What are the results of my recent frenzied rush around the blogosphere? For Shear Murder, I have done 16 guest blogs since January 1st. This doesn’t count my own blogs. On my at-home printout, I’ve listed the numbers of comments on each site, so I would know for future reference which posts attracted viewers and how many. When I release a new mystery again, I’ll solicit the sites where I got a good response for another guest appearance.
Some topics didn’t do well, like interviews and my “pet peeve”, or cutsy talks with my sleuth. Other topics stimulated good discussions. These were more instructional pieces. I wrote a new article for each site so they were all different and related to my new release in some way. I’ve had people say that my humorous mystery sounds like fun and they’ll look it up, so I really believe this tour got me exposure and introduced my work to new readers.
I feel my own blog connects me to readers and aspiring writers who like my posts on writing craft and business of writing. Those articles attract the most viewers. It’s brought me a “Klout” score of 50 especially in Writing. I mix these discussion topics with places I visit in Florida. The downside is that I spend time writing blogs instead of writing my next book. And people are probably sick of “take a look at my blog” posts by now. Do I feel it helped sales? Maybe. Certainly, I gained exposure and the tour contributed toward name recognition. Will I do it for my next book?
Ah, there’s the question. My next release will be a paranormal romance. I do need to gain exposure among those readers. I already have a list of potential topics (which I advise you to jot down as you’re writing your next book). I can look at my previous blog tour in that genre and see who to approach. However, right now, it’s enough to do my personal blog and this one. Writing blogs instead of the next story sucks away creative energy. To launch a virtual tour, you have to solicit hosts, write the pieces, publicize the tour, and then show up each day to answer comments. That level of time commitment may not be suitable for everyone.
But for those of us who jump on the blog tour bandwagon, it’s great to support each other. If you want to get more involved, check out the Book Blogs site. And please offer any tips or insights here that you’d like to share on blog touring.
Hey Nancy,
Congrats on your success.
I’ll second your voicing that doing all the things we do to promote our wares takes us out of the space of writing.
It’s a double-edged sword.
Good time-management skills help, the same with every business in the world.
But what’s different for writers is when I sacrifice my creativity to connect, I miss out on writing time, and find my creativity is diluted.
Paula, I fully agree. When I’m writing blogs, I am not writing my next book. For Shear Murder, I put aside about two weeks just for writing all the pieces for my blog tour. It helped to have them all done ahead of time this way.
Nancy, that’s great news all the way around. Even the blogs that don’t go well get an author “out there” and increase public awareness.
I agree with Paula. Time management is a make or break in any business, and particularly in this one, where writing and then promoting the fruits of one’s own labors is effectively the same as working two jobs. Good luck and best wishes on your efforts.
Thanks, Joe. I have to plan the promo campaign for my next release to launch a new paranormal romance series and am not sure if I want to write a whole bunch of new blogs! I probably will,once I get on a clear writing path again.
Doing a blog tour certainly sounds like a lot of work. But, you are the marketing queen, Nancy. So, you know what you’re doing. How do you decide where you’ll blog?