To market, to market

Remember the nursery rhyme “To market, to market, to buy a fat pig. Home again, home again, jiggity jig.” When it comes to marketing books, I harken back to this saying.

In order to exchange money for a desired item, one has to go to the market. Afterwards, it’s time to go home and rejoice. Interpolating, all authors have to do is get their books to a market.

Sounds easy, right? Just get out there and sell those printed books. But where? And how?

Many authors hold booksignings to market their work. While it’s traditional to hold signings in bookstores, there are other options. For instance, if your book is about horses, you might sell books at horse events. If your book has a quilting hook, you might do something at a quilt show or quilt shop.

I’ve held signings in ice cream stores for a summer release, in a seashell gift shop for a beach mystery, and at a golf course for a story where the victim was found on a golf course. I’ve also given talks at local clubs such as Rotary Club, D.A.R., and the historical society. I’ve launched books and authors programs for various vendors and library cultural events such as the Big Read. I even held one signing at a real estate Open House. At each event, I made sure to have my books for sale.

Why not just hold the signings in a bookstore? Believe it or not, that’s not an option for everyone these days. We have a satellite kiosk of a nearby indie bookstore in our county located inside an upscale flea market venue, but that’s it for bookstore in our area. I’ve signed at an independent store just south of us, but the big box bookstore in the same town wasn’t interested because I wasn’t pubbed by one of the Big Six.

Having to be creative about signings has helped me to enjoy the events I create. Have you ever sat at a signing in a bookstore and had folks walk by who won’t look you in the eye? Or had people refuse to take a free bookmark because they say they don’t read? (This happened in a large bookstore in Jacksonville!) Why put yourself through such torment? I’d much rather have a festive atmosphere, complete with a talk or a reading, gifts, refreshments, and a discussion time with fans.

 It isn’t enough to schedule a signing; you have to tell people about your event. Getting press releases to the paper is easy; getting them to run them is out of your hands. Write the best, most interesting press release ever, and send it off a couple of weeks before your event. Some newspapers have online calendars where you can enter your event in an online database, which is helpful in the event your press release doesn’t get picked up.

 The newspaper story will help attract new fans and will serve as a reminder for established fans. Send out a direct mailing to folks on your mailing list regarding the signing. Be sure and use your social media networks to spread the word as well. Encourage fans to bring a friend.

 

I can’t imagine having too many people at a signing. Wouldn’t that be a lovely problem to have? I would certainly do a jig all the way home in that instance!

Maggie Toussaint

Formerly an aquatic toxicologist contracted to the U.S. Army and currently a freelance reporter, Southern author Maggie Toussaint loves writing mysteries. She’s published four romantic suspenses and four mysteries, with Death, Island Style and Murder in the Buff her most recent releases. Her debut release, House of Lies, won Best Romantic Suspense in the 2007 National Readers Choice Awards. She’s currently a board member for Southeastern Mystery Writers of America. Visit her at www.maggietoussaint.com, http://mudpiesandmagnolias.blogspot.com/, and http://www.facebook.com/MaggieToussaintAuthor#.  

Using the Facebook fan page

There it is – your new Facebook fan page. It’s got your book covers up there and some cute quips about writers shedding blood to get their words out each day. There are some personal pictures of you with other writers and readers.

Now if you could just get some fans, that would be nice!

It was easy to get your aunt and your mother to come to your personal page and ‘like’ it, but that’s not really who you want on your fan page – although that might be better than no fans at all.

Most writers know now that they should have both a personal, and a fan page, to use with their author’s platform. Why a fan page? Many reasons. You can have an unlimited number of fans on a fan page (only 5,000 on a personal page).

While 5,000 sounds like a lot, it’s not once you get going. Those are 5,000 people who might or might not be interested in your work. And it’s difficult to turn those ‘friends’ into ‘fans’ when the time comes for you to switch.

Fan pages also look more professional. You can get your specific message out to exactly the people you want to see it.

But once you’ve set up your fan page, how do you get people to ‘like’ it?

It can be difficult and take a while to get people to come to your fan page if you’re not Stephen King or Patricia Cornwell, but it will happen. You have to be smart about your content and give it some time each day. Commit to making this an important part of your marketing. There are hundreds of millions of potential people out there on Facebook.

Some writers have a problem getting on Facebook and are stuck on it when they should be writing. Set the alarm on your phone or any other device (even an egg timer) for twenty minutes each day. Use that time to add content and look at your stats (on the Admin page). When the alarm goes off, get out. Answer questions when you can during the day.

