Marketing for Fiction with Guest Barbara Custer

Let Your Characters Twitter for You

Getting your novel published was tough, but sometimes marketing can feel impossible. By nature of the job, writers are used to working solo, and embarking on salesmanship can feel like…well, uncharted territory. Traditional coaches will tell you to blog, blog, and blog again; set up book signings, network with other authors, go to the bookfests that specialize in your genre, etc.

And then I heard of a new concept – don’t try to sell the book – sell yourself as an author, and the sales of the book will start to flow naturally. I’ve done some of this by showcasing other authors on www.barbaracuster.wordpress.com. By interviewing people, you’re drawing Internet traffic to both your respective websites. Since most people are visual in nature, you’ll want include their book covers or photos. Stop by and check out some of the interviews on my blog. If you’re interested in an interview, contact me at barbaracuster@hotmail.com.

While you’re working on your next project, let your characters do the selling. Does your hero have a Twitter or MySpace account? This would work even better if your book was a serial. Give your character a Twitter, Facebook, or blog account, and then let him or her blog about the adventures or nightmares he or she is having. Perhaps there is a steamy romance, or a sad moment when the monster or enemy kills a beloved friend. That means adding photos of the setting and the character and their family. You’ll want to include photos of the villain and the setting. Dreamstime Images has plenty of illustrations for the science fiction / dark fantasy tale, and you can download these for a few dollars (http://www.dreamstime.com). Mind you, you will have to do a lot of searching to find the image that feels just right, but the effort is worth it. I have found some gems for the Night to Dawn book covers on the Dreamstime Images. You might also want to check you Getty Images too.  Be sure to keep a list of usernames and passwords when you set up accounts for these characters. I did start setting up a site on myspace for Harry McMullen of Dark Side of the Moon (http://www.myspace.com/491067061).

Synopsis:
Roswell wasn't the only place where aliens landed. The Kryszka build a city under Philadelphia's sewers where their leader Eigil secretly plots to show humanity the "dark side" of their moon. He will cannibalize them and kill them all.
Harry and his family become the main targets after his father shoots Eigil's mother. A recovering alcoholic, Harry learns about blood, death, plasma weapons, and stormy relationships during his torturous swim up from the bottom of a bottle. The disappearance of a close friend and his sister sparks a frantic search through the Kryszka compound where the inhabitants could eat him alive or teach him survival skills.
Harry, his family will come to realize what the dark side really means.

Read an excerpt of Dark Side of the Moon