What NOT to do as a new author....

By RaeBeth McGee- Buda

Being a new author is exciting. You took the time to sit down and bring an idea for a book to life. The process takes you months or even years to complete. Your new baby has gone through the extensive process of editing and then formatting. Once the cover design is complete you’re thrilled and excited to get your book into the hands of your soon to be fans.

How does one go about it? 

How do you get your target audience to notice your book?

There are several ways on the Internet to do this. Nevertheless, what ways are the right ways? I’m here to share my experience as an author and blogger. I have seen a few things within the past few months since my books release. 

One of the things I see some authors doing is spamming pages & groups on Facebook with their book information and purchase links. This is okay to do providing you share on the right pages. Always ask for permission before you decide to share your link on another profile, unless it has been stated within the description that authors can freely share their book information. 

I highly dislike when an author comes to my page, which I have set up for my fans and my work, and shares their links. As an example, “I’ve stopped by to like your page. Here’s mine for you to like.” Sharing this is okay providing you DO NOT message the author a few hours later and ask them AGAIN if they liked your page. When you like someone’s book/author page, don’t automatically expect him or her to like your page in return. Perhaps the genre you write isn’t one they enjoy or a topic their not interested in. One message is enough. Plain and simple.

The second thing I have seen new authors do is jump from event to event on Facebook spamming their book cover, description, and purchase links regardless of what the events are about. You NEVER share your book information in ANY way on an event unless you contacted the host and they gave you permission. Most events are hosting and highlighting another author’s work. Therefore, when you do this... you’re taking the spotlight off them. That is like going to someone birthday party with you’re own cake to celebrate your birthday.  So not the right thing to do.

The third thing is you NEVER create a group or event and automatically add someone to it without asking first. Most authors are part of so many groups; they have a hard time keeping up with them. Adding them to another one without asking is a great way to create a dislike between that author and you. 

So in conclusion to this article the best way to begin getting your work out there is to always ask. Never just do. This could lead into a very bad situation for you and your reputation. 

To find out more about RaeBeth, visit her on her website here.