Market My Novel

I've seen some amazing faux pas from authors in recent weeks. Some
are annoying, but harmless; others are a marketing and branding
catastrophe just waiting to happen. This week, I will share with you
some etiquette tips to help you navigate the sometimes tricky waters of
bad book reviews, approaching media and making friends with strangers
online. If you have an etiquette question you want answered, submit it.

I can never talk about proper attribution enough.

So many people do not understand how to give someone credit for what they wrote, said or shared. As a former journalist, it is a serious pet peeve to see people misuse someone else's items.

On Twitter, Facebook diva Mari Smith posted something with a link that got a reTweet. Unfortunately, the RT'er took out Smith's link and inserted their own. Smith was quick to tell everyone via Twitter what the person did, as well as sharing their Twitter handle.

This is a big No-No. If you have a link to something similiar, give the fellow Tweeter props with a reTweet, then post a separate Tweet with your own. Likely they will give you credit with an RT – and you just might make a new contact for business.

Some authors are so excited with a great review or interview that they copy and paste VERBATIM the piece to their Web site. They post the publication name and date, as well as the reviewer's name – but no direct link to the review. Nonprofits are notorious for doing this with news articles about their key advocacy topics.

No. No. NO. This is NOT proper at all. You might think it is OK, since you have the date and publication name, but it isn't. Not in today's plugged in society. The proper way to share a story or review is this:

• Give a short sentence of introduction.
• Share a short paragraph or quote from the review or interview.
• Give the direct link to the reviewer or interviewer's post.
• Ask people to leave comments if they have time.

You always want to drive traffic to the person who loved your work, or took the time to interview you. It is not only polite and proper, but opens up their publication to your audience – something they will heartily appreciate. 

Think of it this way: What if someone reprinted your book in full on Scribd.com or another site where fans could access it for free? You would certainly be angry and take legal action. Why shouldn't these publications do the same against you?

For Market My Novel, I allow partial reprints, but never full reprints. Folks can use a portion of my original copy with a link back to this site. For me, it isn't just about proper attribution and driving traffic to Market My Novel. It is about controlling my content in the most effective way possible. I want to know where everything is and how it is being used. If I track my work, then I can immediately find out when someone has taken my work as their own, or who have taken my words out of context.

Now, what if your items are not available online, whether it is a print publication, or readers need a subscription? You can still tell your readers and fans about the story and give the publication date. Typically, you can even use a quote or two from it – as long as you attribute it to the publication. Just because it isn't online, though, does not give you the right to reprint in full. In fact, some publications – including online publications – have strict reprint policies. You could very well violate their policy – and get into a world of legal hurt that could forever damage your reputation.