Blog Post #3: Marketing from both Perspectives

Tonight, I'd like to examine marketing strategies for both traditional and Indie published authors. What are some of the benefits and some of the losses? Where should an author point his or her resources, and why? The articles I read for this blog post will help me focus my argument and my topic, as per the suggestions in chapter 6 of the text.

Understanding How the Traditional Publishing Model Works

By Penny Sansevieri

Perhaps the most interesting part of this article is that it pushes the envelope by not examining the strengths of the Big Six publishers--but their weaknesses. Sansevieri explains that in order to make your work competitive in the current market, you must know how to compete in the first place. The best way to do so is by understanding where your work can shine against the flaws of others'. Sansevieri's article follows the principles discussed in the reading, because she gets to the point and supports her arguments. She doesn't seek to merely write out her thoughts, but to provide proof in how she reached her conclusions. Much of what she discusses is mainstream and well-known in the publishing community--such as her "Weakness #1". Ever since the self-publishing boom, it's been well-established that the Big Six don't do well working outside of the mainstream. That means they seek to publish within the confines of what the know will sell. Large and medium publishers have a lot at stake, because they place their faith in the author's work selling. They also pay ahead of time with an advance, which means they're out X amount of dollars unless that book moves.

The next point Sansevieri makes is a lot less well-known. Big publishers don't conduct consumer research, which means they're not staying on top of their market as well as they could be. To be fair, they are getting better at it. How do I know? I'm one of 25 readers in the nation who was chosen to be a Harper Voyager. This means I read books sent to me by Harper Collins and its sub-prints to read, review, and comment on. This is a bold move by Harper, and one not done by other publishers. Harper is taking a large risk, hoping that all 25 readers will be able to keep up with the massive number of books they send out, and that each reader will in turn write positive reviews. Yet, it's a far cry from what many of the other large-scale publishers have tried to do in reaching and researching their audience's likes and dislikes. Sansevieri is on target with her note that if you as a writer can get in with your readers and find out what they like, you're going to be far, far ahead of your competition. This strikes well with the readings we've been doing in class, and it seems almost foolish that other large publishers aren't taking the initiative to research their readers like Harper is. The reading has discusses us as students doing research and learning as much as we can about a topic--the pros, the cons, all sides of the argument, and what Harper is doing is attempting to mimic that model.

Number three on Sansevieri's list is that large publishers--she notes specifically New York publishers--don't publish toward niche markets. This is Econ 101. If there's no one willing to buy, there's no point in selling. A book might gain a cult following, certainly, but that can take many, many years, and even then, there's no guarantee it will become successful. The mind jumps to Stranger in a Strange Land, which is one of the best-known cult books, yet not many people have read, or even heard of, it. If you're an independent writer selling to a niche market, be prepared to be limited in your sales.

Numbers four and five sort of go hand-in-hand. Sansevieri explains how independently published--or even those published by small presses--have the advantage over larger publishers, because they can directly speak with and relate to consumers. Meetings and readings can be held locally, and questions can be answered directly by the author. Now, social media is changing this field and closing the gap quickly, but it's usually the authors who must take responsibility for communicating with readers, not the publishers. The final step Sansevieri discusses is knowing and understanding how marketing, and which market you choose to work in, impacts those around it. She gives a fantastic example--an Indie author might not be able to sneak into the LA market, but they could potentially work a smaller market, such as Orange County. The OC market will then affect the LA market, if the buzz is big enough, and voila, you're in!

Note that this article only scratches the surface of marketing in the traditional and Indie worlds; there's still a great deal yet to be uncovered and discussed, but the reason this article was chosen is because of how the author redirects the notion of what marketing in publishing is. The unique take is rather interesting and could be very useful if implemented well. It also explains the pros and cons of traditional and Indie marketing without getting into the nitty-gritty details that often scare off potential authors.

Advanced Marketing Tactics for Indie Authors: Finding (and Keeping) Readers

By Jennifer McCartney

This article, unlike the following, is a pristine example of a fantastic source. The author notes all of her sources, pulls examples and facts to support her claims, and works with an argument throughout the entire piece while never deviating from the topic. McCartney is the type of source, along with Publisher's Weekly, that the class text urges us to find. McCartney begins by explaining how an education helps any author succeed--but it's not just general education; it's also ensuring the author is educated in their field of writing. Know your market, know your work, and know how to reach readers--also know what writing and being self-published entails. Never expect anyone to do it for you. All of these ring true in any successful self- or Indie published author's career.

McCartney then goes on to use a quote from Mark Coker, who founded Smashwords, to prove that it takes hard work, dedication, and a willingness to learn and apply what's been learned to marketing their work. Use the tools you have--the Internet for research, other authors' accounts of their marketing, even small publishers--to help you climb higher. Just remember that everything is equal; do not expect what you cannot give in return. If someone helps you, help them back.

Many other topics McCartney discusses, such as Metadata (the sort of information about your book you place in a system such as GoodReads and Amazon.com), Pricing (knowing how to price your work competitively), how to use social media without abusing it, and above all, staying persistent in selling your work. These are all great tips, and each section of the article gives ample examples and support for why these methods work, and why the ones that don't work fail. McCartney knows her stuff, and I look forward to finding more articles by her to relate to the topic of Indie vs. Traditional Publishing.

NOTE: The below is a source I spent a while reading, even though it's short. I went through and clicked most of the links to outside texts to see if any of them were worth my time. I was sorely disappointed, but wanted to share how what appears to be a good source can turn sour rather fast.

Marketing Your Book

By The Book Designer (NOTE: This source will NOT be used)

The author of this article, who is unfortunately not named, starts off with what seems to be a well-founded argument. She illustrates the very difficult and obvious problems most authors face--that writing is a creative process, one done often alone, and once the manuscript has been transformed into a book, well! Now you have to market it. What's an author to do, though? They've worked so many hours alone and some tend not to enjoy large crowds of people. But that's what marketing is--it's connecting with potential readers. So how does one do this?

The author of this article lists a few key points, ones that on the surface seem obvious, but as you delve deeper into the world of marketing something as personal as a book, becomes much more difficult. Unfortunately, nothing other than the surface is ever explored in this article. First off, and this is one I've personally heard numerous times, the author should begin marketing before the book is even written. This can mean numerous things. One, as the author explains, is planning what sort of audience your book will appeal to. The second is connecting with that audience and slowly revealing your ideas, characters, etc., and gaining a following organically. This can take time--time which many authors are not wont to give.

Another note the author makes is that once a book is complete, it should be sent to reviewers, who will then read it and post their honest opinions about it all over Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and even GoodReads. Perhaps another problem with this article is that the author doesn't quite explain everything; she leaves out the steps a writer should take in preparing their work for reviewers, such as having it edited multiple times, formatted correctly, and not bribing reviewers, which happens all to often. Then the author of the article deviates and never expands upon her initial questions.

Our reading describes sources that should give a great deal of information and support that information with notes, quotes, or other sources. Unfortunately, this source doesn't meet any of these standards, which is one reason why I chose it. As I read through, I became annoyed with the quick-cut tone of the author, the various links to books that made no sense on the subject, and the lack of support for her arguments--if there's an argument to be had, at any rate. As per the suggestion of the reading, I'm crossing this source from my list and moving on.