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This is one of those times where I wish the blogger (Seth Godin) would allow for comments. There are a few things I'd like to say about his post but he's disabled comments across his blog, which is most unfortunate.

At any rate, I blogged about HC's service last week and as a fellow publisher I think it's a great idea. I'm not applauding it because I'm a publisher; I just tend to think it's a nice service for HC to offer, especially since it lowers the barrier to entry for many authors who are scared of technology.

Here's the real reason why I completely disagree with Seth though: Thanks to RSS it doesn't matter who hosts your blog! 95% or more of the blog reading I do doesn't take place at the source. I read almost everything in my RSS reader instead. So regardless of whether HC or someone else hosts the author blogs it doesn't matter because I'm generally not going to that domain to get the content. I'm not alone, of course, as many, many folks are finding RSS is a great way to consolidate and aggregate all your blog feeds.

So if the publisher, HC in this case, is willing to host and lower that barrier to entry, what's not to like?!

Btw, the post I wrote about this on my own blog can be found here: http://jwikert.typepad.com/the_average_joe/2007/09/harpercollins-a.html

Thanks,
Joe Wikert
Publishing 2020 Blog
[email protected]

I prefer handling my own site, but it might be a good opportunity for others.

Yes, not everyone is a blogger at heart. It's a shame to look at it as a grievous task, but if it does feel that way, I would consider giving it a miss. Great blogs have the giddy energy of the writer and that never fails to attract readers.

Great series of posts!

I agree, if a writer would rather clean the cat litter than blog, the blog is more likely to hurt than help.

At the same time, I don't think writers should blow it off just because it's difficult or doesn't come naturally.

To me it's like the query letter situation. A good query letter is hell to write, because it takes radically different skills than writing the actual book. Some writers don't want to put the time and effort into it. Others resent having to write a query in the first place. In any case, we all moan about it. But we write the damn thing anyway, because we have to, and with luck we learn a few things.

Query letters are essential, and blogs aren't. But blogging skills are writing skills, after all. I figure stretching my abilities outside my comfort zone can only make me a better writer. I don't think I'll ever be a world-class blogger, but I'm pretty sure I'll keep improving...and anyway, keeping that door open to the reader is still most important.

I think a good website is a necessity, a blog isn't. Readers who are new to your work really need and want to know about your books and something about you. They may not have time to get to know you through your blog, but they'll have time to browse a write-up on your books. If you really aren't up for a blog, just make sure you have a good website that you update periodically.

gail's points were partly why I initially raised the question (oh, so many long blog entries ago...) :o) I have a website, on which I post updates in a news section on the front page. They aren't chatty, nor do they attempt to make a personal connection with readers, the way BSC's and other successful blogs do. But I keep it reasonably up to date with news about what's happening with me, my books, or my artwork.

Regardless, there is a lot of peer pressure to do the blogging thing, and of course one always worries that you're "missing out" on the next great thing that will bring in legions of new readers. One aspect of it that BSC pointed out in her last blog here is a rather good one, regarding the RSS feeds - one can't expect readers to keep hopping back to your site all the time just to see if you've updated something, but establishing an RSS feed is something that alerts those receiving it that there is new content available. I like that idea!

Aren't authors also readers? I'm an unpublished author with a blog and I love the connections I've made with other authors - I've also bought most of their books. So I think it's a win win. :)

As a fan, I like having a connection to authors I like, a way to know what they're up to and when I can expect their next book. I think it makes authors seem less like strangers and more like people I know, so I'm more likely to want to buy their books instead of borrowing them from a friend or the library. In short, I don't know if you gain new readers with a blog, but I think the blog help keep the readers you already have and that seems pretty important to me.

I like what kalika said. Sadly, I do have a myspace and went on one of my favorite authors myspace and saw a bunch of up and comming authors who had there covers of there books up. It got me wanting to investigate what they were all about. I end up reading there blogs and there adventures as an up and comming author. Makes me want to read there book even more when it comes out. Specially, if they seem personable. To me the blogging works.

I have bought books from authors I discovered in blogland.
Blogs give me a chance to get to know a person's writing style before I plunk down my bucks. I read a lot, so I am always looking for new authors.
Also for authors I already love, I agree with Kalika that it helps me keep up with that they are doing, and when stuff is out, and to feel closer to them. It doesn't mean I don't read people without blogs, but it sure can help.

I rarely buy books that I haven't already read and adored, but I've certainly picked up at least one book from the library because I stumbled upon her blog (ALL THE FISHES COME HOME TO ROOST, by Rachel Manija Brown--rachelmanija on LiveJournal).

