Have you ever watched a commercial and thought, “I will never buy that product.” Have you ever watched a commercial and marveled at the clever presentation but didn’t remember the product advertised? And then of course there are the commercials that sell you on a product you’ve never tried. Your next trip to wherever nets a purchase of said product. After using, you either recommend it to others or contemplate writing a letter to the company for false advertising. Promotion, marketing, sales.
We’ve tackled the subject of marketing fiction here. At its best: marketing in the fiction world is guess work. I call it the black hole of marketing. What in the heck sells fiction to people?
Those authors who’ve achieved bestseller status have a built-in audience waiting for their next release. It’s generally accepted that most of the marketing dollars are spent on the publishers’ successful authors in spite of their established audience anticipating their books, telling their friends about the authors, buying their books. Strange how that works.
Veering away from the Christian fiction industry for a paragraph . . . How did I become aware of Vince Flynn’s political/espionage thrillers? Radio. Rush Limbaugh gave them high marks, and I figured the poignancy and lack of political correctness made them irresistible. This was just after the release of Pursuit of Honor. I immediately went to Borders and bought the book. Because I was so impressed, I read them all and now eagerly await his next novel. The idea of radio advertising only works in the right venue for a story and its author.
The primary purpose of marketing fiction is getting the news of a book release to its appropriate audience. This isn’t always as simple as it might sound. The unknowable audience out there is the one that can make your publishing venture a success. How do you find that audience?
Some of the various efforts to promote your work can be ineffective and/or expensive. Getting publicity from local newspapers can tap that unknown audience. Will they buy? Don’t know. A local television appearance can do wonders for promoting your work—or can it? Don’t know. Possibly a You-Tube presentation done well could get you noticed? Maybe? An interesting book trailer? Perhaps? And of course you rely on accelerating the word-of-mouth from those you’ve selected to be reviewers or the hip term now is “influencers” for your novel.
Even determining the specifics of your audience can aid your focus for marketing your work but then you have to find them. None of this is impossible, but sometimes it’s not easily accomplished either. We attribute certain factors to our audience of choice, but then exceptions surprise us in either wonderful or discouraging ways. And although the web reaches the entire world, we struggle to reach those who would find our book to their liking.
Before anyone jumps in here with platitudes about excellent craft, a great agent, and all the other typical publishing jargon: stop. We’ve all read too many novels which fall far short of “excellence”—some are bestsellers and other authors disappear after fulfilling their first contracts. Some of those who disappear are more entertaining and write better than the bestselling authors. So leave the platitudes for someone else’s blog.
Good writers don’t get published. Poor writers do. Poor writers don’t get published. Good writers do. There are all kinds of hoops required, and I so admire those who jump through all of them. They’re to be commended regardless of how and what they write. Some of both are great marketers and some are not. Some go overboard and some hide.
I’m quite sure most of us would be willing to do something, even lots of things, if we knew it would work. Selling fiction isn’t like shilling the new hard working bathroom cleaner. And it costs more.
Not everyone responds to the same stimulus when it comes to buying a book. Brenda Anderson told us she’s more influenced by the lower ratings on an Amazon review. I don’t read reviews until after I’ve read a book, and I almost never read an Amazon review. Brenda Jackson noted she searches particular fiction sites to find books, and sometimes she finds them there, sometimes not.
It doesn’t matter how excellent, how lavish, how smartly a fantasy novel is marketed: I’m not buying it. No matter how good it’s supposed to be. So genre selection matters because the focus or target audience matters.
Readers (and writers), take note. What sells you on a novel? After all is said and done, maybe it’s easier to admit what doesn’t sell you on a novel. And I’m willing to bet that writers’ criteria differ significantly from readers’ criteria. Maybe that’s part of what makes it so difficult to do.
Father, you’re the designer. You know all things. Our steps are ordained by your guidance. Help us to obey your Spirit all along the way. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.
Into the Fire 
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