The free anthology Self Promo Stories offers many wacky book promotion tips: bookmarks and candy in unusual places, parties, decorations, online campaigns and so much more!

1. Traditional, Self Published, Ebooks, and More

2. Timeline

3. Make Preliminary Promotional
Materials Before Publication
Business Cards
Bookmarks or Postcards
Sell Sheets
Author Website or Blog
Media Kit

4. Author Site or Blog
 The top page should be attractive and easy to navigate
 Keywords are also important—I write a paragraph that describes the site and put it on the page.
 I also choose my site’s title and description with care.
 At minimum, every writer should have a page on each book or series containing a hook, synopsis,
cover art, links to purchase, and links to reviews, articles, and interviews. You also need an About
the Author page with a contact form or email link.
Other logical things to put on your site:
 Links to your Facebook , Twitter, or other social media page
 Guestbook
 Blog or link to Blog
 Articles on related subjects to attract visitors
 Bibliography of all you’ve published, with buying links.
 FAQ
 Recommended reading list of books in your subject area
 List of upcoming conferences or author appearances
 Photos, videos, or audio of you at events
 Reading guide and discussion questions
 Freebees related to your subject—I put links to Harry Potter games, fonts, sites, and more.
 Anything to attract your target audience

5. Online Media Kit
High Resolution Book Image
High Resolution Author Photo
Author Bio
Endorsements
Sell Sheet
Reviews
Awards
Press Release
News Articles
Interview
FAQ
Synopsis
Sample Chapters
Table of Contents
Flyer
Contact Information

6. Getting Reviewed
Recommended Magazines
http://www.midwestbookreview.com/get_rev.htm
http://rambles.net
http://www.novelcritic.com/reviews/contact
http://indiereader.com

Social Media Groups
Goodreads groups— post your request for reviewers in “self promotion” groups or “author” and
“reviewer” groups
Shelfari and Librarything groups
Facebook groups, like https://www.facebook.com/groups/reviewseekers

Lists of Review Magazines
http://TheCompleteReview.com
http://dir.yahoo.com/Arts/Humanities/Literature/Reviews/
http://www.selfpublishingreview.com/
http://www.stepbystepselfpublishing.net/reviewer-list.html
http://robinmizell.wordpress.com/book-reviewers/
http://karinafabian.com/index.php?name=Content&pid=28


7. Other Places to Get Reviewed
Book Review Blogs especially teen ones
Trade reviews with fellow authors
Send messages to Amazon top reviewers

8. Other Places to Get Reviewed

9. Promoting in Person
Parties
Craft and Holiday Fairs
Conferences and Events
Regional groups like California Writers Club
Genre groups like The Society of Children’s Book Writers
and Illustrators or Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of
America
Minority groups like The Women’s National Book
Association
Bookstores and Libraries

10. Wacky
Options

11. Booths
Have the booth with a mermaid or
costumed superhero! Decorate
your table! Do a holiday fair!
My table spread contains coloring pages with
ice cream cones (emblazoned with my url no
less in case an artist wants to hang it on the
refrigerator), ice cream decor that function as
paperweights and conversation starters, a
scrapbook containing items from my journey,
instagrammable displays, and a whiteboard that
invites participation.
Baggies with starburst candies and a label:
These Meal Replacement Units
are 100% Adaline Approved!
Adaline, a novel by Denise Kawaii
https://kawaiitimes.com

12. Theme Candy
Baggies with starburst candies and a label:
These Meal Replacement Units
are 100% Adaline Approved!
Adaline, a novel by Denise Kawaii
https://kawaiitimes.com
Surely this cute little chocolate-and label
combo (two Hershey’s nuggets, a sticker and a
ribbon on top, and a card on the bottom) here is
a thousand dollar idea

13. Promoting Online: Amazon
Amazon to do List:
Make sure all the book’s details are correct.
Make an Amazon Author Page at Author Central.
Set up Search Inside the Book
Tag the page with the best tags in your opinion
Check the ebook’s page and tag it as well
Gather reviews and tags
Create Amazon Listmania, So You’d Like to…
Try Amazon Kindle Select Program
Check other sites like Amazon.co.uk and .eu
Amazon Author Central
Set up a profile if you haven’t at https://authorcentral.amazon.com
“Add” all your books.
Post the best snippets in “Editorial reviews” as you get them
Post an author bio, photo, book trailers, and author events.
Link the page to your twitter, website, and blog.

14. Be Bold!
Shortly after the release of Ashes, I learned that
Amazon was doing an online TV series based on
the novel The Man in the High Castle. I went back
into my description of From the Ashes and added
the following sentence: “Fans of Philip K. Dick’s
The Man in the High Castle and Robert Harris’s
Fatherland will want to read this new voice in
alternate history.” By the following week, my daily
sales for this book had gone from single digit to
double digit

15. Blog!
 Several months before releasing my NA romance The Nanny with the Skull
Tattoos, I knew I needed to make a splash. Aside from the usual teasers, I
thought it’d be cool to create these little segments on my blog called Max’s
Hacks and Savannah’s Manners. Max’s Hacks shared useful tips for twenty-
somethings, things like “The Single Parent’s Guide to Surviving College.”
Savannah’s Manners taught people how to not be judgmental jerks with
guides such as “When People Ask About Your Tattoos.” They were fun little
character guest posts and super easy to write.
I also set up a rewards system to boost the book’s adds on Goodreads.
For every goal we met, I posted a special treat for my readers, with a
full list of each incentive on my blog. When we hit 100 adds on
Goodreads, for example, I wrote Max and Savannah’s first kiss from
her point of view. People really liked it and I hit over 100 adds in no
time before the book even released. Later on, I used the same method
to collect reviews on Amazon—which also worked really well!

