By Edward Nawotka
“I’m nude when I’m alone, and I’m nude when I’m in his arms, but never in a sort of casually stupid gesture of the morning or whatever. Never.”
“So nudity is not something trivial?”
“Of course not. But we know that.”
I, too, must never be nude in front of my husband, she advised. “You shouldn’t,” she said. “Otherwise, he won’t buy you lunch.”
The above passage is excerpted from La Seduction: How the French Play the Game of Life by Elaine Sciolino, forthcoming this June from Times Books in the United States. The book outlines what are described as the “hidden truths” about seduction. Sciolino, who is in conversation with singer and actress Arielle Dombasle, notes that seduction is a battlefield of communication. “Seduction is transmitted substantially through words — what you say and what you decide to keep quiet, about, Dombasle said. “Voila. That’s the key. Seduction is not a frivolous thing. No. It’s war.”
Today’s editorial discusses the launch of a new writer’s co-op aimed at helping authors reach new audiences. The initial plan for promotion is as simple as making the authors available to book clubs who want to chat via Skype. Increasingly, authors are being called upon to handle some of their own publicity and marketing. And the advent of digital publishing means that not only are authors asked to write and make appearances, they need to tweet, blog and do whatever else they can to maintain the interest of their readers.
Previously, you might have heard from an author once or twice a year, when their books were released in hardcover and paperback — and even less for those not so prolific. Today, it’s a 24/7/365 cycle of promotion. There’s the passive and mundane sort of promotion — where you can subscribe to tweets that range from what an author had for breakfast or saw when they walked their dog, to pithy profundities on what they read that day. And there’s the active sort, in which a writer might ask their fans to design a book cover for them — a la what Timothy Ferris and Gary Vaynerchuk did for their recent titles (Vaynerchuk, in a classy move, printed the several covers, in full color, in the back of his book, The Thank You Economy).
The question is: At what point does author self-promotion go to far? When do you get to see too much of a favorite author?
Let us know what you think in the comments?
18 Comments
Depends on the market, type of author and a number of other factors. In Greece for example all too often authors are hidden by their publishers. This denies both parties the opportunity to connect with the audience, draw valuable insights and generate meaningful buzz=communication channels which give life to the book.
This is such an important topic. Authors are insane lately. Yes its tough but some dignity please. One NYT bestseller has made such a fool of herself at Facebook and Twitter in the last four months that she’s turned off hundreds of other writers and goodness knows how many readers by constantly posting about her new book, every step of its process, over praising her publisher to the point of obvious brown nosing, torturing anyone who followed her with endless posts of every review, every mention, every tour stop… she’s become the butt of jokes and a cautionary tale.
If you are going to be a professional writer, the self-promotion will seem less obviously if there is little differentiation between your life and your work. To grow your platform, you have to do those things that feel most comfortable for you–whether that’s speaking at events throughout the year, going to writers conferences, writing pieces that are published in literary magazines, regular blogging, tweeting–but just be yourself and find ways to talk about issues that align with what you’re writing about and the audience will come.
I entirely support Erin’s comment. Authors will never overstep or tire their audience if they are true to themselves (and interesting).
But in today’s crazed, super-charged communication age, what is “too far”? That frontier (if it is one) seems to be constantly receding…
I find it all a little too naked. I really like the way Dana Stabenow handles her Facebook promotion. She posts a lot of articles about Alaska, some political and all interesting, with some news about her books. Unfortunately, I can’t really do the same thing.
I long for the days when writers wrote books and readers read them. I like having contact with my readers, but I spend more time on marketing than I do on writing and it’s the writing I love.
Self-promotion goes too far when authors start posting intimate details about their lives via blogs, FB, Twitter, etc. Authors shouldn’t be like the infamous celebrities posting inappropriate pictures, Tweets or posts. I don’t want to see it and believe it actually takes away from the author’s credibility.
I think the key thing to remember is that the best promotion = genuine interaction. That’s not saying when and where your book is available. It’s not linking to gibbering messes of reviews and crowing about how awesome it is. It’s just about connecting with other people. That means commenting on interesting topics (of interest to you), doing some stuff to help other people, blogging not as a sales tool but about what actually concerns you. It’s also about humour. If you can do all that, there’s rarely a need to mention your book, because people will want to see you do well, they’ll want to hear more, and that means they’ll find your stuff themselves.
Also, as Jane has said, no constant gushing. One thing to thank people, another to sound so over the top that it comes across as fake.
Though self-promotion by authors can be grating, the example of the writer who has written about every minute detail of the publishing process is a good one. Can they really be blamed or branded negatively when publishers are asking or forcing them (through lack of promotion or money) to do something they aren’t trained to do. I won’t fault an author for tacky self promotion if their publisher can’t or won’t do anything to help them. A lot of authors are learning the marketing ropes because they have to, not necessarily because they want to. So constant Facebook/twitter updates, which ARE annoying, are a reaction to someone from their publisher saying “You should start a facebook and get some ‘likes’ and some fans.”
The Authors who bother me more are the ones who came from self promotion. The blog to book authors whose goal from keystroke one was to get a book deal/become internet famous/become famous in their own right.
Instead of actually wanting to be a writer, recognition and hits and high visibility seems to be the target of many of them. Now THAT is annoying. It’s not that having a blog is a bad thing. I read quite a few author blogs and the posts range from literary to random. But there is a certain type of overexposed, look at ME (as opposed to my work), sect of writers where self-promotion was the name of the game since day one. Many of them tend to be blog to book people and, of course, they insist that the blog didn’t get them their book deals, their writing did. Though you’d never know that from the actual books (which tend to be horrible).
