Marketing Monday - Alex J. Cavanaugh

To pilot the fleet’s finest ship…
Few options remain for Byron, a talented young man with a troubled past and rebellious attitude. Slated to train as a Cosbolt pilot, Byron is determined to prove his worth and begin a new life. Much to his chagrin, Bassa, the toughest instructor in the fleet, takes notice of the young pilot. As war brews on the edge of space, Byron requires a navigator of exceptional quality to survive. Bassa must make a decision that could well decide the fate of both men. Will their skills be enough as they embark on a mission that may stretch their abilities to the limit?

Sound familiar? Today I have another well-known writer in the blogosphere: Alex J. Cavanaugh, author of the science fiction adventure CassaStar.

How have you made use of your online connections to market CassaStar? Did you find that your blog or twitter played a bigger role?

I was prompted by my publisher to get my butt online! So I started blogging first and then Twitter. Blogging has definitely played a bigger part. Through several blogfests and challenges, I built up my readership. My blogging friends really cheered me on when I posted my cover art and book trailer, which was cool. Before the release date of CassaStar, I put out a call for help and was overwhelmed by the response! Nineteen bloggers hosted my book tour and another eighty-plus featured my book and trailer on release day. Reviews and guest post requests continue to come in, which helps keep momentum going.

What did Dancing Lemur Press do to help market your book?

They made the book available in print and all eBook formats, sent out tons of review copies, and did a huge mailing and emailing campaign. They’ve worked hard to get my books into Barnes and Noble and libraries.

Have you done any marketing and promotion in person (beyond anything the publisher might have arranged)?

Sadly, no. I’m not comfortable in front of people, so I’ve had to rely on the Internet to promote my book.

Do you think social networking is more effective for writers of science fiction? Have you connected with readers through your blog?

I think it’s effective for any genre. What blogging taught me was to look beyond my genre, though. I followed a lot of science fiction blogs in the beginning, but it was the readers who were attracted to my own blog that showed the most interest, and many of them didn’t read science fiction. CassaStar is low-tech and character-driven, so it appeals to a wider audience than pure science fiction. This is something I would’ve never discovered without blogging!


Thanks for sharing your experience, Alex! Lots of good insight, particularly for those of us who are tend to be a bit more introverted.

If you are a published author and you would like to share your experiences with marketing and promoting your book(s), I'd love to share your story! Please contact me at anpstevens [at] gmail [dot] com.

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Pay it forward

I've been thinking about writing this for quite a while now, and since Shelli at Market My Words is holding a contest for just this thing, I think it's time.

There are many people who have supported my writing: my husband, my kids, my friends and family, but there is one in particular to whom I am indebted.

When I finally decided to take my writing seriously, I joined SCBWI. I sent an email introducing myself to the regional leader and soon received a reply that put me in touch with the other SCBWIers in my city. They're all terrific, but one, in particular, has taken me under her wing and made me believe I can really do this writing thing.

That someone is Jen K. Blom, author of the soon-to-be-released Possum Summer. Jen took me in, sent encouraging words when I needed them, and gave me kind, but brutally honest feedback on my first novel. She sent gentle nudges, asking how the rewriting was going, and when it was (almost completely) rewritten, she read it again. She has helped me tweak my query letter and has been there with supportive words every time I've gotten frustrated. Without Jen's unfailing support, I would not be getting ready to query right now.

I am incredibly grateful to Jen, and I know I can never repay her. But I can pay it forward and provide the same support to others just starting their journey. I only hope I can be as helpful to others as Jen has been to me.

Who has helped you on your journey?

(If you're looking for the answer to last week's Fact or Fiction Friday: it was fact. We were unbelievably lucky to get home.)

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Super-Snooper Blogfest!

I think it's time I held a blogfest. I've participated in a few, but I haven't hosted one, yet. On March 2, we will have the Super-Snooper Blogfest!

What is that, you ask? Yesterday, I wrote about Sam Gosling's book, Snoop: what your stuff says about you. For the blogfest, you need to describe a setting that tells us something about your character's personality. Characters can be of any age, living in any time or place. But don't tell us about the character, tell us about his or her stuff. We'll get to know the character from what you write.

There will be prizes! I have a copy of Snoop that I will be giving away, so you can become a super-snooper in real life and apply it to your writing. If more than 30 people participate, I'll find a second prize, too (maybe I can convince Sam to sign a copy). So add yourself via the linky gadget below, grab the button, and spread the word!

UPDATE: If you're not quite sure what to write, you can find an example here.

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Snoop!

Have you ever walked into a room, looked around, and come away with an instantaneous first impression of the inhabitant? An impression that may have been modified a bit after meeting said inhabitant, but one that was probably at least partially correct? Welcome to snooping.

Most of us snoop, perhaps unintentionally, perhaps with purpose; with the help of Sam Gosling's book Snoop: what your stuff says about you, you can learn even more about people without even meeting them.

Okay, this sounds like fun, but what does it have to do with writing? First, it's a well-written and highly entertaining book (I missed my stop when I was reading it on the bus). Second, if you know what someone's stuff says about them, you can sneak all kinds of great information about your character's personality into your novel. Your audience will come away 'knowing' the character, but they won't know why they know what they do.

Sam uses the Big Five personality traits in his work: openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism. You can probably identify where people you know fit into a big five personality profile. Extraverts thrive on contact with other people (I think of them as friend-collectors). People who are conscientious buy more of something before it runs out, are punctual, etc.

Now think about the characters in your story. What would their personality profile look like? Does their profile fit their profession? Introverts don't usually make good salespeople, so you may find that you need to rethink your character's personality, so that it matches their profession. Or perhaps you deliberately want to find an unusual combination for your story (the extroverted truck driver who uses his CB radio--do they still use those?--to chat with anyone and everyone on the stretch of highway).

And to add another layer of believability, what would this person's stuff say about them? If you describe a large music collection that contains everything from the Beatles to Mozart to Tool to Lady Gaga, the readers will know (although they won't know how they know) that the character is open to new ideas and experiences. See how that works? Pretty cool, huh?

And guess what? I happen to have an extra copy of Sam's book. I don't need two, so I'm going to give one away!  Details will be up tomorrow.

Where do you like snooping best? Medicine cabinet? Kitchen? Office?

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