In the nine years I have been writing, there have been many hiccups and bumps in the road. One of the things I have been thankful for have been the great authors I’ve had the pleasure of learning from along the way. I am happy to pass that on to others.
- The first thing I recommend to all authors and aspiring authors is to read. Read everything you can get your hands on whether it’s a free book or costs you money. There are a few books I recommend if you are starting out. The first is called “Plot and Structure” by James Scott and “Inside the Story” by Dara Marks. Both books will help give you the basic foundation for your stories and put you on the right path. After those, start searching for books that help you write in your genre of choice or other authors that have been writing in that genre so that you see what works and what doesn’t.
- The second thing I will recommend is to start using the social networking sites. No I don’t mean going on Facebook and talking to your friends and family. I mean using twitter, Facebook, Linkedin, and Google Plus to seek out authors, bloggers, promoters, and book reviewers and establish relationships with these people. They are the ones you can learn from and build a network of like-minded people that have goals very similar to yours and know what you are going through.
- Thirdly, ask the people closest to you for help in Beta testing your book. Have them read it over, ask for their opinions, suggestions, what they liked best about it, what they disliked about it, and what they would like to see more of. Typically I would choose a friend who will be completely honest with you or another author that you have become very close with.
- Lastly, learn marketing strategies. Whether you decide to pay someone to do the work for you or you decide to do the work yourself, there are many options out there to help promote your book and will need to research. Promotions I suggest are; Virtual Book Tours, Virtual Launch Parties, Cover Reveals, Book Signings, and Table Events.
- There is only one more thing I would strongly advise for all authors and/or readers. Remember to rate and review the books on Amazon.com and Goodreads. Everyone has a voice; let it be heard.
Andrew Hess is a resident of Long Island New York who likes to spend much of his time traveling between Long Island, New York City and the Dutchess County areas. In 2011 he debuted with his first book Chamber of Souls, a small book of free verse poetry which depicted the struggles of a man who thought he had everything in the world only to feel like he lost everything after a rough break-up. In 2013, Andrew debuted his novel The Phoenix Blade: Project Justice; the first in The Phoenix Blade series.
Andrew is also a blogger at TheWritersRevolution13.blogspot.com where he interviews and promotes other authors in order to assist indie authors get more exposure. Andrew is also a frequent guest on the Anthony Charles Podcast, a show dedicated to creative professionals as they give insight into their works and the lives they lead; guests have included authors, comedians, musicians, stuntmen, actors and producers.
Purchase link: Amazon.com
Social Media Links
Amazon Author Page|Twitter|Facebook:TheRealPhoenix13|Facebook:ThePhoenixBlade
Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords
