Market My Novel

Scores of authors have moved their newsletters into the cost-effective electronic era. Unfortunately, not all of them create quality, unique copy to keep fans from caring if it goes straight to SPAM.

Electronic newsletters, or eLetters, should be concise, include promotional items as well as personal thoughts and content unique to you as a writer. They should be no more than a single-spaced Word page, with a double space between paragraphs. Arial 12 point is a nice, clean font that translates well on screen, and is a better choice that the standard Times New Roman. 

Your eLetter is an excellent venue to promote your latest work, book signings and speaking engagements. To keep the fans reading, offer up a regular contest feature where they can win freebies, including a book and swag like bookmarks, postcards and pens. (Readers LOVE freebies. The popular site Author Island employed this marketing tool to gain thousands of hits a day.) Also include personal notes to readers. Maybe you share a short paragraph about being a newlywed writer, or a new mother trying to find time to continue your serial police procedural. Whatever you decide, speak from the heart. That will reach readers more than any bullet point list. Some authors also include kudos from fans they recently received.

Many authors like to include graphics – especially ones with animation. Just remember that too much of a good thing can make your newsletter appear garish and sophomoric. Keep graphics to a minimum and make certain they are small in resolution. There are still thousands of dial up users out there, and huge graphics don't translate well on that slow connection speed.

At the end of each edition, include a short sentence with the originating email address, and ask your readers to put you in their address book. Give them a way to update their email information, or cancel their free subscription. And always, always have at least two other people proof your eLetter before it goes out.

Austin Camacho is by far the best eLetter writer I have come across. The author of the Hannibal Jones PI crime serial is in constant touch with readers about what's next for his character, an updated book signing schedule and short musings about life. His letter works because it blends personal notes with marketing news, and arrives like clockwork each month.

Urban fantasy author Jeanne C. Stein also offers up a fun newsletter titled, "The Jeanne Stein Irregular!" She has a short and effective sign up form on her Web site. There are many other ways to sign up fans. Have a sign up sheet at autograph sessions. Allow readers to join a listserv or email to receive your newsletter via your Web site, Facebook, MySpace, Ning or AIM Pages. Tell people about it in online groups, or make the sign up part of your signature line. Direct readers who send you kudos to your newsletter link, along with a short note of appreciation for their support and kind words. Print postcards or business cards with sign up information. Also, keep the eLetters archives on your Web site. You can always refer back to previous items in new missives, which will in turn drive more traffic to your Web site, group, or blog.

eLetters should be fun, informative and short. Write a few different versions and share them with trusted friends, readers and writers. Take their feedback and use it to help you discover the eLetter format works for you.

Copyright 2008 Angela Wilson