Tag: holidays

Alternative Marketing Methods, Book Marketing, Holiday Marketing Alchemy, Holidays, in your corner, Marketing Your Self-Published Book, Uncategorized

The Alchemy of Holiday Marketing (Part III)

fall autumn book

Several weeks back, we began this series by introducing the idea that marketing—specifically marketing as regards self-published books—is a kind of alchemy. Alchemy, we discovered, has a lot of meanings or connotations, but we continue to run semi-officially with the Merriam-Webster definition of alchemy as “a power or process that changes or transforms something in a mysterious or impressive way.” We spent some time during the next post examining this definition further, as well as its historic inflections and how that translates into focusing on what makes your writing and method special. Last time, we looked into the guiding question of “what’s next?” Which, as it turns out, is taking your existing habits and tweaking them to better serve your marketing goals–in a sustainable fashion that won’t undercut your existing routines and interests.

What comes after “what’s next?”

Next comes the holiday-specific part! Now that you’ve eked out some additional sustainable habits (that will continue working in your favor year-round, of course!) it’s time to think about what little bits of “extra” you can fit in around the holidays that support your ongoing marketing strategy and also take advantage of all those little things you can only do around the holidays.

Thanksgiving

To hit upon some high points we keep returning to year after year on this blog:

Thanksgiving is a time for doing, every bit as much as it is about giving and receiving. After all, the whole “giving and receiving” thing gets a real workout around Christmas. And in a smaller sense, at Halloween and even Veteran’s Day, when we give thanks to our servicemen and women—very important in its own way, but not the only mode of being to inhabit as a self-publishing author.

Thanksgiving is a time for activity, for wrapping up all the things that have been left unfinished at other times of year—a time for completion, for stepping back and looking at the whole and then by golly sitting down and filling in the holes. The best way to celebrate Thanksgiving isn’t just to give and receive thanks; the best way to celebrate Thanksgiving is to get ‘er done. To see yourself and your book and your marketing campaign and your social media strategy through the rough patches that inevitably accumulate on the leading edge of the end of the year. It’s not, contrary to legend, a time to sit around and kick up your feet and wait for good things to happen (or, more appropriately, to pop out of the oven and onto your dinner plate). Delicious as a fresh-baked cobbler is, it’s not quite the point.

If we wanted to look all the way back to the Quakers and the First Thanksgiving—and let’s face it, like it or not Thanksgiving is a time rife with nostalgia and historic musings—we should be honest about what it was like for them. They only celebrated because the gifted foods and skills given them by the local tribes kept them from starvation—and then, only just. The Quakers almost starved. Many of them did starve. It was not a time of plenty; it was a time for surviving, and for acknowledging those who helped them to survive. The time for celebration isn’t after everything is done and the harvest is in; the time for celebration is now, when the struggle and the busy-ness and the insanity is at its height. Tap into that spirit and, in the spirit too of the diagramming and recording we’ve done since our previous post, start brainstorming the ways you can merge celebration with marketing. Will throwing an event at the local library do that for you? Will putting up posters around town? Hosting a discount or giveaway on your blog and book sale page? Think of those strategies which you can put together quickly, easily, and without adding undue stress at a busy time. We’ll be back next week with more thoughts on specific events, tips, and tricks you can use that fit the bill for simple and stress-free!

These holidays, I hope you know that we here at Self Publishing Advisor are a part of your network, a resource to enable your resilience. We’re here for you this Thanksgiving season, to help you get it done–and to help you celebrate your wonderful book!

fall autumn book blanket coffee

Do you have ideas to share? Please don’t hesitate to drop us a line in the comments section, and I’ll make sure to feature your thoughts and respond to them in my next post!

You are not alone. ♣︎

Elizabeth

ABOUT ELIZABETH JAVOR: With over 20 years of experience in sales and management, Elizabeth Javor works as the Director of Sales and Marketing for Outskirts Press. The Sales and Marketing departments are composed of knowledgeable publishing consultants, customer service reps and book marketing specialists; together, they all focus on educating authors on the self-publishing process to help them publish the book of their dreams. Whether you are a professional looking to take your career to the next level with platform-driven non-fiction or a novelist seeking fame, fortune, and/or personal fulfillment, Elizabeth Javor can put you on the right path.

