Back to Querying
It was a foolish thing to hope that I was done querying my book.
Just because I now have the endorsement of an established author/editor with the promise of a cover quote, I thought this next part would be easy. Yet it still requires me to go back to the grindstone of querying.
But that’s okay, because that’s not the only thing that has changed.
Taking this Show on the Road
Sometimes, you learn things without meaning to. For example, this past year has taught me the greatest secrets of marketing, and I wasn’t even trying to sell anything.
Simply chasing the numbers, for Twitter and my blog, has given me an appreciation for the kinds of things people like, and how to grab their attention.
It’s more obvious to me now that, in addition to my querying, I need to make myself more visible as an author. I’ve become good at drawing eyes to my jokes and memes on the internet. Now I need to draw eyes to my publishing efforts.
Which means talking about my book. Which is one thing I’m still really shy about.
Overcoming Shyness
I’ve kind of been under the delusion, for a while, that I should wait until I have a publisher before I start bragging about my book everywhere I go.
But this is a disservice to the book, as well as loserthink in general. If you have something good (and believe me, I do) then you need to tell the world about it. In college, the first thing my communications professors taught me is that it is not enough to build a better mouse trap. You have to declare loudly that you have built it.
And if you declare it enough, someone will get annoyed enough to spend time and effort to disprove you.
And if they can’t disprove you, then you win.
It Helps to have Options
I also need to keep reminding myself that I’m in a better position than 99.99% of authors out there (including published authors).
Not only do I have a book that is actually readable, that has actually earned an endorsement from a professional author, and that is good enough to stand on any bookshelf, but I have also got a stable home and money situation. I will never have to give up my writing to make ends meet. And I already have a bigger following than most published authors could dream of.
Time to Stop Being Casual
My efforts at self-promotion so far have been half-hearted. I can do better.
As I begin querying again, I need to take the necessary steps to leave obscurity behind. This will require me to start representing myself as an author in my already substantive online presence. To begin getting on people’s nerves. And to reveal one bold truth that I haven’t been saying enough:
“If they read it, they will publish it.”
That’s my story, and I’m sticking to it.
Never miss a secret. Subscribe to the blog.