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I realized something very important this week. Just because I have a few books out there doesn't mean readers are finding them. Why? Because I haven't been doing my job at letting them know they're out there.

I mean, sure. I post about my works on my Facebook page or Twitter but I guess that doesn't really count as full-out marketing. And I didn't realize the importance of understanding it until I started promoting my new fiction title, DARK WATER (officially released tomorrow on Kindle). When I shared some information about the book, one of my strong supporters of my nonfiction work said, "I didn't know you write fiction!"

I was seriously taken aback at first. This is my third fiction book and this wonderful girl, who has read and helped spread the word about my two memoirs, had no idea I'd even published the first two books. Then I realized that, perhaps, I may not have been doing a good enough job making sure people found them. No wonder sales for those books haven't been great. ::slap forehead::

Of course, it shouldn't be so surprising. Yes, my books are all listed on my author blog. Yes, if readers clicked on my name on Amazon they'd be taken to the other books I've written but that doesn't always happen, right? So, here are a few things I figured out:

~ Connect with other authors out there who are making it with marketing. Watch what they're doing. Learn from them. Take notes.

~ Do for others and they will do for you. You know all of those writing groups you've joined? Don't just go visit them when you have a project to promote. Go in a few times a week to connect with your fellow writers. Help them spread the word on what they're doing. Give kudos and support. Interacting is a big part of marketing because what goes around comes around.

~ Remember that marketing isn't bombarding or spamming. It's giving information about you and your work and knowing when, where and how to give it.

~ Create a buzz and keep it going. My marketing mentor, Cheryl Tardif, told me that you generate excitement for your projects by being excited about it yourself. Share in bits and pieces to get some initial interest, then keep sharing to maintain it.

~ Teasing is a good thing. Another awesome tip from Cheryl. This is how you maintain that buzz. When you share a tidbit, invite people to come back for more and make it even more interesting.

~ Use a new work to create new buzz for your older projects. There are several ways to do this. You could arrange a virtual book tour for the new book, using the other books as prizes. Talk about the other works in interviews. Do character interviews and have the new characters talk about characters from your older books. Use your imagination!

~ It's not a sprint, it's a marathon. This is a direct quote from Cheryl, and I just love it. What she means is that you don't just go full out for the pre-promotion then fizzle out. It means that marketing is a long-haul thing and you should be putting time in each day to keep your work out there. Put the same effort in after release day as you did before.

~ Don't be afraid to take risks. Try new

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As many of you know, I am currently on a book blog tour with WOW for my memoir, White Elephants. To be honest, I was extremely nervous in the days leading up to the tour. By the time the actual day came, I was so nervous I could hardly concentrate on anything else.

What kept me from losing it were my four beautiful kids, turning to my writing and the amazing charity I've connected closely to in the last couple of years.

For those of us who have written memoirs with heavier subject matter, the writing process is actually the easy part (if you can use that word with writing such books). What was difficult, at least for me, was the long editing process. Every round of new edits meant I had to re-read and experience those painful moments again. I found that so much more difficult because the writing process was drawing the feelings out and putting them somewhere safe other than in my mind and body. Editing meant that I not only had to go back to the words over and over again until they flowed they way they should, it also meant I had to relive each scene. Some days, and some scenes, it was tougher than I could bear.

 But I had two things that gave me strength not to fall all the way down: a very supportive editing team over at Silver Boomer Books, who all gave me many cyber hugs, love and courage; and a charity that reminded me why I started on this journey in the first place.

By now, many of you know that I work very closely with a local charity called, Zebra Center. They are a Child Protection Center that helps children who have been abused or otherwise victimized get back on the paths they were meant to be on. I actually 'discovered' Zebra Center during my writing process. I spent alot of time talking and emailing with the CEO, Barbara. In fact, it was my talks with her and learning about what these amazing people do for these kids---who aren't so different from where I was so long ago---that gave me the final spark of courage I needed to get my story out there. Now it wasn't just for me that I was telling my story; it was for these kids (and others the Center hasn't found yet) who aren't able to tell theirs.

After White Elephants finally came out, I had a panic attack. "Oh my GOD!" I thought. "Now everyone is going to know what happened!" I felt like I was walking around naked. I was so terrified and emotionally stretched, I didn't have the energy to market the book. Then I finally got to visit the Center and everything changed.

When I walked around that place seeing the hand-drawn pictures from kids they've helped (or touched) framed up on the wall; when I felt the safety, love and sanctity in that place; when I not only heard but saw the passion Barbara and her team had for what they're doing; and when I got to see "Hope's Closet" up close, a soothing calm blanketed me. It was as though in that moment I just knew everything I was doing mattered. And that's what I draw from to keep going forward.

We have such an amazing opportunity to touch people with our writing. And when you can find that special charity or cause that you can connect your books or writing with, it makes it even more special. Some of us write about some very tough stuff, especially those of us in journalism or

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