 

elizabeth speaks, in your corner, Uncategorized

In Your Corner: Liminal Spaces

This is my last post before Christmas, and indeed, this is my last post of 2017! Before I get on with my post, then, it’s time to wish you all a …

Happy Holidays Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

Hard to believe, isn’t it? Well, for me at least it is. I know that for many of you and many among my wider circle of acquaintances, 2017 has been a difficult year to navigate. There has been political upheaval, of course, and there have been so very many tragedies–the shootings in Las Vegas and elsewhere, drought, fires, floods, illnesses, and many more troubles of both a personal and a natural (and a national) nature.*

I sincerely hope that there have been good things that have come to you in 2017 as well as those hardships. The holidays are a time for celebration and rejoicing, but for so many people, they’re actually the hardest time of hear–a regular reminder that they do not have what others do: security, comfort, a loving family, and so forth. (HuffPost recently featured an article on this phenomenon.) Some of you may know what I’m talking about, though of course I’m hoping that the majority of you remain blissfully unaware!

As we move into 2018, I want all of you to know that here in the self-publishing community, you have a home. You have people who care about you and your creative endeavors, your health and security. We’re here to support you in this liminal space between old year and new, old projects and new projects, old dreams and new dreams.

What is a liminal space? In her Psychology Today article, Carrie Barron writes that it comes from the Latin for threshold, when something about your life has changed and you find yourself adrift, looking for that next thing to come along and help straighten you out. But liminal spaces can be rich territory for creativity, she goes on to say. They can, in fact, provide space for learning more about yourself–who you are and what you need out of life–as well and provide a mental break from the daily grind. And after a rough year? Barron writes that sometimes a “really simple interpretation can be much more helpful to a patient than a profound, deep one, if it is the right timing and offered with empathy.” And in that spirit, I’d love to repeat what her friend once told her:

You were really battered. Time heals.

And I would add: There’s more to come. The great thing about liminal spaces is that they are moved through. They’re places and times of transition, and you will transition through this one, if you’re having a rough holiday season. And as always … we’ll be here for you both in the difficult, creativity-sapping times, and in the glorious, high-flying times. We’re here for you in the holidays … and in the seasons that come after.

You are not alone. ♣︎

 

* If you’re still looking for tangible ways to help, the death toll in Puerto Rico was recently officially recounted and declared to be more than 1000, and much of the island is still without power. Charity Navigator has a list of highly-rated relief organizations you can support over the holiday season. They are a great resource no matter which cause touches you; you can search for many of this year’s disasters and see a full list of rated aid organizations.

Elizabeth

ABOUT ELIZABETH JAVOR: With over 20 years of experience in sales and management, Elizabeth Javor works as the Director of Sales and Marketing for Outskirts Press. The Sales and Marketing departments are composed of knowledgeable publishing consultants, customer service reps and book marketing specialists; together, they all focus on educating authors on the self-publishing process to help them publish the book of their dreams. Whether you are a professional looking to take your career to the next level with platform-driven non-fiction or a novelist seeking fame, fortune, and/or personal fulfillment, Elizabeth Javor can put you on the right path.
elizabeth speaks, Holidays, in your corner, Uncategorized

In Your Corner: A Soulful Christmas

happy holidays

This is the time of the year when there’s snow on the roads in my part of the world, the days are short and dark by five in the evening, and everyone’s going a bit stir crazy.  Tensions are at a fever pitch, but so too is that special brand of optimistic cheerfulness which washes over and around the people I care about.  Some people may not celebrate the religious aspect of the Christmas holidays, but you can’t help but love some of the perks they bring with them: hot cocoa and cider to drink, quilts and kittens and friendships to keep us warm, generosity to celebrate in giving and receiving.

It seems almost callow, perhaps, to talk about marketing in the midst of all this good-feeling.  What does the commercial machine have to do with empathy and generosity?

Here’s the thing: What’s good for you as an author and what’s good for your relationships is also good for business.  

I’m not just talking about the “family-friendly” or “family-owned” propaganda issued by big businesses like Starbucks or Chipotle or REI; I’m talking about your relationships on a personal level, and starting from the ground up.  The real revolution in how we do business has to start with actual human connection rather than the cold and soulless opportunism that we’ve been taught is the marker of successful companies and their high-level officials.

So this Christmas, I’m not going to encourage you to break out a couple of new strategies for self-promotion success for several reasons–including the fact that we’ve already done so in past Christmases: here, here, and here––but rather to refocus on what you consider the most valuable and worthwhile aspects of your relationships.  I guarantee you this: if you put your friendships and your loved ones first, the rest will fall into place.  Friends want to hear about what each other do and love and are working on, and when your relationships are in tune you’ll know instinctively when it’s a good and natural and 100% organic moment to do so.

Who you are as a writer fits within a broader framework of who you are in connection to the other people in your life.  Authenticity isn’t just nice; it’s imperative.  It just makes sense that what’s good for your relationships would be good for spreading the word about your book, and the ingredients for a joyful and happy holiday season would also be the perfect recipe for a productive time for you as a self-publishing author!

