The Publishing Process (pt. 3)

After you've hired the right professionals to turn your book into magic and found the right printer to make that magic a reality, the next step is to....well, sell your book. You need to make it available in as many different forms as you can, then tell people about it. But you need to tell people about it the right way--the sooner the better--so they'll want to buy your book and maybe even recommend it to others. That's called 'Marketing' your novel. Now, marketing sounds like it should be the easiest part of the publishing process, but it's usually the hardest. Shocking, I know. A writer could make it through writing and editing and even hiring, but then fall flat once it's time to share their book with the world.

Let me tell you why that happens, and how you can avoid it.

PT. 3: MARKETING YOUR NOVEL

Marketing is a topic that deserves an article all on its own because of how tricky it can be, especially for beginners and younger writers. I've struggled with it a lot recently.

But hey, fun fact: did you know that starting this website was a way for me to market my novel?

It wasn't the only reason I started TheTeenageWriter, but it was the whole reason I considered creating an author website. Yep, you heard me. This is actually an author website.

I was told, while finding out all I could about marketing and how to do it right, that the most important thing to have before publishing your novel is an email list. That's a list of people that you can tell about your book, already set aside before the book's even published. They don't have to buy the book and it's not likely that most of them will, but having that community of writers and readers around you is an important part of your marketing strategy.

Why am I telling you this? Because it's something you could do, too. Creating a site these days doesn't cost much (although it is a lot of work). By starting an author website and blog, you expose yourself. You present yourself. Not only to possible readers, but to publishers as well. Publishers find it impressive that you've put in the effort and time towards marketing, especially when you're so young.

The second most important part of your marketing plan involves social media. Twitter, Facebook, Instagram--all can be used to promote yourself and your novel.

Try not to become that door-to-door salesman type of annoying, though. All you really have to do is share your journey with the world. Gloat about wordcount milestones, or open up and tell the world what you struggle with most in writing. Share your novel's title and a brief summary. And always, always always ask for help! Online groups and communities are the best places to do so. There are so many writers willing to share what they know.

And keep in mind, all this should be done before your novel is published. You could even start marketing before the first draft is completed. Like I said, the sooner the better.

And finally, there are literary agents. Literary what now?

Literary agents. Or Query agents, as they're sometimes called. And no, not the spy-movie type. A literary agent is there as a sort of spokesperson or manager. They'll help you sort through the whole mess of pitching your novel to publishers (if you're publishing traditionally) or to bookstores and online shops (if you're self-publishing). They cost a lot, but they're worth every penny. They can also be a bit elusive. But there are a couple sites that help you find them. Sites like Query Tracker ( https://querytracker.net/ ) and Agent Query ( https://www.agentquery.com/ ) are free to use.

You can find out more about Agents here:

https://hollylisle.com/how-to-query-an-agent/

And that wraps it up for this series!

I hope I helped you understand that complicated mess that is the Publishing Process.

There are still so many important things left to discuss!

Like editors and beta-readers, how to write suspense, and much more!

Thank you for reading, and I'll see you next week~

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