I would think little posts, focusing on the book, spaced out by days, would be effective. No one will care about details of MY life. They will want interesting blurbs from the book. Why is the book interesting? Why is it important? Why should they want to read it? Perhaps also, who else likes it (I have a prominent actor and a prominent historian both praising mine). Judicious, tasteful and intelligent posts should bring readers.
Social media can indeed be manipulated to create a branded image, but since, as you mentioned, many authors are left on their own to manage this media channel, and since most authors are NOT brand managers or PR professionals, what you see is what they really are.
This can be good or not so good.
Some authors are genuinely warm, funny, engaging people, but many are narcissistic, petulant, know-it-alls, even some degree of ANTI-social, which becomes painfully evident when they try their hands at social media.
Social media will likely derail as many writing careers as it will enhance, because people will be people, no matter what the environment.
There is no “right” way to use social media if you’re being real, but if you want to manage a brand, seek the counsel of a pro.
How much salesmanship is enough? Bowker says 45,181 Works of Fiction hit the shelves in 2009. That’s 5 new titles every hour of the day and night. That’s not “competition” you can beat with a tweet. How are you going to be “heard” against the deafening Niagara Falls of new titles?
Some math: The lucky folk get about 30,000 good, solid afternoons to do what they will do. The first quarter is given over to learning, the last quarter to resting, so there are really only 15,000 afternoons left for writing or selling.
A writer needs to read as much as write, so there goes 5,000 afternoons. 10,000 to go. It takes about a year to write a good book. Say you want to write a dozen or so good books before you die: pencil in at least 5,000 afternoons. Now you’ve got 5,000 afternoons left for sex, the kids, the beach, funerals, washing the car, golf, fishing, protesting in the public square, going to museums, matinees, the race track and just plain lying in the hammock. How many of those afternoons do you really, really, really want to spend “selling yourself” in the delusion that you can “beat” the other 124 new titles every day?
The math is simple. You’ve got 5,000 afternoons for this “selling yourself” enterprise. So…assign a value to everything else you could be doing (for comparison). Then, assign a value for the number of additional books you think you might maybe sell by spending an afternoon not writing, reading, beaching, golfing, volunteering at the children’s hospital, building a windmill or climbing a mountain. If selling seems the way to go, then go get those orders!
I am a very private person and I do nothing to social network but talk about my books, not myself. Yet I have had people tell me I should “put” myself out there. No, sorry, that’s not what I’m about. I don’t want to be rich and famous, just comfortably well off and able to write more books which readers want to read. If anyone wants to know my intimate details, maybe they would enjoy doing laundry for me. It’s none of their business. I publicize my books, post classified ads, even write and publish segments as “bonus material”, but my private life is my own. Given the number of faux pas and stupid stunts celebrities keep posting about themselves, I would not care to be grouped in their category.
Selene said: I think the key thing to remember is that the best promotion = genuine interaction.
ABSOLUTELY!
Yeah, it’s a pickle – for sure. I actually assumed my publiser would do this stuff. Like set up my web site! Definitely had to wake up there. I try not to have these periphery things take up my time…
JD S
Got cut off there … wanted to say JD Salinger was kinda cool, no? What would he have said to self promotion? Or maybe he knew the secret all along!
I completely agree with Danielle’s comment about those who are out to promote themselves more than their book or work. That is the risk taken when people are told to be themselves…
It frequently amazes me that so many people merge personal lives with work. Yes, work is personal, especially for an author, but is there no sense of privacy anymore, if not professionalism?
It’s all well and good to put yourself out there and be genuine, but there is also a role for subtlety in the art of seduction, which is why I love the point Ed makes here.
Finding the right balance can be a challenge for many authors, especially those with no marketing experience. By all means, if the goal is to build an image, be sure to consult a pro before you compromise your primary objective.
Just read this entire page. Boy, did I need it.
I have one published ebook and have just finished my second novel. I’m immersed in all the promotional buzz: webpage, tweets, facebook, conferances and on and on. And it’s overwhelming.
Thanks to all of you who wrote here: sensible, some cautionary tales, and good reminders to keep things tasteful and authentic.
Thank God for thoughtful writers.
As I say in my EPPIE Award Finalist book, Self-Promotion for Authors: “If you thought writing the book was tough, I’ve a news flash for you. The toughest part of book publishing will be the months immediately ahead. By now, you’re relatively comfortable with the writing style you were using for your current book. Perhaps you’re even raring to go with a sequel. Go ahead. Get started, but remember, that should be a back-burner item. If your first book isn’t successful, chances are you won’t find a publisher for a second book.
Remember those statistics I quoted in the Introduction from Chris Anderson who wrote in Publishers’ Weekly: “Here’s the reality of the book industry: in 2004, 950,000 titles out of the 1.2 million tracked by Nielsen Bookscan sold fewer than 99 copies?”
Earlier I asked if 500 books really is your sales goal? Assuming a cover price of $10 and assuming your contract calls for a 15-percent commission, you’ll only make $750. Therefore, you have to sell a whole lot more than 500 books. Trying to do it the way most first-time authors do, with one-on-one contacts, is impossible. There aren’t enough hours in the day. Therefore, you have to do what professional publicists do. You have to get your message out there to as many people as possible. You have to run a professional-style publicity program on a beggar’s budget.
Self-Promotion for Authors is available at bookstores worldwide and at Amazon and Barnes & Noble online.