Building Your Author Platform in Your Pajamas

Authorpreneur in Pajamas

Authorpreneur in Pajamas: Building Your Author’s Platform Without Leaving Your Home by Geraldine Solon

An author cannot simply write a book and then rest on his or her laurels. We live in a digital age, and as such, are expected to be online and have a visible presence. Building a platform is absolutely essential. We need to promote our work and hustle to create a buzz for it and all of our other work.

Geraldine Solon has some tips that every author should follow. As I read this book, I found that I have already been doing a lot of these things. Many of her ideas and tips are just common sense.

That being said, here are a few that you might not have thought about before. I will be trying to implement these ones in the future, that’s for sure.

on the cover of your book . . . 

“Investing in a cover artist should be a priority . . .  We live in a visual world, and if your cover doesn’t stand out from the rest, what incentive will you provide readers to take a second look”

on pricing . . . 

“you can schedule a price change every so often. I usually schedule mine every three months to keep the momentum going. I keep the promo for two days and them bring them back to the original price. I have discovered that this tactic works and provides more exposure to my novels.”

on the importance of having a website . . . 

Your website should have a welcome page, bio, and a photo.

I don’t really have a welcome page or a photo on my site. I use a logo that is identifiable and I use it across all of my online platforms. I think that is just as good. That being said, I think I will add a photo and an “About Me” page on my site. I know that people like to see these things too.

add a reader’s guide . . . 

“Some authors have a reading guide in the back of their book. A reading guide with questions about each chapter can be used as a form of discussion for the members of a book club.”

I have been able to use some of these reader guides in the classroom. I really appreciate the one that is at the end of my all time favourite book, Heartbeat. 

on scheduling tweets . . .

I know there are programs that allow you to do that. I never have scheduled a tweet but I do try to sign on to Twitter several times a day. It might be worth scheduling tweets every three hours though. It seems to work for Solon.

make it free (for a limited time) . . . 

Making your ebook available for free for a short period of time is a great way to gain exposure and earn new fans.

“Since this strategy has worked for me, I have committed myself to doing this every three months.”

My List of 2014 Reads – updated continually all year long!


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