by Kelly D. Smith (originally posted on ryanlanz.com)

1. Get out there! Meet people, and don’t be scared to say you are a writer.

2. Blog- now, is blogging really worth it? I’m not sure, I’m actually going to be talking about that soon but I enjoy it!

3. Guest blog, because really if you’re going to do it why not start with someone else’s hard work?!

4. Make sure you have your books on your blog, website, Facebook, and anywhere else!

5. Reach out to local bookstores. They will be thrilled to meet you and even more excited to help you out. Most local book stores love having the chance to work with you.

6. Let people sample your work. Either with blogs post excerpts; printing them off and handing them out, or reading them to random people on the bus!

7. Ask friends and family to help promote you.

8. Reach out to other authors; some won’t blink but others will do everything they can to help!

9. Have a killer press release; this is what reviewers and other media will see first.

10. Join book clubs, Goodreads and get active with your local libraries.

11. Use websites like VitsaPrint to print off promotional material. Print off a book mark and give it to people! That way they can use a bookmark with your info on it while they are reading other books- how perfect is that!?

12. Have gorgeous graphics! We know that graphics sell; and people pay attention to good graphics- so make sure you invest in some!

13. Get reviewed! This is one of the most important things you can do. Even bad reviews (some) are better than none. Of course you want to ave more good than bad, but reviews sell. Who here has wanted to read 50SG because they’ve heard how bad it is? I know I have!

14. Create author pages everywhere you can! Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter- everywhere!

15. Go to cons! Get our there and meet people.

16. Do a book launch-even if you don’t think it will be worth it!

17. Dedicate (a small amount of) time to marketing/networking each day. An hour or two will work wonders.

18. Do interviews; I mean really; who doesn’t love talking about themselves?!

19. Reach out to book blogs and news letters- they may be more than happy to help!

20. Have a basic (if not more than basic) idea who your market, your audience and who will be buying your book! If you know them, you will know how to market to them and you will increase your chances of selling to them.

Guest post contributed by Kelly D. Smith. Kelly is a Canadian author who spends most of her time typing. Smith was homeschooled her entire life, leaving lots of time to follow her passion, which she quickly realized was writing. She is a muti-time, best selling author who spends her free time blogging, reading, cooking, or playing outside with her dog.