Category: Bite Sized Ideas
Our growing collection of quick tips, hot new ideas, or bite-sized thoughts. All designed to beef up your platform building skills.
Platform building tip: Use the local press
One way to demonstrate platform reach to an agent or publisher is to demonstrate real-world reach. Many local newspapers accept freelance writers to help tell the news. Even ones that do not will often jump on a well-written press release. Be it by press release or freelance writing, make a point of getting published in […]
Become a book reviewer – I will show you how to convert that hobby into book sales
Book review blogs are a big deal. The most popular review sites have to charge to review book submissions if they even take them at all. This is something you can leverage to get many book sales. Let me tell you how. First, invest some time – several months at least. During that time publish […]
Subscribe to other author’s press releases to learn what works and what doesn’t
Press releases are a whole new skill set for an author to learn. One way to learn faster is to subscribe to other author’s press releases. You might discover a book you will enjoy but you will see enough examples of press releases to figure out what works. Just drop some key sentences into Google […]
Platform building tip: Mockup a social profile for your protagonist
Here is an author platform building tip – mockup a social profile for your protagonist This is an exercise in content creation for your platform as well as getting to know your main character better. You are helping yourself to write and your readers to get invested in your character before they even see your […]
When it comes to author platforms, perfection is overrated
As an author – established or starting out – a perfect website is not a thing that matters. As long as your platform engages readers and does not actively drive potential readers away, that is good enough. Your website could be the ugliest thing on the planet but if your readers engage with it, that […]
Do Millennials hate email?
Back in 2015, Lela Perez told us “Millennials Hate Email” but I can tell you some of Generation X are not too fond of it either. Scott Asai writes asking “Are Millennials Killing Emails?” The answer is, yes, sort of – Millennials just have other ways they prefer to communicate. At odds with the sentiment […]
Platform building tip: Interview your villain
Here is another author platform building tip – publish an interview with your villain. That’s good for character exploration for you and interesting enough to attract readers too.
Focus on what makes your work special
Too often we focus on things our work is like. That’s fine as a shortcut for who the work is aimed at. However, you must not forget to stand out from the crowd. Talk about what makes your work different.
Platform building tip: Be the answer to someone’s question
Here is an author platform building tip – set aside an hour each week to seek out people with questions that you can give answers to. Not only does solving someone’s problem with a helpful answer show you to be an expert but it will draw new followers, fans, and subscribers. Why does free help […]
Platform building tip: before and after shots of your opening paragraph
When it comes time to edit, copy and paste your opening paragraph into a separate document. Save it and forget about it. When you are or near the end of the editing process, copy and paste your revised opening paragraph into that other document. Now you can post a before and after, side-by-side comparison, of […]