A Writer Life Is So Much More Than Writing

When you don’t have Oprah’s book club heralding you as the latest flavor of the month, above and beyond what your publisher can and will do for you, you need to guerilla market. Each day. Every day. Shamelessly.

Get your shit out there. Ask everyone you meet if they like to read. Sell 1 book at a time and move on.

I try to make sure I sell at least one book a day.

A lot of it is loss-leader type marketing. Freebees. The books go out to people who will get the word out – and word of mouth is absolutely golden.

That box of books in the opening photo are the first tranche of the copies of WTLLM that I need to get out to get to people across the country who have proven with the other four books to talk them up to many different demographics. Those books have all lead to more sales. Each of those recipients are different, with a different group of potential readers to share it with.

Each one of those books are personally inscribed with messages that recognize and reflect the relationship I have established with that particular reader. I love those relationships.

My wife likes to tell me this is the most expensive hobby I have ever had. I haven’t shown her the latest postage on all of those envelopes.

Then there are the local copies I hand deliver.

Barbers spend their days chatting with a series of captive audience individuals – they talk about what’s going on in the neighborhood, the weather, politics, religion, life, film and books. My barber, Anna, who works out of the Rustic Rose Barbershop right by the Berthoud Post Office – https://www.facebook.com/people/Rustic-Rose-Beauty-Lounge/100057225408565/

-is one of my biggest local fans. She has probably told every customer in Town about the entire series of books. She has read each one, including the publisher’s manuscript for WTLLM. Like any artful therapist, she also knows the backstories to every story and character in those books. Her recitations of those stories are a performance in themselves. Plus, the experience in her chair is transcendent. I purposely do not shave or buzz my hair during the month between visits because I enjoy the experience to returning to temporary human status during that hour in the chair. Anna is an artist.

The couple who live behind that front door below – Janice and Brian – are the latest wonderful locals who appear as characters in WTLLM. I’m hoping they start a movement back among the Southies in their home town of Bean Town to raise The Claire Saga to cult-status.

I can’t show you Everett and Michelle’s front door, but they received their intergalactic copy as well.

My favorite local mad genius, Dick S, also gets his copy. Along with some others.

Each one of them spreads the word.

And then there are copies for the local libraries, etc.

And more copies will have to go out over the next few weeks, as responses to requests for addresses are returned. The books and postage are a marketing expense. Because I know – through trial and error – that these people will read WTLLM and get the word out to all of their various demographics. And that has worked for me in the past with the past four books. All Amazon best sellers. Guerilla Marketing.

The Claire Saga is now a popular sci-fi/fantasy series. Claire the Mule has become a bit of an icon. Trust me, as she likes to remind me each day, she deserves that status.

And there are other expenses. Book fairs and readings at non-local venues. Airfare and hotels and gas and food on risky ventures where you may not sell one book. I don’t sell my books personally. I leave that to the venues I appear at, my publisher and the on-line distributors. But I help sell each of those books through my time and sweat equity. Guerilla marketing.

No one will sell your books better than you can. You passionately believe in your story. You must put yourself out there so that the potential next reader interacts with you and, even if they don’t buy something right there and then, hopefully comes away from that encounter feeling – the writer is a good guy – tells funny stories – what a strange and interesting group of friends – cannot believe he survived his youth – he’s gotta be full of shit – enough to take a chance on one of my books after they return home and they’ve had a moment to think it over.

While I have no scientific data to back up my position, I’m betting that only one in ten people who will tell me to my face that they are “definitely going to check it out” ever pulls the trigger. But I’ll take that one person.

I try to keep copies of my books, especially TWA, in my car. Sometimes I’ll meet someone that I know doesn’t have the extra disposable income lying around to spend money on a writer they don’t know. A nice restaurant server, or a cashier. I’ll give them an inscribed – right there in front of them – copy, just because I know that they appreciate the moment. Maybe they’ll read it, maybe not. But they are going to tell their friends and family about the encounter, and maybe one or more of those hearing about it will check out my books and buy them. And maybe that person will read that first book, and then go out and buy the others.

Either way, people are talking about the book and the writer.

It’s a slow build. And a lot of times you can feel like you might be wasting time and money.

But then again, writing is not for the faint of heart. You have to believe that you have told a story that people want to hear.

Claire assures me that we have crafted a winner. So, I’ll accept my losses until they become my wins. Guerilla marketing.

So, now that WTLLM is out there in the marketplace, I will continue to market the shit out of it. Because I believe I have written an epic story that can let people escape all the bullshit in this world, if only for a few hours. And there has never been a time like right now, when we all need a few hours to escape the bullshit.

Well, today is Saturday, and in perfect Colorado fashion, my Spring weather is white.

But I still have chores to do, so I better get moving.

First a kitty cuddle and my rounds.

But I hope you fine, five readers get your errands done quickly and enjoy your day.

Then, maybe start a great book series.

But whatever we all get up to, let us make today a great one.