You've written a book. Holy cow, that's amazing! But now, you've got to hustle up preorders because, nowadays, presales rule everything around us. And let's face it: the skills for getting people to preorder a book and the skills for writing one are super different. Some people are good at coming up with cool incentives that'll get people to hit that buy button, but struggle at getting their ideas made. Others would rather do anything else than having to bang the presales gong. Good news: I love making stuff, and I like strategizing how to get people to care.
Readers want a lot from authors now, that's just how it is. But do you want to ship signed books, keep a mailing list, figure out a social media strategy, and come up with cool extras to keep folks engaged? Sure, you might, but I definitely do. I love mailing things, have run newsletters for thousands of people, and have been on social media since it was basically invented. I love strategizing how to do these things and helping people to do them right.
I've been making cool stuff on tight budgets for over two decades and I straight up love designing and manufacturing merch. I've run crowdsourcing campaigns and fan-supported projects, so I know what it's like to have to reach out to people and hype them up to support you. Plus, I'm also a writer (with a few books under my own belt), so I get the work you've put into your book and the stress you're under to make sure things are just right as it reaches its release date.
"There's also a flying train," is one of those details that doesn't often come up, but when it does you know you need to include it.
When you've written a series about a true-crime obsessed teen, what does it sound like to actually make one of the podcasts your character listens to for real?
Building a loyalty program for crowdfunded supporters always seems like a good idea until you're committed to designing a new sticker every month for years. Then it seems like a great idea..
