{"id":8578,"date":"2019-10-17T01:05:28","date_gmt":"2019-10-17T08:05:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thewritespot.us\/marlenecullenblog\/?p=8578"},"modified":"2019-10-16T19:07:09","modified_gmt":"2019-10-17T02:07:09","slug":"bookstagrammers-influeners","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thewritespot.us\/marlenecullenblog\/bookstagrammers-influeners\/","title":{"rendered":"Bookstagrammers & Influeners"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Hello from Marlene, host of The Write Spot Blog<\/a>,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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I originally read the post below by Julie Valerie<\/a> on Anne R. Allen\u2019s Blog with Ruth Harris<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today\u2019s guest blog post is longer than my usual posts. Take it in small bites. There is a lot of content here. All good stuff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I learned so much I didn\u2019t know about things such as bookstagrammers and influencers (the book kind).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Guest Blogger Julie Valerie:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From Book Blog to Book Deal<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Julie asks: Does a book blog still land a book deal?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of course they do. Great writing and great content will\nalways find an audience, and where there\u2019s an audience, especially a sizable\none, there\u2019s typically a book deal waiting to happen. Think Julie Powell,\nCandice Bushnell, Jen Lancaster, and Jenny Lawson.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not to mention, entire empires (with books launched along\nthe way), have been built on the humble foundations of blog sites that just\nwouldn\u2019t quit. Think ProBlogger\u2019s Darren Rowse and Content Marketing\nInstitute\u2019s Joe Pulizzi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Getting Visible is an Uphill Battle \u2013 Bookstagrammers and\nInfluencers<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For published and unpublished writers, whether\ntraditionally-published, hybrid, or self-published, it\u2019s often an uphill battle\nto garner attention for our work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Working with influencers such as book reviewers,\u00a0bookstagrammers<\/a>, and book bloggers is an excellent way of reaching both a wider audience as well as an audience that may lead to signing with an agent or landing a traditional book deal. (If this is something you are seeking, not all authors share the same goals.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many authors invest considerable time networking with book\ninfluencers. Some have worked to build influence and audiences for their work\nby becoming professional book reviewers, bookstagrammers, and\/or book\nbloggers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Julie is one of those authors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How Her Book Blog Worked For Julie<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Though I do work closely with bookstagrammers now that the\nfirst book in my Village of Primm series is releasing with Lake Union\nPublishing December 2019, I do not have professional experience as a\nbookstagrammer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Note from Anne R. Allen:<\/strong> Bookstagram is a\nbook-related platform on Instagram. Here\u2019s more info on becoming a bookstagrammer<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Back to Julie:<\/strong> As a former book-reviewing book\nblogger, I reviewed 200+ books in my genre while writing my debut novel,\nseeking an agent, and signing with a publisher.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Technically speaking, I was not \u201cdiscovered\u201d solely because\nof my book blog, though many authors have been. I did, however, cite my work as\na book reviewer and book blogger in the query letter that ultimately led to signing\nwith my agent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And I believe the body of work I produced on my blog over\nthe course of many years helped with that. So did the audience I built and the\nnetwork of fellow writers I nurtured, as well as the market research and\nknowledge I acquired reviewing 200+ books in my genre. They helped to\nstrengthen my credentials as an author in today\u2019s competitive book publishing\nindustry\u2014whether I had pursued a traditional or indie path toward publishing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I signed with an agent who sold my women\u2019s fiction series to\na publisher based on the merits of the manuscript, at the time, I was an\nunpublished writer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Having that book blog demonstrated I could meet deadlines,\nproduce a lot of writing on a timely schedule, and sustain a writing life that\nnot only built readership (very important) in advance of the first book, but\nalso one that built relationships with other writers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When You Have to Step Aside from Your Book Blog<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately, I had to give up my book blog in 2016. The\ndevelopment of the Village of Primm series, coupled with the launch of\nthe 85K Writing Challenge<\/a>, led to a redesign of my work life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I miss my book blogging days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But I do produce steady content for my author site at julievalerie.com<\/a>, including\na monthly author newsletter, and I will continue to do so for as long as I\u2019m in\nthe industry. I feel it\u2019s a necessary part of conducting business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why Bother with a Blog or Website?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are many benefits of hosting your content on your own\nwebsite. One, unlike content shared on social media, what you write on your\nsite isn\u2019t fleeting and isn\u2019t bound by the rules of someone else. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Two, you own that content \u2013 not so with content published to\nFacebook, Instagram, and Twitter. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And three, as long as you keep your domain name and web\nhosting services active, no one can pull the plug on what you want to present\nto the world. Your author site is your space, your portfolio, your home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re pursuing a publishing contract, be mindful of\ncopyright law before publishing excerpts of your unpublished work. A publisher\nmay consider what you post as already \u201cpublished\u201d and in the public domain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Was book reviewing and book blogging a lot of work? Yes, it\nmost certainly was.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Was it worth it in the end? Absolutely. But enough about me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s Talk about You<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m here to share a broad overview of the \u201cinfluencer\u201d\nsector of the publishing industry so that you can decide how best to proceed\naccording to your goals. Who knows where your work in this sector of the book\nindustry might lead you?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Are you interested in reaching readers, building name\nrecognition, increasing awareness of book titles, and driving sales? Of course,\nyou are. Who wouldn\u2019t be? But how does an author do that? Let\u2019s drill\ndown, starting with why any of this should matter to you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Should You Start a Book Blog or Become a Bookstagrammer?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

What are the benefits of working with or becoming a book\nblogger or bookstagrammer who posts book reviews?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Though the what, the why, and the how of book reviews,\nbookstagram, and book blogs differ slightly, what they all have in common is\ntheir exceptional ability to reach an author\u2019s end consumer, whether that end\nconsumer be agents, publishers, other industry professionals, or the most\ncoveted end consumer of all: readers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many authors have enjoyed careers that skyrocket after\nreceiving coverage in the book review, bookstagram, and book blog ecosystem.\nAnd many writers, while writing their first novel, have gained meaningful\naccess to the book industry through their work as a book reviewer,\nbookstagrammer, and\/or book blogger.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Book reviews, bookstagram, and book blogs are important\nconstituents within the book industry because they offer authors the opportunity\nto attract attention that:<\/p>\n\n\n\n