After four long years of writing during my sons’ naptimes, I finally finished my book. And well, it was kinda anti-climactic. So I was done. Hooray for me. Now what was I going to do with it? I simply couldn’t imagine not getting it published. But I’d been researching, learning about authors who had spent months of time—and who knew how much money on postage—contacting agents and collecting rejections.

Book dealers want to hear about new books and new voices they believe will sell.

Little known fact about me: I’m not so good with rejection. And I wasn’t too enthused about the idea of waiting a veritable eternity for that fateful, beautiful, pivotal moment when my manuscript found its way into the hands of an agent who loved it, and who would later manage—with no trouble at all—to sell it. No, no, no. I was impatient and eager and very, very naïve. Still, I was willing to learn; in fact, my first order of business was Googling “self-published” “romance” to find any who had gone before me, publishing a romance novel all on her own. I found Sheri Cobb South, most recently the author of The Cobra And The Lily, and she referred me to The Complete Guide to Self- Publishing by Tom and Marilyn Ross, at the same time confiding that while self-publishing could be a daunting (and expensive) task, it was one of the most satisfying things she’d ever done.

Well I was in. And my husband was unceremoniously yanked in with me. Between the two of us, we handled everything, from cover design and layout, ISBN registration, website design (for both author and press sites), and final edits. When everything was perfect (or so we imagined) we set the publication date ahead four months, based on the lead time for major review venues, and I sent out galleys. My options were somewhat limited, as not all of the "biggies" will review self-published works, but out of the six galleys I sent out, my novel Unladylike Pursuits was reviewed by three: Booklist (a coup!), Affaire de Coeur (also very respectable), and All About Romance (a romance review website), all quite favorably.

After that…well, I certainly won’t say it was easy, but at least it wasn’t quite so hard. You see, as a well-reviewed author, I had achieved a certain level of credibility and respectability, and I know that made a difference in the success of my book. When approaching distributors, I highlighted the reviewer’s positive comments, presenting myself as a publishing professional with a marketable product to sell. While it might have been to my advantage to approach these booksellers and distributors months before the publication date, allowing me to generate an early buzz about my book, at the time, I had nothing to buzz about (no author endorsements, no published reviews, a new name and a new press), so I waited.

If I’ve learned one thing as an author/publisher thus far, it’s that time is of the essence. You only have a little window of time to get premium hype for your book, and it just so happens that window falls before the book is even released. After that, you’re pushing your months-old book into retailers who would rather look at anything more recent and, in truth, are already planning for releases coming up months from now.

So suddenly you’re a saleswoman (man), with the task of hyping yourself and your work. But truly, it’s not as bad as it sounds. Book dealers want to hear about new books and new voices they believe will sell, and they like to hear directly from the author. Email, I’ve found, has yet to make its mark on the book industry. You’ll get better results and more enthusiasm with a face-to-face meeting or even with a phone call.

In promoting Unladylike Pursuits, I approached my local bookstores and suggested they consider carrying my book, at the same time indicating interest in setting up a book signing. I queried management at local discount retailers to find out who supplies their books, then followed up with phone calls to their supplier’s regional representatives. I sent information packets to libraries, suggesting my book might enhance their romance collection. I pre-called out-of-town bookstores weeks before I planned to be in town, asking if I might come by to sign stock—they all volunteered to order additional copies. I enhanced my book’s detail page on Amazon.com and B&N.com and encouraged readers to post their reviews.

Even though my book has been out since December 2004, I continue to pursue additional reviews from online sites, I try to maintain a presence on loops and in forums, and I dabble in whatever else I can think of in the hopes of getting my name "out there". That way I’ll become an author to watch and ensure that a good bit of the promotion is already done when my second book is released.

Name recognition is critical, but so is visibility. You could have the greatest book in the world, but if no one knows about it, or no one looks for it, your book won’t sell. And that’s the most crucial element in promotion: making the sale. You have to make sure it gets placed right in front of them. And unless you are one of the lucky few with a publisher-funded marketing plan, you need to find a way to do it yourself. Sure, go for the obvious: volunteer for bookstore signings, print up bookmarks, post your reviews wherever it’s appropriate, but take a chance on the long-shots as well: look for special venues and host a themed signing, write up a press release and forward it to local radio, TV, and print media, query your local library and suggest your book as a bookclub selection. Be creative, introduce yourself wherever you go, speak proudly of your work, and you’ll find readers.

Even if you decide to go the traditional route to publication, I would recommend The Complete Guide to Self-publishing to anyone searching for extra ideas. Not only is it a great resource for marketing tips and promotional opportunities, it is a wonderful reference manual, chock full of helpful tidbits designed to guide you through the publishing maze.

One more bit of advice… if you can get one, use another author’s endorsement. Glowing words of praise from a published author, quoted on the cover of your book, might be the difference in your book being set back on the shelf or carted eagerly off to the checkout counter. I haven’t tackled that one yet…but if I go into a third printing (remember, print quantities are vastly different in the self-publishing world), some of you may be hearing from me.

Alyssa Goodnight's debut novel, a Regency-set historical entitled Unladylike Pursuits, was released in December 2004.

Copyright © 2005 Alyssa Goodnight. All rights reserved. Used with permission.