Link your fan page to everything from emails to your website. You should do this anyway to create the whole marketing effect you want for your platform. If you have an agent, ask that person to link as well. Writing friends are good too. The more people, the better. While you’re at it, look for groups and fan pages that readers – those who might enjoy your books - might be interested in. If your book has a chef in it, link to cooking sites, and so on.

Encourage participation from your readers. Ask questions. Hold contests. Looking for a name for a new character? Ask your fans (even if there are only three of them). Fans like to feel included and will reciprocate by telling others about your fan page.

Facebook marketing research has been extensive for large corporations. Use some of their tactics. Make your posts light and easy to relate to. Humor seems to be best. Don’t get too long or dragged down by dogma. If you’re going to have a contest, make it easy. Don’t expect your fans to go too far to win something. Have answers – even to negative questions that can pop up from time to time.

Keep it fresh. Give your readers content they might not find anywhere else. Share something about your work. Give them some personal photos, maybe you, writing at your desk today, or the dog that resembles the one in your book. Readers want to see the inside stuff. Give them that but don’t be mundane.

Getting people to become fans won’t be as easy as getting them to be friends but it is worthwhile. Don’t be intimidated by that blank space you have to fill in each day. As writers, we’re used it. With time and patience, there will be fans on your fan page that will be waiting for your new books to come out and badgering you about writing more words each day!

Joyce Lavene writes mysteries with her husband/partner Jim. Their 60^th book, A SPIRITED GIFT, came out in December 2011 and is a National Bestseller for Berkley Prime Crime. She lives in North Carolina with her family and has 577 fans on her Facebook fan page. www.joyceandjimlavene.com Twitter - @author54 and Joyce and Jim Lavene at Facebook.

Linked In for writers

            There are 119 million people on linked in—and many of them read!

I recently heard public speaker and Linked In guru Jeff Zelaya give a presentation on how to maximize your efficiency on Linked In.  His first recommendation was that you complete your profile.

You may already be using Linked In for your day job—but there’s no reason why you can’t add an additional current job.  Assign yourself a job title—“Author” at your website. Mine reads “Neil Plakcy, author at Mahu Books” and includes a link to my website.

SEO stands for “search engine optimization,” and in this case refers to using terms that people regularly use to search on Google and other search engines. Google values Linked In, and often includes Linked In profiles in its results. So be sure to use terms that relate to your writing, like “mystery author” and “police procedural,” as they relate to you.

Have you ever gone to an event and collected business cards? Perhaps they are from other writers who you might want to get in contact with in the future, or subject experts who express a willingness to answer questions when you have them. If you simply put those cards in your drawer, or even your contact file on your computer, you’ll quickly lose touch with them. You’ll forget about them, and they’ll forget about you.

Instead, as soon as you get home, log into Linked In. See if those people you just met are registered, and send them a friend request. Be sure to personalize it—“It was a pleasure meeting you today and I hope we can stay in touch.”

Then when they update their profile or make a post, you’ll know about it. When that attorney who offered you help changes firms, you’ll know. And the same goes for you—every time you change your profile (for example, adding a new book to your publications list) that information will be sent to all your contacts. So your name will stay fresh with them. (And maybe they’ll even buy a book!)

You can sync Facebook and Twitter to Linked In, so that when you post to one of those sites, your message is automatically added to your status updates on Linked In. But be careful not to overwhelm these people, who are essentially your business contacts (for your writing business) with lots of messages primarily intended for friends and family. You can add a feed link for your blog as well.

Under the “More” tab you’ll find questions people have asked. You can answer those questions yourself, using your expertise. That helps your ranking on Linked In, and it’s a way to share your expertise. You can also ask questions there, either ones about writing and publishing, or other questions that come up while doing your writing research, and get  answers from other members whose credentials you can verify.

Jeff suggests that you have at least three recommendations on your profile from others on linked in. Do you know people who have reviewed your books? Ask them to post those reviews on Linked In. Do you have connections who have read your books? Ask them to write a brief recommendation. The more content you have in your bio, and the more recommendations you have, the higher you will rank  on Linked In searches.

Don’t be afraid to ask people to connect with you. Remember, networking is a two-way street. Those people are on Linked In because they want to network with others—perhaps to get business, perhaps to keep up with current trends, perhaps to share the information they have. If you find someone on Linked In you want to connect with, see if you have any background in common—education, past work experience, and so on. If so, you’ll be able to send that person a connection request directly.

