Tools for Authors — Tool #3 Publish Creatively

Publishing as an industry has changed so dramatically in the last few years, which is good news for writers.

My number one suggestion for emerging writers is to publish your work online first.  It’s a great way to test your voice, learn to know your audience, find those who resonate with your writings, and perhaps attract a publisher in the process.

Blogs are a great way to actually write a book online. Many bloggers have turned their popular blog content into books, or have attracted a publishing deal for new material.

Decorating mom/daughter duo Suzanne and Lauren McGrath’s book, Good Bones Great Pieces (and their blog of the same name) are an example.  Pioneer Woman Ree Drummond turned her popular blog into several book deals and a Food Network TV show. I look forward to Heather Clawson’s new book, “Creativity at Work,” having faithfully followed her blog Habitually Chic for several years.

You might consider offering your book entirely for free.  Best-selling author, Seth Godin, in an upcoming documentary PressPausePlay, describes making more money releasing his book for free than via the one previously a best seller.

Something known as “hybrid publishing” offers a mix of traditional publishing (their sales team markets your books into stores) and self-publishing (you put the money up front and own more of the process.)

My point here is you don’t need a traditional publishing deal or formal stamp of approval to validate your book’s worthiness or viability.  In fact, under-the-radar methods can be a whole lot more fun and rewarding, without the pressure of finding a publisher (which usually requires a literary agent), then pleasing the publisher.

Plus, every author knows that publishers publish books and leave most of the marketing (if not all of it) up to the author who must do all they can to sell the books through their own established platforms.  Tomorrow I’ll write on building a platform, but in short, the above-mentioned ideas are proving effective for many new writers.

Be an innovator when it comes to getting your book published.  Do your research, read about those who have successfully done it via new methods.  Copy and steal every marketing idea you can find (credit anyone who deserves it) and put your story out there.  The timeline has shortened and opportunities are opening up for a broader demographic of authors, more than ever before.

Go for it!

Pioneer Woman Ree Drummond turned her popular blog into an empire!

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