6 Must-Know Book Marketing Basicx | Writing for Children with Karen Cioffi

As a children’s ghostwriter, I’ve written well over 300 stories for clients.

The thing I notice is that most of my clients don’t realize that simply writing a book doesn’t guarantee any sales.

It can be an excellent, high-quality book, but there are just too many books in cyber-space to be noticed. You’re just a tiny speck in the cyber sky.

So, what are some of the basic ways an author can bring attention to her book?

Let’s go over 6 of the basics.

The very first thing is to create a quality book.

This means the story, grammar, illustrations (if applicable), and front and back covers, must be quality.

It might be tempting to forgo editing or go with a less than quality cover, but if you’re investing your time and effort into a book, do it right.

You may need to invest some money to produce a professional looking book that’s a quality read, but it will be worth it.

You will want to be proud to be author of your book.

You should have an author website.

It doesn’t have to be a elaborate site or cost any money. You can create one yourself for free with sites like, Weebly, WordPress.com, GoDaddy, Blogger, Yola, and Wix. You can also do an online search to find others.

You can think of your website as your online home. It will be the home of your book.

It can be a simple website.

The site can simply have a Home page or landing page with your book, the book’s description, book reviews (if you have any), and an image of the book cover and possibly the back cover.

You’ll also need to link to where the reader can buy your book.

This is a super-simple site, but at least you’ll have an online presence for your book.

If you need help creating your site, look for a web designer just starting out or maybe someone you know of, or someone who does it in their spare time.

If you have multiple books, you’ll want to create a webpage for each one. So, be sure whichever website builder you use offers that feature.

Share your website.

Create little blurbs about your book and share (post) it on social media, linking back to your website.

It’s also a good idea to include an image of your book in the social media posts.

Videos are powerful.

Even if you have a one-page website, include a video on it.

A video helps people get to know you and your book. It can be a simple 60 to 90 second clip about your book, or why you wrote it, or if applicable, how it will benefit the reader.

You can use your webcam on your computer or your iPhone.

You might even upload the video to YouTube and your social networks.

Get reviews of your book.

Reviews are very powerful. They let people know that the book is a good read (hopefully it is). People buy books based on book reviews.

To find out how to get book reviews, check out Carolyn Howard-Johnson’s book: How To Get Great Book Reviews.

Taking advantage of these tips will help get your book noticed. They don’t guarantee sales, but without taking some form of book marketing action, you’re guaranteed not to sell any.

Get your book marketing strategy started today!