5 Things I Learned After Publication
By Guest | September 25, 2010 |
Therese here. Please welcome today’s guest author Jenny Nelson. Jenny’s debut novel, Georgia’s Kitchen, released on August 3rd. Though she hasn’t been a published author for long, she has still been able to gather some lessons and is here today to share them with us. Enjoy!
5 Things I Learned After Publication
Now that my debut novel, Georgia’s Kitchen, has been out for a whopping seven weeks, I find myself in the slightly strange position of being able to share some insights into the whole publication experience. Though nowhere near an expert (come back when I’ve published three books) I’ve learned some important lessons that could make things a bit smoother for the soon-to-be-published author.
1. Getting published is a major event. That said, it won’t change your life or bring fame and fortune overnight, as Anne LaMott points out in her terrific book on writing, Bird By Bird. (I read Bird for the first time a decade ago and frequently re-read it. Just knowing it’s on my bookshelf makes me feel better.) You’ll still be the same person with the same problems and pleasures as you were before, only now you’ll be published. This, by the way, is pretty darn cool — even without the fame and fortune.
2. Savor the moment. Throw yourself a book launch party, pick up a pair of snazzy new shoes, go on a yoga retreat, or all of the above, but do something to mark the occasion. Though you’ll still be the same person you always were (see above), you owe it to yourself to celebrate your journey.
3. Friends, family and colleagues are the best PR firm anyone could hire. Tell everyone you know about your new book and then ask them to tell everyone they know. This is not the time to be shy. Tooting your own horn may not come naturally to you (or to me), but if you don’t speak up now chances are people will never know you wrote a book, let alone buy your book.
4. Social marketing – Facebook and Twitter – is a terrific and relatively cheap way to publicize your book. Though it can seem overwhelming at first, it’s worth figuring out. Not only will it help you build a fan base for all future books and allow you to tap into the book blogging community, it will also put you in touch with other authors. “Meeting” authors on Facebook has been a wonderful and surprising by-product of getting published. Seasoned authors are a wealth of information and amazingly generous with advice and insight.
5. Don’t check numbers on Amazon! Everyone says they don’t mean anything (though I don’t believe this for a second) and discovering that your book has dropped tens of thousands of spots in just over an hour is more than a little demoralizing. Let your editor tell you about sales. Speaking of sales, many otherwise well-intentioned people will ask you about them, so you may want to have a stock response. When people ask me I say, “Well, it’s not a New York Times bestseller!” as chirpily as I can muster. This seems to do the trick.
Have a lesson like you’d to share? Please do so in comments.
Thanks for a great post, Jenny!
Readers, you can learn more about Jenny on her website, or by following her on Twitter and Facebook. Write on!
Many thanks to today’s guest.
You can read more WU guest posts by visiting this link.
Maybe you should say: “Well, it’s not a NYT bestseller, YET!”
Then ask them what they’re doing to remedy that pesky situation. ; )
Georgia’s Kitchen is on my list for my next stop to B&N. Looking forward to it!
You’ve made me glad I insisted that my husband celebrate the publication of his two books (they came out togther – on tax law in South Africa). He wasn’t keen, but we had a big party and it was great! When my novel is published (one day, please G-d!) I’ll have a party to raise the roof. And the only person I need tell is my Mom – believe me, the rest of the world will soon know!!
Good luck. I hope your book *is* soon on the NYT bestseller list!
Judy
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Congratulations – well done! It’s always great to hear stories from first timers – it encourages and inspires the rest of us. Best wishes on your book sales!
Just reading this interview makes me want to run out and buy the book. Ms. Nelson is refreshingly honest and down to earth. Should my book ever get published, my head would swell to three times its size and everyone would have to “talk to my agent.” ;)
Great post! Thanks for the inside experience on being newly published.
Best with your book sales!
Patricia
https://pmpoetwriter.blogspot.com/
LOL to Judy’s comments, which are a great play off this excellent advice.
I wrote about self-promotion a while ago and titled ‘the artist as used car salesman’ – not because self promotion IS sleazy but it can sure feel like it. I find that a lot of writers struggle with it because they tend to be work alone in a room types rather than salesmen and it can come as a bit of a shock to discover that you are the CEO of your own commercial success. Having said that, I encourage all creative people to go for it, self promotion-wise. We really are the best people for the job of promoting the work we’ve spent so much time creating.
Congratulations on your first (of many!) publication! I’m adding your book to my book store shopping list.
Refreshing. Free of guile. Nice, clean thoughts on a seminal and potentially life-altering event. Thanks for your thoughts. I agree with the above that the simple, open style makes buying your book an imperative. Huzzah!
Congrats on your book being published!
It seems we spend so much of our lives NOT talking about our accomplishments, or downplaying our achievements — so we actually have to learn how to publicize ourselves when something wonderful like this happens. :) Maybe a few practice runs are in order. . .LOL
Yum. This book sounds like something I’d love.
Also love your advice to savor the moment. It is a very big deal to have a book published, and a writer deserves to celebrate it. Every book, too, not just the first one.
Congratulations on your publication. Thanks for the tips. I will definitely celebrate! :)
Congratulations, Jenny! Thanks so much for taking time to give some pointers to debut authors. My book doesn’t come out until January, but already I’m gearing up for its release. And, it is hard, and I do sometimes feel like a used car salesman (like Denise said in the comments above) – but, if we don’t self-promote, who’s going to do it?
I do think, however, that being helpful and gracious and not having our conversations (both on- and off-line) be “me, me, me” all the time is really important. As you pointed out, we’ll be the same person as we were before we were published – and that should be (hopefully!) a nice person!
Cheers!
Congratulations, and some sage advice in here. From what I’ve observed, it’s easy to let the Amazon rankings or a surly commenter blunt a major triumph; if we won’t celebrate for ourselves, who will?
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Thanks for all the great comments and kind words, everyone. Julia, I wholeheartedly agree that wanting to talk about “me, me, me” (or “my book, my book, my book”) all the time is not only narcissistic, it’s plain old boring (the “b” word, as my daughters call it!). There’s definitely a way to self-promote while remaining gracious and generous to others, and it seems that lots of writers already know this — as evidenced by all the great advice and help I’ve received from more seasoned authors.
Denice, I would love to read your “artist as used car salesman” post!
As a fellow rookie in this glorious game, I sit here nodding. Great post, Jenny!
#1 is a huge point. It doesn’t matter how it does or who read it. It’s been published! And it’s easy to forget that that’s a feat in itself. Thanks for this post.
Congrats, Jenny. Publication is a big deal. It tells me that you are the type of person who finishes. And that, in itself, is a big deal.
However, friends and family have been our weakest supporters. Our first book has been out for 23 months and we know of only 4 friends and 2 family members who have purchased it.
The Internet has been our salvation.