You are not alone. ♣︎

Elizabeth

ABOUT ELIZABETH JAVOR: With over 20 years of experience in sales and management, Elizabeth Javor works as the Director of Sales and Marketing for Outskirts Press. The Sales and Marketing departments are composed of knowledgeable publishing consultants, customer service reps and book marketing specialists; together, they all focus on educating authors on the self-publishing process to help them publish the book of their dreams. Whether you are a professional looking to take your career to the next level with platform-driven non-fiction or a novelist seeking fame, fortune, and/or personal fulfillment, Elizabeth Javor can put you on the right path.
Conversations with a Self-Publishing Writer, Royalene Speaks, Uncategorized

Conversations: 11/24/2017

‘TIS THE SEASON TO READ FOR FUN

Reading to (then with) my daughter when she was a child was a joy I’d tucked away in my memories until her son was born just five short years ago. Suddenly, I was reintroduced to great short stories that are beautifully illustrated (Goodnight Moon, Goodnight Construction Site, and Little Blue Truck) and are now duplicated in her house and mine. Some of them I will never part with again because they speak to the child within me and offer me sage wisdom that crosses all age, ethnic, and cultural barriers.

I greatly admire the authors who write and publish these amazing books. They not only offer parents priceless “connection time” with their children, but they often allow us to explore the depths of symbolism and character development (Winnie-the-Pooh) that enhance our adult lives. Today, I give you two examples of two very different stories that will bless your holiday reading.

holidays in heaven marcia spilmanThroughout my life I’ve enjoyed the companionship of many pets from goldfish and cats to English Bulldogs. As a child, I was unable to express just how much I missed those critters, especially around the holidays when we were looking in the stores to find just the right toy (or aquarium cave) to give to them that year. So, when I found this book—HOLIDAYS IN HEAVEN by Marcia Spilman—during a recent random online search, I was thrilled. It is 38 pages of beautiful illustrations that address multiple holidays such as Birthdays, Valentine’s Day, Easter, Veterans Day, Christmas, etc.

Spilman realized that our children “expect us to have answers and a brighter outlook on their loss.” This is what inspired her to write the book, offering comfort—to children of all ages—during the holidays when we are missing someone special who is no longer on this earth.

My second book selection this week is BOSS RALPHIE. One of the online reviewers saysboss ralphie edward carboni the story reminds him of a mixture of It’s A Wonderful Life and/or A Christmas Carol written through the lens of Goodfellas the mafia/mob novel. This is NOT an illustrated story for young children, but it undeniably tweaks the perspectives of everyone who’s read it.

Author Edward Carboni, has created this short story (51pages) that imagines God as the “Don of the universe” and His Archangel Raphael as “Boss Ralphie.” The Boss and his crew of “wise-guy angels” have been given a special assignment on Christmas Eve. They must save the soul of a lost man and the life of a little girl on the streets of Philadelphia. This very unique story has been heralded as “A heartwarming and funny story certain to become a new holiday classic.”

Each of my blogs this November offers us (yes, me too) the opportunity to explore different genres whether they fit into our general writing styles or not. Each of these authors has worked to develop their writing techniques and release their voices into the world. They’ve chosen to self-publish for multiple reasons (which is a topic for discussion at another time). So today, if you haven’t already picked up one of these books to read, I’m encouraging you to do so. There is much to learn from these authors.

Whether you are in the midst of writing that “great American novel,” or feel flat-lined in the concept development department, these books—and others in their genres—will inspire you in ways that cannot be anticipated. So, READ and relax a little and don’t forget to take notes when ideas begin to “pop.” This holiday season is definitely the Season to Read and Taste, Read and Imagine, Read and Seed, and simply READ FOR FUN! ⚓︎

Royalene

ABOUT ROYALENE DOYLE: Royalene has been writing something since before kindergarten days and continues to love the process. Through her small business—DOYLE WRITING SERVICES—she brings more than 40 years of writing experience to authors who need “just a little assistance” with completing their projects. This is a nice fit as she develops these blogs for Outskirts Press (OP) a leading self-publisher, and occasionally accepts a ghostwriting project from one of their clients. Her recent book release (with OP) titled FIREPROOF PROVERBS, A Writer’s Study of Words, is already receiving excellent reviews including several professional writer’s endorsements given on the book’s back cover.
Royalene’s writing experience grew through a wide variety of positions from Office Manager and Administrative Assistant to Teacher of Literature and Advanced Writing courses and editor/writer for an International Christian ministry. Her willingness to listen to struggling authors, learn their goals and expectations and discern their writing voice has brought many manuscripts into the published books arena.