Release Day Preparation by Maria K. Alexander

Release Day Preparation by Maria K. Alexander
Maria K. Alexander
http://mariakalexander.com

You’ve prepped and polished your manuscript. You’ve gone through the nail-biting experience of pitching to an editor or agent. You’ve been rejected up the wazoo. After much blood, sweat, and tears, you’ve gotten “the call” and have been offered a publishing contract. Congratulations, you’re getting published! The hard work is over, right?

Wrong!

The moment you sign that contract your life has changed. You will never again be that naïve unpublished writer in search of someone who will believe in your story as much as you do. Rather, you’ll be the naïve soon-to-be-published author who is in search of finding ways to reach your readers. Sound familiar?

Discoverability. Friend or foe? Art or Science? Whether a writer or a reader, there’s a good chance you’re familiar with this word. According to http://dictionary.com, the definition is:

Dis*cov`er*a*bil"i*ty\, n. The quality of being discoverable. [R.] --Carlyle.

So what’s the secret of being discovered? Actors and actresses seek it. So do authors. Come along on my journey to release date and read some of the tips I’ve received and put into play.

Maria K. Alexander’s Release Date Checklist:

1. Purchase the URL for my author name. This was easy since I had already done this.
2. Establish an author website. Once, the thought of this could cause me to wake up screaming in the middle of the night. Thankfully, it wasn’t nearly as daunting as it may seem. My initial website was a WordPress blog. It was easy to set up. Once I signed my contract with The Wild Rose Press, I decided to venture into creating something a little more functional. I created a WIX website (http://wix.com). For not a lot of money, I created something professional where I can manage the content.
3. Social Media. I’ve been an active tweeter for a couple years. I’ve also been an active blogger with my critique partners, The Violet Femmes (http://thevioletfemmes.com). I have an author fan page on Facebook, although I haven’t quite figured out how to use it effectively. Let’s just say I’m a work in progress. There’s a definite place for social media as an effective marketing tool. Even if it’s just one thing, learn how to do it effectively.
4. Blog Tours. A good way to meet readers. Having only recently learned of my Amazon KDP release date, I didn’t have time to set-up an official blog tour. It just so happens that my regularly scheduled date to blog with The Violet Femmes is the date of my release. I’ve also lined up a couple other guest posts that will hopefully get to readers. I’m working to have something official planned in early 2014.
5. Goodreads. Get your book up on Goodreads to connect with readers. You can upload your book cover and request participation in their author program.
6. Amazon’s Author Central. You won’t be able to set this up until your book is available. Once it is, go to https://authorcentral.amazon.com and set up your profile.
7. Newsletter. I’m still working on this as of the writing of this blog post. Think of something fun and creative to send to fans. I hope to have my newsletter finished and sent out in time for my November 25th release date. Stop by http://mariakalexander.com and sign up. PLEASE.
8. Plan/schedule your Tweets, Facebook posts. Know what message you want to Tweet and post come release day/week. Organize them in one document for easy access.
9. Giveaway. Do you have a giveaway planned for your release? While it’s certainly not needed, it’s a fun perk and way to entice potential readers to follow you.
10. Consolidate all your marketing info. I created a “Media Kit” file that contains my Author Biography, Book Blurb, and excerpt. That way, when someone asks me for it, I don’t have to go searching in five places for it.

Last of all, BREATHE! This is important when you find yourself having a meltdown because there aren’t enough hours in the day to do everything and you don’t know how you’ll be ready for release day. Can you tell what’s been running through my mind, lately?

Will these things work? Hopefully. Will there be other things I should have done that I didn’t think of? Certainly. As a newly published author, there’s only so much I can do. The next book in my series is complete and I’m working on editing it so I can send it out for submission. While marketing and promotion is important, I need to balance it with getting the next story published. That way as I am discovered and people fall in love with my book, hopefully, I can give them more.

I hope you’ll come get tangled in my debut contemporary romance, UNTANGLE MY HEART, which will be available from Amazon starting November 25th, 2013. To celebrate my Kindle release, I’m running a special Rafflecopter contest through December 25th. Please visit the contest page of my website at http://mariakalexander.com and enter to win a $10 Amazon gift card.

Thanks for stopping by!

Maria K. Alexander
http://mariakalexander.com

Buy for Kindle : http://amzn.com/B00GVKRLOG