|
Build Your Basic Author's Mailing List
by A. H. Holt
http://www.ahholt.com
Start compiling your mailing list as soon as you
possibly can. You will want to start mailing and/or
e-mailing announcements about your book to booksellers
and others around five months before the official
publication date of your book.
Make a list of the businesses and the people you will need
to contact to promote your new book:
a. Bookstores
b. Newspapers
c. Magazines
d. Radio and TV Stations
e. Libraries & Friends of the Library
f. State Publishing Associations and Library Associations
g. Book Fairs/Trade Shows
h. Organizations and groups related to your book in some way
i. Friends and Acquaintances
Step 1--Ask your publisher what stores will definitely list
your book. Almost always, their list will begin with
Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble. They are critical outlets,
but there are more bookstores than you can even imagine,
even many other chain bookstores.
Step 2--Determine what cities/towns you will be able to
visit during the first year after your book is published.
Make a list of conventions, conferences, or meetings you
plan to attend. List family you know you will be visiting
and begin to map out when you will visit each area. This
will serve as a guide to when you send information to your
contacts.
Step 3--Go to the Internet and look up ALL of the chain
bookstores in the towns you plan to visit.Copy and paste
each store's complete address information into a
word-processing file named My Mailing List. Make sure to
get the complete information. You will pick up garbage when
you copy, but it much easier to remove garbage than to type
all of the names, addresses, phone numbers and e-mail addresses.
Step 4--Search the internet for state and national
associations of independent booksellers. Several of these
organizations have lists, or directories of booksellers,
divided by state, with live e-mail links. Collect as many
e-mail addresses of these directories as you can find. Stop
and type the complete e-mail address of each association on
a separate page in your file, My Mailing List. Book marking
on your computer alone is not an adequate record, as you
will discover in a later tip.
Step 5--Search the internet for newspapers in your target
areas. Most directories are divided by state and some have
live e-mail links. Copy and paste the address, etc. for
newspapers in the areas you plan to visit in your file. You
will want to mail to Editor, Newspaper, any street, any town
with zip code. Get the telephone number of the newsroom if
you can, and the e-mail. Pay particular attention to weekly
newspapers. They desperately need copy and are much more
likely than a big daily to want to do a feature on you and
your book. If you or your book have any connection with
education don't forget college and university newspapers.
Step 6--Magazines, Radio and TV Stations are listed on the
net.Radio and TV contacts, mostly reached by e-mail and
telephone, are easy to find. Magazines are a problem. When
you attempt to search for a magazine you'll get many sites
that want to sell you the magazine instead of giving you the
location and contact information of the Magazine. Just keep
trying, read the description of each site carefully and
you'll eventually click on the correct site.
Step 7--Libraries and Friends of the Library.These
organizations will be listed under the name of your state.
You may first have to find the state public library
association, then libraries in the localities you will
visit. When all else fails, look local libraries up in the
yellow pages. Be sure to copy their address, telephone
number and e-mail if available. Friends of the Library are
usually listed under the name of the library they serve as
"Chester Friends of the Library" for the public library in
Chester, Virginia.
Step 8--State Publishing Assoc. Library Assoc. Conferences,
Listed on the internet. These associations are also listed
in print at your nearest research library. These
organizations hold annual conferences and host book fairs.
These Book Fairs are attended by book distributors,
publishers, librarians and booksellers, making the process
of getting your book in well worth the effort.
Step 9--Book Fairs and Trade Shows These are advertised on
the internet, in magazines, newspapers, and in library
directories. Investigate costs carefully. The theme of the
fair or show should connect with your book somehow, no
matter how tenuously.
Step 10--Organizations and groups related to your book
Clubs, groups, newsletters exist for every interest. Senior
citizens, students, romance readers, dancers, sports,
dieters, diving enthusiasts, etc. all have organizations and
meetings. Many of them have open membership and large
mailing lists. Check internet directories or lists of
associations, use the library, and call your local chamber
of commerce. Don't forget to join internet groups--sign up
to receive digests instead of individual e-mails. You can
say hello to each of these groups in a short e-mail, then
lurk and watch for an opening to talk about your new book or
its publication.
Step 11-Family, Friends and Acquaintances However you
communicate with this group, and I hope it is through
e-mail, send them an announcement that you are going to be
published, and then send an update every month including any
new information, including the complete address of your new
web site. Continue these up dates through the publication
of your book. After your book is published start sending
updates on where you will be traveling and holding book
signings and readings. At the end of each message tell your
family member, friend or acquaintance that you need their
help and ask them to pass your good news on to their friends
and family.
http://www.ahholt.com
SILVER CREEK, by A. H. Holt
This article courtesy of ...
You may freely reprint this article on your website or in
your newsletter provided this courtesy notice and the author
name and URL remain intact.
|