I began this blog as part of a rather unoriginal and weak "marketing strategy" for my self-published novel The City of Earthly Desire. Possessing no real experience or talent in marketing and advertising and having no desire to dump thousands of dollars into a risky campaign that might never bear fruit, I generally followed the online marketing methods suggested by others.
After a year of dabbling with book blog tours, review solicitations, book sites, author pages, and this blog, I have come to the realization that, for the most part, these activities do little to increase awareness of writers and their works. Sure, there are some who have succeeded, but for the vast majority of authors looking for a little recognition, these pursuits and strategies are a waste of time.
I was skeptical about my chances of getting noticed right from the start; the world has been flooded by an unimaginable deluge of self-published books and aspiring writers. Regardless, I wanted to give a couple of things a try for the sake of experience and chance. Well, I gained the experience and took the chance, and that's that. I have not participated in any active marketing for months and I doubt I will do much in the future. In terms of gaining recognition, I have decided the only way for me to get any is through more traditional means; therefore, I am focusing my energy on trying to get someone "on the inside" to take notice of my book. (Fat chance.)
In light of all of this, I began to question the purpose and existence of this blog which, on average, receives about two hits a day. My initial impulse was to abandon it. Because I viewed it as part of a "marketing strategy", I constrained the blog to bookish topics and my lame experiences as a self-published writer. I purposely kept the focus of the blog narrow, the tone politically neutral, and I avoided issues I truly cared about for fear of isolating, insulting, or alienating potential readers. My posts were inconsistent and monochrome to say the least. After a while I realized how counterproductive and contradictory the blog was in terms of a marketing tool: Here! Read some really bland, poorly written posts that I hope will encourage you to read my exciting, well-written novel!
So, what to do? I have decided to continue this blog by shifting its focus away from being a marketing tool to being more of a venue for my thoughts and opinions regarding topics that are important to me as a writer and as a human being. An open journal, more or less. From now on I will treat this blog as a means to keep the expressive juices flowing by focusing on issues and ideas I think important or intriguing. I imagine the posts will invariably range from rough little rants to polished essays.
Whatever happens, I am certain this change will inspire me to become a more creative and more consistent blogger in the future.
After a year of dabbling with book blog tours, review solicitations, book sites, author pages, and this blog, I have come to the realization that, for the most part, these activities do little to increase awareness of writers and their works. Sure, there are some who have succeeded, but for the vast majority of authors looking for a little recognition, these pursuits and strategies are a waste of time.
I was skeptical about my chances of getting noticed right from the start; the world has been flooded by an unimaginable deluge of self-published books and aspiring writers. Regardless, I wanted to give a couple of things a try for the sake of experience and chance. Well, I gained the experience and took the chance, and that's that. I have not participated in any active marketing for months and I doubt I will do much in the future. In terms of gaining recognition, I have decided the only way for me to get any is through more traditional means; therefore, I am focusing my energy on trying to get someone "on the inside" to take notice of my book. (Fat chance.)
In light of all of this, I began to question the purpose and existence of this blog which, on average, receives about two hits a day. My initial impulse was to abandon it. Because I viewed it as part of a "marketing strategy", I constrained the blog to bookish topics and my lame experiences as a self-published writer. I purposely kept the focus of the blog narrow, the tone politically neutral, and I avoided issues I truly cared about for fear of isolating, insulting, or alienating potential readers. My posts were inconsistent and monochrome to say the least. After a while I realized how counterproductive and contradictory the blog was in terms of a marketing tool: Here! Read some really bland, poorly written posts that I hope will encourage you to read my exciting, well-written novel!
So, what to do? I have decided to continue this blog by shifting its focus away from being a marketing tool to being more of a venue for my thoughts and opinions regarding topics that are important to me as a writer and as a human being. An open journal, more or less. From now on I will treat this blog as a means to keep the expressive juices flowing by focusing on issues and ideas I think important or intriguing. I imagine the posts will invariably range from rough little rants to polished essays.
Whatever happens, I am certain this change will inspire me to become a more creative and more consistent blogger in the future.
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