What if you don’t, though? The next way is to look through their connections and see if you have any connections in common. Then you can send an “introduction request” to your common contact. It’s just like meeting someone at a party and being introduced by a mutual acquaintance. You are more likely to value that new person (or be valued by him or her) because of your common connection.

Finally, if you don’t have anything in common, and you don’t have any mutual acquaintances, you can see what kind of groups that person belongs to, and join one of them. Hopefully it will be a group that relates to whatever it is you’re interested in this person for. Then participate in the group for a few days, introducing yourself and beginning to interact. Then when you want to connect with your target, you have that group membership in common, and Linked In will facilitate the connection.

Let’s say you’ve built up your connections and now you want to contact them via email. There is an export function—but be careful not to use it to spam people.

I have a background in video games, and let’s say I write a novel in which video games play a significant part. I could tailor a special email to my connections in the industry, writing something like, “Because we share an interest in video games and a connection through Linked In, I thought you might be interested in my new novel….”

Finally, Jeff recommended looking into Google Presentation or Slide Share. Both of those allow you to embed video content into presentations you upload to Linked In. Want to show off your great new book trailer? That’s the way.

Here’s another good article about Linked In, from Poets and Writers:

http://www.pw.org/content/network_how_to_use_linkedin_to_connect_with_your_community_0

Now get linking!

Neil Plakcy

www.mahubooks.com

Cupcake Dreams! Marketing Cupcakes, Lies, and Dead Guys, the Novel

When I signed my contract with indie publisher Krill Press in late July 2010, I realized I had about three months until my first novel, Cupcakes, Lies, and Dead Guys would actually be out and available for lovely people to purchase and read.
 

Krill is a legitimate indie press but I knew that there were teeny-tiny marketing dollars on both our ends. And no one, (except friends and family,) would buy this book because of my name. So the question was, How in Holy Hell Could I Market my Novel?

 

Statistics conclude most indie and self-pubbed books from first time authors sell between 100 to 1000 copies. But almost eleven months after Cupcakes, Lies, and Dead Guys was published, it has sold approximately 8000 copies, (most of them e-books.) Confession: While I’m not Amanda Hocking, I still consider my sales numbers to be pretty good.

Thanks to Jeffrey Marks, fab author, blogger, and marketing guru, I’m happy to share a few crucial ideas that I think helped attract readers to my book.

 Catchy Title. I cannot tell you enough how I lucked out by including the word, “Cupcakes,” in my title. When I wrote this book, I vaguely realized cupcakes were trendy. I did not know how trendy. Readers love my title, which has helped sales. 

I’m not advocating chasing ‘trendy’. I am encouraging you to research, Google, check Amazon, B&N, Wikipedia. Advice: Take some time and effort to find the best title for your book. A publisher might change it. But they might not. If you self-publish, you can pick your book title.

Crossover Market. Envision connecting your book to a wider audience than just other book people. This will help you find more readers. Once I realized cupcakes were popular, I realized I had a crossover market. I contacted approximately 600 hundred baking and cupcake baker sites and gently pitched them my book. I went to Cupcake events that were charity related. I met awesome wonderful people who loved cupcakes. Guess what? A bunch of them bought my book. Who could be your crossover market?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6c7LaV5Z5z4&feature=player_profilepage

Visible, punchy Book Cover. Unless you are picked up by one of the Big 6 publishing houses, realize that the majority of your sales will be online. Your book cover will be about the size of a postage stamp on a computer screen. Potential buyers must clearly see your book title, your name and a catchy book cover. Book cover graphics should trigger something in readers’ brains that says, “Buy. Very inexpensive. Costs about as much as a frappachino or a bagel with schmear. Buy. Now.”

Again, unless you self-publish you don’t have control over the book cover. Your publisher does. I loved my first book cover more than the one I ended up with. But, my Author Success coach, Deborah Riley Magnus, pointed out that the title was “unreadable,” on a computer screen. I mentioned that to Krill Press. Goodbye exquisite tiffany blue background. Hello dark purpley blue with a readable title. Hey, it pops.    

 

Do Not ask people twenty times a day on Twitter, FB or your blog to buy your book.  Honestly, I tune those people out. Instead, give potential readers information and entertain them.

 How can I entertain potential readers?