I'm not sure if I've ever bought a book based on an author's blog, but I've definitely been introduced to magazines and anthologies that included bloggers' work. There are relatively few established authors whose day-to-day life and ramblings are that interesting to me, but I've definitely found some quality short story writers this way.

I've only ever had one purchase come out of my having a blog. But I'm also a self-published author/full-time student, so my blog is basically the only way to maintain interest.

I only have anecdotal evidence rather than actual sales results, but I have heard from a number of readers who read my blog first, and then bought my books. Some came for writing-related topics, others found me through various LiveJournal communities where I also post or were referred by friends.

I think the primary benefit of my blog is for keeping the existing readers fired up to go spread word of mouth. They feel like they know me, so they're more emotionally invested in getting people to read my books.

I don't know that I've read a blog of an author I hadn't already read, but oddly, I find a lot of good book recommendations from other authors' blogs when they talk about the books they love. Maybe the key isn't so much to use your own blog to promote your own books, but to hope that other authors will talk about your books on their blogs.

I started blogging because my agent and editor said all authors need to blog, and also because I thought it would be fun to try. But I was hazy on what the blog was really FOR. Pushing my own book? Bleah. Rambling on about my day? Please. Not even my dog is interested in my day, most days. (“She sat and make the clicky noises with her fingers…I fell asleep…woke up… still making clicky noises. Isn’t it dinnertime yet?”)

So I mostly post on topics that interest me and that I think will interest other people. I doubt I’ve sold any books as a direct result. But if it takes time, and isn't selling books, is it worthwhile continuing? Yes, because it's an open door, a way for people to connect, and that's important to me. Plus I'm still learning about tone, and focus, and voice, and that makes it fun.

Thinking about this has made me realize that my own favorite blogs are either snarkily funny -- a voice I could never pull off myself, btw (barista brat, Go Fug Yourself) or are great sources of information (Booksquare, here). Interestingly, I haven’t stuck much with other authors’ blogs. More food for thought...

I personally have purchased my last six books based upon either the author's blog (because I was a subscriber to it) or another blog that did a review of the book OR interview with the author as part of a "virtual book tour."

The 4-hour Work Week best seller completely built a marketing plan around the author's blog and others to build the promotion needed for the book.

Penelope Trunk's Brazen Careerist has significantly added sales through her own blog as well as virtual book tours at other blogs.

I would also point to The Long Tail as another book that published because of a blog.

The key to promoting your book on your blog is to consistently write articles on your blog about the topic of the book, not promoting the book itself.

So, yup, technology can help market your work. But you have to use it the right way.

Interesting comments, all. Scott, I note that some of your success examples are non-fiction, and I could see blogging working in that realm when the focus of the blog is on the subject of the book. But do you think the same truism would hold true for fiction? (Just tossing out questions for discussion/debate here...).

I think as well that Christine makes a very good point, and it's one I've made to BSC as well, that the successful bloggers also have a particular talent for writing blogs (such as BSC displays). They can take the mundane or the complicated and make it interesting, funny, and readable. But that in itself is a particular writing talent, and not every writer will be good at doing that as opposed to their normal mode of writing.

I certainly agree with BSC that every writer needs an online presence, whether that be a website, blog, message boards, or some combination. It's that combination part that is the question of the moment. As Christine noted, "everyone" is saying you have to blog. But there are a lot of demands on the writer's available marketing time, and is trying to maintain a daily or near-daily blog that's entertaining and informative the best use of that time? Or would participation in message boards, attendance at conventions (both, perhaps, best suited for genre folks) be more direct to your potential readers? Or is keeping frequent updates of "latest news" on one's own website just as good as the blog?

One cannot deny the whole interconnectedness thing (if that's really a word...) as outlined by Shanna. But I can also see one ending up spending vast amounts of time clicking and interacting with a lot of people's sites to try and maintain the connections and visibility. You might want to do that anyway because it's fun, but is it time effective from the standpoint of your own marketing efforts, versus other online or offline activities?

And one question I will also be interested in seeing, is how many people continue to respond to this day's blog, now that BSC has posted a more recent one. If one wants to have an ongoing dialog with readers or others on a topic, does the structure of blogging (with the emphasis on the most recent entry) work against that (as opposed to a message board, for instance, where the thread stays active as long as people have things to say about it). Just another thought to toss in her to make this entry as long as possible, lol! :o)

as an antipodean author (australia), i find my blog is a great way of making contacts overseas.

and i don't know if reading or seeing my blog makes people buy my books, but i certainly think that it raises awareness of them, and that's worth a lot in itself.

i've absolutely bought books after reading the author's blog. and i've stopped reading some authors' books after reading their blogs.

but the one thing no one has mentioned yet is: blogging is great writing practice! as a writer, it's great to have something a bit casual to exercise your ideas and writing muscles on.

