Hello folks. Just a brief Sunday post to let you all know that Vagabondage Press has a book page up now for my novella Beware the Hawk.
The page is up, but orders won’t be taken until Jan. 17. The publishers and I are reaching out to book bloggers now, and I’m trying to set up a blog tour.
I also want to thank everyone for the incredible amount of support I’ve been getting. I’ve gotten shout-outs on people’s blogs and insane amounts of congratulations, people have liked my Facebook fan page. I’ve heard from a couple of reviewers. Someone even nominated me for a blog award. Someone else promised me a glowing five star review on Amazon* without even having read the book. So generous. Thank you guys so much for all of your support so far. I’ve been blown away by all of your kind words. I was very nervous about promoting this book a week ago but you have set my mind at ease.
Okay – that’s it for now. Tomorrow I promise to return to writing confessionals and posts about ninjas, dwarf-maidens and my biological clock.
*I cannot tell a lie. I will not say no to a five-star review on Amazon. But I am told – by those who know such things – that reviews on Goodreads are taken more seriously by the reading public. That’s where the bookworms gather, which makes me feel a little left out, since I don’t have an account there.
You definitely need to get on Goodreads. It’s a great site – I love it. I track my entire library on it.
The only hitch is that you’re going to have to invest a fair amount of time – it is very much a social networking site. You’ll have to join groups and actively engage in board discussions, but do so without mentioning your book immediately. GR members can see authors (whose only intent is to push their book) coming a mile away, and if you do nothing but promote your work you’ll be viewed as a troll. Get involved in the group(s) as a regular member, posting and discussing other books, and when the moment is right you can mention that you have a book – or, another member will visit your profile and being it up (the better option).
(I’ve known of authors who didn’t follow this rule, and who mentioned their book in pretty much every post – they were all but banned from the groups that I belong to.)
You can also set up your own groups, do giveaways for promotion (it’s considered good GR etiquette to read & review – right away – a book you won in a giveaway). So it is a useful tool, but you have to be prepared to put in your time.
My friend posted a number of useful tutorials on her blog last fall:
http://write2publish.blogspot.com/2011_10_01_archive.html
All the GR posts/tutorials were posted in October, mixed in with other posts – you can also just search her page for GR references.
And thanks for adding me to your blogroll! I don’t yet have one set up on my site, but I will definitely add your blog when I do 🙂
You are quite welcome! Adding you to the blogroll was my pleasure.
Okay – I will join Goodreads. I’ve heard a lot about it, but I was daunted by the prospect of yet another social network. But given your endorsement, I will try it! (And I promise not to mention my book in every post.)