16. Free KDP
I earned myself 4,700 downloads during
my KDP free days (on a book with only one review).
I joined Doctor Who fan groups and self-promo
groups: Google Plus, Goodreads, Facebook, Tumblr.
On Twitter I asked top Doctor Who posters to retweet
to their fangroups…it worked!
Doctor Who: The What Where and How #free Nov 21-
25 #freekindle
http://www.amazon.com/Doctor-Who-The-What-Whereeb
/ #ebook #freeebook #DoctorWho #DoctorWho50th

17. You Need Events!
Book’s Release
KDP Free Days or Sales (ask your publisher)
Goodreads Giveaway
Holidays: Mother’s Day, Talk like a Pirate Day,
historical event, December, Cyber Monday, Superhero
Saturday, Free Comic Book Day, (#mothersday,
#FCBD)
Television season, movie release (built in hashtags)

18. Social Media Hashtags
Twitter, Instagram, and Tumblr do hashtags so you can
advertise to the world. Follow me on @valeriefrankel and watch
Then ask for reposts – send messages to fan groups.
 How #GameofThrones Will End #audiobook #sale $1.95 #kindle sale $3.82
http://www.amazon.com/How-Game-Thrones-Will-End/dp/B00S6T5FIO/
#GameOfThronesSeason5 #GoTSeason5 #HBO
 #free #giveaway Empowered The Symbolism Feminism & Superheroism of
#WonderWoman
https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/135700-empowered-the-symbolism-feminism-and
#superheroes #SuperHeroSaturday
 The #Avengers Face Their Dark Sides: All the #eastereggs & analysis #FreeKindle
http://www.amazon.com/Avengers-Face-Their-Dark-Sides-ebook/dp/B00WCLEGDW …
#StarWarsDay #Maythe4thBeWithYou #kdp #AvengersAgeOfUltron
 Here's a list of FIFTY #eastereggs in #Avengers #AgeOfUltron #AgeOfUltronSpoilers
https://valeriefrankel.wordpress.com/2015/05/01/30 #FreeComicBookDay #FCBD2015 #ya

19. Social Media Groups
Facebook and Google Plus do groups and fanpages –
can you find preexisting ones?
Author Promo groups
Free stuff groups
Theme groups – steampunk, fantasy, fans of __
Repost and repost:
 Celebrate Avengers: Age of Ultron weekend plus Free Comic Book Day! My book The Avengers Face Their Dark
Sides: Mastering the Myth-Making behind the Marvel Superheroes will be FREE on KINDLE from TODAY-
Mon. http://www.amazon.com/Avengers-Face-T...
Ask friends to repost here too.

20. Promoting Online: Goodreads (also
Shelfari and LibraryThing)
 Make your profile
 Add some friends off Facebook, email, or other social media
 Add all your books with covers, tags, and detailed info
 Add your book to appropriate lists like, in my case, “What to read after The Hunger
Games.”
 Ask reviewers to post their reviews on Goodreads—many do anyway.
 Link Goodreads to your Facebook page and “like” the book there.
 Post the ebook and make the first 20% free to read
 Add your video trailer to your profile page
 Search for and join “self promotion” groups or “author” “like on Amazon” “Tag on
Amazon.” and “reviewer” groups and post your announcement, request for reviewers, and
any giveaways or events. Make sure to follow the directions.
 Search for and join target audience groups like YA readers or horror novel fans. Post your
announcement or join in discussions.
 Post a few chapters in the “Writing” section
 Link your blog to the page so it shows up on Goodreads
 Do a giveaway and post it to social media
 Post a signing or other public event
 Make a quiz on your topic

21. Branch Out…
Be a guest on Second Life
Podcast your work.
Be a guest on someone else’s podcast. Research
the web either by searching your genre on Google,
iTunes, or trying a site like Blog Talk Radio. Podcast
producers are always looking for guests. If you are a
Horror writer, email us at HorrorAddicts@gmail.com
Guest blog.

22. …Book trailers!
Book trailers have become standard
operating procedure for many publishers and
authors and, on the highest level, can rival their
movie brethren for creative engagement,
product enhancement and just plain fun.
You can go in depth about your projects,
give your audience a behind the scenes glimpse
of your creative process, interview friends and
collaborators, show the secret life of your
cats... Whatever floats your boat.
Check out your favorite author on YouTube,
or even look at my humble offerings... My
author interview program, ACTIVE VOICES
and my rambling moving review feature,
SEVEN MINUTE TAKES, both under my
YouTube Channel, jasons@criticstudio.com

23. Promoting Online: More to Try
Blog and Guest Blog
Post on Forums and Chatrooms
Many book sites will let you post a link, chapters, trailer,
and so forth, or add tags and ratings to your book.
Send free press releases
Sell copies on Ebay (keywords are everything!)
Twitter, Facebook, etc: Basically you should post book
releases, giveaways, contests, awards, promotions, happy
moments, and everything else in appropriate
groups/hashtags and on your page.

24. For these tips and more, try my free ebooks,
Free Guide to Self-Publishing and Book Promotion:
Inside Secrets from an Author Whose Self-Published Books
Sold in Thousands and Self-Promo Stories
by Valerie Estelle Frankel
at
Smashwords.com
or
Vefrankel.com