I have a Google Alert for Cupcake news. Everyday Google sends me cupcake news, I pick something interesting and repost on my book’s FB page, which I’ve automatically linked to Twitter. Other kind people on Twitter include my news in their “Follow Friday” links.

I have a Facebook page for my book instead of a separate Author Page. This is because until I have several books out, most people don’t know me as an author. But they might check in for some Cupcake news or a shout out that I have posted for a Cupcake bakery.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Cupcakes-Lies-and-Dead-Guys/145404255487900

Which is another note. Give people shout outs on Twitter and FB. Tell them they’ve done a great job. Link to them. Kindness is key. A friend of a friend wrote a novel about a dog. On their book’s FB page, they asked people to send in pictures of their dog. They’d pick one dog to be ‘Dog of the Week,’ and put its picture and caption on their website. Who doesn’t think their dog is fabulous? They were flooded with fans, the book became a best seller and DreamWorks picked up the movie rights.

 

Videos. Before I even had a copy of my paper book in hand I decided to shoot very short funny videos related to the title. I filmed “Cute as a Cupcake,” and “Scarier than a Dead Guy” videos in which I always said, “Pamela DuMond reporting for Cupcakes, Lies and Dead Guys.” I used a Flip camera and I didn’t edit any of the videos. My goal was to let viewers know I was willing to be silly, which meant my book was probably silly as well. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ZfKYD7NXCU&feature=player_profilepage

Do mention your book on occasion. Link on FB or twitter, your blog, or your website if you got a great review that tickled you. Mention if you won an award. Got a shout out. I noticed Mystery Scene Magazine was asking readers to email them about new books they enjoyed. I asked several readers who liked my book if they would find time to do this. They did. My book got a great mention in the magazine.

Book Trailer? My friends did an awesome book trailer for me. Honestly, I don’t know if it helped sell more books but it certainly didn’t hurt. If you want a professional book trailer, watch this. If you’re as impressed as I was, call Mike Snyder at 818/300-5152.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YdijpPkuzeU&feature=player_profilepage

Last but not least – Hang out online or in person with groups of people who like the kind of book you wrote. I found The Sassy Girls Book Club on FB. They are a loving kind group or readers that love funny books and support the authors.

 

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Sassy-Girls-Book-Club/115698138490216

  Good luck and enjoy the ride.

 Xo,

Pamela DuMond

Cupcakes, Lies, and Dead Guys - a comedic mystery published by Krill Press is available in trade paperback, Kindle, and Nook. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q0BK3FDI_ck

Promoting in a Pack -- By Ann Parker

When it comes to promoting, some authors go it alone, by choice or necessity. However, as someone with a “pack mentality,” I’m here to sing the praises of group promotion. Promoting with others allows you to…

·       Plan together: From “where should we go?” to “should we have giveaways?” you’ve got others to bounce ideas off of.

·       Share the workload: Divvy up your contact lists so one person doesn’t have to make all the calls or send all the emails. Too, if there’s a design whiz amongst you, she can design a flyer promoting your “group tour.”

·       Share the costs: Materials, mailing, and travel (gas, hotel) expenses are more manageable when shared. And let’s not forget the good “environmental karma” you’ll rack up by carpooling, using one flyer to hawk three authors, and so on.

·       Offer a “two-fer,” “three-fer,” etc. to bookstores, libraries, etc.: In my experience, most brick ‘n mortar venues prefer hosting an event with multiple authors. They can advertise once, prepare once, and (fingers crossed) get more people in the doors.

·       Encourage cross-fertilization: People who are interested in your fellow author might, upon meeting you, decide to give your book a try… and vice versa!

·       Avoid awkward moments: During the event, if there’s a dead silence from the crowd, you can ask each other questions. Similarly, you can feed each other straight lines and set up each other’s stories.

Group benefits apply in the virtual world as well. Do you find daily blogging just too much to handle? You are not alone, trust me. Find others of a like mind and create or join a group blog. For instance, I co-administrate a group blog, The LadyKillers, which has fourteen authors. Most post once every two weeks, with a few splitting one slot and posting just once a month. The big pluses of this arrangement: the blog has new post up every day, and we look out for each other, promoting/commenting on each other’s posts and creating a conversation. Among the things we do to make The LadyKillers work smoothly are the following:

·       Have weekly “themes,” scheduled out about six months in advance. Although blogging on the theme isn’t required, it prevents the last-minute “what the heck am I going to blog about?” panics.

