Ramp up your social media presence

Ideally, you’ve been communicating regularly with your audience, on a schedule that fits in comfortably with the rest of your obligations. Leading up to your launch, you’ll want to increase the frequency of communication. If you send a quarterly...

Take advantage of short-lead press opportunities

This is one place a public relations specialist can really help, because that person has already established contacts with newspaper editors, book reviewers, TV and radio personalities, podcasters, and others who can help get the word out about your book. A PR...

Implement your pre-launch sales strategy

content to come… Selling your book before it is officially published can be tricky; you might want to get expert advice before implementing this strategy. A few things to be aware of: If you’re shooting for best-seller status, be very careful. In some...

Schedule social media updates for launch week

There will be lots going on during launch week, so write and schedule your social media updates ahead of time. You can use a social media management dashboard like Hootsuite to pre-schedule Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram posts. Write them, load them up, and set up a...

Apply for contests and awards

How important are awards? Well, it’s a thrill to receive one, no matter where it comes from. Be aware, though, that there are awards and there are awards. In some cases, they’re little more than scams that take your money (in the form of entry fees) and...

Set up your author accounts

Amazon and Goodreads (which is owned by Amazon) are two places your book should be listed, and you’ll need to set up an account at each one. Why Amazon? Even if you hate Amazon, as many authors do, it will be your single largest sales channel. You’d be...

Update your website

There are some basics (like your author bio and media kit, info about your book, a sign-up for your mailing list) that should already be on your author’s website. But there are also some updates to make before your book comes out: Switch your landing page — the...