Book Marketing: Guest Blog Posts

by Sara Rosett

We’re talking book marketing here at Girlfriends Book Club.

Over the years, one thing I’ve done consistently for promotion is guest blog. I don’t have any hard data that guest blog posts drive sales, but they do help me spread the word about my books, and I get to interact with mystery readers, which is always a great thing.

Here’s a fun “Day in the Life” blog I wrote from the perspective of Zoe Hunter, the protagonist of Elusive, for Dru’s Book Musings.

A Day in the Life of Zoe Hunter

A typical day? That’s a tough one.

See, I don’t have a set schedule, and I love it.

I tried the nine-to-five office routine, but it was like the death of a thousand cuts—paper cuts, that is. But still, I couldn’t take it.

I guess you’d say my days are fluid. I’m a “Jill of All Trades.” I do it all:  freelance copy-editing, property management, even dog walking. I like the variety. Sure, it’s a little insecure, but I’m not exactly what you’d call cautious. I don’t look before I leap. No, I’m more likely to charge over the edge of the cliff and worry about the consequences later.

Normally, I love surprises and the unknown. This situation with my ex, Jack, is the exception. Ah, Jack—that was probably my most impulsive move ever—getting married on the spur of the moment. It was crazy, but it felt so right…at least at the time.

Anyway, right now everything is getting a little too bizarre, even for me. Jack has disappeared, there’s a ton of money missing from the banking account of the small business he owned with a partner, and the investigators think I know what happened.

I’m not sure what Jack was involved in, but I’ve been dragged into it, too. Normally, I’m up for new experiences, but being investigated by the FBI was never on my bucket list, so I’ve been poking around. It seems Jack left out a few key details about himself. I’m counting on his cousin in Vegas to have some answers. After that, who knows? I’ll follow the trail until I figure out what’s going on, so I can get back to my “normal” crazy life.

You can read about Zoe’s search for answers that takes her from Las Vegas to Italy in Elusive (Book #1 in the “On The Run” series). It’s available in from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple, and Smashwords.

~Sara

P.S. Book giveaways are another marketing thing I do. I have one going on right now for Elusive at Library Thing. (Scroll down about a quarter of the page.) Happy reading! 

Sara writes mystery (Ellie Avery series) and suspense (On the Run series). As a military spouse Sara has moved around the country (frequently!) and traveled internationally, which inspired her latest travel suspense books. Publishers Weekly called Sara’s books, "satisfying," "well-executed," and "sparkling."

Sara loves all things bookish, considers dark chocolate a daily requirement, and is on a quest for the best bruschetta. Connect with Sara at www.SaraRosett.com. You can also find her on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or Goodreads.

Pinterest and Promotion

by Sara Rosett

 

I love Pinterest. 

I’m on the site a lot, but it’s okay. I’m working when I’m pinning.

No, really. It’s true.

While writing my last two books, I started pinboards for each of them, pinning inspiration for settings, character, and even research articles. (See, pinning is work!)

It was only later, as I neared the completion point for my first ebook that I had a brainstorm: why not use those pinboards for promotion, too?

It was brilliant! The pinboards were ready-made promotion tools. How many times had I wished I could see the places an author described as I read a book? Now I could show my readers the gaudiness of Vegas and the decaying grandeur of Venice.

There are a couple of advantages to using pinboards for book promotion:

A pinboard about your book lets you promote your book subtly. You’re pinning and you’re getting the word out about your book, showing people what your book is about, but not with that in-your-face aggressiveness that is such a turn off.

A pinboard about your book is so much more interesting than just posting your cover. Lots of authors post covers on Pinterest. I have a pinboard called "My Writing Life" with my covers, but a pinboard devoted to a book is a new twist. Being a little bit different will help you standout.

A book-based pinboard is like a bonus feature for readers. You know that feeling when you finish a book and wish there was more? A pinboard gives readers an extra dose of your fictional world. 

My very first e-book, Elusive (Book #1 in the On The Run series), has a link at the end of the book to the Elusive pinboard.

It feels right to try some new things right now. I’ve never self-pubbed a novel. Short stories and short non-fiction, yes. But an original novel? Nope. New territory. The book itself is a departure from my usual cozy mystery territory. 

In Elusive, free-spirited Zoe Hunter's ex-husband disappears and his business partner is murdered. Then several million dollars vanish from the business account. Being a prime suspect in both a murder and a fraud case motivates Zoe to figure out what happened, and she embarks on a journey that takes her from Las Vegas to Italy. 

Elusive is very different from any book I’ve ever written. I’m so excited to be doing something new, and, at the same time, I'm crazy-scared, too!

It feels a bit like that scene in the third Indy movie when he closes the book and takes the step off the edge of the cliff…and lands on the invisible staircase. I hope there is a staircase there for me in this ebook adventure.

No matter how it turns out, I’ll always have Pinterest. :)

Here's my Elusive pinboard. Elusive is available at Amazon and Smashwords. B&N and other retails to follow shortly. 

How do you use Pinterest? (Besides, for fun, of course.)  

When not pinning, Sara writes mystery (Ellie Avery series) and intrigue (On the Run series). As a military spouse, Sara has moved around the country (frequently!) and traveled internationally. The photo at the right was taken during trip to Venice, which inspired her new thriller, Elusive. Publishers Weekly called Sara’s books, "satisfying," "well-executed," and "sparkling."

Sara loves all things bookish, considers dark chocolate a daily requirement, and is on a quest for the best bruschetta. Connect with Sara at www.SaraRosett.com or sign up for her newsletter list here. You can also find her on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or Goodreads.