·       Have two co-administrators for the blog. Mysti Berry and I back up each other, and the blogsters know they can call on either of us for help, should the need arise.

·       Have a private yahoo group. Allows us to post messages to the group. We also use the yahoo calendar function to list who blogs when and what the themes are.

·       Have “emergency posts” ready to go. We try to encourage all the LadyKillers to schedule their posts to go live just after midnight. If someone forgets (it happens), or has trouble getting the post up (that happens too), we have some back-up quotes in the yahoo group files that can be slapped up by any LadyKiller when they see a posting is missing/late for the day.

If you want to give group promotion a try, here are some tips from my “partners in crime” for making your group effort run smoothly:

·       Approach authors you know or have heard speak elsewhere, so that you know their styles/personalities and yours will “mesh.”

·       Find a catchy title for your group, something that underlines your commonalities or plays up your differences. It can be as simple as “Mavens of Mystery,” “Historical Murder and Mayhem” etc.

·       Appoint a “moderator” from amongst you, if your group is three or more, for each event. The moderator can keep a list of agreed-upon questions handy, be sure everyone gets heard, and handle the audience Q&A.

·       Read the works of your partners-in-crime, or at least be able to sound like you have. Compliment each other: praise always sounds better coming from someone else. So, next time you have a book coming out the chute, maybe there are other folks you can join forces with to bring the power of numbers to promotion.

---------------------------------

Ann Parker is a California-based science/corporate writer by day and an historical mystery writer by night. Her award-winning Silver Rush series, featuring saloon-owner Inez Stannert, is set in 1880s Colorado, primarily in the silver-mining boomtown of Leadville. The latest in her series, MERCURY’S RISE, will be released November 1.  http://www.annparker.net

Leave a comment on this post to be eligible to win one of the Silver Rush mysteries! Winner will be announced later this week.

Promoting to Libraries

by Jacqueline Seewald

Writers can’t just write a book these days; they have to promote it as well. Today owing to the internet and the ease of self-publishing, there are more writers publishing their books then ever before. We are in the midst of a literary revolution that is changing the face of publishing throughout the world. So what are the best ways to promote books? The obvious answer is by using the internet: social networking such as websites, blogging, via Facebook, Twitter, etc. Bookstore signings and events are great. However, as we are aware with the demise of Borders among others, bookstore opportunities unless you are a famous author are diminishing. So where does an author go to find publicity and name recognition? How about libraries.

As a former librarian and teacher, I can testify to the fact that authors are welcome to provide an event at many libraries. Books are an important component of what the library has to offer. Authors are respected by librarians. Think in terms of what kind of event you can provide that library patrons will enjoy and appreciate.

On October 6^th I will present an event at the Fort Lee, NJ Library entitled “We Can All Be Writers.” It will not just be a talk but a happening—an interactive experience for both attendees and myself. I will offer writing exercises that we can do together and discuss.

I’ll also talk about sources of inspiration for writers as well as library resources for writers. In short, I will be offering something to patrons. I believe that not only can everyone be a writer but should be a writer. By this I do not necessarily mean that they should strive for publication. There is such a thing as writing simply for our own self-expression. There is also writing to leave a written and historical record for our families.

What’s in it for you? Well, the library may or may not be able to pay you to speak but at least you won’t be paying a fee. Doing an event will provide you with publicity. You can ask the local newspaper to cover it. Hopefully, library patrons may want to either borrow some of your novels from the library or purchase them. At the very least, the library will buy your book.

As for me, I intend to give something useful back to the community. Hopefully, my expertise in teaching, library science and writing will benefit those who also want to write.

 

Multi-award winning author Jacqueline Seewald has taught creative, expository and technical writing at the university level as well as high school English. She also worked as an academic librarian and an educational media specialist. Eleven of her books of fiction have been published. Her short stories as well as poems, essays, reviews and articles have appeared in hundreds of diverse publications and numerous anthologies. Her hardcover mystery novels, THE INFERNO COLLECTION and THE DROWNING POOL, are the first two novels in the Kim Reynolds series.

THE TRUTH SLEUTH is a new release in that series. All three novels have received excellent reviews from BOOKLIST among others. Her historical romance set in the Regency period TEA LEAVES AND TAROT CARDS is available in both hardcover and large print editions. These novels can be found on Amazon, B&N online, and local libraries. A young adult novel, STACY’S SONG, is also available in print and as an e-book.

