10 Myths about Marketing Your Book by DiAnn Mills | Guest Post

Excited to have the lovely DiAnn Mills on the blog today! I've met DiAnn in person a few times at conferences and she's been a frequent guest on my blog. I love when she shares about her books here, but she's got something different for us today. This month we'll be taking a closer look at book marketing and this post is perfect for this. Join in as DiAnn shares about 10 myths we commonly hear about marketing your book. 

10 Myths about Marketing Your Book

What’s stopping you from marketing your book? Is it a lack of knowledge? Indecision about the tools? Fear of failure or success? How to approach social media?

Now is the time to debunk the following 10 myths so you can be a marketing rock star.

Myth #1: All I must do is one thing: write a good book.

A writer’s number 1 job is to write an excellent book. But without marketing and promotion, how will readers know about your exciting project?

Myth #2: Marketing takes way too much money. Only big names can afford it.

Every writer can learn basic marketing, promotion, and the value of social media. No matter the marketing budget, reaching others can be accomplished and is vital to the success of your book.

Myth #3: A traditionally published writer doesn’t need to worry about marketing. The publishing house will spend lots of money launching it.

Publishing houses adjust their budgets for marketing and promotion according to projected sales. A savvy writer teams up with the marketing team to learn how to compliment what’s being done. Personalization allows the writer to make an impact on potential readers.

Myth #4: The only way a writer will succeed in marketing is to hire a book publicist.

Writers research the needs of their readers to find out how to reach them effectively. A writer influences his/her readers by discovering who they are.

Myth #5: If a writer is going to get involved in social media, then register for every platform. And never follow anyone back.

A writer chooses a social media platform according to her brand, genre, expertise, and audience needs. The goal is to be active, reaching out in a community of followers to fill a need.

Myth #6: No one can help an author build a platform or develop a brand. It just happens as you publish books.

A wise writer focuses her passion to a specific audience. Her expertise and type of writing builds her platform so she can be branded by who she is and what she writes.

Myth #7: Marketing through social media means you must constantly promote yourself so people will remember you.

The goal of social media is to help others; it’s not about us. For every five posts, only one can be about the writer. Develop trust among your followers.

Myth #8: There’s no point in marketing your book until it’s released. After all, people can’t buy it until then.

Marketing and promotion begins with the writer’s idea for a project. Social media posts, blogs, speaking topics, catch-phrases, Pinterest boards etc. begin at conception of the book premise.

Myth #9: If you receive an advance, plan on spending 10% of it on marketing. If you don’t receive an advance, then marketing isn’t expected of you.

Every writer has a specific amount designated for marketing and promotion. The publisher expects a writer to be involved in the process of letting the world know about the book. The advance doesn’t dictate the writer’s marketing.

Myth #10: Once a writer creates a marketing plan, the same plan works for every book.

Not every project’s content is the same. The characters, plot, setting, emotion, dialogue, narrative, and symbols vary in each book. Just as the books carry different themes and topics, so are the new and unique ways of marketing.

What marketing myths have you proven wrong? Share your thoughts so we can all learn.

DiAnn Mills is a bestselling author who believes her readers should expect an adventure. She combines unforgettable characters with unpredictable plots to create action-packed, suspense-filled novels.

Her titles have appeared on the CBA and ECPA bestseller lists; won two Christy Awards; and been finalists for the RITA, Daphne Du Maurier, Inspirational Readers’ Choice, and Carol award contests. Firewall, the first book in her Houston: FBI series, was listed by Library Journal as one of the best Christian Fiction books of 2014.

DiAnn is a founding board member of the American Christian Fiction Writers, a member of Advanced Writers and Speakers Association, Sisters in Crime, and International Thriller Writers. She is co-director of The Blue Ridge Mountain Christian Writers Conference and The Mountainside Marketing Conference with social media specialist Edie Melson where she continues her passion of helping other writers be successful. She speaks to various groups and teaches writing workshops around the country.

DiAnn has been termed a coffee snob and roasts her own coffee beans. She’s an avid reader, loves to cook, and believes her grandchildren are the smartest kids in the universe. She and her husband live in sunny Houston, Texas.

DiAnn is very active online and would love to connect with readers on Facebook: www.facebook.com/diannmills, Twitter: https://twitter.com/diannmills or any of the social media platforms listed at www.diannmills.com.

Grab a copy of her recent release, High Reason here.

Book Description: 

When Saudi Prince Omar bin Talal visits Houston to seek cancer treatment for his mother, an attempt on his life puts all agencies on high alert. FBI Special Agent Kord Davidson is the lead on the prince’s protective detail because of their long-standing friendship, but he’s surprised―and none too happy―when the CIA brings one of their operatives, Monica Alden, in on the task force after the assassination attempt.

Kord and Monica must quickly put aside interagency squabbles, however, when they learn the prince has additional motives for his visit―plans to promote stronger ties with the US and encourage economic growth and westernization in his own country. Plans that could easily incite a number of suspects both in the US and in countries hostile to Saudi Arabia. Worse yet, the would-be assassin always seems to be one step ahead of them, implicating someone close to the prince―or the investigation. But who would be willing to commit high treason, and can Kord and Monica stop them in time?