I know a few of my blog readers have bought my books, when they might not have had they not "met" me through the blog.

For me, I love blogs. I love reading a favorite author's thoughts on things, especially when they take time to reply or otherwise indicate that they're reading.
It gives me a reason to invest personally in that author, which is always nice.

I actually learnt about Lynn Viehl through blogland and it lead to buying one of her books.

I am an author myself, but my blog still attracts a very modest amount of traffic.

However, it has helped to make a few readers turn into fans, actually. I know for sure that I sold some sixty more copies of my first book, just by having the blog.

It's not much, I know, but it is about 5% of the total sales, so far, last year.

FWIW

I agree with everything Kalika said. I have bought books as a result of enjoying an author's blog and I have also maintained connections to a favorite author by being subscribed to her blog. I find a lot of books that I look for at the library through virtual book tours and mentions by authors I like. I wish more of my favorite authors had blogs I could enjoy.

I'll comment as a reader.

I have absolutely purchased books because of the author's blog, and I have also purchased books because of that author's agent's blog. Further, I would not have bought them, had it not been for the blogs.

On the other hand, we are talking about maybe 6 books in total here, so I can't say that blogging is worth it for the author *just* to get book sales.

(I have also purchased books based on blog recommendations, but that seems like a different topic than you are raising here.)

I've never bought a book just because of a blog, but I like reading authors' blogs. It helps me stay up to date with when the next book in a series is coming out, or any projects they happen to be working on. I wouldn't say that blogs improve book sales, but they keep the reader informed and that keeps sales up. I also just like knowing that the author isn't someone who's full of themselves, but that they relate to me and are as down to earth as some of the characters in their books. =)

Hmmm. I'm a book publicist. Generally when I send a press release that is clearly an announcement of some sort I will put the actual announcement title in the subject header. When I worked for Big Ass Publishing Company way back when, I frequently had to send out press releases for big acquisitions. if I wanted anyone to actually open them, the subject header had to be short and concise and to the point. For example, "Big Ass Publishing Company acquires two books by Great Big Giant Author Name"

It usually works.

The FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE is a leftover from the days of faxed press releases, I think.

(BTW, feel free to ask me if you ever want answers to any questions from a publishing perspective.)

Thanks so much for answering my question. I really appreciate the good info.
Lynda Hilburn

"FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE" also distinguishes from press releases that are embargoed until a certain date. The media outlet may get the release (usually electronically these days) but can't report on the contents until the date specified in the release.

Agh, more stuff to do. I am going to buy a lottery ticket. And when I win, I am going to hire a small and precise assistant named Derek. Derek will wear a neat dark blue suit and follow me around with a notepad. I'll say, "I need a press packet." And he'll say, "I'm right on it, Miss Marta!"

I can't wait until I win!

Thanks for this helpful column. I have a question about the press kit. Everything you talked about is on my website, but I don't have a specific button called "press kit." Is it enough that all my materials are accessible? Thanks!
Lynda
www.lyndahilburnauthor.com

Very helpful. This has become the topic of the week at my publisher, thus it's very timely for me. Moves to the top of my big list of things to have ready should I need it, and I do.

I love making EPKs!

Okay, I'm going to add a few things here. I work in book publicity and I've often had to tell authors what they need to give ME to help promote their book, and they're the same things that they should have on their website.

I agree it's great to have a some low-res files available for download, you should also have high-res jpgs available for print media. 300 dpi is good; 600 dpi is better. If a glossy monthly wants your photo, the highher the res the better.

For an author photo, always 9always always always!!!) have a color photo. Even if you think you have the best B&W headshot in the world, a magazine like Entertainment Weekly is not going to want it. 90% of the print and online media want color.

Have a ready-made Q&A. You would be surprised at often a journalist at a small paper will just print that Q&A in its entirety. It's easy conetent.

And although Bookseller Chick says to add links to your past reviews, I would go one further. Create and host PDF files of any reviews. Online content disappears, or gets moved, or requires the dreaded registration. make it easy for the press to get your information.

Okay, hope that was helpful.

Cheers!

Thank you. Very helpful. And now my brain hurts even more. But in a good way. :-)