SKATING TO SALES

In my experience, figure skating fans don’t merely love figure skating.  They love all things having to do with figure skating, too.

The love souvenir programs and sweatshirts, autographed photos and commemorative DVDs, autobiographies and children’s books written by their favorite ice stars.

So why shouldn’t they like Figure Skating Mysteries, too?

The very first book I published – by myself – at the age of 23, was a figure skating trivia book entitled “As The Toe Picks.”  If I may date myself, back in those days you couldn’t just format a book, upload it, and let a computer program to take care of the printing and shipping.  I actually had to physically cut down 8 x 11 pieces of paper to match the size of the book I was ordering, print on both sides of the paper, put it together and send it off to the printer, who then sent me a box of books which I then mailed out individually.

But, before I could send the books out, I had to have someone willing to buy them (and preferably include a check.)

So, in my first attempt at niche marketing, I created post-cards (also cut out by hand from a larger sheet of paper) and sent them to every skating club, skating official and registered skater in the USA using the Official United States Figure Skating Association (USFSA) rule-book.  I also took ads (and solicited reviews) in print skating publications and in competitive programs distributed at local competitions.

I sold every single one of my books and even made a profit (though my dad, who’d fronted me the money, was quick to point out I only made my (his) investment back and then some, I hadn’t factored in my time.)  By the time a skating novelties catalogue asked for more books, however, I’d moved on to writing romances with AVON, and simply sold them the rights to continue printing my original trivia book.  (I saw it listed as a collector’s item on one site for $100!)

Flash forward a decade, and while I’m writing fiction for AVON and DELL, when it comes to skating, non-fiction is still the name of the game.  I publish a coffee-table book called “Inside Figure Skating” for a book packager which eventually gets bought by B&N, and a biography of Sarah Hughes (two months before she pulls an upset to win the 2002 Olympics) for Penguin Putnam.

My editor for the Sarah Hughes book, being a huge skating fan herself, wondered if I’d be interested in trying my hand at a Figure Skating Mystery series.  (Actually, the way she presented it was, “I read a proposal you wrote a few years ago.  I didn’t like it.”  I remembering thinking, “I am SO glad you personally called to tell me that.”  We did, however, end up coming up with a proposal she liked.)

The resultant books, “Murder on Ice,” “On Thin Ice,” “Axel of Evil,” “Death Drop,” and “Skate Crime” were released between 2003 and 2007.

In 2011, after getting my rights back, I made a deal with Ice Theatre of NY (http://www.icetheatre.org/) to incorporate their professional videos into my newly enhanced e-books as a key part of the story.

A demo, “Skate Crime: Multimedia” (http://tinyurl.com/SkateCrime) came out in the Spring and, once again, it was back to niche marketing for me.

This time around, though, I had the Internet on my side. 

No more post-cards.  No more painstakingly typing in each address into a label program (raise your hand if you remember those!)  No more trying to find mailing addresses and paying for postage, only to eat it when the missive came bouncing back.

Instead, I used a comprehensive directory of skating clubs, skating rinks, skating coaches and skating center directors to send customized e-mails (I got extremely nimble with cut and paste).  A good percentage of them still bounced back.  But, at least there was no cost involved.

In addition, I not only sent press releases to print publications, but also to on-line ‘zines, on-line fan-clubs and individual fan web-pages.

Strictly speaking, the bulk of my recipients cannot be mystery – or even fiction – readers.  But, they’re skating fans, and that’s the aspect I highlighted in my sales pitch.

The fact is, there is very little skating to watch in the off-season (Spring/Summer).  With “Skate Crime: Multimedia,” I was offering them an alternative way to get their fix.

Did it work?  As with all marketing; impossible to ever really tell, since you don’t know for certain where your customers are coming from or what they may have seen that drove them to click BUY.

All I know is, I’m selling books.  And making a profit, too.

Just as long as I keep excluding my time spent….

Alina Adams wrote Regency romances for AVON and contemporaries for DELL.  Her soap opera tie-ins, “Oakdale Confidential” and “Jonathan’s Story” were NY Times best-sellers.  Another tie-in, “The Man From Oakdale,” won the 2010 SCRIBE Award.  Alina is currently working on turning her entire backlist into enhanced e-books with video, music and more, spearheaded by “Soap Opera 451: A Time Capsule of Daytime Drama’s Greatest Moments”, and soon to include all of her Figure Skating Mysteries.  Visit her at: http://www.AlinaAdams.com