to invest some serious effort in subsequent promotion. Improving SEO does not solve everything. We need to be able to have a reason to bring attention to your book.

g.     Update the book description; provide it to us for the distributor’s catalogue.

h.     Lecture, make presentations, or do seminars on topics related to your book and have your book available for purchase. Let us know if you need some amplification of your efforts on our social media accounts.

i.       Many activities related to book launches can be undertaken for a re-launch.

Bottom line: Don't give up on a good book. There are things you can do to shake it awake.                                                                     

Lesson for today's Tuesday talk: Sleeping books don't die unless you never try to awaken them. 

See more Publisher Conversations with authors HERE.



 Learn more about publishing from an acquisitions editor -- how to get your book proposal accepted, why proposals are turned down/accepted, and how to find the right publisher for your book. On special sale for $5 while inventory lasts at MSI Press webstore.



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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